Zombie Domination-Chapter 62- Try

Julian stepped out of the hideout, his senses sharpened. "The western gate is closest," he muttered to himself, then activated his skill.

With a crackle of energy, his body surged forward in a flash of lightning, cutting across the silent ruins.

Julian scanned the area carefully, his eyes narrowing as he crouched behind a broken wall. The wind carried a faint scent of chemicals, remnants of the gas that had changed everything.

Dozens of figures stood in eerie silence, perfectly aligned in straight rows. Their movements were rigid, mechanical. Their eyes, those glowing, crimson eyes, stared blankly ahead, awaiting orders like puppets without strings.

Julian’s jaw tightened.

"They’re being controlled... completely," he muttered under his breath.

Then, he spotted familiar faces.

Mira... and Cassian.

But they weren’t alone. Standing between them was a towering man with a rugged, muscular build, clearly the one giving orders. Julian narrowed his presence, melding into the shadows using his skill, silently slipping closer.

He watched from concealment as the man commanded the infected like pawns, sending them to clash against a fresh swarm of zombies. The infected tore through the horde with reckless aggression, each wound they received quickly regenerating as if nothing had happened.

Julian’s gaze moved to Mira. Once cheerful and timid, now she fought with a manic smile. The faint light she used to generate from her hands had transformed, now it pulsed with lethal energy, exploding on impact. Each blast turned zombies into scorched remains, her laughter echoing through the chaos.

Cassian was more composed, cold and efficient. His former skill, Precision, had evolved, his strikes now sliced through steel and flesh alike. Calm and silent, he carved a path of destruction with surgical brutality.

The commanding man clicked his tongue in disappointment.

"This is too easy," he said with a grunt. Stepping forward, he lifted his hand, and the ground rumbled.

His skill, [Earth Command], manipulated the terrain itself. Spikes of stone erupted beneath the zombie horde, impaling them in rapid succession. Within moments, the battlefield was silent again.

Still unimpressed, he turned his back.

"Clean the rest. I’m going back."

Mira let out another crazed giggle. "Gladly~"

Julian watched, his eyes grim.

That man... I need to find out who he is.

------×------

Back at the hideout, the group sat in a dimly lit room, the silence between them starting to stretch.

Clarissa crossed her arms, her brow furrowed. "Julian’s taking way too long..."

Veronica, ever composed and elegant, leaned back against the wall. "He’s probably still looking for a suitable body to bring back as a sample."

Emma tilted her head. "Wait... are all the infected different?"

Veronica gave a light shrug. "Possibly. Or maybe he’s just scouting for a new girl again."

Clarissa smirked. "Wouldn’t be the first time..."

Aya suddenly raised her voice, flustered. "Julian’s not like that!"

Veronica crossed her arms, leaning casually against the wall as she spoke with a faint smirk. "It’s possible, Aya. Maybe Julian’s out there doing what he always does... or maybe he found something else to keep him busy."

They all nodded in quiet agreement.

"Let’s just hope he comes back soon..."

Emma turned her attention to Celestia. "Anyway, he rushed off the moment he heard you were alone at the southern gate. He teleported there right away. But... you two were alone for a while. What happened?"

Veronica added with a sly smile, "Indeed. I’m quite curious as well."

For a moment, Celestia remained still. Her usually stoic face slowly turned crimson. She looked down and mumbled, "I... I did that with Julian..."

The entire room went silent for a second.

Emma grinned. "I knew it."

Veronica laughed softly. "So that’s why he was gone so long. Had to recharge first, huh?"

Clarissa nudged Celestia playfully. "Congrats."

Aya, her cheeks slightly pink, smiled awkwardly. "Welcome to the group..."

Celestia remained quiet, her cheeks still flushed with embarrassment, when suddenly the door creaked open.

Everyone turned their heads as Julian stepped into the room, casually carrying someone slung over his shoulder like a sack of grain. The figure was completely bound and wrapped, almost lifeless.

Clarissa blinked in surprise. "What is that?"

Julian walked to the center of the room and with a thud, dropped the body onto the floor. "Sample," he said plainly.

Veronica raised an eyebrow. "That sample looks like a mummy."

Julian cracked his neck slightly. "He wouldn’t stop thrashing around, so I wrapped him up to keep things simple."

Without another word, Julian grabbed the restrained infected and began dragging him toward the examination room.

Everyone just watched him in silence, the sound of the body sliding across the floor echoing faintly.

Inside the dimly lit room, Melinda sat on the floor, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees, eyes empty, lips trembling. The weight of Rodrick’s sacrifice still crushed her from the inside.

Rayden stood silently in the doorway, watching her for a moment before speaking.

"Enough mourning, Melinda. Don’t let Rodrick’s sacrifice be in vain."

But Melinda didn’t respond. She didn’t move. It was as if the color had drained from her world, nothing left but a silent, gray void.

Rayden sighed and stepped closer. "Take your time to process it. But when you’re ready... come find us. We still need your strength."

