Horrific Shorts: Zombie Edition

Chapter 2407: Story 2408: The Crimson Queen

The battlefield fell silent.

Not because the war had ended.

Because something far more dangerous had arrived.

The Crimson Queen stood at the center of the shattered wasteland.

Her white hair flowed around her like living silver.

Crimson symbols glowed across her skin.

The air around her shimmered unnaturally.

Reality itself seemed to bend in her presence.

Thousands of crimson-eyed warriors knelt before her. freewebnσvel.cøm

An army buried beneath the world for ages beyond memory.

Waiting.

Sleeping.

Until now.

Aiden tightened his grip on his rifle.

"What exactly is she?"

Father Gideon couldn’t look away.

His voice barely rose above a whisper.

"A queen from before recorded history."

The priest slowly picked up his fallen Bible.

"My grandfather spoke of her only once."

"And?" Marcus asked.

Gideon swallowed.

"He was terrified."

The answer chilled everyone.

Above the battlefield, purple lightning battled crimson lightning.

The sky had become a war of colors.

A war of powers.

The Throne King stood atop the broken silo.

Motionless.

Watching.

The Crimson Queen slowly raised her eyes toward him.

For several seconds neither ruler moved.

Neither spoke.

Yet everyone could feel the hatred between them.

Ancient hatred.

Older than nations.

Older than humanity.

Finally, the Queen smiled.

"You still guard his cage."

The Throne King’s staff burned brighter.

The answer came in a voice like grinding bones.

"And you still seek his freedom."

The Queen laughed softly.

The sound was beautiful.

And horrifying.

"The Devourer deserves freedom."

"The Devourer deserves extinction."

The entire battlefield trembled.

Aiden exchanged a glance with Zara.

Neither understood what was happening.

But one thing was becoming clear.

The apocalypse wasn’t the beginning.

It was the continuation of a much older war.

Suddenly the abyss erupted.

The Devourer rose higher.

Massive scaled wings unfolded from the darkness.

Each wing stretched for hundreds of feet.

Crimson fire flowed between its black scales.

Its enormous body emerged further from the prison beneath the silos.

The skeletal giant charged immediately.

Purple flames erupted around its bones.

The giant leaped forward and slammed into the Devourer’s chest.

The collision shook the horizon.

The monsters disappeared inside clouds of dust and fire.

The battle resumed.

More violent than before.

More desperate.

Meanwhile, the Crimson Queen turned toward the survivors.

Aiden instantly raised his rifle.

Marcus aimed as well.

So did Zara.

The Queen seemed amused.

Her crimson eyes settled upon Noah.

The boy froze.

"You carry grief."

Noah stepped backward.

The Queen smiled sadly.

"Your mother still lives."

The words hit him like lightning.

"You can save her."

Aiden stepped between them.

"What do you want?"

The Queen’s expression became unreadable. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

"I offer a choice."

Nobody spoke.

The Crimson Army remained kneeling.

Waiting.

Listening.

The Queen extended one pale hand toward the survivors.

"Join me."

Marcus laughed bitterly.

"No chance."

But the Queen ignored him.

Her eyes remained fixed on Aiden.

"The Throne King cannot win."

Far away, the giant skeleton crashed through another silo.

The Devourer’s roar shook the sky.

The Queen continued.

"When the jailer falls, only one power will remain."

Aiden stared at her.

"And that’s supposed to be you?"

The Queen’s smile widened.

"No."

For the first time, fear appeared in her crimson eyes.

She looked toward the Devourer.

Toward the monstrous being climbing from the abyss.

Toward the creature both armies feared.

"Not even I can control what comes next."

Suddenly the ground exploded beneath the survivors.

A massive crack opened directly under Noah.

The boy screamed as he fell into darkness.

"NOAH!"

Aiden lunged forward.

Too late.

The earth swallowed the child whole.

The crack sealed behind him.

Gone.

Vanished.

The battlefield erupted into chaos.

And deep beneath the silos, Noah opened his eyes in a forgotten underground city.

A city that should not exist.

A city filled with millions of silent skeletons.

All seated upon stone thrones.

Waiting for their king to return.