Zombie Domination-Chapter 70- Unlucky

Inside the hideout, the group gathered around the table, maps and blueprints spread out. The room buzzed with tension.

Lucia stood at the head, voice steady. "We don’t have time to waste. We’ll split into four teams, one for each gate."

She pointed at the western edge of the map. "Clarissa, Veronica, and Rin, you’ll handle the west gate."

Clarissa gave a firm nod. Veronica clenched her fists, silent but focused, while Rin adjusted her blade at her side.

"The north gate will be covered by Emma, Aya, and Melinda," Lucia continued.

Emma shared a glance with Aya, who still looked shaken but determined. Melinda stood tall behind them, already gripping her equipment.

"For the south gate, Rayden, Clint, and Celestia."

Rayden let out a short breath, adjusting his handglove. Clint loaded the final potion into his bag while Celestia checked the route they would take.

"And the east gate... will be me, Elien, and Naria," Lucia finished.

Everyone nodded in agreement. The plan was risky, but it was their only shot.

Elien turned toward Aya just before they moved out, his expression softer. "Aya, please be safe."

Aya’s eyes narrowed with resolve. "I will. No matter what, it’s a promise."

The air shifted, purpose replacing fear.

Everyone gathered their gear, and took one last look at each other.

Clarissa raised her hand. "Let’s finish this."

Lucia gave a final nod. "Move out!"

With that, the four teams split, each vanishing into the city in different directions, racing against time... and fate.

The western team, Clarissa, Veronica, and Rin, finally reached the gate, only to find figures already waiting for them in the clearing.

As the fog lifted, two familiar faces emerged from the gloom.

Clarissa froze. Veronica’s breath caught in her throat.

"Mira...? Cassion...?"

They stood before them, twisted reflections of the people they once knew. Mira’s long hair was now tangled and wild, her eyes vacant but twitching with unstable energy. Cassion’s once-calm demeanor had been replaced by an eerie grin, his jaw twitching as he stared straight through them.

Their bodies bore signs of mutation, black veins pulsing beneath pale skin, and their movements jerky like puppets yanked by invisible strings.

Julian had warned them. He told them what the virus had done to their allies. Still, seeing it with their own eyes shattered something inside.

"No way..." Clarissa muttered, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Mira... what did they do to you..." Veronica’s fists trembled, her voice breaking with fury and disbelief.

Then... a slow, heavy clapping echoed from behind the two puppets.

A man stepped forward.

Muscles coiled beneath his skin like tightly wound cords. His face was cut with old scars, his grin sharp and unhinged. Blood splattered across his sleeveless coat, and metal studs covered his fists like claws ready to rip.

He licked his lips and chuckled low, his eyes gleaming with savage joy.

"Ahhh, so you’re the little resistance team, huh? Cute."

Rin’s body stiffened instantly.

"T-that’s... Darius Velstain..." she whispered, stepping back instinctively.

The air around them turned heavy.

Clarissa, Veronica, and Rin instantly fell into battle stance, senses sharp.

Darius Velstain stretched his neck with a loud crack and grinned.

"So... will you three be fun to break, or just another disappointment?"

Suddenly, swarms of infected soldiers began emerging from behind him, shambling, twitching, some dragging weapons, others moving like rabid animals. The entire western gate was swarmed in seconds.

Veronica scoffed, spinning her blade with a smirk.

"Tch. Overwhelming us with numbers? That’s a bit cheap, don’t you think?"

She tapped the trigger on her wrist.

A split-second later, a thunderous launch echoed in the distance, from the central military core.

A shell rocketed into the sky, splitting into four glowing trails, each arcing in different directions. One of them shot toward the western gate. Within seconds, the canister struck the ground nearby and released a fine mist of glowing gas.

The infected soldiers around them inhaled it almost instantly.

One by one, they dropped.

Clutching their heads, twitching... then falling unconscious.

Rin’s eyes widened. "It’s working...!"

Clarissa exhaled with relief. "The antibody gas is effective. We’re good here."

At the northern gate, the same result. Emma, Melinda, and Aya watched as the gas swept over the infected troops. One by one, they collapsed, subdued by the antibody that coursed through their systems. Aya clutched her chest, eyes wide with relief.

At the eastern gate, the same success. Elien, Lucia, and Naria stood watching the infected collapse around them.

However, at the southern gate, Rayden stood casually with a confident grin.

"Any second now," he muttered, hands on hips. "Just waiting for our miracle gas."

But the seconds ticked on.

And on.

Still nothing.

"Uh... Clint?" Rayden blinked and glanced over. "Where the hell’s the gas?"

Clint was already typing into his tablet, frantic.

"I—I don’t know! The launch was successful. It should be here by now!"

Celestia stood silently, her eyes narrowing. The air around her felt tense. Off.

Then a voice rang out, low, mocking, laced with madness.

"Looking for this?"

They turned sharply.

From the top of a rusted vehicle nearby stood Hike, his eyes wide with twisted joy. In his hands, held casually like a toy, was the gas launcher.

Rayden’s jaw clenched. Clint’s face went pale.

Hike licked his lips and raised the device above his head like a trophy.

"Too bad. Looks like this little trick won’t save you this time."

At the western gate, the tension exploded into chaos.

Clarissa took position behind the front line, eyes glowing faintly violet as her telekinesis began to hum in the air. She spread out her hands, surrounding her allies with subtle, invisible threads of force, ready to shield or strike in a heartbeat.

Veronica surged forward, her massive gauntlets crackling with energy, while Rin, quiet but focused, moved beside her, twin short blades gleaming with a faint white hue.

No hesitation.

No words wasted.

Veronica activated her enchanter skill, channeling her energy into her allies. A shimmering aura coated Rin and Clarissa, strengthening their defenses and reflexes.