He turned and left the room quietly, the door closing behind him with a soft click. Outside, Naria stood waiting, arms folded as always.

"How is she?" she asked in her usual flat tone.

Rayden ran a hand through his hair and exhaled. "No change. Maybe I’m just bad at this kind of thing."

Naria blinked slowly. "That girl really are a useless medic."

Rayden chuckled dryly. "Be nice, Naria. Selena’s been through a lot. Grief doesn’t fade so easily... and honestly, I get it. Losing someone like that..."

Before he could finish, a small voice interrupted them.

"Captain.. Mr. Julian just brought the sample..."

They turned to see Rin standing nearby, her eyes red and swollen from crying.

Rayden straightened. "Finally, some progress."

He looked at Naria. "Quick, go get Clint."

Naria nodded. "On it, Captain."

The scene shifted to the dimly lit examination room. Inside, Julian, Rayden, Elien, and Clint stood around the restrained, a body of the infected specimen. Elien had already rolled up his sleeves, eyes focused, his gloved hands gently probing the subject while Clint assisted, scribbling notes and preparing instruments.

"I’m going to try something," he said flatly.

Clint looked up, confused. "What do you mean?"

Julian reached out, his gloved hand hovering over the infected’s chest. A faint purple glow began to pulse from his palm as he activated one of his more obscure skills [Domination].

The room tensed as a strange silence settled in. The glow deepened, and invisible waves of Julian’s energy flowed into the body before him. His eyes narrowed, focused, searching for a consciousness to connect with... a will to override.

But there was nothing.

Julian frowned. "No response..."

He tried again, this time more forcefully, pushing his skill deeper. Still nothing.

"...This isn’t normal," he muttered.

Rayden, who had returned quietly and stood watching from the doorway, raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Julian retracted his hand. "I couldn’t connect. It’s like there’s no mind in there. Either the virus itself is not alive, or worse, the infected are being controlled by something... or someone."

Clint stiffened. "You mean like... remote manipulation?"

Julian nodded slowly. "Possibly. That would explain why they move like puppets and why they regenerate as if they don’t feel pain or have self-preservation."

Rayden crossed his arms, deep in thought. "That also means whoever’s doing this has full control over their numbers. We’re not fighting mindless zombies anymore. We’re fighting an army."

Julian looked back at the motionless body on the table. "An army that can’t be dominated... that’s a problem."

Elien turned toward Julian, his expression calm but focused. "Clint and I will run a deeper analysis on this. Maybe there’s still something we can uncover."

Julian gave a slight nod. "Alright. I’ll leave it to you."

Julian crossed his arms, watching Elien in silence for a moment before speaking.

"I heard you used to teach Aya how to shoot arrow," he said. "So how did you end up becoming a medic?"

Elien didn’t look up, continuing his inspection. His voice was calm and steady. "Circumstance," he answered. "When the outbreak happened, everything changed. I had to adapt quickly. Claus got sick, something no one could explain. I wanted to help him... so I studied medicine, hoping I could be useful. And then... my skill awakened."

Rayden chuckled softly. "Mr. Elien is being modest. He’s the reason we still have half of our soldier alive. His ability to pull people back from the brink is something none of us can replicate."

Elien shook his head. "I’m not a miracle worker. I just do what I can. And I’ve learned a lot here. I’m still learning."

Julian nodded slowly, taking in the story with respect.

At the examination table, Clint frowned deeply as he ran a scanner over the infected’s body. After a tense silence, he muttered, "I can’t... Captain, I can’t save this one. The virus has already consumed him. It’s the same strain as the standard zombie infection, too far gone."

Rayden stepped forward. "There has to be a way, Clint. We can’t give up now."

Clint gritted his teeth. "It’s impossible," he said, frustration breaking into his voice. "I’m no savior, I couldn’t even save my own brother when he turned into one of them..."

Realizing his tone, Clint immediately dropped his gaze. "Sorry... I didn’t mean to shout."

Rayden offered a gentle nod. "It’s alright. I pushed too hard."

Clint opened his mouth to speak again, but Elien gently interjected. "It’s okay."

All eyes turned to him.

"It’s okay to feel that way," Elien continued, his voice calm and steady. "There were plenty of times I thought I couldn’t save someone. That I wasn’t good enough... because I’m not a god. I can’t bring back the dead."

He paused, placing a hand over the infected’s chest.

"But that’s exactly why I try. Even if I know I might fail... I still try. Because if I don’t try, I’ll never know if I could have saved them."

Clint looked at him, his eyes wide. Shame flickered across his face, shame at how quickly he’d been ready to give up.

All this time, he’d only seen the impossible. But now... something changed.

With a renewed fire in his eyes, Clint turned back to the body. "Let’s try again," he said.

Rayden and Julian exchanged a glance, satisfied.

Without another word, they stepped out of the room, leaving the two medics to their work. They knew the future might depend on what happened behind that door.