Zane, with his sharp senses from surviving the zombie apocalypse, already picked up on human noises and a faint blood scent from inside the building. He wasn't sure what was going down in there.
His crew, smelling the action, charged towards the building like it was the last stronghold on earth.
Inside, sure enough, there were a bunch of survivors.
Over ten folks.
The crowd included some burly construction workers, a few shady characters, and the big boss of the construction site, Joe!
Joe was the big shot who had snagged Zane's industrial farms and floated him some cash, a real lifesaver.
When the apocalypse hit, Joe was on-site with his crew. Spotting the undead, he quickly got his team to whip up a concrete fortress.
That quick thinking kept them alive till now.
Joe was still running the show, with his right-hand man Loki, keeping a tight grip on some tough guys and construction workers.
"Mr. Joe, our scouts haven't returned," Loki reported, looking worried.
Joe was stressed too.
Even though they were safe in their fortress, they were running low on supplies and were starving.
"If push comes to shove, we might have to consider some... alternative food sources, just hoping we don't end up with prion disease."
"Boss, I think we're safe from that," chimed in a bespectacled woman next to him, Joe's brainy secretary.
"Prions only show up in dead bodies, so if we stick to the living, we should be good..."
"Mr. Joe, let me take a crew out to scavenge," Loki suggested.
Joe shook his head.
"No way, it's a jungle out there."
"Mr. Joe, chill. Back in my street fighting days, I could slice through three blocks with my eyes closed. These zombies are a cakewalk."
"You don't blink? Don't your eyes dry out?" Joe asked.
"...." Loki was at a loss for words. He's talking hardcore survival, and Joe's worried about dry eyes?
Right then, they heard engines roaring outside; someone was driving into the site.
Loki perked up.
"Mr. Joe, could be Ivan and the crew."
"Let's check it out, fast!" Joe was hopeful they might have snagged some grub.
Their fortress had a solid white steel gate with fist-sized vents not just for air but for peeping outside.
Joe and Loki peeked through.
The sight sent shivers down their spines—no sign of Ivan, just some gnarly zombies.
"Hehehehe~~~"
Zoe's creepy face filled the vent, her sinister smile inches away, looking downright spooky.
Zoe was getting antsy, clawing at the steel gate, her nails screeching against the metal, a sound that made everyone's skin crawl.
"Holy moly!"
Joe and Loki jumped back, nearly tripping over themselves.
"This... we've got zombies!"
"Don't sweat it, Mr. Joe, they can't break in," Loki reassured.
"Right."
Joe gave a nod. Even though this zombie was off the charts, their fortress was built like a tank—no way it was getting busted open.
"Bang!~~ Bang!~~~ Bang!"
Suddenly, the whole place started shaking with these massive thuds. It was Jake, throwing his weight around. Every punch he threw made the building quiver.
All the survivors huddled by the door, trying to catch a glimpse of the ruckus.
"Roar—"
Jake belted out a roar that could shake the heavens.
But even with his muscle, he wasn't making a dent in this fortress, which was tougher than a frozen meat locker.
After a few swings, he backed off.
He stood by Zane, waiting for the next move, then whipped out a 'tiny tool' to fiddle with the steel gate.
"This zombie's gotta be juiced up, right? That strength?" Joe was still rattled.
First time for everything, especially since the world went sideways.
"Don't sweat it. Even a T-Rex wouldn't bust through unless these zombies start driving bulldozers," Loki said, brushing it off.
"Right."
Joe felt a bit better.
"I'm gonna take another peek at this freak show."
He edged up to the vent again, craning his neck for a better look.
But this time, he spotted a young dude outside.
Surrounded by three creepy zombies.
"Is that... Zane?"
Joe was stunned to recognize Zane. Seeing him stirred up some old beef because, pre-apocalypse, Zane had sold those farms to him and borrowed a cool thirty mil. Still hadn't paid up...
"Karma's a beast! Turned into a zombie, huh?" Joe whispered.
But he had to admit one thing.
Even zombified, Zane was looking sharp.
Loki piped up, "Mr. Joe, no worries. They can't get in. They'll tire out and bounce."
"Right." Joe agreed, stepping away from the door to chill.
Outside, Zane eyed the fortress. Even with keys, he couldn't pop it open from out here, but with his zombie strength, he could easily smash through.
But that would mess up his threads. So, Zane pulled out a beast from his stash—a massive excavator with a steel claw.
Snagged from the industrial farms, it was about to come in handy.
'Roarrrrrr!' The beast roared to life.
Zane, manning the excavator, rolled up to the fortress. The concrete was tough, but he was ready to dig in from the ground up.
"What's that?" Inside, Joe and the crew jumped at the sound of the machine. They rushed to the vent and saw a metal monster inching closer.
"This..." They were all shook.
A zombie with an excavator? That flipped their script. Loki was gobsmacked; he'd just joked about it, and now here it was!
As Zane dug in, a big hole opened up at their doorstep. Sunlight poured in under the door.
"Gear up! It's go time!" Loki roared, rallying the troops.
Whether they were brawlers or builders, they grabbed whatever weapons they could—machetes, pipes, even an electric saw buzzed to life!
They were ready and raring to go.
"Let's roll!"