When night came, the backup of more than 1000 soldiers arrived. Most of these soldiers were Rear Admiral Fuliand's subordinates. The reason he brought them instead of the soldiers of Maharlika's army was because they were more skilled and adaptable.
The army had a lot of things to do tomorrow so Arlan told them to head inside the bunker and take some rest.
The next day, everyone woke up early to start clearing the area.
Catanduanes wasn't a very well-developed island and it only had a population of approximately 310,000. According to the information sent by their drones, 80% of the island's population was already infected with the virus. There was no longer any signal on the island and even electricity was cut off. Because of this, the survivors faced a lot of difficulties.
Meanwhile, Arlan was leading a small team of twenty soldiers, including his four personal guards. The team was cleaning up the zombies when Arlan suddenly noticed a strange-looking creature lurking within the woods. It was 3 meters in length with a height of around 1.4 meters. Its body was covered with thick black fur and a head that looked like a mix of a lion and a cat.
Arlan frowned upon seeing this lion-like animal. 'Is that a lion? No. There's something different about that creature...'
"Men, capture that thing alive!" Arlan barked at his men. The creature piqued his interest. He wanted to bring it back to Last City and have the experts determine what type of animal it was.
"Yes, boss!" The soldiers answered.
As if it had sensed Arlan's desire to capture it, the lion-like creature growled threateningly while showing them its sharp claws.
The soldiers took out their tranquilizer gun and aimed it at the animal. This weapon was supposed to be used against humans, but it came in handy for this situation.
Grrrrrrrr!!!!
The beast growled when it noticed the soldiers slowly making their way towards it.
"Now!" Arlan shouted.
The soldiers pulled their trigger and shot the beast with the tranquilizer.
The beast whimpered after being shot more than ten times, but it still managed to run away.
"What a strong beast!" Arlan's eyes shone with excitement. "Quick! Follow its tracks! Don't let it escape!" He shouted to his men.
The soldiers immediately went after the animal. The team had to chase it for over ten minutes before it showed signs of slowing down. The tranquilizer slowly weakened the beast and it soon dropped to the ground. Before it lost consciousness, it still growled at them.
Grrrrrr!!
"This guy is tough!" Arlan muttered as he looked at the unconscious creature. After taking a closer look, he realized that it was like an enlarged version of a cat.
"Boss, is this a cat? How did it grow so big?" A soldier asked in confusion.
Only a few days passed since the zombie virus spread, but weird things were already starting to appear.
"Tie it up and bring it back to the base. Inform the headquarters to prepare a special cage for it and forbid them from killing it." Arlan said. He thought that only humans would be affected by the virus. It turns out that it also has some effects on animals. This made him worried. If a normal cat could grow this big, what about those large predators? Just the thought of it made him frown.
The soldiers tied the limbs of the beast and taped its mouth to prevent it from harming anyone. They then brought it away to be sent back to the base.
The zombie cleanup resumed after this encounter.
With over a thousand soldiers, the zombies in the area were soon eliminated. There was no unique zombie so there were no casualties on their side.
The zombies in Catanduanes were only normal zombies.
Arlan still had no idea how a normal zombie would turn into a unique zombie. However, they already had a sample of a Tank-type zombie and he also asked Cedrick and Conrad to bring some samples of Spitter-type zombies and Hunter-type zombies. Soon, the lab should be able to send them some results.
Winter guessed that zombies would evolve after eating a certain amount of nutrients, but this hasn't been proven yet.
On the first day of the campaign, the army managed to clear the 1-mile radius of the bunker. This was a lot faster than Arlan had expected. He thought that the team would expend more time, but he had underestimated the power of their weapons. If this pace continued, they might be able to complete their goal within three to five days.
On the second day, everything proceeded smoothly. The army barricaded the 2-mile radius of the bunker using steel wires and steel beams. This barricade was enough to stop normal zombies from entering. On the afternoon of the same day, the researchers from the headquarters called Arlan.
"Hello, it's me." Arlan said.
"Boss, we have observed the creature you sent over yesterday and we found out that it's actually a Norwegian Forest Cat. After some tests on it, we discovered the presence of the zombie virus in its blood. However, the zombie virus didn't manage to take control of the cat's mind. Instead, by some stroke of luck, the cat managed to evolve and became a completely new species. Boss, if you find more of these beasts, please bring them back to the lab. We might be able to discover more about the zombie virus if we have more samples."
"Alright. If we encounter one, we will capture it. By the way, what happens if someone is bitten by these evolved creatures?" Arlan asked.
The other side was silent for a moment before he gave a reply. "The virus inside these evolved creatures is different compared to the virus found in zombies. They are two different things. We still haven't researched the effects of this new virus on humans so you guys have to be careful in handling them."
Arlan furrowed his eyebrows when he heard this. "Okay, last question... If the animals could evolve through the zombie virus, what about us humans?"
"We have also thought about this, but the zombie virus isn't compatible with the human genes. Anyone infected with the zombie virus would turn into a zombie no matter how healthy they are. Just give us some time to study this. I will inform you immediately if we discover anything." The researcher replied.
"I see. You can go back to work now. Goodbye." Arlan disconnected the call. The researcher's words made him despondent. The world was already in chaos with just the zombie virus. Now, a new type of virus was found.
Arlan didn't have a good sleep that night and when he woke up the next day, there were dark circles in his eyes.
He washed up and ate breakfast together with the soldiers. After everyone was ready, they resumed the cleanup of the surrounding area.
Arlan was already tired of killing normal zombies so he stayed inside the temporary camp above the bunker. He roamed the cleared zone together with the engineers and architects from the De Guzman Family and the Montefalco Family.
"Mr. Roa, when do you plan to start the construction?" An engineer asked while looking at him. The others turned their gazes towards Arlan, curious to hear his thoughts.
Arlan became silent at his words. Although the soldiers had already cleared a large area, it was still unsafe for workers to start the construction. Just one Tank-type zombie was enough to destroy the barricades they put in place. After a moment of thinking, he shook his head. "We can't begin with the construction for the time being. I believe you guys are already aware that zombies are capable of evolving..."
Everyone nodded their heads upon hearing this. The leaders of Last City have already spread the news about this matter. The residents of the city were even alarmed when they heard this information and they also thanked the gods that they had moved to Last City.
Arlan continued. "Just one Tank-type zombie could destroy the steel beams so we have to strengthen our security first before we begin with the construction. And this task will be given to you guys. What type of defensive structures should we build that can withstand those evolved zombies? I will give you two days to formulate a plan."
The faces of the engineers and architects turned serious.
"Mr. Roa, without knowing the exact strength of the Tank-type zombies, we can't-"
"Boss! Boss!"
An urgent voice interrupted them.
Everyone turned their heads and saw a soldier running towards Arlan with a grim look.
"What is it?" Arlan asked with a frown.
"Boss, the team led by Sir Sigurd discovered the presence of a Tank-type zombie! They are waiting for your orders." The soldier said.
Arlan narrowed his eyes, but he soon smiled. He turned his head towards the engineers and architects as he said. "You guys want to see how strong a Tank-type zombie is, right? Follow me and I'll let you witness how strong it is."
The engineers and architects were horrified by his words. "Mr. Roa..."
"Say no more. Come with me." Arlan grinned at them.
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