Chapter 0

It hurt, the mere fact of breathing caused an intense pain that ran through the battered body of a man who was barely breathing... which is not new if you take into account the type of life that Marc Robinson had to live. Being on the brink of death is a natural and expected state when you find yourself in an apocalyptic scenario where survival is considered a luxury.

After the pandemic that forced the world to take drastic measures, from the modern point of view, an event occurred that caught humanity off guard.

People believed that being confined to their own home was the worst thing that could happen to them... they were wrong... very wrong.

One day, a voice spoke collectively in everyone's minds. The thing/being was called Naveral, in his own words she was a Goddess... one who started a game at the expense of humanity... and the rest of the species as collateral damage.

It was like that, he somehow ended up participating in a competition between Elder Gods who couldn't make up their minds and started a competition to determine who was right. In it, each one used their own world to try to attract the greatest number of visits possible with a maximum of resources that they could not exceed.

Each one could do what he wanted, the only thing he had to do was participate and keep his audience entertained... which was made up of other Gods and some beings that I do not explain in depth.

The patron Goddess of the world where Marc lived... decided to make them experience an apocalyptic theme.

Everywhere there was a simultaneous attack, tons of zombies appeared out of nowhere and managed to spread at an alarming rate before they realized it.

Their numbers grew to such an extent that they were overwhelmed.

As if that were not enough, below; Weapons of mass destruction were deactivated, all satellites floating in Earth's orbit fell and any type of transportation stopped working.

And with the hard times... came worse times.

When humanity began to adapt and control the undead, events suddenly arrived meant to entertain... the observers.

Trials, challenges, calamities, waves, etc.

They all differed from each other with clear differences... but one thing remained the same... they always appeared when they were getting used to and coping with the situation... or when the audience was bored.

Naveral, on occasion, was kind enough to share the comments and opinions of some of the criticisms she received from her... there was one in particular that Marc always remembered no matter how much he wanted to forget it.

"If they have time to be boring, they also have time to be funny."

Stupid?... Yes... it's a tasteless phrase... but that doesn't stop it from popping up in his head from time to time, he usually uses it as motivation at times when he needs an extra push to continue. .

Anyway... those were the beginnings of this whole mess... several years have passed since then.

Somehow, and as in every ancient story, in the midst of these difficult times... a hero emerged... the one I named above... one who managed to lead a group of survivors and create a safe haven.

The refuge, which now seemed more like an empire, had the name of Nova Génesis... this place was an impenetrable and self-sustaining fortress... that had the capacity to protect within it all the humanity that was left alive.

That place managed to give humanity what it needed most... time and space to work. In it they managed to calm down and reestablish a main chain of command with Marc at the head.

This group received the name Hydra... something extremely original... but no one questioned it, since in the end the name didn't matter much, so it stayed that way.

With the addition of new survivors to the bastion, Nova Genesis developed further and thanks to this they managed to accumulate victory after victory... the only exceptions were when they had to abandon the walls where everything depended on skill and luck.

In general everything was going well... until that happened.

*

*

*

[Pov Marc Robinson]:

I really was an idiot... I knew from the beginning that something like this could happen, but I hoped... that they were smart enough to know how much it was worth after all the demonstrations I did so many times.

He did not seek the feeling of camaraderie or loyalty... he opted for the sense of self-preservation and the greed of having a resource as valuable as himself at his side. He was counting on his abilities to keep him safe until it was all over.

But he lost... even knowing it was a possibility... that made him so angry... so much effort... so many sacrifices... just for this?

Being abandoned and thrown to die like a dog.

Nova Genesis...his greatest pride...stolen and turned against him.

The alliances he made...thrown to the ground...where he was trampled by those who made them in the first place as they led his efforts to put an end to it.

The favors that important figures in society owed him... forgotten never to be remembered again.

All the people he saved and who remain safe because of him... turned their heads when all this happened in front of them.

Attacked in his own home, left near death, and then abandoned in one of the most dangerous forests on the planet with nothing but the remains of the clothes he was wearing.

Hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful...hateful. .. hate...

"Arghhh."

A low moan would be heard behind him causing his moaning moment to stop...he didn't need to turn around to know what it was...after all, he had been hearing it for years.

"That's how it ends... huh?" -he mocks as he looks up, fixing his gaze on the moon that illuminates the landscape- "well… I can't say that I enjoy this trip… but I can't say that I hate it either."

Thinking back, along with the screwed up moments, he had some decent moments... he met some people who sparked his momentary interest... and he had some nighttime fun with different female and male companies.

All in all... except the ending... it wasn't that bad. That coupled with the fact that those bastards will have a few unpleasant surprises in due time... since while the betrayal was somewhat surprising, it's not like it was unexpected either, he was quite paranoid after all.

The only bad thing... is that he will not be able to see his reactions when these surprises occur.

"(At least I can die after having seen one of the few things I liked)" - thinking about it all he could do was smile as he closed his eyes feeling his consciousness fading - "(ha... look at that... it seems that the blood loss got ahead of you zombie... you're going to have to eat without exercise)". 

[And with that Marc Robinson's life ended]