"Whoo hoo-hoo!" Jack cheered as he ran down the bridge. The others were there too having fun and Rover chased after them. They tossed around a baseball, all of them wearing baseball mitts.

"Catch is a lot more fun when you don't have to worry about zombies around every corner," Dirk spoke up, Rover wagging his tail. May came over to pet him with a smile. Quint blushed and looked away. Ever since he called her sweet and adorable, it had been semi-awkward to talk to her. Mainly because he didn't know how she viewed it; did she think it was a joke or if she took it seriously. At least...he hoped she took it seriously.

"Fewer zombies is great, but also weird," June commented as the whole time they had been playing catch, they hadn't laid eyes on a single zombie. In fact, there were also no zombies in the area where they were standing in. "This calls for an investigation. Where are they going, and why?"

"I don't know," Dirk shrugged and tossed the ball. Rover chased after it as it clanked against a car. Rover then whimpered and backed away, snarling. They stared in confusion, Jack stepping up first. Jack patted his cheek.

"What is it, bud? Why are you acting all..." He didn't finish his sentence as he turned and looked down the alleyway. He picked up the ball. "Weird." He apparently didn't seem to look.

"Um, Jack...?" May asked slowly as she and Quint approached. "We're looking at why." The latter put a hand on his shoulder and he looked up, all of them shocked at the sight.

"What the huh?"

In front of them blocking the alleyway...were a bunch of zombies with their brains sucked out of them. "Guys, this is the area where the zombies were headed last night, following the shrieking," Jack explained as they approached the pile. Dirk bent down and removed a hat, revealing the hole through the forehead.

"Looks like they didn't get very far."

"What would do this?" June questioned while holding her notebook. Dirk took her pencil and put it through the hole, sniffing it.

"I-It's like something sucked out their brains..."

"And you have to sniff the pencil to figure that out?" June asked in disbelief.

"We need to figure out what's doing this, before we're the ones with our brains sucked out," Quint spoke up to the group.

"Quint's right. If this creature is in Wakefield sucking out zombies, anyone or anything could be in unknown danger, not just us," May agreed with him. Jack's eyes widening after she said that.

He opened up the doors to the treehouse, gasping as he saw a huge thing. It loomed over the couch, where his sleeping friends sat. All of them were unaware of what was going on behind them, May laying on top of Quint's chest. The monster then summoned a straw to use on them, heading towards June first. Jack looked on in worry.

"Jack. Jack?" Dirk honking the horn from Big Mama snapped him out of it. "Would you mind hurrying up?"

"Uh, yeah," He glanced at his friends. "Coming." He left behind the pile of unmoving zombies...


"We gotta stay together until we figure this out," June started off while writing on a chalkboard. "Deal?" She asked them while they were sitting in Quint's lab.

"Deal," Dirk said while using a yo-yo.

"I'm in agreement," Quint smiled and May nodded.

"Got it."

They all turned to Jack, who was looking through the bestiary. He seemed to have a lot on his mind. "Hmm..."

"Ahem," May placed her hands on her hips as they approached with annoyed looks.

"Jack, we're nodding," June hinted to him.

"Uh? Oh, uh, yeah, I'm with ya," He smiled, standing up. "Stick together, thick and thin. No one goes solo." He smiled nervously at them, May giving him a blank look while raising a brow.


The next morning, break of dawn, he was going solo with Rover. The creature growled as he didn't enjoy this. "Don't give me that disapproving growl," Jack argued back. "Besides, I'm not solo, I'm with you. I have to find whatever is sucking zombie noggins before it moves on to sucking our noggins," Jack jumped down from Rover, who whimpered. Jack sighed a little, holding up the bestiary. "Some monster in this book is eating zombie brains. The only way to make sure my buddies aren't next is to track down every one of them. I gotta finish the bestiary." Rover slurped his face, causing him to laugh. "Okay," He patted him on the head. "Go on, boy. I'll be home as soon as I can."

"You mean we," May came out of hiding from underneath Rover.

"May?! You stowed away with me? Why?"

"Uh, I came here because you had your 'I'm going alone' face on last night, so I knew that you'd have to sneak out to go find whoever eats zombie brains," She pointed out, a hand on her hip.

"Wait, really?" He murmured in confusion that he had such a face, snapping out of it. "I have to do this alone. Go back with Rover, I won't take long."

"Uh, no," She crossed her arms. "I'm coming with you to help finish the bestiary. Besides, the others might take it better if they know that I came with you...plus if I don't, you might get chased down by a monster, so there's that. You need someone to help out."

"May, I'm doing this to protect you guy-"

"We've had this conversation before when you worried about Quint; stop trying to overprotect us. After all, we defeated Blarg together, and we'll face whatever this danger is together too," She defended to him.

"May, go home."

