Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

I began to recall the footage we've seen earlier and I thought about a few points where it could be possible. I was sitting on my chair while looking at my Barrett but I decided to formulate the plan after I've seen the map Rin would be making with Darelle.

I looked at Zeus then his tail started to wag when we locked eyes.

"Woof!" Zeus barked.

"Isn't it past your bedtime already?" I said to him as I pointed at my watch.

Zeus started to whine but I raised my eyebrow.

"You know what happens if you don't get enough sleep, right?" I said to convince him.

Zeus covered his face with his paws and he started to lie prone.

"Nope, that's not sleeping. That's hiding, right?" I said as I crouched down.

Zeus rolled over with his tongue sticking out.

"Nope, that's playing dead. I taught you that. You need to work on your panting or else you'd get discovered easily." I said.

Zeus immediately stopped panting.

"Holy fucking shit." I thought to myself.

"Good. Your tail is still wagging though." I said, chuckling.

Zeus' head turned to his wagging tail and he tilted his head. He stared at it for a moment before looking at me.

"Oh, don't look at me. I didn't do that. Wait a minute, you're stalling for time eh? I guess we'll forget about the treat before bedtime..." I placed my hand over my head and he panicked.

Zeus made his way down in a flash and he was standing near the refrigerator where his jar of treats was placed on top.

"Woof!" Zeus barked when he saw me.

I grabbed one and I walked to his corner where his bed was at. He came from behind me and then he turned around a few times before laying down. When I gave him a piece of the Scuby Snacks, he held it with his mouth first then he placed it between his paws before slowly eating it.

I patted his head before I changed clothes.

The moment I reached the gym, a three-way battle was about to happen between Kaley, Tatiana, and Cynthia.

Chris saw me enter and he immediately pulled me to the side. However, I saw that he kept on shaking his hands every few moments.

"What happened to you and what's happening between them?" I asked.

"Don't mind me, it's about to start!" Chris silently exclaimed.

Kaley was holding a curved wooden sword shaped like my katana, Tatiana was holding a straight wooden sword shaped like her bastard sword, and Cynthia was holding a thin wooden sword shaped almost like her rapier. Rin was on the other side with a difficult expression while holding her staff.

"Did I came at a bad time?" I muttered.

"Bro, you came at the right moment." Jared approached from my side.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I don't know either. It just happened." Jared shrugged his shoulders.

"Did they get in an argument?" I asked.

"Who fucking cares? This is gonna be good." Bing said.

A few people came to greet me but the fight already started. Kaley and Cynthia were wearing protective gear but Tatiana wasn't.

Tatiana took the initiative by delivering a two-handed swing against Kaley. Kaley jumped back while Cynthia thrust forward to Tatiana's left side.

Tatiana just bent her body before jumping and delivering a spinning kick directed at Cynthia's torso.

"So it's a two versus one?" I thought to myself.

Tatiana was just smiling all over but Kaley aimed for Tatiana's feet just as she was about to land. Kaley was slashing downwards at an angle but Tatiana spun her heel the moment she landed to avoid the blow. Tatiana swung sideways aiming at Kaley's right hand but Cynthia already recovered and she was aiming for Tatiana's left shoulder.

Tatiana's attack angle switched mid-swing and it met with Cynthia's thin wooden sword. Cyntia's sword was parried sideways and Kaley took a step forward with her left foot.

"Oh boy." I thought to myself.

Tatiana smirked when she saw Kaley's initial movements then she suddenly went low.

Kaley's kick hit nothing but Tatiana's hair blew wildly when it flew past her head. Tatiana swept Kaley's leg and she used the momentum to send a high kick towards Cynthia who was coming from behind. Cynthia saw it coming and she managed to dodge by a hair's breadth. Kaley kicked up the same moment Tatiana landed and everyone watching was stunned from the three.

Cynthia attacked after stepping back and she aimed for Tatiana's body. Kaley was right behind Tatiana but her wooden katana was on the floor so Kaley decided to push Tatiana forward. Tatiana was surprised by getting pushed and the tip of Cynthia's thin sword got alarmingly closer. Kaley used that time to try and pick up her wooden katana but Tatiana had other plans.

Tatiana grabbed Cynthia's wooden rapier and she threw it towards Kaley's wooden katana so it would get knocked away and buy her some time. Kaley gave a disgruntled expression but the short moment she was away, Cynthia was already on the floor.

Despite that, Kaley took a deep breath while Tatiana lunged forward.

They both swung down with their swords and they were both holding it two hands. The swords they were holding creaked when it collided against each other but they continued. I slipped past Bing and was paying careful attention to the sounds. The two didn't notice me approaching them but they managed to stop mid-swing before they hit me when I jumped in the middle. I was prepared to catch them but it seemed I was wrong in thinking that they didn't notice me.

"Before you two poke an eye out, change those swords yeah? You noticed me coming from a mile away but you two didn't hear the creak at first?" I chuckled.

Kaley and Tatiana caught their breaths but the audience just managed to take their first. Allan passed out because he was holding his breath the whole time watching the girls fight.

