Horrific Shorts: Zombie Edition-Chapter 557: Story : The Horde Beyond the Barn

The ZETU convoy skidded to a halt on the outskirts of a derelict farm, where the setting sun cast an ominous red hue over the barren landscape. An old barn stood crookedly in the distance, its decaying wooden frame creaking with the wind. What was once a peaceful countryside was now overrun with shambling silhouettes, their distorted forms visible against the backdrop of the fiery horizon.

Captain Marcus Kane stepped out of the vehicle, his shotgun slung across his back. He motioned for the rest of the team to fan out. "Eyes sharp, people. This area is marked as a red zone. We're not here to admire the scenery."

"Yeah, no kidding," Jenna 'Blaze' Hart muttered, gripping her flamethrower tightly. Her eyes scanned the horizon. "Smells like something's already rotting out here."

As the team moved toward the barn, Riley 'Quick Shot' Bennett dropped to one knee, her sniper rifle trained on the barn doors. "Got visual on movement inside. Too many to count," she whispered into her comms.

"Confirmed," Lila 'Huntress' Navarro replied. She knelt beside Riley, dual pistols drawn. "Tracks lead straight into the barn. Looks like a mass gathering site."

"Not just any site," Ethan 'Brain' O'Connor's voice buzzed through their earpieces. "I'm picking up faint traces of radioactive material. The yellow vest zombies we've seen could be connected to a toxic spill in this area."

"Great," Derek 'Shield' Coleman grumbled, his shield at the ready. "Radioactive zombies. What's next, zombies with wings?"

The team approached cautiously, their boots crunching on the dry soil. As they neared the barn, the stench of decay grew unbearable. The groaning of the undead became louder, mixed with the eerie creak of the barn's weathered beams.

Marcus held up a fist, signaling a halt. "Riley, take the high ground. Jenna, be ready to torch anything that comes out. Lila, Derek—you're on crowd control. We go in clean and quick. No mistakes."

Riley scrambled onto a nearby silo, her scope trained on the barn doors. From her vantage point, she saw what they were up against. "Uh, Captain? You might want to rethink 'quick.' There's a swarm packed tight in there—easily over a hundred."

Marcus grimaced. "Plan B, then. We lure them out and take them down in the open."

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Jenna grinned, igniting her flamethrower. "Now you're talking my language."

Marcus kicked open the barn doors, revealing a writhing sea of zombies, their hollow eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. The sudden noise startled them, and the swarm surged forward like a wave.

"Now!" Marcus yelled.

Jenna unleashed a torrent of fire, creating a wall of flames that forced the zombies to bottleneck. Derek held the line, using his shield to block stragglers while Lila picked them off with precision shots.

Riley's sniper rounds rang out from the silo, taking down any zombies trying to flank the team.

But as the last of the barn's zombies fell, a deeper growl rumbled from within. Emerging from the shadows was a hulking figure—twice the size of a normal zombie, its body glowing with radioactive energy.

Marcus tightened his grip on his shotgun. "Looks like we've got a boss fight."