Global Awakening: Apocalypse Ender's Chronicle

Shane squinted his eyes as he heard Cloud's warning… He was only a bit surprised and he wasn't shaken by the news.

Instead, he even smiled after hearing this warning.

"Good... I want to smack your heads for bringing the horde here. If I didn't return in time, I'm sure that this Shelter would be long gone." Shane softly muttered as he saw the Zombies reaching out of the pitfalls.

He then stepped forward as he decided not to wait for them… It was also better if they saw him first so they wouldn't target other people in the estate.

His eyes narrowed as he observed the three figures that had once been human. Now, they were something else—Survivor Zombies.

The Survivor Zombies stood out starkly against the lesser undead; they were larger, and their frames are towering and quite muscular with their rotten flesh.

Their skin was taut over bulging muscles, and black veins protruded like twisted vines. Their eyes, once perhaps bright with life, now glowed with a feral hunger… Nonetheless, Shane could tell that these Zombies weren't just moving in instinct.

These were not the mindless zombies he was used to; there was a cunning behind their eyes, a remnant of intelligence that made them all the more dangerous.

Raarrgh…

The three of them growled as they saw Shane approaching them.

They stood taller than the average Zombie, their bodies mutated and muscular, exuding an aura or, perhaps, the stench of death!

Shane turned to Cassius and Mara, their eyes were already fixed on the new threat.

"Stay back," he instructed, his voice was firm. "I'll handle this alone."

At this time, Shane lightly touched his Shadowmeld Tunic, feeling the fabric merge with the darkness around him.

The tunic's special effect, Shadow Blend, activated after spending cloaking him in near-invisibility.

[ Shadow Blend: It allows the wearer to disappear into the shadows, becoming nearly invisible to the unsuspecting eye.

Cost: 15 Spirit Points/minute ]

Because it wasn't night yet, and only the fog and the shadows of the trees were making the place shadowy. However, with the help of the Shadow Blend skill, Shane's movement became unpredictable.

At this time, he also hastened his recovery… After all, he still suffered some injuries from those rushing zombies before.

His Enchanted Chitin Plate's effect activated, its regenerative power coursing through him, mending wounds and bolstering his defenses.

[ Regeneration: The plate slowly mends itself and also heals the wearer over time. Grants +5 Health Regeneration per minute.

Cost: 40 Spirit Points/minute ]

With Crawler's Grasp Gloves snug on his hands, Shane also felt more confident with the additional damage that it gives him.

Then, with the Shroud of Shadows Cape fluttering behind him, Shane momentarily disappeared from the sight of the zombies! This cape enhanced his stealth and speed, its Lesser Shadowmeld effect making him a wraith in the dim light!

The three Survivor Zombies were shocked as soon as Shane disappeared. They weren't able to react as if they were considering whether to look for him or just change their target.

However, as the Survivor Zombies tracked Shane's last known position, they felt the presence of another person behind them!

Shane moved with supernatural swiftness, darting between shadows, the cape and tunic rendering him like a phantom.

Ssaakkk~

He struck from the darkness, his hatchet finding its mark in the neck of the first Zombie, ice and fire erupting from the wound.

Boom!

The effects of the hatchet activated almost killing the first Zombie so easily! However, it barely survived, thanks to its really tough skin and muscles!

Nonetheless, with its neck barely hanging on, Shane knew that it could be easily killed later unless it had the power to regenerate itself.

Grrroowl~

The second Zombie turned, its enhanced senses picking up Shane's movement.

It lunged at him, but Shane's evasion was unparalleled, his form blending into the night. He countered with a powerful uppercut, the gloves adding devastating force to his blow, crushing the creature's jaw.

Bam!

Again, it wasn't enough to kill the Zombie. He wanted to follow it up with a killing blow but the third Zombie was already on him.

This Zombie's fists were like hammers.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

It tried to crush Shane's body, but he continuously failed and only hit the ground.

Shane just actually rolled away and some of the force that went to him was easily deflected. The chitin plate absorbing the impact of a glancing blow.

Shane then sprang up, utilizing his agility to increase his jumping strength and vault over the Zombie, landing behind it.