She took out her walkie and turned it on with a smirk. "Hey guys, you up? Just thought I'd let you know that-"

"That I took May out to see the sunrise!" Jack laughed nervously and May put her hands behind her back knowingly as she knew she got him. "Gonna spend some time together, her and me. It'll be good for us and the team!"

"Um, okay?" Dirk asked in confusion.

"That sounds...great," Quint replied in a strained tone; unsure of how he felt about them being alone.

"You okay, buddy?" Jack asked him in a bit of concern.

"I'm fine!" He snapped at his best friend a little.

"Well, don't spend all day together, last thing I need is for two more people to get along too well. And May, make sure Jack doesn't do anything stupid," June remarked into the walkie.

"Hey," Jack pouted as May took back her walkie-talkie.

"I can handle it. Shouldn't be too difficult. See you guys later," She then signed off and Jack sighed in defeat.

"Fine. You can come. Not sure what's up with Quint, though."

"Maybe he woke up on the wrong side of the bed," May shrugged at him. Rover ran off, Jack checking out the book and smirking. The two walked off together.


Quint grumbled to himself in his room, walking around in his bathrobe. "Dumb Jack, spending the day with the girl I like." He then saw that Jack wasn't in his room...and that the bestiary was gone. He approached June, who had a bulletin board in front of her. She had a drink in her hand, along with a pin attached to a red ring. "Jack just lied; he took the bestiary." June gasped and dropped her drink. She whipped around in anger.

"What?! He's off gallivanting with that book again? And with May of all people? Didn't I just say we need to stick together? Didn't I?"

"Yes," The two rolled their eyes, and she turned around to the board.

"Should we go try to find them? Please let us find them," Quint looked annoyed as he wanted anything but the two to be alone. He just...didn't want anything happening between them.

"No, not now. I'm making progress," June answered, disappointing Quint. They approached her from behind and saw the board.

"Whoa," Dirk commented as they looked at it. "That's a lot of yarn."

"There is some clue that'll tell us what's luring and attacking these zombies," June said in thought, looking at all of the clues. Dirk pointed at a pony sticker.

"What's the pony for?"

"I had an extra pony, okay?" June retorted back quickly.

"Fine work, friend," Quint smiled reluctantly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Meanwhile, Dirk and I will consult my zombie research journal. Maybe there's something in their biology that can help us," Quint suggested with a weak smile.

"Good! Get to it! This horrifying zombie brain mystery isn't gonna solve itself, people!" She screamed at the both of them and they stared at her. "Sorry. Old habits," She shrugged with a small smile, as that was Editor of the School Paper June.

Quint knocked away some stuff on his desk, looking around but not seeing the journal. "Dirk?" He asked in anger, turning around to him. "Where's my zombie research journal?"

"I don't know," Dirk shrugged casually while looking at a beaker. "What'd it look like?" He sniffed the contents.

"A journal that says 'zombie research' in huge letters on the front!" Quint exclaimed in frustration, getting his teeth and clenching his fists.

"Oh, yeah, I got rid of it. It smelled like rotting flesh."

Quint was exasperated after hearing this. "Of course it smelled like rotting flesh. It had rotting flesh in it!" He grabbed the beaker away from Dirk and then started shaking him. First May went off with Jack and now this. "Do you just throw away anything that smells like rotten flesh?!"

"Uh, yeah, usually," Dirk gently pulled away from him, backing away as he hadn't experienced Quint's anger before, which was a little weird.

"Oh, my research. My fieldwork."

"Dude, you really want it, it's in our trash pile," Dirk jerked a thumb outside, surprising Quint.

"We have a trash pile?"

"Yeah," Dirk led him to the platform. "Been meaning to talk to you guys about that. It's gotten out of hand." And by out of hand...there were dozens of trash bags outside the treehouse.

"We need my zombie journal. Dirk...I hate to say this, but we have to take out the trash."

"Dude," Dirk grumbled at this, arms crossed. "End of the world, and I still end up doing chores. This apocalypse stinks!" He gestured to the pile.


Jack and May stood at an area that was semi-flooded thanks to the apocalypse, with cars in the water and some vines around the area. "Monster name, Tentacular Spectacular," Jack smirked as he looked at the page.

"That sounds like a lame seafood restaurant, we gotta rethink that name," May shook her head at this.

"Essence-flagellum whiskers," Jack seemingly ignored her before looking up. "Wait, is that name really that bad?"

"Duh!"

"Man, there's a lot of pages to fill," He flipped through them and she looked over his shoulder. He put the book away and then stepped on top of a car. "But no one said it couldn't be fun," Jack smirked, tossing a rock in his hand. "Okay, wake up, little Susie," Jack tossed the rock against the water before it fell. The water bubbled and they waited as one of the cars tilted. Jack jumped off and ran towards the cars to hide. May flipped off the one she was standing on, rolling and hiding behind the one across Jack. They both looked across the water and something grabbed the back of a trunk, scrapping its claws against it. The monster they were looking for appeared on top of the car, screeching loudly. "Are you the one who's been performing brainy-ectomies on our undead neighbors?" Jack asked in thought.

