Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



He stared at Hao Jing Ya as he asked his question, coming to a stop a hand's width away from us. "Did you challenge me?"

I watched as Hao Jing Ya's eyes widened in fear, her face turning white. Frantically shaking her head, she turned toward me and pointed a shaking finger in my direction.

"It wasn't me… it was her," she said, completely throwing me under the bus before retreating back into the line of her men.Follow current s on ɴovᴇl_Firᴇ.ɴet

I scoffed at that. The fact that she thought she was going to reap the benefits of a fight between me and the Alpha was laughable. 

"She powerful," said the zombie Alpha, turning to look at me. "But you. You, I no tell."

"You can tell the power levels of someone?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I wondered if that was a survival tactic that he developed. Kind of like animals instinctively knowing who was higher on the food chain. Or under them. 

"Not you," answered the zombie, shaking his head. "Not them," he continued, nodding to my men. He paused for a second, his large head cocked to the side as if it was going to fall off. "Him strong too."

"I am not a power user," denied Mao Jing, raising his hands to protest his innocence. 

"That doesn't mean that you can't become one," I said with a shrug of my shoulders. Unless he was Asymptomatic, then he had to have a power of some kind buried deep down inside of him.

"Why challenge?" asked the zombie before Mao Jing could respond to my comment. 

"Because she is claiming that she is the head of the city," I answered him with a shrug of my shoulders. He snorted in disbelief and turned his full attention to Hao Jing Ya. It was probably a good thing that she was not an Earth power user because she might have been swallowed up by it, never to be seen again. 

"This no yours," growled the Alpha as he took a step toward the terrified woman. 

"No, it's not hers," I agreed with him. "However, it's not yours either. At least not until we have reached an understanding."

At my statement, the Alpha swung his attention back to me, giving Hao Jing Ya a chance to get herself back together and make sure she didn't just pee herself just then. 

"City mine. I control zombies. More zombies than humans. City mine," he said, almost enunciating each word just so that there could be no misunderstandings on my part. Sweet of him. 

"No," I said, just as slowly and precisely as him. "I have zombies at my club that are too terrified of you to step foot outside its doors. You do not control all zombies. I, on the other hand, control both zombies and humans."

"You have zombies locked up? I kill you," growled the Alpha, this time trying his best to intimidate me. Unfortunately for him, none of my men were having it. As if one, the four of them stood between me and the Alpha. 

"Why are the females so scared of you?" I demanded, not caring about city rights, Hao Jing Ya, or even the Alpha himself at this moment. My deal with Daisy was to make it safe for her to go out and hunt, and I would make damn sure that that happened.

"No should be scared. I protect females inside of homes," answered the Alpha, swinging his arm to indicate the warehouses behind him. This was the first time that I had noticed that every last zombie in front of me was male. Looking up at the buildings, I could see more zombies in the window, probably the females.

"Protect from what?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at the zombie that towered over me. 

"Humans," he hissed, his gaze darting to the men in Hao Jing Ya's group. "Humans try to kill us. Females not safe. Need females safe."

"All right," I said, getting a glimpse of the bigger picture. "I understand where you are coming from, but not all of the females want to be locked up. You cannot do that and have them be happy."

"I Alpha, I make decision. Happy or sad. More important to be alive."

You know, it was really hard to argue with someone, or something, that just wanted what was best for their family. However, there was a very fine line between protector and tyrant. "What can I do for you to let the females out? Or at least not force the ones that are out to come back?"

The zombie cocked his head to the side, his wide, gaping mouth open as he thought about my statement. "Get rid of all humans."

"Then what would you eat?" I laughed. I could hear the men around Hao Jing Ya shift their weight. Unfortunately, if I could hear it, so could the zombies. 

As if one, the entire horde turned their attention on the men that seemed to present a threat. 

With all the attention on them, the men got ever more agitated, some reaching for the guns at their waists while others pulled out knives. It was no wonder that there were so few humans in the city when they were this stupid. 

"I am not saving you," I pointed out, not bothering to look at them anymore. "If you decide to do something stupid, that is on you."

"Excuse me?" hissed Hao Jing Ya, her fear completely gone. "My men have the right to defend themselves."

"And yet, no one is attacking them," I pointed out. There was a big difference between being uncomfortable and being attacked. If they wanted to start a fight between the two groups, well, that was a big part of me being here, now wasn't it?

"They are zombies," she shot back, her eyes scanning the sea of blue and purple monsters in front of her. 

"And you are humans," I pointed out. "As far as I am concerned, you pose the much bigger threat. At least you know where you stand with a zombie."

"Food," shrugged the Alpha, interjecting into the conversation. As soon as he spoke, Hao Jing Ya turned pale and stepped back into the protection of her men. 

"And yet, your food is running out," I pointed out the biggest issue. 

The Alpha grunted, his pin-prick eyes narrowing in displeasure. 

"So how do we fix this?" I asked, looking between the human and the zombie. "At the end of the day, all I care about is my girls being about to leave the club and being able to hunt without you trying to lock them up."

"You are human too; you are supposed to be on my side," snapped Hao Jing Ya, full of piss and vinegar, until the zombies turned to look at her. 

"And that is your biggest mistake," I told her. "I am not on your side. I am not on his side, either. I only care about me and mine. And that doesn't include either one of you." I sighed, raising my hand to try and rub the pain in my forehead away. 

"You," I said, turning my full attention to the woman that was trying to disappear. "If you want to be the head of the city. You need to fight him. This city will either become a human sanctuary or a zombie-run city based on the outcome."

"You," I continued, this time turning to the zombie. "You can make this a zombie-run city all you want. But if you mess with my humans or zombies, I will kill you and take your position as Alpha. Have I made myself clear? If you do not like that idea, I suggest that you make your way to the water. The others of your kind seem to thrive there, and the humans stay away."

"Water?" asked the Alpha, cocking his head to the side. "Enough territory?"

"No idea," I answered with a shrug. I haven't talked to Beta for years now, so I had no idea what was actually happening underwater. But seeing as the link between us was alive and well, I could only assume that he was, too. "But I have a Beta in the waters who might let you join."

"Alpha under Beta?" he sneered, clearly not impressed. 

"I am his Alpha," I responded, my lip curling up into a sneer of my own. Beta was mine, and I would not let some Alpha think less of him because of that. If it wasn't for me, Beta would have been one of the strongest Alpha. Unfortunately for him, he met me.

And so did this one.

"Human Alpha to zombie?" asked the zombie, once again cocking his head to the side. 

"Yeah," I answered, not too sure how many zombies were under me right now. But one more or less wouldn't matter much. "But I am on a time limit. So what is it going to be?"

"We fight," said the zombie, pulling his shoulders back and holding his head up. I swept my arm to the side, indicating Hao Jing Ya, but the Alpha only shook his head. 

"Not her. You."