"I'm so close!" Kaley exclaimed.

"Yeah, poking your eye out. You've been here for three hours already, right?" I looked at them.

They all instinctively looked at the watch on the exit and they were surprised.

I was shaking my head in amusement then I asked what happened. What happened was that Cynthia sparred with most of the group and she beat most of them. She even beat Kaley but when Kaley started adding punches and kicks, the outcome was different. Tatiana was grinning on the side so the two decided to challenge her. One way led to another and I saw what happened next.

The rest decided to leave while a few remained to train their bodies in the gym. I helped Kaley take off her protective gear while Tatiana helped Cynthia. I saw small bruises on their forearms due to the training they've been doing.

"You sparred without using protective gear earlier eh?" I looked at Kaley.

"W-Well..." Kaley stuttered.

"If you get hit hard with a wooden stick, the moment your knuckles get injured, it would affect your shooting. If that happened, I won't let you come in runs until it healed." I said sternly.

"Sorry… just got excited..." Kaley trailed.

"You too. Don't go too hard on the first day. Sheesh." I looked back at Cynthia and she got flustered.

"Boss, I tried to stop them but Tatiana kept on egging them on!" Rin told her side of the story.

"What? I didn't aim for their hands. Those bruises were from themselves earlier when they were sparring with everyone. A few would make mistakes and accidentally hit them." Tatiana said.

"Who did it then?" I asked menacingly and the temperature dropped a few degrees.

I looked back at the audience and the majority was gone.

"Hey! That's part of the training! You get hurt!" Kaley pulled me back when I was about to chase after the ones who immediately disappeared.

"What? I'm just gonna give them personnel lessons of my own. I still haven't perfected my 'death by a thou-" Kaley glared at me so I stopped.

The rest helped with cleaning up the equipment but I asked them to set aside the ones Kaley and Tatiana broke. I decided to either fix them myself tomorrow or just add it to the pile that my Unc Zeidrick was working on. He was having fun with the CNC Mill, 3D Printer, and other power tools with Raphael and Anthony that even the Killdozer wasn't fully restored yet. They told me that they have a side project going on and they would just tell me when it's ready.

I started my daily workout when the dust settled. It felt really different training in your own gym compared to others even if it's like Mr. Cuervo's gym. I was familiar where everything is placed here and I could easily flow through each exercise.

Rin asked for a few pointers while I was doing my routine because she could only practice with her staff when I'm present. She was learning other things when Tatiana or Vera would teach a class so she made use of the opportunity.

After we were done, Kaley dragged me in the shower with her on the 2nd floor and she made use of the time to ask about Tatiana's weaknesses. I got excited for nothing but I learned that she never beat Tatiana in a fight. Kaley tried to get help from Cynthia but they were both handled like kids. Tatiana didn't agree to fight them both unless they were wearing protective gear.

"C'mon, is there anything did you notice? You were watching us earlier, right?" Kaley looked at me while scrubbing herself.

"Hmm, instead of looking for her weaknesses, I suggest you get better first. Your gap in levels is a little bit too much for you to handle yet. You're learning powerful moves but you're finding it hard to connect them with a moving target. Mix a few compact and quick moves that are hard to dodge and it would eventually lead to an opening. Also..." I trailed.

"What?" Kaley stopped scrubbing herself.

"Could we please talk like this in the gym instead? It's kinda distracting doing it here." I faintly smiled.

"Well, if I formed a battle plan for her next time and she heard us, it's all for naught, right?" Kaley started scrubbing herself again.

"Well, think about this. How about getting strong to the point that even if your opponent knows what you're gonna do next, they wouldn't be able to do anything?" I replied while maintaining eye contact.

"What? Is that even possible?" Kaley asked.

"..." I got distracted.

"What? What aren't you answering?" Kaley looked at me.

"Give me that soap, I'll do it for you..." I was shaking my head.

"What? Why?" Kaley was confused.

"I can't think straight, okay? You're scrubbing your underarm but your huge tits are in the way. They kept getting mushed up and my mind wanders when I see huge boobs, especially yours." I admitted.

Kaley started to laugh and she gave me the soap. I scrubbed her myself and she watched me soap her up. Something rose up which was unavoidable regarding the circumstances but we continued with our shower first.

"Oh yeah, I had an idea for the movie to watch later." I said to Kaley.

"Oh, what is it?" Kaley asked as I raised her arm.

"It involves the training you had earlier." I replied.

"The swords? Something Japanese then? Rin would really like that but Tatiana would always fall asleep." Kaley said while turning around.

"No, it involves Cynthia." I replied while I was scrubbing her back.

"Oh! I see, something with a sword and Cynthia… her rapier then?" Kaley asked.

"Yep." I replied.

"Is it the old one where the guy's wearing a black costume slashing people in a 'Z' pattern?" Kaley asked.

"What? Oh, no, not that one. It involves someone introducing himself properly and telling the other person his intentions." I replied with a grin.

"What?" Kaley turned around to face me.