Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm

"Does someone want to tell me what is going on?" demanded the Colonel as he looked between me and the rest of the guys. Ice hung down from the ceiling and there was snow drifts packed into the corners of the hallways while ice crystals formed along both sides of the walls. I guess my ice power was more effective when I wasn't controlling it, because I knew that there was no way in Hell I was strong enough to cause this type of damage intentionally.

"Your air conditioner is broken," said Liu Yu Zeng as if the Colonel was a little slow on the uptake. "What else could it be?"

The Colonel reached for the gun at his waist as he looked at the five of us like we were monsters out of his nightmares. I mean, we probably were, but that was neither here nor there. I was not admitting Jack and I knew the boyos wouldn't tell either.

"Bullshit," growled the Colonel. "Something isn't right. One of you probably has powers. That must be how you were able to make all of those RVs disappear." He turned his attention to Wang Chao. "This must be you," he accused.

"Sure, let's go with that," said Wang Chao with a deadpan expression on his face. It took everything in me not to burst out laughing. "Now, are we meeting the Major General or are we going home?"

The Colonel sneered at Wang Chao. Gone was the reverence he once held for the General. I was going to guess it was because he didn't develop any powers and now hated the power users. I wonder if he would have joined a roving gang or the Reavers in his past life if he even managed to survive the tide that was. "You will be useful on the wall, I'll bring you to the Major General."

This time it was Wang Chao's turn to roll his eyes. I think I was becoming a bad influence on the guys. "So glad I will be of use," he said as his eyes turned dark. Whatever was going on in the Colonel's head, Wang Chao was not impressed.

Taking a step forward, Wang Chao walked past the Colonel, forcing the other man to play catchup. Liu Wei and Liu Yu Zeng followed after, leaving only me and Chen Zi Han standing still.

"Are you sure you are okay?" he asked looking into my eyes. Given the amount of ice around me, I could understand his worry. No one liked to be around an unpredictable power user. It was kind of like walking through a field full of landmines. You didn't know what step would be your last.

"No," I said honestly because the man deserved my honesty. "I am about as far from okay as I can be."

"Should we just burn this place to the ground and walk away?" asked Chen Zi Han. He was completely serious and that made me love him that much more.

"I'm contemplating it," I said with a slight smirk. "But what would you do if you found the one woman that was perfect for you? Your soulmate, if you believe in them."

"I have found her," he said with a shrug and I froze. Did he also see the movement in the shadow? Did he know that she was his? "She is in my arms right now."

"I'm not talking about me," I said as I placed my hand over his heart. "I am talking about another woman, one that came here just for you."

He scoffed at that very idea. "I have no idea what you are talking about, but I can tell you that even if there is another woman that was meant for me, I don't want her. All I want, all I need is you and my brothers. That is it." He gazed into my eyes, searching for something.

"We will talk about this later," he said as he led me toward where the others were waiting. "But make no mistake, Princess, we will be talking about this."

I nodded my head. Maybe I would feel better if I told the guys about the heroines. But then again… it might just be easier to kill them all first, then when they have no choice, they would have to stay with me.

Could I do that to them? Kill the one that was meant just for them to keep them to myself? In way too many novels the second male lead always said 'I love her enough to want her to be happy'. Maybe I was the second female lead in four separate novels, but I couldn't picture myself saying something like that. The words stuck in my throat and I couldn't get them out.

No, I licked them, they were mine. I would not be sharing them with someone else. Fuck being selfless. I would tell them what was going on, I would tell them about their soulmates and then I would go out hunting and kill them all.

'You are crazy', came the cold voice. 'You know that right?'

'I am talking to voices in my head, so yes, I think I have officially reached the realm of crazy,' I said as I reached the other men. I felt their gazes over me, making sure that I was safe and unharmed.

'You would destroy them if you killed the one that was meant for them. How could they forgive you? You won't share them, why are you forcing them to share you?'

'Because I am the villain,' I said, completely accepting my role. I was done being nice, sharing was not caring, and being nice to your enemy was being hard on yourself. I promised myself that I would live this life free, doing what I wanted, when I wanted, and I would not bend.

They were mine, I was theirs. That was the beginning, the middle, and the end.

I stepped into the conference room with my head held high. Even if I wasn't strong enough at this moment to fight for my guys, I would do whatever I had to to become strong enough.

I've no more fucks to give, so bring it on, let's see just how much I could handle before I fell and shattered to pieces.

----

Wang Chao was not in the mood to deal with the crap in front of him. The Colonel, whatever his name was, lead them to a set of empty chairs and the gazes that followed him made his skin crawl. His little girl was upset enough that she froze everything around her within a mile radius. Probably would have been more if they weren't limited to the hallway.

The ice had even started to encase her in a crystal prison, her lips turned blue and each exhale turned into condensation as soon as it left her mouth.

This place had set her off since the first time she mentioned it. He didn't know why she wanted to be here, but since she felt like she needed to be, he would support her. But he refused to continue until he figured out what was going on. And if he didn't like her answer he would throw her over his shoulder and leave this place to their own devices.

He told her that he would be her shield and her sword, and now he was going to prove it.

"General, how nice of you to join us. I thought that you would have been part of the Navy Base of City J delegation, but I guess you aren't there?" asked a young man, probably around his own age. From his uniform ranking, Wang Chao understood that this was the Major General that had asked for help.

"No," replied Wang Chao, his face impassive. Liu Wei and Liu Yu Zeng went to sit down on either side of him at the table while Chen Zi Han and Li Dai Lu stood behind them. He was not happy that Li Dai Lu was not sitting comfortably, but he understood. Chen Zi Han would not let go of her until he was certain she was over whatever happened in the hallway.

"Then where did the messenger find you?" continued the Major General.

"At my base," replied Wang Chao as if the answer was completely obvious. And it was.

"Well, we'll have to catch up more after the meeting. I heard that you have a large number of working vehicles, that will come in handy if we have to evacuate the base."

"Funny," said Wang Chao as he leaned back. "I don't remember volunteering them."

"Well, how else are we going to save the civilians?" asked the Major General as he tilted his head looking at the hero that outranked him.

"Who said we are here to save the civilians? We are just here to kill zombies. If they get to the people before we can kill them, well, that's not our fault, now is it?"

There was stunned silence in the room as Wang Chao's words echoed in everyone's mind. "Have you ever fought against a horde?" asked the Major General, a look of disgust passing over his face.

"I have," said Wang Chao, reassuring the whole room. "But we aren't facing a horde, we are facing a tide. It would be interesting in seeing the difference between the two firsthand."

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