ALL NOVEL Chapter 26: Sarcoma
Despite the gruesome scene, Zack showed no sign of worry. In fact, there was a spark of anticipation in his eyes as he assessed the threat. The life-support system in his MV-02 armor would completely block out the poisonous gas that the Swollen Man was about to release.
"Sir, the enemy is approaching," Ego's voice sounded in his helmet.
"I see them," Zack replied, calm and ready.
As the horde of zombies surged forward, Zack sprang into action with surprising speed. His silver MV-02 armor blurred into motion as he sliced through the oncoming zombies with ease. The armor's arms flicked out, and two folding blades locked into his grip. With a single, sweeping slash, he cut down zombies to his left and right, their heads flying through the air.
Zack weaved through the ranks of undead, his armored form shining as he mowed them down like stalks of wheat. The ordinary zombies posed no challenge; their clawing hands couldn't even scratch his armor, and his advance was relentless. One after another, they fell under his blades.
Then, a deafening roar shook the air. The Swollen Man had decided to join the fray, shaking the ground as he charged. Despite his massive bulk, his straight-line sprint was faster than Zack had expected, each step sending tremors through the ground.
Zack didn't flinch. He held his ground. "Ego, let's see what MV-02 can really do." With that, Zack braced himself, leaning forward to absorb the impact.
Boom!
The Swollen Man collided with him, sending shockwaves through the air. The force pushed Zack back, skidding across the ground for several feet, but he quickly regained his footing. MV-02's impact buffers absorbed the worst of the hit, allowing Zack to stay on his feet without losing balance.
The Swollen Man roared, trying to push Zack back even further, but he couldn't budge him. "Is that all you've got?" Zack smirked.
With a swift sidestep, Zack dodged, letting the Swollen Man's momentum carry him forward. Off-balance, the brute stumbled and crashed to the ground, struggling to regain his footing. Before the lumbering zombie could rise, Zack's arm blade shot out again. He drove it into the Swollen Man's side, only for it to stop after a few inches, blocked by the thick layer of fat.
"So you're tougher than you look," Zack muttered, pulling the blade back. He stepped back and raised his palm, where a faint hum of energy began to build, filling his glove with a bright electric charge.
The Swollen Man was just starting to rise when Zack unleashed a particle beam from his palm. The shot sliced through the thick layer of fat, leaving a smoldering hole in the creature's belly.
"Energy consumed: 5%," Ego reported.
Zack frowned. "That's too much energy for one shot."
Suddenly, the Swollen Man's body began to tremble. His bloated belly expanded as though inflating from within. "Sir, energy spike detected. Be careful," Ego warned.
Recognizing the imminent threat, Zack darted back, putting a safe distance between himself and the creature. Just in time—an instant later, the Swollen Man's body exploded with a sickening bang, sending chunks of foul flesh and organs flying. A cloud of thick, green gas billowed out, filling the area with its putrid stench.
"Disgusting," Zack muttered, averting his gaze from the grisly remains.
But before he could relax, a new threat appeared. Without warning, a Hunter dropped from the wall, its eyes locked on Zack. It was tall, with absurdly elongated limbs that allowed it to clear obstacles in a single leap. With terrifying speed, it closed the distance in an instant.
"Sir, watch your back!" Ego's alarmed voice barely reached Zack in time.
Before Zack could react, the Hunter struck, slashing its clawed hand across Zack's armor with a screech of metal. The impact sent Zack sprawling several feet backward, leaving five deep scratches on the MV-02's surface.
"Sir, this target has superior speed and strength. Approach with caution."
"I know," Zack muttered, glancing down at the damage. His eyes turned cold as he sized up the Hunter, who was already charging again.
But this time, Zack was ready. As the creature lunged, Zack swung his arm blade, intercepting its razor-sharp claws with a clash that echoed across the battlefield.
"Back off!" Zack snarled, using his armor's speed boosters to slam into the creature with full force. Like a cannonball, Zack's armored form barreled into the Hunter, knocking it back and sending it crashing into a nearby wall.
The Hunter reacted instinctively, curling its limbs mid-air like a coiled spider. It landed with a heavy thud, rolling several times before finally stopping. The impact was brutal, and though the Hunter survived, the damage was clear—its ribcage had been shattered, visibly dented from where Zack's blow had landed.
Zack's eyes lit up with realization. 'Its body is weak.' Despite the Hunter's powerful limbs and claws—each one gleaming as if made from solid metal—its torso was vulnerable. This was its weak point.
"Groarr!" The Hunter roared, taking a step back, but only for a moment. With a fierce growl, it charged again, its aggression mindless, driven by brute strength rather than cunning. It flailed its elongated arms, claws slicing through the air like blades. An unlucky streetlamp took the brunt of its fury, sheared clean off by a single swipe.
"I've got to keep those claws in check," Zack muttered, formulating a plan. He raised his right arm and aimed his web shooter at the beast. With a loud 'bam', a ball of spider silk shot out, expanding into a four-meter-wide web as it hit the charging Hunter, wrapping it tightly.
The Hunter screeched in fury, thrashing its limbs in an attempt to free itself. But as it tore through sections of the web, thick strands of spider silk clung to its limbs, tightening with every movement. Without its claws to slice through the strands, the silk wound tighter and tighter.
Zack didn't hesitate—he fired another round of webbing, fully cocooning the creature. Bound and immobilized, the Hunter could only twitch and writhe, helpless in its silken prison.
"With how you move, this cocoon suits you just fine," Zack said, stepping closer. He raised his arm blade and, with deadly precision, pierced the Hunter's skull, ending its struggle instantly.
"Time to go." Zack yanked his blade free, flicking the creature's blood off before heading toward the nuclear power plant.
Inside the plant, Zack felt an overwhelming sense of foreboding. The air was thick with an unnatural mist that obscured his view. An eerie silence hung in the air, broken only by faint, unsettling sounds echoing from deep within.
"Sir, there's something new," Ego's voice suddenly chimed in his earpiece.
"Explain," Zack responded, switching on his MV-02 suit's light. Even with the beams cutting through the darkness, visibility was limited to only a few meters.
"During your fight, I analyzed the Hunter's body structure," Ego continued.
"Anything noteworthy?" Zack asked, keeping his focus on the shadows ahead.
"My findings indicate that the Hunter, along with the other zombies here, resulted from natural viral mutations, unrelated to nuclear radiation. There's no evidence that radiation caused their changes."
A question surfaced in Zack's mind. 'If it's not the radiation, then why are they all gathered here?'