The Bigshot's Superstar Wife

Athena sat on the edge of the wooden table, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the rough grain of the surface.

Her mind was still clouded by the remnants of her dreams, but reality struck her harder when Xavier spoke.

His words weren't spoken with urgency, nor with panic. He simply stated them as facts, facts that changed everything. "The earth is slowly being invaded," Xavier said, his voice low but firm.

"Not just by zombies, but something far worse. Creatures that don't belong here. They've begun appearing in different regions, and every time they show up, they leave nothing but destruction in their wake."

Athena frowned. "Aliens?" She could barely believe what she was saying, but deep down, she knew it wasn't impossible.

Not after everything she had seen, not after the strange sword that appeared in her hands, not after the fragments of her dreams that were starting to feel more like memories.

Xavier nodded. "Something like that. We don't have a name for them yet. Some call them monsters, some call them demons, and others call them zergs because of their resemblance to the creatures from interstellar war games."

"But whatever they are, they're worse than the undead. They're faster, stronger, and… they think."

A chill ran down Athena's spine. Zombies were already terrifying because of their endless numbers and mindless hunger, but at least they were predictable.

But what if these creatures could think? If they could strategize? That meant humanity was facing something even deadlier. "How bad is it?" she asked, gripping the edge of the table.

Xavier exhaled sharply. "Bad enough. The outer cities are falling, one by one. Even some military bases have gone silent. Every time we think we've secured an area, reports come in that something broke through. It's only a matter of time before we lose everything."

Athena clenched her jaw. The apocalyptic world she had grown used to was already a nightmare, but this? This was a whole new level of horror.

"And this area?" she asked. "How much time do we have left before those things come here?"

Xavier leaned against the wall, his eyes dark with exhaustion. "Not long."

Silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken thoughts. Athena could feel her heartbeat echoing in her ears.

Earth was breaking. Day by day, the ground beneath them was becoming unsteady, as if it was slowly being swallowed whole by something lurking in the shadows.

"What's the plan?" Athena finally asked, her voice steady despite the chaos stirring in her mind.

Xavier gave her a long look before answering. "We fight," he said simply. "But we need information first. If we're going to survive, we need to know what we're up against."

Athena nodded. It was the only thing they could do. She had already survived countless battles through a world that had crumbled around her.

But now, she wasn't just fighting to survive. She was fighting to uncover the truth. That night, Athena stood on the rooftop of their shelter, staring out into the endless darkness.

The stars above were distant, cold, and unchanging, as if mocking the destruction unfolding below.

She felt the wind whip against her skin, carrying with it the distant sounds of the undead groaning, of insects chirping in the overgrown ruins of civilization.

But something else lingered in the air, something she couldn't quite name. A presence.

She closed her eyes, her grip tightening around the hilt of the sword that had appeared in her hands so many times before.

She had questions, too many to count. But the answers were slipping through her fingers like sand.

Who was she before she lost her memories? Why did she keep seeing visions of a world that didn't exist on Earth?

And why did the sword in her hand feel like it had been forged for a war beyond anything humanity had ever known?

The dreams were getting stronger. Each night, the vision of the long-haired man became clearer.

She could hear his voice now, calling her name. Not "Athena." A different name. One that sent a shiver through her soul.

She had been somewhere else before. She knew it. But before she could chase the answers, she had to survive the present.

The next morning, Xavier called a meeting. Every capable fighter in the area was there, gathered in the makeshift tent.

Maps were spread across the tables, marked with red zones that indicated danger, yellow zones for uncertainty, and green zones, few and far between, that were still considered safe.

Xavier pointed to a new mark on the map. "This is our next target," he announced. "A research facility."

"It's been abandoned for years, but there are rumors that it holds classified information about the experiments that were conducted before the outbreak."

Athena frowned. "You think they were researching these… creatures?"

"I don't think," Xavier said. "I know."

A murmur ran through the gathered fighters. Athena could see the unease in their eyes, but there was also something else, determination. They had fought through hell already. They weren't about to back down now.

"The facility is located two days' travel from here," Xavier continued. "We'll need to move fast, stay under the radar. The undead aren't our biggest threat anymore."

Athena's mind was already running through the possibilities. If they could find any information, any clue about what was happening to the planet, they might be able to figure out how to fight back.

She wasn't sure what kind of war they were about to step into, but she knew one thing for certain. She wasn't going to run from it.

Two days later, Athena found herself back on the road, a rifle strapped across her back and her sword within reach.

The ruins of the world stretched before them, and as the wind howled through the broken buildings, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching them.

The further they traveled, the more unnatural the world seemed. The sky, once a familiar shade of gray, had taken on an eerie red hue.

The air was thick, heavy with the scent of decay and something else, something almost metallic. They weren't alone.

Xavier stopped suddenly, holding up a fist. The group halted, weapons raised. Athena followed his gaze, and her stomach twisted at what she saw ahead.

A massive creature, hunched over the remains of a collapsed building, its limbs too long, its skin stretched too thin over an unnatural frame.

It moved with slow, deliberate motions, its head tilting as if listening to something they couldn't hear.

It wasn't a zombie. And it wasn't human. Athena's grip tightened around her blade. The war for survival had just taken a turn for the worse.