Chapter 11: Chapter 11 - Combat Test

BAM! Bam! Bam!

The echo of heavy footsteps reverberated in the basement as Zack moved within the confined space. The tests he conducted were basic—simple movements and strength checks suited to the limited area.

“MV-01 armor, second trial…” Zack announced. “Basic functions seem operational.”

Ego, his AI assistant, chimed in. “All systems are reading normal. I recommend moving to an open area for further testing.”

Zack shook his head, grinning as he secured the armor’s helmet over his head. “No need for that. Let’s dive into the real test—time to clear out the zombies in the nearby Mansions.”

He stepped toward the elevator. Ego conducted a final self-inspection, reporting each system’s status. “Helmet is secure…air circulation active…buffer system fully operational…”

The checks finished just as the elevator doors slid open, and Zack rode it to the ground floor. Sophia was already waiting by the elevator door, her face filled with anxiety. She had heard the ominous, rumbling sounds echoing from below and couldn’t help but worry about what Zack had been up to.

Ding!

The elevator door slid open, revealing Zack, now a towering figure clad in gleaming, metallic armor. Over two meters tall, his presence exuded an imposing aura. Sophia instinctively took a step back, eyes wide with shock and awe. It was one thing to see an armored giant in movies. It was another to see one standing in front of her in reality, towering and powerful.

“Don’t worry, it’s just me,” Zack’s voice reassured her from within the suit.

“Za... Zack?” she managed, her voice laced with disbelief as she looked up at the narrow visor in the helmet. “This... this is what you’ve been working on down there? Armor?”

Zack chuckled, lifting the mask to reveal his face. “Yeah. So, what do you think? Impressed?”

Sophia’s mouth dropped open. “Impressed doesn’t even cover it! It’s... it’s incredible!” Her voice shook, still in disbelief that he had built an entire suit of armor in a matter of days and in the middle of an apocalypse, no less. Such a feat seemed straight out of a fantasy. Even before the fall this kind of technology is deemed impossible.

The corners of Zack’s mouth lifted into a small smile. “Glad you like it. Who knows, maybe someday I’ll make a suit for you too.”

Her eyes sparkled with hope. “Really?”

“Of course.” Zack nodded. And he meant it; with Ego’s database, he had access to the designs for countless variations of power armor. Any one of them would be enough to protect Sophia in a world overrun with zombies. But for now, there were urgent matters to attend to. “Stay here, alright? I’m heading out to clean up the area.”

As he closed his helmet and began to walk out, Sophia Monroe called after him, “Be careful!”

“Will do.” With a confident nod, Zack headed outside.

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The HUD in his helmet illuminated the Mansion occupancy data Ego had accessed earlier, marking the locations of the other residents—now likely turned into zombies.

“Let’s start with the nearest one,” he said, setting his sights on a nearby Mansion.

Every step he took echoed through the empty streets, the thundering sound of metal striking the ground. Though the armor seemed bulky, he moved at a surprisingly brisk pace, almost like a human tank. The moment he neared the Mansion, the sounds of his approach roused the zombies inside. Snarls and roars echoed from within as they stumbled toward the windows and doors.

“Tired of living, aren’t you? Oh yeah I forgot you already dead.” Zack muttered with a smirk.

Without a second thought, he pulled back a massive, armored fist and smashed it against the front door. Boom!The door shattered, splintering inward, hitting a zombie lurking behind it, its body split grotesquely in two by the impact. Even with only half a body left, the zombie clawed toward him, snarling and drooling with relentless fury.

Unfazed, Zack stepped over the half-zombie and into the Mansion. With a swift, heavy stomp, he crushed its head, silencing it instantly. Two more zombies lunged at him—one large, the other small. Judging by their size and proximity, he guessed they’d once been a mother and child. A pang of cold resolve flashed in his eyes.

“Let me end this miserable state for you. May you rest together in peace.”

The suit accelerated, its momentum crashing into the zombies with the force of a freight train. Boom! Boom! Both zombies flew back, embedding themselves in the wall and cracking the plaster around them like spider webs. Zack quickly dispatched them, each punch sending them to meet their maker.

When the Mansion was clear, he dragged the corpses outside to his prepared vehicle—a sturdy Ford F-150 Raptor, its bed now serving as a makeshift corpse hauler. He tossed the bodies onto the bed, where they joined the growing pile.

“Alright. On to the next one.”

Pushing the heavily loaded pickup, he moved from Mansion to Mansion, clearing each residence of the undead with methodical precision. Each encounter was swift, a rhythmic series of thuds and crashes, like a macabre symphony of destruction.

Finally, he exited the last Mansion. The pickup’s bed was now overflowing with bodies, a mountain of the undead piled high. Even the cab had become a gruesome storage space.

“It’s done,” Zack murmured with a sense of satisfaction. He pushed the vehicle out of the community and onto a nearby abandoned construction site.

There, he poured gasoline over the truck and its grim cargo. With a flick of his lighter, he set it ablaze. Flames roared to life, casting flickering shadows and sending billows of thick, black smoke into the sky. Within the smoke, it felt as though countless souls, trapped in these rotting shells, were finally released, ascending in silent peace.

Zack watched the blaze for a moment, the reflection of the fire dancing off his visor, before turning away to continue his fight against the apocalypse.

Before returning to his Mansion, Zack took a detour, stopping by an empty Mansion to clean up. He carefully removed the MV-01 armor and dragged a water hose outside. As he sprayed down the armor, blood and grime washed off, pooling on the concrete. After giving it a thorough rinse, he put the suit back on and set off for Mansion No. 9.

In the once-bustling neighborhood, only Zack’s heavy footsteps echoed through the empty streets. The once-constant sounds of groaning zombies had vanished.

“Ego, how much power do we have left?” he asked, his voice echoing within the helmet.

“Sir, barring any unexpected issues, the local power grid should last about eight more days,” Ego replied.

“What about the surrounding areas?”

“Two days ago, widespread power outages began in neighboring cities. Currently, only a few regions worldwide still have power.”

Hearing this, Zack checked the remaining battery level of his armor. Over two hours had passed since he’d left the Mansion, and the armor was down to 3% power, just as Ego had estimated.

“Looks like it’s time to prepare for life without power,” he muttered. With the MV-01 armor, he could now explore more dangerous areas to scavenge for supplies. His mind drifted to the nearby industrial park—stocked with valuable resources like steel, alloys, and heavy machinery, all crucial for future upgrades.