Then a low, guttural roar echoed through the night, deep and heavy, like something calling to them. The zombies stopped in their tracks, their heads twitching toward the sound.
Jaxon's instincts took over. He summoned his rifle, the familiar weight grounding him, and raised the scope to his eye.
Far away, maybe five hundred meters or more, stood something different. On top of a car, one strange zombie towered above the rest. Its body was unnaturally muscular, every muscle bulging beneath its gray, rotting skin. Thick veins stood out on its face, pulsing like they were alive.
Jaxon's breath turned cold. 'Another variant.'
Below the strange zombie, inside an old SUV, a man and a woman were screaming for their lives as dozens of zombies surrounded the car, pounding on the windows with their bloodied hands. The glass rattled and cracked under the pressure.
They've been found.
The strange zombie on top of the car let out a deep growl. Then, with a single swipe of its arm, it punched right through the roof. Metal screeched as its claws ripped through the frame, tearing it open like it was paper.
The couple inside screamed in terror, but there was nowhere for them to go. The man tried to push the door open, but the creature's massive hand grabbed his throat. It lifted him up like he weighed nothing, his legs kicking helplessly in the air.
Then, with a roar that shook the ground, the zombie pulled with both hands, ripping the man's body in half. Blood sprayed everywhere, splattering the woman's face and the car windows. The monster bit into the man's head, chewing for a moment before tossing the rest of his body down to the swarm below.
The woman's scream tore through the night. She tried to crawl away, but the broken glass trapped her. The windows shattered completely, and the horde swarmed inside. Dozens of hands grabbed her as she thrashed and kicked, but within seconds, her voice was drowned out by the sound of tearing flesh.
Jaxon's stomach churned. He couldn't look away, his eyes glued to the horrific scene unfolding before him.
Then, the creature on top of the car raised its head to the sky and let out another deafening roar. The sound spread across the streets, echoing off the houses.
And as if they were following its orders, the horde moved.
The infected began slamming themselves against every house and gate they could find, clawing at walls, breaking down doors, smashing windows. Their growls mixed into one terrible noise that filled the night.
'Shit... what the hell!' Jaxon's heart was racing. The quiet street he knew was now a total nightmare.
Suddenly, a hand grabbed his arm and pulled him down.
It was Natasha. She had yanked him to the floor, pressing him low against the ground. At the same time, the strange muscular zombie atop the distant car turned its head toward their house, but it only saw a dark, empty window. Snarling, it shifted its gaze elsewhere.
Jaxon blinked, staring at Natasha in surprise. They stayed pressed low, hidden from view. "Don't look too much, they might see you," she whispered.
"Brother… I'm scared," Cindy whispered, her body trembling violently. She had promised herself she wouldn't be afraid, but the sight of a thousand swarming infected clawing through the streets had undone her resolve completely.
"Let's just stay like this… and hide," Isabel whispered, hugging her knees. Her voice was quiet, trembling along with her body.
Jaxon swallowed hard, his own heart pounding in his chest. The silence was suffocating... until it was shattered by a loud, frantic thumping.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
The sounds echoed through the house. Jaxon raised his head just enough to peek through the window. His stomach dropped. The zombies had reached their gate. The heavy cabinet they'd used to block it was shaking violently with every forceful push, the metal groaning as hands clawed and battered against it.
"They're at the gate... we can't just hide here," Jaxon whispered, tension tightening every muscle in his body.
His hands clenched around the floor. "We have to do something now," he whispered, his mind racing, every instinct screaming that hiding wouldn't work for long.
Then, he moved quickly, grabbing a black hat and a black t-shirt, pulling them on along with a mask that covered the lower half of his face. Only his eyes were visible. Within seconds, he was back at his usual spot by the window, rifle in hand.
With the lights off, the darkness hid him perfectly, and the dim streetlights outside cast just enough light to highlight the swarming zombies below.
"Stay low… and don't make a sound," Jaxon whispered to his family, his voice tight with urgency.
He turned his focus back to the gate.
BAM! BAM! BAM! The cabinet blocking the gate rattled violently as more infected slammed against it.
Thup! One zombie's head exploded, sending blood spraying everywhere.
Thup, Thup, Thup! Another, and another. Jaxon's scope made it easy; at ten to fifteen meters away, it was almost too easy to land headshots.
But his heart was racing, his hands trembling slightly. 'Damn it... there are too many of them. Focus, Jaxon. You can't mess this up.' Anxiety clawed at his mind, visions of the zombies breaking through the gate flashing though his mind.
His thoughts were racing. 'Back door? No way out. Hide? No... it won't work. They'll find us.'
Thup, reload. Thup, another down.
He reloaded quickly, the clicks of the rifle breaking through the chaos, and kept firing without stopping. Every shot mattered, every headshot a small victory. But the sheer number of zombies attacking felt like a weight pressing down on him. Every miss, every claw that scraped against the gate made his heart jump.
Jaxon's eyes narrowed, his mind sharpening. No more hesitation. His family's survival depended on him now.