"I don't know about that one..." May raised a brow; this creature seemed to mainly like the water. It wouldn't make sense to leave it just to eat zombie brains. Jack went through one car and got out through the other door. May rolled behind one as they both took hiding before popping out of nowhere.

"Ha ha!" Jack pointed his slicer at the creature. "Prepare to be essence-napped, monster! But first, smile!" He took out the camera and snapped a selfie, having brought May closer to her surprise. The monster snarled from the flash, diving forward as Jack gasped.

"I think you made it mad," May gave a nervous look and she was right as the monster threw a car at them. Jack screamed and May pushed him to the side, both of them landing in the water. Suddenly something hooked Jack's shirt, pulling him backwards and away from the area. The monster dived back into the water, May looking up in confusion. She stood up and ran over, recoiling back in surprise as she saw their savior.

"Thrull, what are you doing?" Jack complained as Thrull held him up by his backpack. Thrull sat on top of a car. "Where'd you come from? Were you watching me?"

"I am taking the bestiary back," Thrull growled while he opened up the backpack.

"No, come on!" Jack whined before Thrull hung him upside down to shake the book off him.

"I told you, completing the bestiary is the ultimate quest," He stated while searching him. "But you refuse to take it seriously."

"I am very—ah! Serious," Jack retorted while getting hit with his stuff. His backpack slipped off him and he fell to the ground. May bent down to help him up.

"Thrull, can't we talk this out?" She offered as the bestiary fell into his hand. He tossed the backpack to Jack.

"Do you know how dangerous that beast is? And you would dare to attempt to retrieve its essence while joking? And you," He pointed at May, who recoiled back while biting her lip. "You would assist him knowing he was this way?" He groaned in annoyance, starting to hobble off. Jack chased after him, May following from behind.

"Wait! Wait-wait-wait-wait-wait-wait," Jack protested at Thrull. "You can't just take it from me. It was a gift! I gave you that hockey stick as a gift, and I didn't take it back."

"Thrull, come on. You trusted it to us," May gestured to herself and Jack. "You're really gonna continue filling it out with your leg like this?" She still didn't trust him fully, but even she knew that this was ridiculous.

Thrull grunted as he stopped, turning around to them. "The bestiary was more than a gift. It was a test. And you failed," He looked down at Jack specifically.

"Wait! Nobody told me it was a test," Jack stared at him.

"Not knowing it was a test was part of the test," Thrull explained, earning a facepalm from May. He sighed and turned around to the duo. "The day we met, you stood strong against the Wormungulous." Jack stood bravely with his slicer in his hand. "I hoped you would be the one who could complete the bestiary." Thrull stared down at the boy. "I was mistaken."

Jack gasped at his statement, frowning. "But what's the big deal? Who cares if I have fun while doing it?"

May glanced between the two awkwardly. "You do not understand," Thrull growled a bit. "Not every creature that wanted to come through the portal to your dimension was able to cross over," He placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "Rezzoch is coming."

"What?!" The girl exclaimed in shock.

"Rezzoch? The evil destructor of worlds evil destroyer guy?" Jack asked in a panic.

"At any moment, the portals may open again, bringing blood, death, terror!" Thrull told them with wide eyes.

"Crud. We are anti-blood, death, terror."

"So what do we do?" May frowned, arms crossed.

Thrull sat back down on a car. "Jack, May, I apologize for my anger, but..." He looked away with...an odd smirk on his face, but neither of them could see it. May narrowed her eyes a bit at him; she had to keep an eye out as she had a bad feeling...

"Hey, Thrull, what is it? In this dimension, friends tell friends things," Jack sat down next to him.

"This bestiary is no ordinary book. It is the only thing powerful enough to stop the coming danger."

"...I will do anything to protect my friends." May blinked at her friend that he seemed to want to do that on his own. "Show me what to do. I will take it seriously. Scout's honor, cross my heart, hope to be zombified." He looked at Thrull pleadingly. The monster hummed in thought as he stared at the boy.

"Prove to me the seriousness of your purpose through rigorous training."

Jack smiled and then jumped up happily. "Yes! Rad! Yay for second chances!" He pulled in May for a group hug and the boy sniffed Thrull. "You smell delicious! Like curly fries!" Thrull growled down at him and May cleared her throat. "Sorry!" Jack backed away in realization. "Serious. Only serious...Yes!"


June continued looking at her board. "Zombie parade, zombies disappearing, a zombie pile, brains sucked out. "But why suck brains? Food?" A noise was heard outside, a trash bag flying around. "Whatever it's feeding, it's big. Really big." She glanced out the window as the noise continued and ran over to it. "Can you guys keep it down? I can't hear myself think!"

