《Cultivator in a Zombie Apocalypse》


 Chapter 1 Chapter One - 10,000 years

    Ren Zexian had lived 10,000 years and in those 10,000 years he had experienced many things, he had seen many things, but he did not expected to experience this.


    Eld Dein was the name of the Middle Realm in which he was born, cultivated and fought for survival in.He had outlived his original sect, seen many ascend to the Higher Plane and been witness to much life and death.It was not the life for a man without strong will.But despite his longevity, despite his love for life and his love for this land, it seemed that Death would not be outran forever.


    Ren Zexian and the small group of survivors trudged through the nearly barren landscape, watching as an old tree withered before their eyes.Its pitiful foliage turned brown and crumbled into dust, its branches sagged and cracked and the whole tree collapsed into splinters.The men and lone woman, pulled tighter the scarves about their faces, to prevent the inhalation of debris."Senior," Lu Ting called out his name."Is it truly the end?"


    The man turned to him, his eyes unable to hide his sadness.He said nothing, but they all knew.The spiritual energy in the air was too thin, the plants and animals that once relied upon it were dying as time reclaimed them.The mortals once thought that only the cultivators relied on the bountiful energy in the air, but they were wrong.Spiritual energy was in the water, the earth and the air.Even should they not circulate it within their bodies and store it in their dantian, it was still in their flesh and blood.So what would happen once the energy was gone?


    What came from the earth must be returned to the earth, but what if it did not?Although they were few in the scheme of things, high level cultivators could not rise further in a Middle Realm, they needed to ascend to continue chasing life and power.In the long term this meant nothing, there were many more cultivators coming from the many Lower Planes who could fill this void.But there came a time, at least for Eld Dein, when there were no cultivators ascending from the Lower Planes and yet the Elders still left.The thinning of the energy had been occurring for almost a million years hastened in the last hundred thousand, Ren Zexian had only experienced a small tick in time comparatively.


    Ren Zexian had lived for 10,000 years. He had the chance to ascend, but for reasons of his own, he chose not to.He chose to continue living in the land he loved.He did not regret it, but he never imagined that the end of his life would be caused by the end of his world.


    "Is there nothing that we can do?" Chang Min asked allowed.Chang Min was a child amongst them having lived barely 100 years.The oldest amongst them was Yu Zhang, who was more than 15,000 years old.


    "Of course there is not," Long Wenwen mumbled."The Higher Plane has shut its doors upon us.We are stranded."


    "Not necessarily," Yu Zhang claimed."We cannot go to the Higher Plane, this is true and we would be unlikely to reach another Middle Realm with our collective energies.However, we can descend."


    "Senior," Ren Zexian frowned."That is too risky.Should we fail, we will become mortal and age will surely catch up to us.Chang Min, Lu Ting and a few others may survive, depending on where we find ourselves, but they would be greatly aged.You and I would be but dust."


    "We will become dust here also, young one," Yu Zhang stated.Ren Zexian could not claim that this was untrue.The old man and Ren Zexian discussed their options, before instructing their juniors.To protect themselves they must seal time from touching their bodies, before Yu Zhang and Ren Zexian implemented the transportation spell.The oldest cultivators prepared the spell as they watched the bodies of their juniors form a calcified shell, basically turning them to statue.The two men then began to quickly follow suit, activating the spell before their lips sealed shut.


    A great void sucked the statues into it just before the dry ground that they formerly stood upon began to crack and splinter.The Middle Realm once known as Eld Dein was soon no more.


    Ren Zexian''s seal broke.


    The man gasped as stale air filled his lungs and he began to awaken from his suspended state.He was surrounded in darkness, but he sensed there was some spiritual energy in this air, though not plentiful, it was more than that of his crumbling land.With weak fingers, he pushed at the thick shell he had formed, until it began to crack and fall away from him.He coughed as the pieces fell to the ground and stirred the dry dust.Where were they?


    After emerging finally after much exertion, he mentally scanned the area, but he could find no other signs of life nearby.Did the others not survive?He sent his energies out once more, the spiritual energy around him reacting to his delicate touch.It seemed he was in an underground space, there seemed to be just two pockets in the ground, but there was also a small crack in the second space, which lead away from here.


    With no other option, he used his senses to guide him to the crack and took a deep breath before sending a concentrated blast of energy to widen it.He felt that there was a small flow of air coming from a certain place, so it followed it, noticing how the space seemed to be more uniform here as if it were a corridor rather than a natural cavern.There was also a strange, blinking light up ahead.Some sort of smooth crystal attached to a rope dangled above him, the crystal glowed for a moment, then dimmed, before glowing once more.


    Swiftly dismissing it, he moved forward and found that there was a dead end and that the cold air was sinking from above.Of course it was completely dark, he could not see, so he pushed his mind outwards once more.It seemed this vertical tunnel ascended several metres before coming to another enclosed space.He withdrew his sword, chanted beneath his breath, before leaping lightly up onto the floating sword.He then instructed the sword to climb vertically until they reached that upper space.


    This space was not with walls of dirt but formed instead by large lengths of cold metal, a strange unreflective metal, not that which formed his sword.What manner of blacksmith could create such uniformed spaces?He wondered.There was some light here, though it was dim, it seemed to be emanating from the same crystals as in the tunnels.


    He leapt down from his sword, before summoning it and sheathing it.He then became distracted by odd growling noises.


    Ren Zexian had lived for 10,000 years and in that 10,000 years he had experienced many things, including the end of his world.However, he did not expect to experience what he would learn was known as a zombie apocalypse¡­

 Chapter 2 Chapter Two - The Boy and His Garden

    Nathaniel Tobias Matthison was an afterthought.This did not mean that he did not receive familial love, he was really not neglected in anyway, but his parents, who had always put their careers first, didn''t know what to do with him.As it happened, he was a quiet child and did not make things difficult when his mother decided after three months, to return to work and leave him in the care of a nanny.


    Although Nathan was a quiet child, this did not mean he did not know how to speak, in fact he was quite able by the time he reached eighteen months, he simply chose not too unless he was answering a question.And even, then the person asking the question would receive a short and to the point answer.


    He was a bright child who walk at eleven months and could read well by the age of three.His favourite pastime was not being plastered in front of a television screen like many children of his generation, but pottering around in the garden with the elderly gardener, who patiently taught him all about plants, flowers and growing vegetables.The old man also provided him with a couple books on gardening, which he read night after night until the corners were worn.His prospects, at this point, seemed undisputable.


    The September after he turned four, he began school where he became pinned with a label; Autism.Although he had been raised in a very wealthy environment, his interactions with others had generally been limited to his parents, his nanny and the gardener and never all at once.All four had always been patient with the boy, so Nathan had never shown any signs of being ''different.''However, in the noisy, disruptive environment of a room the same size as his large bedroom with 20 energetic children and a couple of well meaning adults proved too much for the sensitive boy to handle.He threw his first ever tantrum.


    The school, while having a very good reputation did not handle the situation well.The understanding of autism varied between teachers and even the teaching assistant especially hired found that her knowledge did not ''match'' Nathan''s personal case.This boy was smarter than his peers, he was already reading and writing at a level near twice his age and he had a vast knowledge about plants.But things like lying were beyond him, so he made other children cry with his too honest answers and was labelled a ''bully.''Then, he could not maintain eye contact for long, so when he was confronted, he looked away making him appear to be lying.So he was labelled a ''problem child.''That and with his inability to handle loud noises, he would often cover his ears and the teacher would tell him off for not listening!


    His nanny and the gardener saw how closed off Nathan was becoming, no longer even able to enjoy playing in the garden as the teaching assistant had told him not to dig up the weed she mistook for a seedling in the school garden.After communicating with his teachers, his parents eventually decided to withdraw him from the school and hire a private tutor.The man they hired was exceptionally patient, although even he had his doubts about Nathan''s condition.He came to learn that so long as he avoided the small triggers that distressed the boy, he was very intelligent.Nathan slowly opened up and in this safe environment, he was once again able to flourish.


    The gardener eventually retired, but as Nathan loved the gardens so much, his parents allowed him to take most of the responsibility, simply hiring men to cut the several acres of lawn surrounding the mansion twice a month.The household came to enjoy the fruits of Nathan''s labour, not only the fresh cut flowers, but delicious fruits and vegetables.Nathan''s ability to communicate also improved, though he was still sensitive to loud noises and he struggled to understand the emotions expressed on people''s faces and in their voices.


    But as familiar faces left him and newer ones appeared, the changes in the main house were too great, so he opted to move into the small, two bedroom bungalow on the grounds that the gardener had once lived in.Its warmth and comfort was still retained, despite the layer of dust, but once it was scrubbed clean, it was perfect for him.He used the second bedroom to grow seedlings and indoor plants.He filled the small gardens about the cottage with small fruit trees and flowers.And in his small corner of paradise, away from the hustle of the house and secluded from other people, Nathan finally felt like he was home.


    So when the apocalypse came, Nathan was completely oblivious.

 Chapter 3 Chapter Three - Beginning of the End

    The apocalypse was not an event that would instantly affect the world, but however slowly the epidemic started, it would sweep to uncontrollable levels within a month of officials becoming aware of it.Their initial containment plan failed, but by the time they had learned why, it was too late to do anything about it.


    Nathan''s parents estate was located on the outskirts of a peaceful village and this village would not feel the effects of the apocalypse until the third week, following a particularly rainy period.In the two weeks before this, Nathan had sowed seeds for fresh greens in the small waist high greenhouse and had watched almost one hundred tomato seedlings grow until ready to be planted in beds or in pots.He had this many as he could not bare to throw the seedlings away as he thinned their numbers, instead transplanting to newer trays.His sunflowers were nearly 20cm''s tall, which was an accomplishment for him already as he always struggled with this plant for some reason.He had coaxed and encouraged them and cared for them tenderly just to reach this point.


    His parents were away from the estate again, busy with their own work.They text once in a while, but felt that Nathan was independent enough and those they hired to look after the main house could keep an eye on him if necessary.


    When others were beginning to fall sick with unexplainable tiredness and feelings of nausea that refused to settle, Nathan also came down with a fever.He did not bother to call anyone about this, knowing to take medicine and rest and he didn''t want any of those from the main house coming to his home because of it.He read a book, slept and ate cereal and fruit as his cooking ability was limited normally to soups and jacket potatoes.The fever lasted a few days, it might have dissipated sooner, but Nathan couldn''t bare to leave his beloved plants alone for too long.


    He tended to his own garden first, noting that there was something wrong with a few of the younger plants, but he did not recognise the sickness, so he decided to look them up on his computer later.Instead, he checked on his greens and pruned a few things before watering the plants as it had been dry since the day before he fell sick.He then took some of the tomato plants, now a good few inches tall, to put in the main vegetable garden.


    The gardener''s cottage had its garden enclosed by a thick hedge that was just above head height for privacy.Its gate was decorative barred metal.It happened to be like the barred metal fence surrounding the entire main property, though this was a few metres high to deter trespassers and had many thick bushes and hedges to back it up.


    Nathan left his own garden, planted the tomato plants, placed bamboo supports and loosely tied the small plants to them.He then noticed that a few of the vegetables here were also not quite right.He watered them all well, spoke to them softly, promising he would make them better soon, before returning to his home.He did notice that it was quieter than normal and that none of the servants from the main house had greeted him like they usually did, but to be honest, he was actually quite glad of that.He disliked people that he did not really know talking to him and asking him how he was.He did not know whether they were asking to be polite or asking him because they really wanted to know, so he preferred to avoid them altogether.


    Back in the warmth of his cottage, he noticed he had received a text a couple of days prior.He put his phone on charge and responded to his parents question."Everything is well here."He didn''t receive a message back.


    He loaded up the laptop, but couldn''t find what the problem might be with his plants on the various internet sites that he tried, so he decided to keep an eye on them for a few days and hope things improved.They did not.But the strange plants did not appear to be dying and the ''sickness'' did not appear to be spreading so he felt reluctant to dig them up.Instead, he spoke to them, improved the condition of the soil where he felt he should and watered them as normal.


    He could not worry too much as other things happened to distract him.Firstly, the electricity went out.He went to the main house, but it was all dark and there did not seem to be anyone about.He shuffled about on his two feet outside the front door for almost an hour, before he returned to his cottage.No one had come to greet him and he felt too uncomfortable about trying to greet others first.He felt that they would come find him if it was a big problem.The cottage had a Rayburn for cooking and heat, so it the only thing that bothered him was the descent into darkness once the sun went down.He solved this by going to bed early.


    The bigger problem occurred when the taps stopped giving him water.

 Chapter 4 Chapter Four - Making Water

    Nathan had now been out of contact with the world for four weeks.There had been no electricity for almost two weeks, the water had stopped running not long after that and if his laptop had not died, he would have realised that he could no longer access the internet.Nathan had a fair store of bottled water as he did not like the taste of tap water, so he retained a personal supply for the following time.But he could no longer water the plants as they grew in their dry beds, which upset him and had him apologising to them everyday!It had not rained since before he had fallen sick and there was no water in the rain barrels remaining either.


    His supply of milk had run out and bread some time ago, but no one from the main house came to supply him with more and he did not know what best to do.


    He had tried to go over to the main house again, to see if anyone would come and talk to him so he could ask for groceries, but he was greeted by a loud thump against the front door, which had him fleeing back to his little cottage without pause.


    So he ate cereal dry for breakfast until the last box ran last Sunday morning and tried to cook tinned beans or spaghetti for lunch, finally figuring out how not to burn them when heating up the last half of the third tin.Jacket potatoes became a main staple until he had no potatoes left to cook.Therefore, he harvested some spring vegetables; onions, new potatoes, early greens and herbs and made a pot of soup which lasted him a good couple of days.


    After this, he began to worry.The fridge longer kept things cold, so he could not harvest nor cook too much in advance.There had still been no word incoming from the main house and his parents had not text him back and now his phone was out of charge as well.He was very scared and unsure.Normally when he felt this way, he would retreat to his garden, to calm himself amongst his plants and flowers.But some of those plants were still growing oddly and even when he looked upon the plants that were okay, he felt guilty that he could not water them anymore.


    He was thinking about this as he rocked softly on the floor, his knees folded into his chest as he toyed with an empty, lidless bottle of water, rolling it upon its side.If only he could fill this bottle up somehow, he could give them this water.As he was thinking this, the bottle actually began to fill.


    Shocked, he leapt away from the bottle, which spilled its precious contents on to his floor.He automatically grabbed a mop and bucket and cleaned up the puddle, before gingerly picking up the bottle.Only a small amount of the magically appearing water was still in it.No more had appeared and it did not increase in amount as he stared at it.He trickled a little of the water into his palm and licked it with the tip of his tongue.It was delicious and fresh, seeming to quench his thirst in an instant.He used the rest on the seedlings in the second bedroom, which he had shared his precious supply of bottled water with until a few days ago.They seemed to perk up immediately.


    He stared at the bottle for a little longer, wondering how he could get more.Again, just as his thoughts were directed this way, the bottle began to fill with crystal, clear water.He watched in complete amazement.It did not make sense to him how this was possible, but he was too glad to have a supply of water to question it deeply.


    It would be another two days before he realised that it was not the bottle that filled up with water, but that it was he that had filled up the bottle with water.


    The garden''s thirst was quenched, even the ''sick'' plants looked somehow healthier and more vigorous.He spent those first two days using the ''magically'' refilling bottle to water his precious plants.He planted the remaining seedlings out then planted some more vegetable seeds in the second bedroom as his food supply was wearing thin and he did not know how to get more otherwise.He had never needed to worry before!


    He was wishing, on that second day, that there was an easier way to water the plants other than using the bottle when a ball of water began to form at his fingertips.It burst into a fine spray when he panicked over this new phenomenon.But when the realisation hit him, he was happy.He was personally able to provide water for his garden and other plants.There was nothing that could make him happier in that moment, even though making so much water made him terribly tired.He experimented with this ability over the next few days, until almost all four acres of land were completely watered with at least a light spray, by him.

 Chapter 5 Chapter Five - Poison Core

    Ren Zexian glanced at the handful of wandering corpses scattered about the place.It was not that he hadn''t seen undead nor walking corpses before; he had lived for 10,000 years after all.He had seen the rise and fall of the Puppet sect, demonic cultivators that used the bodies of commoners and cultivators as weapons and servants.They preferred using cultivators, stealing the cultivation of those deemed unworthy before refining their bodies into puppets, but commoners could still not escape their whims.


    And then there were those who had died with regrets, ghosts without physical form lamenting their fate, occasionally turning demonic, some even forming fog like bodies or feeding on the living.Not to mention the mindless corpses that wandered through graveyards as their burial site had been disturbed by plundering thieves or natural disasters.However, unlike those corpses, these creatures seemed to salivate from the sight of him.They moved with awkward pace directly as he appeared, their rotting arms reaching for him, their throats producing nonsensical sounds and mouths moving.


    Ren Zexian instructed his sword to rise above their reach, then carefully glanced down at them to examine them.Generally speaking, they were all green to grey, with slack jaws and black fingernails.Some had bloodshot eyes, others had empty sockets, though one undead being''s eye was drooping low onto its cheek hanging by a thread of unhealthy looking tissue.Another had lost its arm below the elbow.They wore some sort of garments, but they were stained with bodily fluid and dirt, so Ren Zexian could not say how they might have originally looked nor what they were made of.One wore some sort of yellow hat partially on his head that looked as hard as metal.The only other thing he felt should be noted was that they all had a certain wound, like bite marks or uneven chunks had been removed from their once whole flesh.The skin about the wounds were oozing black liquid and looked quite nasty.


    Having examined them thoroughly, he jumped off of his sword creating a distance between them and called to the weapon which flew into his grip.Then, as the living corpses tottered over to him, he removed all five heads in one deadly swing.The grey skinned creatures crumbled to the floor.Ren Zexian flicked the black blood and pus off thoroughly from the silver of his blade before sheathing it.He then made his way to the open doorway to leave the strange building.


    As he exited, he became distracted by the heavy yin energy in the air and another undead appeared, this one swift and silent in its approach and caught him unawares.It bit down onto his arm, though it was only for a moment for Ren Zexian pierced its brain with a shard of spiritual energy in the form of a piercing wind arrow.His attacked cleanly swept through the rotten flesh and hit something at the stem, which was pushed out of the back of the head of the being as it fell.The man reached down and picked up the jewel like object and found it to be like a core.What startled him more was that he sensed a familiarity when holding it.


    However, something else caught his attention, the bite upon his arm was turning black and something had invaded his blood.He cursed and wrapped his energy about the wound.Then he leapt up onto the roof of the building so that he would not be disturbed as he meditated.With a exhalation of breath, he closed his eyes and used his inner eye to view the sea of energy within him.It was quiet like an abundant, glassy pool, without ripple.With one mental hand he stirred up the pool until it churned and he pushed the stormy waters throughout his meridians and his body and began chasing the foreign entity in his blood.


    The virus was already corrupting his internal organs, infecting them with volatile Yin energy.Yin energy in itself was not a poison, it was naturally formed in women, in the cool night air and produced as part of death.It was as much part of the cycle of life and death as Yang energy.Without one, the other could not exist.However the virus in his body was disrupting the balance of energies in his body and the amount of Yin was too much, causing the corruption that would most likely alter his body into a state of living death.


    The virus seemed to sense his strong internal energies and swiftly fled.Each time he thought he had caught it, it slipped from his grasp while he also removed the taint upon his organs.It was tenacious, his energies could not destroy it and if he paused for even a heartbeat, it began to attack his body once more, resuming the cycle.It was all he could do to keep it from his brain.


    He could also not remove it via it''s entry point as the wound was already beginning to close now that the virus was not within it.He chased the infection for the remainder of the night and the whole of the following day.But even as a man who had cultivated to the peak of the Denary level, he knew he could not continue this futile endeavour indefinitely.


    The idea pained him, but he felt that he had no other choice.He had not performed this action since creating his immortal golden core, who would feel the need to, as it would set them back countless levels?!It was said that the only purpose for creating an additional or silver core was to fool an enemy aiming for the former or to reach the forgotten levels of cultivation, but the latter was deemed just a myth, so he knew of none who tested the theory.He split the spiritual pool into three parts and used two to make one last sweep through his body, cornering the virus to just above his stomach chakra.The energy then circled the virus, but did not touch, for it had escaped before when he had tried to use his energies upon it.Then with a heavy heart, he condensed his energies around it.


    He gasped in shock as the second core was formed, it was painful, he had not expected it to be so.He examined the silver core and his eyes rose in surprise.Unlike his golden core, which was smooth and uniform, floating above his sea of consciousness, this core was half tainted and half pure, like a Yin yang symbol, but without the eyes of the other.The pure portion seemed to be keeping the tainted portion in balance, however even though it was small, he could sense the yin of this core slowly corrupting its yang.He dreaded to think what would happen if it turned entirely to yin.This could only be considered a poison core.


    He glanced over the remaining pool of energy and sighed.He was barely above a warrior with tertiary cultivation now.Who knew that one undead corpse''s bite could do so much damage?He wondered how it had managed to pierce through the diamond hardness if his godlike body and then recalled the core of the creature and removed it from his pocket.


    He gasped.No wonder it could!That restless corpse had once been Lu Ting, one of the survivors of Eld Dein!How could such a thing be possible?The golden core of the former Septenary Cultivator, shone in his hand was a watery blue and unable to reveal its secrets.

 Chapter 6 Chapter Six - Exploring a Yin Tainted World

    The man waited until the sun began to rise over the far horizon before exploring this tainted world.The air was still heavy with yin energy, despite the sun''s rays attempting to regain the balance.It would likely take a day''s worth of the warm light to form the balance only for the sun to set and the night''s prevalent cold dark to tip it unfavourably once more.This did not make Ren Zexian feel happy as he had theorised that his cultivation would require him to take in more yang energy to refine within him than yin from now on.


    A handful of shambling undead had wandered over in the last two days, the man''s scent and sweat upon the wind having called to them.Two of the unliving were canines.This did not bother Ren Zexian so much as he leapt down from the building, sword at hand.They were admittedly faster and their teeth sharper, but once their heads were removed from their bodies, they were corpses all the same.But for the stench!True enough, a rotting corpse smells unpleasant at the best of times, but the dogs aroma was far more potent.It could only be described as a mix of wet, diseased beast and dying flesh.But it was also perfect as camouflage, he felt and cut off the black-bloody tails to hang them from his belt.Very unpleasant.


    As he began to walk across the grassless, grey field before him, he noticed the strange, metal shapes formed upon thick black wheels and wondered if these were not some sort of closed wagon.But then, where were the horses?Had they too become animated creatures of rotting flesh and bone as well?He did not notice any more of the wandering corpses about as he cross the dusty field, so he assumed that they had fled.


    It seemed, however, that the yin energy had somehow transformed the ground beyond this area as well.The stretch of land was black, with odd white lines and a heavy scent that made his nose curl.Perhaps this would also hide his own body odour as he walked nearby it on the healthier soil.It had not spread too thickly, just so far and even seemed to form a path cutting through the land of grass, scrub and sparse saplings.He thought about this for a moment and decided to follow the tainted ground to see where it lead.


    He remained armed, all this time, daring not to sheath his weapon.He wished he could fly using its strength, but in his weakened state, the sword was no longer speaking to him.To fly or even just to summon it was now beyond him.Now, he was just a few steps better than a mortal man, even a small undead could hurt him if he was careless.He was just grateful that he had not lost his golden core with his cultivation.Ordinarily, it would not be formed until Quaternary rank.


    The sun reached its peak and began its long descent towards the horizon.Ren Zexian felt parched.At first, the dryness was a little bit of a novelty as he had not felt hunger nor thirst since he had turned 102.That was not to say that he did not partake in tea or sake from time to time, in the centuries that followed, just that he no longer had the need.However now, as time wore on, he began to crave water.He ignored it for sometime, continuing his steady pace, passing trees and rocks and more metal, horseless wagons.He sliced off the head of another undead being barely pausing to do so, before glancing around wondering where he might find a drink.


    He also needed to find shelter.The sun''s path would surely indicate that it was near evening and he suspected that the corpses would become more active at night, if his former experiences were anything to go by.That and he needed to meditate as well as check on his poison core for occasionally it felt strange as if it''s deadly heart was stirring.He hoped not to use more spiritual energy to strengthen its yang half which was clearly protecting him from further corruption, but he would if necessary.


    Just as the light of day began to melt into an autumn rainbow of colour, Ren Zexian spied the first houses.There was rows of them, quite uniform and somewhat tightly packed, but they used glass windows.There must be a person of wealth within!He knocked upon the wooden door, attempting to be polite, but there came no answer.The poison core stirred in his gut and his subconsciously began to rub his stomach.Finding the door unlocked, he cautiously pushed it open.Sure enough, two undead leapt for the opening, one tall, one very short.He stepped back and killed both decisively.Using his feet to push them out of the door, he entered the building, but could not hear the sounds of any other creature, living or otherwise.


    Shutting the door behind him, he explored the space.It was a tiny space with open door ways scattered about it and a set of stairs.The rug upon the floor was a single colour and patternless, cut to every edge and even so up the stairs!He glanced into the first room, marvelling over the chairs made of thick pillows and the amazingly life like paintings in glass upon the walls.From these he could see that the natives had been human, like his own people, though their eyes were shaped more like lotus petals rather than peach blossoms and lines of face more prominent.


    Another room led to a place with lots of cupboards, a large bowl of metal sank into one surface and a table and chairs of wood and glass!This world had so much glass!No wonder the house was small, who could afford a large house when so much money was spent on the glass pieces?Quickly, he glanced through the cupboards.There were many odd things within, though he could recognise bowls and cups, they were made of thick porcelain, not like the delicate tea sets he knew.He did find a strange container that was clear like glass, but not cold and as firm as glass.It seemed to contain water, but he did not known how to open it.The lid was not like the cork of a bottle or lid of a pot.In the end, he sliced the top off with his sword, tasted and then gulped down the liquid contents within.


    Sated, he continued to glance about the house.He dismissed the tiny room with the odd white seat and white bowl stuck to the wall and walked up the stairs.There were two rooms with beds and wooden things as well as another room with the odd seat and white bowl.This room also had something that he suspected was to hold water for a bath!A pity that there was not enough of the contained water to fill it!With a sigh, he stripped off his stained outer robe and crawled onto the larger of the beds.Briefly thinking that he should meditate come morning, he closed his eyes and fell into a deep slumber.

 Chapter 7 Chapter Seven - Survivors

    As a great percentage of the populace had either succumbed to the zombie virus as it infected the water supply or were bitten by those who had already turned, there would be, at first, a surge in available food and then a great decline.Survivors first hit the supermarkets, grabbing whatever they could, many not thinking long term, just grab and hoard.There were people that gathered and then holed up and created bases, the army was one such organisation to quickly respond, remove any threats within the bases that already existed for them and create boundaries to keep the threat out.


    The army would send small squads in excursions to gather food and supplies, as would civilian forces.First they would visit the supermarkets and any known warehouses where food was known to be stored.Then they would look to restaurants, cafes and small corner shops, before finally searching houses outside of their borders.


    One such squad was circling the edge of a nearby town, where the zombie numbers were fewer thus easier for them to handle.These men were all civilians, between them they were wielding knives and baseball bats, hockey sticks and one held a gun, but only had a few rounds of bullets.Two of the six men also had developed powers, though one could only use his to provide water for the group.They had already visited one street, avoiding houses for now that contained zombies, marking their doors with an x.They had felt it would be better to grab a bigger number of men or better weapons before tackling those properties.Instead they broke into houses that appeared to be empty.They still had to fight a couple of zombies, one had been in a tattered night dress having likely turned in her sleep, but they were dispatched without too much difficulty.


    The one they put in charge; Dexter, a lightning user, dug out the small core in the brain of one of the zombies as the others raided the cupboards.They mostly were able to grab crisps and biscuits, rice and pasta, tossing them into huge backpacks as they pillaged.The food in freezers had long since spoiled, the electricity had been cut a few weeks ago.Bread was mouldy and fruit wrinkled or rotten.Still, they took any fruit and vegetables thought to contain seeds, put in plastic bags before adding to the rest.If they could grow plants that did not mutate, they could sustain themselves without raiding peoples houses.


    Abilities had been born with the zombies it appeared, meaning amongst those who had weathered and survived the sickness, some awakened strange abilities.Mostly, they were weak, like a child who could produce a some smoke from his fingers and a man who now cool the air about him with a light frost.But others had developed slightly better abilities.There was thoughts that the energy in the zombie cores could help strengthen their abilities, like what was written in eastern novels, but tests were still being performed and no one had yet dared to try.


    "Hey, Dex," Patrick nudged the man as Tyler rinsed the core for him with his water.


    "What?" Dexter growled, back.His stretched his back and glanced to where his friend was pointing.His eyes widened as he saw a column of smoke rising upward."A survivor?"


    "Should we go see?" Patrick asked.


    "Why bother?" Tyler snorted."They won''t have much food left for our base and we''d just be dragging back another mouth to feed."


    "But what if it''s a woman?" Patrick asked.For various reasons, there had been a decline in women, partially as a woman on her menstrual cycle was found to attract zombies.So she was not only a danger to herself, but to her fellow survivors.Any women not already on a base as wives and daughters had slim chance of getting there, especially when it came to civilian bases.So the point gave Tyler a moment''s pause.


    "It''s unlikely¡­" he thought aloud.


    "We will go and see," Dexter decided for them.They kept one eye on the skyline and one in the street for wandering zombies.They had to put down three before they arrived at the small row of terrace houses where the survivor was thought to be.One almost cost them a squad member, so they were a little agitated by the time they arrived and decided not to knock, especially as they saw two dead zombies outside of the house.


    They wielded their weapons and came across a man beside a living room fire, a long silvery sword unsheathed and in hand.They paused as they stared at the man, who appeared to be of Asian descent, dressed in some sort of long dress and who had long black hair that draped down his back and nearly reached his feet.


    "Doesn''t he look like he came from the set of one of those ancient martial arts movies," Patrick whispered to Harry, who nodded back.Dexter held his hands up in sign of peace rather than surrender and his squad lowered their weapons.


    "Name''s Dexter," he told him."And you are?"


    "Ren Zexian," came the response.The man sheathed his weapon, slowly and cautiously.


    "Tch," Tyler complained, "see just another mouth to feed."


    "You have food?" The man asked, his stomach rumbling at the mention."I only found these tubers."He poked the fire with the poker, two fat potatoes sitting within the embers.The men were suddenly hit with the scent of the steamy jackets, their mouths watering as they imagined them topped with butter and cheese.A pity it was impossible to get these items now.


    "You don''t live here, right?" Dexter mentioned, rubbing at the stubble upon his chin.


    "No," Ren Zexian agreed."I believe the occupants were once those two poor corpses now resting in the courtyard.There are so many walking dead within this land unable to rest, hungry for life."


    "Yeah," Dexter said and indicated with a nod that his men should check the kitchen for food.He watched as the man pierced one of the potatoes with the poker and withdrew it from the flame, before removing the other.Ren Zexian then tore the potato in two, it''s fluffy contents exposed, causing Dexter to gulp.The man offered him one half.


    "It has been a long time since I required food," the man muttered beneath his breath, before slowly eating the hot vegetable.Dexter proceeded to enjoy his portion, wondering just how long it had been baked in the fire, it was tasty and perfectly cooked.He gained looks of hatred from his squad, but just smirked somewhat.Seeing as the supplies from the house were pretty good, including flour, sugar, yeast and coffee, he decided that they should take this man back with them.


    Tyler was still unhappy about it, but agreed and guided the man to their truck, which was parked about ten minutes walk away, just outside of town.They hadn''t wanted to announce their presence too much, not knowing just how many zombies that they might encounter.As they neared the vehicle, five zombies appeared, possibly lured by the noise of the engine and the scent of their unwashed bodies when they had arrived.Dexter cursed, but sent a small bolt of electricity flying.It was not particularly strong, but enough to cause the zombie issues and slow it down.


    The Chinese man leapt to one side and neatly sliced the head off a female zombie, before turning to face another.Patrick and Tyler fought the nearest zombie, bludgeoning it as it approached. It took several hits to bring it down.Dexter shot out a few more bolts before smacking another zombie around the head."Look out!" He yelled as a zombie snuck behind Harry lunging forward to take a bite.


    Suddenly the zombie was knocked back by a ball of flames, which set alight to his tattered clothes before proceeding to eat away at the zombie itself.The squad and the man finished off the zombies quickly, before Dexter turned to speak with Ren Zexian.


    "You are a fire user?" He asked.


    The man''s head tilted slightly as if pondering this question."I have roots of fire and wind and¡­" he did not finish his sentence and fell silent.


    "A dual user?" Patrick enquiried."Is that possible?"


    Dexter shook his head, but before he could speculate, Tyler grabbed the Ren Zexian''s arm, sweeping up the sleeve of robe."He''s been fucking bitten," Tyler swore indicating the bite mark.The teeth marks were clear to see as was the fact that it had been an open wound, but¡­


    "No signs of infection¡­" Patrick stated as Ren Zexian shook off Tyler''s grasp."Human bite?"


    "We shouldn''t take the risk," Tyler growled.


    Dexter frowned and smacked Tyler over the back of his head."What the fuck is wrong with you lately?"


    "Blue balls," murmured Harry to another in the squad, who snickered loudly.


    "Fuck you," Tyler swore.


    "No thanks," Harry replied."Want to keep my arse in tact."


    "Look, the guy is probably going to go all zombie on us and your dicking around?" Tyler yelled at him.


    "Zombie?" Ren Zexian frowned as an expression of concentration."Ah¡­ I will not become one of the violent walking corpses."


    "How can you be so sure?"Tyler demanded to know."Was it not a zombie that bit you? And when did you get that bite exactly?"


    "Three days ago," came the reply, making them all fall to silence.Tyler stood there for a full minute before opening his mouth to speak again.


    "Tyler, let it go," Dexter sighed, preventing him from arguing further."Everyone knows a person will turn into a zombie within ten hours of being bitten and suffer the signs of infection almost immediately.Ren, here, isn''t even showing signs infection."The man frowned a little once hearing his shortened name, but didn''t say anything further.Dexter shook his head, hoping that this guy wouldn''t prove him wrong.Still they''d probably all keep an eye on him¡­ just to be safe.

 Chapter 8 Chapter Eight - Journey in a Horseless Wagon

    Ren Zexian was quite perplexed over the horseless metal carriage that Tyler commanded.He had the composure several thousand years in the making, thus he did not panic as the carriage roared into life and began to move without spirit energy nor beast to drag it.However, he asked many questions, clearly revealing that he did not have the knowledge of this world.


    "Think he suffered head trauma or something?" Patrick whispered to Dexter, Harry and Paul, who rode in the back of the truck bed with him.Winston was in the passenger seat next to Tyler, while Ren Zexian now quietly sat with the rest of them.


    "What like amnesia?" Dexter questioned him.


    "But don''t amnesiacs retain some common knowledge, just forget memories or how they came to know things?" Harry asked.


    "Who knows?" Dexter yawned."Certainly didn''t forget how to use that sword."


    "Maybe he has a severe case of Chuunibyou syndrome," Patrick said, wisely.


    "Chuuni What?" Harry asked confused.


    "A japanese term, also known as middle school syndrome," Dexter said, half distracted."Basically suggesting that Ren here wanted to be a samurai so much that he failed to grow out of the need to live out his dreams."


    "Ah, fellow manga lover!" Patrick sang and grabbed Dexter about the neck.


    "Fuck off!" The other man growled and pushed the foolish man off of him.


    Ren Zexian was not deaf to their words.Even though his cultivation was damaged, his hearing was still better than that of a mortal man.There was a language barrier, but it was not as he was unfamiliar to their language.This language once existed in a small land off of the coast of the main continent in Eld Dein.However, the dialect was strange and many words were interjected that he was unable to recognise.Such as, samurai and manga?


    His eyes glanced over the men.The one named Dexter was of lightning root, which was considered to some a minor root, to others a major root outside the main five.It was difficult to categorise.The man himself had weathered skin and sharp eyes, his hair was the brown of tree bark and he was sturdy of body.Beside him, Patrick was smaller of statue and had flax-coloured hair.Harry''s hair was black, like his own, but cut close to his head like his comrades, his skin much darker of tone than people he had seen before. The other back here was called Paul, who did not speak much.And then there was Winston, who was also quite dark a man, though not so much as Harry.Tyler, the argumentative one, was pale of skin, would make maidens of his acquaintance jealous for his near flawless skin.His hair was of pale gold and were he not so bitter, he might be considered handsome.


    Ren Zexian turned to watch as the tightly packed houses with glass windows passed him by and he felt that the horseless wagon that these men called ''a truck'' was fairly fast.Not as fast as his sword, but still quite fast.Ah, as two of these men had awakened their spirit roots, didn''t that mean that there were other cultivators upon this low realm?He glanced upward at the sky, but that there was no life scattering the blue and cloudless expanse.Not even birds.A pity.


    The sun''s strong rays upon his skin stirred his soulsea and he closed his eyes, performed a few hand motions to draw in its strong yang energies.He began to refine them in his body, directing them around his meridians to gather into his soulsea.Some was attracted to his poison core, strengthening the yang within it.Ren Zexian sighed.While this would protect him in the long run, it would also slow his cultivation and in a land where spiritual energy was both weak and tainted, this would not be a good thing for him.


    Suddenly, the truck came to a halt and Ren Zexian opened his eyes and felt a jolting motion in his stomach.He frowned, touching the space where his poisonous silver core should lie.The balance of it remained strong, so why was it stirring oddly, ah but had that not happened before when¡­


    Tyler approached the locked, construction gate of the hotel that the civilian survivors had claimed as their base.The hotel had been closed for internal renovations after being sold to a conglomerate, so there had been no zombies within the building at the time of the outbreak.Most of the workers had been off sick, so work had stalled, leaving the place locked up and practically abandoned.As the hotel already had a wall of fence and shrub, it became a perfect retreat for the survivors of the town.


    Once claimed, they had reinforced the borders with bricks and mortar found on site.They had begun gardens and learned the hard way about plant mutations.The stronger ones had formed squads and begun to search for food, blankets, clothes and the like in order to keep their small community going and not seek out army bases for refuge.


    Tyler banged on the metal gate, using a series of knocks that all learned as code for entry.He then waited a few minutes, but the gates remained locked internally.So Tyler knocked again.


    "Wait."This request came from Ren Zexian, but as Tyler did not think much of the man with the appearance of one from the east, he called out to his leader instead.


    "Dexter, they aren''t answering," he called out.


    "Give them a minute," Dexter suggested, dismissively.Tyler was an impatient man by nature, couldn''t wait five minutes let alone ten and he banged upon the gate once more.


    "They will not come," Ren Zexian stated, still subconsciously rubbing his gut."Or rather, they will come, but they will not be able to let you in."


    "What are you talking about?" Tyler demanded, irritably.


    "Hey, are you alright?" Harry asked, but his question was directed to Ren Zexian.The man nodded briskly, but said nothing.


    "The hell with this," Tyler muttered as he ran to a nearby tree and proceeded to climb it.This was an apple tree, the only reason it had survived the felling for wood that other trees close by had suffered.However, it was not autumn yet, there were a couple of months before the apples would be ripe to eat.Tyler did not care about that as he dragged himself to it''s lowest branches.


    "What are you doing?" Dexter sighed and leapt out of the truck bed to reason with the man.


    "What does it look like?" Tyler asked."I''m going to climb over the wall and open the damn door myself!"


    "I would not do that if I were you," Ren Zexian told him.


    "Why the hell not?" Tyler demanded.A loud bang came from the other side of the gate, startling Tyler enough that he almost lost grip of the tree branches.That bang was followed by another and another as well as bone chilling low growls.Tyler paled, but cautiously proceeded to climb the branches and peer over the wall."Oh shit¡­"


    His friends and comrades were no longer waiting behind the metal gate and within the shelter that they had formed with their own ingenuity and hard work.There was only a nest of zombies there now.


    The squad looked grim as the reality fell upon them.There was conjecture about how the virus entered their small base.Was it contaminated water or did someone return with a hidden bite or scratch?But it was all just words.They would never truly know how.

 Chapter 9 Chapter Nine - Without A Base

    They left the base with the mark of an x upon the metal door.This was all they could do for now.


    "Shit!" Tyler cursed once more, taking his frustrations out on a kitchen cupboard door and breaking it with his vicious kick.


    "Oi, oi!" Harry called out to him."Keep it down, unless you want us to be surrounded by wandering zombies by morning."


    The squad had chosen an unoccupied bungalow not too far from the lost base.There were only three beds amongst the two bedrooms, but it was sufficient for their needs for that night.Tyler had been helping Harry within the kitchen, producing water to add to a large pot and kettle, while they heated these over a campfire stove.It had been one of their greatest of finds this day, they had been excited to take it back to show the base, hoping for a meal that was not tainted with wood ash or blackened on coal.


    Harry was not much of a cook, but he''d helped his old mum peel vegetables most nights, hence why he was on cooking duty.She''d also become sick and by morning, when he had returned from his night shift as a security guard, she had already turned.It had been Dexter, who happened to be Harry''s neighbour at that time, who had put her out of her misery.He''d sworn to follow him in thanks for his kindness, feeling that he would not have been able to end her existence himself.Paul could cook a little better than him, but they let him alone now, his closest friend had been on base.


    Ren Zexian would be the first to admit that he had no skills in the kitchen, he hadn''t needed to cook in so long and any time he felt that he wished to partake in the act of eating, he had visited restaurants.


    "These undead are unlike what I have knowledge of," he mentioned aloud as he sat upon the cushioned seating in the reception space.


    "How did you know?" Dexter asked him."That they''d all turned?"He was, of course, referring to the people on their base.


    Ren Zexian subconsciously lay his hand above his stomach chakra."It seems that I can feel it."


    "Is this some sort of new power?" Patrick asked, his eyes red rimmed.He had no relatives nor close friends on base, he had been staying out of his home town for work when people began to turn.The last message he had received from his sister was that she and her family had survived, but after that he had no news at all.By chance or luck, he had fallen into this squad, unable to sit tight and sit still upon the base.He had not awakened an ability and he''d not been envious before, but he could not help but feel if more of them had done so, that the base might not be lost now.