With a swift turn, he decapitated the Zombie!

He hit the perfect spot as the hatchet's enchanted edge sliced through the undead with ease.

[ You have eliminated a Survivor Zombie. ]

Shane then turned to the previous Zombie that he punched in the jaw…

It saw his arrival and the Zombie raised its arms in defense. It was something that not any zombie would do! However, this Zombie truly had some sort of instinct to protect its body, but the hatchet's enchanted edge was too sharp! It was then followed by ice spreading across the Zombie's flesh!

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Its hands were then shattered as Shane continued with his strike!

[ You have eliminated a Survivor Zombie. ]

That last Zombie whom he had almost killed was no longer an issue. With a swift movement and kick on its head, Shane ended its life.

The Survivor Zombies, for all their newfound power, could not match the agility and strength of Shane, empowered by his exceptional gear.

[ You have eliminated a Survivor Zombie. ]

As the last Zombie fell, Shane stood alone amidst the carnage; his breathing was still steady…

The Shelter was safe once more, and now it was time for him to loot all these zombies!

Before that, he quickly confirmed that everyone was fine… They only have light injuries and nothing serious.

Furthermore, Shane confirmed that they only have 19 bullets left, according to Anna.

'Let's hope that the store would sell them… Or maybe I can do some trade with the other Survivors.' Shane mused as he knew that there should be other Survivors stacking up the bullets whenever they appeared in the Survivor Store.

"Alright… I'll be looting all the Zombies for now. Take a quick rest, and once I'm done, we'll start the reconstruction of the fence and the traps." Shane said.

Gene and the others agreed as they certainly felt really tired after they had calmed down. They all went to the church to have a quick rest and also to clean themselves.

In the meantime, Shane started to loot the Survivor Zombies.

Shane liked looting Survivor Zombies among all other zombies because of an obvious reason, he gets the chance of looting their skill and their talent!

It was something that other Survivors couldn't do. Perhaps they only had a 0.1% chance of looting it if he could see their drop rate!

However, because of Shane's talent, this drop rate doesn't matter to him!

His Complete Loot Talent guarantees that he'd get all the lootable items of his target!

[ Do you want to retrieve the loot? ]

"Yes…"

[ You have earned 30 Experience Points. ]

[ You have earned 1 Reputation Point. ]

[ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Cores, 500mL Water, 5 Bread, Taunt Skill, Athletic Leg Talent ]

[ You have reached the limit of Survivor Talents. Athletic Leg Talent ( Uncommon ) was not added. ]

[ Do you want to remove one of your current Survivor Talents to accommodate the Athletic Leg Talent? ]

[ Hint: You can only have 4 Survivor Talents, but you can check the Reputation Store occasionally, and perhaps you'll find a Talent Expansion Pack! ]

"No…" Shane answered since he didn't want to replace any of his talent for having a talent for running or jumping.

Anyway, the Taunt Skill doesn't seem to be bad since he would need this when saving people. Although he wanted his subordinates to be strong and no longer needed to be saved, it was better to have this skill so he could use it in case necessary.

Then, he turned his attention to the second Survivor Zombie.

[ You have earned 30 Experience Points. ]

[ You have earned 1 Reputation Point. ]

[ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Cores, 500mL Water, 5 Bread, Lockpicking Skill, Shapeshifter Talent ]

[ You have reached the limit of Survivor Talents. Shapeshifter Talent ( Rare ) was not added. ]

[ Do you want to remove one of your current Survivor Talents to accommodate the Shapeshifter Talent? ]

[ Hint: You can only have 4 Survivor Talents, but you can check the Reputation Store occasionally, and perhaps you'll find a Talent Expansion Pack! ]

"What?" Shane's eyes widened as he saw the Shapeshifter Talent… This was definitely tempting!

After all, Shapeshifting sounded awesome when doing covert operations…

However, the fact that it was only a Rare Talent made Shane think twice about it. If it was a Master Grade or even Epic Grade, then the Shapeshifting powers of this talent must be incredible. As for Rare Grade, it shouldn't be that effective.

In the end, Shane decided not to replace his Traceless Breath talent.