Quint and Dirk were taking out the trash. "We're cleaning as quietly as we can, Mom!" Dirk retorted back to her.

"I'm not your mom! Something for which I am very grateful!" She stormed away and growled, stabbing her spear against the ground. One of the photos fell to the floor and she picked it up, noticing something. "Wait..." She gasped as she saw something in the background. "I've seen you before."

She bent down to a box, rummaging through it. She picked up a photo of Jack and Quint, seeing a shadow of someone watching them from the kitchen of Joe's Pizza. The same shadow was watching Quint in the other photo. "Watching us," She narrowed her eyes as she compared the pictures. "Time for this reporter to go into the field."

She took her spear and her notebook, using the zipline to leave. Quint looked up at her from the ground. "Did she just run off without telling us where she was going, contradicting everything she said this morning?"

"Yep," Dirk commented while shoveling slime out of the bag. It landed on Quint's face and he wiped it off in disgust.

"Blech!" Rover then licked at it, disgusting Dirk more. Quint gently pushed Rover off of him, slamming down the invention he had used to wipe his face. "Stupid Jack, taking her with him..." Quint grumbled, Dirk raising a brow.

"Are you talking about May and Jack? They'll be fine, they've survived the apocalypse on their own for a while before they found us all."

"It's not that I don't trust either of them, I just..." He sighed, looking away. "I wanted to talk to May about something important, but then she took off with Jack. And why him? What's he got to offer that I don't?" He gritted his teeth. "I can offer adventure! Like when I wanted to prove that I could protect her!"

Dirk blinked in disbelief at this as he realized something. "Are you...jealous? Do you...like May, dude?" He smiled knowingly at him.

His eyes widened at Dirk being able to tell, but obviously he didn't want it to slip that he was jealous of his best friend. "What! No, of course not! May and I are ust good friends. That's it," Quint defended in embarrassment. Dirk crossed his arms, raising a brow. He sighed in defeat as he knew he wasn't fooling the former bully. "...Okay, maybe I do. It's...it's not easy debating what she thinks of me. You used to date her, now she's hanging out with Jack. Am I just...not noticeable to her?"

"Wow...that's deep."

"...Yeah," Quint murmured to himself.

"Dude...May's one of the coolest girls I know. And not just because she can hold her own. She never once acted like regular popular girls, she never looked down on anyone. Well, except me when I was bullying you," He rubbed the back of his neck. "But she saved your life when the apocalypse started, right?"

"She'd do that for anyone," Quint dismissed sadly.

"She could've, but she was with you the entire time," The boy's eyes widened in realization that she didn't rescue anyone else that day as far as he knew. She picked him and Jack to help rescue, and she stayed by their side until they all got separated. "She didn't do that for just anyone. Which means that she sees you in her own special way, maybe."

"Maybe you're right! Maybe I'm special to her," Quint smiled at this. "Thanks, Dirk."

"I just didn't wanna hear you whine the whole time," Dirk shrugged a bit.


Jack did push-ups with the giggling rocks on his back. Thrull and May watched from the bleachers. "What about—ugh—the bestiary?" Jack asked in between groans. "And finding monsters?"

"Keep focused on the task at hand. Focus!" Thrull poked his arm with the hockey stick, causing him to fall flat on his face. He tried to get up, but failed, May cringing a little at him.

At What a Wiener, Jack stood on top of a plastic wiener from the sign, trying to balance himself. Thrull and May stared at him from another wiener and he stuck a pose, barely managing to stand. He smiled at the others once he got it right, but the wiener broke and fell off, taking Jack with it. They looked down at him from above as the wiener was on top of him, and he gave a thumbs up. May just facepalmed while Thrull looked embarrassed.

They watched from a distance as he spun around his slicer in his hand. He sliced off propped up skateboards, standing proudly. "Not bad, huh?" A skateboard landed on top of his head, May glancing up at the monster as he facepalmed.

At Joe's Pizza, June held up the photo while sitting at a booth. She looked around in thought, comparing the shadow to the bodies of the monsters. One of them tipped off their hat, revealing the smaller pink one. She crossed off possibilities from her list.

As Dirk and Quint went through the garbage, the latter got a nasty smell in his nose and he gagged from it. Rover helped out too, but mostly by using some of the trash as chew toys.

Jack ran laps while Thrull held a hose, splashing him with water. Then he showed Jack some moves to do with his slicer, Jack smirking. He slipped from the mud, falling onto the ground as he hit May and Thrull with it. Thrull loomed over him, offering the boy his slicer back. He took it with a smile, looking up at the monster who smiled back at him. May nodded in approval of his training, offering a towel.


"I thought I was close!" June complained to Skaelka, stuffing her face with nachos. "I felt it! Reporter's intuition," She flipped through pages. "But I'm just back where I started!" Skaelka just watched while she ate.

