The Bigshot's Superstar Wife-Chapter 167 : Until the End

Athena continued driving through the wasteland, her fingers gripping the steering wheel tightly as she kept her eyes on the road ahead.

The further north she traveled, the worse the destruction became. Once-thriving cities had been reduced to skeletal ruins, entire highways cracked and broken apart.

Vehicles, stripped of their useful parts, lay abandoned on the sides of the road, many covered in dried blood.

She was now several miles away from the last known coordinates of the military base. But as she approached a small town along the way, she felt a creeping sense of unease.

The town was eerily silent. Not even the sound of the wind could be heard. She slowed the jeep to a crawl, her senses on high alert.

There were signs of life, rooftops covered in makeshift barricades, homes boarded up from the inside, and abandoned market stalls with goods still rotting in the sun.

Yet, there were no people. Athena pulled over and stepped out, her sword materializing in her hand. She scanned her surroundings carefully.

Then she saw it, piles of bones. Not just human bones, but also those of animals, all stripped clean.

A chill ran down her spine. Something had been feeding here. She advanced cautiously, moving toward the center of the town, where a massive church stood.

The wooden doors were wide open, revealing a darkened interior. Athena took a deep breath and stepped inside. The stench of decay hit her immediately.

Dozens of corpses were lined up in the pews, as if they had been attending a sermon before they died.

Some were still in their seats, heads slumped forward, while others had fallen to the ground. Their skin was shriveled, eyes sunken, lips curled in agony.

Athena's gut told her this wasn't a normal infection. Something had drained them dry.

As she stepped forward, her boots crunched against the floor. Looking down, she saw dried husks of insects scattered across the wooden panels.

Suddenly, a sound, like a low hiss, echoed from above. She snapped her gaze upward.

Hanging from the rafters, dozens of shadowy figures clung to the wooden beams, their elongated limbs wrapped around the structure like grotesque bats.

Their glowing red eyes flickered to life as they sensed her presence. Athena took a step back. Then, as if a silent command had been given, they dropped.

She dodged just in time as one of the creatures crashed where she had been standing.

Its face was a horrifying mixture of human and beast, its jaw unnaturally wide, filled with serrated teeth. It screeched, saliva dripping from its maw.

Athena didn't hesitate. Her sword sliced through the air, severing the creature's head clean off. But that was only the beginning. The other creatures lunged at her.

She spun, her blade dancing as she slashed through the monstrous beings, each strike precise and deadly.

Dark blood splattered across the pews as more of them fell, their bodies convulsing before turning into ash. But they kept coming.

One managed to claw her arm, its razor-sharp nails slicing through her sleeve.

She gritted her teeth and retaliated, kicking the creature into a row of seats before driving her blade through its chest. The hissing grew louder. She had to get out.

Athena sprinted toward the exit, her sword cutting down anything in her path. As she reached the doorway, she yanked a grenade from her belt, pulled the pin, and threw it inside.

The explosion rocked the church, sending flames bursting through the stained-glass windows. The creatures shrieked as the fire consumed them.

Athena didn't stop to watch. She ran back to her jeep, blood dripping down her arm. She had faced many kinds of zombies before, but these creatures were different.

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They were intelligent. And worst of all, they were hunting.

Athena continued her journey, pushing her jeep to its limits as she sped down the open road. Her heart was still pounding from the encounter in the church.

If those creatures existed, then what else was lurking in the dark corners of the world? She needed answers. And she needed to find the military base before nightfall.

The road ahead led her through an abandoned industrial area, factories and warehouses stretched for miles, their skeletal remains casting long shadows.

Suddenly, her radio crackled to life. Athena's eyes widened. It had been silent for weeks. "...elp..."

She quickly grabbed the receiver. "Repeat that! Who's there?"

Static.

Then...

"Mayday! Survivors… trapped… requesting immediate assis..."

The signal cut off. Athena narrowed her eyes. The coordinates were only a few miles away. She couldn't ignore it.

Slamming her foot on the gas, she veered toward the source of the distress call.

The location turned out to be an old warehouse complex. Athena pulled up to the entrance, her rifle in hand.

The large metal doors were slightly ajar, revealing flickering lights inside. She moved in cautiously. Then... gunfire. She ducked behind a crate as bullets whizzed past her.

"Hold your fire!" she shouted.

The gunshots stopped. Then, from the shadows, a figure emerged, a man in a tattered military uniform, his weapon trembling in his hands. He looked pale, malnourished.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice hoarse.

"Athena," she answered, lowering her rifle. "I picked up your distress call."

The soldier hesitated before lowering his gun. "You're… human?"

She smirked. "Last I checked."

More figures emerged from the darkness, six of them in total. They looked rough, but alive.

"We thought no one else was out there," another soldier muttered.

Athena scanned their group. They were weak, injured. Supplies were running low.

"You said you were trapped?" she asked.

The first soldier nodded. "They're coming. Every night, they attack. We've lost so many… We can't hold out much longer."

Athena frowned. "What's coming?"

The soldier's face paled. "The screamers."

Her stomach tightened. She had heard rumors about them, zombies that didn't just bite. They screamed.

A single scream would summon an entire horde. And if you heard it too closely, your brain would melt from the inside.

A distant, high-pitched wail echoed through the night. The soldiers stiffened.

"They've found us," one of them whispered.

Athena inhaled deeply, gripping her sword. She had faced countless horrors in this apocalypse. And she would face this one, too.

"Barricade the entrance," she commanded. "We fight until the end."