Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



"You really want to discuss schematics when your woman is lying unconscious in someone else's arms?" demanded Bin An Sha, not wanting to try to figure out why seeing a strange woman in someone else's arms was like a knife to his heart.

He was being completely serious. There was nothing more that he wanted to do right now than to look after her and make sure she was okay. 'She is our queen?" he asked the voice inside of his head. On the outside, he forced himself to remain relaxed. If the others perceived him as a threat, he would never be allowed near her. He knew that.

'You don't feel that draw to her?' demanded the voice back.

'But how can she be our queen if there is already a War?' pressed Bin An Sha as he looked at the three men, their guns trained on him. It went against everything inside of him to just let the threat remain, but he refused to move.

The unknown woman was more important.

'You expect me to know?' snorted the voice. 'All I know is what I feel. And she is our queen. Now, get off your ass and heal her.'

"Is it okay if I come closer?" asked Bin An Sha, raising his hands in the air with a smile. "I just want to make sure that she is fine. I mean, you shouldn't have any issues with that, right? Liu Wei can keep holding her if that would make you feel better."

The largest man out of the four was the first to lower his gun. "Go," he barked. His tone caused Bin An Sha's back to stiffen in annoyance and his lip to curl up into a sneer. No one spoke to him like that, and lived.

Contemplating the numerous ways that he could kill the other man, he slowly got off Murder and took measured steps toward the unconscious woman. He paused for a moment to look at Liu Wei. He understood that the other man was just as dangerous as he was, and he was placing himself in a vulnerable position by bending over to look after the woman.

"What is her name?' he asked softly, the murderous rage that he always felt inside of himself calming down as he got closer.

"Li Dai Lu," replied Liu Wei, studying the other man. He slowly lowered his weapon but didn't put it away. Bin An Sha was correct; Sweetheart needed to be looked after before anything else happened.

"Li Dai Lu," repeated Bin An Sha as he softly stroked her cheek, checking her temperature. "As in to 'Lead the way'?"

"Never thought to ask, honestly," replied Liu Wei with a shrug of his shoulders.

"You should have," sneered Bin An Sha softly, not wanting to disturb the woman. Her heart rate was within acceptable limits, and her skin was relatively dry. "Names have meaning. There is no such thing as a coincidence in this world."

"Do you really believe that?" snorted the youngest one as he walked toward his brother and the stranger.

"Is she not leading the way?" replied Bin An Sha as he took out a stethoscope from underneath his shirt.

"To what?" asked the giant as he came up behind Bin An Sha, more curious than hostile.

"Well, that's the question, isn't it? What is she leading us towards?" mused Bin An Sha as he listened to her lungs. She was breathing well on her own, and he couldn't hear any water from her lungs.

"Do any of us care? She could be leading us to our deaths, and I will still follow her a happy man," shrugged the youngest one, and Bin An Sha wondered if he had a few screws loose in his head.

"'He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how,'" said Bin An Sha, quoting one of his favorite philosophers.

"Nietzsche," came the soft reply from under him. Looking down, Bin An Sha gazed into the bluest eyes he had ever seen before.

"That's right," he said softly with a smile. For the first time in his life, his smile wasn't forced. "You know of him."

The woman, Li Dai Lu, hummed before her eyes flickered closed, and she fell back asleep.

"I am going to have to take off her wetsuit and inspect the bullet wound," said Bin An Sha as he started to lean her forward so he could get to the zipper in the back.

"Not happening," replied Liu Wei as he quickly pulled her away from the other man. "Her bullet wound is going to be fine. However, if she wants you to take a look at it, she will let you know herself."

"You guys were apparently in the middle of the ocean if your wetsuits and gear are anything to go by. Can you be so sure that she didn't get some type of infection?" Turning his attention to Wang Chao, he sneered. "I thought she was your wife, but you don't seem to be all that concerned about her."

"Be careful," advised Wang Chao with a tight smile. "You can ask things without insulting us in the process. What are you trying to say?"

"That your friends seem to care more about your wife than you do. You are a lucky man to have one as beautiful as her; make sure your friends don't try to steal her out from under you," mocked Bin An Sha. He would not be satisfied until he made sure that the bullet wound was taken care of.

He just wished that he had scissors to be able to cur around the hole in her suit and not take everything off and expose her to everyone. 

"Ah yes… the only socially acceptable way of telling another man that you want to bang his wife," joked the youngest one looking at him with a sly smile. "But I agree, we are all very lucky to have a woman like her."

"Let him look at the wound," came the largest man whom Bin An Sha had determined would be the hardest to kill. But to have her? He would kill every other man who thought he stood a chance.