    "One could call it a side effect," Ren Zexian replied honestly.His words did not fall well upon Tyler''s ears, the man stormed into the room wielding a kitchen knife that sought blood.Dexter was swift to reach his side and Patrick was not too far behind him, helping to restrain the angry man.


    "So you were bitten!" Tyler accused."Was it your doing?Were they lost because of you?!"


    Dexter slapped the back of his head with an open hand."Do you hear what you are saying right now?!How the fuck could Ren have done anything to them? He was well over a couple of miles away when we found him!"


    Tyler buried his face into his hands."I know that, I know that!But why!Why the fuck did they all turn when this guy didn''t?"


    "How should I know?" Dexter replied, the bitterness in his tone evident.He was no less affected by their situation than Tyler and the others, but they couldn''t lose their minds here, not if they wanted to survive.


    "I trapped the foreign bodies within a second core," Ren Zexian informed them, causing them to all turn and look at him strangely.


    "Core?You have a core like a zombie?" Patrick asked, slightly excitable.Did that mean that the literature was correct, that ability users would also develop cores and be able to absorb zombie cores?


    Ren Zexian frowned slightly, but slowly nodded.Was this not common knowledge amongst cultivators?Then what did that say about these men who had awakened their spiritual roots?Where were their teachers? "It took years of cultivation to produce my golden core.The second core stole many, many more," he added the later words with a slight sigh of resignation.


    "I''m confused right now," Patrick admitted."Did you not absorb cores then, to get your own?"


    "Such a thing!" The usually calm man became agitated before them."To do such would to become a Cultivator of the devil''s path!I am a righteous man!I learned cultivation techniques from my sect and later my master.I need not steal others hard work."


    "Is taking from zombies really stealing?" Patrick''s face scrunched up amidst his confusion.


    "I think you are not on the same page," Dexter replied, tapping Patrick''s shoulder comfortingly before guiding Tyler to a bedroom and urging him to rest.Though not before taking away the knife he still held.


    *****


    Harry poured the soup of boiled vegetables, seasoned with a stock cube into bowls and one mug as the occupants did not have a large porcelain set.There wasn''t much flavour other than that of the stock, but it filled and warmed their empty bellies that evening.


    Tyler managed to produce enough water for the men to drink a couple of mouthfuls each before claiming that he was all out of juice.


    Ren Zexian glanced over the man''s body, but could not sense his level of cultivation.Usually, that was the case if the person was stronger than the perceiver, but Ren Zexian doubted that this was the case.But there was one other possible explanation for it; the man had no cultivation at all!Usually, if this was so, the mortal would not be able to use any abilities his awakened spiritual roots deemed possible, but this was not his realm, not his world and he had begun to accept that his common sense did not fit here.


    "May I check your pulse?" Ren Zexian asked the man, who immediately wore an expression of distrust and stepped back, holding his wrists close to his chest.


    "Fuck off!" The man cursed him, using those strange words, before disappearing into one of the bedrooms.


    "Sorry about that," Patrick apologised for his comrade, but Ren Zexian simply shook his head.


    "It is of no matter," he replied."He has the right to refuse my intentions.I am not his master and he is not my student."


    "What did you want to do?" The other asked, curiously.Ren Zexian had come to recognise that the man known as Patrick expressed his emotions upon his face openly and honestly, he would not shy away from asking questions and looked at things, even in the face of horrors in a positive light.He reminded Ren Zexian of his former brother, not of blood but they shared the same Master.He had once hoped that man would have become his Dao companion, together in immortality, but instead he chose to rise to the heavens.He shook away the memory some 8,000 years old and focused on the man before him.


    "To evaluate his strength," Ren Zexian replied."I might be able to advise him on how to improve his cultivation and his abilities.I am well versed in many cultivation techniques."


    The man.. Patrick, looked thoughtful and a smile curved his lips as he jumped to his feet."I know, you should test Dexter!" He quickly made his way to the room with the large white tub for bathing and the strange seat, that Ren Zexian had learned was a fixed chamberpot that could empty waste away itself!Their leader had shut himself in that room a while ago, even though there was no water to bathe with¡­


    "Hold your horses, Pat!" Dexter growled from beyond that door."Give a man time to finish what he started!"


    "Oops, sorry Dex," Patrick replied and returned to the receiving room appearing chided."He''ll¡­ he''ll be out in a minute or two."

 Chapter 10 Chapter Ten - Cultivating or Core Consuming

    Dexter glanced at the man gently holding his wrist between two slender, pale fingers and felt a little strange, despite the doubt in his mind over the other''s sanity.While this person was obviously a man, no one could deny that his long, black hair was like a waterfall of midnight silk and his gentle facade was more alluring than a bunch of dressed up women painting the town red.Not that you''d take either home to meet the parents.Dexter was not bent and a bad girl was best for the night not for a lifetime.


    The exotic man''s thick lashes fluttered open and he stepped back a pace still wearing that light smile.Dexter took a deep breath of relief.Definitely, preferred women.


    "Well?" Patrick beamed at Ren Zexian, curious to know what he had to say.


    "Your spiritual root is assuredly Lightning," Ren Zexian said, calmly."There was no doubts that this was true.It is a single root, you will not gain other abilities.I think in your case, the Storm Heart Technique would be suited to your cultivation."


    "The what?" Dexter felt as if he''d been transported from a horror to a fantasy flick.


    Ren Zexian repeated the name of the cultivation technique and listed the procedure required of Dexter to follow with chants and hand signs."Wait¡­ meditation??You expect me to meditate? Like one of those new age weirdo''s?"


    Patrick chuckled at his expense."Well, Dex, it is a new age after all!What harm can it do?Or would you prefer to consume zombie cores?"


    "The cores found in the restless dead are heavy with Yin energy," Ren Zexian said, thinking of Lu Tian''s core within his interspatial bag."Attempting to consume one could be detrimental to your cultivation should the balance of Yin and Yang inside your body be tipped too greatly."He and Patrick had already cleared up the misunderstanding between them.Patrick had told him about the fictional works that spoke of consuming zombie cores to improve abilities and strengthen bodies.However, Ren Zexian did not believe it would be so simple.


    Dexter listened, still in disbelief over the man''s claims.What sort of ''real'' man meditated?And this man spoke so seriously, it was hard to believe that Ren Zexian was actually off of his rocker and speaking nonsense.He inwardly sighed, thinking that just two months ago, he didn''t believe he''d be living through the end of the world either.With the latter thought still in mind as he lay down in one of the single beds in the second bedroom, he sat up in a cross leg position and turned red in the face as he thought about what he was about to attempt.


    "I must be out of my mind," he muttered to himself.


    *****


    The men remained in the bungalow for an extra day as the heavens had decided to open and weep upon the earth.The rain lasted the entire day and would continue for half the night, before the clouds ceased spilling their contents.


    In that time, nothing more was spoken regarding cultivating.Ren Zexian had chosen to spend the time deep in meditation, trying to regain even a small amount of his former glory, though he knew it would be a long and arduous path.But he had never been one to shy away from hard work nor discipline.


    While he was cultivating, the men in the squad plotted their destination.An American army base that happened to be around forty minutes journey from their location.They had no doubt that the place would be functioning as a safe haven to any survivors, though if in the event that the men stationed there had failed to secure it, they would journey to another military base that they were aware of some two hours in distance.


    Not everyone was happy with the decision."Tyler," Dexter had sighed, when the man protested."Not every American is gonna be like your ex-girlfriend.Get over it."


    "Yeah, those guys not only won''t date you for your credit card," Harry had teased, "it''s the apocalypse, they can''t leave you in debt!"


    Although the rain stopped by morning, the sky remained overcast and the zombies were bolder.They had lost the scent of the men due to the heavy rain, but still wandered close, to where they''d heard loud sounds in days prior.They seemed slower, possibly weighed down by their heavy, wet attire, but it did not stop them from attempting to seek fresh flesh and blood.The squad ignored them, they were not close enough to cause trouble and began the journey to the American Base.


    Ren Zexian ran his eyes over Dexter''s body and sensed that he had taken his first steps to becoming an immortal Cultivator.He seemed to have taken well to it, if his small spurt in development was anything to go by, though his balance was a tiny bit askew.If they were within his old world, he could ignore these small imbalances, they did not mean much.A woman knew not to cultivate too much during the night and a man not to over cultivate in the day, at least until they were preferably of Secondary cultivation, when their bodies could naturally maintain the balance.However, this world''s air was already thicker with Yin than it should be and continuing to cultivate without care could lead to deviation and ultimately becoming trash.So Ren Zexian offeredDexter some advise.


    "You should cultivate during the day sometimes," he informed him."Otherwise your cultivation will deviate."


    "What''s he talking about?" Tyler demanded.He was a passenger in the truck bed this time, while Winston drove and Paul sat beside him.


    "Never you mind," Dexter quickly said, his face flushing red with embarrassment.He was not going to admit that he had meditated two nights in a row, due to his curiosity over Ren Zexian''s words.Only if pushed would he admit that he felt as if his ability was a bit stronger, as if he could produce twelve electrical bolts rather than just ten.Of course, others cannot keep their mouths shut.


    "Ren Zexian taught Dexter a cultivation technique to make his powers stronger," Patrick revealed, cheerfully, ignoring the murderous glares thrown his way.


    "Ridiculous," Tyler muttered, rolling his eyes heavenward.


    "Hey," Patrick moved closer to Ren Zexian and thrust forward his wrist."Can you tell if I have any abilities or if I can gain some?Do I have those root things?"


    Ren Zexian obliged him, placing his fingers upon the other''s pulse and sending his awareness into the other''s body."You have two sleeping roots.I would need to try awaken them to advise you what they were.It is not guaranteed that I would be successful, however."


    Patrick was startled as were the others around them.He laughed almost nervously and squeaked out; "Really?"Ren Zexian nodded without deceit.


    "Congratulations?" Harry said, unsure what was going on.Was the Asian man suggesting that Patrick could develop powers?Tyler snorted in disbelief.


    "Can you help me now?" Patrick asked Ren Zexian excitedly, thinking of these two roots.Having two was better than one, right?However, the latter shook his head.


    "This is not the place to attempt such things," he replied, "but later, perhaps."


    "Yeah, at least wait until we get to the base," Dexter drawled.


    "Hey guys¡­" Paul called out from in front."We have a small problem!"


    "A small problem?" Tyler asked as the truck slowed down to a halt.He stood up and glanced forward and cursed."How the fuck is that a small problem?"


    Before them was a mass of grotesque looking cows, half rotted, with bones visible in places and foam dripping from their mouths.One cow''s udder was dangling on stretched flesh, it''s green-grey teats scraping across the ground.There was a series of mooing sounds, some sounding as more guttural than others, as throats were not always intact and almost as one, the herd turned towards them.

 Chapter 11 Chapter Eleven - Herd of Zombie Cows

    There was a brief moment of pause where the universe around them seeming to slow down and their minds evaluated whether a fight or flight response would be best.Seeing the rabid, rampaging, zombie cows beginning to run towards them, Winston did not delay his own decision, putting his foot down, but stalled the truck instead.


    "Shit!"


    "What are you doing?"


    Winston turned the key in the ignition, restarting the truck and shoved the gear stick into the reversing position.The herd of undead barely two metres away, his foot heavily upon the pedal again, the truck shot backwards.Tyler was flung forward against the closed carriage, while the others gripped the sides.


    Ren Zexian gingerly took to his feet threw out a sizeable ball of flames from his hand over Tyler''s head. It landed upon the forehead of one of the beasts, bursting into a flurry of fire across the creature''s vision.It shook away the flames, screaming as it did and knocked into the cow beside it.This delayed the herd for a just a few moments as beasts fell or stumbled, but they were not slowed for long.However it was enough for Winston to be able to do a sharp turn and thrust the truck back into first gear and begin accelerating away.Both Tyler and Ren Zexian slipped and fell during the turn, falling into the bed of the truck.The stampeding herd closed the gap during the manoeuvre, close enough that the stench of their rotten breath could be smelled by the men in the back.


    Dexter attempted to shoot a few bolts of lightning, but while they were brighter, stronger, it was barely enough to stun one lone cow, which fell beneath the hooves of those behind it, trampled into a bloody pulp upon the asphalt.The next bolt fell upon the road, uselessly as the truck finally pulled away from the herd, challenging Dexter''s range.


    "They seem sturdier that the human undead," Ren Zexian commented as he threw a series of small fireballs.


    "No shit!" Dexter replied, grabbing onto the sides once more as the truck swerved down a side road, as Winston moved to avoid another threat, which was cutting off their way back to town; humanoid zombies that had been drawn by the sound of their truck and had been slowly following them since then.The squad were jostled up and down as this road was more dirt than concrete and lead to an small out of the way village.Naturally, there were more zombies, but their numbers seemed fairly low.Possibly most of those that turned in this place wandered away or followed escaping survivors to areas with more prey.These were infinitely easier dealt with, only one or two was even able to get near to the truck, which just swerved to avoid them, than the herd that had not yet ceased its hunt.The cows even trampled over any undead humans that happened to wander into their path.


    But suddenly, the herd that had managed to keep upon their trail this long, stumbled to a halt.Their legs stomped upon the ground, nostrils flaring and the ones in front even seemed to attempt to back up a pace, but for the cows behind them pushing them unwittingly forward.One became extremely agitated as it came near to a thick hedge of foliage, piquing Ren Zexian''s interest as he asked the driver to hold on for a moment.Dexter seconded his request as a command.Zombies didn''t feel fear¡­ right?


    Without warning, a series of long, green vines rose upwards and swung down to wrap themselves around the zombie cow.It was lifted, upwards, its moos becoming loud and almost sounding distressed as the vines pulled it to the other side of the hedge and then the men heard nothing more from it.


    "The hunter becomes the hunted?" Harry murmured as the zombie cows turned and ran back down the road, away from the hedge and away from the squad.


    "But really, first zombie cows and now plants?" Tyler moaned, bitterly.


    "I also have seen canines that had risen as undead," Ren Zexian mentioned, though his mind was currently considering the strange scene that they had witnessed.He stood up and jumped out of the truck bed.


    "Are you crazy?!" Patrick cried out to him as the man neared the thick hedge and began to walk the length of it, though in the opposite directions of where the vines had appeared from.The truck came to a complete stop as Winston, who had seen this in the rear view mirror, waited for instructions.


    "Had you not figured that one out by now?" Tyler laughed without mirth."I say we leave him."


    "Shut up, Tyler," Dexter warned."Ren tried to warn you before, you could have been zombie bait or worse if your luck weren''t so good.So lay off him."Tyler winced in memory of his reckless tree climbing."Ren, are you sure about this?"


    "I wish to see what exists beyond this foliage," Ren told him.He had encountered plant-type monsters before in the middle realm, it would not be unexpected, in his views, to find them here.But where there were monsters of any type, there were often treasured herbs.He was not able to refine such into pills, he''d not the talent in it, but certain herbs could be refined within the body and could be beneficial to cultivation so long as one did not consume too much.There was risks with eating raw herbs, but in order to regain a little of his strength, he felt it might be worth it.


    The thick hedge was long and Ren Zexian took many swift steps before coming to a large, wide gate of vertical iron bars.The gaps between the iron bars were narrow and there were horizontal bars attached to them.It was not the sort of gate that could be squeezed through by even a child.However, it offered a view of what was beyond it.


    Harry whistled as they saw the large property a good length from the gate, at the end of a long drive.It was two storeys, but there were windows in the roof, indicating that in parts, it reached a third.A large door was at its midpoint, framed with pillars and reached by a series of steps.The building was mostly white rendered, with ivy vines rising up one corner and seemed as though it had been extended a couple of times over the years or decades.The roof was of grey slate and the windows in Georgian style, tall but with white lines dividing the glass into squares.The whole thing seemed to be placed in extensive grounds, surrounded by a wall of metal and hedgerow.


    "What sort of money do you reckoned they earned to afford that?" Harry murmured.


    "A lot more than we did," Patrick replied.


    "What does that matter now?Money is obsolete!" Tyler lifted his hands in the air in self surrender, ending the conversation.


    "Hey¡­ is that a person?" Harry said suddenly, pointing to the side of the house.Sure enough, in the distance, a humanoid figure seemed to walk from behind the house and disappeared into more hedges.


    "It could be a zombie¡­" Paul became the voice of caution as the bed jumped out of the truck bed for a closer look.Ren Zexian did not hesitate and solidified the air in places around him and leapt on invisible platforms to vault over the fence.


    "Be careful!" Patrick called to him, suddenly feeling anxious and the man turned briefly to him and nodded.


    He ran swiftly and silently down the long and large brick road for a moment towards the house.As he neared it, he felt the poison core within his stir.There were definitely the living dead in side it, but he had no intention of releasing them, so he ran along side the building to where he had seen the human.He had no doubts that it was a living person, his vision was clear and good, but how that person would react was another matter.As he turned the corner, he saw someone move behind the property, but was unable to see clearly whether it was a woman or a man.


    With continued silent steps, he ran to where that person was and before him appeared an extensive and rather bizarre garden.In places, there were beds of vegetables and fruits, as well as places which were home to sweetly scented flowers and yet in amongst theses were large or tall, monstrous looking plants, with large thorns or strangely coloured foliage and flora.Some oozed darkened auras, despite the passiveness they currently showed.


    The leafed vines that decorated this part of the property as well, moved, slipping off the side of the wall and slithering over to the person crouching and talking in whispered tones to the ordinary, fruit yielding plants and patting the earth they were in.


    "Look out!" Ren Zexian called out, startling the person, who looked up at him for a moment with large, sapphire eyes, before casting them down and standing upright.Though it had been only brief, Ren Zexian felt captured by their beauty and wished to view them once more and with thisthought, he stepped closer to this person, this young man.His hair was the colour of chestnuts, draping down to his shoulders.His body was a little on the thin side and he was not very tall.He made one wish to comfort and protect him.


    The vines began to wrap around the boy''s legs.

 Chapter 12 Chapter Twelve - Enchanted Gardens

    Ren Zexian snapped out of the bewitchment he felt upon viewing the boy and withdrew his sword thinking of cutting the malevolent vines that threatened him.


    "Stop it," the boy said gently, giving him pause.And then he realised that the youth was not speaking to him, but to the vines.He blinked, eyes widening as the chastised vines actually unwound from the boy''s legs and drew back.They rose until their leafed tips were before his still face, the boy''s eyes following their movement and then they seemed to droop?"Silly," the boy smiled, causing Ren Zexian''s jaw to drop as the warmth of it lit the boy''s face brightly like the sun appearing from behind a dense cloud.He could only watch as the boy stroked the vines with a delicate hand for a few seconds, before the leafy vines then returned to the wall.


    The boy then cupped his hands together, water filled his small palms and the boy stepped closer to the vines before carefully pouring his precious gift onto the soil the vines grew from.The vines seemed to shiver before becoming quiet and the boy picked up a basket holding tubers, large green leaves and stalks of green and purple.Without looking him in the eye, Ren Zexian found himself being side stepped before the boy began walking away from him.


    "Wait," Ren Zexian called after him, quickly sheathing his sword."Please."


    The youth paused and turned, keeping his eyes firmly downcast, but not in a way to be coy, just in apparent avoidance. "Are you from the main house?" He asked Ren Zexian.His voice was calm like water and soft like feather upon the breeze.Were one not listening carefully, one would not hear him speak.


    Ren Zexian began to shake his head, but realised that the boy would not notice his gesture."I am not," he said, keeping his own tone gentle in kind.


    "Oh," the boy said in response and then began to walk away again.


    "Wait!" Ren Zexian chose to run after him."I am Ren Zexian.Could you share with me your name?"


    "Nathan Tobias Matthison," the boy replied, but continued walking.


    "That is a long name," Ren Zexian mused."My comrades consider mine long too, so they call me Ren¡­ may I call you Nathan?"The boy did not say anything for a moment, but eventually gave a sharp nod."Are you here alone, Nathan?"


    "My parents aren''t here at the moment," came his answer."They have people in the main house to look after it.They sometimes bring me groceries, but no one has come to visit me for a long time.I thought that was okay, but I ran out of toilet paper yesterday."His nose scrunched up, clearly unhappy about this.While Ren Zexian did not understand what the boy meant by ''groceries'' he could generally understand that the people in the large property stopped visiting the boy as they had all turned.The poisonous silver core in his gut had continued to stir all the while he stood close to the large white building.But was the boy really not aware of any of this?Was it just sheer luck that had him not open the door to the horrors within?


    "Nathan," Ren Zexian said softly, "have you not noticed strange happenings of late?"


    "I don''t understand what you mean," Nathan replied as he opened a small gate in the thick hedge the squad had seen him disappear into before.He walked inside and Ren Zexian followed, to find a smaller garden which was even more filled with fruit and vegetable producing plants, although some of the fruits were oddly shaped and grey or luminous in colour.And also one very thin and bare of leaf tree held teardrop fruits that sparkled like gems.


    Ren Zexian paused as he stared at it before following Nathan into the small cottage at the bottom of the garden."You have unusual plants in your garden." In truth Ren Zexian did not recognise many of the flora of this world, but he could tell that certain of the plants that Nathan kept had spiritual auras and not all could be considered benevolent.Ren Zexian suspected that if anyone else found those wall, leafed vines and the vines that claimed the zombie cow, they would not live to tell of it.Something about this boy must be calming their usual natures.


    "I thought they were sick, at first," Nathan informed him, his smile returning to his cute face."But they just changed into something new.I wrote some things down about them, like in the way books inform you about plants.I wanted to draw them, but the pictures did not come out so well.The scarlet red fern even made my picture burst into flames, because it was so bad."He giggled, the melodious sound like the tinkling of bells in Ren Zexian''s ears.


    "So you have not witnessed any walking corpses?" He asked after swallowing to ease the dryness of his throat."Or any undead beasts?"


    The boy''s smile fell once more and he shook his head."Why would I have? Corpses cannot walk and undead¡­ I''ve read that word in the novel Dracula.I didn''t like that book.I prefer books with plants and trees in them.But I like the part in Lord of the Rings when it talks about ents."He stopped speaking abruptly, his stomach rumbling loudly."I''m hungry.I''m going to make dinner now."


    "Nathan, do you mind if I invite my friends onto your land?" Ren Zexian asked, thinking deeply about what he had come to learn about this boy, who it seemed knew nothing about what occurred beyond his gardens.It seemed fantastical that he did not know, but what if, though it was a small chance, what if the garden itself was protecting him.After all, those vines attacked the zombie cow that got too near."We.. we have been travelling and have nowhere to stay."


    "Have you seen my parents on your travels?" Nathan asked, glancing briefly up at him and allowing Ren Zexian to catch a second glimpse of his enchanting eyes.


    "I am afraid not," Ren Zexian answered, gently.


    "Oh," Nathan replied, immediately seeming to lose interest in their conversation."Your friends can stay at the main house, if they like."He began preparing the meagre amount of vegetables as if Ren Zexian were no longer there.


    "Thank you," the older man said, anyway and made his way back to the front gate.

 Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen - Learning Truths

    Nathan placed the freshly washed spring greens down and raised his eyes to see the long black hair of the man who called himself Ren Zexian drifting in the light breeze as he disappeared through the cottage garden gate.Nathan had never seen such long hair, not even worn by the maids that came and went over the time.His fingers felt almost itchy in want to touch it.He rubbed the tips of them together before returning his attention to his vegetables.


    His ability to cook had not changed, he was still learning, but he knew enough not to boil the new potatoes, greens and asparagus for.At first, he''d cooked such things in the same pot, but learned that cooking the greens too long made them limp and tasteless and the potatoes cooked too short were hard to bite into.He dished up his meal upon a plate and paused.Should he placed a little on a second plate for Ren Zexian?But there probably wasn''t enough for those friends he spoke of.In fact, was there really enough here for Ren Zexian to share in the first place?His stomach rumbled as he was torn by indecision.


    Just as he pulled down a second plate, having decided to place what he did not want to eat upon it and let the man decide for himself whether he chose to eat or not, there was a loud bang coming from the vicinity of the house.Nathan immediately sank into a crouch and covered his ears and squeezed his eyes shut.What was that?Was it dangerous? Did something happen to that man?The sound repeated, causing Nathan to whimper as his hands failed to stop the noise reaching his ears.He didn''t like that sound, it was too loud, too unknown.It echoed through his mind as if the sounds were still blasting away from wherever they came from.


    Silence descended, but Nathan did not move from his position, even when his legs began to cramp beneath him, did not open his eyes even though the loud noises had stopped.He counted his breaths in his mind.This was something that was suggested to him once, by his nanny.Whenever he was feeling overwhelmed, she had said.He felt his heartbeat gradually slow and a calmness fill him.And then a warmth gently brushed against his hand.


    He leapt up, but his legs had numbed and he fell back."Sorry, I startled you," Ren Zexian said as he crouched lightly down before Nathan.His voice was deep and calm.His tone and volume were level and rhythmic, it made Nathan feel oddly at ease.


    "I don''t like to be touched," Nathan blurted out, but then as he considered the memory of warmth upon his hand, wondered why he was not actually as bothered as usual.


    "My apologies," Ren Zexian replied."My people often felt the same and I did not think.I have seen my new friends hug and participate in strange touching gestures with hand and fist¡­ I assumed all men were like that here."He shook his head and then looked directly into Nathan''s eyes.They were as black as his long hair, but Nathan almost immediately found his own eyes falling.He did not like looking into people''s eyes.People''s eyes often expressed their feelings, even if their faces remained stoic, but as Nathan could not read them and did not like feeling the stares of others, looking directly at them just made him uncomfortable.


    "Nathan, I need your help, please," Ren Zexian said."But I need you to understand something as well."There was a slight pause and Nathan lifted himself from the ground in that time and moved over to the sink in order to wash his hands with his own water.He wished that he had not run out of soap.


    "Did you go to the main house?" Nathan asked, suddenly."There should be soap at the main house."


    "I haven''t had the chance to see if there is, as yet," Ren Zexian advised him. Nathan inwardly sighed.It would be nice to be able to clean his hand thoroughly again.Not that he minded when he was out in the garden and they were covered in dirt from his labours in raising his plants and flowers, but he would like to remove the mud from his hands more easily when in his home.And the germs as well.Germs could make you sick and being sick meant spending time away from his garden while recovering.He had thought about going into the main house yesterday, but the silly vines on the house kept covering the door, so he couldn''t get in.Speaking of which...


    "Loud noises came from the main house, did you hear them?" Nathan asked him.


    "Yes," came the reply."That is part of that which I spoke to you about.Who were the people in the large property?Were they your relatives?"


    "No, they were hired by my parents to look after the house," Nathan replied.He did not know the most recent ones at all and did not like the new maid.She had tried to follow him a few times to the cottage until the current butler had told her to stop.


    Ren Zexian considered what had been explained within the house by Harry."Loads of people just kept falling sick," he had said."If you phone the hospital, they all said the same thing; the wards were full of people suffering the same illness.It was best to stay at home in bed.But then most of the people who were sick just died, dropping like flies.You''d approach them, thinking to cover their bodies until they could be dealt with and they just got up and started attacking people and if you were bit, you would die and rise up like the rest.Looks like something similar went on in here."


    "Those people fell ill at some point in the past," Ren Zexian tried to explain."But they did not make it."


    "Oh," Nathan assumed Ren Zexian meant that they had all died.He would have to tell his parents when he next spoke to them, so they could hire new people.


    "The illness is strange, it kills people," Ren Zexian continued, carefully."But those people died without laying to rest their mortal affairs and their bodies continue to move about seeking what they have lost."


    "I don''t understand," Nathan frowned, then recalled what Ren Zexian had spoken of earlier, about walking corpses and undead."Did they not all die?Then how can they move about if they are dead."


    "We do not understand how it is possible either," Ren Zexian told him."We can only make sure that they can be put to rest."Nathan thought over his words quickly and deduced them as truth.He usually preferred facts over word of mouth, but perhaps it was the way Ren Zexian did not shy away from speaking to him and the way he spoke to him without exasperation or contempt.He could also not deny the fact that his plants could move about without the stroke of the wind, so why not corpses?"The sounds you heard earlier were¡­ gunshots," Ren Zexian continued."One of the Living corpses appeared from behind my comrade and he would have died if that weapon had not been used.However, your plants have decided we are a threat and have trapped my comrades within the house.I wonder if you could speak with them?"


    "Oh, alright," Nathan agreed.He glanced up as far as Ren Zexian''s lips to find them curved into a gentle smile and his face felt suddenly warm, though he could not fathom why, as he watched the man turn around and lead them to the main house.

 Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen - Trapped Within The House

    The thick ivy vines had covered the windows and the doors leading in and out of the large building, which had plunged them into near darkness, but the vines had not yet attempted to enter the property.This was of little comfort to Dexter and his squad as they could not be sure that they had cleared out all of the zombies yet.For sure, the four they had found wandering the ground floor had been dealt with, though it was a close call with that last one, but that did not mean there were not more trapped in rooms elsewhere.The bodies had been left where they had fallen as well.


    Ren Zexian had been first to notice that the vines were entrapping them and swiftly managed to escape their grasp and flee, much to Tyler''s disdain.He''d never wanted to bring the strange Asian man with them in the first place!He kept his thoughts to himself, however, knowing that Dexter had taken a liking to the man, due to his strength and powers.


    "What do we do now," Patrick asked, with a whisper.They had become trapped in a large reception room with plush seating and cashmere rugs, so were sitting around comfortably, but unable to truly enjoy.They had noticed a flat screen television mounted upon a wall and stereo system as well, but without electricity, these were just rubbing salt in their wounds.


    "Sit tight," Dexter replied."I suspect Ren Zexian has some sort of plan.He said something about the plants protecting the owner so¡­"


    "Do you think they thought we would hurt that kid?" Patrick asked, after thinking about it for a moment.Ren Zexian had said he thought the boy to be around nineteen, but he could not be sure.


    "You know you are talking about plants here right?" Tyler said, scornfully."Plants aren''t exactly sentient."


    "You are claiming that after everything that we''ve witnessed so far?" Dexter laughed at him."Dead men walking? Zombie cattle?Me producing lightning at my fingertips and you doing the same with water?"


    Tyler backed down, quietly, but refused to admit that he was wrong.


    "We could try cutting the vines down, somehow?" Winston suggested and Tyler nodded in agreement with him, not that anyone could see him in this lacklustre light.


    "Nah, Ren said earlier not to touch the plants," Patrick disagreed.


    "He probably said that so we didn''t set them off," Tyler said."But, we''re past that, don''t you think."


    "Quieten down," Dexter said with a heavy sigh."Just give Ren a chance to get back to us.Five minutes, Tyler, just five minutes, alright?"Tyler''s eyes narrowed but he agreed out loud.


    Five minutes can seem like an eternity when waiting, unable to see properly and listening only to the breaths of others, but the moment Tyler felt as if he had been waiting enough, the vines began to part and light poured in through the glass once more.All of the men winced due to the brightness and offered deep sighs of relief.


    The door to the living room opened and Ren Zexian calmly walked through it, his hands behind his back as if he had simply returned from a stroll.He was not alone.A skinny youth with chestnut hair falling about his pale face entered in the wake of the man''s shadow and didn''t seem willing to appear out from it."This is Nathan, the descendant of the property''s owner.Nathan spoke to the vines, they should remain still, for now."


    Patrick''s face lit up brightly as he jumped up to greet the youth."Thank you!" He yelled out."I''m Patrick, by the way!It''s nice to meet a new survivor!"Unexpectedly, the boy flinched away from Patrick''s over friendly demeanour, shrinking further behind Ren Zexian, who said nothing about his shy behaviour.


    The boy reached out and tugged Ren Zexian''s sleeve."I''m going to go back to the cottage now," he said to him, quietly.


    "Let''s get you that soap, first," Ren Zexian said softly, turning to face him.


    "And toilet paper?" The boy asked, offering Ren Zexian a small smile and the man agreed with a nod of his head and the pair moved out of the room together.


    "No greetings then? No thanks for getting rid of the zombies?" Tyler bitched, sarcastically and loudly."That''s just rude!"


    "Tyler! Shut up!" Dexter roared at the insufferable man.Their voices echoed out into the corridor, causing the youth to sink to the floor once more and grasp his ears.Ren Zexian hovered close by, protectively, but had already learned that the boy did not like to be touched so was forced to wait until the boy opened his eyes.This time was no more than a couple of minutes.


    "Are you alright now?" Ren Zexian, asked gently and the boy found himself nodding, lured into the security he felt with every word spoken by the man before him.He rose to his feet and shuffled to the man''s side, not so close that they were touching, but close enough that Nathan could just feel the warmth of the taller man.


    Normally, in the past and today, Nathan did not like meeting strangers, he avoided it.Avoided behaviour and tone he could not interpret, avoided their staring eyes.Avoided their loud and overly cheerful voices and their ridicule.But even though this man was a stranger to him, he did not mind when Ren Zexian looked at him and he liked listening to the man''s voice.Being around Ren Zexian felt safe.Safe like when he was with his parents or the Nanny or old gardener, no¡­ probably more so as he never actively sought to be close to them before.


    Nathan rubbed the tips of his fingers together as Ren Zexian opened a door in the open hallway that had not yet been touched.This was the door to the kitchen.A low growl caught their attention and a grey body with a jaw dangling by a piece of flesh and empty eye sockets came swaying towards them.It''s hands were extended grasping forward and black blood oozed from the part of it''s hand that was missing, slowly dripping to the floor.The blood hit the stone tiles with a hiss and smoke seemed to drift upward from where it''s blood had fallen.


    Ren Zexian gently pushed Nathan behind him, even though he knew the boy would not be happy about him touching him without request.He then stepped forward, unsheathing his sword in quick motion, before removing the zombie''s head in one motion.The head fell to the ground with a thud and it''s body followed not long after.The corrosive blood continued to burn small holes into the tiles, but fortunately, the monster''s roots were only awakened, it had not gained strength or control with its vicious ability or things could have resulted much differently.


    The Cultivator turned to Nathan, but saw only indifference in his face, as if he was unable to link the creature that had been killed before him to the living being it had once been."Nathan," Ren Zexian said, softly."Would you mind using your water to clean my sword.That zombie''s blood is corrosive.I do not wish to cause more damage to this room."


    "Oh," Nathan replied and summoned a ball of water in his palms, before wondering how he should go about cleaning the weapon.If the black stuff was dangerous, he should not touch it, he thought, so he lead Ren Zexian over to the sink so that they could pour water down it''s length, diluting and washing away the blood from it together.


    "I am sorry that I touched you," Ren Zexian apologised later.He had moved the body outside onto the drive after wrapping the two parts in a thick cloth he had found upon the table with the help of Dexter and Harry.He had then set this corpse alight.The squad chose to burn the other corpses in its flames, while Ren Zexian and Nathan cleaned the kitchen floor and washed down other damaged surfaces.Nathan did not mind this type of work, it seemed and was quick and thorough about it.


    "It''s alright," Nathan admitted."I don''t think I will mind if it is you."Ren Zexian said nothing, but felt a whisper of warmth developing within his soul.

 Chapter 15 Chapter Fifteen - Curry Nigh

    The main property had eight bedrooms and three bathrooms on the 1st floor, another two bedrooms, a games room and a shower room in the loft space and there was even a small apartment above the large twin garages off of the side of the house.And that did not include the large spaces upon the ground floor.There was plenty of room for a rootless squad to move into, especially seeing as the owner himself did not seem to mind it at all.


    Paul hummed to himself quietly in the kitchen as he opened a tin of chicken curry, a tin of mixed beans and another of chopped carrots and poured them all into the large pot, mixing them a little before igniting the gas on the campfire stove.These had all been discovered as they made their last raid in town before¡­ he sighed.No point dwelling on that.The squad was safe.Better than that, the squad had discovered a rare treasure in the middle of nowhere, a garden filled with growing fruit and vegetables and a youth with the skills to produce them.


    Now if only they could find a decent chef to cook them in the future..


    Paul''s skills were in the region of stir fries, boiling pasta and rice as well as a few simple meat dishes.But the only meat available now was what was stored in tins and he doubted it would be long before they would have to live without.He stirred the heating mixture, while trying to suppress a loud yawn.


    "Hey," Harry called out as he entered the kitchen."What''s for dinner?"


    "Curry," Paul replied."Win found a few beers in a small fridge in one of the rooms.Probably the private stash of one of the workers."


    "Aw sweet," Harry''s taste buds were already tingling in anticipation.How long had it been since anyone here had last cracked open a can?Dex had always discouraged the squad from bringing any back to the base, not wanting to cause rifts with the other squads or those who had to remain behind and wanting to prioritise food and essentials over something unnecessary to their survival.


    "What are the others up to?" Paul asked.


    "Dex is on the roof, checking out the area," Harry told him."He wants to be sure we know what we are dealing with before we see whether to hold up here or secure more of the village.Patrick is with Ren seeing if he can get himself some powers."Paul rolled his eyes heavenward.If that was possible, surely the rest of them would have tried something by now as well!The only ones to gain powers were those who got sick like those who succumbed to the virus.Those who stayed well, didn''t get nada.


    "Tyler?" Paul asked.


    "Having a shave I suspect," Harry replied.


    "Does he even grow facial hair?" Paul asked, scornfully.


    Harry just shrugged."He seems to think so.You know, he was a lawyer before the end and a little bit obsessed with his looks.I think not being able to shower everyday and lack of grooming products is what transforms him into a little bitch."


    "If you say so," Paul yawned again.


    "Tired?"


    "Didn''t get much sleep last night," Paul replied.


    "Yeah, I can imagine," Harry sighed, softly.


    "What about that kid?" Paul asked, glancing into the steaming pot and appreciating the aromas.It all may have come from a tin rather than be made of fresh ingredients, but his growling stomach did not give a damn.He lifted up another good sized pot and filled it with water from a jug that Tyler had left for him.


    "Disappeared back to his cottage," Harry replied.He paused."Do.. do you think that there is something a bit¡­ different with that kid?"


    "Looks like he might be autistic," came a response from behind them.Tyler was standing there, a towel about his shoulders catching droplets of water from his wet hair.His shower had been a cold one, created by his own ability, but he felt a lot more human because of it."I worked with a woman on a discrimination case once on behalf of her daughter.He reminds me a little of what the girl was like, though not as extreme.I invested a fair bit of time into researching the condition, but I could barely scratch the surface of it."


    Harry and Paul glanced at each other and the former carefully said; "If that''s the case, I think you might owe the kid an apology."


    Tyler''s face became stoic and he gritted his teeth as he replied; "I am aware."


    Paul rolled his eyes, before swapping the pot of curry for the cold pot of water, in order to boil rice.He placed a lid upon the curry sauce to keep it warm in the meantime."I saw some tupperware in the cupboard, I''ll put some of the dinner aside for the kid.Maybe you could take it over to him?"


    Tyler''s eyes narrowed, but he gave a curt nod of agreement.

 Chapter 16 Chapter Sixteen - Roots of a Man

    Sweat trickled off of the round, reddened face as it twisted into a grimace and a small whimper passed through the man''s usually curved upward lips.Ren Zexian watched him carefully.Awakening the dormant spiritual roots within an adult man was not an easy thing to do, in his old world no one would consider doing such a thing, such was reserved for children whose bodies were still considered adaptable.However, this was not his world and doing this could either improve the man''s chances of survival or destroy the spiritual roots altogether and leave him weakened.Let it be said that Ren Zexian did warn the man, Patrick, before proceeding to give him the Root Origin pill from his small stock of pills hidden in his interspacial pouch.


    So far, the man was doing quite well, but Ren Zexian was on the alert for any possible changes to his condition.Patrick had been dealing with the effects of the pill for close to half an hour now, but this was not a bad sign.It would have been a sign that the pill had not been effective should he had roused from his stupor too soon, but should he linger too long, it could be a sign of rejection.


    A small gasp escaped the man and his complexion began to change, the heat in his cheeks cooling, though his eyes remained closed.Ren Zexian placed his fingers upon the other''s wrist and sent his spiritual awareness into his body.Ah, his roots were responding, now they were at a critical juncture.Either the two roots awakened or they died.Ren Zexian pushed a little of his energies through the man, trying to unblock his meridians, so that the expected surge of energy within the man had somewhere to flow through and could begin to circulate.This would help prevent an inner eruption and ruin the hard work Patrick had put in so far.


    The two men remained in the meditative state for yet another hour, before Ren Zexian finally pulled away with a slight sigh."Well?"Dexter, who had appeared in the doorway during this time, asked."How did it go?"


    Dexter would admit to no one that he was accepting the Asian man''s strange ways and knowledge.He, himself, had only tried the meditation technique Ren Zexian had told to him a couple of times, as well as a little on the roof beneath the warm rays of the sun, and already he felt some small improvement.Okay, so it was no miracle solution like those in manga''s or anything, but an improvement was an improvement, no matter how you looked at it.


    Ren Zexian gave a small, content smile."Patrick appears to have been successful," Ren Zexian replied, honestly.


    Dexter frowned slightly as he stared at the man, whose eyes were still firmly shut, as if trying to find any difference."Really?Then why is he still out cold?" He questioned.As if on cue, Patrick let out a soft snore, his jaw falling slack as he slumbered, still in a cross legged position."Never mind.So what sort of powers will he get?"


    "His roots are of Grounding and Spark," Ren Zexian answered, softly, rising to his feet quietly so not to disturb the sleeping man.


    "So...." Dexter tried not to roll his eyes.Ren Zexian was definitely a man of riddles and Dexter was a blunt man and preferred a more direct dialogue.


    "Grounding... this is an ability that can negate flight, causing a pull to the earth," Ren Zexian explained, this sort of thing was more difficult to explain in this world.In his world, this was common knowledge, after all.


    "Wait.. that sounds like... gravity? He can effect gravity?" Dexter''s jaw dropped and he glanced at the smaller man, who was slowly slumping towards the ground as he slept.


    "I''m not sure about this word," Ren Zexian admitted.Dexter shook his head, also conscious of the language barrier.


    "What about the other; spark?" Dexter decided to ask.