"I feel your pain, my sister. Intuition can be a powerful woman tool, until it leads us astray. Like my fifth mate. He was attractive in the face, but he was weak! So I defeated him in armed combat and sent him homeward to his birthing mother." June glanced up at her with a small glare, the monster realizing that those two things were not comparable. "This is not a perfect comparison."

"Good story, Skaelka, but I should probably be-" June ducked her head as a monster flew over it. She then noticed the cloak from the pictures just sitting nearby. "The cloak! I found it!"

"You now make progress!" Skaelka gave her an encouraging smile. "Progress is good! Now, shall I chop the cloak in half? That will be more progress."

June sniffed the cloak, ignoring the question. "I know this odor. Ah, it's on the tip of my nose. It smells like...salami! Skaelka, come with me, and bring your ax!" She took her spear and walked off.

"I do! Everywhere but the shower," Skaelka smiled as she followed after the girl.


At What a Wiener, Jack hopped across tires. "Tires, tires, tires, tires, tires," He said in exhaustion, carrying a bucket of rocks on his back. "Tires, tires, tires, tires, tires." He groaned and eventually dropped them.

"Giving up already?" Thrull wondered from the car he was sitting on.

"That bestiary is the key to keeping my friends alive, Thrull," Jack argued to him, growing impatient. "So I can't wait any longer. I'm ready! Enough training!"

"Prove yourself. Attack us," Thrull waved a hand forward, May's eyes widening.

"Wait, what?"

"What?" Jack looked just as baffled as she did. "Uh, okay?"

"Wait, don't I get-"

"You asked for it!" Jack pulled out his slicer and May summoned her shovel claws, staring him down. "Feel the pain!" He jumped forward, but Thrull knocked him away easily before May could even attack him. She blinked as she dropped her stance. "Nice to slice ya!" He attacked from the other side, May pushing him away. "Whack attack!" This time Thrull grabbed him and tossed him to the floor. "Taste the thunder!" He leapt forward, but Thrull grabbed the slicer and tossed him backwards.

"Taste the thunder? Really? When did you start talking like that?" May raised a brow at him.

"I'm a serious warrior, Thrull. I swear. I just need a serious moment of rest."

Thrull sighed while hobbling past him. "Catch your breath, boy. If you wanna protect your friends, you must be prepared. Have I told you both about the day I fell into your world?" As he started falling, it was like a tornado. "It was madness. Chaos. Frightened and disoriented, many of the creatures from my world lashed out." Thrull looked up in horror as they started fighting each other and then him. "I only survived by being focused and fearless, and serious." He stood up after being knocked down, staring down the monster that attacked him. "Only my quickness, only my focus, only that allowed me to perform Rising Anguish." Rising Anguish consisted of holding a weapon and swinging upwards with force. "The move that saved my life."

He opened his eyes, looking at the two. "In order to complete the bestiary, you must put away childish behaviors and become a warrior." Jack narrowed his eyes, stood up, and left. May blinked in shock from his action. "You give up?"

"...No," Jack turned around and pointed his slicer at Thrull. "I get serious. Come on, May."

She stood there awkwardly as she watched him, an uncertain look on her face. Nevertheless, she silently went after him. If she didn't, she'd hear the end of it from their friends for not only going off alone, but letting him risk his life. Thrull just smiled at the two instead of being angry.

A deli, like everything else, had been abandoned, the sign creaking as it swung back and forth. June and Skaelka popped out of hiding from behind a car. "There! Whatever creature wore this cloak has been at that deli," She explained to her friend, stepping away and grabbing her spear. "We're about to crack this story wide open."

"Yes!" Skaelka cheered behind her. "Like a skull," She followed the girl eagerly.


Dirk and Quint were still going through the trash by the time the sun was setting. And they still hadn't found the journal. Quint glanced back at him. "Dirk, if we don't find this zombie journal, we can't help. We'll be useless! And then May will think I'm useless and want nothing to do with me!"

"Not in this one!" Dirk tossed a trash can onto the catapult, tossing it into the sky. Rover chased after it, crashing into the fence. He whimpered as he tried to get himself out. "Uh-oh, Rover's got himself trapped."

"That's it! A trap!" Quint smiled, gesturing to Rover. "We can build a trap!"

Dirk finally located the journal, covered in some gunk as he held it out. He spit out something onto the ground. "I found it!"

"Yes! My zombie journal!" Quint exclaimed happily and then tossed it back into the trash. "I no longer need that."

"WHAT?!" Dirk shouted at him as they spent almost all day looking for it, only for Quint to say that he didn't need it anymore.

"Got a new plan. We are gonna build a trap."

Dirk took Quint and placed him in the trash. He put a banana peel over Quint's head, wiping his hands. "Chore complete," He walked off without another word. Rover barked, Quint ducking as the creature landed in the trash. He still had part of the fence over his neck as he barked at the boy.


Jack and May arrived back at the lake area with the cars. "Jack, what are we doing? Why are we back here again?" May asked hesitantly as she stared at him.

