Dead Man Walking: Living By Day, Dead By Night
Chapter 145: Debating a Course of Action

After going about his daily business as the de facto ruler of Gravestone, a small survivor community of roughly 50 people or so. Zane and the girls retired for the night. Not much happened on this day, nor did Zane particularly warn the others of the warning he had received in his sleep on the previous night.

I mean, how could he possibly explain this? A voice which had been responsible for warning him of danger, one which manifested itself as a woman whose features he could never see, and who spoke to him in a kind and gentle tone as if they were particularly close, despite never meeting her before his near death incident?

It was utter insanity, and nobody with a sense of logic or reason would listen to this warning that Zane received in his sleep. No, he had to make the preparations on his own. But as it currently stood, the only way Zane could obtain a recipe was either through achievements, or through the store.

But since Zane did not see any achievements currently listed, that would give him a recipe that he could remotely use to bolster his defenses and increase the capabilities of his troops, he was forced to farm gold.

Roughly 21,000 of the 58,000 or so undead that existed in the Caron area were eliminated. And while Eliza was lacking in elite forces, like Tier II Undead or above. She was not lacking at all in Walkers.

Zane could reasonably kill 1,000, maybe 2,000 Walkers a night. Especially now that he had a full set of equipment. But… Eliza's eyes were watching him, and he could tell when she was fixing her sights upon him. Perhaps because his dexterity and wisdom were both quite high, with the former being on the superhuman level.

Regardless, Zane knew he was one ill-fated moment away from having his life snuffed by the Tier I Horde King, and because of this, he did not wish to provoke the mighty undead's ire any further. Instead, he would take his chances in the ruins of old Reno.

Zane of course did not know who the Horde King was in charge of those lands, but he knew that whoever he was, he must at the very least be a Tier II Horde King, because he had stumbled across, Stalkers, Abominations, and even Juggernauts very early on during his days in his hometown.

Not only that, but the horde which this mysterious Horde King controlled was significantly larger than the one Eliza controlled, easily in the hundreds of thousands of undead. Thus, Zane suspected it would be easier to hide from such a powerful being's gaze, considering the territory he controlled was significantly more vast than that which was Eliza's domain.

With this in mind, Zane took an unarmored pickup truck, one that had and off-road setup, and an eternal emergency gas tank in the trunk, and drove it to the ruins of New Reno while his party slept peacefully without any knowledge of the man's daring plan.

---

Without even realizing it, Zane had left at an opportune moment. Bart was actually in Carson, at an area far enough away to notice Zane's escape from Gravestone. He was standing before Eliza, who was on her knees in front of the man with a nasty gash across her chin.

This was not the wounds that had always plagued her face, rather a fresh one that oozed coagulated blood, created by none other than Bartholomew who was furious with his inferior, who had actually lost not only the Abominations he had loaned her, but the Stalkers as well.

As far as Bartholomew was aware, the survivors of humanity, even those who now possessed exceptional and mysterious powers, were not strong enough to take on a stalker. Nowhere in the world had a Horde King lost a stalker, except for here.

It was this arrogance, stemmed from a sense of inherent superiority over the living that led Bartholomew to believe that his Stalkers must have been killed because Eliza was a stupid and foolish creature who had no idea how to best wield his Lieutenants, and instead needlessly sent them to their deaths.

To say that he was displeased with the young Horde King was an understatement, as was evident by the fresh wound upon her rotting face.

"I sent five stalkers to aid you, and four abominations after you had lost those beneath your command. And yet your horde stands weaker than ever. How? How did you lose your stalkers to these pitiful creatures? No living being possesses the power to kill a Stalker, hell they can barely take on an abomination, and even then they must use superior numbers to achieve their goal.

What kind of fool are you to have such powerful assets disposed of so recklessly? Did you just send them to the enemy's defenses? Sure, an Abomination's hide is thick, and incapable of being pierced by the majority of small arms which the living possess.

But a stalker is faster than a bullet. I fail to see how you managed to lose one, let alone five! Tell me, Eliza, are you even worthy of being considered my sister? Because from what I can see, you're barely any more intelligent than a Juggernaut! Hell, I bet one of my Banshees could outwit you on any given day!"

Eliza continued to keep her head low, debating whether or not she should actually speak freely. She may be a Horde King in her own right, but there were levels to this game, so to speak. Just as she could easily trample over the likes of Zane and his girls, if they united against her in their current state, Bartholomew could kill her with a snap of his fingers.

And considering Bartholomew was an ambitious and ill tempered Horde King, speaking up against him when you lacked the power to assert your authority was a bad move. Thus, she took her scolding for some time. That is until Bartholomew gave her permission to speak.

"Well, don't just sit there sulking. Tell me, tell me how you managed to fuck up this badly?"

Eliza took a deep breath and sighed heavily. She was obviously collecting her thoughts as she addressed her concerns to Bartholomew in a factual and calculated a manner which she could.

Yet she was still trembling with fear as she did so. After all, there was always a possibility he did not believe her, and instead chose to punish her severely for daring to propose such a wild scenario.

"The black-haired boy, the one you told me to keep an eye on… His power grows with each passing day. He's faster than the Stalkers now, and his powers mimic our own in many ways. Even I have a hard time detecting his presence when he chooses to remain stealth.

He cut off their heads before they could even react. And the girls by his side, they are unusual as well. Easily more powerful than any living beings you and I have ever come across. Hell, I doubt any of our brothers and sisters have witnessed such astonishing strength from the living.

They are evolving brother… And I know that mother's scent lingers on this man, but… If we leave him be he won't just be a problem for me… Before long this entire rotten settlement will be something that you will have to worry about as well… I think we need to stop being so cautious and attack when they are still weak!"

Bart clearly did not like this proposal, as his eyes flashed with anger. Eliza did not even feel the claw that dug into her face for a second time on this night. Her coagulated blood splashed onto the floor again as she lowered her head in submission. All the while, Bartholomew yelled at her at the top of his lungs.

"That is for me to decide, not you! So long as this boy smells like mother, we are not to interfere! You know as well as I do that mother has her favorites. Albeit they are usually significantly more powerful than the likes of us…

But if this living boy is actually favored by mother, you and I will be wishing for our second death, because what she will do to us will be far worse, and will last an eternity!

If you make a move on that settlement, then that is your decision. But I will have no part in it! And if the others were to replace out about this, you will take the entirety of the blame. Do you understand?"

Eliza sighed heavily and nodded her head. She would still need some time to watch Zane and see if attacking him and his settlement were truly the best course of action. But for now, Bartholomew's words rang throughout her mind, forcing her to submit for the time being.

"I understand brother…"