Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



Chen Zi Han looked at Liu Yu Zeng as the sound of a gunshot echoed through the mountains. 'Faster Kronos,' he said, and the bike under him put on a burst of speed. 'I need you to find her, and I need to get to her now.'

'There is one way to ensure that,' said Kronos as he sped around the twists and turns of the road. 

'How?' demanded Chen Zi Han, willing to do anything.

'Put on the mantel,' replied Kronos as he shot up the front end of a broken-down car blocking his way. He went flying over the other side, not bothering to slow down to make the landing easier. The impact jarred Chen Zi Han, but the man didn't care at all.

'What mantel?' demanded Chen Zi Han. He had already accepted the fact that he was Famine; what more was there to do?

'You haven't killed me yet,' replied the voice of the second soul inside of his body. 'It is not until you kill me that you can take my place as one of the Four Horsemen.'

'Done,' growled Chen Zi Han, reaching deep into the darkness of his mind and pulling out a shadow, kicking and screaming. 'If you are the only thing stopping me from getting to her, then there is no need to keep you around a moment longer.'

Chen Zi Han breathed deeply, pulling the essence of the shadow into himself. Within seconds, the shadow was gone.

'Can you hurry up now?' he demanded as a second shot rang out. He could feel his heart pounding in his body at the idea he might be too late.

'I don't know,' sneered Kronos. 'Who are you?'

'I am fucking Famine, and if you don't get me to my woman right this minute, I will kill you along with anyone else standing in my way. Are we clear?' snarled Chen Zi Han, letting the rage inside of him take over for the worry.

The smooth cadence of wheels on asphalt quickly changed to hooves pounding. Chen Zi Han could feel the strength and muscles of flesh and bone under him. Blinking, he saw that he was no longer driving a motorcycle but rather riding an enormous black horse with black armor. White smoke seemed to be coming from its mouth as it pushed itself to go faster.

'Who are you?' demanded the horse.

'I am Famine,' cried Chen Zi Han as he felt heavy armor descend on his body before settling in comfortably as if it had always been a part of him.

'Where are we going?' asked Kronos, his sharp teeth practically biting through the bit in his mouth. 

'To our Queen,' answered the man, feeling like he was going through a long-standing ceremony.

'Done,' answered the horse, and all of a sudden, Chen Zi Han found himself beside Cerberus, still on his armor-plated horse.

"Nice trick," said Li Dai Lu as she turned around to look at him. He snorted and quickly jumped down off the horse. His armor didn't make a sound as he walked through the bikers to get to his Queen.

Pulling her into his arms, he returned to Kronos and placed her up on the horse's back. Grunting that she was finally in the safest position possible, he turned his attention back to the situation.

"Does someone want to explain what the fuck is going on?" he demanded as his armor seemed to melt away. "Why did I hear two gunshots?"

"In my defense, they did shoot first," called out Li Dai Lu from where she sat on top of the horse. She looked like she belonged up there, and Chen Zi Han grunted in approval.

"Who shot second?" he asked, knowing the answer already.

"Me. They hit Cerberus; I couldn't let that go unanswered," she huffed. He would need to get the details later because he was pretty sure that they weren't aiming for Cerberus in the first place, but right now, he needed to keep a cool head, and the thought of her being shot would not help that.

"Chen Zi Han?" came a woman's voice behind him, and Chen Zi Han could see Li Dai Lu freezing. That was simply unacceptable.

Turning around, he saw a woman getting off the closest bike and starting to walk toward him and Li Dai Lu. "I am guessing that she wasn't lying when she claimed to be part of the Red Dragon syndicate," grumbled his Princess, causing him to laugh.

"Whether she was part of it or not, there is no longer a syndicate. Liu Yu Zeng and Chen Zi Han died at that ranch, remember?" he smiled at his woman before looking at the other one. "Do I know you?" he demanded, not bothering to look at the woman at all.

Instead, his attention was on the bikers behind her, most of whom were now taking off their helmets. "My name is Ma Xiu. I am one of the administrators for City H."

"And?" asked Chen Zi Han, not really caring.

"What do you mean?" responded Ma Xiu, confused. She was one of the highest-ranking women within the organization. That had to mean something, right?

"What do you want?" growled Chen Zi Han. He was pissed that one of the people in front of him had shot at his Princess, and although he was dead, the others were still alive. Guilt by association. They all needed to die.

"We need her supplies. She seems to have a lot. And even if she doesn't have that many, we need her truck to be able to go out and collect our own," explained Ma Xiu. They were desperate for more supplies at the compound, and the increase in zombies was making it harder and harder for them to go out looking for them.

"Want to know a way of making sure that you have enough supplies?" asked Chen Zi Han, looking at the woman in front of him for the first time.

"How?" asked Ma Xiu, cocking her head to the side.

"By having less mouths to feed," he answered right before he fired off two shots.

The bodies fell to the ground just as the sound of a bike reached everyone's ears.

"Looks like I missed some of the fun," complained Liu Yu Zeng as he slid around to a stop, sending dirt shooting toward the other bikers.