At the same time, Rin called forth her inner fire.

"[Flamesoul]," she whispered.

A white flame ignited around her and spread in three streaks, one to her, one to Veronica, and one to Clarissa. The flames didn’t burn; instead, they pulsed with warmth, forming living shields that glowed with healing light and subtle awareness, highlighting even the smallest enemy movement.

Rin glanced back calmly. "These flames will protect and heal. They also sense movement. Don’t waste them."

Veronica blinked, slightly caught off guard. "You’re a whole different person when we’re in combat..."

Across the battlefield, Velstain stood in front of the fallen infected troops, laughing with his arms outstretched.

"Haha! You little rats actually used your brains. But can that save you now?"

Behind him, Mira and Cassian, now pale and twisted from the virus, darted forward with unnatural speed. Their eyes were empty, soulless. They no longer held any recognition of the people they once called friends.

Rin’s hands tightened on her blades.

The two sides clashed.

Mira opened with her skill [Lightbloom] summoning radiant orbs of light that split into dozens of needle-like shards, all aimed toward Rin and Veronica.

Rin’s reaction was instant. Her blades sliced through the light one by one in a blur of motion, the white flames around her absorbing any stray sparks that passed.

Veronica gritted her teeth. "Enough games."

With a surge of her enchantment skill, her gauntlets surged with raw kinetic power. She launched forward like a battering ram, slamming into Mira’s defense and sending her stumbling backward.

But Cassian was already in motion. With his [Slash] skill, he spun through the air and brought down his blade toward Veronica’s blind spot.

Before the blade could reach her, Clarissa’s telekinetic shield flared. Dozens of metal shards she had prepared in advance shot forward, forming a shimmering barrier that absorbed the blow just in time.

"Focus, Veronica!" Clarissa shouted. "Don’t get cocky!"

Just then, Velstain grinned wickedly. He slammed his fists into the ground, activating his earth-based skill.

The terrain beneath them shuddered and warped, waves of broken earth surging forward.

But Rin stood her ground. Her eyes flashed with determination.

She leapt forward, cutting through the wave with a downward arc of white fire, the heat splitting the unstable terrain.

"Stay behind me!" she called out.

Velstain charged, his body covered in a layer of thick, jagged rock, his fists like stone hammers. He threw a punch at Rin, but she pivoted, slicing upward with both blades.

A deep gash formed across his armored arm but it didn’t stop him.

Behind them, Cassian leapt again, this time launching a ranged slash toward Rin from above.

She barely had time to react.

But then, Veronica moved.

She dashed between Rin and the oncoming strike, crossing her gauntlets just in time to deflect the air-splitting blow.

The ground cracked beneath her feet, but she held firm.

"Not on my watch," she growled.

At the northern gate, the thick green mist from the launched antidote had already begun to clear. Dozens of infected soldiers now lay unconscious on the ground, their breathing stabilized, safe.

Emma stepped forward, scanning the area cautiously with her rifle lowered but still ready. Beside her, Aya wiped her tears, forcing herself to stay focused. Despite everything, her hands didn’t tremble, her resolve now hardened like steel.

Then they saw them.

Three figures stood just beyond the pile of fallen soldiers, still conscious, still dangerous.

One of them stood stiffly like a statue, arms crossed, his body unnaturally solid. The other crouched low, long scarf fluttering behind him, his hair a mess from the breeze around him.

Melinda’s expression shifted as she recognized them. She took a cautious step forward and spoke quietly to the others.

"...That’s Gareth Windgale and Liam Ironholt."

Emma narrowed her eyes. "Wind and iron... great."

"They were part of the central squad. I remember seeing their names in the registry," Melinda added grimly. "Gareth uses wind-type mobility skills, fast and unpredictable. Liam’s ability is Ironbody. His defense is... insane."

Aya nodded, adjusting her grip on her blade. "Got it."

Emma glanced sideways at Melinda. "You okay?"

But Melinda didn’t answer right away.

She stood silently, watching Aya and Emma, then slowly clenched her fists.

’They’re still standing’, she thought to herself.

’Even when the person they care about is risking everything out there... they keep fighting. They trust him. They move forward.’

And she thought of Rodrick, his face flashed in her memory, like a wound that refused to close.

’Am I the only one who keeps breaking down? Am I the only one who can’t let go?’

But this time, she didn’t cry.

This time, she lifted her head and took a breath.

"I won’t let them go through the same pain I did."

She looked up at the sky, her eyes determined.

’That’s the duty of a medic... right, Rodrick?’

She said nothing aloud, but the fire in her heart finally lit again.

At the eastern gate, Elien, Lucia, and Naria stood in silence as the last of the infected soldiers collapsed one by one, the antidote working exactly as planned. The air began to clear, leaving only the sound of distant wind and the soft hum of machinery.

Then, from the far side of the open field, a mocking voice broke the quiet.

"Well, well..."

Marek stepped forward slowly, arms folded and a crooked grin on his face. "You’re quite impressive, I’ll give you that. To produce an antidote this fast... the General was right. You people are a problem."

Lucia’s brows furrowed at the insult. She stepped forward and pointed at Marek.

"No. You’re the problem. People like you, blindly following orders, destroying everything in your path."

Elien held out a hand to calm her, his voice steady but firm. "If the antidote worked here, that means it worked at the other gates too."

Naria gave a short nod beside him, her eyes scanning the unconscious bodies. "I hope the captain is okay..."

Meanwhile, at the southern gate...

Rayden stood in a half-crouch, scanning the still-standing soldiers ahead of him, unmoving, silent, and very much not unconscious.

His eyes widened as realization hit.

"...This is fucked"