The Elite Zombie’s corpse lay before him, its grotesque form twitching slightly from the residual electricity. Leon’s gaze remained fixed on the Core in his hand, a dark, pulsating gem, twice the size of the one he had absorbed earlier.
It felt alive.
Not in a literal sense, but there was something about it, a raw energy, a presence.
A reminder that this was not the same world he once knew.
Leon tightened his grip around the Core.
Even though he had lived through years of the apocalypse in his past life, nothing could shake the reality that this was the beginning of humanity’s end.
He was sitting in an old military research facility, one of the many abandoned locations scattered throughout the country. In his previous life, he had discovered this place too late, long after the government had fallen, long after the infected had taken everything.
Now, he was here before the chaos truly began.
A small head start. But was it enough?
Leon exhaled sharply.
He remembered how it all unfolded.
The first week of the outbreak was pure carnage.
Hospitals overflowed within hours. The emergency broadcasts lied about containment. People clung to the hope that the government would send help, but help never came.
By the time the military mobilized, it was already too late.
The virus, known as Strain-Z, did more than just turn people into the undead. It evolved them.
The first zombies were slow, weak, and easy to kill. But as time passed, they mutated, adapted. The strong fed on the weak, absorbing their Cores and growing more powerful.
Elite Variants, like the one he had just killed, were only the beginning.
Leon clenched his jaw.
He had survived for years in that nightmare, fighting, killing, running. He had lost friends, allies, and everything else that mattered.
And in the end...
He died.
Now, he was back. One week before it all started.
Fate had given him another chance.
But that meant more than just survival.
It meant fixing what went wrong.
It meant saving humanity.
Leon’s gaze flickered to the Core in his palm.
The key to power.
If humanity had discovered the use of Cores earlier in his past life, the world wouldn’t have fallen so fast. This time, he would change that.
He glanced around the ruined facility.
There’s no time to waste.
Before absorbing the Core, he needed to ensure his surroundings were safe.
Leon stood, gripping his crowbar.
The facility was eerily quiet, aside from the occasional flickering of old fluorescent lights.
The building had been abandoned for years, long before the outbreak. Originally, it was used for military-grade experiments, some of which remained a mystery even in his past life.
That alone was unsettling.
He moved cautiously through the hallways, checking every corner, every doorway.
His past experiences told him never to let his guard down.
Even if it seemed safe, danger could be lurking in any shadow.
As he reached a large reinforced door at the end of the corridor, he paused.
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Locked.
He frowned.
The fact that a military-grade facility had a door like this meant there was something valuable inside.
It wasn’t a priority right now, but if he could find a way in later, there might be resources inside. Weapons, supplies, maybe even more information about the virus.
Satisfied that he was alone, Leon returned to the Elite’s corpse.
He took a deep breath, staring at the pulsing Core.
Unlike the smaller one he absorbed earlier, this one radiated power.
He knew the risks.
Absorbing Cores wasn’t something humans were naturally meant to do.
In his past life, only a handful of survivors discovered how to use them. And even then, it took months of trial and error.
The process was painful. Some survivors died from rejection. Others mutated into something else.
But he had no choice.
If he wanted to stay ahead of the evolving zombies, if he wanted to survive and save humanity.
He needed to take the risk.
Leon tightened his grip and crushed the Core in his palm.
A surge of energy exploded into his body.
It felt like fire. Like liquid lightning coursing through his veins.
His muscles seized. His vision blurred.
He gritted his teeth, suppressing a scream as the raw energy invaded his cells.
This was not like the first Core.
This was something far more potent.
His heartbeat thundered in his ears. His skin burned as if it was being rewritten at a molecular level.
And then...
Leon collapsed onto one knee, panting.
The pain faded. Replaced by something else.
He could feel it.
His body was stronger. Faster.
He clenched his fists. His muscles no longer felt just enhanced, they felt reforged.
His senses had sharpened. He could hear the faintest hum of the broken facility lights, the distant scurrying of rodents in the vents.
He exhaled, letting the power settle.
Then, a notification flashed in his mind.
It wasn’t there in his past life.
[Elite Core Absorbed]
[Partial Awakening Achieved]
Leon’s eyes widened.
This didn’t happen before.