    "''''Tis a weaker version of your own," Ren Zexian replied."It effects only his body and not his surroundings. Others would be considered a waste root due to it''s weakness.However, I believe that it is still of use."Indeed, when used correctly, it could envelope the man''s frame in a tight field of lightning, shocking or stunning any who attempted to touch him with hand or sword.But it would never be projected, like the lightning that came from Dexter''s fingers.


    "Explain," Dexter demanded."What do you mean by ''waste root''?Do you mean that ''spark'' ability is crap?"


    Ren Zexian shook his head and tried to think how best to explain."Where I am from, strength is everything, power is everything.Anything that falls outside of this is considered weak, useless or a waste.People are born with spiritual roots or they are born without, so from birth we are divided into those who can take the path of cultivation and rise to become great and those who cannot and are simply ants beneath those with power.It is... was not a kind world.


    "Spiritual roots can be separated once more into major, minor and waste roots.Those with major and minor roots have the chance to rise to the highest peaks, while those with waste roots tend to falter without fail.They are not alone in this for a person with one or two roots is considered great, while a person with many is seen as trash.But too many roots or waste roots failing, this is not a law cast in stone, for I, myself, proved many times that those considered trash can still rise, but it is much, much more difficult and those without resolve will never achieve their dreams."


    "So what does lightning come under?" Dexter asked curiously.


    "Minor, for the most part," Ren Zexian told him and then shook his head with a slight smile."But it is the one root that could not be considered so simple.It is on par with one of the major roots."Dexter still felt that he was not getting to whole picture, that there was a great deal more to learn, but at the same time, he couldn''t help but think that were they not surrounded by zombies and using strange powers, how ridiculous it would have all sounded.


    "Don''t want cheese!" Patrick suddenly yelped out before completely falling to the ground and snoring peacefully away.Dexter''s face twitched in amusement and he indicated with a nod of his head that they should probably leave the sleeping ''beauty'' alone.Ren Zexian smiled in response and followed the other man out of the room.


    *****


    Dexter was still dwelling over the stranger than fiction facts he had listened to spilling freely from Ren Zexian while poking the rice upon his plate with a fork.The others around the table stared at him knowing that he was a man who enjoyed his food, especially with a good beer.The men glanced at each other before Paul joked; "You know, it isn''t that bad!"


    "What?" Dexter looked slightly confused over his words, before looking at his untouched plate."Yeah, no it''s fine.I was just thinking over some stuff, that''s all."He took a large mouthful of rice and curry sauce and stuffed it into his mouth to prove a point.It was a bit bland, he thought, needed more spice.


    "So where''s Ren?" Patrick asked, he felt quite refreshed after his nap and very hungry.His stomach had growled so much it sounded as if he had gained a second mouth!He had wolfed down half of his plate of food before letting up for air, slowing down to savour the remnants with the open can of warm beer.


    "Said something about the kid offering him dinner," Dexter responded."He''s probably eating over there as we speak."


    "I''m not sure if he is missing out or not," Tyler muttered softly, happy to be eating meat... even if it was from a can and there was more sauce than edible lumps.He glanced out of the window at the garden where he could see the rows of plants in various states of growth, some with unripened fruits that in time could be harvested."Now, I''m not saying we should," Tyler mentioned, "but were it any other squad, that garden would have been decimated by now."


    Harry snorted loudly, while the others looked grim.They all knew what Tyler was trying to say, that with so many vegetables and fruits just beyond their finger tips, who would not be tempted when food was so scarce.But it didn''t mean that they should act like thugs and vandals."No one touches it," Dexter said, firmly."That kid grew all of this, probably not because of any Apocalypse or for his own survival, but just cos he loved too.If it comes to it, we can ask him if it would be alright if we can take some, but we won''t lower ourselves to steal from a kid."


    "Besides," Winston mentioned, "there''s a whole village of rich people''s houses around here.There might be more beer!"


    "I could kill for a glass of Claret right now," Tyler groaned as he sipped the beer with a grimace.


    "What sort a man wants wine over beer?!" Winston teased, acting all offended.


    "One with taste," Tyler retorted, ignoring the five questioning faces that turned to stare at him.

 Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen - First Fruits

    The summer sun had graced the garden with its presence and the plants absorbing its rays basked in its light.The heat was quite potent for June, however and the men that knew only the usual fickle summers of their past were glistening with sweat.Ren Zexian was the exception to that rule, he seemed completely unfazed by the unusually hot weather.


    Nathan, who was picking the ripe gooseberries, listened to the men moan and complain as they moved from the shelter of the house to try find solace in the shade.The one with the round face known as Patrick, tried to sit beneath the looming boughs of the black fruit tree, but was chased away as the tree mischievously dropped it''s hard shelled apples down upon the man''s head.


    Ren Zexian''s friends had been in the main house for a week now.Nathan wasn''t too concerned about this, seeing as the last caretakers had become moving corpses and were no longer able to take care of the house.They tried not to be too noisy around him when Ren Zexian explained that he did not like loud noises, the previous caretakers had not been so considerate.But then, they had not been aware as Nathan had never told them.One of these new people had even brought him food and apologised for his earlier behaviour, though Nathan wasn''t sure what he was sorry about, he accepted it anyway.His nanny had told him that it was polite to do this.


    Nathan glanced over the remaining berries, these were not yet ripe enough to eat raw yet.An old chef used to gather the green ones and make a pie, always bringing Nathan a big slice, but Nathan could not cook it and didn''t like the sourness of raw, unripe gooseberries, so he would leave them be for now.Some of the strawberries had transformed into their final beautiful, scarlet red forms ready to pick and enjoy.He liked strawberries the most, they were his favourite fruit.In the end, a fair few did not join the gooseberries in the basket, instead ending up in his stomach.


    Ren Zexian kneeled down beside the youth just as he was biting into one of the lush strawberries, a look of rapture upon his face and red juice dripping down his chin."Nathan," he said softly, his eyes filled with amusement, even as his calm smile revealed none of this."My friends are going to look around the village tomorrow.They wish to see if they can make it safer for us and to see if they can find supplies.Is there anything that you need?"Nathan glanced at him, before swiftly looking away, absently munching upon the fruit between his lips as he considered the question.


    His small tongue poked out between the stained lips licking away the remains of the juice as he replied; "I need some more wood for my stove.And it would be nice to have some cereal... or eggs.Did all of the animals get sick and die like the people?" He suddenly asked.


    "I am not sure," Ren Zexian replied honestly.


    "I heard a dog barking last night," Nathan continued."I thought I might be dreaming at first, but it was definitely a dog."Ren Zexian frowned, wondering why he had not been able to hear it, but he was distracted by a red berry being thrust into his vision."Would you like one?They are very delicious."


    Ren Zexian smiled gently and took the offered fruit, biting it lightly and feeling surprised by the burst of sweetness upon his tongue.It was indeed very delicious.


    *****


    Nathan watched the backs of the men as they made their way to the front of the property border, his eyes fixed on the swaying length of black hair traipsing down Ren Zexian''s back.His fingers itched slightly, so he simply rubbed them together until the ivy vine began to wrap about his wrist, demanding his attention."I''ll water you this evening," he whispered a promise.It was too sunny to do so now, his waters would just evaporate or the droplets could burn the plants leaves if cast too soon.


    There was still much else to do in the garden as well; weeding to be done, new seedlings to be planted.Maybe he should have asked for a greenhouse; through his and Ren Zexian''s conversations, he understood that he would need to produce his own foods throughout winter from now on.He would write a list for the next time Ren Zexian asked him if he required things.


    The vines released their grip and he took the basket filled with berries towards his cottage, but paused to pick up a black apple, wondering if it was edible."Can this be eaten?" He asked the tree softly.The tree creaked as one of it''s lower boughs bent downwards and a thinner branch flicked the apple from his hand."So it cannot be eaten," he translated."Is it bad to eat your fruit?"The branches shook as if in denial."Then it is not ripe?"The tree remained still, so Nathan assumed that this was the case.A small smile appeared upon his face and he thanked the tree before returning to the cottage.


    There, he used his waters to wash the berries, then split them into two bowls, one for himself and the other for the friends of Ren Zexian.They had given him some food, which was a welcome change from his plain meals of vegetables, so he would give them some berries in return.There was plenty more due to ripen and he was used to sharing with the main house.


    He washed his hands and face with a small amount of soap, before making his way with the bowl of gooseberries and strawberries to the main house.However, he came to a sudden stop, just as he went through the gate of his cottage garden.Before him was a large black dog, with visible fangs and bright eyes.It did not appear to be a Zombie, but seemed dangerous nonetheless.It growled at him, low and fiercely, but made no move to attack him.Nathan wasn''t sure what to do and shuffled from side to side for a moment, before noticing the beast was hovering over a smaller form, something with a tangle of blond fur or hair?


    The little creature coughed, dryly, the motion allowing Nathan to see a little of it''s tender pink flesh.Its breath was also raspy and sounded laboured.Did it need a drink?The youth cupped his hands together and filled them with his waters, causing the dog tolick its lips and nose and cautiously move forward.Nathan held out his hands towards the animal, which lapped at his water just once before turning its attention to the little person beneath it, climbing off of it and revealing that it protected a small child.The dog nuzzled the child with its nose and whimpered as the child coughed again.


    The water dripped through his fingers, but Nathan kneeled into the puddle he was creating and brought his cupped hands to the child''s dry lips as best he could.It took several tries before he could get the child to drink, but Nathan was well accustomed to patience.Once the little one had enough, the dog growled at Nathan until he produced water for the hound.And after the animal had drank its fill, it curled around the child protectively and lay down.


    Seeing this, Nathan picked up his bowl of berries and took it to the house.

 Chapter 18 Chapter Eighteen - An Abandoned Village

    The village in which Nathan''s home was located within had several large properties with large grounds, but it also had a few streets with smaller three bedroom homes and thatched roof cottages, mostly situated down a road just off of the main one through the village.Zombies were not numerous on the streets, in fact there were surprisingly few and those discovered were usually former animals, such as pet cats and pigeons.Such as the rooster.


    The rooster shrieked loudly as the men happened to wander into its territory, flapping its featherless wings as it ran towards them, only for it''s skinny neck to be removed from its rotting body with a sharp blade of air.


    Tyler concluded that many of the zombies had probably left the village in search of living bodies, while those that remained were picked off by the vines that lie in deadly wait at several points in Nathan''s garden."If we find zombies anywhere, it''ll probably be inside properties."


    "There is still those zombie cows," Harry reminded him, to which he agreed with a curt nod.None of them could forget that herd.They had heard the grunts and endless mooing sounds after the sun had descended a few nights ago.The herd had approached the village, but had moved on, it seemed as they had not heard anything from it for a while.


    "Well, boys," Dexter said after they had mapped out the village."Where''d you wanna start?"


    "The smaller properties will have less resources, but less zombies per household as well," Patrick mentioned, pointing down the street from where they were located.


    "The bigger homes and mansions would likely have more stuff we can use," Tyler pointed out."And there were only five zombies in Nathan''s house.Easily dealt with."


    Dexter rubbed his stubbled chin in thought."I''m with Pat on this one," he decided."We can''t be sure certain that one of those mansions doesn''t have a whole slew of zombies lurking inside.Better start out small.There ain''t many of us and I''d rather not risk it."Tyler reluctantly agreed, along with the others.


    "Some of the properties are bound to be abandoned," Patrick added."We can start with those!"


    In fact, the first property on the side road, a cottage rendered cream with a tiled roof, had been abandoned; the front door was shut, but not locked and the inside furnishings were coated in a layer of dust.There wasn''t much to find in the kitchen either, as if the last occupant had grabbed some of the food from the cupboards just before they fled.All that remained were a couple of dented tins of fruit, haphazardly thrown at some point on the floor.There were some kitchen products, bleach and such like.But they were not exactly lacking in that department.They decided to throw it all in the truck anyway, Dexter and Harry having gone to grab it when they had decided upon their destination.Better to store it somewhere safe and close by than have to come find it again.


    The second property contained zombies, Ren Zexian could feel their presence via his poison core, the squad did not even need to attempt their old methods of listening and peering through windows in order to check.So, as was their old practice, they sprayed an ''x'' upon the door and moved on to the detached cottages next door.The property next to it had a large mutated plant in it''s front garden.Not wanting to risk whatever type of plant it turned out to be, they gave this one a wide berth.


    They made their way slowly down the street, finding a handful of properties like the first with scattered goods as if occupants had all cleverly thought first about their stomachs before leaving their homes and others containing zombies.In the fourth abandoned property, a semi-detached, brick built house, Paul noticed large paw prints within the layer of dust upon the dark lamenant flooring.


    "A dog?" Harry asked.


    "It''d be a pretty large dog," Patrick exclaimed.It''s pads would form a paw the size of a large man''s fist.


    "Nathan claimed he heard a dog barking in the village last night," Ren Zexian mentioned, causing the men to glance amongst each other.


    Dexter drew withdrew his gun."Keep an eye out, the mutt could be a zombie.And that will not be good."


    With more caution, they approached the property next door, which Ren Zexian confirmed did not contain the walking dead of any type.The lock had to be picked; it seemed this owner had been more conscientious than others or... perhaps it was still occupied?


    Noises from the kitchen seemed to confirm this as they heard objects being tossed onto the floor as well as the smash of glass.The men slowly made their way through the hall, but clearly, they were not as stealthy as they would have liked.A rumbling growl filled the inner room and a loud bark followed.Dexter leapt into action, pointing his gun into the kitchen as he confronted a very large, very angry looking black dog.The beast growled once more taking a defensive stance as it did and the men could not help but noticed that something was attached to its back.But before they could get a good look, the animal jumped towards the back door, dissipating into smoke as it did and seeping through the cracks!


    The men were astounded!Harry unlocked the door with the key still within the keyhole and opened it to reveal a small courtyard garden, where the dog was running towards the fence to one side.Again as it leapt, it morphed into black smoke, easily assailing the fence."A child!" Harry exclaimed as he turned to his squad-mates, indicating that they should head to the front door once more."It had a child on its back!"


    "What the fuck?" Dexter swore and followed the larger man, but they could only catch sight of the mutant dog fleeing towards the heart of the village.In almost tactic agreement, they jumped aboard the truck, Winston in the driver''s seat as they made their way after the animal and thought to be child.But as they turned the corner onto the main road, they realised that they had lost sight of it altogether.Not only that, all the noise had attracted the herd, which had decided to wander back across the field in hunt.The men quickly retreated back to their new haven.


    Their excursion couldn''t be called a complete failure, but it hadn''t been much of a success.Ren Zexian had not been able to find the items than Nathan had requested and he felt pained and apologetic for that.As the other men unloaded what little supplies they had discovered, Ren Zexian went to find Nathan in the garden.


    However, instead he discovered a large, black dog and small child curled up and fast asleep upon the grass.

 Chapter 19 Chapter Nineteen - An Afternoon of Cultivation

    The youth with large eyes like blue gems walked along the grassy paths in between plots with various plants both familiar and unusual, holding a pot in one hand and a trough in the other.Behind him trailed a young girl, no older than perhaps three years old, with doe brown eyes and a mess of blond hair.Her thumb was in her mouth and she toddled no more than half a foot from the boy, but following close behind her was a humongous black hound.The beast never left the child''s side.


    The boy paused at a freshly dug plot and so did the child and so did the dog.The boy knelt, the child sidled a little closer, just enough to clutch his shirt, while the hound sat down and waited patiently for the boy to finish what he was doing.He dug a hole, gently eased the growing plant from the plastic pot confining it, teased the white roots loose a little before placing it into the hole and carefully covering it.He then cupped his hands and water filled them, before spilling onto the freshly planted sprout.In a couple of months, this plant would spread like a vine across the ground.It would produce large, yellow flowers, which would later turn into large, orange pumpkins.


    The child watched him with wide eyes and cupped her hands together, but no water filled them.Her small brow furrowed due to her inability to copy the big brother and in the end, she gave up and stuck her thumb back into her mouth.


    The boy then rose to his feet and began to walk back the way he came, the little girl followed and both were followed by the large dog.


    This was a scene that Ren Zexian had come to observe frequently over the last couple of days, ever since both child and dog had escaped them in the village, only to settle in Nathan''s garden.It seemed that Nathan had given them water and had been the first to share food with them and now they had become somewhat attached to the oblivious youth.


    No one could say how the child had come to be likely the only living inhabitant in the village, with, of course the exception of Nathan.It was a miracle that she was alive at all.The men could produce a few theories such as that the child had either been abandoned as a burden or perhaps her parents had succumbed to the virus and turned.The dog had probably been a family pet or something and made it its duty to protect the child as if it was its own, mutating and awakening its abilities as it did.They probably scavenged for water and food, which is why the squad could find little more than bent tins and smashed packages and the dog''s ability to turn itself and the toddler into fog had been the key to them escaping zombie jaws.


    Ren Zexian thought it was a pitiful thing, but the child did represent hope that others survived.They had not yet explored the large mansions upon the outskirts of the isolated village as yet.


    The ancient Cultivator heard a groan beside him and the stocky man, Dexter stretched upwards, causing a cracking sound within his spine.It was mid afternoon and the sun was strong in the sky, filling the air with Yang energy, a good time for cultivation.Thus while this was true, Ren Zexian had encouraged these with awakened roots to do so.Tyler had scorned him, the man considered cultivating a futile exercise, a pity when considering that he had the strongest gift of them all; a single, major root.Nathan did not understand what it was Ren Zexian wished to teach him and after five minutes had simple stood up and walked away.


    Dexter was a reluctant Cultivator, but as he made progress, he seemed to take more time out of his day and night to practice.On the other hand, Ren Zexian had to stem Patrick''s enthusiasm, less his wilfulness cause a deviation.Unless the sunny nature''s man was eating or scavenging or sleeping, he was cultivating.He had meditated for nearly fourteen hours the day following his roots awakening.While it was true that this was just a breath of a moment for a high level Cultivator, a man within the primary stage should not do so much.His meridians could be overtaxed, his body weakened from hunger and lack of sleep.Ren Zexian had made him stop, telling him little and often was better than this lengthy period for him.Even now, he had to watch the man or he would not cease his practice.


    Ren Zexian moved across the flat roof to do so now, taking advantage as he did to test the man''s progress.Fortunately, his cultivation remained steady, despite his overzealousness.This might have been helped by the fact that his energies had to be tempered through two roots and not one.


    The grounding root, or what Dexter had labelled as Gravity root, was much stronger than the ancient Cultivator had imagined.While it could certainly stop a man in his tracks, making him feel the weight of the world, it happened that it could also allow objects to float!This concept had not occurred to his own people, it seemed that although this people lived on a world in the lower realms, they still had great strength of knowledge and ingenuity.Patrick''s control and ability was weak at this time, Ren Zexian looked forward to what he would accomplish in the future.


    The boy, Nathan, had returned to the patch of garden he was working on, his entourage in tow.As usual, Ren Zexian felt his eyes fall upon the boy and was unable to tear them away.Nathan had roots of water and either wood or the lesser plant, Ren Zexian could not be sure, but he felt that this was true as his garden was lush with life and even the dangerous, mutated plants behaved in his presence.Ren Zexian would have liked to know for definite, however Nathan did not like to be touched.Admittedly, Nathan had said that he wouldn''t mind, if it was Ren Zexian, but the older man felt he should respect the youth''s boundaries, even when he itched to get closer.


    With a half-smile of self ridicule, he shook away his thoughts and turned to follow Dexter and Patrick off of the rooftop.What was he thinking, a 10,000 year old man such as himself seeking out a boy just stepping into adulthood?He had thought himself past such worldly notions, he had not thought of such things in nearly 8,000 years since his brother left him for the higher plane... but perhaps his recent fall from the heights of cultivation was causing more than just a need to sate hunger and quench thirst.


    As he had turned away, he did not notice the large sapphire eyes stare up at him from the garden, watching until he was out of sight.

 Chapter 20 Chapter Twenty - Free Time

    During that same afternoon, Winston was tinkering with the truck, checking the oil and the screen fluid, while wiping muck he could from the sides with a damp cloth.He''d not been a mechanic in the days before, he''d been a construction worker with Dexter, which is how he''d come to know the man, but he''d always loved his truck and tried to take care of it.


    As they couldn''t bring the truck in the grounds without compromising the security of them (it would require breaking the magnetic lock, which for some reason, still worked), Paul was with him, sitting on the high wall with a gun in hand.However, so far, they''d not come across any wandering zombies and the herd was staying away, possibly seeking easier prey.It wouldn''t do to become complacent, yet at the same time, it was difficult not to relax when the danger felt so far away.


    "It''s hard to imagine right now," Paul mentioned in passing, "that it''s the end of the world."


    "Know what you mean," Winston replied, wiping his hands down along his jeans."Unless you consider the lack of people, cars and overall noise.I haven''t even heard birds song for months."


    Paul chuckled, a little before asking; "Did you ever think that we''d have to suffer the ''zombie apocalypse'' ending though?"


    "Nah," Winston admitted, opening the door to the truck."I always thought we''d all go with a nuclear war or something?"


    "Oh, I thought you''d be in the ''rising of the machine'' circle," Paul said.Winston threw him an incredulous look.What was the point of this conversation again?With an inward sigh, he glanced in the truck before stepping back as a number of flies flew in his face.


    "What the fuck!" He exclaimed.


    "What is it?" Paul asked, jumping down from the wall.Winston reached in and produced a carrier bag from beneath the seat of his truck.It was oozing slightly and small flies escaped as he opened it."Dammit that stinks!How did you not know that that was in there?!"


    "The smell of several sweaty blokes maybe?" He drawled.Water was thin on the ground with only Tyler as their source and the guy tended to only provide enough to drink for a few days.Admittedly, they now had Nathan on their side, able to produce water, but he preferred to use it to water his garden and neither man could produce a great amount anyway.Washing was something that had become a luxury.


    In fact after Ren Zexian had coaxed Nathan to partially fill a bathtub for him just yesterday, the other men had fought to use the cold, soapy left over water to wash their own bodies clean.(With the exception of Tyler, who would never lower himself to use someone else''s waste water.) Patrick had managed to win the rights first, after an intense round of rock, paper, scissors and Paul had been next.The others had followed Tyler around the main house until, fed up with their antics, he had half-filled another bath and left them to fight over it.


    "What do you think it was?" Paul asked him, making Winston think back for a bit, while he considered where he could toss the mess.


    "Ah!The rotten fruit we last collected!" Winston said, having an epiphany.They had collected these for the seeds.He had no idea if the seeds would be of any use now, but surely it wouldn''t hurt to try.He looked into the black-green and furry result of leaving already rotten fruits in a carrier bag in a hot, metal truck.Actually, he wasn''t sure he wanted to find out...


    Actually, no one was really interested in rescuing the seeds from the rotten fruit, not even Nathan, who had many packets of seeds ready to grow already.So the mess was buried in a spot near the front of the property and forgotten about.


    *****


    Inside the main property, there were many rooms, some were ones found in any property, but as this place could quite be considered a small mansion, there were a few others as well.Take, for example, the basement which had been converted into a wine cellar.. this was a most pitiful sight for Tyler to view; the zombie that had lurked between kitchen and this room had destroyed much of the sacred bottles of wine, their contents spoiled or staining the concrete floor.


    There was also an entertainment room, which, now there was no electricity, was not very entertaining, a room with a pool table and darts board, which was and a library.This library was Tyler''s favourite find and while others were ''futilely practicing that new age shit,'' gardening or whatever they wished to waste their free time upon, he was usually found in here.There was a mix of books to read.A fair few were encyclopaedia''s and educational books useful from small child to older student.There were autobiographies, modern romance novels and fictional crime novels as well.And possibly most unsurprising, there were a large array of books regarding gardening.


    Tyler was an avid reader, he used to secretly favour fantasy novels with dragons and knights and the like... not that he would ever admit to that, even upon his death bed.However, that sort of book was not available in this library, much to his chagrin.So he had skimmed through a few autobiographies, bothering to guess whether these once most famous men and women were a) alive, b) had abilities or c) were wandering rotting corpses and no longer as beautiful or noble as their photoshopped images.


    As he was giving up and leaning towards the crime novels instead, he happened to notice a worn out gardening encyclopaedia aimed at children.Pulling it out, he gently teased apart a rather sticky first page and noticed the childish writing scribbled on the first page; "This belongs to Nathan Tobias Matthison."Tyler smirked, so the kid did have a cute side.


    Little did he know that the former nanny and gardener took more than two hours to encourage a serious little boy to write these words for their own satisfaction.Nathan himself had never understood the point of it.

 Chapter 21 Chapter Twenty One - Children’s Stories

    The corpse stood unmoving in the centre of the small, quaint living room, it''s unseeing red stained eyes seeming to stare at the wall.Upon the floor, was a smattering of small bones with tiny torn clothes on them and a child''s skull with just a few strands of black hair on it''s desiccated scalp lie in the corner.The zombie had wandered about the abode, had stood at the door using its nails to scratch at the plastic as it heard a commotion beyond its hungry reach, had growled and grunted in the kitchen as the scent of meat had enticed it, only to lose interest as the rot of the meat became apparent.Finally it had returned to wear the only fresh, living meat it had come into contact with now lie scattered in death after becoming food for the zombie.But that had been too long ago and now with the silence of the world, the zombie simply stood, in the house, in the living room, unmoving.


    Suddenly, as if belying what only the tiny spiders in the room''s corners could testify to, the zombie''s head whipped around, a audible cracking sound, which seemed to come from its twisting neck, echoed about the walls.Just as suddenly, the front door of the property creaked open.The sound and the smell of fresh, living flesh lured the zombie back into swift movement, the stiffness of its joints the only obstacle to obtaining immediately that which could sate its insane hunger.That and the sudden hole that appeared in its temple, sweeping through its semi functioning brain, effectively making it useless.


    As the zombie fell ungracefully to the ground, a voice muttered; "Ah, I wish I could do that!"


    "Quit complaining," Dexter slapped Patrick about the head, before turning to the man responsible for the zombie''s sudden demise."All clear?"


    Ren Zexian felt no more movement from his poison core and nodded.The squad filtered into the narrow hall.Being large men, they could only do so one at a time, so having a man that could detect zombies with them was appreciated, by most.Tyler had been left outside with Paul to mind the truck and the arrogant man still could not get along with Ren Zexian.


    "I''m just saying that it might have been nice to be able to end zombies using a flick of the wrist and a blast of air," Patrick grumbled to Harry, behind him.


    "There''s no point grumbling to a mortal man like myself," the muscular man chuckled.Neither he nor Paul nor Dexter had the potential to awaken an ability according to Ren Zexian, but he was okay with that.He preferred the idea of relying on his body than some mystic mumbo jumbo any how."Are you still upset at what happened at that last place?"


    There had been two zombies lurking behind the doors of said cottage, one had been quite abundant in flesh, meaning his rotting form had oozing craters where lumps of skin and fat had fallen, yet still no bones could be seen.It had shuffled into view and Patrick, in an attempt to impress others had used his ability to hold the zombie by its foot to the floor.Patrick''s ability, while impressive, could only affect small areas at the moment, so he could not completely hold down the zombie or better yet crush it beneath gravity''s oppression.However, stopping it from approaching, while they dealt with the other zombie, should have been easy.Not everything went as he wished it.


    "Who knew the zombie would tear its leg from its ankle just to get to us!" Patrick moaned, causing Harry to chuckle.


    "It''s like you were expecting it to be smart," Harry said, ruffling the smaller man''s hair, "and have self-preservation."


    They had raided three of the zombie infested houses so far, inside, guarded by their undead guardians, the treasures were fairly abundant.Tins of food, packets, boxes, even a few cans of powered milk, they gathered each and every one carefully.Even though a few had surpassed their best before dates.


    Winston ran up the stairs and saw the tiny, floating corpses of goldfish in murky green waters upon a stand on the landing.Three doors lead to a child''s bedroom, the master bedroom and a bathroom.There was half a toilet roll left on the holder and bleach beside the toilet.He didn''t leave these, every little luxury was a blessing after all.The wrapped packets of soap were a better find.In the child''s room were small clothes, probably better suited for a boy.Lacking a sense of dimension, Winston wasn''t sure whether they would fit little Lucy, but he gathered them anyway.


    Lucy, that was what they had named the little girl, who looked to be roughly three years of age.She could have been older, but her words were still a little ill formed and immature, so they didn''t think so.She wouldn''t tell them her given name, perhaps she could not remember or perhaps she didn''t want to remember it.To be honest, she might have actually told Nathan had he been the one to ask, instead of Tyler.She simply had shaken her head and clutched tightly upon Nathan''s combat trousers.


    "Well we have to call her something," the man had stated, testily to Dexter and Ren Zexian, who happened to be nearby.Tyler was fond of children so to have been shut out by the little girl had made him a little short of temper; what was so much better about a boy who barely paid any attention to her over him?"We can''t keep calling them ''girl'' and ''dog!''"


    Dexter had agreed, but couldn''t exactly force it.So he had kneeled down before the child and had said as gently as a man could with as rough a voice as he; "hmmm, how about Hilary?"


    "Hilary?What sort of name is that?" Patrick, who had decided to join in midway the conversation, had asked.


    "It was my mum''s name," Dexter had growled at him.


    "And it''s a very nice name!" Patrick had said in sudden reversal."Do you like it?" He had asked the little girl, who had shied away, her thumb stuck in her mouth.The dog, who had been sitting quietly beside her, suddenly had shaken its great, black head."You don''t like it...?" The dog had shaken its head again.


    "How about Anna?" Tyler had suggested.Again the dog had not approved."Marie? Joanne? Hannah?"


    "Kelsey? Primrose? Tamara?" Patrick had listed a few suggestions of his own.


    "Lucy," Nathan had said suddenly, causing all eyes to stare at him.Unable to meet any of them, his eyes fell awkwardly to where he had not long removed weeds.The little girl had tugged at his trousers and smiled brightly.


    "Why that name?" Patrick had asked, curiously.


    Nathan had shuffled from foot to foot."I remembered it from a book my nanny used to read to me.Lucy rode on Aslan''s back."He had pointed to the large dog, who tilted its head and managed to look as if it wasn''t a very dangerous beast, but a simple pet.


    "Aslan was a lion, not a dog," Tyler had pointed out abruptly, causing Nathan to take a step back.His eyes had glanced up meeting Ren Zexian''s for a moment as if seeking something from him.Unfortunately, Ren Zexian had been unable to refute Tyler''s words in any way, for he had no idea who this Aslan was.


    "Yeah, but think about it," Patrick had said, almost excitedly, "Aslan is a powerful and strong beast, like our canine friend here and goes out of his way to protect Lucy and the others.And as they say, he''s good lion, but he is not a tame one.Don''t you think that sort of fits?"


    Tyler had not thought so, however he had found himself completely overruled as both child and dog seemed to like their new names; Lucy and Aslan."They are good names," Ren Zexian had given Nathan a warm compliment and in return received a small, almost shy, smile.


    Downstairs in the raided house, they had begun to clean up, removing the zombie core''s minute core and dragging it outside.They also gathered the remnants of the child and placed it beside the other fallen corpses.For this snuffed out light, Paul and a couple of others gave a small prayer, despite their lack of religious conviction, before Ren Zexian set the funeral pyre alight with his flames.

 Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty Two - A Plan For The Future

    Unfurled upon the large oak table, in the kitchen, was a roughly drawn map made from a strip of lining paper that never made its way upon the wall it was intended for.The map''s schematics consisted of what could loosely be considered a line drawing of an aerial view of housing.It could not be considered to scale, but it did offer a ''guide'' to the outlay of the village.Dexter was hovering over it, pen in hand, trying to figure out if he had missed anything.


    Winston glanced over it."What about that shell of a new build?" He asked pointing to the area where the house had been in the middle of construction.It had walls and a roof, but no internal electrics nor plumbing had been begun.Glass windows had been found in a garage next door, likely meant to be installed next, but it had not happened before doomsday.


    "I was thinking of tearing it down and using the concrete blocks and bricks for something else," Dexter admitted.


    "Like?" Winston asked


    "A wall."


    As they had emptied the last of the smaller properties of anything that could be deemed useful, they had come across a worrying sight in the distance.The herd of zombie cows had been battling hounds that were also undead.The herd were larger in both numbers and physical size, so although the pack of canines had the advantage of teeth and claws and agility, they were no longer the only predators in the fields.The surviving dogs had fled, those that were trampled beneath the hooves of the bovine zombies became a rotten feast for the victors.Patrick had fled into the nearest house to vomit into the toilet.Dexter couldn''t say he felt much better himself.


    And warring zombie animals was not the only thing they had to worry about.


    The last property to be raided was home to a large family of zombies, six in total, from a short, stout zombie with white strands of remnant hair to a feisty knee biter.Ren Zexian had quickly dealt with the first two, who were swifter than the others, their knees less worn and gait less stiff.His sword had cleanly removed their heads from their bodies.The third had appeared from a different door.Dexter''s lightning had stunned the creature before Harry bludgeoned its skull, until it''s brains oozed out of its ear.The fourth had been found alone in a locked toilet and flung itself towards them as they smashed open the door.


    But as difficult to deal with as they were, a tall Male zombie had stood waiting for them inside the living room.Pieces of metal had been floating midair about it as if hindered by no laws of nature.Without warning, the knives and fire-place tools had sliced through the air towards them.Harry would later admit to almost pissing his pants as the poker that flew his way tried to stab him over and over again.


    One by one, the knives had embedded themselves into the wall behind them, Ren Zexian had then melted them into slag."Fuck, how are we supposed to deal with this?" Harry had yelled out, while a blasts of electricity shot past him from Dexter''s hand, only to be thwarted by a tin bucket holding pieces of wood inside it.


    "Ah!" Patrick had had a flash of enlightenment and had concentrated hard, imagining that the area''s gravity around the metal poker and bucket increased.The two metal objects had fallen a few inches, enough to distract the zombie which was fighting to keep them aloft.Both Ren Zexian and Dexter had then sent bolts of air and electricity through the zombie''s brain, finally defeating it.


    "Fucking hell!" Dexter had exclaimed, but he relaxed his guard too soon.Ren Zexian had felt the pull inside his stomach just a half-breath before a screeching mess of skin and clumps of fur leapt towards them, claws extended.Paul had shot the feline with one of their precious bullets.It had not survive the impact.


    Considering these sorts of things, who knew how long the devil vines and monster Ivy''s could keep the wandering undead at bay.They needed something extra and even then, there was no guarantees.And what about the monsters who were not zombies and he wasn''t just thinking of mutant beasts.


    "It''s gonna take all hands on deck for us to build a wall," Winston rubbed his chin, scratching at the developing black beard upon it.Things like razors were precious, would only last so long and he didn''t trust his blade skills to remove the stubble from his flesh, so he figured, why bother to keep a clean shaven look.Beside a three year old, there were no females for him to impress either.


    "That''s why I''m trying to figure out where best to put it," Dexter admitted."And how big to make it."


    "Well, it needs to at least go around this property," Winston said in response."We can always expand it later, if we need to."


    "I''m thinking that we should look at surrounding this place together with these two properties first," Dexter told him, circling the two large mansion properties adjacent to theirs."Parts of this place in particular already have a viable wall in place, we''d just have to extend it.Of course, that house won''t be enough material, so I was thinking of using a few garages as well."


    Winston whistled.Considering the rough acreage of the two properties, it was still quite the project they would have ahead of them."You''re considering long term then?"


    Dexter sat back in the chair beneath him."I reckon we have too," the man replied."We lost our first base, but we can''t say that everyone there was lost.We likely weren''t the only squad scouring the town for food."


    "Don''t you think that they would have moved on to the army base, though?" Winston asked.


    "Maybe," Dexter replied, "but who knows.Some of those guys are as stubborn and as hot-headed as we are.Likely, they''d chose to hole up elsewhere and think on it for a while."


    "It''s been a few weeks though," Winston mentioned.Over a thousand people had been a part of their original base and Dexter was right that there were more squads than just their six membered one.However, they couldn''t say that they were on friendly terms with others, or even knew names for faces.But thinking that they''d all been lost to the internal outbreak and they''d never mix with them again, would definitely be too depressing.


    "That saying, even if we were to find survivors," Dexter said, as if reading Winston''s thoughts, "doesn''t mean we''ll get along with them.If we connected the three large properties, we could not only segregate into viable groups, but if another outbreak occurred, then we could shut off which ever place was infected so that the two others survived.Also, with the land on each of these, shelters, greenhouses, farms and the like can be developed.Our squad could rely on the kid''s garden, but that doesn''t mean that there will be enough food for everyone else."


    "A greenhouse?" At that moment, Nathan happened to enter the kitchen with a basket of fresh vegetables and berries that he wished to gift in thanks to the stewed meat he had received the night before. Following him were the little girl, Lucy and her mutant dog, Aslan.The child was wearing a baggy t-shirt that had stains of mud upon the hem, having ''helped'' Nathan in the garden again."Have you found a greenhouse?If I had one, I could grow vegetables in the winter or more fruits that require warmer temperatures to grow well."


    "Good plan, kid," Dexter grinned, approvingly."We''ll see what we can do."


    "I''m not a ''kid,''" Nathan mentioned."I celebrated my twentieth birthday exactly three months, one week and five days ago." Both men were slightly taken aback by his words, but soon recovered.Winston covered his mouth discreetly, trying not to chuckle.


    "Oh, well, happy birthday to you then," Dexter replied.


    "Thank you."

 Chapter 23 Chapter Twenty Three - Summer Morning Routine

    Not long after the sun crept above the horizon, Nathan opened his eyes and stared at his ceiling, the hazy dreams of sleep vanishing into the depths of his mind.He blinked twice, before rising from his bed, replacing the covers carefully and using a stroking hand to remove the creases of his presence.He stretched his spine backward until it arched before curving it forward so that he might touch his toes.This is what the old gardener used to do of a morning, while telling Nathan that it was to keep his body supple and flexible rather than let age stiffen his joints and make it harder to continue the job he loved.


    Once his stretches were complete, he made his way to the bathroom to relieve his bladder, using a bucket of waste water to wash down the results.He then placed a little water into a sink in order to wash his skin.He broke routine to glance at the shower; he did not necessarily miss showering, it was just that he preferred the efficiency of it.But that was something of the past and he was not a person to dwell.


    After selecting some clothes that were clean, he left his room to head for the kitchen to make breakfast.All in all, his morning began, continued and ended in much the same way after the apocalypse as it had before.Obviously there were differences; he could no longer use running water nor electricity, he was not able to keep in contact with his parents and the people that looked after the main house had been replaced by some loud men.But there were many things the same; he had his garden and the men, although they were noisy, still brought him things and he still supplied the main house with vegetables in return.


    Ren Zexian was also at the main house... but he might have liked it if Ren Zexian stayed in the cottage instead.


    He shook his head wondering over his own thoughts, before pausing at the second bedroom door.The second bedroom had been used to grow seedlings, but Nathan was not able to use it for that purpose anymore.Glancing into the room, it''s door wide open, he saw the sprawled out child upon the bed with her guardian curled up at the foot of it.Nathan tapped on the door frame three times and watched as the massive, black dog opened his eyes and looked at him as if to acknowledge he was there.Nathan nodded at Aslan, before moving on his way.


    In the kitchen, he had another slight change to his old routine, filling water bottles with his summoned water.Ren Zexian had said that a good way to improve the amounts of water he could produce was to either meditate or to use his ability until unable to do more, then after a few hours, do so again.At the moment, Nathan could fill five five hundred millilitre water bottles.Last week, he could fill just over four and a half.It made him a little tired to do this, but afterward, he would use some of the water to fill a kettle for a cup of tea and after drinking it, he would feel much better.


    As the water began to boil, Nathan placed a measured amount of water into a saucepan and added some powdered milk, before warming it.Once it was warm, he poured some of the milk into a cup and the rest would remain on the hob with porridge oats added or on other days he might pour the milk on wheat biscuits.The porridge and milk and tea were all brought to the table just as a yawning little girl came into the room, rubbing her eyes.On seeing Nathan, she toddled up to him and raised her arms upward.It had taken an abrupt Tyler to tell him that Lucy wished to be picked up when she did this the first few times.


    "Oh," had been his response, to which Tyler had clicked his tongue and walked away.


    Nathan lifted Lucy into her chair and the two humans ate breakfast, Aslan was given left overs from Lucy''s bowl, but he did not complain.There was dog food at the main house for later.


    After breakfast, Nathan took Lucy to her room and helped her get dressed.Again, the first time he had done this was with Tyler''s ''help.''Seeing as Lucy had remained in the same t-shirt and shorts for almost three days, the man had spoken some harsh words which had caused Lucy to hug Nathan''s leg as if trying to comfort him and Aslan had simply growled.


    "Just get her into some clean clothes!"He had scowled, before later becoming even more irritated as her t-shirt was on backwards.Well, although he was capable of dressing himself, it was different to dressing another in practice.


    The trio then made their way into the bathroom, Lucy climbing onto a stool and Aslan guarding the bathroom door.Nathan cleaned his teeth, while Lucy chewed on her toothbrush after trying to copy Nathan a bit.Nathan then took over to ensure her teeth were clean, before helping her to rinse with a bottle of water he left here for that purpose.


    Unobstructed by clouds, the sun beamed down upon the garden as Nathan stepped out into it, followed by Lucy who was sitting a top Aslan.Nathan looked at the last of his seedlings upon the patio table, thinking of which seeds ought to be planted next.In the meantime, the occupants at the main house began to stir.


    Unlike Nathan''s orderly morning, things were more chaotic and noisy there.Paul would throw a random selection of food in front of the men, this time was left over strawberries and gooseberries, plain nuts and seeds as well as a pot of instant porridge.There were the usual complaints about the fair and reminiscing about bread, bacon and eggs.Ren Zexian would take a small portion, then sit quietly out in the garden in the blissful rays as Nathan came into view with his entourage.


    The pair would nod at each other in greeting, perhaps exchange a couple of softly spoken words and then Nathan would begin to weed the plots and Ren Zexian would retire to the flat roof to cultivate while the other men fought for the limited water to wash with in the main bathroom.Then the men would go out, Ren Zexian might go with them, but today, he remained on the roof.


    Nathan heard the several regular bangs, to which he automatically covered his ears to block.Lucy slid off of Aslan''s back to stroke her chubby hand on Nathan''s back.The banging noises did not stop, except once when they were punctuated with a loud curse word, so though the noise hurt Nathan''s ear, he stood up and made his way to the front of the house, to where the banging noises softened with distance and to the flower gardens that had been neglected of late.


