Horrific Shorts: Zombie Edition

The night was unusually dark as the ZETU squad approached the outskirts of Shadow Hill Cemetery. Reports from terrified locals spoke of strange occurrences—graves breaking open and skeletal figures clawing their way out, glowing faintly under the moonlight.

"Skeletons now? This just keeps getting better," Sergeant Jenna "Blaze" Hart muttered, gripping the handle of her flamethrower.

"It's not just skeletons," Ethan "Brain" O'Connor said, his tablet displaying erratic energy readings. "Whatever's animating these things is radiating from beneath the cemetery. It's like… an ancient pulse."

Captain Marcus "Iron Will" Kane scanned the horizon. The graveyard sprawled endlessly, dotted with decrepit tombstones, twisted trees, and open graves. Chains, once meant to secure the dead, now lay broken, scattered across the dirt like discarded shackles.

"Stay sharp," Marcus ordered. "Riley, cover us from that mausoleum. Lila, scout the area for the source of the disturbance. Blaze, Derek—stick with me. Ethan, monitor everything. If something moves, I want to know about it before it attacks us."

As Riley "Quick Shot" Bennett climbed to the mausoleum's roof, her sniper scope caught movement among the graves. "Uh, Captain? You might want to see this."

From the fog emerged dozens of skeletons, their bones rattling as they moved with unnatural coordination. Glowing green energy flickered in their hollow eye sockets. Some carried rusted weapons; others moved with clawed fingers outstretched, as if thirsting for blood.

"They're forming ranks," Riley reported. "It's like they're preparing for a battle."

"Battle it is," Marcus growled. "Blaze, light them up!"

Jenna stepped forward, her flamethrower spewing a roaring inferno. Flames engulfed the first wave of skeletons, but instead of collapsing, they marched through the fire, their green energy intensifying.

"Uh, that's not normal!" Jenna shouted as the skeletons closed in.

Derek "Shield" Coleman moved in front, his riot shield blocking a barrage of attacks. "They're tougher than they look!"

Meanwhile, Lila "Huntress" Navarro darted between the graves, tracking the source of the eerie energy. Her dual pistols fired with precision, shattering skeletal heads as she moved. She finally reached an ancient crypt at the heart of the graveyard.

"Found it," she said through her comms. "There's some kind of glowing artifact inside. Looks like a ceremonial urn or something."

"Destroy it!" Marcus ordered.

"Easier said than done," Lila replied, as a towering skeletal figure emerged from the crypt. This one was larger than the rest, its body adorned with tattered robes and chains, wielding a massive scythe.

The skeletal overlord let out a deafening roar, summoning more undead from the surrounding graves. The ground trembled as the dead clawed their way to the surface.

"Riley, take the shot!" Marcus commanded.

Riley fired a precise round, shattering the urn inside the crypt. The green energy flickered and began to dissipate. The skeletal overlord let out a final, piercing scream before collapsing into a heap of bones.

As the energy faded, the remaining skeletons crumbled to dust.

"Good work, team," Marcus said, surveying the now-silent graveyard. "Let's head back. Something tells me this isn't the last time we'll be seeing ancient magic."

From the shadows of the crypt, a faint green glow flickered once more. The fight was far from over.