RYDER KADE, ZOMBIE CRUSADER

Heavyweight boxer Ryder Kade is tempted by big money purses offered on the mining planet Dradus. On arrival, he discovers that Dradus is owned, and ruled, by the tyrannical Tellurium Mining Corporation. Unable to recruit enough workers to replace those killed in the mines, the TMC has developed ‘Animatrol’ to reanimate the dead who are then exploited as ‘mindblown’ zombie slaves. The zombies call themselves the ‘Kith’ and suffer from unrelenting hunger. Having been brought up as a Christian, Ryder has strong moral standards and is sickened by the treatment of the Kith. He tries to help a slave girl being molested but is fatally stabbed by her abusers. He wakes to find himself 'zombified' and sold to the slave-master, Osiron. He is forced to perform as a ‘slugger’ in vicious fights to the death. However, Ryder was reanimated within seconds of dying and is not mindblown. He’s torn between his hunger and his Christian scruples. When he refuses to kill a helpless opponent in a packed arena, Osiron is furious and demands that Ryder strangle Lumina, a female slave, to learn obedience. But Lumina and Ryder turn the tables and slaughter Osiron and his guards.

Ryder then leads his fellow sluggers on a trek to the northern mountains where they hope to live in peace. During the journey they rescue more slaves and Ryder frees and forms a strong bond with Athena, a formidable Kith woman. The Kith encounter opposition from the TMC’s private army ‘True Order’. During skirmishes they suffer heavy losses but their numbers gradually increase. They eventually find their way to a hidden valley with plentiful food and water. Ryder comes to believe that the Kith are the descendants of Lazarus and chosen by God. He organizes the ‘Lazarenes’ into tribes. For a short time life is good, until True Order discover their location and attack. After a ferocious battle the Kith prevail, but realize they will never be left in peace. The only way to ensure their future is to defeat the TMC and take control of Dradus.

The tribes march south to Kryon City, the center of power on Dradus, where the TMC and the forces of True Order are based. Ryder fools the enemy into believing they will attack from the north but, during the night, the Kith tribes encircle the city. They launch their offensive from three sides, gaining the initiative. However, True Order counterattack and the Kith are on the verge of defeat until unexpected reinforcements arrive and tip the balance in their favor. The Lazarenes eventually storm the headquarters of the TMC during which Athena is tragically killed. An incensed Ryder puts his scruples aside and wreaks terrible retribution on the corporation’s heartless owners.