    Nathan stood beside a border of roses, lavender and geraniums, his finger stroking one oddly coloured lavender bush, which seemed to shiver in response.French lavender normally had verdant to silvery green leaves with dark purple flowers nestled on long stalks, but this bush''s leaves were almost white and the flowers were an electric blue.It was not the only plant to look a little different and Nathan became distracted for a while examining these new plants.


    Suddenly a shadow was cast over him and a wide brim hat shielded his head and eyes.He glanced up and saw the calming smile of the man with onyx eyes upon him and instantly, he glanced away, before feeling the need to peek once more."It is hot today," Ren Zexian told him."You should wear a hat."


    Aslan barked as if in agreement, while Lucy clutched the cap provided for her small head while giggling.Nathan felt his face was a little warm, but it wasn''t necessarily caused by the beaming sun.

 Chapter 24 Chapter Twenty Four - A Flock Of Seagulls

    Although they had been able to secure a fair few supplies, with no inventive chefs, their cans of ready made meals, especially those containing some meat, were dwindling fast.


    They had secured the bulk of the village, all of the smaller properties had been cleared of Zombie occupants and of the larger estates, that they planned to envelope into a mini-base away from more populated areas, one of them turned out to be completely empty.It had been going through an internal reconstruction, for which brand new bathrooms and a bespoke kitchen had been installed, however all of the floors were either concrete or floorboards and the walls had only gone so far to have cracks filled and were without paint nor wallpaper.


    But while this meant that there had been no occupants in the property to mutate into monsters, there had also been no food nor supplies beyond a bottle of cleaning fluid and toilet paper.However even then there had been a trove of treasure to be uncovered.


    "Solar panels?"Patrick''s eyes twinkled as he heard that these had been found in the property''s ridiculously large garage.Clearly the owner had been into cars or had other plans for such a massive space.


    "Yeah, but don''t get your hopes up," Dexter replied as he sauntered on back to the truck parked on the drive of the property."It''s not like anyone amongst us can install them."


    Ren Zexian remained silent.He did not understand why these men were so excited about the strange flat sheets with the linear designs upon the dark, reflective surface.However, there were many things that he failed to comprehend in this world, such as the ''television set,'' which apparently should show images of plays and acts of theatre troupes as well as reports of nonsensical things like the weather.Why would such a thing be required when the sky revealed much by looking at it and the senses could test the wind to provide word of wet weather or storms?But all of that was a mute point, the ''television set'' did not work for it needed ''electricity'', which apparently was like tamed lightning.


    As he was thinking over these things, he did not notice the first tugs upon his poison core first, but his refined sense of danger had him stand up in the moving truck and narrow his eyes, coming to settle on a strange, distant fog.


    "What''s wrong?" Dexter asked, glancing around in case of a zombie attack.Although they had cleared the village of human undead, as well as many animals, it did not stop the odd zombie from wandering in their direction on a whim.That and the herd were still loose in the grassy fields surrounding them.


    Paul dug around in the front compartment of the truck and opened the window to stick half his body through the opening as he brought a pair of binoculars to his eyes.He adjusted them until the fog cleared into more component parts.Migrational bird?Wait, actually they looked a bit like seagulls.He let loose a sigh of relief too soon as their gliding patterns seemed a little rough and one bird seemed to fly at an odd angle...


    "Those birds are of the risen dead," Ren Zexian confirmed.


    "Quick, back to the house!" Dexter yelled at Tyler, who wrestled with the clutch and gear stick, cursing the truck as he accelerated.


    "Don''t mess up my truck!" Winston warned him, but no one paid attention as they kept one eye on the road and one of the approaching flock.Fortunately, the drive was not long and the men jumped out of the truck and over the wall of the garden without trouble.However their scent clearly lingered on the wind and the fog of birds began to sharply descend, eager to rip into fresh meat.Tyler grabbed little Lucy from where she was digging holes in a vegetable patch, while Aslan growled and barked, before realising the danger and dissolving into smoke.


    Ren Zexian threw a ball of fire at the gulls, as he wrapped an arm around the Nathan and guided him into the house.The one it hit burst into flames, it''s dry skin catching fire immediately and it screamed in frustration as it''s wings became useless.It vanished beyond the garden''s boundaries.They locked the windows and doors, but sensed wisely that this would not deter the gulls, that and there were many windows open in the house.The powerless men grabbed a weapon and paired up with those with abilities as they rushed to ensure the house was secure, while Nathan and Lucy were sent to hide in the basement.


    Dexter and Ren Zexian then made their way to the flat roof via a bedroom window, the larger man flinching as a zombie flew into a window.Fortunately, there was no damage to the glass this time.Small shots of lightning and blasts of fire burst from their finger tips the moment they left the security of the property, aiming at the undead Seagulls.But these birds were more agile than they looked, it was not easy to aim true each and every time.


    Suddenly two birds fell vertically as if unable to hold themselves aloft and Dexter glanced back to notice a sweating Patrick give him the thumbs up.At the same time, Ivy vines whipped out from off of the trellis upon the outside wall of the house and caught the falling birds before wringing their necks until their heads fell clean off.Dexter sighed with relief, thanking which ever deity happened to be listening, that the plants happened to be on their side.


    Aslan too was in the thick of battle, dissolving into fog before solidifying midair to bite down into a bird, before retreating as smoke to the ground and finishing off the zombie birds.


    The number of birds dwindled, but as they did not fear for their lives nor the lives of the rest of the flock, they did not stop throwing themselves forward in attack.A couple of the Sea gulls even spat minute flames from their beaks, which despite their insignificant size could still catch dry tinder alight.The mutant plants nearby fell back, shying away from the deadly flames, but the men had little time to see to them as they continued to fight.Gun shots were heard as one gull managed to find a forgotten open window and shrieked in glee as it flew towards its prey.After bullets piercing it''s wings and tore the foot from it''s boney leg, It was bound by a large bubble of water, before Patrick''s static body lightly touched the water and rippled through it, temporarily paralysing the undead thing.It was finished off with a knife slicing off its head.


    Finally, the last bird was killed, electricity blasting through it''s brain until bursting, Dexter collapsed in exhaustion and cursing all the while.Seeing that their leader was unfit for purpose after the battle, the others quickly checked to make sure none of the flock had escaped their sight, before dealing with the small fire outside in the garden and letting Lucy and Nathan out from the basement.Aslan appeared from thin air to comfort the crying child, while Nathan ran out to check upon his precious garden.


    "Shit, I need a drink," Dexter said as he stumbled on fawn like legs back through the large window into the house.Ren Zexian helped to steady him, pressing his fingers to a pulse point as he did so.The man had almost drained his innersea of spiritual energy, but fortunately it was not to a dangerous point.He would be fine after some rest.


    "Tyler!Pour me a glass of water?" He asked as he witnessed Tyler trying to breech Aslan''s protective range in order to quieten the child with promises of sweets.


    "I can''t," Tyler replied."I had to use my abilities to captured a gull that broke in and put out fires in the garden."


    "Dammit!" Dexter complained, his voice cracking due to his dry throat.Nathan, who happened to be sweeping gull corpses and feathers along the patio away from his beloved plants, paused on hearing this.He came into the house, tapped on a glass which instantly filled with the precious, clear liquid."Thanks kid!" Dexter yelled out.Nathan winced visibly, but turned just to nod in acknowledgement before continuing to clear the garden.


    The man downed the glass of water, which slid down his throat and tasted better than spring mineral water.With an audible sigh, he placed the glass down, feeling refreshed.Noticing the fatigue had lifted a bit, he decided to help his men on clear up duties, but he was only able to take a single step before he felt a strange sort of burning in his gut, like he''d drunk a mix of vodka and bubbly soda.


    Ren Zexian noticed the change immediately."Quickly," he said and ushered the man into the room known as an ''entertainment room'', which no one here used due to that lack of ''electricity'' and instructed him to sit."You must meditate as I instructed.Do not miss a step."


    "But..." Dexter protested.Surely there was no point in doing that cultivation crap now while everyone was so busy?


    "Do it," Ren Zexian demanded in cool tones that called for no arguments.Dexter huffed and proceeded to meditate.

 Chapter 25 Chapter Twenty Five - Breaking the Boundaries of Expectation

    After complaining a bit more, but simply receiving the usual bland look of a man who would not be moved nor alter his mind on such, Dexter flopped down onto the plush shag rug and crossed his legs.He always felt like such a pillock doing this sort of thing, so if he wasn''t meditating with the thick-faced Patrick nor the serene Ren Zexian, he''d only do this hidden in his own bedroom at night.After all, he''s not so stupid as ignoring completely a good thing that he had already experienced some of the benefits.


    His ability''s range being just that bit longer and that more potent was just the most obvious one.He''d felt a little more alert each day and his body moved a bit more the way he wanted it to, like when he was a teenager rather than almost thirty five.He''d thought that it was due to the fact that his diet lacked regular alcohol (their beer supply was considered a precious resource, not to be drank at leisure) and the fact he no longer smoked, ditching the little sticks of addiction as it was better to find food than drag his team down for a fix.But since meditating the way Ren Zexian instructed, the old ache in his leg thanks to a broken bone from his early twenties thanks to a traffic accident, no longer bothered him all that much, so he was more disposed to consider that this cultivating thing was actually what had improved his health.


    Closing his eyes, he mumbled beneath his breath the odd terms and imagined that his body contained energy that could be physically manipulated.He instructed it to head in a certain pattern about his body and as always, he felt a warmth spreading outward from his core.His mind conjured up an image of a space filled with tiny stars, a bit like a galaxy, but those tiny stars seemed to spark and flash as if they were made of plasma, minute lightning bolts forming a sphere of power.The tiny stars seemed energised, flashing brightly, blindingly so and they were coiling in random fashion about a centre point in this space.Some shot forward drawn towards another spot before reappearing a while later in a different location and rejoining the wildly spinning mass.


    Dexter came to realise that the sparks vanished as he began the cycle of meditation and reappeared as he completed it.Also the sparks that returned seemed tamer, calmer, but would reenergise when rejoining the collective, burning even hotter and worse.With an inward click of his tongue, he restarted the technique, focusing on each and every word and each and every movement and the Galaxy of plasma bolts span faster, but in a less wild fashion, each rotation becoming more stable, even though they were rushing past at tremendous speeds.And then suddenly, spirally stars converged at the centre point, turning into a blinding sphere of light before it exploded, causing him to gasp as the space emptied completely and he was thrown from his meditative state.


    "What the fuck happened?!" He cursed in complaint as he opened his eyes, his voice sounded rough, dry.Ren Zexian was sitting in lotus position to one side of him, eyes closed, but withdrew from his own cultivation upon hearing the man''s raspy curse.


    "May I?" He asked politely, taking the wrist that was immediately offered and glancing over Dexter''s innersea.The image of a galaxy, spinning calmly and slowly flashed before Dexter''s eyes, superimposing itself over the slight smile that appeared upon the other man''s face."Congratulations," Ren Zexian said, before grabbing a tissue in order to wipe his fingers clean.


    "Hah?"


    "You have stepped into the realm of a secondary cultivator," Ren Zexian advised him."You have done well.It can take the average cultivator several years to cultivate to this grade in the middle realms and yet you have done so in such a short period of time.It speaks of talent."


    "Yeah?" Dexter questioned.No one would feel bad when receiving compliments, however in the next moment, the all too honest other added words that deflated his ego.


    "Of course, the circumstances of environment likely have something to do with it."


    Ren Zexian''s old realm had not been a land of kindness, there were battles between immortals all of the time and those testing their strength as they fought to grow stronger on the path of cultivation would leave corpses in their wake or perhaps become one themselves ending their journey.But they were petty battles for the most part, excuses to test themselves or step on others, not a war of survival with bitter battles each day where one scratch could mean their end.It was a test of mental strength, facing each day knowing it might be their last, smiling despite the horror and sadness.There was less care about being strong for the sake of it and more care for being strong so they could live and protect others; at least amongst those he had met.For others... well he had not lived ten thousand years by being naive.


    Dexter clicked his tongue then grimaced."There''s just one other thing."


    "What is it?"


    "What the fuck is all this black stuff all over me?"Coating his body, or more specifically his skin, was a greasy layer of dark liquid which reeked.He shuddered realising that not an inch of him was clean, he could even feel it oozing between his toes.


    "Hmm," Ren Zexian hummed as he wiped his fingers with the tissue.Ah this thin disposal product from this world was so convenient.Silk handkerchiefs could be pricey and needed care when washing."Oh, that would be the first layer of impurities, expelled from your body as unnecessary.But don''t worry.Over the past couple of days I have had young Nathan and Tyler spare water for a bath for you." A few wrinkles marred his serene face as his nose twitched in displeasure."I believe that you are going to need it."

 Chapter 26 Chapter Twenty Six - While he was levelling...

    The seagull corpses were burned in a small heap upon the road, away from the property that had become their refuge, away from Nathan''s precious plants.Two men, Harry and Winston kept a watchful eye at a slight distance over the crackling flames, the stench of the smoke as unpleasant as watching the dry flesh and bones burn to a cinder.It was an unpleasant job, but better than allowing those corpses to rot into the soil and possibly contaminate it further.Instead, they risked the sky.


    Once there was nothing but ash smouldering on the tarmac, the two men reentered the garden, climbing over the fence as usual, though once the thick wall that they had begun to build, attached to the neighbouring property had wrapped about the hedge and metal fence of their newly forming base, they would see about making an easier entrance for themselves.


    "Ugh, it''s so hot!" Winston complained and Harry had to nod in agreement.The temperature of the past few days had risen to what could easily be coined a heatwave; weather of sun and dry heat with temperatures way above what was average for this time of year.It made the distant air look hazy, burned the pale skin of those who could not tan.Fortunately, amongst the lotions and potions found in bathroom cabinets had been half bottles of sunscreen, one of which Tyler had already claimed for himself.


    Winston was not the only person to worry about the heat, for Nathan was overly concerned about the drying plant beds where his vegetables and other plants grew.Although he needed the vegetables and fruits more than the ornamental flowers, it did not mean he cared for them any less.He had filled a wheelbarrow of wood chips and composted grass, to cover the soil and help keep the moisture from evaporating before the evening water could reach the roots.


    "Where''s everyone else?" Harry wondered aloud.Granted, it was expected that Tyler had vanished into the small library, away from the afternoon sun and Patrick might be found meditating with Ren Zexian as the two men tended too whenever there was a spare moment, but even the dog Aslan and the child Lucy were no where to be seen.That pair seldom left Nathan''s shadow, even moving into the small cottage rather than live in a larger bedroom within the main property.


    Winston shrugged, but both were curious and entered the main house in search.There they found a crowd surrounding the closed door of the abandoned ''entertainment'' room.Patrick''s ear was pressed against the door, while Tyler leaned against the wall close by with his arms crossed about his chest.Lucy was perched upon Aslan''s back and as the large dog whimpered much like a puppy, she was rubbing the tiny hairs upon her small arms as if cold.


    "What''s going on?" Winston asked.


    "Sshh!" Patrick said, pressing his ear more firmly against the wood.


    Paul shrugged and informed them; "I don''t get it any more than you do, but after the battle, Ren ushered Dexter into that room all of a sudden and sealed them both in.Can''t unlock the door."


    "Was there even a lock on that door?" Harry frowned, to which no one could answer.In fact it remained quiet for quite a while and Paul and Harry drifted back to the kitchen as stomach''s began to rumble for dinner.


    "Do you think we should fix up something for Dex as well?" Paul wondered aloud as Harry peeled some fresh but stubby carrots, placing them along side a couple of decent sized potatoes and some greens.


    The vegetables were being used to bulk up the two heated tins of beef stew that Y was stirring within a pot.Though there was only the nine of them and one dog, their tinned meat was only going to last so long.As well as that, the packets of pasta and rice were slowly dwindling, perhaps would only last two or three months at best.The amount of flour was okay, none of them could cook anything that used it, but the sugar was melting into morning cups of coffee and tea, none of which would last much longer.Rationing was already beginning to stretch those times as best they could.


    "No idea," Harry replied, though it soon became apparent that Dexter would not be joining them for dinner.Ren Zexian appeared in the kitchen to obtain a plate of the cooked veg and meagre portion of beef stew, requesting that Tyler work with Nathan to fill a bath of water with whatever reserves the two men could spare.His reasoning was that Dexter was going to need it if he successfully completed the leap in cultivation.


    Patrick giddily considered what he knew.As much as he once accused Ren of being a person that never outgrew their love for dressing in costumes and pretending to be a samurai, he was much the same, wondering what he would do if he ever obtained superpowers.Would he become a hero of the light like Superman or one who risked their life in the dark like Batman or the Shadow...?Having obtained a childhood dream and gaining abilities that were beyond the mundane, he absorbed all of Ren Zexian''s teachings like a sponge.


    From what he gathered, just like in a video game, they and their abilities could ''level up'', although it was not through gathering experience points by doing quests and killing monsters.Otherwise, surely they would have all taken their weapons and killed zombies until they became unbeatable players!No, he and his fellow ability users could become stronger by using their abilities everyday, extensively or via meditation.The latter worked better than the former, so long as the cultivation technique was right for that person, though it did not mean they would not gain some strength if it was wrong.


    Tyler had refused to meditate, not believing in Ren Zexian''s wisdom and Nathan couldn''t quite understand it.However, both were able to produce water and needed to exercise that ability each and every day until they were drained, so they were still growing in strength despite the lack of cultivation.He and Dexter had abilities that were best used in combat, although his could also be used in support of the others, so they would not need to use their powers until it was necessary, so cultivation for them was a must.As for Ren, well Patrick believed for that man, it was a habit.In his view, Ren was very strong already!Like boss level!


    And now Dexter was about to leave him behind and become level two!Although Patrick was a little sour over that (he''d used his abilities a bit in the last battle as well!), he was also excited to learn how much stronger Dexter would be when he broke through to the next stage.


    Patrick absently rubbed his arms that were covered in goose pimples despite the lingering heat of the day.As soon as their meal was over, he ran to his room to cultivate, hoping that it would be his turn to level up soon.

 Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty Seven - Two Disturbances

    Two things happened simultaneously, but that did not mean that one was influenced by the other, although there were keen effects felt by both.  In the distant east, distant in terms of a pedestrian walking rather than a vehicle moving, a rumbling disturbance could be heard.  And above a large property of a fair sized estate, another disturbance could be felt.


    The first was noticed by Nathan, who was as usual, pottering about in his garden, but he was not the only one to hear it.  The youth swiftly placed his trough and fork, his cutters and hand rake into a bucket of pulled weeds that he had been removing from the rose beds.  He hesitated for a moment, staring at the main property and more specifically the room in which Ren Zexian had entered two days ago and had barely left since and thought for a long moment.  But then he shivered despite the heavy heat as the pressure of the air around him seemed to change and a strong pulling sensation seemed to stir the winds towards the main property.  Nathan did not wait around to see what was causing the second disturbance, fleeing for his home as he rubbed the goose pimples that stood up over his entire body.


    Aslan sat up from where he lay, watching his human ward as she stole strawberries from the strawberry bushes, after figuring out the trick of collecting the red ones by watching Nathan.  The animal naturally felt both disturbances both distant and near, but it was the latter that made him howl, even as it made Lucy scamper towards him and hug his thick, furred neck.


    Patrick dropped the bricks he was causing to float from the rubble pile towards Winston as he used them and a bucket of  mortar to firmly bring them together into a sturdy and fairly thick wall.  The bricks were not all whole, but the builder could not be fussy and was slowly layering the bricks both length and width ways like a jenga puzzle that could not so easily fall.  "Careful," he chided the smaller man, but Patrick was not listening and rushed off toward the main property as if aware that something was about to happen.  Harry, who had been using his muscles where Patrick was using his mind, stared after him as did Winston.  The two men glanced at each other before continuing their work, while Paul kept an eye out for wandering zombies.


    Due to their location and the fact there were so few of them, they seldom attracted humanoid corpses, but that did not mean that the odd farm or wild animal zombie wouldn''t drift their way in search of live meat.  Already, Paul had bludgeoned a stray roe deer fawn this morning, with Patrick''s help, the young creature must have zombified not long after it was born from its size.  It was Paul that noticed the distant disturbance, but none of these men noticed anything untoward about the main house.


    "Sound''s like a storm," he mentioned as he glanced in the direction where a few black clouds could now be seen gathering in the sky.


    Winston sighed, but was glad he wouldn''t have to waste too much mortar as he dusted down his combat trousers.  They really needed a wash, but water was scarce, washing clothes was done only once every two weeks and usually in bath water so even then the water couldn''t exactly be considered clean.  "Let''s pack it up guys," he said.  "In case that storm heads this way."


    Patrick didn''t stop running until he entered the house, heading for the door where Dexter still lingered inside.  He shivered as the air changed further, even feeling a little sharp against his skin.  Tyler, who despite being sceptical, was not stupid to ignore his gut instincts and grabbed Patrick by the arm and dragged him to the other side of the property.


    "What are you doing?" Patrick whined.  "I want to see what happens!"


    "Are you an idiot?" Tyler questioned him.  "Do you have no sense of preservation?"


    "I don''t know what you are talking about," Patrick grumbled, shaking off Tyler''s arm as he made to run back to where he knew the main event was about to occur.  As it happened, the feeling that the air was about to implode stopped him in his tracks and he backed further away and both men felt as if they should duck a moment later, though felt stupid a moment later as the sensation of impending doom disappeared without a trace.


    The two men let embarrassed chuckles escape them before Tyler coughed and suggested that they both pretend that nothing happened.  Patrick agreed and both men drifted back towards the entertainment room door, which finally opened revealing a calm and content Ren Zexian and a grimacing Dexter, who winced with each movement, the greasy, gritty black substance coating his body making his skin crawl with every motion.


    Patrick and Tyler stepped back, holding their noses.  "No wonder you asked the boy and I to fill a bath tub," Tyler said and quickly backed away.


    "Um... did he fail to level up or something?" Patrick asked with a whisper to Ren Zexian, thinking that the mess that Dexter was in was perhaps a penalty for failing to break through.


    "No, he did well," Ren Zexian praised, causing Patrick to glance over the man once more and wonder if it was worth cultivating to the secondary stage after all...


    *****


    The rumbling thunder soon echoed throughout the sky, the clouds had thickened to the point that no sunlight could hope to peak through, giving the feeling that night had come early.  As yet there was no water being shed from the steely grey veil, which flashed for a heartbeat, turning white as the streaks ran through the clouds.  A breath or two later and the loud thunder once more echoed through the air.


    Nathan clutched at his ears, whimpering from where he huddled.  Aslan was pacing around him, not quite protectively, but not due to restlessness either.  Lucy tugged Nathan''s sleeve, trying to draw him from his panicked state.  The dog approached them and Nathan glanced up to see his shadow cast over him.  The dog quietly huffed, his breath disturbing Nathan''s hair and the youth absently set it back in place.


    Nathan has suffered through thunderstorms before, but only in the past couple of years did he have to suffer most of them alone.  Before, he had had the nanny to gently coax him with words of reassurance or the gardener, who would simply be close by, puffing on his tobacco pipe, the acrid scent somewhat overwhelming, but as it distracted him from the storm, Nathan had tended to feel more at peace.  And on a few occasions, his mother and father would be there and mother would count from the moment the light arced across the sky to the moment the thunder made its presence known and tell him that that was how far away the storm was.  The longer the count, the further away.  That sort of thing gave Nathan back a tiny amount of control, even though it could not stop or make the storm go away and it could not stop the noise from roaring within his ears.


    But they were not around any more.  Nathan did not know where they were nor if they were alive and it didn''t really matter either way.  For as far as he was concerned, they were not here, so all else was irrelevant.  However, there was once person who gave him the same feeling of security and comfort as they.  He wondered if Ren Zexian might help him through the storm.  He curled deeper into his knees for a moment longer as the lightning brought forth its flash once more and he counted to five before the thunder broke shattered the silence in the air.  And then, with sudden resolve, he leapt up and grabbed the girl child still clinging to him.  Then the three fled to the main house, screaming as another arc of lightning and even closer thunder seemed to chase them.

 Chapter 28 Chapter Twenty Eight - The Heart of the Storm

    Lightning arced through the steel covered sky, providing the only light now that the sun could no longer penetrate through the thick storm clouds.  Yet this illumination lasted less than a heartbeat and was soundly followed by deep rumbling thunder.  As there was no electricity, the men in the main house could only rely on a few candles and a battery powered torch to provide some meagre light.  Had the sun descended and set already, they would have simply retired to their beds.


    The lightning and resultant thunder broke through the dark, silent sky once more, causing all but one of the men lazily sitting about the living room, to frown.  Seeing as the storm was fast gathering pace while approaching them, the wall building had become completely abandoned, while Dexter could only speed up his bath, rather than soak in the water heated by Ren Zexian for his use (after wiping away most of the impurities with a damp cloth.Once gathered and lounging upon the plush sofas and thick rugs, Paul dug out a few bags of snacks seeing as it wasn''t safe to attempt to cook without light on the gas camp stove.  In addition, there was a bowl of sugar snap peas compliments of Nathan''s most recent harvest.


    "It''s a bit eerie," Patrick said, nervously.  "Like the sun was extinguished."


    "I was thinking that this would make a great opening scene of a horror movie," Harry mentioned aloud as he grabbed a few peas.  "You know, a storm, much like this one with forked lightning breaking across the sky.  And there''s a mansion, about this size, but older and a bit run down.  Maybe there''s a group of men..."


    "Make it women," Tyler announced, crunching on a couple of pretzels.


    "Whatever," Harry dismissed this suggestion as if it wasn''t that important.  "So they''re taking shelter from the storm because their car broke down.  They''d been travelling for a while and had no idea that the world had ended while they were on the road.  They gathered in a reception room, much like this one, but there are dust sheets covering the furnishings and cobwebs filling up almost every corner.  But they''re not bothered about it, just glad to be wrapped up in a few old blankets and out of the rain.


    "When all of a sudden, they hear a creaking noise, ending their laughter.  They whisper to each other; wasn''t this place abandoned?  There were no lights in any of the windows, but could someone have actually been at home here?  One shouts out in greeting, but there''s not response, so they reckon that it was a trick of the wind."


    The cadence of his voice was almost mesmerising and once he paused to sip from a tumbler of water, the hesitation caused Patrick to breath of a question; "And then what?"


    "And then they hear a small scratching upon the door outside and an almost inaudible groan.  They all glance out of the glass door, but it''s too dark to see anything.  So one of them grabs the battery torch that had been placed at the centre of them, with a shaky hand and aims it towards the window.  Only to reveal the rotting flesh of a rabid, hungry zombie."


    Tyler snorted loudly.  "We''re living in an actual zombie apocalypse, it puts a dampener on horror stories don''t you think?"


    Just as these words slipped from his lips, a shriek outside caught their attention and had them all staring at the patio doors, eyes wide and hearts racing.  Well, almost all of them.  Ren Zexian rose to his feet without change of expression and made his way towards the doors.


    "What are you doing?" Whispered Patrick, who''d been listening to Harry''s tale with rapt attention, so much so that Dexter had stolen several tortilla chips from his bowl without him noticing, too lazy to get up to refill his own.


    Paul gulped to moisten his suddenly dry throat and lifted the torch, aiming it at the patio doors, where two white figures stood and a hound darker than the pit of Tartarus breathed upon the glass.  The taller figure reaching for the handle of the door.


    "Nooooooo!" Patrick yelled out and hide behind Dexter as the larger man formed a tight ball of lightening upon his palm.


    Harry started laughing loudly, huge belly chuckles that caused him to double over in hysterics.  The others glared at him horrified as Ren Zexian opened the door and let the two figures and dog enter the room.  Signs of relief escaped the men, followed by coughs of embarrassment, blaming their reactions on the atmosphere.  That was right, it was the fault of the eerie atmosphere that was all.


    Ren Zexian ignored the laughter and silliness happening behind him, his eyes firmly upon the boy as he entered, the latter wide eyed and filled with anxiety.He''d kept a small distance between himself and the boy, for there was something about the youth that stirred feelings he had considered long since dormant within him.For instance, when those large beautiful eyes stared openly at him, until he met them with his own which caused them to flicker away or fall downcast.Or when Nathan spoke softly, lovingly towards the plants in his garden.Or more recently when he witnessed the fragile and tentative relationship blossoming between Lucy and Nathan.


    If only Nathan would continue to look at him.If only Nathan would speak to him in that way.If only he was the one developing a relationship with the boy.


    He was ten thousand years old, he did not believe in love at first sight, but that did not mean that he was unaware that there were people out there who could stir his interest within a moments meeting.Who could stand close by and have his body or soul react to them.Yet he would never label Nathan this simply.It was far more complex an array of emotions that stirred within him, no longer just a protective instinct and increasing each and every time his five senses happened to note the boy was close by.Even now, his arms ached to rise from where they hung casually at his side, to wrap around the boy and gather him close to his chest, to feel him warmth, to offer him comfort for his pains.


    Before he could react on impulse, the lightning once more lit the sky, this time tearing through the cloud cover to split the air and crash somewhere just beyond the village boundaries.Nathan sank to his knees and clutched his ears, the thunder loud, deafening even those without his sensitive hearing.


    "Christ!" Dexter cried out and hurried to close the patio doors even as Lucy buried herself against the dog, whimpering and Ren Zexian hovered, his composure a tiny bit out of sorts, over Nathan.Just as the doors closed did the heavens open with a heavy downpour and Ren Zexian felt the poison core within him stir.


    "The taint is in the water," he whispered, partially to himself, but Dexter heard and understood his meaning well enough.


    "Yeah," the man sighed, heavily."We figured as much.Its why we put up with Tyler and all of his nonsense.There was only so much bottled water floating about."


    "Arsehole," Tyler crossed his arms about his chest, but his anger melted as Lucy crept closer to him.He offered to hug her, comfort her through the storm, but soon discovered, as her belly rumbled, that actually she just wanted his pretzels.He shared with her without complaint.


    Ren Zexian was lost in his own thoughts, wondering over the corrupted Yin he could feel within the rainfall.It was not heavy, but accumulated within a body, surely it would build up to cause sickness.One would either rise stronger or fall into the state of the walking dead from drinking the water the sky produced.The thunder punctuated his gloomy conclusion, but hands suddenly grasped his loose robes and quickened his heart, causing the gloom to vanish as smoke.


    Glancing down, he saw two beautiful eyes staring at him, filled with a hope of fulfilment.But what it was that Nathan wanted of him, the boy would never freely tell.So he dropped to his knees before the boy, still keeping his hands from reaching out lest he frighten Nathan away."What is it?" He asked in a calmer voice than he felt, aware of the heat of the boy''s body, finding a little contentment in their closeness to the point that his core seemed to settle.  Or perhaps, he just forgot about the discomfort, his attention completely captured by Nathan.


    "I don''t like the thunder," Nathan whispered in response.


    "I see," Ren Zexian replied."I can''t stop the storm, however."


    "That would be impossible," Nathan said in agreement.


    Ren Zexian glanced over the boy clinging to him with clasped fists, as well as quickly noticing that Paul had begun moving candles out of reach of tiny fingers, while Patrick coaxed her into trying the uncooked peas.The child no longer seemed to notice the storm, finding comfort in filling her small belly and Aslan at her back.He returned his attention to Nathan who winced visibly when the thunder crashed loudly overhead."Do you wish for me to stay with you and help you through the storm?"


    "Yes," Nathan replied and his pink lips curved into a small, but satisfied smile, which stole Ren Zexian''s breath away.He dare not start breathing as Nathan inched closer to him, seeming to find as much comfort in their nearness as did the older man.


    "It''s uncomfortable here," Ren Zexian told him, worrying that the boy might be cold beside the glass door.  A touch of coarseness marred his usually clear tone of voice."Let''s sit over there, we''ll be away from the window as well."


    "Alright," Nathan agreed, remaining close until Ren Zexian settled upon the floor in lotus position.Dexter nudged Harry as the boy curled close to the older man, the pair producing a picture of harmony despite the continued chaos of the storm outside.

 Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty Nine - The Things We Can Do Right Now

    The storm ended at some point in the night, ending as suddenly as it came.The still of the air seemed to suggest that it had never occurred at all.However, there was obvious evidence that it had.Nathan''s beloved garden had born the brunt of it, though it was in patches, mostly where tender sprouts had been freshly planted and had no protection from the large trees or wide bushes.And they were not all that had been affected.Though there were not a great deal of them, for the ripe ones had already been picked and eaten, yesterday''s green strawberries had ''ripened'' to an odious dark grey and when Nathan went to poke these ugly fruits, vines from the main house'' wall whipped out and grasped his wrist, preventing him from doing so.More vines and ivy and weeds with twisting long stems appeared to steal away the fruits and remove them to where only they knew well.


    Ren Zexian watched this occur, standing close to Nathan, wary that the yin tainted rain would indeed mutate the plants and affect Nathan''s connection to them.However, apart from a plot of small plants that had been battered by the downpour until flattened upon the earth and the poisoned strawberries, the vegetable garden had weathered not so badly.But that was just a patch of the large garden and not the only land to have been doused in the waters.


    Dexter sighed as he saw the damage.It had been some small lettuces that had died in the rain and a couple of ground covering plants he couldn''t identify as well.The loss of the fruit was unfortunate while not drastic as the gooseberries didn''t seem to have mutated, but other fruiting plants and trees might still show similar affects when their fruit began to mature.It made him more determined to complete the large green house he''d begun at the side of the main house using the delivered windows of the half-built property, whose bricks were already forming the few metre stretch of wall outside.


    "Hey, Tyler," he yelled out, inside the main property.The man was currently entertaining Lucy or attempting to, with the small selection of children''s books he''d found in the library.They hadn''t wanted to let her out into the garden today for good reason, but her guard dog would likely keep her safe as he had for the months following the beginning of the apocalypse.He and the little girl were the only humans in the house, the rest of the men had resumed work on the wall.


    "What is it?" Tyler responded, half distracted.Lucy took this opportunity to run deeper into the house, laughing as she took off on stubby legs.Aslan naturally ran after her.Tyler glared at Dexter, he''d been making good progress getting the little girl to open up to him.


    "Come help me with something," Dexter said, rather than asked.


    "Right now?" Tyler asked, sullenly.


    "Yeah, come on," Dexter insisted."I need a second pair of hands.I''m building the kid a greenhouse.I reckon we''ll all need it, especially in the winter."


    "Alright," Tyler agreed.He didn''t like to get his hands dirty, but he couldn''t deny that a greenhouse would be useful."You know, there is also a sunroom and conservatory in the property.If we had some shelving units, garden pots and stuff, we could likely grow things in there as well."


    "There''s a conservatory?" Dexter frowned.How had he not noticed that?


    "It''s attached to the far east of the building, around the side.You wouldn''t really see it from the back garden nor from the front of the property, it''s really tucked away."They had occupied the west side of the property.It was closer to the cottage and the kitchen was located in this part as well.They didn''t need to take up the whole building, after all, just a few rooms, easier to keep clean.And besides, there was rarely a day when they had not been scouring the village for supplies, building things, cultivating or keeping the amount of wandering zombie animals to a minimum.The herd was an exception, for the cows usually kept in their high numbers and they knew not even their combined strength could compare.


    "And the sunroom?"


    "You meditate on it''s roof every few days, seriously, you didn''t know?"


    "Thought it was just another cosy reception room," Dexter admitted.  "Tomorrow we should see what we can scavenge from the village and fix up those rooms ready for planting.  Nathan shouldn''t be the only one responsible for our food!"


    "It''d be useful if we could grow things like soybeans or mushrooms," Tyler said, not disagreeing with Dexter''s thoughts.  "Doesn''t tofu come from soybeans? We could do with a meat substitute in our diet.  The tins aren''t gonna last."


    "I wouldn''t know an edible mushroom from an inedible one," Dexter responded, slightly dismissively.  "Would you?" Tyler shook his head, before muttering;


    "I wish I had access to the internet or a library."


    "Well, that ain''t gonna happen," Dexter chuckled.  The library in town happened to be in the heart of it, somewhere likely teeming with zombies more that anywhere else.  They''d stuck to the outskirts of town.  "You know, wasn''t there a garden centre on the edge of town?"


    Tyler smiled, brightly, his intelligent eyes twinkling.  "Yes and they had a gift shop as well.  And a pet shop... well, it''s been too long for the animals, poor things, otherwise we could have grabbed some rabbits to breed.  We didn''t think about that in the refuge did we."  He sighed, while Dexter shook his head.


    "We didn''t think of a lot of things other than to grab food and stay alive," Dexter admitted.  It was only a small group, a few elderly, children and terrified adults, that had not left to risk their lives scavenging for food and supplies that had started the gardens at the old base, wanting something to do other than fall into despair.  "We can only do now what we can.  And right now, we can build ourselves a greenhouse."


    Tyler agreed and the pair passed the cottage garden towards where Dexter had begun creating a wooden frame.  As they did so, all of the fine hair upon Tyler''s arms stood on end.  Dexter frowned and subconsciously rubbed down the hair upon his thick arms.  "Do you feel that as well?" Tyler asked.  It was strange.  It felt a little like when Dexter had been locked in that room, doing whatever meditation Ren Zexian had insisted he do that painted him black by the time he was finished.  Like the air was alive and softly spiralling around that room.  This time, the air felt dangerous, filled with static that could spark upon their skins should they touch the wrong thing.


    "Go get Ren," Dexter instructed and Tyler hesitated for only a brief moment before agreeing and running off to find the man.  In the meantime, Dexter looked through the metal gate that had been left wide open by Nathan as he had rushed through the storm.


    He had fallen asleep, last night, while pressed against Ren Zexian''s side, until the older man had gently placed him onto the sofa for the night.  Dexter didn''t believe that Ren had left him alone in the living room at all while he slept.  Ren''s black eyes were always filled with a amicable kindness whenever he spoke to anyone, but when he spoke to the boy, they seemed softer, kinder somehow.  Nathan as well, he never approached anyone, just left the fruits and vegetables he''d harvest in the kitchen and spoke only when he was spoken too, never initiating contact.  Except with Ren.  Dexter wasn''t sure how Ren felt about Nathan, but he could see that there was definitely something between them.


    He shook his head, whatever, that was for them to discover.  He wouldn''t interfere.  Happiness was something you grasped at the end of the world, not something you waited for.  For now, he scanned the cottage garden, which was filled with mostly mature plants now.  If there was any damage to the vegetables, his eye couldn''t tell, but he did notice something weird in amongst them; a flickering light like sparks off of a saw cutting metal.


    He kneeled down and very gingerly brushed aside the large leaves of one plant, before his eyes widened in disbelief.  Flickering upwards, they glanced at the small leafless tree shadowing him, before seeking out Ren Zexian, who happened to be lurking in the garden''s gateway, frowning.


    "Hey," Dexter greeted.  "I think you need to see this."

 Chapter 30 Chapter Thirty - Precious Teardrops

    One of the mutated plants in Nathan''s cottage garden was a delicate looking tree with no leaves, but transparent fruits shaped like tear drops and sparkling like crystals as the sun cast it''s light upon them.  Although Ren Zexian had long since noted the thin spiritual energy within it''s roots, thin trunk and spindle branches, it had been quite pure and without taint, so Ren Zexian had never considered it further.


    Yet now, one of those teardrop fruits was lying upon the ground, unbroken by its fall yet crackling with lightning that seemed to be trapped within it''s shell.  Ren Zexian surrounded his hand with spiritual energy before tentatively reaching for the crystal.  There was no change in the core lightning, it didn''t attempt to leap to his flesh to burn him, so he carefully lifted it from the ground.  The crystal had well and truly trapped it in its midst.


    He passed the crystal to Dexter, who looked wary, but took it from his hand with trepidation.  Feeling no pain nor heat, just the tingling of static upon his palm, he shivered as his inner sea began to react to it.  "What do you think?" Ren Zexian asked him and the other man looked at him, the surprise upon his face apparent to see.


    "It''s effecting my powers," Dexter admitted in awe.  "I feel like... I think that if I meditated with it, my cultivation would be greater."


    Ren looked speculatively at the crystal fruits.  There were about ten or twelve upon its branches at first glance, not a large amount and each completely precious if his theories were even remotely close to being true.  "We need to speak with Nathan about the crystals," he decided.  He would not offend such a priceless specimen with his rising greed.  Both men glanced at Tyler who grumbled about being a messenger boy, before leaving to persuade the boy to come to his personal garden.


    "What are you thinking?" Dexter asked him curiously.  But Ren Zexian simply smiled and answered;


    "We need fire or a flame, not created by myself," Ren Zexian mused.


    Nathan came into the garden having been encouraged by a carrot and stick method, if the carrot could be considered answering Ren''s summons and the stick considered something occurring within his cottage garden to one of his precious plants.  He hurried in, his eyes landing first upon Ren Zexian before flickering about the garden to see if anything was out of place.  He sighed, there was no sick plants to fend for, no deceased ones to mourn.  And so he returned his attention back to the man with the long black hair of silk.


    "Nathan," Ren Zexian called to him in his soothing voice and Nathan closed the gap between them without thought.  "Has this tree ever shed its crystals?"


    Nathan glanced at the simple tree with its sparkling fruits and shook his head.  When the tree first lost its leaves, he had been sad, thinking that it had died.  But when he had placed his hand upon its thin trunk, he felt like he had assumed wrongly that the tree was dead.  He did not know why he felt this way, but decided to leave it be.  And then slowly had those teardrop crystals developed upon its branches.


    Each had resembled a bead of dew, at first, poised at the point of dripping from the branch, but not actually doing so.  And slowly, one by one the crystals grew, stopping at their current size before a new one began to form.  It had taken the first crystal almost a month to grow, but then as his waters permeated the soil about its roots, the crystals grew more rapidly, perhaps one growing in a one week period.  But the last time he counted, there had been ten.  The rains must have caused more to grow overnight.


    "Would the tree allow us to take a few?" Ren Zexian asked him and immediately, the boy directed this thought at the tree, placing his hand upon the bark.  The tree shivered beneath his touch and five crystals dropped only to be caught in Ren Zexian''s swiftly moving hands.  If his theory was right, letting them fall to the ground would be a waste. "Thank you," Ren Zexian bowed to the tree, even as he clasped the precious fruits to his chest.


