A fast-spreading virus. People instantly turning violent. The world consumed by blood, panic, and death. This isn’t the latest installment of The Walking Dead but a new six-issue DC Comics event starting May 1 called DCeased , spearheaded by writer Tom Taylor with artists Trevor Hairsine, Stefan Gaudiano, James Harren and Rain Beredo. If you recognize Taylor’s name from the mega hit Injustice, then you already know DC’s characters are in for a really, really rough time.

IGN Exclusive: A Look Inside DCeased #1 6 IMAGES

“The idea originated with editor Ben Abernathy. He had an idea to do a horror/zombie tale at DC, and hit me up to ask if I’d like to be involved. At the time I was pretty busy, but over the next few days, my mind was racing,” Taylor told IGN. “I couldn’t stop thinking of new and terrible ways to torture my favorite heroes in ways that made Injustice look tame by comparison.”Warning: We have your first look inside DCeased #1, as well as some variant covers, but the imagery is quite graphic.This story takes place outside main DC continuity, which gives it free reign to do whatever it wants… including rack up a high body count.“While the characters are the ones everyone knows so well, this is very much its own thing,” Taylor explained. “The reason being, the stakes are real. We can tell a story without holding back. No one you love is safe. Even the icons can fall.”DCeased kicks off when, thanks to Darkseid, a techno-organic virus infects the world’s networks and spreads to some 600 million people through anything with a screen. Those affected try to remove the virus from their minds by scratching and ripping at their own flesh. But once the virus takes hold, they essentially become a rage zombie. Of course we know that Batman has a plan in place for virtually every disaster you could imagine, but this pandemic might be more than even the Dark Knight could have ever prepared for.“Batman is definitely usually ready for anything. And this is no different. But Batman’s greatest asset, after his friends and family, is his mind,” Taylor teased. “Without wanting to spoil too much, our virus affects the mind. Can Batman fight something that’s part of him? Or will Bat-god be revealed to be as mortal as the rest of us?”

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For more on DC, check out this primer on the recently teased villain for The Flash... Batman!?

Joshua is Senior Editor of IGN Comics. If Pokemon, Green Lantern, or Game of Thrones are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter @JoshuaYehl and IGN