Stagnant Water of Apocalypse - Chapter 28: It's All Mine

Set in the Shadow Slave world...a time before Sunny was born...this story follows a simple soldier who must survive in a dystopian, apocalyptic landscape where magic and gun warfare collide.In a far-off Quadrant known as North America, a young soldier named Hope is 16 years old when he gets infected by the Nightmare Spell. He passed! But...he feels a bit scammed...?A flaw that makes him fade from people's memories...A cursed attribute that makes him remember everything endlessly in eternal wakefulness...It's as if the Spell is twisting his future and existence into an almost improbable one.All he has ever known his purpose to be was to serve as a simple soldier. Not too powerful. But not so weak either. And maybe, just maybe like some others, become an Awakened. Although he never dreamt of being one.Now that his whole life is compromised after his First Nightmare, his first objective is to survive on his own. But as he tries to escape his fate, his actions seem to lead him further from his goal.He struggles against obstacles that slowly grow bigger and out of proportion.Maybe the Dream Realm and the Real World aren't so different than one may think.Hope's journey involves uncovering secrets and gaining knowledge about his true nature and his new role in the world.Is he fit to be a hero?Could he redefine it?***Please read the READER DISCLAIMER in Volume 0.This is my spin-off novel of “Shadow Slave” by Guiltythree.But please don't expect the same writing style, setting, and characters, especially the main character.This story reveals more about how people/cities/governments operate after the Spell’s arrival. I always find it interesting how maybe one country handles it fairly, but how others handle it with desperation to the point that you question humanity.There will be easter eggs pointing to the original novel either intentional for the plot or unrelated to it, but all for fun.I am a new author so props to all who bear with me and helps me improve my writing. If it is not for you, please don't leave outright hate comments. Eat wassabi instead if you want pain. Critique and advice would be great too.

When disaster struck, Ling Mo knew that the kinds of zombies depicted in doomsday movies would in fact, be totally different from reality…

Normally, the most important thing to do during the end of the world is to survive, but when Ling Mo picked up his girlfriend from an abandoned bus, the trajectory of his life had gone completely out of control.

The cause of this was very simple. His girlfriend, mutated…

Wait, Shana, that sickle in your hand looks like its being pointed at my pants!

Senior sister! Stop trying to pounce on me the moment I’m distracted!

And little girl, is it really alright for you to just hide by my side and laugh?

Lastly…all of you, stop trying to bite me…ahhh!!!

- Description from novelupdates

Some crowns are forged in blood. Others are drowned beneath it.In a city strangled by smoke and silence, where children are shackled to machines and shadows rule behind gilded masks, Keiran is just another forgotten soul—until the mark appears.Buried beneath the factory’s foundations lies a world long erased from history. Ancient oaths whisper through stone and water, and something older than memory begins to stir. As Keiran is drawn deeper into the abyss, he uncovers a legacy not meant for mortal hands—a crown shattered in defiance, a flood sealed by sacrifice, and a power that demands a price.Hunted by tyrants, haunted by echoes, and bound to secrets he never asked for, Keiran must choose: drown in the tide of what came before, or rise against the current and reclaim what the world was forced to forget.But the deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels…And beneath it all, something still breathes.

In a bustling modern city where ancient secrets and mysterious powers collide with everyday life, 22-year-old Ethan Cross seems like your average college student. Behind his unassuming demeanor lies a man shrouded in secrets—a masked vigilante known only as “Virtuoso,” feared by criminals and sought after by powerful organizations.Ethan is overpowered, sarcastic, and ridiculously skilled at everything he does. But there's one thing he’s terrible at: romance. When the enigmatic and fiercely independent Mia Harper stumbles into his life, she unknowingly becomes the key to unraveling a conspiracy that ties Ethan's past to an ancient prophecy.Between laugh-out-loud moments, explosive action, and unexpected twists, Ethan navigates his double life while trying to protect Mia, keep his identity hidden, and maybe—just maybe—figure out how to confess his feelings without being a complete disaster.