    Nathan was more physical in his appreciation, filling cupped hands with his water before pouring it to wear he understood the roots grew.


    *****


    The five crystal fruits were placed upon the table of the small cottage as well as the one holding lightning in its core.Dexter had never been inside the property before, he glanced over the slightly worn wooden cupboard doors and the simple counter top with its belfast sink and old school rayburn oven close by.He frowned, in thought.Did... did Nathan know how to use that thing?  They''d assumed the one in the main house''s kitchen was ornamental, left during a revamp of the kitchen seeing as they had a modern six hob, two oven and a grill electric range installed.


    Before he could enquire, Nathan had grabbed an oven glove and opened one of the small doors to reveal the smouldering fuel inside.He added a couple of pieces of dry wood to the fire and slowly, the wood caught fire.Ren Zexian watched him for a moment, having asked the boy to produce a flame for him, then almost casually tossed the crystal into the burning fire.


    Nathan yelped as the crystal disappeared into the fire, then after a moments hesitation, grabbed a pair of cast iron tongs in order to fish the crystal out of the fire.Ren Zexian''s hand gently landed upon his shoulder, but the boy did not flinch from it instead finding himself savouring the warmth of it, distracted from saving the teardrop fruit from the oven''s flames."Give it a moment," Ren Zexian said gently, before removing his hand, not wanting to push the boy''s limits and not realising that the boy would allow him to rest it there longer.


    They watched the fire for a minute, noticing that the flames were dying, despite adding plenty of fuel, so Nathan added a bit more wood, which caught alight rapidly before its flames too died.The fire was going out.More wood followed in an attempt to keep the oven lit, the flames would roar brightly for a moment, the heat immense, sweat beaded upon their skins while much of the wood turned to ash within the next breath.


    After a while, the fire began to stabilise, the flames not burning so hot and not flickering unstably.Ren Zexian took the tongs from the boy and nudged the fire until he found what he sought.Within the tongs he held the crystal, completely unharmed, but with a tiny flickering flames burning brightly inside of it.He placed the crystal not on the wooden table, for they could not tell how hot it would burn, but on the stone cutting board on Nathan''s worktop.


    Ren Zexian then reached for it as tentatively as he had for the one holding the lightning inside of it.It was not unbearably hot, but Ren Zexian could feel the heat inside of it.He could also feel the crystal as a whole now resonating with his core."Tell me about how the crystal''s grow," he urged Nathan, who was only happy to talk about his observations as he watched the crystals form on the delicate tree.A satisfied smile grew upon his face, his blue eyes sparkling as he indulged in his favourite subject, Ren Zexian listening attentively.Dexter couldn''t help but smile himself over the warm scene.


    "I think I understand," Ren Zexian said finally.


    "Well do explain, because I am clueless over here," Tyler mentioned as he looked gingerly at the two crystals which should not exist in his mind that was still ruled strictly by science.While he could not explain himself why he could produce water from thin air, he had always assumed that there was a scientific explanation for it.It was why he could not except that his abilities could be affected by something ''spiritual''.God and ghosts did not exist in his atheist mind.


    "This crystal is formed of the essence of the tree and the spiritual energy it draws from the ground into its roots," Ren Zexian explained."It manages to filter through itself a very pure energy, there are no impurities with the tree itself.Because it has shed them and the energies incompatible with it into these crystals it formed as it produced them from its branches."


    "Then why not drop all of the crystals?"Tyler asked.


    Ren Zexian shrugged."Perhaps it is using them to absorb light energies from the sun, in turn using that energy to supplement what it takes from the ground.Also, it is unlikely to want to drop the crystals if they are likely to steal the spiritual energies it wants for itself.Cultivators are greedy creatures, the tree would be no different."


    "Wait," Dexter blurted out."You are trying to tell me, that that tree is cultivating?"


    "Of course it is," Ren Zexian said, surprised at Dexter''s sudden outburst."It is in the nature of all forms of life once they obtain enlightenment to attempt to cultivate strength and ability... isn''t it?"


    Neither Dexter nor Tyler had anything they could say to refute his words, mainly because they were dumbfounded by them.Ren Zexian turned his attentions onto the empty crystal husks."Now, lets see what occurs if I do this..." he murmured as he grabbed one in his hand.The crystal flared brightly in his fist, causing the three other men to glance away or be blinded.


    When the light dimmed, they turned back to see Ren Zexian''s knees give way and the crystal with a dark ferocious flame inside of its core fall from his loose fingers onto the flagstone floor.He chuckled slightly."Wasn''t quite what I expected," he mumbled, before collapsing to the ground.

 Chapter 31 Chapter Thirty One - The World Changes Around Us

    With the exception of a few seemingly benevolent mutations within the flower garden at the front and side of the property, including one that begun bearing a strange, lumpy looking ''fruit'', the heavy rains had caused some shocking mutations, especially in the ''outside'' world.There was now a type of seemingly ''normal'' grass, that would turn to sharp, piercing blades should something brush against them.A tree located in the neighbouring estate, that had been in the middle of being renovated before the end, dripped with a putrid slime that hissed as it hit the ground.More ivy vines became malevolent, capturing whatever neared to feed their soil.Even a humble snapdragon grew into a monstrous flower, that would snap at moving things as they passed it.


    Another tree, that had no physical changes in appearance, was set alight the moment Ren Zexian caught sight of it some weeks later, the fire that was produced by his hands was blue-black and burned with a ferocity that the others had never seen before.The tree screamed beneath the intense flames, the heat could be seen pouring off the burning wood in waves.Ren Zexian did not explain about why the flames were strangely coloured and only said of his actions that the tree was extremely dangerous.They would not learn just how dangerous it might have been for a long time.


    He also did not explain about the crystal which now burned with smouldering blue-black flames in a metal container at the centre of the twin garage, which had been emptied for this purpose.  Ren Zexian did stress, however, that the ability users should not pour their powers into the crystals; they were not strong enough for what would occur should they attempt to.  When speaking to Nathan, he explained more carefully, in a steady, low voice, for he feared that the youth might accidentally connect with the crystals when watering their tree.  Neither he nor Tyler had cultivated their abilities in an efficient manner, the loss of their spiritual energies to the crystal would be devastating to them.


    For himself, he had to retire to the rooftop and cultivate day and night for an entire week.  He wouldn''t know that a blanket was placed over his shoulder as the sun descended for the first brisk night, neither would he know that huddled next to him, during the next day, was a youth who insisted on helping him shelter beneath an umbrella as a light rain fell.


    When he opened his eyes at the end of the week, he came to know that there had been a few changes within the main house and the garden.


    In two rooms, one to the very west of the property and one close to the kitchens, a series of mismatched shelves now stood and each held various sized pots of hard clay, metal and the strange material known as ''plastic''.  Each pot was filled with soil and seed, the latter mostly containing Nathan''s unique spiritual energies as he had germinated them with his waters.  These light and bright rooms would hopefully supply some of their food requirements over the winter season.


    Lucy was quick to show off her tiny watering can, indicating that she was in charge of these two spaces.  She had been left in the house with her guardian hound as the men worked on the wall, but she seemed to have experienced no ill effects from this.It was a sad fact that she would have to grow up a little more quickly in this world than the one she had been born in.However at this moment, the small child looked very proud of her achievements, grinning as she watered lightly the pots she could reach without assistance, completely unconcerned by adult worries.


    "Well done," Ren Zexian praised her, just as she wished.


    In the garden, a large glass structure had formed and Lucy, having guided her Uncle Ren in that direction, indicated that Big Brother Nathan was within.  Ren Zexian pushed open the heavy, white framed door and into the building made of various sized windows.  Though his hands were caked in dirt and his face smeared with mud, Ren Zexian believed that Nathan has never looked more beautiful.  The boy was smiling brightly as he re-potted a small seedling into its new contained before watering it and placing it on one of the many shelves along the lengths of the greenhouse.His cheeks were flushed from the heat gathering in the space and a sheen of perspiration made his skin shine.


    At the centre, of this space, there were a series of raised beds, likely for bulk crops; potatoes and corn, perhaps.  Ren Zexian had once thought it was a shame that they did not normally raise rice or soya beans here, otherwise these crops would be his suggestion.  However, as Nathan''s head turned to face him, his large eyes bright and meeting his, such was the furthest thought from his mind.


    "You are awake," Nathan mentioned and there seemed to be an air of relief about him, the tension in his small shoulders lightening slightly.


    Nathan had never really understood the concept of meditation.  As far as he was concerned, if your eyes were closed and you were not responding to outside stimuli, then you were in a deep sleep.  Thus, Ren Zexian followed his train of thought and replied; "I am awake."


    "Dexter and Tyler built this greenhouse," Nathan began saying, "so I can now grow more things.  I will grow peppers and chillis.  Do you like those?"


    "Hmm, I like them well enough," Ren Zexian agreed.  With his words, the smile upon Nathan''s face seemed to become more brilliant, causing the familiar stirring in the older man''s chest.He inwardly sighed.This lovely boy held an attraction for him that he could not explain and felt as if he was a whelp fresh with youthful nerves when standing before him.


    Tyler had explained that Nathan''s mind worked a little differently from their own; he could not express his emotions as simply as what was considered normal and he had an obsessive nature that manifested in the form of his plants and the nurture of them and his living space was spotless with everything kept in a specific space.His hearing was clearly sensitive as was his sense of touch and he had already revealed that if he was not interested in words spoken to him, he would simply walk away before the sentence was complete.However, a man like Ren Zexian was already quite accustomed to that which others would see as abnormal, thus he did not see Nathan''s apparent flaws.To him, these ''quirks'' were just Nathan.


    There was just one thing he worried himself over; whether Nathan could be taught to cultivate eventually and become stronger, more able to protect himself and his beloved plants and perhaps stay by Ren Zexian''s side longer...


    He watched patiently as Nathan cupped his hands and summoned his water to feed the potted plants upon the lower shelf in their perfect alignment.However he frowned, he could not summon the water, his body was telling him to stop.This instinctual side to his nature was a good thing, in Ren Zexian''s point of view as too often he had seen men and women push themselves beyond their boundaries causing troubles in their future cultivation, even deviation of it in some cases.


    Little Lucy clearly retained this nature as well, perhaps due to her young age and knew without being told just what Nathan''s problem was.She tottered to his side and lifted up her tiny watering can for his use.The pair shared a smile and the plants were watered and Ren Zexian came up with an idea that may solve his worries.However, there was just one obstacle; how to convince the key to his thoughts to cultivate first...

 Chapter 32 Chapter Thirty Two - The Ability To Produce Ice

    Ren Zexian''s opportunity to begin to encourage the two water users to cultivate came around a week later.


    His overall plan was simple, first set Tyler upon the path of cultivation and once Nathan saw the results of his training (and by that he was thinking of the greater increase in volume of water Tyler should be able to produce), Ren Zexian believed that Nathan would wish for his own abilities to be better; in order to care more for his plants.  Unfortunately, what Ren Zexian could not decide was how to approach Tyler in the first place.  The man was stubborn of mind and steadfast of opinion.  He did not believe that the meditation techniques would improve his abilities.


    However, as well as stubborn, his mind was logistical.  Others formed the bigger picture, while he focused on the smaller details.  Dexter had instructed a wall to be built so that they could survive in this world of zombies and mutant beasts, Tyler was focusing on their food supplies so they could survive through the winter and early spring.


    He knew they were fortunate to have Nathan who knew what best to grow for winter months, but as he had been a bachelor that survived on ready meals, it was not as if he knew how to preserve food outside of a fridge or freezer.  Pickles and jams came in a jar, sauces were prepaid.  What did he know of making chutneys?  Of course, the basement was a boon; the temperature in the basement was cooler so some things would last okay, but it was not the same as the redundant electrical devices.


    "If only we had someone to produce ice," he considered aloud as he pondered over this in the kitchen.  If someone could lower the temperature in the basement through making ice or freezing icepacks each day, they might be able to store some things at lower temperatures, keeping them for longer.


    "Oh, producing ice is not impossible," Ren mentioned as he overheard this and decided to speak.  "Those with roots of Water are able to manipulate water into forming ice."


    Tyler looked at the man, his eyes heavy with scepticism.  "You are suggesting that I can make ice?  And Nathan as well?"


    Ren Zexian nodded his head once and said in agreement; "Yes.  I can only tell you the theory of it for my abilities lie elsewhere, but it should be possible.  Although, you are better suited for it than Nathan."


    "What is that supposed to mean?" Tyler asked, his voice becoming a little cold as if Ren Zexian was insinuating something.  The apocalypse had definitely not shaped his tact nor quirk of jumping to conclusions.


    "Nathan relies heavily upon his instincts," Ren Zexian replied, completely unaware of Tyler''s mood.  "He wishes to water his plants and so he produces water.  He wishes to communicate with his garden and so he does.  As he has no need for ice, he will not produce it.  Also, he has two roots, more difficult to train than the pure, lone root that runs within you and Dexter.  It is not incorrect to say that your ability of water has greater potential than Nathan''s at this point and likely so in the future as well."


    "I see." Tyler couldn''t help but feel just a little smug over this, for despite Nathan''s social difficulties, he was far more likeable than Tyler.  The boy''s contributions were also a bit greater than his own seeing as he was producing part of their food as well as their water and Tyler was just producing water.  The rest of the squad were busy building the wall, but Tyler was not very physical, had always relied on his brain to earn money to eat.  It was a little frustrating that for all his intelligence, he was lacking these days.  If it wasn''t for his ability, he would have been stuck in the old ''refuge'' farming and everyone was well aware of what occurred in that place.  He shuddered at the thought.


    "What would I need to do?"


    *****


    Somewhat convinced does not equal completely convinced and Tyler had more than a little trepidation as he sat with cross legs in the entertainment room in which Ren Zexian was patiently talking him through a few steps.The Chinese man called it the ''technique of the North Water Dragon''.It sounded both impressive and delusional, like something spouted by a new-age cultist.He could not help but wonder if Ren Zexian had actually been one of those questionable cult leaders that drained their brainwashed followers of all of their funds and self-will, but he shook the thought away as low even for him.


    As much as he could not accept nor believe the things Ren Zexian taught, it was true that he had identified and awakened an ability in Patrick and seen Dexter''s abilities become greater and more impressive.The man had also instructed Dexter to cultivate with the crystal which captured the lightning bolt which Dexter swore was aiding his strength even further.In the time that Tyler had known Dexter, the former construction worker and squad leader was not one to say black was white nor up was down so Tyler could only believe him.Still...


    "This is not working," Tyler said in the next breath.


    "You are not concentrating," Ren Zexian chided him."Your root is water, thus this element will likely shape your inner sea.Think of water, the first image that comes to mind when you think of water and focus upon that image."Tyler did as instructed, unable to shake away the cadence of the words that had his mind enraptured and instinctively following.An endless still pond appeared to form and as it did, the waters stirred with ripples as a single additional droplet fell into it."You do not need to tell me what you see, but once the image is firmly in your mind''s eye, I want you to say those words I taught you.Just once is enough this time."


    Tyler felt his face heat with embarrassment as he repeated the words.As he said the twenty or so words that he could not understand the meaning of, the waters churned, stirring as if something was spiralling beneath the surface.The waters became still a minute following.Curious, Tyler repeated the sentence again and again and the waters twisted each time, stirring then bubbling slightly and then he felt a gentle coolness begin to spread from his centre, drawn as if along a network of tiny veins until his entire chest cavity felt refreshed.


    Ren Zexian''s lips curved into a satisfied smile as he watched Tyler slip deeper into the trance.The technique he had chosen was not the best for those that sought to be masters of ice techniques, but would improve both his capability to produce water and manipulate it in ways that leaned towards the focus of ice, but it is not as if he would no longer be able to turn water to steam should he figure out how to.And besides, out of all of the high quality water cultivation techniques, it did sound the most impressive.

 Chapter 33 Chapter Thirty Three - Water and Fire

    The path that Ren Zexian guided Tyler onto was not without its forks; a man as stubbornly clingy to pre-apocalyptic common sense as Tyler would never accept the way of cultivation after just once meditative experience.A man such as Tyler must be coaxed, encouraged, flattered and gently pressed into choosing the correct path.For example, even though his first meditation took over six hours despite seeming only six minutes, Tyler would likely claim some hypnotic trickery to explain the time lapse.


    So once he was aware just how much time had past, Ren Zexian did not allow him to overthink nor draw his own conclusions."You have done excellently," he praised in his calm way that brook no argument nor denial."As expected of a rare talent such as yourself."


    As much as his ego enjoyed the petting, Tyler was not without suspicion; "What do you mean?"


    "You may have heard me speak of elemental roots?" Ren Zexian replied, lightly."Or perhaps heard Dexter or Patrick speak of this."Tyler could not deny this; Patrick was especially vocal on the subject once he had been found to hold two ''dormant roots''.At that time, Tyler had completely dismissed the whole idea, however once Patrick''s roots were ''awakened'' and he proved some of his ability, he had to allow Ren Zexian some face.


    But the blond haired man wouldn''t admit that easily, so simply nodded in response.


    Ren Zexian''s smile did not falter."Roots are divided into category and an average Cultivator might have two or more roots.But the fact remains that those with more than a single root have more difficulties when trying to advance.That is part of your fortune; you have one lone root, such obstacles others will suffer have already been cleared.The other half of your fortune lies in the type of root you possess." He paused to allow Tyler to absorb this information, stirring both his pride and his curiosity.


    True to his nature, Tyler could not help but want more information, but said his words nonchalantly as if the answer didn''t really matter to him."Go on."


    He failed to notice the satisfied glint in Ren Zexian''s eyes as the man continued; "Your root is Water, this is considered one of the five primary roots.Having a primary root is not a rare thing, but most who do will also have a secondary or even three or more roots reducing their abilities.For a person to have a lone, primary root is very rare indeed.If you were of my original people, many Masters would have sought to train you and give you assistance upon your journey.You would have had access to many treasures that other lesser cultivators could only dream of."


    Tyler didn''t care too much about other Masters and treasurers, he had always been a man who relied on himself.However, it was nice to know that his ability could be considered rare and great.


    Since the first wave of turned zombies threw the country into a panic, he had lamented that he could just produce water and could not fight and protect himself.  Before the end, he was not a physical man and his job did not require him to be.  He simply jogged and swam occasionally to keep in shape.  He''d also worried that as they now had a second person here to produce water, he would find his role redundant, something he''d never worried about before.  After all, the lost base had many mouths to feed and only a handful of people able to produce water.  But if what Ren Zexian was saying was true, then Nathan''s abilities while double his, were also lacking compared to his lone ability.  Thus Ren Zexian''s words helped ease his dissatisfaction with himself a little bit.


    "And you really believe this meditation thing can make my powers better?" Tyler questioned.  Could he really create more water in the long term and better yet ice?  With ice, he could even imagine himself standing beside Dexter and killing zombies with icicles or freezing their legs so they could not move.


    Ren Zexian nodded and smiled encouragingly, hence convincing Tyler to attempt to meditate a few more times while telling himself that if there were no noticeable changes, he would simply go back to the more scientific process of producing water daily in order to increase his ability.  The effect had been small, but he could produce a almost two litres more water using this method than when Ren Zexian had first suggested this to him.


    Tyler had to completely swallow any doubts after just one week, when he found that his capacity for producing water increased by two litres in just these seven days alone and he had only cultivated three times!


    *****


    While Tyler was being convinced that cultivating was the path he ought to take, others were worrying about another issue; fire.  Or more specifically, how to produce it in terms of cooking.


    Although everyone was now aware that Nathan actually had a working oven, they did not make a fuss over this for two reasons; the wood pile that Nathan relied on was dwindling and none of them knew many dishes that could be produced from scratch with an oven anyway.  Jacket potatoes were an exception.  However, Winston had to point out that they were down to their last gas canister for the small camping stove.


    Their next option was to rely on one of the two barbecues they had grabbed from the village; one ran on gas and the other on charcoal.  But the charcoal they would rather keep for winter as there were a couple of open fireplaces that they could rely on and attempting to cook a pot of stew on a barbecue seemed wasteful of gas.  Plus, it would only be a solution in the dry months.  No one was stupid enough to attempt to adapt the large canister for use on the small camp stove.


    There was the old range oven in the kitchen, like in Nathan''s cottage, but no one had used this and no one knew if it could still work.Plus there was the added point that fuel would still be required to work it.


    "There''s a few dead trees in and around the village," Dexter pointed out.This was true, but even with those trees chopped down, how long would the wood need to be dried out if those trees died during this year?


    "The bags of coal can be used as well," Patrick mentioned, though they had planned on keeping this for winter, but they needed to eat to survive until then and not all vegetables and fruit could be eaten raw.He turned to Nathan, who had been asked to come over to teach them to use the old stove."Is there anything else we need to do before trying to use the stove?"


    "It''s dusty, you should clean it," Nathan said matter of factly.


    Winston and Harry snickered slightly behind the boy''s back, while Tyler just rolled his eyes."What about the chimneys?" The man drawled as he glanced up at the metal pipe attached to the back of the stove.


    "What about them?" Patrick asked.


    "Well you can''t use a fireplace without the chimney being unblocked and free of debris," Tyler replied in his usual harsh tones.Meditation had not calmed nor settled his temper in any way."I am assuming it is the same principal."


    "Mother hires someone to clean out the chimneys in the autumn," Nathan mentioned."They clean out the chimney at my cottage too."They glanced at Nathan with obvious sympathy in their eyes, all thinking pretty much the same thing; who knew if the youth''s mother was even alive anymore?But Nathan failed to notice what was held in their expressions.Ren Zexian looked thoughtful and pressed his hand against the metal pipe, before closing his eyes.


    "There is a blockage, it is some way up the chimney," he mentioned, before adding."It is of no hardship to deal with."The ability users felt rather than saw the air stirring about them before an audible ''pop'' occurred outside."It is clear now."With the exception of Nathan, the others looked at him incredulously.Using such a powerful ability, one that could cleanly slice the head off of a weak Zombie without being seen, for household maintenance... it just seemed a little much."As for fuel," Ren Zexian continued as if it was not a big issue, "I have an idea."

 Chapter 34 Chapter Thirty Four - Attack Inside The Wall

    The source Ren Zexian had mention now burned hotly inside the old range oven, filling the chambers with immense heat.They did not know how long the small crystal of black flames would burn for, but it was certainly a better source than green or treated woods.


    "It seems like overkill," Tyler muttered as he sealed the small door of the fire chamber.


    "Whatever works," came Paul''s easy reply as he placed the campstove kettle upon the metal plate atop the oven.It did not take long to heat the water it contained and two cups of black, unsweetened coffee were produced.


    *****


    The first section of the wall was finished.  It stood at ten feet in height and was almost a foot and a half wide.  It was attached to the thick, but six foot high wall of one large estate at one end before curving a good distance across the main road that connected the three manors and ending at the thick hedge surrounding Nathan''s home.  The wall also had an entrance way, where two metal garage doors that happened to conveniently have been hinged on the sides rather than the top, sealed the exposed area.


    On the inside of the wall, a secondary wall had been built.  This was only five feet high and one foot thick and had ladders attached to it for ease of climbing.  It was intended that a man could walk along the length of the inner wall and attack wandering zombies that came to their ''doors'' with relative ease.  Both walls had good foundations so if needed, they could increase the height further at a later date.


    What no one expected, though, was that the first wave of zombies to hit the wall would not come from outside of it.


    "Where the hell did these bastards come from?" Dexter seethed as a thick bolt of lightning shot from his fingers and through the bodies of two zombies in tandem.  It was not enough to eliminate them, but their rotting muscles seized for a moment, giving  Harry a chance to swing the metal pipe he held and knock them over.  It took a while for weak zombies to rise after they had fallen, not to mention there was a black hound with sharp teeth ready to tear out the throats of any that fell.


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    Unfortunately, not all of these zombies were weak.  A particularly dexterous one was dodging the flaming blasts of energy coming from Ren Zexian, who was guarding the metal gateway to the manor with his life.  Patrick released his control, dripping with sweat as he did and a heap of heavy, broken bricks and mortar fell upon the zombies.  His luck was good for one did not rise again and another lost the ability to move one of its arms.


    "The third manor!" Harry yelled following an epiphany.  Dexter cursed beneath his breath.  That was right!  With the urgency of building a wall, the distractions of the gulls, storm and internal logistics, they had not yet had a chance to sweep through the third manor and ensure that their new base was completely safe.  Who knew that it would be such a fair sized nest of zombies!


    There was likely just over twenty of them, their bodies ranging in size and decay and ability.  If they had cleaned out the third manor a couple of weeks ago, they likely would have been able to take on two or three at a time.  The zombies were mostly the slow, rambling sort that humans morphed into during the initial outbreak.  However, now they were clustered together and they were a threat not only in number, but in strength.


    Apart from the thin, agile zombie, whose remaining muscular tissue seemed to have fused to its bones, making it appear deceptively fragile, there was also a zombie whose thick body seemed impervious to their attacks and a third zombie that sparkled with lightning.  This last one was throwing random bolts of electricity their way from a distance.  Fortunately, it cannot have had its ability too long, for its aim was bad and over the many metres the blasts travelled, the lightning had weakened.  It still hurt like fuck when it hit though.


    "Shit!" Winston cursed as the blast hit his hand causing him to drop the gun.


    "Can''t someone deal with that bastard?!" Dexter roared.  Although they were both of lightning ability, did not mean the man was any more immune to the shocks of the zombie''s blasts if they hit.


    "On it," came a voice from the other side of the metal gates.  A large ball of water formed above the pesky zombie before falling to drench it.  Dexter wanted to curse Tyler as an idiot, what was he trying to do? Clean it?  But he swallowed the swear words down as the lightning crackling over the zombie''s body reacted with the water and the undead humanoid fell, convulsing for several minutes before black blood poured out of seven orifices.


    The agile zombie shrieked as it suddenly was consumed by black flames, it seemed Ren Zexian had become impatient with it.  The squad never spoke about it, for Ren Zexian did not wish to mention it himself, but they were well aware that the man''s fire came in two types.  One was of red-orange flames, appearing to be ordinary fire, it''s temperature  that of a small campfire.  This fire was impressive enough a combat weapon considering zombie skins were usually dry and burned easily, not to mention the clothes and rags upon their rotting bodies.  However, the second type of fire was by far deadlier, blue-black in colour and the temperature of those flames never seemed much higher unless one got very close to them, as if the heat was greatly concentrated at its core.  Yet if those flames touched a fuel source, they would consume it rapidly until there was nothing left.


    And this was what they were using to cook with now.


    With the smaller threats mostly destroyed, they had but one monster to deal with.  Winston, Paul and Harry had to back away from it, running away across the height of the wall, for neither bullet penetrated it''s barrel chest nor knife stuck in its chest.  Patrick used the last of his strength to make it heavier, slower, but it seemed almost oblivious to the increased weight of its limbs as it reached upward.


    "Tyler!" Dexter called out, hoping to deal with this zombie much as it''s annoying ''friend'' had been dealt with.  "Another water bomb over here."


    "Got it," Tyler replied and a mass of water appeared above the monster''s head before drenching it.  Dexter prayed to the heavens that his idea would work as he threw out a strong blast of lightning.  Fortunately, it seemed the zombie''s ability was only skin deep as the currents of electrical energy were drawn through the liquid over the monster''s body, penetrated its armour and toasting it from the inside.


    As it fell, heavily to the ground, the men on the wall collapsed, gasping for air."Let''s not do that again," Winston complained.


    "We probably need to make sure that was all of them," Dexter sighed."I don''t want anymore sneak attacks like that!"The swift zombie had raced into their midst while they were inspecting their handiwork and testing the hinges on the garage doors.Fortunately, they were warned before any of them became dinner, the large black dog had growled angrily and leapt to attack it, delaying its endeavour.The other zombies had appeared a couple of minutes later.


    Patrick jumped down to pet the beast as he crooned; "Whose a good boy, whose a good boy?!" Aslan growled, before turning his head to the side and becoming fog to escape.

 Chapter 35 Chapter Thirty Five - Washing Clothes in the Apocalypse

    After the now unmoving corpses were dealt with beneath a flurry of flames, the men rested for the afternoon and evening before travelling down the length of the third property''s large drive in the truck.Of the three properties, it was clearly the largest and probably oldest, sprawling over the centre of the estate with two grand wings either side an imposing central manor.There were also several outbuildings, including an stable and adjacent building for stablehands to wash up and rest in.The former was empty, not sure what had happened to the previous occupants, perhaps they mutated and fled.The men hoped whether they mutated into zombies or variants, they did not seek to return anytime soon.The washroom was occupied, temporarily at least.


    There were a total of seven zombies still in the house or its surrounding buildings, however, all were weak and unable to break out of the places they were shut within, unable to take advantage of the broken patio doors in the rear of the property that had been forced open.There were also three rotting, but not diseased bodies in an upstairs office room.From the holes in their heads and the gun upon the floor, it was clear these three ''survivors'' had opted for suicide rather than become a zombies appetiser.They also found bones scattered throughout the house of those who had neither become infected nor escaped the undead hunger.


    Dexter and his men sighed.It was not as if they had not seen such gruesome sights before, but this large mansion come mausoleum really did remind them of the times they were living in.In the tranquil gardens and simple comforts of the place that they had begun to call home, it was all too easy to push those thoughts to the backs of their mind.


    Of course, they didn''t just come here in order to eliminate the last of the threat to their safety, a property of this size with that many once living occupants had to be heavy on supplies!  The large kitchens smelled to high heaven, the smells of rotting meats and vegetables permeating through the door despite the sealed door.  They decided to ignore this for the time being, maybe do a thorough cleaning in the near future just to prevent flies and rats.  As it happened, the large kitchens had a good sized larder and this was brimming with grains, packets of pasta, tins and jars.  There were some potatoes, but they had turned into shrivelled things with long roots and there were bunches of onions, but again they looked far from healthy.


    However, they all cheered when they discovered bottles of soda, cordials and more happily alcohol.  Beer and ciders were found in the kitchens, whiskey and rum in the office that was grave to the suicidal three and there was a basement with many bottles of wine.


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    They did not only clear out the edibles, but also claimed cleaning products, soap and toilet paper.  They also found mens clothing in wardrobe that might fit them or could be altered for Nathan... not that any of them could sew; they didn''t bother to sweat the fine details.


    Tyler happily listed all of their fought for supplies, adding them to the lists he''d made in order to keep track of certain things.  The food was, of course, a welcomed thing as they had been running low on a few things, mostly tinned food, but they''d also eaten a fair bit of rice and pasta.  They had several mouths to feed after all and with the main harvest only just beginning, they''d eaten a large percentage of what they had claimed from the village.  Tyler felt more than confident that they could last through this winter without too many worries.


    The one thing they did not lack was washing powder, liquid and tablets.  It was the apocalypse, water was precious and so they would not be able to wash clothes often and even then it was in the soapy water that had previously been used to soak at least three adult, Male bodies.  However, Tyler''s ability had improved, he could produce almost double the quantity of water than when they had first settled here.  Most of the week, he filled empty plastic bottles with the excess (not drank or used for washing dishes or roughly wiping bodies).  So it was with great pleasure that he partially filled up one of the large twin sinks in the utility room and scrubbed their dirty clothes in water made soapy by washing powder and conditioner, before rinsing them in the second sink and hanging them out to dry.


    Seeing him industrially cleaning garments, Nathan dropped his hoe and hurried back to the cottage to bring out the large pile of dirty clothes he and Lucy had accumulated.  Unlike the men from the squad, he couldn''t abide wearing clothes for more than one day and he also had a habit of changing out of gardening clothes before eating.  So he would easily go through two sets a day.  As this was his habit, he also saw no reason for Lucy not to develop it as well.  Tyler looked at him with narrow eyes, but did not refuse his unspoken request.


    After Tyler took the heavy basket, suddenly wondering how Nathan was hiding muscles in those skinny arms of his, the boy hurried off.  He wished to check on Ren Zexian.


    Following the battle outside the manor, Ren Zexian had gone back to cultivate.  As they had been attacked by a fair few zombies, the core in his stomach had begun to fluctuate, the poisonous yin-half stirring violently against the yang barrier that kept it in check.  Had the battle lengthened in time, the man was not at all certain that his inner defences would remain in tact, thus naturally he had to withdraw and recuperate.  Fortunately, it was the height of summer with long days in which he could cultivate in the brilliance of the sun, infusing his innersea with the strong yang energy, which in turn was circulated through his meridians before curling around the poison core.


    In amidst his meditation, he could only sigh at the loss of this energy, stunting his growth towards the next level of cultivation.  However, once the core was once again firmly in his grip and its barriers greatly strengthened, the energies absorbed could settle finally within his innersea and strengthen him.


    He did not cultivate for an overly long time, this time, opening his eyes on the second day after the battle and the first thing to come into his vision were two beautiful blue eyes that warmed his ancient heart.  He smiled, expressing his happiness as the boy began nodding in self reassurance.


    "You are awake," he stated.  "You did not sleep so long this time.  Good."


    Ren Zexian''s smile faltered for a fraction of a second, then his lips curled to a higher degree.  "It''s not sleeping, but yes, I have finished cultivating for now.  I''ve mentioned before that cultivating helps increase my strength.  Sometimes, I need to cultivate for a short while, other times, I will need to cultivate for many days.  Once, I cultivated for ten years in order to break through a stage."


    Nathan frowned as if trying to imagine Ren Zexian ''sleeping'' for half his (Nathan''s) lifetime.  He could only shake his head.


    "You could cultivate with me..." Ren Zexian coaxed as he watched the myriad of thoughts through Nathan''s eyes.  While it was true that the boy had difficulty expressing his emotions or understanding the emotions of others, did not mean he did not have them and the Cultivator could not help but believe that Nathan really did not like it when he ''slept.''


    Nathan shook his head once more.  "Sleeping at night is enough," he replied, before dusting himself off and climbing back through the window, leaving Ren Zexian to sigh over his seemingly insurmountable task.

 Chapter 36 Chapter Thirty Six - Mutant Apples That Can Be Eaten

    The last month of summer was also when the main harvest could begin, but this did not mean that everything had to be harvested nor did it mean that there would not be things to harvest in the next couple of months.Some of this food was needed to get them through the first Winter of the apocalypse, but not all of it could be kept for prolonged lengths of time, thus it was better to leave harvesting it until necessary.


    Things that were harvested in sunny month were eaten the same day for the most part and Paul would pour over cook books that they had found in most of the village homes for recipes that did not include dairy products and didn''t use too much of the irreplaceable condiments and grains.Sadly, these vegan meals were few and far between.Still, regardless of taste, the men did not waste the food for the most part, with the exception of a chargrilled pan of vegetables that were more char than grill.


    Tyler was still working on producing ice, but had not much success, though his water was definitely chillier; great for drinking, not for bathing in!Patrick had a little more control over his gravity ability, but was still working on activating his self-protection lightning, which he had only managed once when Tyler surprised him.Tyler had not forgiven him for burning the tip of his finger with the biting static that laced around his small frame in reaction to being unexpectedly tapped upon the shoulder.


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    Nathan still had not come around to the notion that cultivating would be good for him.


    As the leaves upon the non-mutated trees leaves began to take on yellow and orange hues, Nathan was wandering from patch to patch choosing plants he wished to leave to seed or collect seed from.He''d never needed to do this before, he''d just placed an order for seed with his grocery shopping in the late winter month, but he knew it would not be so simple this time.He could not bear to imagine a world where he couldn''t grow things in his garden, so he was seriously considering this matter.


    He knew the theory, of course.Some fruiting plants such as tomatoes were abundant with seed from the moment they were ripe and ready to be eaten and some needed to be ready to fall from the plant to rot, such as cucumbers.There were those whose ''seed'' needed to dry out and those that would not produce seed until the following year, so could not be harvested at all this year!


    Just as he placed a small ribbon on a tall corn with several cobs nestled in its leaves, the tree behind him shook and a hard round ''apple'' fell from its branches and rolled towards him.He picked it from the floor, examining the black fruit.It did not look much different to when he last picked up one of the fallen fruits, with it''s hard and dark shell.But still, he turned to the tree, whose leaves had hints of purple running through them and asked; "Is it alright to eat it now?"


    The wood creaked as the large apple tree bowed slightly in an attempt at a nod and Nathan placed the fruit into his basket before cupping his hands to produce water to feed the tree.It shivered happily in response.


    *****


    "How do we open it?" Patrick asked as the black fruit took pride of place on a chopping board.


    Nathan glanced up at the man with the flax coloured hair with a slight wince.Although the man was shorter than the others and smaller of build, he was one of the loudest and had the least volume control.The others understood that he was no good with loud noises and with being physically touched, but that did not stop the smiling man at all from throwing his arm about his shoulders or shouting or jumping about, thus Nathan found he got along with him the least.In fact, whenever possible, he would avoid him.Nathan leaned closer to Ren Zexian; he felt that being within Ren Zexian''s presence helped calm any agitation that arose from loud and sudden noises, from unexpected things.


    The oriental man did not move away from the boy, calmly enjoying the trust Nathan had for him, while the squad discussed the dilemma of opening the apple-shaped nut.They had attempted to use a knife, but the blade would not pierce through the protective shell.A nutcracker was not meant for something so big and Ren Zexian''s air blade might damage the chopping board if they resorted to such means.


    In the end, they used a hammer to crack the shell and a meat cleaver to cut the inner fruit open.For all intents and purposes, the ''apple'' still appeared to be an Apple, just it happened to be covered by a nut-like shell.However the flavour was mild, with just a hint of a sweet taste and the fruit itself was...


    "Oily," Patrick commented, rubbing his fingers together still slick with the fruit''s ''juice''.It wasn''t a large amount, but it was enough to make them pause in question.


    "It''s odd," Dexter admitted, his nose wrinkling with his forehead as he tried to place the sweet, slightly oily and slightly mushy texture of the fruit into a ''box'' within his mind.


    "Still, it will be useful," Tyler suggested out loud.After all, though they had a fair few bottles of oil, what will having plenty of stir fries in the week due to Paul''s limited cooking abilities and knowledge of how to cook vegetables, they were still using it a fair bit.The important thing, to Tyler, though, was that the fruit was edible and it''s protective shell meant, in theory, that it should have a prolonged lifespan so long as it was contained within.So what that the texture was just a bit odd.


    "Well, we''ll collect the ones..." Dexter began, only for a loud bang coming from outside to distract their train of thought.Nathan whimpered, but did not fall to the ground, just buried his head into Ren Zexian''s shoulder, while his hands covered his ears.The Cultivator rubbed his hands along the boy''s back in comfort.


    "What was that?" Patrick asked the obvious question.


    "Dunno, but, it sounded like a gunshot..." Dexter said, before the majority of the squad moved as one to the front of the property aiming to see if they could catch a glimpse of the culprit from the height of the wall.


    Ren Zexian continued to comfort Nathan in the wake of the silence that followed, sighing inwardly as the earthy scent that lingered on the boy permeated his senses."Come on," he said, softly after a few minutes, "let''s see about those apples."Nathan nodded, brushing his forehead against the cloth of Ren Zexian''s robes, before slowly stepping away.


    The two men then walked together and fairly closely towards the tree with its black apples.They noticed little Lucy nearby, though Aslan was not guarding her as usual, perhaps looking for the source of the loud noise himself.The little girl was holding a long stick and was prodding the tightly woven ivies along the bordering hedge with it.


    Nathan pressed his hands against the bark of the tree and willed it to shake its ripe apples from its boughs.It shuddered and did as was bid, while Ren Zexian used thick gusts of wind to prevent them falling upon Nathan''s head as well as guide them to a specific landing spot.Quite the pile formed within the first few shakes, so Nathan took his hand from the tree trunk and automatically began to count the harvested fruit.


    "Baaaaaa!"


    The two men frowned and glanced towards where Lucy played, her stick pressing forward once more into the leafy vines.


    "Baaaaaa!"


    Oh, so they didn''t imagine it.

 Chapter 37 Chapter Thirty Seven - They Did Not All Die

    Within the relative safety of the thick hedgerows, steel bars and mutant plants, with food and water in abundance and life continuing albeit at a stranger pace, it had been as if the men of the former squad and their newfound companions had lived in an oasis in the middle of the desert for sometime.Yes, there were still dangers from time to time and they had to watch their supplies carefully, but they were alive and content.


    However, now their most dangerous adversary had arrived upon their proverbial doorstep; other humans.Not all of humanity could be tarred with the same brush, but it was surely a fact that when it came to their own survival, humans were selfish creatures.The men within the contained environment were no different to those they believed they might face without; they sought to protect their current way of life from those who would see it with envious eyes.How dare they be able to access food, water and have shelter from the nightmares unleashed at the end of the world?!


    The gun shots warned them that they would face people, but they did not know what sort or whether they would be able to deal with them yet, however, with the numbers of ability users on their side, especially with two being above the rest in strength, they fancied their chances.Well, one.Dexter had to roll his eyes as he noticed that Ren Zexian had not followed them.A big black hound growled softly at his heels instead.Good dog, he thought to himself as he and his men quietly climbed the inside wall and crouched behind it in wait.


    The rumble of engines muffled their footsteps anyway as vehicles pulled up outside the length of wall stretched across the road.They heard the click of a door opening."What the f....!"


    "You think that there are survivors here?"


    "A wall like that doesn''t pop up out of nowhere, so it''s likely."


    "These look like garage doors..."


    Dexter felt that these were not organised men, not army troops.Army troops would have quietly analysed the situation within the safety of their vehicles and assumed that any living behind the wall were potentially hostile.After all, those defending their turf would kill others to protect it.But these men had no qualms, were way too nonchalant about the whole thing.Did they not fear that there could be a fight, that they could die by human hands?Or were they overly confident in their own abilities?Dexter rubbed his temples within his hand.Dammit, he wasn''t a tactician either, why did he have to worry about this shit?


    "What should we do, sarge?We came all this way after all?Should we forget about it and head on to the army base after all?"


    Sarge?Patrick leaned closer to Dexter and whispered close to his ear; "Does that person not sound familiar or is it just me?"


