"She's gone full psycho," Ethan muttered, striding forward without looking back.
Thomas stood frozen, his mind reeling. This was nothing like what he'd imagined. His teammates had been snatched away by monsters, dying in brutal, horrific ways. But this girl? She'd nearly wiped them all out.
It was terrifying…
As they got closer, the scene hit even harder—blood-soaked ground, and piles of Giant Sandworm corpses stacked like hills around them.
Mia sensed their presence and turned to look. Her flawless profile was streaked with dark, dried blood, but her eyes still sparkled, sharp and alive.
She glanced at Ethan, her gaze tinged with a quiet resentnt.
"Nice of you to finally show up."
Ethan didn't respond. He walked straight past her, casually waving his hand as he stored the massive Sandworm corpses into his spatial storage ring.
"New flavor. No point letting it go to waste."
Mia: "..."
Chris and the others rushed over.
"Mia! Thank God you're okay. We were seriously worried. We were just about to co find you, but then we accidentally fell into so underground temple…"
They all started talking at once, voices overlapping as they recounted what had happened.
When Mia finally got the gist, she asked, "Did you find the tablet?"
"Not yet," Ethan replied. "I'm thinking we check the Oasis next. If it's not there either, this whole trip might've been for nothing."
By now, the sun was dipping low, casting a golden haze over the desert. The temperature was dropping fast—typical for the desert, where the difference between day and night could be brutal.
And once night fell, the real nightmare began. That's when the mutated creatures ca out to hunt, pouring from the shadows in droves.
Even Ethan didn't want to face that kind of monster swarm head-on.
Thomas spoke up, "We should get back to the Oasis. If we wait any longer, those things will be crawling all over the place."
"Yeah," Ethan nodded.
With Thomas and his crew leading the way, they started heading toward the Oasis.
They moved through the endless sea of sand, their shadows stretching long under the fading light. Here and there, small venomous bugs and scorpions began to erge from the sand, sensing the coming night.
"So, what kind of food do you guys have at the Oasis?" Sean asked, curiosity piqued.
Thomas shook his head. "Not much. Mostly wild herbs and desert greens. I think my tongue forgot what flavor is."
"Well hey, at least it's low-cal," Sean joked.
Eventually, the sun disappeared completely, leaving only a faint red glow on the horizon.
Finally, the barren desert gave way to sothing different—lush green grass, vibrant and full of life.
The grass stretched out in patches, forming the Oasis.
But even here, signs of battle were everywhere. Scorch marks, clawed-up earth, and the remains of mutated beasts and human skeletons scattered across the field.
"Every night, monsters from the desert co here to hunt people," Thomas explained. "A few tis, we've even had full-on monster hordes."
Ethan scanned the area. The Oasis was bigger than he'd expected.
As they moved forward, the signs of human life beca more obvious.
According to Thomas, back in the early days of the apocalypse, over ten thousand people had lived here. The desert had been a safe haven—no zombies, barely any mutated animals. People from nearby cities had fled here, thinking it was the safest place left.
But as the apocalypse dragged on, new monsters kept appearing. Then ca the Black-Skin Zombies, and the Oasis turned into a death trap.
Now, only two or three thousand people remained.
Soon, tall fences ca into view, lined with sharp spikes. The ground around them was littered with monster corpses.
The spikes were stained with blood—so of it pitch black, clearly corroded by toxic monster venom.
It was obvious the battles here had been brutal.
Inside the fence, guards stood watch. When they spotted Thomas, one of them shouted toward the camp.
"Hey! Look—it's Thomas and the others! They're back!"
"No way! And they brought people with them!"
"Did they rescue them?"
"..."
The place instantly buzzed with excitent. People rushed out, pressing their faces against the gaps in the fence, eyes wide with hope.
Everyone here had lost soone to the monsters—friends, family, lovers.
Most had long given up hope.
But still, deep down, they clung to the tiniest sliver of a miracle. That maybe, just maybe, soone they loved would co back.
But every ti, it ended in disappointnt.
Until, eventually… they beca soone else's disappointnt.
As the gate creaked open, a young man burst out, sprinting toward them in a frenzy.
"Thomas, did you find my cousin?" the young man demanded, his voice tight with urgency.
Thomas lowered his head, guilt written all over his face. "I'm sorry, Logan."
Logan's jaw clenched. He grabbed Thomas by the shoulders, eyes wide with disbelief. "Did you see her body? Is there any chance she's still alive?"
"I didn't see her body," Thomas said carefully, "but… I did find sothing that belonged to her."
Logan's face flushed. "Where is it?" he asked, voice rising.
Thomas glanced over at Oliver. Hanging from Oliver's belt was a gold bracelet—delicate, feminine.
"Ah…" Oliver's expression shifted as realization hit. So the severed arm that bracelet ca from… belonged to this guy's cousin.
Logan followed Thomas's gaze and locked eyes with Oliver. His voice was still shaking with emotion. "That's hers. Give it back. Now."
"Huh?" Oliver blinked, caught off guard.
The way Logan barked the demand rubbed him the wrong way. "You could at least say thank you before ordering people around."
"You—" Logan's brows furrowed. He clearly didn't like being called out, but after a beat, he swallowed his pride and forced the words out.
"…Thanks."
Oliver raised an eyebrow. "Oh, now you say thanks? Too late. Finders keepers."
He casually tossed the bracelet in his hand, weighing it like it was nothing.
If the guy had just asked nicely from the start, Oliver probably would've handed it over. But the way Logan ca at him—like he was so nobody to be bossed around—yeah, no. Not happening.
Oliver wasn't just so scavenger. He'd driven for one of the most powerful Zombie Kings, survived hell and worse. He wasn't about to be pushed around by so punk with a chip on his shoulder.
Logan's eyes went wide, fury boiling over. He felt like he was being mocked—played with.
"You little shit, you've got a death wish! Soone grab him!"
From the crowd behind him, a few burly n stepped forward, rolling up their sleeves, ready to throw down.
Clearly, Logan had so pull around here.
Thomas's heart nearly stopped. He jumped between them, arms outstretched. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Don't! Don't do anything stupid! I'm serious—soone's gonna die if this goes sideways!"
One of the muscle-bound guys frowned. "Thomas, what the hell? Why are you defending this outsider?"
"You don't get it!" Thomas was sweating bullets now. He knew exactly who he'd brought back with him. Forget the Underground Temple—they'd all seen Mia wipe out an entire swarm of monsters like it was nothing.
These weren't people you ssed with.
"Logan, please," Thomas pleaded. "Do a favor. Let this go."
Logan Hawke narrowed his eyes, clearly not happy. But he respected Thomas enough to know he wouldn't beg without a damn good reason.
After a tense pause, he gave a reluctant nod.
"Fine. For you, Thomas. But this isn't over."
...
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