Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



The woman turned out to be incredibly intelligent and didn't push me any further. Ares started forward and she quickly got out of our way and allowed us to get back on the road without any further interruptions.

I debated going through City B again (for the third time) but decided against it. There was no need to get off the highway at the City B exit and instead, we continued straight along the coastal highway.  It almost felt like a summer road trip, except we didn't have to deal with long lines of traffic as there was no one on the highway apart from us. 

"We are coming up to a small beach, did you want to go?" asked Cerberus. 

"Sure," I said with a nod. We hadn't reached any of the bridges yet, hopefully, they would all be in one piece, but I wanted to get a close-up look at the water before we got to City N.

"I'll let the others know," continued the truck as he took the next exit off of the highway. Just like the rest of our trip so far, there was no one around, only a lot more broken-down vehicles on the road. "I can't go further," said Cerberus as he came to a stop. 

There were three cars stopped haphazardly on the road, preventing anyone in a vehicle like a car or truck from continuing forward. I didn't think much of it as I got out of Cerberus and looked at it. "Will you be okay?" I asked.

"I'll be fine," replied Cerberus. "I follow you, even if you can't see me, remember?"

"As long as you are okay, that is all I care about,"  I said with a smile as I heard the motorcycles coming closer. 

"Is everything ok?" asked Wang Chao as the four came to a stop in front of me.

"Yeah," I said with a nod. "But Cerberus is too big to keep going."

"Hop on," said Liu Wei as he handed me a helmet that seemed to have appeared out of thin air. "Reaper has been complaining that you are always driving Cerberus when he has a spot for you on him."

"Lucky," grumbled Liu Yu Zeng. "Lin just keeps telling me that he will kick me off to let Sweetness ride him instead.

I chuckled and went over to Lin. "I have never ridden a motorcycle before. So, I think it will be best for my first time to be with someone else. However, once I get used to it, I will definitely take a turn on you. How does that sound?"

"Absolutely!" said Lin eagerly. I almost felt bad for Liu Yu Zeng, but honestly, he and Lin were perfect for each other. 

"Thanks," I said as I patted the handlebars. Walking over to Liu Wei, I put on the helmet, surprised at how comfortable it was. I had always assumed that it would feel like I had a giant bobblehead, but that wasn't the case at all. In fact, I would have sworn that this helmet was made for me.

I tried to swing one leg over Reaper, but unfortunately, I was much too short. With a chuckle, Liu Wei lifted me up and put me on the passenger seat behind his. "Remember to hold on tightly," said Liu Wei, his voice coming in through the built-in speakers. He then climbed onto the bike and straightened it between his legs.

The lucky bastard could easily sit on the seat and have his feet flat on the ground. Must be nice to be a giant. 

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around his waist, my hands gripping his leather jacket. He gently patted them and turned to look at me. "Don't worry, I got you."

I nodded in understanding. I knew he got me, there was never a doubt in my mind about that.

The bike under me roared to life and I could feel the vibrations of the engine in between my legs and where I was sitting. It was a bit weird, but I quickly got used to it. Plastering the front of my body to Liu Wei's back, I turned my head so that the side of my helmet was resting between his shoulder blades. 

"You want to go to the beach?" asked Wang Chao as the four bikes took off. I sat up for a second to look behind me. Cerberus was nowhere to be found. Satisfied that he wouldn't come into any trouble, I went back to leaning against Liu Wei.

"Yeah," I said, the mic in the helmet catching my voice without the annoying echo that you sometimes get. "I want to see what we might be getting into." 

I wanted to see if I could control the zombies in the water as easily as I could on land.  Not to mention seeing if my flames could work underwater.

I didn't want to be down in the depths of the East Sea, surrounded by zombies, only to realize that I couldn't take their flames. 

"Does anyone know what types of weapons work best underwater?" I asked curiously. I didn't believe in leaving anything to chance. If our powers didn't work, then we would need a backup option… and make sure we could easily get our hands on them. 

"I should have some underwater guns in my collection," said Liu Wei with a shrug as if it wasn't that big of a deal. 

"There is such a thing as underwater guns?" I asked intrigued. I had always assumed that guns were naturally ineffective underwater as the pressure of the water would naturally slow the bullets down.

"There are both underwater rifles and underwater pistoles," said my genius of everything weapon-related. "Both 'guns' fire flechettes which are spear-like bolts instead of the standard bullet. Since the flechettes are narrower, they don't produce as much drag as the rounded bullet does."

"However, even if we don't have guns, spears, harpoons, tridents, and knives would also be effective," added Wang Chao.

"Too bad I didn't think to stock up on spears, harpoons, or tridents," I grumbled sarcastically. I mean, who really thinks about those things when fighting zombies?