    Dexter shook his head and pressed a finger to his lips, wanting to know what these people intended.Were they peaceful?If they were heading to the army base, were they looking for a place of safety?Could they trust them?


    "Hmmm..."


    "Baby," a slightly, fawning female voice called out, causing Tyler''s eyes to light up.A woman!They hadn''t seen a woman in months!Dexter rolled his eyes heavenward.So what?From her tone and context, this one was already spoken for."I thought we would be able to eat fresh lamb tonight..."


    "Go rest," a gruff voice replied, but there was a note of softness to it."I''ll approach first, you stay safe in the van."Heavy footsteps approached the wall before pausing at the metal doors barring entry.Knuckles tapped at them."I''m assuming you can hear me," the man yelled out."We come in peace, looking to trade.Are you willing?"


    All eyes of the hiding men turned to glance at Dexter, who sighed heavily.He thought for a moment, then recalled a little something that Ren Zexian had tried to teach him.He waved at Patrick for a little space before seeking that part of himself that held his powers and tapping it with his consciousness.He breathed out, imagining the sparking ball of electricity expanding within him, occupying more space until it surrounded him like a hollow bubble.He then carefully stood, taking this shield of electrical energy with him, protecting him from whatever might come his way.


    "What is it that you want?" He asked with a distrusting drawl, as he glanced over the scene outside the wall.


    There was a van and an RV upon the road before them.One man leaned out of the van''s passenger side and rear doors were open.The head of another leaned out of one of the RV''s side windows, where no one should be while the vehicle was in motion.Clearly, road safety had long gone out of the window, but then who was around to arrest them?And then there was the man who had approached the wall.He was in his middle years, late forties or early fifties.His face had weathered well, despite his years, but any attractiveness was marred by the large scar from nose to the left side of his jaw.He had lit up a cigarette as he waited for a response to his query and was shaking the match to extinguish it.


    He glanced up at Dexter upon the wall as he drew in a breath of nicotine, then frowned."Yo, Dexter... that you?"


    "Fuck me, Jonah Shaw," Dexter began to laugh as recognition hit him."You old bastard, you''re still alive?!We assumed you went down with the rest of the poor bastards at the refuge."The eyes of the men widened and almost as one, they got to their feet to peer over the wall.


    "When we saw the X on the doors... Ah fuck," the man rubbed at his neck and shook his head, but Dexter understood.They had all been reluctant to dwell upon the fact their old comrades, friends, family members within the old refuge had become the same walking dead that they had tried to hide from."Glad to see you guys made it," the man added earnestly and the squad smiled brightly, while sighing inwardly with relief.Not only was this man one of the survivors that they had formed the first refuge with, he was a trustworthy man, upright and honest.He had no time for liars nor thieves, but then, he had been a police officer back before the end.


    "Who else is with you?Come on in," Dexter invited, glancing at Harry, who nodded and leapt down towards the locked doors.


    "Jimmy, Monika, Arthur, Shaun, Cole and Eraj," Jonah mentioned, "as well as a few others we''ve picked up over the months."


    "Shaun...?" Paul''s eyes widened and glanced about frantically.He leaned forward, gripping the wall until his knuckles were white.It couldn''t really be...


    The white van easily made entered the walled area, the RV followed and the squad jumped down from the wall''s heights to greet the men and woman they thought had possible died with the rest of the refugees.In fact there were now six men, three women and a teenaged boy in this wandering group and all were quickly introduced, but Paul had eyes only for one person.That person was calmly sitting in his wheelchair with a broad grin, but eyes as watery as the other man''s.


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    "Miss me?"


    "You arsehole," Paul said, shaking his head as he grabbed the offered hand of the person he''d always considered his closest friend."I mourned you for nothing!"

 Chapter 38 Chapter Thirty Eight - The Sergeant’s Wandering Squad

    Jonah Shaw had been a sergeant in the police force, briefly, as his promotion happened just a short while before the end, however even before that, he was a man who commanded respect. This was clearly revealed when it came to the members of his squad, three of whom were former police officers themselves. Jimmy and Monika had worked in the same station as the man, while Arthur had come from the city; he''d been visiting family members at a family get-together, but alas one by one they fell sick and would all become a part of the living dead.


    Surprising as it may sound, Cole was actually an ex-criminal, convicted for assault and GBH and had not long gotten out on parole. Jonah had been his arresting officer, but rather than hating him or wanting to seek revenge, Cole had nothing but respect for the man and asked to follow him when the squads had first formed to seek food and supplies. Cole was built like a tank and had a questionable temper, but Johan chose not to refuse him. Better to keep an eye on him.


    Eraj was somewhat underestimated within this mass of muscle, seeing as he''d been a former I.T. Technician and self-proclaimed gaming fanatic. He definitely seemed to be the odd man out, but he had still made his place within the small squad.


    None of the original squad had developed abilities, but that made them no less capable.


    Shaun had joined the squad in the nick of time, having found he actually had an affinity with metal. While in the refuge, he had played around with his ability to see what he could do, even finding that he could move his wheelchair about without needing touch it. He''d begged Jonah to allow him to tag along on that last expedition before they had become rootless once more.


    Paul would later ask why he had not joined them once discovering his ability. Shaun had simply crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow querying that question before asking; "Would you have really allowed me?"


    The men had grown up together as boys, had known each other ever since Paul''s parents had moved next door. Paul had remained his friend after the accident that had claimed his mother''s life and his legs, when all of their other small friends had drifted away. Seeing the alienation his wheelchair caused, Paul had stuck closer, even becoming slightly overprotective, which intensified over the years. Thus Shaun''s question really wasn''t so random.


    After the squad of seven had returned to discover that the base had been lost, they had retreated, just as Dexter and his men had. They had found themselves a place to shelter and had even discussed going to the American Army base, just as the others. However, they had decided not to, setting up a new place upon the top floor of a block of apartments as everyone knew that zombies could not climb stairs. Over the next couple of weeks, they had slowly made their way down the block, clearing out any remaining zombies and claiming all of the food and bottled water that they could. And then they had focused upon the sister block, only to discover two young women residing on the second to top floor.


    These women were the cousins Brooke and Autumn. Although other squads and gangs might have hurt them or abandoned them to die rather than adopt two new mouths to feed, Jonah''s group took them under their wings and the girls were eternally grateful. It also turned out that Brooke had some ability to find and manipulate water, making her invaluable to them.


    Later, they had discovered Nan Li Liang, a stunning teenaged boy of mixed ancestry; his mother was of Chinese descent, while his father was a migrant from India. He had survived as he had a strong sense of responsibility and had left the house to list the inventory of the fusion restaurant his parents had opened, while they were both sick in bed. He had been hoping to save it from bankruptcy... in the end, his worries had been futile and he had eaten much of the food in stock while attempting to stay alive.


    Finally, they had been forced to seek refuge elsewhere, thus had abandoned their high-rise base with plans to finally join the Army base. There were a number of reasons for it, the difficulty in finding new stocks of water was just one.


    "The bloody zombies seem to be changing," Jonah was telling Dexter as the vehicles were parked beside the battered truck outside the grounds.


    Dexter nodded in agreement. "They''re getting stronger. Did you get to meet the ones that could create balls of fire out of no where or were really fast?"


    Jonah shuddered. "God forbid, no. But we did discover that they can get upstairs now, that and there were the cat and dog zombies. Those fuckers are vicious, but fortunately they were mostly preoccupied with trying to kill each other. Even in death, they can''t get along!"


    "You say that as if it is a bad thing!" Dexter drawled, watching as the gates were closed before opening the small metal gate in the thick hedgerow close by. He lead Jonah in as the men and women followed. Fortunately, it was just wide enough for Shaun''s chair, so his dignity was kept in tact.


    "As if I''m complaining," Jonah muttered, before his footsteps faltered and he stared at the huge property in the distance. "What the fuck, Dex! The hotel wasn''t good enough, you took over a mansion instead?!"


    "How beautiful..." one of the cousins whispered behind them.


    Dexter shook his head. "Forget it," he said, depreciatively. "We''re just squatting. The landlord is allowing us his grace, is all." Tyler rolled his eyes as he said this, while Harry and Winston chuckled.


    "All hail Lord Nathan," Patrick joked as he moved on ahead.


    "Will it be alright if we stay here?" The girl named Brooke was petite, with pretty, green eyes, high cheekbones and a pert mouth. Her small hands rested upon Jonah''s thick arm as she approached to ask the question and the man possessively threw an arm over her narrow shoulders, declaring their status with a gesture. Tyler and the others couldn''t help but throw each other glances; Brooke had to be more than half the man''s age. "I mean, we don''t have much left to offer if your landlord demands things from us in order for us to stay..."


    Dexter frowned, before gesturing dismissively. "If the kid was really like that, I wouldn''t be letting you in! Seriously," he muttered this last bit beneath his breath.


    "Kid?" The girl seemed to visibly relax in Jonah''s arms, but Dexter did not appreciate the calculating look he captured in her eyes before they were cast towards the ground. "Sorry, I didn''t mean anything by that. It''s just we''d heard..."


    Jonah squeezed her shoulder with his large palm in offer of comfort as he continued her words; "We passed a group of survivors who''d been rejected by the army base. They were saying that the army wanted them to hand over supplies before they were allowed entry. Only this group had nothing to give. We, ourselves are running low, but happened to find this small herd of sheep, so decided to hunt them down. We figured we could not only eat red meat for a change, but offer up one of the animals to the base. Only, the little fuckers must have eaten some magic pills or something, our van could barely keep up, let alone the RV! We chased a few of them this way, only these vines came out of no where and grabbed the sheep instead!"


    "Vines?" Tyler blurted out and narrowed his eyes in thought.


    "Yeah," Jonah sighed. "Of course, with finding you guys, don''t know if that''s a bad thing anymore. At least we won''t have to try bribe our way into the army base anymore."


    Tyler sneered as he crossed his arms, many knowing his views on that matter; "Why would you want to go there anyway?"


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    "Ah, didn''t I mention?" Jonah said as he glanced down at the girl within his embrace with gentle eyes. "My girl is pregnant! We were heading to the base in order to protect her and my baby."

 Chapter 39 Chapter Thirty Nine - Wanting the Bes

    The sun was drifting along the horizon, staining the sky in a myriad of crimson and orange shades. The air was cooling in the sun''s wake, but the heat that had formed to great extent within the greenhouse of windows had yet to disperse. Within the green house, which was alight by the glowing of several solar garden lights, Nathan hovered over the tender plants in one of the large patches. Potatoes meant for winter and spring consumption were growing here. However, now that there were new people to feed, he wondered if there would be enough.


    Although he had grown plentiful vegetables for the main house before, at that time, the servants meals were supplemented with plentiful packages of meat, grain, milk and eggs. His contribution was welcome, as the taste of his garden vegetables was delicious, but wasn''t totally necessary. And now, the plants in his garden were to become the main source of peoples food. He was happy, of course, that this was so, he wanted his plants'' worth to be appreciated, but...


    Regarding the people themselves, he didn''t have too much opinion. Well, the thin girl with the sandy brown-coloured hair was loud and her voice reached decibels that hurt his ears, so he didn''t like her and one of the men had snapped the leafy limb of a plant in his rush to eat a plump, ripe tomato, so he disliked him as well. The girl had apologised though and the man had been reprimanded, but it took him a while to calm the ivies upon the wall and bush vines as they wanted to remove them from his sight. A small smile appeared upon Nathan''s lips. True enough, his plants understood him most.


    As did Ren Zexian.


    Lucy had discovered three sheep within the bushes and Nathan had had to coax the vines to let them go. The animals, which happened to be smaller in stature than Aslan, were clearly exhausted and terrified, their sweaty bodies shaking and foaming at the mouth. Aslan had appeared in a foggy gust of air with his bowl in his mouth and Nathan had filled it with his water. The sheep had gulped mouthfuls down once they had calmed and sought more only shortly afterwards. Lucy had giggled, clapping her hands and wanted to pet the ''white, fat puppies'', but Aslan had tugged her by the waistband of her shorts pulling her away from them.


    It was then that the shrieking squeal of the thin woman had pierced through the air. "Look, baby! It''s our sheep! We can eat lamb tonight!"


    Nathan, whose hands had been half filled with more water, had automatically reached for his ears, the clear liquid falling to the ground and splashing the animals as well as his boots. Ren Zexian had immediately reached for him, his long, warm fingers reaching for the hands clasped at his head, but worrying over Nathan''s dislike of being touched. So Nathan had leaned into him instead, pressing his forehead against the man''s firm shoulder and finding solace in his presence. Still with hands pressed against his ears, the noises had became muffled, but he had caught a word or two.


    "...sensitive to loud noises..."


    "Landlord..."


    "Oops... really sorry!"


    As things quietened a little, he had slowly withdrawn his hands and turned to look at the new people, but continued to press close against Ren Zexian''s body. The steady beat of his heart was soothing.


    "Aw, but baby, can''t at least kill one of the three?" These were the words of the thin woman, she had been pointing at the sheep which were huddled together. Ren Zexian told him later that these creatures had some ability over the wind, making them faster than normal and likely they could hurt people with the wind should they choose. But at the time they had stumbled into his garden, the energy inside them that they needed to produce the wind was spent, making them helpless and at the mercy of others.


    The new people had been chasing them, they were hungry, wanted to kill them in order to eat. This, Nathan also did not have opinion on. He knew that the meat that he had eaten in the past came from animals. He missed the taste of turkey and duck. So he was aware that if people wanted to eat lamb, then they needed to kill the sheep in order to do so. But things had changed, there was fruits and vegetables in his garden as well as stored pasta, rice and things in the kitchen. It would be easier to fill hungry bellies with these things first.


    But the thin woman had wanted meat.


    Apparently, she was carrying a baby in her belly, well Nathan had to take others'' words for that as the woman''s stomach was very flat. The child must be in an embryonic state, he assumed. She had claimed that the nutrients in lamb were necessary for her child. However, there had been those who stood against her.


    The first was Lucy. She was only three, but she could sense the killing intent of the thin woman and had begun to cry, fearing for the lives of her ''white, fat puppies!'' Patrick had also been against, not because he didn''t like to eat meat, but frankly, having to kill the sheep in order to obtain it did not sit well with him. "It''s not the same as picking up pre-packaged meat at the supermarket! Have any of us here actually killed, skinned and gutted a live animal before?" His face had turned an interesting shade of green. Even if he''d been a plant, Nathan would have claimed him unwell from the colour.


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    The large man with the frightening face had wanted to get the meat for the woman, the baby in her belly was his and he wanted the best for her and the baby. This, Nathan could understand. His own parents had always claimed with words and actions that they wanted the best for him, even when he couldn''t quite comprehend wanting the best for someone else. Well, he assumed it was like wanting the best topsoil for the planting beds or wanting the best location to plant his sunflowers. He had glanced up at Ren Zexian and thought; actually, he also wanted to give Ren Zexian the tastiest and best fruits of the harvest, so perhaps he did understand a little bit more now.


    Tyler had then argued to save the lives of the sheep, his arguments were that the animals were far more valuable alive than dead. A person could eat meat once by slaughtering an animal, but if the sheep were kept alive, they could have wool in the future, plus should the animal''s breed, there would be milk, which was beneficial for the baby and an increased number to the tiny herd. And eventually there would come a day to eat meat; sure it would be old mutton rather than young, tender lamb, but at that time, who would complain?


    Tyler had been a lawyer before the end, no one could refute his arguments and so the matter was settled. The sheep were placed in the garage with long grasses that the men had gathered, as they had no hay, but the man in the wheelchair had said he could create them a place in the front garden so they had a small area to roam once they have settled. Things might change should they try to escape, but they were left with vegetable scraps and water, so they might not.


    Ren Zexian entered the greenhouse while Nathan was mulling over things and instantly, most of his thoughts were swept away. He rose to his feet, dusting off the dirt on his trousers, he felt like he didn''t want Ren Zexian''s clothes stained, and approached the man.


    "What are you thinking about?" Ren Zexian asked him with a gentle smile.


    "I have cantaloupe melon ready for harvest," Nathan said, his quiet voice sounding almost shy. "Would you like to eat one with me?"


    The corners of the man''s lips seemed to rise a little as Nathan watched them. "Sure," Ren Zexian agreed.

 Chapter 40 Chapter Forty - Baking away Unhappy Thoughts

    Autumn quietly rose from her bed and tip toed out of the room that she was sharing with the older woman. She hadn''t slept well, her mind replaying the scenes of the day before over and over, causing her to be unable to settle. A thought of irony caused her plump lips to curve slightly; finding this place, being welcomed here and having the ability to sleep in a bed rather than on a narrow sofa in the R.V... and yet still suffering from insomnia.


    She and the rest of Jonah''s people had settled in the west side of the property; partially as most of the bedrooms in the east side had been claimed. The other reason, she felt, was likely a question of trust. Those men had been here a while and had developed a good relationship amongst themselves; they''d worked together to make this place safe and more secure. It seemed a wonderful place to live. But as welcoming as they had been to Jonah, herself, her cousin and the others, there was bound to be friction in the beginning. No one could guarantee that everybody was on the same page.


    The stairs squeaked beneath her weight as she slowly stepped downstairs and she flinched and bit her lower lip, but no one came to question her, so she continued to make her way downstairs. She had always been of heavier build, curvy and plush, her daddy used to say when mummy compared her once more to her willowy cousin. And even though she had lost weight due to the lack of substantial food after the end, she was still not a slim girl. Her inability to reproduce the waif-like figure that Brooke had weighed upon her mind as heavily as her body did upon scales.


    Her old habit probably did not help.


    The kitchen had always been her haven and whenever she was upset or feeling low, she would almost automatically wander into it, open the cupboards and take out a few things. It had been a while though. When she had attended university, before the apocalypse, she had lived in a shared house and the tiny kitchen always seemed to have someone occupying it; boiling the kettle for a cuppa or for pot noodles, making a sandwich or heating up a microwaveable meal.


    And then her mother had called and told her that Brooke was very ill and could she look after her cousin. "I know I can rely on you, Autumn," her mother had told her. "I would take care of her myself, but your grandmother is also very sick and we need to drive up to Manchester to take care of her. You understand, right?"


    You understand, right... she had heard those words many, many times in the last decade or so Brooke''s parents have died in an accident, so she''ll be coming to stay with us. She had a much bigger room at her old home, so we think it''s best if you give up your room and move into the smaller room this time, you understand, right? I know you love that doll, but think about Brooke, what she has had to give up, you understand, right? The last cookie? There will be more in the future, let Brooke have it this time, you understand right?


    Even her mother''s last words... Please, take care of Brooke, she''s your cousin, you understand, right?


    Throwing the dough upon the lightly floured side, Autumn kneaded all of her frustrations, her sadness and melancholy into it. She didn''t blame her mother, though, not really. They had all become used to revolving around Brooke; poor orphaned Brooke, who had to move in with her Aunt, Uncle and Cousin at the tender age of seven. She was pitiful, right? Didn''t have parents, didn''t have friends as she was too pretty, didn''t have the head for academics nor the talents in practical things like cooking... but she could sing and had her looks... Autumn''s mother said that Brooke was born to be a star.


    Cooking, cooking was Autumn''s thing, but that still did not her mother happy. With her size, being surrounded by the temptation of food was surely not a good thing, right? Her fingers slid against the smooth dough with satisfaction, before she placed it into the bowl to rise, a clean tea towel covering it. Ah, how long had it been since she had made bread? The squad were not chefs, did not cook at all. When they gathered food, it was mostly bulk rice, pasta and tinned food. Things that could be heated up and eaten. No real skills involved. She had once tried to volunteer to cook, at the beginning, but Brooke had wanted them both to be cautious, integrate well with the others, so that they were not abandoned and Brooke had completed her own wish by climbing into bed with Jonah.


    Autumn didn''t blame her for seeking shelter in the older man''s arms. He was strong, a bit fierce looking, but had a good heart. And Brooke was not so strong in personality to weather the storm brought by the end by herself. When they had first discovered that the illness that they had thought was just one of those viral things that seemed to make waves over the population like colds and sickness bugs, they had no idea it would lead to so much death... and worse.


    Thankfully, when Autumn had left university on leave to take care of Brooke, she had brought with her plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and other things. Sure enough, Brooke''s fridge had a couple of shop bought salads and soups, but not a lot else. Autumn had also brought with her many bottles of mountain spring water as she recalled that Brooke did not like to drink tap water. Her cousin''s fickle habit was probably what saved them in the end, though.


    Autumn glanced towards the electric oven, which she knew would not work and then to the range cooker behind her. Shaun''s friend, Paul, had cooked stir fry vegetables on that, right? They had been a little bland, but filling with the rice and frankly the refreshing taste of crisp vegetables without the processed flavour was still a delightful change to Autumn''s tastebuds. But she had never used a range before. She''d heard that they remain ''on'' though, that they constantly burned fuel. Carefully, she opened the oven door with an oven glove and instantly felt the heat.


    She sighed in wonder. It was no wonder the ugly thoughts within every person''s heart awakened yesterday. These people lived too enviously.


    As a former police officer, Jonah recognised that his men (and women) must have these thoughts; how dare these guys live so well when so many others were struggling! Dark thoughts were human nature and human nature was at its darkest when things were difficult. Worse, perhaps, when survival was at the forefront of people''s minds. Jonah also believed that not recognising their own unpleasant sides would actually make them more likely to act out; to put into action the nasty thoughts that might be morally wrong.


    Such as; why do we not rule this piece of paradise?


    So they had gathered in the large downstairs bedroom that Shaun had claimed for himself to speak of those thoughts and settle their hearts before things came to a head.


    Which was part of the reason that they had gathered in the large downstairs bedroom that Shaun had claimed for himself, to discuss things, to sound out their minds before those opinions caused friction. Likely, they already knew what the outcome of this meeting would be, but clearing the air first would settle all of them.


    Autumn, herself, hadn''t intend to add any arguments or doubts. Her thoughts were simple; to continue to live quietly and not make unnecessary waves. Well, it would be good if she could cook.


    "Dexter and the other''s truly landed on their feet," Jimmy had sighed as he stroked the thick pile carpet beneath his legs. "A house filled with luxury and a garden filled with food."


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    "Luxury is overrated," Monika had sneered, pushing the man lightly. "Stupidly big television screens, chandeliers, clawfeet bathtubs... so what! If it had been before the end, we would have arrested them for squatting!"


    There had been a few snickers at her joke. "Seriously though, can you really call it squatting now?" Jimmy had asked. "I mean, what does ''ownership'' mean nowadays. Not like anyone will do anything about deeds and rights." He had been pressing for someone else to say the words, not comfortable to be the one...


    "Want to claim all of the assets and usurp the throne?" Cole had asked with a dark tone. Autumn had not been entirely surprised that he had been the one to say these words. Those dark thoughts... they all had them, but dare not voice them. So Cole would often play the villain. Perhaps this was as he had been viewed this way for a while, being a convicted criminal, but Autumn felt that he was misunderstood. She could accept that he had done horrible things in the past, he had spent eighteen months in jail after all, but that didn''t mean he was a totally bad person. He had fought for their safety just as much as his comrades, even pushed her out of harms way once. Bad people don''t tend to save others when there is no reason to do so.


    "I get the impression that Dexter and the others are protective of that young man," Eraj mentioned.


    "That''s not really surprising when you consider he is the one who has grown all of that food!" Monika had pointed out. "Who wouldn''t look after a person who could help keep their stomachs full?" Relying on prepackaged things only helped a person so long.


    "Pfft," Eraj had pouted, slightly. "You guys never considered looking after the I.T. Department when we were the only ones helping you keep your computers working!"


    "Aw, there, there," Shaun teased, leaning over the side of his chair to pat Eraj on the head. The dark-eyed man flinched and flicked his hand away with a growl. The silliness eased the atmosphere once more. "Obviously, despite my greatness, sitting on Nathan''s little throne doesn''t interest me. There''s no wheels attached to a throne. So I''m all for going with the flow and eating one of Paul''s stir-fries. It''s been a while."


    "Who said you should sit on the throne?" Brooke had teased, slightly sharply as her hand ran up Jonah''s chest. "Surely, that''s my man''s place!" Jonah''s had eyes softened and he had kissed her forehead, affectionately. But behind her back, several eyes had rolled heavenward and Jimmy had fake gagged. Even now, Autumn felt her lips twitching in amusement of the memory.


    "I''d say Jonah''s more a minister of war or justice type of person," Shaun had continued to joke. "Someone who would ensure the safety of the Empire and its people with his actions, rather than sit on a hard throne and make everyone do his bidding."


    "He''s not wrong," Jonah had rubbed the stubble upon his face, before squeezing gentle the woman in his arms and saying; "But you''ll always be my Empress."


    "Now I really think I''m going to be sick!" Jimmy had claimed. They had continued to discuss things for a while, but not everything was settled as they had been called for dinner. And perhaps because things had been left that way, Autumn hadn''t felt right, had felt like an intruder in the other squad''s turf. Hence why she was placing a loaf-tin filled with bread dough into the oven and thinking over just what she could bake next...

 Chapter 41 Chapter Forty One - A Treasure that Blooms

    It was a little less than two hours after sunrise when others began rising from their beds, the scent of bread and cinnamon rousing them from their dreams. Yawns and shuffling feet filled the air with sound as the curious padded down the stairs to figure out where the heavenly scents were coming from. In fact, as they crowded around the kitchen entrance, they noticed that the kitchen table had been covered in a cloth and several plates placed upon it. And upon those plates were slices of toast, some that smelled of cinnamon, sliced apple pieces and halved plums that were glistening, with heat rising from the rich flesh. There was also the pot of opened marmalade, a pot of coffee and another of tea.


    Patrick was already sitting at the table gleefully looking over the spread, ready to eat, but refraining himself with difficulty. He had been here a while, wanting to grab a cup of coffee before Tyler could restrict the amount of sugar he added to the beverage. He''d found one of the two girl cousins, Autumn cooking and couldn''t help but drool as the scent of roasting plums emanated from the oven. She''d worried over the fact she was using the kitchen without permission, but Patrick had dismissed her concerns. They were men bound by their stomachs and her food was about to fill them; there was no way they''d be upset and even if they were, judging from the heavenly aroma''s, it would not be for long.


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    And so the pair had begun to chat about what Autumn was baking and the girl had expressed her wish to make cinnamon toast to go with the baked plums, but in the absence of butter was worried for the outcome. Thus they had mixed a little oil with the spice and sweetener, but it didn''t spread upon the thin cut crust as well as she would like. Patrick had had an epiphany; what about the mutated apples? Not only was the contents of the Apple-shaped shell soft and oozed oil, it was a tad sweet in it''s fresh ingredients flavour. They had struggled to open one, but one they did, Autumn was able to mash the oily fruit together with the sugar and cinnamon and produce something more familiar. Patrick couldn''t wait to taste it.


    Autumn, who was standing holding a bowl of toasted nuts to add to the table, glanced up and noticed all of the large, hungry eyed men currently staring at her, as well as a wide eyed teenager and the two other women. "Ah, I hope you don''t mind," she said, paling a little. "I cooked breakfast..." the volume of her voice became smaller with every word as she wondered if she hadn''t gotten carried away. After all, this was the food that Dexter and his men had gathered... although Patrick had encouraged her, even helped her... she had still used a good amount of the ingredients without permission.


    The oriental man that the others called Ren gave her a slight smile, his eyes like crescent moons as he said; "I am going to call for Nathan. He and Lucy would like this breakfast, I believe."


    "He''s not in the house?" Autumn wondered aloud, but he had already disappeared from sight. The other newcomers were also curious; the house was large and secure, why live elsewhere?


    "Nathan doesn''t do well with lots of noise or people," Dexter said as he came in first to snag a piece of cinnamon toast. "He lives in a cottage in the gardens. Little Lucy took a shine to him, so she and the dog moved in with him."


    "Oi!" Patrick complained as Dexter took a large bite of the toast. He''d been waiting the longest, he couldn''t wait to taste the adapted toast recipe that he''d helped come up with, so why did Dexter get to eat first?


    "Autumn, you... you can cook?" Jimmy stared wide eyed as other shuffled past him to grab a plate and pile it with food.


    "Hey! At least wait for everyone!" Patrick pouted, but quickly placed a piece of toast onto his plate before it all vanished.


    "I can make more," Autumn reassured him, thinking of the other loaf she had left aside. She had ended up baking two loaves of bread, thinking it could be saved for lunch and dinner. There were a lot of mouths to feed after all. However, she''d used more than half a bag of flour in producing them, which made her feel a bit guilty.


    "You can cook..." Jimmy repeated, so why had they suffered so long on tin veg and soups?


    "Be nice," Jonah told him, giving his girl''s cousin a tap on the shoulder in encouragement. "It''s not like we had a working oven or decent ingredients for her to work with."


    "But..." Jimmy sighed heavily. That was not the point! He''d had to heat up all the food for the last three months to feed everyone!


    An adorable tiny face appeared, peering over the edge of the table and small chubby fingers reached for a piece of toast. Autumn melted. "Let me help," she said and broke up a piece of cinnamon toast upon a plate as well as checked the temperature of a plum and cut it into small chunks for the girl. Lucy rewarded her with a grin.


    As every last crumb was eaten and the beverages vanished, so did most of the kitchen occupants. No one wanted to deal with the washing up. Tyler sighed and complained about lazy-arsed men as he filled up the water bottles Autumn had used to make the drinks. The girl just giggled and placed freshly boiled water into the sink in order to clear up. "Ah, thank you for the breakfast," Tyler said, politely expressing his gratitude.


    "It''s okay," Autumn blushed. "I like to cook."


    "That''s all well and good," Tyler replied, a little bluntly, startling the young woman, "but if you wouldn''t mind speaking to me about it in the future."


    "Oh, okay," Autumn''s expression fell and the sense of guilt that had vanished as she''d watched everyone enjoying her food swelled to larger proportions.


    "It''s only that I need to keep an eye on our supplies," Tyler continued. "You''ve seen that lot, if I hadn''t kept a tight rein on our food, they probably would have consumed it all by now... well mostly. There would still be flour and a few other things. None of us can cook anything beyond simple meals. We haven''t had bread since a couple of days after the end."


    Autumn smiled, realising that he was not angry, just concerned and continued to listen to the man''s complaints.


    "Somethings can be replaced, thanks to Nathan''s garden and abilities," he glanced outside the window to see the young man pottering once more in amongst the vegetable beds. He hadn''t come in for breakfast, there had been too many people although the noise level had been low enough with all mouths stuffed full. He''d eaten some toast and jam in the garden with Ren Zexian, before getting to work. "But others can''t be. That''s why there''s a rule that we can only have one cup of tea of coffee a day. It didn''t go down well at first, but they will be the ones complaining when we no longer have access to caffeine!"


    Autumn giggled beneath her breath. It seemed Tyler was very much a man with a sharp tongue, wide eyes and soft heart. "I used a fair bit of flour," she admitted.


    "Yes, well," Tyler said, partially in agreement. "It''s not like it was doing anything else sitting there in the cupboard. And when it is gone, it is gone, can''t do much about it."


    "But we can replace it," Jonah had been passing the kitchen after discussing a few things with Dexter.


    Jonah did not want his squad to become lazy and lax; a burden on this new base, eating without doing much else. Yeah, relaxing a little, after the vigilant days sweeping through property after property, struggling with evolving undead and the horrifying realisation that their own base was no longer secure, was necessary. It would boost the moral and minds of his people and would be good for his girl and their unborn child. But Jonah wasn''t the sort of person to leave debts unpaid. Dexter took them in. His squad needed to work to pay them back, but what could they do?


    Sure, Dex and the guys were still building the wall, so man power was needed. But it was not as if any of his people particularly had any ability in construction work. Listening to Tyler and Autumn talk about supplies made him think about heading back out, in a few days, to grab more for all of them, as well as... "The fields were seeded just before the apocalypse and although they haven''t been tended to, some of the crops have survived; we noticed on the way here. We can probably grab some wheat grain, maybe some more corn and potatoes."


    "We''d probably want to plant the grain," Dexter rubbed the stubble upon his cheeks. "That''s if anyone knows how to make flour from wheat, anyway."


    "I do," Autumn admitted. They''d learned that in school and as it happened to be associated to food, she had remembered it well. Grinding the grains might be difficult though... "and if it helps, I also know some ways to make vinegar and yeast."


    "Vinegar... can you make pickles?" Tyler asked, his mind always considering ways of preserving food for a comfortable winter. She nodded in agreement. Tyler began to mutter beneath his breath, wondering how many decent empty jars they had, before firing questions at her regarding equipment and ingredients.


    As the pair discussed things, Dexter felt a bit of the weight lift from his shoulders that he hadn''t realised he''d been carrying. It seems he''d been as worried as Tyler about getting through this winter and the early spring. Not to mention future ones when their supplies of tinned and packaged food would be even less. If the young woman had some knowledge on how to preserve food, it was priceless thing. "This girl," he murmured quietly to Jonah, his eyes curving as his smile grew wider, "you didn''t realise that you''d found such a treasure, did you?"


    "No clue," Jonah admitted, giving this girl who''d stood in her cousin''s shadow quietly for so long a second look. It was hard to imagine that the girls were cousins that had grown up together; his bright, little Brooke and the quiet, plain Autumn. A smile appeared upon his own face; he was glad the girl had found some place to bloom. Maybe, his Brooke would stop worrying about her so much now.

 Chapter 42 Chapter Forty Two - The Difference Between Water and Ice

    An expedition was planned and discussed and finally agreed upon. Some of members of the two former squads would leave the safety of the base to see about gathering grain as well as visiting a few places on the industrial outskirts of town that might hold supplies of seed, plants as well as other things that might be useful in the future and the remaining members would remain behind and protect the base.


    As the one to propose the mission, Jonah wished to be in charge of it and where he went, his officers followed. Cole wished to go as well; although the base was spacious, there was still a wall of stone, brick and thick hedgerows about it. This, in his mind, was too close to remaining incarcerated and made him antsy. The children were naturally remaining behind, as was Nathan, who despite having the plant ability that would be very useful where mutant plants were sprouting upon every corner, could not be separated from his garden. The two cousins were to remain, Brooke as she was pregnant and Autumn as she was expected to look after Brooke. Harry, Winston and Paul felt that there were enough non-ability users leaving so opted to stay and Paul argued with Shaun until the latter gave him the silent treatment about him staying behind as well.


    "Actually, I agree with Paul," Jonah told him, "you should remain behind this time."


    "But I have an ability," Shaun insisted, "I will be useful."


    "I''m not denying that," Jonah replied. "But we''ll be in a field part of the time with weeds and uneven ground. Your chair won''t cope well. Next time, maybe."


    "You should take Tyler," Dexter advised him. Dexter was a powerful ability user and would have been good to have upon the team, but it wasn''t good to have too many cooks in a kitchen or more than one leader on a team. Not that Dexter minded handing the reigns to someone like Jonah, but if some of his people were to go, they''d look to him first, so he was in charge of those staying behind. "And maybe Patrick for some additional fire power."


    "Yay!" Patrick cheered, he knew he needed some more hands on experience to continue to develop control over his abilities, so he was okay with this.


    Tyler was not so much. "Is it really necessary for me to go?"


    "With you there, they don''t need to worry about supplies of water," Dexter reminded him. "You can just make it as you go."


    Brooke frowned as she heard these words. "Make it? You can make water with your powers?" She''d not been able to do this. She could manipulate it somewhat, like make a bit jump from someone else''s cup to her own and she could locate reasonable sized volumes of it (not like water vapour or dew on grass, that would just mean she''d become confused all of the time), but she''d never created it herself.


    "Yeah," Tyler agreed, before recalling that Jonah mentioned Brooke had some affinity to water. "Not only me, but Nathan as well. Of course, I can make greater volumes than him having trained well." Both Dexter and Patrick rolled their eyes heavenward due to this statement, but Tyler did not notice.


    "Really," The girl smiled and her eyes sparkled. She really was a pretty girl and would have been Tyler''s type before the end. But he never went after women who were taken. "Do you think I can learn how to do that?"


    "I don''t know," Tyler replied, honestly. "For that, you should ask our resident expert."


    "Yeah, where is Ren, anyway?" Dexter asked, noticing the oriental man was not around. He was not with Nathan either.


    "Meditating on the roof," Patrick told him.


    "Meditating?" Jonah scoffed; he was sceptical about such things, though his old sister used to do Yoga and claimed it was good for the body, the mind and the soul. He''d just thought it was embarrassing doing all those weird poses. What ''downward facing dog'' pose!?


    Dexter tried to explain a bit, about how, as strange as it sounded, Ren had encouraged those with abilities to meditate, which actually improved those abilities and made them stronger. He''d also awakened abilities in Patrick, which is why the flaxen haired man had them now, though he was an ordinary person before the old base fell. Jonah accepted his statement, even if he still found it hard to believe. After all, zombies were getting stronger and gaining abilities, why not people?


    "Then, he can teach me to produce water?" Brooke asked, eagerly, her eyes flashing brightly.


    "You''d really need to ask him," Tyler replied, bluntly, recalling Ren Zexian''s lecture on roots. He wasn''t about to get this girl''s hopes up when the truth was that she might never be able to do what she wanted.


    "Ask me what?"


    The gently smiling, oriental man walked into the kitchen, where they were gathered, as smoothly as if he was floating upon air. His long, midnight hair had been deftly pulled through a metal band and kept in place by a golden hair pin. It was as if he had walked off of the set of a Chinese martial arts movie. Dexter''s people were used to his appearance by this time, to them, it was of no mind to witness him wandering, silently into view dressed in old-style, foreign clothing. However, there was a couple of Jonah''s people who wanted to offer him style tips and a haircut.


    Brooke was one of these. He was a man, how was it possible that his hair was so much more luxurious than her own used to be?! However, if he was truly able to help her, she needed to swallow her opinion whole and humbly request his assistance. "They said you can teach me to create water!"


    "I would have to ask your permission to check your pulse and spiritual energy before I can confirm such. May I?" He held out a hand that looked pale and ideally formed, like that of a marble statue. She held out her tanned one, feeling that her golden flesh was, at least, more attractive than his, even if her skin was lamenting the lack of available moisturiser at the moment. The man gently pressed his fingers against the flesh of her wrist. A strange sensation trickled along the inside of her arm, causing her to shiver. After a moment, he released her wrist and stepped away. "I am afraid that it would not be possible for you to create water."


    The young woman frowned, unhappily. "But why not?" She asked, with a slight whine to her tone. "Tyler has the water ability, like me and can do it!"


    "Your root is that of Ice, a lesser root to Tyler''s root of water," Ren Zexian explained. "Thus it is not possible for you." Tyler sighed, inwardly. He''d suspected as much. He''d produced water on the day following the appearance of zombies in town, accidentally spraying a person that was about to drink from a suspected contaminated source. If Brooke hadn''t created water in these past months, it was unlikely that she ever would.


    "Then... I can produce Ice?" Brooke asked in question.


    "It is just a name," Ren Zexian shook his head. "A way of distinguishing a minor root from its major one. However, although you would not be able to create your own water nor ice, you could learn to manipulate existing water and turn it into ice or even into steam." There was no condemnation in his voice, no ridicule, but the girl could only hear that her powers were weak. She was not as good as Tyler.


    Jonah didn''t like seeing his girl so unhappy. "That''s still good, right baby?"


    "I guess," Brooke said, softly, but offered Jonah a small smile.


    "Oh, congratulations on your little one," Ren Zexian added, however his eyes had caught sight of a moving silhouette in the garden and his attention had shifted somewhat. "It''s life force is very stable."


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    "Thanks," Brooke sighed inwardly even as Jonah''s grin became so wide it nearly split his face in two.


    "You should also take Ren out," Dexter suggested, suddenly. "He''s more powerful than me and also uses a sword. If you meet any trouble he''d be a great help." The oriental man glanced back, questioning this statement. Dexter quickly explained; "Ren, Jonah''s men are thinking about going out and gathering somethings like wheat grain so we can produce flour in the future and more seeds for Nathan. What do you think, could you help them out?"


    The Squad leader only needed to mention the young gardener in his request in order to gain Ren Zexian''s attention. Sure enough, the man''s black eyes sparkled like gems and a smile appeared upon his face. Brooke''s mood became even more sour. His appearance was somehow inhumanly handsome and yet was also ridiculously beautiful! "That should not be a problem," came the reply.

 Chapter 43 Chapter Forty Three - A Little Space and Time

    "Nathan."


    It wasn''t the fact his name had been called that had the young man drop immediately the hoe he had been using onto the grass beside the green vegetable patch, but he who spoke it. The smooth, level tone of the voice never seemed too much for his ears and always seemed to pierce through any background noise that might threaten to otherwise overwhelm him. It had been especially noisy the past few days and several times the urge to drive them all from the house rose within him and as if on cue, he would appear and make everything well again.


    His eyes met those obsidian ones and his heart skipped within his chest, the thumping within him drowning out all other sounds and the warm feeling within his gut began to spread outwards. The garden seemed that much greener and vibrant around the man approaching him, the last of the late blossoming flowers upon squash vines and closed buds of pea vines all seemed to burst open to greet him. A gentle breeze brushed past the thick, midnight hair which, despite being tamed into a long rope of silk that stretched down his back, danced with the touch of the wind. Nathan''s fingers itched to touch it.


    "Nathan," Ren Zexian said softly once more, calling for Nathan''s attentions and waiting as his pretty eyes shifted in focus. The boy blinked a few times and managed to maintain eye contact with the older man for a few more seconds before instinctively glancing aside. Ren Zexian still felt pride swell within him, for the young man was able to connect with him for longer periods of time each day, while with others, even young Lucy, who was standing close by pulling tufts of grass from the flower bed, he could not meet their eyes for more that a handful of seconds.


    "Nathan, I will be leaving shortly," Ren Zexian told him and suddenly, the world looked a little more grey. Ren Zexian had already mentioned to him that he would be joining a few of the others and leaving the mansion for a couple of days or so. This expedition counted as important for supplementing their winter supplies. Not only that, Ren Zexian wished to bring to him new seed for his garden that in the spring, he could expand and grow more. There were even other gardens that they would be looking after in the future.