"Thrull said this monster was too ferocious for me to handle," He started off, grabbing his slicer. "I'll show him."

"But don't you think we should at least have a pl-" He walked off without her and she sighed heavily.

"Boys..." She grumbled knowingly as she trudged after him. He gasped as they got deeper into the water.

"It's cold. Aah! And now it's up to my boxers!" He exclaimed and she just shook her head as it didn't bother her as much. As they stepped further, the water bubbled behind them. May turned around but didn't see anything.


June and Skaelka entered the deli, the door creaking. It was dark, but they could see a green light coming in from the kitchen area. And to be honest, all the meat and vines hanging up from the ceiling weren't helping with the vibe of the place a little. June hummed in thought as she looked around. She pointed to her right, silently telling Skaelka to check out that area. The monster silently agreed as she walked off. June continued forward, hearing a snarl nearby. "Huh?" She asked in alarm, moving away some dirt off the glass to reveal a white slug monster inside. It snarled again and tried to attack, forgetting that it was inside glass. She yelped as she stepped away, staring at the monster. She blew off a bang away from her face. "Uh, I think I'll go vegetarian..." She commented, walking off as the same shadow from the pictures was watching...


"Alright, Jack," He spoke up as he and May walked side by side. "No more games, no more fun. Battle like Thrull."

"I don't know if that's how you should go about it."

"Why?" He raised a brow at her.

"I don't know, something about Thrull is...is just off to me," She narrowed her eyes a bit. "I mean, I get where he's coming from, but-"

The water bubbled again and Jack turned around in determination. "The bestiary is for legit hunters only." He held his slicer like a bat, gripping it tightly as May summoned her shovel claws. They watched the water, but then a tire was hurled towards them instead. Both of them ducked out of the way. "Aah, tires!"

Then the actual sea monster came out from behind. "Aah! Monster!" The two dodged as it snarled, the two taking off. It dove into the water after them and they fell. The monster dove after them and they stared as it charged forward. Jack jumped on the head to distract it and May swam up. "Okay, everybody out of the pool," He said while going into the trunk of a car.

"Jack, that's-"

The monster snarled, getting their attention as they looked up. "Not a good place to hide," May finished nervously as she backed away. It snarled at them again from its spot as they glanced to each other in fear.


June opened the door, looking to the green light as she was in the storage area. She stepped inside, glancing around to make sure there wasn't anything that would jump her. "This deli goes on for miles," She stated as she raised a brow at the door. She grabbed the knob, opening it and shocked at the sight. "Whoa..." Inside was a room lit with green candles, along with a map and pictures on the wall. "What...what is this?" She glanced around in confusion. One picture was drawn of Jack and Blarg, along with the five, and also a picture of June. She then saw pictures of the others, all of them drawn. She narrowed her eyes, stepping forward as someone came up from behind. She turned around, screaming as a zombie had somehow snuck up behind her.

"Zombie!" She screamed as she ducked out of the way, dropping her spear in the process. "Skaelka, help!" She cried out as her back hit a crate, and she was now cornered by the zombie. It snarled at her and she screamed again. Suddenly a sound was heard and she froze. The zombie fell to the ground as it had been stopped...by Bardle. He held a sharp weapon that he had used to attack the zombie.

"...You should be more careful," He spoke up after a few seconds. "These things are an abomination. They must be eradicated."

"Uh...thanks?" She responded anxiously as she didn't know what to say after all that. Not to mention the zombie wasn't moving at all, which was unsettling to think about. He stared at her intensely. "O-Okay, I have a thing," She backed away from him. "So-" She bumped right into Skaelka, screaming. "Oh, it's you."

"How disappointing. I found neither a new mate nor a creature to battle!" The door was heard closing and June turned around.

"Bardle! He saved me, but he killed a zombie. And there's this whole wall of pictures of us," She ran over to the door, trying to get it open but failing. "No!" She pulled on a lock that wasn't there before, struggling to do so. A light came from the lock and then disappeared. She turned back to Skaelka. "Someone was studying the zombies and us! There were pictures of us! In there! And I don't know for sure, but I think Bardle is..." She sighed in defeat as she didn't know what to make out of all of this. "I mean, I'm not sure. But he was there and-"

"June!" Skaelka interrupted her with a smile. "Do you need me to decapitate something for you?"

"No. Not yet," June glared as she was GOING to figure out why there were pictures of them in there.

"Oh, okay. When?"

"I don't have an exact time for the decapitating," June gave a weak smile.

"A ballpark?"

"No."

"Oh...Mozzarella sticks?" She just really wanted to use her axe as she held them up, and June sighed.

"Yeah." She took one, narrowing her eyes. "But I am not giving up on that room. Skaelka, why is this mozzarella stick wet?"

"I'm sweaty," Skaelka stated as they left. "This dimension is humid." They closed the door, the room's light still on...


