Chapter 36: Swallow that!

Ace’s voice drifted down from the roof of the vehicle. Somehow he had already climbed up there; his long legs dangled over the edge as he stared at the distant giant whose translucent belly was filled with green liquid.

The thing moved slowly, yet every step left a deep crater in the asphalt, as if a mobile mountain of flesh were advancing.

"What’s it got in that stomach? Did it just throw up its breakfast?"

Alex stuck his head out the window, expression pure spectacle.

"Corrosive fluid mixed with half-digested remains. Essentially a walking storage tank."

Theo adjusted his glasses.

"There’s over a ton of that foul liquid inside. If it ruptures, this entire stretch of road will be flooded."

Mitch fell silent.

"Don’t hit the stomach."

Ray carved his way out of the ordinary zombie cluster, combat knife dripping black blood, face dark. "Eyes and joints. Draw it away from the vehicle. Don’t let it get close."

"Too late."

Ace stood up on the roof. "It’s already starting. Look at its belly."

Inside the translucent gut, the green liquid churned. Something was stirring, bubbling with thick glug-glug sounds.

The next second, the Big Stomach opened its jaws wide and released a low, underground-like roar. Its belly contracted hard, forcing every drop of the green fluid out—not spraying outward, but seeping straight into the cracks of the road.

A few seconds later—

Scree—

Three nearly invisible translucent shadows climbed out of the walls, drawn by the scent, and let out piercing shrieks.

"Rippers!"

Jack reacted first. He raised the heavy machine gun and sprayed a full burst toward the source of the sound. A cloud of green blood mist exploded.

"Hit one!"

Alex shouted.

But the other two had already split. One lunged at Mitch; the other streaked straight toward the vehicle.

May was crouched behind the open door, both arms wrapped around a full box of machine-gun ammunition belts. The gunfire and the high-pitched shrieks drained every bit of color from her face. Her hands shook so hard she could barely keep hold of the belts.

Yet she didn’t run.

"Jack! Catch!"

Jack’s machine gun had jammed. He was cursing and smacking the magazine when he heard her voice and turned. The little girl was still crouched behind the door, face paper-white, trembling hands shoving an entire ammo belt toward him—thicker than her own arm.

The way she was crouched made the oversized black T-shirt slip down, exposing a wide stretch of pale skin. She didn’t notice at all.

Jack’s face flushed crimson in an instant. He snatched the belt. "May, you... stay down! Don’t come closer!"

May’s voice cracked with tears, but her hands never let go. She forced the heavy belt into the feed slot.

Jack stared for half a second.

This tiny girl was shaking like a leaf, yet her guts were bigger than anyone’s.

He clenched his teeth, reloaded, racked the bolt, and unleashed a continuous stream of fire at the charging zombies. Muzzle flash stretched half a meter long.

"Cover Ray!"

Ray was locked in close combat with the Big Stomach. The wounds his combat knife left were tiny—mosquito bites on that thick hide. The monster barely registered them and simply flung him aside.

"Fuck, the hide’s too thick!"

Mitch’s sniper rifle cracked three times. Rounds punched into the Big Stomach’s eye sockets. It roared in pain, then grew even more enraged. The translucent belly pulsed in and out as if gathering something.

"It’s going to spit again!" Theo shouted.

Ace dropped from the roof. In his hand was a round object wrapped in dense copper wire and detonators—something that looked anything but ordinary.

"Ace, what the hell is that?"

Alex’s voice jumped an octave.

Ace smiled. "A gift for the Big Stomach."

"You’re insane!" Mitch roared. "If that thing blows, every drop of acid in its gut is coming out!"

"This one’s low-yield. So we put it in its mouth and blow the head off!"

"Ray, give me three seconds."

Ray pushed himself up from the ground, wiped blood from his face, glanced at the object in Ace’s hand, and said in a low voice, "Jack, suppressing fire."

"Copy!"

Jack swung the machine gun toward the Big Stomach and opened up. Empty casings clattered across the asphalt.

Ray charged from the side. His combat knife sliced the air and sank deep into the monster’s knee joint. The creature howled and dropped to one knee.

Its mouth opened wide.

Ace moved.

He shot forward like a gust of wind, footsteps completely silent. One flick of the wrist sent the wire-wrapped charge flying straight into the open maw.

"Swallow that!"

He spun and sprinted back even faster than he had come.

Three seconds later—

BOOM!!!

A heavy internal detonation ripped through the Big Stomach. Its belly first swelled to twice its size, then collapsed inward. Green fluid mixed with shredded flesh sprayed in every direction, coating the road. The air filled with a stench so foul it made the stomach turn.

Before the reek of the exploded Big Stomach had even cleared, another dense black wave of zombies poured from the street corner.

Worse still were the Rippers mixed among them.

"Fuck! We just poked a whole nest of variants!"

Mitch cursed. Through his sniper scope, shadows that blended perfectly with the walls were closing in at impossible angles.

"Jack—right flank! Alex—roof!"

Ray’s shout was drowned by gunfire.

Jack roared and swung the heavy machine gun around. A curtain of tracer fire formed a wall of death, turning the Rippers on the right into clouds of green mist.

But on the left, one Ripper slipped past the frontal line held by Ray and Theo. It became a ground-hugging phantom, its target crystal clear—the RV.

May was still crouched by the open door, trying to drag a medical kit farther inside. The dragging pain in her lower abdomen left her forehead slick with cold sweat. She heard Ray’s shout. She also saw the blur that flashed past.

Shit, it’s coming for me!]

The thought barely formed before her body locked up. She couldn’t even scramble into the vehicle.

The Ripper was too fast. Its razor claws scraped across the concrete with a high-pitched screech, throwing up sparks.

The shadow of death dropped over her.

"May!"

Mitch’s raw scream and the crack of his rifle sounded at the same instant. But he was too far.

In the exact second those foul claws were about to punch through May’s back—a figure moved faster than anyone else.

Not Jack, who stood closest. Not Ray, who had been fighting at the front the entire time.

Ace.

The man who always smiled gently, who looked like the warm older brother next door.

He leapt from the roof with no weapon in hand, simply opened his arms, and placed himself precisely between May and the attack.

Pfft—

The sound was soft, like fabric tearing.

The Ripper’s claws—sharp enough to pierce steel plate—drove straight through Ace’s back from behind.

Time seemed to drop into slow motion.

Ace lowered his head and looked at the wound. For the first time, a faint trace of confusion crossed his face.

Then he smiled again. He turned slowly toward the girl behind him—who was already frozen in shock—and the curve of his lips remained gentle.

"All... all of you... go."

His voice was soft, almost a lover’s whisper.

Bang!

Ray’s combat knife slammed into the side of the Ripper’s skull. Black blood and brain matter exploded across the ground.

The monster collapsed without support. Ace collapsed with it––right into May’s arms.