    Nathan''s imagination was not rich. However, he had a dream in which Ren Zexian working in the soil beside him with freshly budding plants eager to spread their first leaves against their fingers and his thoughts even extended to allow quiet little Lucy with her watering can to aid them and Aslan digging holes in order to break up hard ground for seeding. Dogs dug holes sometimes, didn''t they? Yet, not being able to see Ren Zexian, even for one day, this caused an ache in his chest that he did not know how to deal with. He''d tried taking a couple of paracetamol the day before, but the ache never went away. And now Ren Zexian had said the time had come; he was leaving.


    "I''ll be back before you know it," the man was saying, sensing that Nathan was not really receptive to his words. He sighed, also not wishing to separate from the boy, but to a man of his many years, these days would pass within a heartbeat, thus he could not understand why Nathan was so quick to retreat inside himself over this short period of time. His hand extended, longing to reach for the boy and reassure him, but he paused with an inward sigh and instead bent his knees to ruffle Lucy''s tangled nest of hair.


    The little girl looked up at him, before glancing at her big brother, who was picking up his abandoned hoe, and quickly grabbed the handing messing with her hair. She then reached for Nathan''s free hand, which was almost snatched away in surprise, before bringing both together. The men looked at their touching hands for a brief moment before their fingers tangled together contentedly. Little Lucy nodded her head, feeling pleased with her small self before skipping away.


    *****


    Before the sun had reached its zenith, the squad left in the large truck. Since road safety laws are pretty much useless in a world where there is no one around to enforce them, most of the squad sat in the back of the truck. The vehicle had once ferried goods around the country, but had been abandoned upon a length of duel-carriageway that linked many towns in this part. Alas, it had been on a return journey, so instead of being filled with anything useful, it was empty barring a bit of packaging and cardboard when Jonah''s men had claimed it.


    Still, its size and the healthy tank of diesel had been its positives and even now, there was half a tank remaining before they would need to find more fuel or resign it to parts and a storage space. For now, it zoomed down the quiet stretch of road, smashing into the odd, wandering zombie that the noise attracted into its path. Jimmy flipped on the windscreen wipers only to smear the green-grey flesh across the glass and had to rely on water from the jets to gain some visibility.


    "The plan is," Jonah was reminding them, "to hit the industrial area to the south of the town. There is a few food-stores as well as places originally for buying home improvement items, garden products and a large clothing store. I''m sure the ladies could do with a few more outfits and Brooke will be needing some maternity wear. The kids are still growing as well, and I noticed that all of Lucy''s stuff are boy clothes."


    "How adorable will she look in a dress?!" Jimmy gushed. Tyler almost nodded in agreement, only Monika''s words made in pause.


    "I swear," she teased, "you are more of a girl than I am!"


    "How is appreciating the cuteness of a toddler being girly?" Jimmy huffed, grumpily. He''d always liked kids and had once hoped to find a girl to have a whole heap of rugrats with. Nieces and nephews were nice enough, but he always believed it wasn''t the same as having your own.


    "My cousin had three brats," Arthur mentioned, "all three of them rough and tumble boys and not adorable at all." The three bickered as they compared their family''s offspring for a while. It was the sort of conversation that would not have seemed out of place before the end, but now... Tyler exchanged glances with Patrick, who simply shrugged. Their team chose to bury within their hearts their lost loved ones, some who turned, some who lost their lives and others whose fates were still unknown, yet Jonah''s men spoke openly about them. They could only accept that this was their way of dealing with things, remembering those loved ones as if they were still out there, somewhere and forgetting the bleakness of the current world.


    "Yeah, yeah, yeah," Jonah pitched in when things became heated between the terrible trio, as he''d long since labelled them in his head. "Your family''s children are all great, but my baby will be the most cute."


    The three turned to glare at him, incredulously, while Cole chuckled into his hand. "Pick on us single dogs, why don''t you!" Jimmy complained.


    "Anyway, back to the mission at hand," Jonah sighed, changing the topic. "The priority is clothes, cloth and seeds. Bedding, thick curtains and duvets are also needed as we don''t know how cold winter will be and can''t rely on fires all of the time. Coal, charcoal and wood for the fireplace. The food stores and supermarket are most likely void of food, we''ve hit it ourselves a couple of times way back, but if there is any toilet paper or soap products left, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to grab them."


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    "There''s a carpet store," Jimmy mentioned, recalling vaguely what was in that area, maybe grab some thick rugs to line the floors with?" Not every room in the house had carpet, the bathrooms and kitchen had stone tiles, which would be particularly cold even in a mild winter.


    "Not a bad idea," Jonah conceded, "but there''s limited space in the van. We still got to get ourselves back and stop off to grab some wheat from one of those fields." The golden grasses were swaying in the wind close by, but unlike previous years, the fields were woven with green as weeds had freely burst through the field''s soil and oppressed the wheat''s free reign. Not only that, but any pests that liked to feast upon the growing grains would have not been suppressed. However, they were not in need of a great deal of wheat, just enough that they could start their own small field of it once Spring arrived again.


    "Gaining space should not be too difficult," Ren Zexian mentioned suddenly. He placed most importance upon the seed and wheat, but also felt that Nathan''s comfort through the Winter could not be denied. If they could have everything they sought, would that not be the best scenario?


    He reached into the pouch that he always wore by his side and thought for a moment, before withdrawing an almost identical pouch, only differing in embroidery and decorative beads. Only Tyler and Patrick''s eyes did not widen in disbelief, they were used to weird things occurring about Ren Zexian. The others thought they were seeing things, for the pouch was not smaller than the first and neither were more than a fist in size... how did the second pouch fit into the first with all its ornaments and all and the first pouch not look stuffed originally?


    "Admittedly, one can only fit around five metres squared of contents within," Ren Zexian spoke of his spare interspacial pouch in a modest tone, "but that should be of some assistance..." Finally noticing all eyes on him and jaws dropped, he frowned as he asked; "What? You look as if you have never seen an embroidered pouch before."

 Chapter 44 Chapter Forty Four - In the Footsteps of Saints and Fools

    The first visited the clothing store, a generally cheap, budget place with basics in bulk as well as an affordable fashion range. Unsurprisingly, they were not the first to have come to raid the store. Cole waited in the truck as both lookout for survivors and zombies, while the rest of the squad crunched the shattered glass beneath their feet as they carefully entered. Monika and Jimmy had their guns raised, cautiously glancing around for movement, but the place was completely abandoned. If there had been any zombies, which was unlikely as most had turned while sick in their beds, they had long since escaped thanks to whoever broke in.


    Monika claimed it must have been a group of men and from the evidence, Jonah couldn''t help agree. The apocalypse began around late March and early April, the garments available to purchase had already significantly changed from winter coats and knitwear to bikini''s and shorts. However, some things were always available, such as underwear, but the men in the squad could not find any packets of boxers and y-fronts left to steal, although Jimmy did find a few pairs of valentines boxers with lewd messages on them at the bottom of a sale bin.


    Men''s socks had also been thoroughly raided, but not to such a degree; bundles of thick socks had been left behind. They also did not take many pairs of jeans, but the shorts had all been taken, suggesting that not only did they come at the height of the summer, when the weather had been very oppressive, they also lacked foresight. They''d focused on warm weather items and lighter products, for a great deal of the t-shirts had also been taken. Packet shirts as well, probably because they were already neatly packed away for convenient removal. Anything they disliked had been left behind or did not find necessary, such as a few very loud Hawaiian shirts, suit trousers and leather shoes. Likewise, the squad had no use for leather shoes, they were too impractical now, however, the few pairs of trainers remaining were too useful to be left behind.


    The previous raiders had clearly visited the women''s area as well and had chosen to take packets of thongs, Brazilian cut briefs, but left the large, full briefs. So wherever they hailed from had women, but those women were unlikely to be impressed by the raider''s choices. They''d played around in the bikini''s, but left most of them strewn about the floor, lowering even further the squad''s opinion of them. Finally, they''d taken shorts and t-shirts, much like what they had raided in the men''s section.


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    "What complete idiots," Monika spat, disgusted.


    "Leave it," Jonah suggested. "Their lack of brains only works in our favour."


    The children''s section was hardly disturbed, they took a bit of everything, above a certain age group, but had hardly touched the area with the toddler things and the baby''s area had been completely ignored. That made Jonah very happy as he dithered first over the sweet dresses, cute two piece outfits and a tiny waistcoat for a boy. In the end, he picked a few nice pieces, but went for the practicality of packets of white vests and sleep suits in bulk and in all sizes.


    Monika chose to gather what jeans and trousers she could for the women and any decent tops. There were not many of them compared to the men in their base, they needed less things. She did not forget to add bra''s, knowing their sizes already and maternity wear for Brooke. She did not disdain the packets of full briefs and shorts either.


    Soon there was a heap of sweatpants, jeans and shirts pushed to the corner of the van; they used Ren Zexian''s interspacial bag for the smaller things. However, they still lacked decent winter wear. The few sweaters and hoodies from the exercise department were good, but they really needed coats. Raincoats were alright, but too thin for if the winter turned too cold. Jimmy and Arthur checked in the store''s warehouse and although they did not find anything there, they did come back with a box of mens underwear that they had found. That was a reason to cheer.


    They gave up on finding thick coats and woollen jumpers, although all of the girls, no matter their age, had a supply of cardigans, including a few baby ones. Jonah reasoned that his ''son'' would just have to learn to like pink.


    After that, they headed to a home improvements store and found it too had been raided at some point. The vegetable seeds were nowhere to be found having been stolen away already and this time, the squad were not lucky enough to find any in the warehouse either. Things like miniature and large plastic greenhouses were also gone as had many gardening tools, though a few odd ones did remain for them to claim. The yard to the side of the store had not been left untouched; bags of fertile soil and pots had gone as well as many plants. There were a few left, likely most had once been ornamental or flowers, but most had withered, stuck in their pots as they were and a lot had died. One had mutated into a massive, monstrosity of twisted stems and thorns, it''s purple roses producing a sickly, sweet smell.


    Jonah immediately wanted to deal with it, but Ren Zexian shook his head believing that it was not a threat, thus it was left alone.


    "This lime tree still has a few leaves, do you think it can be saved?" Arthur asked anyone who was listening, having found the dying tree off to one side.


    "Bring it back for Nathan," Ren Zexian said, as he looked at the half-metre high plant . "He can save it."


    "You sound confident in his abilities," Jonah mentioned, lightly. He''d not had too many interactions with the boy, but understood from others that he had autistic traits, part of why he wasn''t so sociable. Yet, he definitely had talents if he could maintain a garden of that scale, no amount of learning difficulties were holding him back from doing what he loved.


    "Nathan awakened two abilities," Ren Zexian replied. "He can make water, as can Tyler, but he also has an affinity to plants."


    Jonah''s thick eyebrows rose upward in surprise. "No wonder his garden is so healthy!"


    Tyler snorted; "that boy eat, sleeps and breaths gardening! No amount of special ability could change that!" Ren Zexian did not get angry due to Tyler''s sharp words, how could he, they were too accurate. Instead he chuckled lightly as he helped pick up another badly withered tree that stated it''s fruit were ''olives''. Tyler gave their small finds some water, less they die completely on route home.


    Jimmy came running into the yard with a grin upon his face. "Look what I found in the gift department!" He carried with him a cream box about the length of Monika''s lower arm.


    "What is it?" Jonah asked, slightly impatiently as Jimmy bounced upon the balls of his feet before him.


    "Look!" He turned the box around and the label became clear.


    "Jimmy, you beauty!" Jonah praised him as he took the box into his own arms. Monika peered over his shoulders to see that it was a ''Grow your own mushrooms'' kit, something that had gained a bit of popularity in the few months before the end. Naturally, they claimed the five kits they found upon the shelves. Randomly, they also found a ''grow your own tea'' set as well as aromatic herbs and hot-chilli''s. While these were not necessarily the seeds they''d been seeking, they would not go to waste either. They counted themselves fortunate that their predecessors overlooked these things.


    Thanks to their luck of discovering these, they wandered deeper into the store, seeing if there was any other small surprises that they could profit from. Ren Zexian wandered along side Patrick and marvelled over the feats of ingenuity that these people had produced before the end; such as the ''mitre saw'' used to cut through wood effortlessly and the ''lawn mower'', a machine for cutting grass for ornamental purposes. However these machines required the electricity which they could not currently produce.


    "Ah, but that mower is manual," Patrick, who had been answering his questions one by one, pointed out. "It doesn''t work on electric. It would probably come in handy, keep the grass short and the cuttings can probably be composted." Thus, they claimed one of these lawn mowers.


    The others found logs of wood for fireplaces and charcoal briquettes, but also grabbed a few hand tools, quick-mix plaster and glue. After all, they would be doing their own D.I.Y from now on. They did think about taking bricks and concrete for the wall, but decided to leave it for now. Space was at a premium, even with Ren''s ''magic'' bag and they were far from finishing this raiding trip.

 Chapter 45 Chapter Forty Five - The Roses Reflect His Feelings

    The warm weather had already begun to fade; the sun was not so dominant in the sky during the day, sharing more often than not with thickened clouds. But at the same time, the winds still had a modicum of warmth, the bitter air from the north was not being swept in their direction. So it was only after she had dug out a cashmere cardigan from a large walk-in wardrobe from a room that had been left alone as it belonged to the house''s previous occupants, did Brooke emerge from the house intending on getting a little fresh air.


    She''d been sick all morning, the contents of her breakfast flushed down a toilet and although she had brushed her teeth, there was still the bitterness of the experience on her tongue. Feeling restless afterwards, she''d wanted to get a little fresh air to clear her head and the remnant nausea. Ugh, this was so not what she had expected once she had clung onto the thick thigh of Jonah!


    Still, she thought as she rubbed the expensive and soft material of the cardigan between her fingers, there were still a few perks to be had.


    The front of the large mansion remained the home to an array of flowers, many of which roses, a flower that Brooke felt was old fashioned. One of her previous boyfriends had sent her a dozen red ones once, which would have been okay had the thorns all been removed. The scar on her finger tip remained noticeable if one looked hard enough and since then, she had not been too fond of the flower. The buds here were a peachy colour, some in full bloom, others still budding and the perfume was heady, yet actually settling her nausea, so naturally she bent to inhale the aroma a little more.


    Only, when she touched the silken petals of one, it began to sag visibly upon her fingers. Glancing around, she noticed that all of the roses were drooping and they were not the only ones. "What''s going on?" She wondered aloud.


    "Ah," came a heavy sigh and she spun around to see the muscular body of Dexter approaching the place where she stood. He wasn''t really a handsome man, his brown hair was choppy and dry, his skin clearly weathered to the point he''d developed lines about his eyes despite still looking like he hadn''t yet left his twenties. He squinted in bright light making his eyes seem small and his jaw was a bit too prominent for his features. Still, he was obviously a strong man, not only physically, but having developed an ability as well and he was a fair bit younger than Jonah. In his hand he held a bucket, suggesting that he''d been taking a mix of vegetable scraps, grass and bits of left over grain to feed the sheep before he heard her complaint. "I''m guessing this has something to do with Nathan."


    "The gardening boy?" Brooke questioned, glancing over Dexter''s figure as he lazily moved. That boy was about the same age as she and her cousin and was good looking, in a cute, but innocent way. He would have been the sort she bullied in high school, the boys would cry in the toilets after she''d said a few mean words. Her memories of that time were hazy; not because she was trying to forget some shameful past or anything, just that she didn''t bother to remember it. School was school. All teenagers were brats in high school! "But surely he''s up to his knees in dirt in the back garden?!"


    Dexter looked down on her in question, his thick brows raised. "Ordinarily, I might agree with you. But he''s not been out of the cottage since the others left." Since Ren left, he thought to himself. "Autumn has been harvesting the vegetables for the past couple of days. The rest of us can''t tell a ripe courgette from a rotten one. Even your cousin told me that she''s a bit unsure, too used to picking up stuff from the supermarket shelves. Still, at least she can tell if it''s edible."


    The girl tempered down the irritability building in her stomach. "Okay, but what''s that got to do with wilting flowers?"


    "You are aware that Nathan has plant abilities as well as water abilities?" Dexter asked her and she couldn''t help cross her arms about her chest. Of course she was aware! Wasn''t mentioning rubbing salt in her wounds? She''d been so proud to develop her ability that helped lead the squad to sources of clean water, proving her usefulness and worth! But now that there were two men who could produce water from thin air, what use was she? That and that stupid Ren refused to teach her how to do that herself. Some excuse about not having the right ''root''! He was clearly just some weirdo chauvinist!


    Her internal monologue was interrupted as he continued; "This garden, every plant, every flower, every blade of grass is somehow connected to him. If he''s in trouble, much of this garden will come alive to protect him. If he wanted shade, the trees move to accommodate him. If he''s upset, I''m guessing..." he pointed to the wilting flowers.


    "Alright," Brooke found it a bit of a stretch to believe, but through out her pessimism for a little open mindedness. However, while she was not stupid, she could not understand why that boy was so unhappy all of the time. The first squad treated him like some fragile treasure, accommodating him so much; everyone had to be a bit quieter around him and not make loud or sudden noises, they had to respect his garden and everything in it, they had to leave his parents bedroom alone as if it were some sort of shrine! Even that ugly, black hound didn''t bark or growl much around him! Being treated like a little prince, what did he have to be unhappy about?


    *****


    Autumn placed three of the Chinese pancakes she''d made upon a plate before adding this upon a tray with two small bowls of the two fillings she''d prepared; marinated cauliflower and shredded green vegetables, both drizzled with a little hoisin sauce she''d found hiding in the back of a cupboard. "Li Liang," she called to the young Asian boy as he brought his already emptied plate to the sink. "Would you mind grabbing that bowl of white rice?"


    The boy obediently did so before asking as she picked up the tray; "Where are we going?"


    "Nathan and Lucy haven''t left that cottage all day, again," Autumn explained. "And I''m not sure if they''ve eaten anything today." As she spoke, she wandered over to the small cottage to the side of the large garden, weaving carefully through the strange array of plants either side of the small path leading to the front door, with Nan Li Liang following, before knocking lightly. She waited a while, wondering if her knock had been loud enough, but the door suddenly opened and she watched as a blond, little head peered around it.


    Lucy gave the woman a bright smile and Autumn couldn''t help but return it. The little girl was just too cute! "I brought something for both you and Nathan to eat," she told her in a low voice.


    The child hopped down from the small stall behind the door and picked it up to move it out of the way, allowing Autumn and Nan Li Liang entry into the cosy building. Her eyes couldn''t help but glance about and inwardly she felt that this place was nice. It was homely and more inviting than the large, stately property that she and the others were freeloading inside. She placed the tray down upon the heavy wood table in the centre of the open plan living space, watching as the little girl ran into one of the rooms at the side of the cottage, before dragging out a listless looking youth.


    Although Nathan was about the same age as herself and her cousin, his face was more youthful, despite his usually indifferent expression. He stirred in her protective feelings, just as did Lucy; neither seemed suited to the harshness of the apocalypse, the former seeming too innocent and the latter too young. "Um, I don''t know what you like to eat," Autumn said in a low, but fast tone, wincing as she saw a startled glint in Nathan''s eyes. She wasn''t sure what she''d done to disturb him, but she remembered Dexter''s words and tried to keep her own voice calm as she added; "I hope these pancakes are okay."


    Seeing his blue eyes dull slightly, she couldn''t help but frown a bit, but was quickly distracted by the small hand reaching for one of the fried, batter circles. Gently she asked; "have you washed your hands?"


    The little girl paused and retreated a step, before tugging on Nathan''s sleeve. The youth automatically picked her up and took her to the sink in order to do so. In that short time, the obvious stiffness in the boy''s gait had also relaxed a bit and he returned, with Lucy, less reluctantly. Nan Li Liang had already placed the rice upon the table and was indulging his curiosity, looking around the cottage. Autumn wrapped some of the vegetables in one of the pancakes, cut it in two and handed it to Lucy. Nathan copied her movement, filling a pancake and munching on the crunchy contents.


    A couple of minutes later, the boy surprised her as he spoke in his quiet voice; "These are my vegetables?"


    Autumn paused, before nodding. "Yes, I hope you don''t mind. I was very carefully in harvesting them."


    "I don''t mind," Nathan replied and took another bite.


    Lucy made a satisfied sound, before tearing a piece off of her pancake and stretching out her hand. A large pink tongue swept the offering from her palm before disappearing into his black muzzle. Autumn flinched, where had Aslan appeared from?! She was not so good with large dogs, not frightened per se, but before the end, she always avoided ones that were not leashed. Neither Nathan nor Lucy, though took any notice regarding his sudden appearance.


    Autumn thought it was time to tactfully retreat; she''d delivered this evening''s meal for them and they seemed to have liked it. She indicated to Nan Li Liang that he should leave with her. But before they could take more than a couple of steps back, Nathan said aloud; "You should save the rice in the future. I don''t need it. Ren Zexian likes rice a lot."


    Autumn gave a small sigh, wondering how to deal with his request. "The rice... we probably only have enough to last the winter, it''s a shame."


    Nathan nodded in agreement, before swallowing the hefty bite within his mouth. "I can''t grow rice, I don''t have the seed as it doesn''t grow in this country. Otherwise, I''d grow lots of it for Ren Zexian."


    Autumn glanced at his face, surprised to see how his eyes seemed to sparkle as he spoke of the oriental man. The corners of his lips were also upturned, his expressionless face suddenly appearing soft. She wondered what sort of feelings he held for the man, did he idolise him, was it brotherly affection or something more...


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    Unable to notice anything out of the ordinary, Nan Li Liang latched onto the conversation with a response; "it''s not like you can''t actually grow rice in this country, just it might be a bit difficult. Rice needs warm temperatures, so could be grown in a greenhouse... though you''d need a fairly big greenhouse to grow enough rice to make it worth it. And as for the seed, whole grain rice can actually be used."


    Nathan''s whole face lit up like a bonfire on a cold winter''s night. Suddenly, he was no longer just cute, but beautiful. Autumn found herself blushing. "Really?" He asked, eagerly.


    Nan Li Liang also found himself reddening, this was more due to Nathan''s intense stare causing him to be embarrassed. "Yeah, we did this science experiment in school... growing stuff available from the supermarket. We grew a small amount in a bucket. We grew dry beans as well... oh but rice would need a lot of water." He mentioned, thinking about how precious that last resource was.


    Nathan''s brightness dimmed slightly as he considered this detail within his mind. He could already produce a lot of water, but it wasn''t always enough to ensure all of the plants were able to drink, especially with all of the new potted vegetables and fruits growing in the house and the new greenhouse. He sometimes had to ask Tyler, which made the other man irritable, so he didn''t ask too often even though Tyler never actually refused him. So in order to make rice, wouldn''t that mean he would need to just make more water? Ren Zexian said before that he could teach him a way to do that... like he''d taught Tyler... so it was possible...


    His smile returned and ignoring the guests in his house, he rushed out of the door towards the main property''s kitchen in order to confiscate all and any whole grain rice in its cupboards. Nan Li Liang And Autumn could only look after him with incredulous expressions.


    Lucy grabbed the last pancake on the plate and loyally shared it with Aslan when no one was looking.

 Chapter 46 Chapter Forty Six - Raiding a Supermarke

    There were three large supermarkets in town, two located more on the outskirts and one closer to the centre. All three had been the targets of raids during those chaotic first few weeks. Of course, these weren''t the only places to purchase food, however just like these places, a particular store which sold food products, housewares and happened to have an internal bakery and sandwich counters, was also replenished by its staff in the twilight hours before the end. And it also had an mini outbreak within its four walls when the outbreak occurred in town as those unwell men and women felt they couldn''t afford to justify time off for a ''bit of a bug''. However, those other stores were open 24 hours most of the week and most of the night workers who did not collapse and turn could escape the zombies hungry teeth. No one managed to escape the smaller store.


    The store seemed quiet and although it''s location made it difficult, it would not escape the eyes of desperate survivors seeking to empty its contents. However, the first gang to attempt to break in through the staff entrance had an unhappy ending. Two managed to flee the jaws of the nest within to spread word that there were zombies within its walls, but one was seriously injured, died that night in gangs makeshift camp, turning grey and black of lip, before rolling over to bring his friend with him.


    The zombies, with their new additions, did not escape into the outside world; the single door was the type that swung shut after it was opened, forced or otherwise.


    There was one other issue with this store that made it a less desirable target for those seeking to stock up on food and other supplies, while hoping to survive long enough that the zombie issue could solve itself and that was its location. This store happened to be in the centre of town, thus in its nearby surroundings would have been a higher population. And with a higher population there was a greater concentration of people who became zombies. So although an army of men did succeed in wiping out the zombies located within and taking a good percentage of the viable merchandise away, it was not long after that the once trapped zombies began to escape their habitats and gather to hunt for food. The rotting meat remaining in that store''s shelves was an attractive scent to the hungry corpses.


    The squads that had been formed in the few small bases dotted close to town avoided it during the summer, struggling to survive as best they could and not wanting to increase the risk of failing. However, most of those bases now ceased to exist, realising or learning the hard way, that they just didn''t have what it took to survive, especially now that more and more zombies have mutated and become stronger, more deadly and dangerous. And the store was abandoned completely; only the craziest of squads would attempt to go there now.


    Jonah, it seemed, was leading that squad.


    He hadn''t actually wanted to head into town, thinking that the risks far outweighed the gains. But the supermarket close to the stores that they had been raiding was stripped bare. Even the cans of pet food had been whisked away, despite none of them being able to imagine just who was so desperate to eat that stuff! They''d talked about it for a bit, considering on hitting one of the other large supermarkets, to see if there was anything left, when Jimmy had suggested this. The rest of them had looked at him as if he was a complete and utter nut job (with the exception of a Ren Zexian, who didn''t understand what the issue was).


    "Nah, nah, nah, listen," he tried to dismiss their concerns. "Yeah, we know it''s going to be dangerous, but think about it. The other places are in locations that are with in easy reach of the roads on the outskirts of town, not too near housing estates, so there were less zombies to deal with for the squads. Most squads had the same idea, so it''s unlikely we''ll find anything left in those places. Weren''t we luckier when we lived in town raiding all of those corner shops? Because they were in areas with high populations so survivors were less likely to go there and grab food."


    "That was before the zombies evolved," Jonah pointed out. "And we only hit the ones on the edges of estates and where we could make a quick getaway. You know that store is tucked in amongst a bunch of others and only has a winding road accessing it, one that happens to take you through the town centre and around it. It won''t be easy to get out of there once we''ve driven into its car park."


    "I vote for!" Patrick said, in a cheerful voice.


    "That''s because, you are an idiot," Tyler said, scornfully. In truth, he believed that they were unlikely to find better sources of remnant food anywhere else. Most of that which remained would be in areas hard to currently reach or rotten and inedible.


    Ren Zexian was of no strong opinion either way. In terms of increasing cultivation, it was often beneficial to test oneself, potentially increasing such which would be oft too slow to make a breakthrough and was especially important during bottlenecks. He had reached the apex of tertiary stage cultivation, reaching a common bottleneck. However, he found himself a bit reluctant to risk his life in order to overcome it.


    In the end, they opted for the risk. The benefits were too great to ignore and they were seasoned hunters, were less likely to be taken unawares than the unsuspecting fools who tried before them.


    Bringing out all sorts of weapons on their persons, they drove into parking lot and turned off the engine so to not draw any wandering zombies to their location. Jimmy climbed onto the roof to the vehicle, keeping look out, ready to shoot approaching corpses with his silenced gun. The others approached the side entrance door, meant once for staff. The lock had been broken badly and the door was not latched. The door swung open to the lightest of touches.


    The cheap plastic door had a broken glass window that looked into a small room. That room also had a door, but that door was of wood and was no longer whole, small fragmented pieces sat upon the hinges in the frame. There was no signs of movement within the first room, so after testing the outside door, which remained silent upon its hinges, they placed a brick to keep it wide open for an easier escape. Jonah entered first; he''d always been the type to lead, but this time he had Ren Zexian beside him. The oriental man was the strongest of the ability users, so this was not unexpected and even welcomed.


    Ren Zexian had Jonah pause before the broken door and murmured softly that he was going to attempt an old trick, but he needed a moment and would be vulnerable. Jonah looked at him with slight disbelief in his eyes, but as Patrick nodded profusely with trusting eyes, he indicated that Ren Zexian should go ahead.


    The Cultivator closed his eyes and released a breath. With it, he stretched the swirling mass of spiritual energy within him and felt the current of the air. Zombies were unbreathing things, he would not be able to detect the movement of their lungs, however, he could easily note the movement of their bodies. Before, he had not used this ability; raiding properties that were small did not require him to exercise it, the core inside him had been enough. Also this ability used spiritual energy, most of which would return to him, but a bit of which would be wasted and could only be let go in resignation, even with his practiced control. It wouldn''t take much effort, even with the weak spiritual energies within this world, to gain it back, however.


    There was much that blocked the stagnant air within, thick walls that stretched the length of the building... and yet then the air would spill through gaping holes or thin air gaps in between not sealed areas. There was a few small rooms, still objects in each; he almost missed a Zombie in one, but for the putrid gases that suddenly leaked from it. They would have to be wary with the rooms, but he doubted that there were too many monsters hiding within. And then there were two larger spaces, one bigger than the other. Just strangely, that the largest space had thick lines of blockages, a kin to walls, yet not reaching to touch the four walls surrounding them nor to the ceiling above them.


    In both large spaces, he could feel the presence of moving forms. "There is at least one zombie nearby, trapped in a small room," Ren Zexian advised them. "I do not know if any others have escaped my notice. Otherwise, I can say that there are of around seventeen undead within the larger of two greatest of areas and nine in the smaller of them."


    "Large areas?" Cole questioned.


    "Oh probably the store and the warehouse!" Patrick suggested brightly, before tugging on Ren Zexian''s robe. "How did you do that? Can you teach me?"


    "Alas, ''''tis a trick of the air," he opened his palms in helpless gesture, weak against the smaller man''s enthusiasm. Although Patrick was a grown man, he ever reminded Ren Zexian of a child newly accepted to a sect sometimes.


    "I get it," Jonah said, rubbing the stubble upon his cheek, also hoping that they could grab some cigarettes while they were in here. "Then the small rooms must be offices and one with a Zombie inside."


    "What I want to know," huffed Monika, "is how there came to be so many zombies inside! I mean didn''t an army supposedly come and clear them out, according to the rumours?"


    "Hmm, but I heard that they were not entirely without losses," Arthur mentioned, lightly. If they did not come back for the bodies nor destroyed them once they left, there was a chance they would simply rise again.


    "Considering that one in the offices," Jonah sighed, "I reckon that so called army didn''t do a complete job either. The rest probably wandered in and couldn''t get their sorry asses out again. Right, we deal with any in the offices first. I don''t want any threats lingering at my back. Then we deal with the mass inside the store. Huddle together, Ren and I will watch for movement at the front, Cole and Arthur, the rear. Monika, Patrick and Tyler, ceiling, floor, walls... I don''t want any fucking surprises, ya hear?!"


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 Chapter 47 Chapter Forty Seven - Zombies Found In Aisle Seven

    The misshapen head, which had just been removed from its neck, fell to the ground with a squelch.


    "God, it smells disgusting in here!" Complained Monika under her breath, as she followed the two men before her into the office space. This had become the tomb of the undead creature that Ren Zexian had sensed within. It had been apathetic, barely moving its neck to face them before the sword put it to rest. Although they still had a couple of small rooms to still look into, most of these spaces had proven to be empty so far.


    They moved on, not willing to spend any more time in the stench of the room, but found nothing in the other offices, leading them to believe that their greatest challenge would be the shop-floor space and warehouse. Both could be accessed from here, so they still needed to remain on guard; if the zombies smelled or heard them, the hunters would become the hunted. Worse still, there was no lighting. The shop-floor would have a bit from the glass panelled front, but it would not reach all the way to the rear end of the store and certainly not into the warehouse. All of the offices had windows, the light of which leaked into the corridor, aiding their journey, but the locker-rooms and toilets were without the luxury of light; they had been fortunate not to run into anything while waving the torches about attempting to ensure they were devoid of threat. They were heavily reliant on Ren Zexian and his ability.


    With that said, they decided to retreat down the corridor and enter the shop-floor first, nearest that main source of light. The number of zombies would be greater, but they would not be fighting blind.


    The place where the corridor intersected with the shop-floor also happened to be where there was a rotten mess of fruit and vegetables; the former fresh produce nothing but mould and black goop. Unsurprisingly, there were flies hovering about the drippy remnants. These flies were also bothering the undead being that dragged itself across the floor towards them with obvious intent. The zombie''s hind legs were missing, its entrails spilled from its putrid body, which happened to be crawling with white maggots. Both Patrick and Monika heaved, while Tyler''s nose wrinkled in disgust. Ren Zexian calmly lopped off its head.


    "So gross," Patrick couldn''t help but mutter and Monika nodded in agreement.


    Jonah indicated with a finger that they needed to keep the noise down, then glanced at Ren Zexian who pointed to a position behind the first wall of high shelves; that was where the nearest zombie happened to be. Not all sound could be muffled, their shoes tapped or squeaked along the stone floor no matter how lightly they trod upon it and they drew the attention of the nearest zombies with just this. Fortunately, it was just a group of three, which ran and leapt towards them at varying paces and were easily dealt with. None of these displayed any abilities.


    Ren Zexian pointed down the length of first aisle beyond the vegetables to indicate that there was a Zombie at the other end, but were it not for the large, glowing eyes that suddenly stared in their direction, they would not have seen it. Cracks of light appeared over its body as it made its way towards them, yet otherwise it was like an ordinary zombie, with a slow, dragging pace, green, grey skin and dark, yellow teeth. Of course, with such a bright source of light, other zombies would be attracted to it; it suddenly staggered as a nimble zombie leapt from the high shelves onto it and dove its teeth into it''s neck and shoulder.


    "What the fuck?!" The squad couldn''t believe what they were seeing, one zombie devouring another. However, Ren Zexian felt as if he could understand the situation, he recalled not only something that Dexter had mentioned, but something from his own experiences. That nimble zombie was stealing the cultivation of the glowing zombie in the only way it knew how; by eating it... or more specifically, its core.


    The Cultivator wasted no time, first tapping Patrick on his shoulder to gain his attention before gesturing. The smaller man nodded then used his gift over gravity to press heavily onto the two zombies, allowing Ren Zexian to finish both off using blades of wind.


    "Look out!" Arthur called out as numerous metal cans suddenly hurtled their way.


    "Metal zombie, not good!" Jonah felt a tiny tug upon his gun and cursed beneath his breath. They retreated to the nearest conveyor belt just as the tins stopped coming, abruptly, and the wire baskets replaced them as the chosen projectiles.


    "Its methods are crude," Cole pointed out. They had a metal user in their team, they had already learned what sort of tricks that man could come up with; moving metal objects with his mind was the simplest of them.


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    "You say that like its a bad thing!" Monika snapped at him, before ducking the basket that almost hit her.


    They were pinned down, seemingly unable to fight back, mainly because they had yet to spot the zombie attacking them. Ren Zexian knew it was close by, however and approaching as it attacked them, albeit at a snail''s pace. He also deduced that the creature could only handle a few objects at a time and had to be within a certain radius of those metal things before it could grab them. It likely had not long developed its abilities and hadn''t mastered them. He altered his crouching form, ready to leap into the air on a wind cushion before using a wind blade to end it. However, the attacks suddenly ended.


    The squad glanced over the conveyor belt to witness the collapse of a substantial zombie body, falling to the ground. There was a few thin spear of ice piercing through its neck and temple. "I did it..." murmured a rather surprised Tyler, who then gave a satisfied chuckle, before being thrown to the ground as it shook beneath him. The stone tiles beneath his feet suddenly became sand, before a few gunshots exploded through the air along with a whoosh of air and a now unmoving zombie fell on top of him. It''s bloodshot eye dropped into his lap as Tyler threw it off in a panic.


    "That''s gone and done it," muttered Jonah as the roars of zombies collectively sounded throughout the building.


    "Sorry, Sarge," Monika said as she lowered the air holding the gun. "It was instinct."


    "I believe that the zombie with metal abilities made enough noise prior to that," Ren Zexian offered small comfort as he suggested that it was not her fault.


    They''d ended the existences of eight zombies upon the shop-floor space, but that simply meant that there were at least nine to go and that did not include the nine that Ren Zexian had claimed were in the warehouse. Who knew if the latter group could get from there onto the main forecourt or not?! A group of four sped in their direction, though one lagged behind a little with an obvious limp, although its speed was clearly not impeded enough! Ren Zexian quickly controlled the situation, gaining the attention of these swift beings even as Patrick forced the weaker of the group to the ground. This one was quickly finished off by the long, butcher''s knife in Cole''s possession, while Jonah and the others tried to reduce Ren Zexian''s burden a bit more.


    "Incoming!" Called out Tyler, who''d still not yet rejoined the group. He splashed water onto the ground and attempted to freeze it, hoping to cause the zombies to lose their footing. It was only slightly affective; the first one dropped in a splay of limbs to the floor and was crushed beneath the heavy foot of the one following. It''s foot only tore through a paper thin covering of flesh under the other''s rib cage, but the remnants of its internal organs were spilled as the zombie over it continued onward. That zombie''s feet seemed to cause the floor to tremble with every step, the remaining ice cracking and shattering across the stone.


    Fortunately, two more of the original group had been vanquished and the only one remaining was dealt with by a combination of Patrick and the other''s attacks. Ren Zexian then intercepted what he thought might be some sort of stone or armour zombie. However, as his sword moved to slice across what he thought would be near impervious skin, like which they had encountered before, his weapon actually began to bend. The curve increased the nearer it came to the creature, rendering his attack useless. He leapt away before a heavy hand could reach and crush him.


    "This one is dangerous, get back!" He called out to the group, which retreated with some swiftness. "It has some sort of self-grounding... self-gravity ability! It makes it heavier and seemingly resistant to attack. I do not know whether or not that whether it has evolved to Patrick''s extent however."


    "I see two more!" Tyler called out.


    "And another is coming from over where the fruit and veg section was!" Arthur called out as he retrieved his gun from its sheath.


    "I thought we cleared that area?" Monika wondered aloud.


    "Maybe it came from the warehouse?"


    "Worry about that later!" Jonah snapped. "We need to deal with this bastard first!" Tyler''s water attacks had been deflected as easily as Ren Zexian''s sword and they daren''t attempt to hit it with bullets.


    "Retreat?" Cole wondered aloud. It was all well and good attempting this raid, but they would only be truly successful if everyone actually survived through it and currently, that was looking less likely. Ren Zexian threw a wind blade towards it, which was not completely deflected, however what managed to pass through the gravitational field about the zombie did little more than scratch its cheek. Nothing oozed from the wound, indicating its shallowness. And then suddenly the monster''s whole body seemed to quiver, like a plate full of jelly held in a playful child''s hands. The zombie exploded into chunks.


    They didn''t have time to question it, as the other three zombies had finally reached them. However, none of these posed any threat.


    Cole finished off the fallen zombie, left half crushed to the ground by the gravity creature before they finally said the words that they hadn''t the chance to before. "What the fuck just happened?"


    There was a few shrugs and shaking of heads before Tyler asked Patrick; "Did you attempt to use your abilities on it during that fight?"


    "Um, yeah," Patrick admitted. He''d unleashed his ability on it three times in fact, but not once seemed to be effective. That last attempt had been a measure of desperation.


    "I think you disrupted its gravitational field with your ability," Tyler deduced. "I can''t say for sure, I don''t know why it exploded under those circumstances, I''m no scientist. But I think that''s the only explanation." The others decided to agree with this, though they were all a bit clueless and to be honest; it was dead, who cared?


    "On to the warehouse then?" Arthur suggested after Ren Zexian concluded that there were no more surprises lurking on within the store front.


    Monika visibly shuddered. "I don''t want to come across zombies like these in the dark," she complained.


    "Well," Jonah said, after rubbing the stubble on his jaw for a moment in thought, "if we can''t go to them, then we''ll have to draw them to us. Let''s finish this and get out of here. The smell of zombie guts is making me feel sick."

 Chapter 48 Chapter Forty Eight - Shows of Strength

    "Just can''t figure out why some of those zombies were actually feeding upon other zombies," muttered Cole, as sometime later, they drove away from the supermarket.


    The devouring zombie they had encountered attacking another within the store was not the only one with this unexpected habit; within the warehouse there had been another. That one had created itself a nest in the recesses of the warehouse, corpses strewn haphazardly around it. It was also the strongest of all the zombies that they encountered that day and were it not for the fact that Tyler had sensed the icy, cloud of moisture which should not have existed, they may have easily become its next victims.


    "There are many paths of Cultivation," Ren Zexian taught with his words of enlightened wisdom. "Not all are righteous. Amongst the most insidious is the practice of stealing the Cultivation of others. In the situation of the undead, it seems, a few have figured out that they can feed from others to strengthen themselves."


    "So why that zombie, why not the others?" Patrick asked, curiously. There was still a divide between Dexter''s squad and Jonah''s squad; the former had accepted Ren Zexian''s quirkiness and found that, although his explanations seemed like they had been created in the pages of an eastern fantasy novel, his teachings were on point. By listening to his words, by learning from him, they had become stronger. Jonah''s people were still sceptical, but they could not deny that the man had great strength and meant them no harm, yet they would still listen his explanations with a pinch of salt.


    "That one had unlocked its abilities," Ren Zexian said, following a spell of thought, "yet posed no threat." That, all the people within the truck could understand and accept.


    The supermarket had been better stocked than they could have hoped. Granted, fresh and frozen produce was rotten, mouldy and completely inedible, the chilled section was producing particularly unpleasant smells. And things such as pasta, rice, noodles, tins of vegetables and fruits, dried fruits and cereals, these had been nearly cleaned out by those that had come before them. There was some signs that they had taken things from other sections, such as jar sauces and coffee, but at this point they had clearly been in a hurry as the glass and mouldy spillages on the floor attested to. However, seasonings and baking ingredients meant for the oven had been mostly ignored.


    There was also large sacks of flour sitting in the warehouse. The lower sacks had spoiled, the melted water from the zombie''s nest of mist and fog had spread across the floor and happened to soak them. Still they claimed the sacks of flour that were still decent; these would last them along time.