The sea monster snarled, diving forward to the two. Jack yelped, pushing May out of the way as they hid in the water. Both of them crawled on top of a car, and the monster came up behind them. Jack yelped and backed away a bit. May flipped onto another car as the monster chomped on the hood. Jack grinned widely as he saw the essence. "Flagellum!" He leapt forward and landed on the monster's head.

"What are you doing?!" May called out from her spot.

"Serious bestiary essence!" He answered, gripping his weapon. The monster snarled...and then tucked them into his gills. "Hey! No fair!" He tossed Jack into the water. May gasped sharply as she looked down.

"Jack!" She turned around in alarm to see that Thrull was standing on the other side. "No!" He slammed his hammer against a car to make noise. The monster leapt forward, revealing that Jack was fine. May hopped over and held out her hand so that she could help him up. The monster swam straight for Thrull, knocking a car over to him. Thrull fell to the ground, looking up at the monster as it reappeared. It charged forward, pinning Thrull and snarling down at him. He growled and grabbed the tongue, May and Jack standing up.

"Aah! Ah, forget serious!" Jack narrowed his eyes, Thrull trying to fight off the sea creature. May smiled encouragingly at his decision as they both stood side by side. Jack stomped on the hood of the car, causing the alarm to go off. The creature turned around to them with a snarl. "I'm the best serious warrior I know!" Jack sung a little, May pinching her nose and shaking her head. "You're a big ugly monster, oh, whoa!" He shook his butt a little. "Beep! Beep! Human tushies, come and get 'em!"

"Wait, what?" May turned to him in disbelief as the creature swam forward and knocked into the car. The two screamed as they landed roughly on top of another car.

"Ow! My ankle!" Jack held it in pain. May put his arm around her shoulder, glaring as the monster approached and she stood up.

"Fool!" Thrull exclaimed, May waiting for the attack. Jack looked up as it loomed over them and he grabbed his slicer, waiting for the right moment. Before May could protest, Jack used Rising Anguish on the monster.

"Psych!"

"Alright Jack!" May cheered while bouncing a bit.

"Rising Anguish!" Thrull smiled in awe. The creature crashed into a car, Jack landing back on the one he was standing on.

"Sorry, fishy dude. Tricked ya." It snarled and dove forward, the two grabbing hold of the back. "Say 'selfie'!" Jack snapped a photo, blinding the creature and May held on tight.

"Jack! Now!" She pointed at the flagellum. He stabbed his slicer into it, causing pain into the sea monster as he sliced off one part, grabbing it.

"This may sting a little!" Jack sliced the rest of it off, the creature screaming again. Thrull watched in disbelief at this style of grabbing essence as he had never seen anything like it. The two jumped off and landed at the exit. "Look, I'm sorry, I know that hurt, but I gotta finish the bestiary to save all of us."

May stared at him in shock, the sea monster charging towards them. The two stood bravely before running on top of a car. They jumped off as the monster crashed into it, with May using her claws to give it a scar along its stomach. Rubble from the ceiling landed over it until it stopped moving. "Stay!"

The two high fived before running up to check on Thrull. He groaned as he leaned against a wall, looking up and seeing Jack offer the hockey stick. "You performed Rising Anguish, as I did," Thrull smiled and took the stick.

"Sure did," Jack held up the flagellum. "After I used my goofy dance moves."

"Okay, put that somewhere where I don't have to look at it," May waved a hand and he did so by using his backpack to store.

"You have earned the right to fight the way you see fit," Thrull told him with a smile. "You did well."

May glanced at him from behind Jack with her arms behind her back. Maybe...maybe she should put a little bit more trust in Thrull. He did help them out, after all. Jack thought about something, looking at his camera. He looked between Thrull and May, both of them nodding in agreement. They all learned in for a selfie, May's arm around Jack as she gave a wink and a peace sign. Jack smiled happily at the photo, May patting his back with a smile.


It was night by the time they got back, seeing Dirk and Quint still outside. "Hi, guys. I was-" Jack got snared by a rope trap, hanging upside down. "Aah! Vine thingy ankle attack!" He tried to slice himself free, but was unable to.

"It's not a vine thingy, you dork," Dirk remarked to him.

"It's a zombie trap, a trap to catch zombies," Quint explained to his best friend.

"Cool, cool, fun, fun. Why?"

May sniffed the air and waved a hand in front of her face. "Ugh, and why do you guys smell like...rotting flesh?"

"We will capture a zombie. And the next time we hear the shrieking, we set the zombie loose! Then we follow it and find out where all the missing zombies are going!" Quint told them both. "And...as for the smell, Dirk threw out my zombie journal, so we went through the trash to find it."

"Great plan, I think. My brain is getting, uh, woozily." June then arrived back. "Hey, uh, June, a little help-"

"No!" She denied sharply, grabbing his camera and pulling him forward. "You and May went off on your own after you agreed not to!"

