Welcome!
Thank you for your interest in the Zombiepocalypse, or ZP for short, universe! As I've been writing along I realized that I was creating more and more "rules" and character types and weapons than even I could keep track of without forgetting something, so I decided that a universe bible was in order not only for the readers to use as a reference, but for myself, as well. In this bible you will find key information about the setting, the characters, the class order of the new world, the creatures, and the weapons being used. This will be an ever-updating bible, meaning it will constantly be edited and added to as the story continues and more and more information is revealed. That being said, if/when other writers decide they may want to play in this crazy little sandbox I've created, any details that seem to keep popping up in any future stories (ie, something that a writer has created that proves to be popular amongst the fans) will be added as universe canon to this bible as long as it stays true to the original work (ie, if someone invents a name for one of the toys that I haven't given a name to and it sticks, I'll add it as canon and probably use it in any future stories I tinker with).
Now, for a little bit about the creation of the universe. This is a story I began tinkering with back in...2010. It started as just a funny little concept in my brain, then my muse latched onto it and wouldn't let it go until I started writing it down. I had written a few of the chapters years ago, but life got busy and things got uprooted and I had to put things aside for a while. It resurfaced in 2014 after things calmed down enough for me to go back to fanfiction writing, and with all the zombie popularity that swarmed the world over with The Walking Dead (which I won't touch with a twenty-foot pole!), I thought it would be a great time to premiere this universe.
In truth, I can't stand zombies. They scare the bejeezus out of me! However, I love movies like Warm Bodies and Shaun of the Dead that either make fun of them or make them less frightening. Writing them into a story for myself where I can create all the rules also makes them less frightening for me. The concept of pitting my favorite seven guys against them in an apocalyptic world not only gets out my personal "zombies must die!" aggressions, but it also creates a fun, intense universe that the boys can run around in with almost no laws to hinder their actions. It's them against the world, against not only zombies but the people who have learned to take advantage of the chaos, and most importantly, it's them against a virus that will one day render humanity extinct if they can't find a way to stop it.
As far as the name of the universe goes, sure, I could've just gone with the proper "Zombie Apocalypse" moniker, but I didn't want to, lol. "Zombie Apocalypse" sounds ominous, like the syllables hit harder and you have to say it slower. "Zombiepocalypse" rolls off the tongue faster and is easier to say, making it kind of fun. That's what I wanted for this universe. I didn't go into it with the intention of writing a horror story. I wanted a fun adventure that happens to have some horrific things in it. The boys are still capable of having a good time while surviving in this new world, so why not have a little fun with the title? I'm all for anything that makes zombies a little less scary. ;)
So...that's that for the intro! If you're reading through the rest of this and think I might have missed something important, please feel free to send me a message. Remember, this is only current up to where we are in the story (with a few extra details I embellished on just to make things a little more clear). I'll continue to add more information as I go along, and I'll be sure to let you all know in the author notes of future ZP chapters when I've updated the bible so you can come back here and check it out.
Enjoy!
~Alex Kade