The rain was pattering as Drake Miller ran through the walkway, hurrying to go home to his girlfriend, Regina Adams."Regina is going to kill me. I can't believe I'm late," he murmured upon arriving at the door to his apartment.Panting, he contemplated, "But it wasn't like I planned to come home late. I had to get her the birthday gift from the store. I hope she likes it."Drake stared at the bracelet box in his left hand. In his right hand, there was another box, much smaller, bearing something other than a birthday gift—an engagement ring."I can't wait to see the smile on her face when she says yes to me. Then we would be finally official. This is going to be the best night of my life," he breathed, his eyes gleaming with joy. One more nervous breath, and he turned the doorknob.The moment he pushed the door open, he was careful not to raise attention to himself. A mischievous smile formed on his face as he planned to sneak up behind Regina, grab her by the waist, and playfully fr
"Who are you?" Drake murmured, shock gripping him. He turned around to see where the voice was coming from but saw no one."I'm supposed to be dead; I was shot in the heart, I saw myself die!""Is this hell? I can only think that with everything happening outside," he panted, freaking out.His attention now turned away from the glass window, his back turned against it."Welcome back to life, Drake Miller. The order of things has changed. The world has evolved, so have you," the robotic voice sounded in his ear."Who are you? Please, I need to know," Drake said, raising his voice in panic.As he spoke, he still could hear cries of people in the distance, the growls of zombies overshadowing the sound of the pattering rain."Not who, but what. I'm the Skill Invoker System," the voice said, and Drake's heart throbbed in confusion."System, what's a system?" Drake said."Consider it to be the new set of rules governing you and your new abilities in this changed world," the voice said."I d
After saving Regina and Leo as the system requested, Drake Miller's mind was scattered.The only thing on his mind was how to get across to his mother, the only family he had left. She lived outside that town."I really hope you're okay, mother. Why isn't the government doing anything about this outbreak of zombies anyway?"As it was deep into the night and he couldn't make it out of town, he hoped to call her."A phone booth, finally!"In the deserted street, accompanied by a dim and flickering light from the streetlights, a broken phone booth stood."I hope it still works."Drake prayed it connected as he dialed his mother's number.Beep! Beep! Beep!Waiting for 10 seconds, there was no answer from the other end, even though the phone was ringing."Mom, please pick up..." He murmured, panic clawing at his sense of resolve.He looked around, and in some corners, he could see blood splashed on the walkways."How did the world turn to this? The system won't explain anything to me, leav
10:05 AM[DAY 2 OF APOCALYPSE]Drake Miller woke up hungry. It seemed like Zeus not only electrocuted him but also drained every nutrient from his body."Damn! I haven't eaten anything since the apocalypse started," Drake murmured as he crawled."Zeus. I never knew someone like him existed in this apocalypse. Zombies are not my only problem in this world; people like Zeus and his followers are a major cause for worry," Drake murmured.He reflected on how powerless he was in the encounter with Zeus, and it gnawed at his pride."I swear I'll never be found in such situations again. Now I know, for me to get stronger in this world and survive, I need to level up," Drake murmured, reflecting on some video games and books he read in his teenage years."It's just like the book by Alpha-Pen Original, titled the My Superhero System. Just like Jack, the protagonist, I probably have to seek opportunities to level up," he muttered, and with a push, he stood to his feet."The next time Zeus meets
"Why do you sound that way? Is anything wrong with me or my system?" Drake said, curiosity and worry showing on his face."No, no, there's nothing wrong. It is just that I've seen a little information about your system," Elisa said. Drake's eyes narrowed. He felt naked now. Could Elisa actually access the information he was trying to withhold from her about his system?"How's that even possible? I don't think anyone can access other people's systems," Drake mentioned.Elisa spoke, "Well, that may be true about others, but my system is called 'Knowledge Beast System'. It's like having the entire internet stored in my head, allowing me to access vast information about this apocalyptic world and every single system."Drake's eyes widened with curiosity as he absorbed Elisa's words."What?" Drake was shocked. His heart throbbed. He wondered how much she already knew about him."Not only that," Elisa continued, "I can conjure virtual weapons and even shoot lasers from my eyes. Pretty nea
[4:21 PM]The tension was high in the car as Drake pondered what his life would turn into."What do I do?" Drake murmured, worry creeping in."It takes time to actually turn into one of those. It takes at least 4-5 hours. It isn't as fast as they make it look in the movies," Elisa said, trying her best to make Drake concentrate on the mission ahead.Drake's heart raced as fast as the car through the road laid in ruin.The road was lonely, and as Drake drove, he avoided large cracks from an earthquake."We've seen hundreds of innocent people lying dead on the road ever since we left town, Elisa," Drake panted, his eyes reddening."I don't want to be part of what's causing this chaos. I can't bear to see myself turn into one of them," Drake murmured, his eyes focused on the road ahead."Nobody said you'll turn into them yet; it's just a theory from what I've researched," Elisa said, and Drake banged the steering wheel."But you've been right about every other research!" Drake said, slig
ST. MARY'S HOSPITAL [5:00 PM] "What do we do? There are over 12 of them," Elisa said, and Drake sighed. Thud!! Thud!! Drake could see the zombies hitting the front door of the hospital. "I don't know, but we can't let them break in. You and I need this task down to level up," Drake said, assessing the risks. "The most important thing is we have families in there," he said, and Elisa nodded. "We go out there and take on the zombies," Drake suggested, and Elisa gasped. "What?" Elisa asked in shock. She couldn't believe what he was suggesting. Drake's eyes were set on the door that was being banged by the zombies. And he saw the door was about to yield. "We must hurry," Drake said. He weighed the consequences, but not going was worse. "Wait!" Elisa said as she noticed Drake trying to open the door. Drake paused and turned to her. "I don't know if you realize this, but these things can't be killed. I tried to kill a lot of them, but they get back up in a few minutes," Elisa s
"So, you're going to accept my challenge or not?" he said, and Drake sighed.Drake thought about the benefits and realized that pulling out wasn't an option. However, he wondered why it was this way, why he didn't have a say."Why would the system impose a challenge on me?" he complained."The clock is ticking, the faster you fight me and I win, the faster you'll go save your mommy," the Radiator mocked.Drake clenched his fists in anger and looked into his eyes."Challenge Accepted!" Drake exclaimed, and in his head, he heard a bell.Ding!BEEP!NOTIFICATION: Challenge Accepted.GOAL 5: Try not to lose.CHALLENGE CONDITION: Loser Loses His System and returns to his original state.RULE: Win by killing the opponent or decapitating him until the count of 1 minute.REWARD: Zombie Pre-Transformation Cure.SYSTEM UPDATE:STRENGTH: 13%SPEED: 5%LIFE PACKS: 2Swap!Drake was very aware that he had used up 7% of his strength by lifting that iron box and casting it towards those zombies."Le