"So did you!" Quint pointed out.

"I'm talking to Jack!"

"Whoa, whoa, hold on. Why is it okay for you to go off on your own and not us?" May defended, pointing a finger at June.

"Because I say so!"

"Listen bossy boots, I don't answer to you!" May argued back as they glared at each other.

"Girls, girls. Come on. I could explain that, except all the blood is running to my head."

June ignored this and released him, turning to Quint and Dirk. May just huffed at her. "So, what's with the dorky pinata?"

"It's a zombie trap, to help us solve the missing zombie mystery," Quint smiled at her.

"Well, you better hope it works, cause I'm not sure how much more time we've got," She revealed ominously.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Dirk stammered in concern.

"Guys...I think Bardle is the cloaked figure in these pics," She showed them the pictures. "Bardle is totally involved in this zombie brain thing, and the shrieking, and the zombie parade. I'm not sure how, but he is."

"Guys?" Jack groaned out as blood is still rushing to his head.

"And I think we're all in danger."

"Bardle? But that doesn't make sense. Bardle doesn't even like interacting with other people, let alone watch us," May spoke up to her.

"Look, you don't have to believe me," June turned to her seriously. "And we don't get along, but you have to trust me on this one."

May didn't answer as she frowned and Quint noticed that she had something on her mind. She rubbed her arm as she hesitated to respond to June, especially since both of them butted heads more than they did connect on a friendly level.

"Guys?" Jack called out.

"Well, whatever is going on, we better get to it!" Quint slammed a fist against his palm and they all left. Jack gasped as he snapped out of it.

"Wait! Somebody let me down! I'm head-lighted—I mean, lightheaded. Guys? Anybody?" They all ignored him and went inside the treehouse. Rover came over to him. "Hey!" Rover, who had gone through the trash again, started licking his face. "Eww! Trash juice! No, no, no, no, no! Aah! Rover!" Jack complained as his face was gonna smell like trash now.


May and Quint were hard at work forming trap ideas to test out in the morning. She glanced up at him. "So why would Dirk throw out your zombie journal?" She couldn't help but wonder.

"It had rotting flesh in it, even though that's the point. I needed it to help out the team," He explained awkwardly, rubbing his neck as he remembered being bitter that May went off with Jack. He knew nothing would never happen as Jack wouldn't do that to him, but it still worried him that she might start liking him. Maybe he could ask her subtlety...

"How about I just make the smell less prominent so that this never happens again?" May offered gently.

"That seems like a good compromise," He chuckled a bit and she giggled, going back to brainstorming. He then cleared his throat. "So...how were things with Jack?"

"Fun enough," She shrugged a little. "He's a cool guy. Can't complain for the most part."

He looked relieved that nothing seemed to happen. "By the way...um, can I ask you something?"

"I'm all ears," She smiled as she drew something on a paper.

"May, uh...am I...special to you?"

She looked up and glanced back at him as he rubbed her neck. May blinked at the question and took a few seconds to think before smiling. "Of course you are, Quint. Out of everyone, you're the one I'm most comfortable with. You're like my best friend."

Quint gave a disappointed sound and sagged his shoulders with a drawn out sigh. She blinked in confusion at him. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No. You said just the right things," He looked up at her with a small smile; her words were at least positive and she had only nice things to say. Maybe one day he could get her to see him for who he truly was... "But earlier, when June was talking about Bardle, you didn't seem to agree with her. Why?"

She bit her lip, rubbing her arm again. "...If I tell you, will you keep it a secret?" She turned to him and he nodded rapidly.

"Of course. It'll stay in this room. It seems like you're struggling to hold it back."

"Well...that's because there's something about Thrull that I can't fully trust him," May explained and he blinked in shock that she mentioned him of all people to be suspicious about.

"Thrull? But he's helped us out a lot. He saved us from the Wormungulous."

"I know, but...at the same time, I don't know what his deal is. Sometimes his looks just give me the wrong vibe. Plus...he said when we met him, that he had been watching us. But it's the same feeling I have about him that June feels about Bardle," She told him and he rubbed his chin. "Which is why I couldn't agree with June. Because Bardle I feel is hiding something, but probably not everything she's accused him of. My gut can't bring myself to tell her that I think he's the one we should be watching out for."

"What about the fact that she said we're in danger?" He pointed out.

"Well, I believe her on that at least. We're in the apocalypse," She scoffed a bit. "But something just doesn't feel right..."

"Well...thanks for confiding in me about it. I can see where both of you are coming from. But I'm sure whatever it is, we'll face it together. Like we should," He told her gently. "I won't say anything, but are you going to tell the others?"

"I don't think they'd believe me. Especially Jack. Hopefully I'm wrong for his sake," She said and they went back to work. Whatever they had to discover, she knew that it wasn't going to end well whether her instincts were right or wrong.