The human form of Iceman had finally crumbled into a pile of blackened charcoal, kneeling motionless before Marcus. Not far from his scorched remains stood the miniature glacier that had entombed Wolverine. Beyond that, the lifeless bodies of War Machine and Colossus, both cleaved apart by Marcus's blade, lay sprawled in the ruins.
Four superheroes—fallen within the span of a single skirmish.
[Virus Touch activated — Target: Colossus. Zombie Virus injection successful… infection confirmed. Mutant-type superhuman detected. Mutation accelerating due to death state. Subject will transform within one hour into a conscious mutant-class infected. Recommend: Subdue or erase intelligence immediately.]
[Virus Touch activated — Target: War Machine…]
[Virus Touch activated — Target: Iceman…]
Aside from Wolverine, who remained frozen within Iceman's ice, the other three had already been tainted by Marcus's Bloodflame contagion. In time, all of them would awaken as infected warriors under his command.
Unfortunately for Marcus, time was the one resource his side lacked the most.
Marcus: Winter Soldier, send the Earthshaker unit to retrieve the four bodies I just eliminated.
Winter Soldier: Copy that, sir. Earthshaker is en route. (sighs) However… the situation on the central front is deteriorating. The remaining members of the Fantastic Four are closing in on the source of the mist. We may need your direct support.
Marcus: Understood. Speak plainly next time—no need to sound hesitant. Report our current losses. Superhuman units only.
Winter Soldier: Sir, Hedgehog Man, Toad, and Bullseye have self-detonated. Sandman was frozen—right in front of you. On the enemy side, the Punisher and Blade have both been neutralized.
Our zombie heroes are still outmatched in both strength and numbers by the Allied Superhero forces. We can only hold them at bay for now. My apologies, Commander.
Marcus: It's not your fault. Continue command. I'll head to the central front myself.
And prepare the next stage of evolution for the ordinary infected.
The psychic link between Marcus and Winter Soldier fell silent. Marcus then turned toward the massive, ice-encased form of Sandman. Without a word, he raised his leg and kicked.
Boom!
The towering sand-and-ice statue shattered into countless glittering fragments, collapsing into a heap of frozen grains that piled into a small mound.
"Come out," Marcus said flatly.
At his command, several thin streams of unfrozen sand began to seep from the icy hill, gathering together into the weary, humanoid form of Sandman.
He looked at Marcus with visible fear. "Do I… still have another chance?"
Marcus tossed him a communicator and gave him a cold glance. "That depends. Fail too many times, and you'll never see your daughter again. Now go—carry out your orders."
Sandman caught the device. His ear dissolved into flowing sand, absorbing the communicator like quicksand swallowing a stone, and expelled a damaged one from his other side. A surprisingly useful ability—if only it came with a better master.
Truthfully, Sandman's loss wasn't entirely his fault. He had simply drawn the worst possible opponent. Against Iceman's cryokinetic abilities, even a shape-shifting elemental body was vulnerable. Against anyone else, Sandman's immunity to physical attacks would have made him a nightmare.
Moments later, his orders from Winter Soldier came through. Without hesitation, Sandman collected himself, forming into a towering sand titan once more, and lumbered off to hunt down the retreating American soldiers who had lost their superhero protection.
Marcus, meanwhile, opened the Pathogen Gene Enhancement System. Based on Winter Soldier's report, the virus had collected enough genetic material to unlock the next stage of upgrades for his undead army.
[Remaining DNA Enhancement Points: 11]
(6 existing + 1 each from Iceman, War Machine, Colossus, Blade, and Punisher)
[Unlocked Enhancements]
• Adrenaline Surge Lv.1
• Enhanced Bone Spikes Lv.1
[Available Enhancements]
• Reinforced Bone Armor Lv.1: Grants all ordinary zombies external bone plating, increasing their overall defense. (Cost: 10 points)
• Accelerated Metabolism Lv.1: Grants ordinary zombies faster regeneration and limited limb regrowth. (Cost: 10 points)
Without hesitation, Marcus selected Reinforced Bone Armor Lv.1.
Enhanced healing was a post-battle luxury—useful for conserving troops, but meaningless in the chaos of an ongoing war. What his army needed now was survivability under fire. And armor, even crude biological armor, was survival made tangible.
As the enhancement activated, Marcus's point total dropped to one. The faint digital hum from his neural interface marked the change—a silent shift in the balance of war.
For the first time since the invasion began, the scales had tipped—if only slightly—in his favor.
---
New York, Queens — Central Frontline
Under the cover of Ant-Man, now towering like a giant, the scattered U.S. forces were regrouping. They moved around his massive legs, using his bulk as mobile cover while raining gunfire on the oncoming waves of undead.
A massive Extremis Thunderbeast, which had earlier decimated entire battalions, was now nothing but a smoking crater. It had been crushed beneath the fists of The Thing, whose rocky hide gleamed with molten cracks from the battle.
When the creature detonated in its final act of defiance, the explosion was absorbed by Invisible Woman's shimmering energy barrier—sparing the troops from annihilation.
Momentum was shifting.
If this continued, the central evacuation would proceed smoothly, and the human coalition might just survive this nightmare.
The remaining members of the Fantastic Four—Mr. Fantastic, The Thing, and Invisible Woman—were already advancing toward the mist-shrouded Sector D, the suspected heart of the corruption. If they succeeded in clearing the fog, the tide of war could turn entirely.
"Out of my way—you disgusting things!" Ant-Man, now colossal, stomped down hard. The ground shook as several zombies burst like crushed insects beneath his boots.
His Pym Particle armor gleamed under the dim light, impervious even to the claws of the Chasers.
Meanwhile, the ground troops swept through alleys and buildings, cleaning up smaller undead that Ant-Man's enormous frame couldn't reach. The sound of gunfire, roaring engines, and the occasional distant explosion blended into a chaotic symphony of survival.
And as the soldiers pressed forward toward the coast, unaware of what was approaching from the mist…
Marcus was already on his way.
___
🎉 Big Shoutout to Choppamad!🎉
A heartfelt thank you to Choppamad for joining my Patreon and supporting this journey! 🙏✨
Your generosity truly makes a difference and helps bring chapters out faster for everyone. 🚀
Welcome to the VIP family, Choppamad—you're awesome! 💎🙌