Global Awakening: Apocalypse Ender's Chronicle

Inside, Eldric found a camp alive with activity. Blacksmiths hammered at anvils, gardeners tended the flowers and herbs, while the warriors sharpened their blades or practiced their techniques, each one a proof of this shelter's will to live, to fight, to thrive.

'There's no children, huh…' Eldric thought after looking around the estate.

He had been to several shelters, but he had never seen any children playing around. He couldn't help but feel that the spread of the virus had gotten stronger and that it somehow stopped women from getting pregnant…

This was a huge concern since this might be the last generation of Survivors…

Soon, he entered the manor's reception room and met the butler. Of course, there were a couple of Super Soldiers guarding him and they were really intimidating.

Nonetheless, he knew that most of these Foreign Survivors were reasonable people… He decided to just stay calm and act accordingly.

"Mr. Wadsworth, I've come in search of the Flesh Puker Zombie's Core… I heard it was called the Toxic Flesh Shard," Eldric began, his voice echoing the urgency of his quest. He actually wasn't sure if he got the name correct but that was what he read in the research papers when he looted an abandoned laboratory.

The butler adjusted his glasses, a flicker of recognition in his eyes.

"Ah, the Flesh Puker Zombie. Yes, Master Shane and his companions have indeed bested such a creature. The shard you seek was entrusted to Anna, our esteemed alchemist, for her research."

Eldric's heart quickened at the prospect of acquiring the shard. "I require it for its unique properties. It's said to grant immunity to poison when properly prepared. I'm willing to pay for it…"

Mr. Wadsworth nodded, understanding the gravity of the request. However, this matter had to be known by the lord of this estate.

"That name of the owner of this estate is Shane Wells?" Eldric repeated as he found this name quite familiar.

"Yes… Please stay here for a moment.

Mr. Wadsworth then quickly left to inform Shane about the situation while Eldric was left contemplating.

In Shane's room, Mr. Wadsworth found Shane watching the drone's perspective using its handheld device…

Although the drone was said to be capable of detecting danger itself, Shane could still control it to some extent… It seemed that he was searching for something…

Anyway, the butler explained why he had come and to his surprise, Shane didn't mind it at all.

"If the Toxic Flesh Shard isn't processed yet, he can use something to trade for it. Anyway, it only grants temporary poison immunity." Shane answered as he allowed the butler to handle this.

"Right, test his skills and try to make him join our shelter if he's good." Shane said. In any case, with his Territory Lord talent, he could increase the loyalty points of the people as long as they continued to stay in his territory for a long duration.

The butler did as he was told and returned to the visitor.

Together, they approached the only laboratory in the estate.

With Shane's permission granted, they entered the realm of beakers and bubbling potions, where Anna presided over her domain.

"Anna, this is Eldric. He wishes to procure the Toxic Flesh Shard…" Mr. Wadsworth introduced.

Anna, her eyes weary from hours of meticulous work, looked up from her studies.

"The shard? I'm afraid it's already been used. Its properties were… quite remarkable." She replied. She wasn't even curious about Eldric's identity. She knew that Shane could summon people out of nowhere, so she thought that Eldric was another summoned being this morning.

Eldric's shoulders slumped, the disappointment evident in his posture.

"Used? Then, my journey here was in vain. I need it's poison immunity… It's essential to enter a Toxic Zombie's Den…"

"Is there something like that? In any case, I made pills from that shard that could grant temporary immunity to poison…" Anna replied, a spark of empathy in her tone.

"While the shard itself is gone, my notes on its properties remain. Perhaps there's another way to achieve the immunity you seek. We have another poison expert in this estate anyway." She said with a faint smile on her face.

***

Shinja, the Warlord and Poison Expert, stood vigilant atop the watchtower, his keen eyes surveying the land that stretched out before Springriver Manor.

The Walker Zombies, a common nuisance, ambled towards the estate, only to be swiftly dispatched by the patrolling elves whose arrows flew accurately and deadly.

As the last of the Walkers crumpled to the ground, Shinja's gaze drifted to the rhythmic fall of trees in the distance. The Super Soldiers, with their chainsaw roaring, were clearing the area for future expansion and also for the lumber to be used for the construction of more buildings.

But peace was a fleeting luxury.

Shinja's sharp eyes caught movement near the river—a pair of Spitter Zombies inching closer to the water's edge.

Their venomous bile posed a grave threat to the purity of the estate's water supply.

It could not be contaminated!

He knew he had to act quickly.

"Gene!" Shinja barked, his voice carrying the urgency of the situation. "Inform the patrolling elves—Spitter Zombies near the river. They must be stopped before they taint the water."

The Gene nodded, understanding the gravity of the command, and dashed off to relay the message.

However, he also noticed the presence of a few more Spitter Zombies in a different direction. He had to help them…

He planned to ask Lucas to stay in the watchtower for now but as Shinja prepared to descend from the watchtower, his attention was snagged by an unusual sight.

Mr. Wadsworth, the manor's butler, was accompanied by a stranger—a visitor who had just arrived in the estate about an hour ago.

Curiosity piqued, Shinja watched as the two men conversed, their gestures indicating a matter of some importance.

The visitor, with a blade at his side, that Shinja recognized as the work of a master craftsman, spoke with a fervor and seemed to be quite excited.

Soon, Mr. Wadsworth explained that they had come here to ask him to test Eldric's combat skills!