Something had changed.
His second chance wasn’t just about reliving the past.
It was different.
And whatever had caused that difference, he needed to find out.
Because one thing was certain.
The apocalypse was going to be even worse this time.
***
Leon’s heart pounded.
The moment the Elite Core fused with his body, a flood of raw energy coursed through his veins.
His muscles tightened as if reforged from steel. His breath came easier, his chest expanding with an almost unnatural strength.
Then, his vision sharpened.
He blinked.
Everything around him was clearer. The dimly lit hallway that once appeared shrouded in shadows now seemed crystal clear. The cracks in the walls, the dust particles floating in the air, he could see everything.
His ears picked up the faintest sounds, the buzzing of dying fluorescent lights, the distant scratching of rodents in the ventilation.
He clenched his fists, feeling the immense power surging beneath his skin.
This wasn’t just strength.
It was an awakening.
And then...
A notification appeared in his mind.
[Elite Core Absorbed]
[Partial Awakening Achieved]
Leon’s eyes narrowed.
In his past life, no one had ever received notifications. People had absorbed zombie cores, but the process was crude, dangerous, unstable. Some grew stronger, others mutated, some outright died.
But this?
This was something entirely new.
Leon rose to his feet, flexing his fingers.
He didn’t have time to waste.
The world outside was already starting to collapse.
Pulling out his satellite phone, he checked the emergency frequencies.
[Emergency Broadcast – Government Alert]
"This is an official statement from the National Center for Disease Control. A new virus strain has been detected in multiple locations. Citizens are advised to remain indoors until further notice…"
Leon exhaled. It had begun.
He switched to the private military channel.
Static.
Then...
"Command, this is Echo-7, requesting immediate evac! We have civilians infected, oh God, they're changing! They—AAARGH!"
Gunfire. Screaming.
Then silence.
Leon gritted his teeth.
The infection was spreading faster than before. In his past life, it had taken a full day for the military to realize what they were dealing with.
Now, it was happening within hours.
Something was different.
Leon had no time to hesitate. He needed to understand his new strength before heading out.
He turned toward a nearby metal storage container. It was heavy, reinforced, meant to store military equipment.
In his past life, moving something like this would have required a forklift.
Now,
Leon grabbed the edge of the container and lifted.
The metal groaned.
His arms trembled slightly, not from strain, but from the sheer force being exerted.
With a single motion, he flipped it over.
The ground shook as the container crashed onto its side.
Leon exhaled slowly.
He was stronger. Much stronger.
Then, his instincts flared.
A sound, something distant.
He turned sharply, his newly heightened hearing picking up subtle movement outside the facility.
Leon quickly climbed up a broken window and peered into the dark cityscape beyond.
And what he saw confirmed his fears.
The city was already burning.
Fires raged in the distance. Smoke billowed from buildings.
People screamed.
Down below, in the streets, he saw them.
The first wave of the infected.
At first glance, they looked human, civilians stumbling forward in disoriented states. But then he saw their movements, erratic, unnatural. Some convulsed violently before their eyes darkened, their veins turning black.
And then, they ran.
Not the slow, shambling kind from zombie movies.
These were fast.
Feral.
A man sprinted down the street, his face twisted in terror. Behind him, a newly-turned infected leapt onto his back, sinking its teeth into his shoulder.
The man’s scream of agony echoed through the city.
Leon clenched his fists.
It was happening all over again.
But this time, he wouldn’t let history repeat itself.
Leon quickly assessed his options.
He had two priorities:
- Secure weapons and supplies. His newfound strength meant nothing if he didn’t have the right gear.
- Find key survivors. In his past life, there were people who had the potential to fight back, scientists, soldiers, leaders. If he could reach them in time, they could change the outcome.
His gaze turned toward the military research facility.
If there were still hidden weapons or documents inside, they could be vital.
But there was also another location he needed to reach.
The underground bunker at Blackstone Hospital.
It was one of the few safe zones during the early outbreak, housing scientists who first studied the virus. If they were still alive, they might have data on the infection’s origins.
Leon took a deep breath, determined.
This time, he would change fate.
And the first step?
Survive the first night.
He picked up his crowbar, eyes burning with purpose.
Because this was just the beginning.