    Ren Zexian''s spare interspatial bag had become filled to brim with vitamin supplements, painkillers and other medicines, including ones specifically for children, while Cole, Jonah and Arthur took out the sacks of flour, bags of sugar, salt, yeast and dried dog food. Monika filled up a few wired baskets with feminine products and Tyler claimed a few bottles of whiskey, brandy and other liquor with the excuse that a small tipple would be warming in the winter. They also took a lot of baby products; nappies, formula, bibs and a few teething toys, creams and wipes. These filled up a large section of the truck along with empty glass jars and Tupperware for Autumn''s vinegars, jams and pickles and for Nathan''s seeds.


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    After they had made another run through the store, this time claiming ingredients for hot beverages, dried seasonings and bottles of oil, they had come out to find a ragged group of survivors were attempting to surround their truck. These people were skinny, clearly weak and desperate, they held knives and bats and did not fear Jimmy''s guns.


    "Take it easy," Jonah had said, calmly as he lit up a cigarette in front of them, which caused a couple to look longingly at the burning stick. "There''s still stuff to be had inside and we''ve killed all of the zombies in there. So there''s no need for you to lose your lives fighting us."


    "We lose our lives?" One had sneered from the back of the group.


    "Yeah, we clearly out number you!" Another had claimed, but the man simply chuckled in response.


    Jonah had glanced at his squad, before offering a deeper look towards Tyler, Patrick and Ren Zexian. "A show of strength, gentlemen," he had drawled upon a slight sigh. Understanding his meaning, his people had drawn their guns while the latter three revealed their powers. The survivors had taken several steps backward; they knew about abilities and none of them had developed them. They had been the weak baggage that the strong had left behind. They had quickly lost their will to fight at that point.


    The squad had left, their truck mostly filled and not willing to risk their gains nor kill unnecessarily at this point. They still had to look at the wheat fields on the way back and see what they could harvest after all. For now, they headed to a housing estate at the edge of town to hole up for the night.


    The fields they came to the following day, did not have the endless, sweeping gold grasses they had seen in previous years, tall and proud, ready to be harvested. Instead, only patches of the field could be said to retain their former glory. The rest was a mess of strangling weeds or rotting straw (where the wheat had died midseason and withered into the soil). Still, they took their blades and began to see what they could claim, all the while being wary of the weeds that wove about the place. Who knew if they would animate and try to claim their lives? Or worse, what if undead rodents lurked within the foliage?


    As it happened, the fields were apparently still and peaceful at this time, but they still moved quickly. They claimed while stalks, thinking to remove the seeds back at the base and use the straw as feed for the sheep. At the moment, those animals slept on rags and newspaper strewn over a concrete floor; not the best of environments for livestock.


    They stayed close to the road, not wanting to risk moving too deep into the field. It was also easier to move their harvest onto the truck as well, which was being protected by Ren Zexian, Tyler and Jonah.


    Unexpectedly, they were not the only ones to come to the fields in order to harvest grain that day.


    The army trucks surrounded them and the people they carried leapt out of them. Not all were wearing soldier combats and only a few carried guns. In fact, more than half headed for the fields, a few more daring ones sought to claim what was in the arms of Monika and the others. That woman protected what she had harvested with brutality. Her attacker crumbled, grasping that which made him a Male by nature as if it were a fragile treasure.


    "Hand over the grain!" One soldier demanded, aiming his gun at them.


    "Sarge?" Monika questioned, still grasping the wheat grasses in her arms.


    "Sarge?" A soldier emerged from the passenger side of one of the trucks, eyes narrowed as he examined the older man. This person held the arrogance of an officer and was clearly in charge of this large group of soldiers and civilians. However, as lawless as they were acting around the smaller group of survivors, they were still had respect for hierarchy of rank and order found within such. "Military?" The man questioned Jonah.


    "Police," Jonah replied. The man nodded, but then stated;


    "I would still have you relinquish your goods," He stated. "I have people relying on this produce for Winter."


    "Understandable," Jonah responded, amicably, before reaching into his pocket and withdrawing a cigarette. He offered the officer one, who waved it away. Jonah lit his cigarette and took a long drag before saying; "so have I. It seems we''re at an impasse."


    "I don''t think so," sneered a solider beside the officer, but he was forced to stand down.


    "Open the truck," the young officer ordered.


    "And if I refuse?" Jonah asked him, with a raised brow. "Let''s just think about this. You have guns, so do we. You have untrained civilians to protect, but we are all ready and able to fight. If you want to gnaw on this bone, boy, you need to realise that you will break a few teeth."


    The officer hesitated. He had been a part of the army for many years, but he''d not truly much experience. His promotion was not one of merit, but of connections that remained after the End. He did not want this mission of his to suffer casualties that were avoidable, but at the same time, he was reluctant to part with any resources. These people were clearly resourceful, who knew what treasures were within? "We don''t just have guns," the officer said, slowly and called out the name of a person. "Chang Min!"


    "Yes, sir?" An oriental man appeared from the civilians and approached the smug officer and his men.


    "Show them what it means to mess with us!" The soldiers stepped back as they said this and the civilians in the field began to creep backward to the rear trucks.


    The youthful looking man with long black hair tied in a loop at his nape turned to face them. His lightly tanned arms rose from his side and the ground began to tremble beneath the truck and Jonah''s feet. The squad cursed beneath their breath, bracing themselves, but as quickly as the tremors began, they ceased. The soldiers stared at the man incredulously, but he ignored them, eyes wide as he perceived the person calmly standing to the side of the truck, his arms behind his back and his smile gentle as always.


    The man called Chang Min fell to his knees in kowtow, tears forming in his dark eyes. "Master!" He yelled out.

 Chapter 49 Chapter Forty Nine - The Last Disciple

    Chang Min had been born as one of the last generation of Eld Dein, the most pitiful of generations. Few were born and fewer could survive in the world where the soil was dry and poor and the heavens had nearly forsaken them. This was the results of sucking dry the energies of the world for billions of years.


    As a child, Chang Min was much like many, thin and under nourished. The separations of wealth had long since past, now one either had food or did not. Dowry''s and bride prices would be considered great if there was meat and vegetables. Crimes and schemes would revolve around obtaining food and land able to grow food. One such scheme that many of those scrambling for survival fell for was that of the Heaven''s Defying Sect.


    The Sect declared that it was the last foundation that could support their people, the last pillar of hope and should their children be sent to become part of the Sect, those children would have the opportunity to cultivate until they were immortals and as immortals cultivate until they became Gods. Only when they were Gods, would they storm the gates of Heaven and take over the great realm and only then would their poor Eld Dein be saved. The people, by now, were unlearned and had little to hope for barring a good meal and to see the sun rise of the following day. And so they sent their children forth, but would never see them again. Still, they clung to hope.


    So though many children for several generations had vanished into the lofty confines of the Sect, still more were sent. Chang Min''s parents sent him when he was just eight years of age; they were dying, they could no longer raise him and one could not rely on any soul but one''s parents in this life. They felt that their only hope for his survival was to send him to the Sect.


    Chang Min entered the Sect easily as it was discovered that he had a rare and pure earth root. However, due to his malnourished body, his meridians were weak and he was sent to the outer parts of the Sect. Here the children and those predecessors of the generations before were expected to till the dusty land and try to beget grain from it. Most of this food was then transferred into the inner Sect, only a bit was left for the outer Sect disciples, thus competition for food was fierce. It was not much different from the village of his birth, just that here Chang Min could cultivate to try to become stronger. Many of those sent with him could not survive the harsh conditions and died. Others died during the fights over scraps of meat. Chang Min did not fight, simply retreated, filling his stomach with grass, leaves and roots and if he was lucky, a mushroom or two. In this way, the skinny, small boy became a skinny, small man.


    It should be noted, that although the outer Sect conditions were awful, the inner Sect was actually not all it seemed either. The Heaven''s Defying Sect were not a pillar of hope, there would be no immortality waiting for the disciples nor place within the Heavens. The elders of this Sect had fallen from the righteous path due to their desperate scramble to escape a dying world and were nothing more that Devil Cultivators now.


    When the Upper Realms closed their gates to the dying Eld Dein, these Elders had found themselves trapped before reaching the enlightened stages of cultivation that would have seen them rise. At first, they did not worry about it, blind to the truth of the matter, but once the fate of their world had been divined, they knew fear. An immortal does not necessarily fear death, but they fear falling against their will. And so they sought to flee from fate. Their plan was to nourish talented disciples with food and cultivation, before stealing away and refining the cores of those disciples and using them to break open those closed gates!


    Thousands of disciples had died at their hands and tens of thousands by otherwise indirect means. Only their secluded location and the digression of the world had kept their vile secret contained.


    However, with only decades left until the predicted end, the Elders were becoming desperate. The harvested cores were not overly strong, the disciples having been dealt with before they could become a threat to the Elders and no matter the ritual nor spell formation cast using the blood and cores upon the way points, the gates to the upper realms remained sealed.


    And then a small group of wandering Cultivators passed by.


    Wandering Cultivators were not unusual, often these groups were seeking their own truths; ways to escape the path of fate, ways to try and save their dying world. However this group contained two men in a hair''s breath of the enlightened stages of cultivation as well as several others with impressive cultivations. The Elders would not normally attack such, but quietly bide their time and let them pass undisturbed for they could not guarantee their lives would be kept in confronting such. But desperate times called for desperate measures and the Elders lead all of their Sect disciples in an ambush.


    Their advantage in numbers, however, did not sway the results of the battle; their remaining disciples were simply to low in cultivation and weak in foundation, kept so due to the Elders'' less than savoury reasons. Seeing as the battle was not going in their favour, the Elders sought to retreat and abandon their disciples in order to save their own lives. Only two did successfully escape, but the blood of hundreds of young Cultivators was spilled in this ferocious battle. Those who survived could only bitterly watch as their Masters abandoned them and they too lost hope.


    However, these Wandering Cultivators were not without mercy and only killed those who insisted on attempting on taking their lives. But they were not saints and would not aid their enemies with wrapping wounds or burying the dead. As they walked away from the battlefield, they did not look back.


    Thus they did not see one skinny youth, who''d neither fought nor fled following them...


    However, he could not hide his presence from them for long.


    "Still wish to ambush us?" Lu Ting had growled between gritted teeth as he held the young man by his slender throat and held him up against a tree. Chang Min had crawled weakly at the strong hand gripping him, gasping for breath.


    "Lu Ting, curb your anger," Ren Zexian had advised him in calm tones.


    "But Master!" The impetuous man had complained with bitterness.


    "Vengeance is a bitter path that curves and simply leads to more vengeance," Ren Zexian had told him. "And besides, for what reason do you seek to take your anger out on this young man?"


    Lu Ting had frowned. "His Sect sought our lives! Why should I not seek his?"


    "Big Brother, Lu Ting is right!" Long Wenwen had added, pouting as she sewed the long tear in her robes. Clothes were nearly as scarce as food for the mortals, she was not happy that hers had been torn in a moment of her carelessness.


    Yu Zhang chuckled as he looked fondly at his youngest disciple. "Still such a vain girl," he had mused.


    Ren Zexian had shared his mirth with a slight smile, before indicating once more that Lu Ting ought to let him go. "This young man''s hands are clean," Ren Zexian had then advised them. "He did not participate in his sect''s foolish attack upon us."


    "But he did not aid us either," Hao ZhenKang mentioned as he threw his arm about his dao companion, unhappy that his partner''s long hair had been partially cut in the battle. Not to mention, he himself had lost his sword.


    "That is true," Ren Zexian had admitted as he had approached the youth, who coughed and spluttered, trying to take in air. His wrist had been caught by Ren Zexian, who tested his pulse with him unawares. "But then, what can a child of Secondary Cultivation do to turn the tides of battle." He turned away at that point, his smile still fixed upon his gentle face.


    "Secondary Cultivation?" Yu Zhang had murmured and his slightly lined face split into a bright smile. "So there are still children seeking to defy fate and reach the Heavens."


    "Pitiful," Lu Ting had sneered.


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    Chang Min had looked over these men and women, who he had followed, mesmerised by their ethereal appearances. Against the backdrop of half-starved youths, diseased and dying men dressed in rags and coated in dust, they were like fresh Mountain Dew on a lush field of ripened rice. He couldn''t have helped but been attracted to them. He hadn''t known why his sect had attacked them and sought to kill them, he even understood that following them might lead to his death. However, compared with starving to death in the pitiful, harsh conditions of the Outer Sect, he had felt this would be a blessing.


    So, he had continued to follow them, foraging for sustenance as he did so. They had not invite him to join their group, but they did not shoo him away either. In fact, once or twice he''d even lost them, only by heaven''s grace did he find them again. Three months past rapidly in this way and the already exhausted Chang Min had found himself close to collapse and on his last breath. He had thought that he would die this way.


    Only, one of the Elders of the group had taken pity on him, had fed him with a nourishing One Pulse pill and accepted him as a disciple. After his body had been treated with food and healing pills, his meridians had become able to support his cultivation and his innate talent had been allowed to blossom. By the time the End came, he had been upon the peak of Quinary Stage. He had become accepted by the others of their wandering group, his origins more or less a matter of the past.


    He had trusted Elder Yu Zhang''s judgement and placed his life in the old Cultivator''s hands, believing that they would continue their journey in some other world; they would wander and he would follow.


    Only when he''d awakened from the sealed sleep did he come to realise, he was now completely alone.

 Chapter 50 Chapter Fifty - Autumn Harves

    Autumn was once the season of harvest, when the fields were golden with ripe ears of wheat or the green leaves of corn stalks, when certain trees were ready to release their fruits and nuts and berries were abundant in both gardens and wild spaces. However this year, the fields were marred with weeds, vines or ruined by pests and many of the trees were no longer holding edible fruit but poisonous intentions, however it did not mean that there was not places where a harvest could be obtained. The army stationed close by to acres of farmland were aware of this and had split into teams in order to take advantage of what might be the last harvest from them. Soldiers lead civilians that sought their protection to do this and certain so-called ''ability users'' were scattered amongst them to help the civilians work diligently, knowing they were safe against the dangers of zombies, mutant animals and vicious plants.


    Possibly they didn''t expect to encounter squads from other safe havens seeking to do the same thing, perhaps in their arrogance they thought that they were amongst the only survivors in these parts. After all, they were a part of the army, trained to command and be commanded, to face adversity and overcome it, to be the peoples last defence. And ability users amongst the civilians were few and many of them lacked the necessary drive and ambition to train their powers to be of use. Still, many abilities were weak and useless and even the more effective ones were not as great at dealing with zombies as a gun or blade.


    Chang Min, who had appeared amongst the first wave of survivors, had been an exception. The higher ups had treated him well, had given him resources, although he remained aloof for the most part. He''d been asked by them to train the army''s ability users, to make them stronger, but apparently, his methods had been received with disbelief and mockery, so he had stopped offering advice. However, they believed that he would not do them harm, especially as he''d been upon the front wall protecting them against a particularly volatile zombie attack. So they''d likely look on in shock and horror when he ''betrayed'' them for a small squad as one of their teams harvested from the farmlands.


    Chang Min, however, had seen his Master, thus they, who he had long come to see with disdain, did not once enter his considerations.


    Ren Zexian looked fondly at his last disciple with a warm smile.


    *****


    Harvesting was also taking place in the base within the small village, not fifteen minutes drive away. Upon the grounds of the two other stately places, blackberry bushes had taken root and happened to have not mutated. While being wary of the thorns that the wild bushes possessed, one small girl and one big girl were happily picking the shiny black clusters and placing them in a basket. There was an obvious stain surrounding Lucy''s lips, despite being chided several times by Autumn not to eat the unwashed berries and she once again took a handkerchief to wipe the sticky lips clean with a sigh.


    "That was probably pointless," Dexter pointed out. He''d accompanied the girls as despite this land being a part of their base, did not mean it was completely safe. Mutated plants still cropped up from time to time and the walls and thick hedgerows could not prevent flying monsters from descending and causing havoc. Already, he had zapped a mutant bird of some carrion type from the sky as it no longer wished to wait until the flesh was dead before ripping pieces off of its meal. His lightening had stunned it, while its neck was broken by Aslan. He wasn''t sure what happened to its corpse after that and decidedly didn''t want to.


    Sure enough, Autumn caught little Lucy stuffing another berry into her mouth. "But what if she gets sick?" Autumn said, worriedly. Dexter smiled and kneeled before the small child.


    "Here that," Dexter mentioned, softly. "You''re making Autumn here all concerned about you. No more berries in case you get a tummy upset." He pocked her small stomach, causing her to giggle, but he didn''t think his words would affect anything. So instead, as he stood, he gave a sharp whistle and called for her dark guardian. The hound appeared just as expected, in a smoky puff of air. "Take her home and don''t let her get into any more trouble." He picked up the child and popped her on the dog''s large back. Aslan acknowledged his words with a sharp nod then vanished, child and all.


    Autumn let loose a breath. "I''m not sure when I will get used to that!" She exclaimed and distracted herself by picking a few more berries. "I''ve never met a more intelligent dog either."


    "Can''t say whether he was like that before or just after he mutated," Dexter said, accompanying her in her task. "We found them in the village not long after we got here. With the exception of Nathan, there weren''t any other survivors here."


    "Poor thing," Autumn truly felt for the little girl. Even though... even though it was uncertain that her parents were still alive, at least she''d had their love and care until she''d become an adult, as questionable as she''d found that at times. But Lucy lost her parents already and she was no more that four years of age. Would she even recall them when she grew up?


    "Luckier than some," Dexter mused, his mind flashing over the other discoveries within the village at that time. Autumn didn''t say anything in response and Dexter couldn''t help but glance at her beside him, only to find two large tears rolling down her rounded cheeks. "Hey, what are you crying about?" Despite the harshness of the words, his flustered tone was not belittling.


    Autumn wiped them away quickly. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I don''t normally cry. It was just... I didn''t appreciate my parents... well my mum that much towards the end. I felt annoyed with her. But now... Lucy won''t even get a chance to be annoyed at her mum, will she?"


    "We don''t know what we had, until we lose it," Dexter said, tucking his thumbs into his jeans pocket, trying to not look as uncomfortable as he felt. Not that he hadn''t had women cry in front of him before, like his old girlfriend who wept as she blamed him for her cheating. Or his shameless grandma, who used to pretend to cry whenever she didn''t get her own way. But genuine tears? How was a guy meant to handle those? He rubbed at the sweat trickling down his neck as he added; "Still, she has the chance at getting all annoyed at us when she grows up right?"


    Autumn laughed through her tears and nodded, brightly. Seeing her cheer up a bit, he awkwardly tapped her shoulder, then sighed in relief as they were interrupted. "Hey!" Shaun called out as he zoomed towards their location, pouring his ability into manipulating his wheelchair. "Jonah and the others are back!"


    "Come on," he suggested to Autumn, not wanting to leave her over here and vulnerable. "Let''s go welcome them back."


    "Okay," Autumn agreed.


    The truck drove through the metal gates and the weary squad exited the vehicle to be greeted by expectant faces. "Where''s my babies?" Jonah called out gruffly, causing a peeking face to flinch and look inward, questioning himself.


    "You little wife is taking a nap," Eraj mentioned from where he leaned between the railings of the metal fence.


    Jonah nodded and commented; "I''ll check in on her in a bit then."


    "Master, you live here?" Came the voice of an unknown man from behind the truck, causing those not in the know to hesitate.


    Harry and Winston, who''d been locking the gate securely, glanced at each other as that person followed Ren Zexian towards the fence of Nathan''s garden. Like Ren Zexian, he was clearly of oriental descent and as well had an abundance of long, silky black hair, though his was loosely tied into a bun. He also did not wear robes like the man he called Master, but comfortable jeans and a white t-shirt.


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    "Ah, that''s Chang Min," Patrick advised them. "It turns out, he came from the same place as Ren did! We found him with soldiers from the army base."


    "Soldiers?" Harry questioned.


    "Long story," Patrick said, with a wave of his hand. "Still, he left them and came with us, because of Ren!" Those arrogant soldiers already understood Chang Min was not to be trifled with and could only watch as he abandoned them and the armfuls of wheat that the squad had already grabbed was taken away too. Patrick grinned, before running back to the truck to use his abilities to help unload it. A series of random things began to float towards the fence and up the drive way with the cheerful man walking along with them.


    Liquid, blue eyes also caught sight of the man trailing behind Ren Zexian and fell down cast. Nathan''s feet came into view, but although he watched them for a bit, they did not begin to move. Suddenly they were joined by pale, leather boots, which were obscured for a moment by the hem of silken robes. "Nathan," Ren Zexian said softly and the younger man gazed upward, meeting Ren Zexian''s obsidian eyes briefly before he couldn''t maintain the link anymore. "Nathan, I''m back."


    The youth''s lips curved at the ends, not much, but Ren Zexian''s sharp eyes caught it and his own smile became warmer. Chang Min was not his Master''s apprentice for nothing and naturally noticed the gentle aura forming about the pair, which only increased as they walked side by side along the path towards the side of the large property before them. He couldn''t help but become curious. Who was this delicate looking young man that had caught his Master''s eye?


    Tyler was also curious about something as he took note of the inventory, adding the newer supplies to the ones they already had accumulated, minus Autumn''s small alterations over the past few days. "Where the hell is all the wholegrain rice?"

 Chapter 51 Chapter Fifty One - A Third Roo

    "Hey, I haven''t seen Nathan around the garden all morning," Harry commented, after being summoned into the kitchen by the delectable scents of pumpkin stew drifting through the lower rooms of the mansion. Actually, there was often delicious smells emanating from the kitchen in these past few days, especially as Autumn began to brew vinegars and yeasts, boiled fruits with sugar to make jams and slowly dried herbs, tomatoes and chillis in the remaining heat of the sun. Not to mention the meals she dished out for them. They did not know how long these good days might last, but they, for the most part, were exceedingly grateful to have them.


    Tyler was cleaning Tupperware in soapy water and lifted his head to glance out of the window, before frowning. Not seeing Nathan pottering around the garden was unusual. "Maybe he is in the greenhouse?"


    "All morning?" Harry asked, lifting up the balanced lid of the large stew pot before receiving a tap on the hand by the current queen of the kitchen. He sheepishly replaced it.


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    "Nathan is with Master," a helpful voice chimed as Chang Min too could not help but follow his nose and approach the kitchen. He''d never smelled such tempting dishes as what Autumn provided. In Eld Dein, he had lived on whatever food he could harvest or forage and often he had suffered hunger. He''d also never managed to raise his cultivation level above the body tempering stages of quaternary to senary (4 to 6) thus he still required sustenance even after awakening in this world. The army base had provided food, but it was usually along the lines of one bowl of staple rice, pasta or potato and one bowl of boiled or stir fried vegetables or a soup. "They are on the roof," he added as his eyes followed the steaming bread rolls being removed from the oven along with toasted pumpkin seeds.


    "...is Nathan trying to cultivate?" Tyler asked after a moments pause. Ren Zexian had originally attempted to teach all of those with abilities to cultivate, however he''d been admittedly stubborn and Nathan... well.. if it didn''t involve plants...


    "En," Chang Min replied with a bright smile, oblivious to the exchange in glances between Harry and Tyler over this fact.


    "What''s cultivating?" Autumn asked as she placed numerous bowls upon the table. It was a mixed collection of porcelain that had been gathered from the village, along with plates, cups and cutlery. They didn''t expect to grow in numbers too soon, but they still prepared for it.


    "Gathering the energies of the world to strengthen one''s self," Chang Min replied, simply. "As we cultivate, we strengthen our bodies, our minds and our souls." Autumn sent a look of confusion towards the two other men in her kitchen.


    Tyler was kind enough to translate; "Ren taught us these meditation techniques and I''m not sure how it works but our abilities have become stronger. Like, I used to only be able to make water, but now I can also make ice." As if to prove this point, he produced several misshapen ice cubes in his hand before sliding them into a glass.


    "How nice for you," a voice called out, not quite able to hide her resentment. Jonah patted the arm curled about his own with gentle affection, trying to soothe his woman as they entered the kitchen together, closely followed by several others. Arthur''s stomach rumbled loudly. Tyler turned away, grabbing a tea-towel as an excuse to hide the obvious disdain on his face. It seemed Brooke was still unhappy that Ren Zexian couldn''t teach her to create water from thin air.


    "Lunch will be just a few minutes longer," Autumn mentioned, trying to ease the atmosphere. "Would someone be able to go and find Lucy?"


    "No need," Dexter smiled as a swirl of black smoke formed and grew in the kitchen, quickly morphing into the shape of a hound and his small rider. A heartbeat later, a roll vanished from the tray as did the smoke leaving nothing but a cheeky giggle and indulgent smiles.


    *****


    Beneath a silky mane of sunkissed, chestnut bangs, a curve of thick lashes framed two closed eyes. Flickering movement could be seen beneath the pale skin of those eye lids, just a bit before both opened and revealed two eager and trusting eyes. Ren Zexian smiled, but there was a tinge of perplexity within that smile.


    The pair had been upon the roof for the better part of an hour; one listening, one instructing, but he who listened couldn''t quite process the information he''d been told and therefore the one who spoke realised his words had been in vain. Nathan had attempted to sit, close his eyes in mock meditation, as he had seen Ren Zexian and the others do on many occasions, but what he could not see, he could not comprehend and his attempts came to nought. But still, he seemed so eager to learn, unlike previous times that Ren Zexian had failed to teach him, the older man was even more enthused.


    However, his usual methods of teaching were clearly lost upon the boy and he needed to reevaluate. Nathan watched as a thoughtful expression came over Ren Zexian. His eyes wandered, caught by the loose stray hair that blew in the cooling winds at his temple and then drawn into the reflective gaze in Ren Zexian''s deep eyes. Nathan felt his cheeks warm as he reflexively glanced away, before the urge to look again had his eyes lifting once more.


    "Nathan," Ren Zexian said, calmly after a few more minutes silence. "I have an idea in which I might be able to help you learn, however, I need to know; do you trust me?"


    Nathan met once more those eyes and blinked, before he replied earnestly; "Yes."


    "I will personally guide you as you attempt to cultivate for the first time," Ren Zexian explained. "In order to do this, I need to align my spirit with yours. For this we must have complete and mutual trust or it will not work and our souls will reject each other, harming us both. This is why I ask you if you trust me. I also must touch you. Will you allow this?"


    Again, Nathan replied without hesitation; "Yes."


    The temperature of his face rose once more as Ren Zexian moved to kneel before him, placing a hand cautiously over Nathan''s. Seeing as his touch was not rejected, Ren Zexian came closer still, leaning forward until they came to share breath. Instinct had Nathan move away, however Ren Zexian soothed him with his other hand, brushing his fingers along his face before cupping the back of his head. The heat of the other''s skin felt both burning hot and somehow comfortable and yet also a bit itchy. But, Nathan really couldn''t say he disliked it.


    "Close your eyes," Ren Zexian bid and Nathan did so without questioning him. He felt the foreign feeling of hard flesh against his forehead, but could not contemplate upon it long as he felt a strange, stuffy feeling in his mind, as if the space behind his eyes was no longer enough. He began to reject the feeling, however paused as he heard; "Please trust me, Nathan." He frowned, but no longer tried to push against the cause of discomfort. "Now, I wish to guide you to your innersea. To you, it might resemble a place or something tangible, something you can easily envision or perhaps have seen in your dreams. It will have a connection to your roots, your abilities, so there will be plants and there will be water. Can you imagine a place like this, Nathan?"


    Nathan did not think that he had dreams or rather, not as others described dreams. What he saw when he slept was much the same as what he saw when he was awake. Immediately, an image came to mind and he found himself in his garden. Ren Zexian was beside him, holding his hand. He blushed.


    Ren Zexian was smiling, but his lips did not move as he quietly chided him; "Concentrate, Nathan. This is your innersea. It looks much like your garden, doesn''t it." The latter words held some amusement in their tone, but Nathan didn''t really notice, he was distracted by something that he felt did not belong there.


    "I don''t have a large pond in my garden," he pointed to the still water pond in the lawn area in between the vegetable beds and the lush green hedge. It was quite a calm feeling to see the green of the garden reflected in the mirror like waters. He thought he would like one in his garden for real.


    "That would represent your water root," Ren Zexian mentioned, "just as the garden represents your plant root."


    Nathan thought over this for a moment. "Then what about that?" He pointed to a soft glowing flower that grew at the pond''s edge. The flower was vibrant and quite lovely and the light coming from it was neither bright nor harsh. The plants growing nearby seemed to lean towards it.


    "That..." Ren Zexian was astonished. How had he not noticed this before? He felt the heart of his body increase in speed as an overwhelming sensation rushed through his veins. He held back his emotions less he lose concentration and be torn away from his vulnerable boy. After quickly calming himself, he realised that the technique he had planned to teach Nathan likely would not be quite right now. Better for Nathan to practice a universal technique for now while he contemplate what would be best for Nathan in the end. Besides, during the initial stages, one''s cultivation technique was only so important. So long as Nathan built a solid foundation in order that his cultivation later did not become unstable, other things could wait.


    However, how ironic that the boy that had caught his heart also suffered the same as him? Three roots all vying for the spiritual energy he cultivated, three roots that in Eld Dein, would have declared him trash.

 Chapter 52 Chapter Fifty Two - Alternative Ways of Doing Things

    "Plants are living things," Ren Zexian began, trying to offer instructions and explanations that Nathan would understand clearly. He was not trying to underestimate the youth''s intelligence, he''d already experienced Nathan''s flashes of brilliance, however he also knew that what Nathan had no visual reference or if he couldn''t make sense of it, he would dismiss it. Taking a leap of faith was too much for the straightforward youth. "Therefore, like people, they contain energy." He saw Nathan''s eyes sparkle and knew that this was the correct way. Nathan loved plants more that anything, were he another man, he might have felt jealous over the youth''s care and affection for all things green.


    "However, the water, the air, the earth, the sun these all contain energy too." Nathan could accept kind of accept this. Plants used these things to create glucose and to burn glucose, in order to have energy to grow. "What you see here, is all of your spiritual energy, Nathan, in the form of plants and water and..." How to describe the third root... once they would call it the Blessed root, a body root, but one that was completely useless unless one had a complimentary root. It could be said that Nathan had two... "And as the spiritual energy is a part of you, you can instruct it. Make the energy become real water or use it to communicate with plants. Or you can use it to strengthen you, to attract more of it from outside of your body, to expand your innersea in order that you can store more of it. Observe."


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    Nathan watched as the plants about him swayed, seeming to move without wind and their leaves and petals shook until they came loose. The water in the pond also stirred, rippling along the surface until droplets rose from the formerly glassy surface and gathered in the space above it. The leaves and petals spun about, joining the water until they danced in weaving motions with the water droplets. The display was mesmerising, but not yet complete as then the glowing flower dissolved into soft seed puffs, similar to those of a dandelion. These were then swept into the whirlwind of colour spinning about them, however, each petal, leaf and droplet that was touched by the glowing seeds also began to glow in turn, becoming more brilliant, more vibrant, more stunning.


    "You now need to guide them, Nathan," Ren Zexian instructed him.


    "Guide them where?" Nathan asked him.


    "Follow me, I will show you." The image that was Ren Zexian began to float up before him and gently pulled at his hand. Without thought, Nathan felt himself rise and begin to follow.


    *****


    Making ice was now relatively simply for Tyler, though it was definitely easier to freeze water than to create ice from nothing. The former also took less energy. However, ice melts above zero degrees and although the weather was no longer that warm outside or in, it was also still fairly above freezing. Trying to alter the temperature of the basement that it would stay at low temperatures throughout both winter and summer was not going to be an easy task. Tyler was already aware he would have to expend energy in maintaining the cold room. Admittedly, there were two others with water and water linked abilities, however Tyler felt that neither would be reliable in assisting him. Nathan would always point the majority of his energies towards his beloved plants and as for Brooke... well Tyler just disliked her.


    "Rather than making the whole of the basement a cold room," Dexter suggested to him, "wouldn''t it be better to focus our efforts in creating a smaller space, away from the windows and doors? It would require less energy to keep cold if the walls were thick and insulated and the door to it was thick and had a sufficient seal to keep the cold air from escaping."


    "Makes sense," Tyler agreed with him. "Just it shouldn''t be too small. We have to store a good amount of things in there to keep them from rotting too fast over winter. Especially as we have a fair few mouths to feed now. Still, I can''t just freeze the air and just putting ice everywhere would make the room damp and effect the food."


    As they were considering alternatives, just as freezer packs and whiskey stones, neither of which seemed that viable, considering the overall size of the planned cold room, Paul came in from the gardens, opening the door wide in order that Shaun could push his wheelchair in with a bit of help from the young teenager, Nan Li Liang. In Shaun''s lap was a basket filled with aubergines, tomatoes, peppers and spinach.


    "That for dinner tonight?" Dexter asked, glancing at the filled basket. Slowly, but surely, the treasures from the garden were vanishing. Soon, there would be only root vegetables to harvest. Much of the produce went into the meals that Autumn prepared for them all, but they knew that they were also a little against the clock as the season''s remnant heat cooled and ushered in the first frosts. They would have to harvest anything left in the garden and either process it or attempt to keep it fresh for longer, hence the need for the cold room.


    Paul nodded. "Autumn mentioned something about roasted aubergines, with some type of sauce and sides. She''s digging for sweet potatoes at the moment with Lucy and Aslan." The sides of Dexter''s lips curved; that little girl had grown as fond of Autumn as she was of Nathan, though he felt like the woman was like a mother to the child unlike Nathan who could at best be like a big brother.


    "Nathan is still on the roof with Ren?" Tyler asked. He was surprised, in fact he''d assumed Nathan wouldn''t last five minutes in his attempt to cultivate, especially considering how he''d reacted before when Ren Zexian had tried to teach them all.


    "Yep," Paul replied and grinned slightly lewdly. "And they are curled up pretty closely as well."


    His response caused both Tyler and Dexter to frown. "Are you sure they are cultivating?"


    "How would I know?" Paul asked him, reminding them of his non-ability user status. He took the basket from Shaun, mentioning that he was going to wash the vegetables before Shaun rolled his eyes in thought that Paul was looking down on him and his disability again. Not that Paul meant to make Shaun feel inferior, just that he couldn''t help being overprotective of his friend.


    "Never mind," Dexter decided to change the topic of conversation. "Come help us figure out how to create a cold room in the basement."


    "Can''t you just fill it with ice?" Paul asked Tyler directly. Tyler gave him a cold glare, before filling up the bowl with water. Paul tossed the vegetables in nonchalantly.


    "If Tyler did that," Shaun pointed out, "we''d have a serious problem with mould and damp if Tyler couldn''t keep the place frozen all of the time. What about freezing water contained in sealed buckets or something? I could probably make some."


    "It''s a thought," Tyler agreed. "But it would be difficult to maintain a consistent temperature throughout the room and the buckets would take up space."


    "Metal tubing," young Nan Li Liang suggested. "If cold water is running through metal tubing, wouldn''t the air about it be cold? If the tubing is above everything, then the cold air would descend as well."


    "How would we keep the water running through the tubes though?" Paul asked aloud.


    "Ice melt," Tyler pointed out and ruffled the teenager''s hair in approval. "If the running water was collected at the bottom, I only need to return it to a tank and freeze it again once or twice a day. So long as the cold room isn''t opened too often, the air will reduce in temperature and stay cold as well."


    "And metal walls, floors and ceiling would reduce chances of damp," Dexter mentioned, rubbing at his chin. He slammed his open palm upon the table. "Let''s get some measurements worked out and get this thing sorted."


    *****


    Upon the roof, a few hours later, the long, auburn lashes framing two sapphire eyes fluttered apart and glanced over the face pressed close to his own, two foreheads pressed close. Heat rose rapidly through his face. He should have felt uncomfortable, he should have flinched away, but as two obsidian crescent moons captured him as they observed him, he felt as if it wouldn''t be bad to move closer still. He was disappointed when Ren Zexian backed away. Yet even then, their hands remained intertwined as if neither man wished to separate.


    Ren Zexian sat beside Nathan, smiling warmly. "You did very well," he praised.


    "Can I make more water now?" Nathan asked him. "I wish to grow rice for you in the spring."


    The older man could not help but falter as he realised that the reason that Nathan was serious about Cultivating now, about wanting to learn, about wanting to strengthen himself, it was all for him, Ren Zexian. His heart quickened a pace and his gentle smile suddenly lacked any distance, becoming softer, more genuine. "En," he murmured, "though, you will need to cultivate more often in order to notice the difference."


    Nathan''s head tilted a fraction to one side. "Then you will help me again and we will practice together."


    Ren Zexian''s expression fluctuated once more. A different method of ''Cultivating together'' flashed through his mind, distorting the innocent words into something less wholesome. He pressed the notion down, lamenting his sudden lack of control and patted Nathan''s hand with his own. "En."

 Chapter 53 Chapter Fifty Three - First Frost and Winter Snow

    The advancement of the season occurred without warning, Autumn becoming Winter overnight. The temperatures had plummeted overnight and the men and women of the small base woke able to see their breath. While some reacted by huddling deeper into their quilts, Autumn threw on a thick bathrobe and hurried down into the kitchen, where the heat from the aga was most pronounced. In the distant past, the aga''s warmth would have been funnelled to other rooms to heat home and hearth, but that was before the property enlarged and expanded. It was also way before the age of central heating. A pity that the latter was redundant now. Still, as Autumn''s body warmed in beside the stove, she expelled a quick sigh.


    Outside, the ground sparkled in the lazy light of the sun. The speckled ice coated the hard ground and each and every blade of grass, giving the feel that the usually green lawn had lost its colour beneath the full moon the previous night. The empty stalks of corn and tomatoes were wilting, killed in the chilling cold and many other plants were showing signs of being effected as well. Fortunately, most of the garden''s produce had been harvested, so there was little waste. Of the crops to grow above ground, only the brussel sprouts were waiting to be plucked, but that was simply due to the fact that this harder vegetables had better flavour if left until after the first frost. They would not remain out there for much longer.


    The blue sky was clear of clouds, but plumes of white smoke began to curl upwards as the both the mansion and the small neighbouring cottage began to burn wood and coal, trying to raise the temperatures within them. "How cold do you think it got, this morning?" Jimmy wondered aloud. With no tools to measure the temperature, there was no way to be certain.


    "No idea," Dexter replied as he helped Autumn load the kitchen tables with porridge, nuts and toasted seeds.


    The days were so much shorter and there was little to do in the dark evenings when candlelight and battery powered torches were all that could disperse the darkness. There was only so much one could chat about and only so much one could reminisce. Ren Zexian only allowed Dexter to cultivate after the sun had set, thus although the number of ability users within the base had increased, they still lacked things to do at night.


    It was discovered that the second squad had a few hidden talents in their midst. Shaun was already confirmed as a Metal user; his root was pure and he had no other abilities, but it was already amongst the best so others were not necessary. Brooke had a lone ice root, however Ren Zexian did not recommend that she cultivate at this time, but allow her body to focus on her child. He did not know that he had formed another misunderstood mark against him for his reasoning. Autumn, Cole and Jonah were found to also have dormant roots, surprising everyone.


    Awakening roots forcefully was a risky business and the older one was the more risk was posed, so Ren Zexian felt that he really should not attempt to awaken Jonah''s roots at all. Jonah was alright with this; he''d lived for more than fifty odd years without super-powers, he could survive the rest of his natural life without them. Besides, he needed to protect his lover and their baby and didn''t want to chance ruining his life over the chance that he might get a bit stronger in the future.


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    Cole accepted the risk immediately and Ren Zexian accompanied him in awakening twin Rock and Sand roots, both said to stem from the major Earth root, though both were actually minor and not as powerful as the main root itself. Ren Zexian then handed him to be trained by his disciple, feeling that this was the best course of action to be taken.


    Autumn had yet to decide whether she wanted to awaken the potential within herself, dubious and without confidence.


    Several of the men bundled up in sweaters and what coats they could find in the mansion. It was difficult as there had only been a few men taking care of the property before the end and at least one of them had been as skinny as a rack, while in contrast, one had obviously been quite round; any who tried on his old padded coat looked as if they were drowning in it, even the physically larger men, Harry, Jonah, Dexter and Cole. They''d found a few other coats in the village that could be used, but not all were in good condition, likely the spendthrift owners willing to put off purchasing a new one for another winter or perhaps they just liked them that much.


    Gloves were few and far between, only Chang Min currently wore a pair, Cole insisted on covering his new found Teacher''s long slender fingers with them and Patrick, who''d borrowed Nathan''s. The three of them had become indispensable when it came to finishing the long and tall wall wrapping around the three large properties within the base. Fortunately, the sun melted the frost by midday, the air became a little milder and the men no longer needed to warm their numb fingers while working on strengthening the wall. Shaun also came to help, accompanied by the ever hovering Paul, reinforcing the wall with metal from the inside and giving the whole thing an even sturdier foundation.


    The wall was completed in good time as well, for following the onset of frost came the first snow. And unexpectedly, the first fall settled to reach the small Lucy''s knees; she and Aslan had escaped the mansion to play in the white powder excitedly, only for a worrying Autumn to chase after them with a woollen hat, gloves and thick coat for the child. It was probably no surprise that the little one fell sick the following day, but the fever came and went just as quickly and the girl was back on her feet in no time.


    It was clear, however, from the increasingly thick snowfall, that this Winter was going to be a cold one, even the sheep had been given old duvets to lie upon rather than the concrete floor of the cold garage. These were topped with straw and dried grass gathered before the snow began to descend and although the three sheep tended to huddle together during the night, they were showing no ill effects from the bitter weather. At first, Harry, Winston and Paul would clear the snow in the sheep''s grazing area, but once this task became futile, they had to compromise, just bringing over fruit and vegetable scraps mixed with left over grain and warmed porridge to fill the animals bellies.


    The snow also made the others realise that it was impractical for Nathan and Lucy to remain separated from them, living on their own in the little cottage. Although they only warmed a couple of rooms in the mansion during the day and huddled beneath numerous duvets and blankets at night, the amount of coal and wood being burnt was not small and Nathan was using some to heat his own small home as well. Plus the compacted snow beneath the surface of the glistening white powder had long formed into ice, so now not only was the path from the cottage to the mansion difficult due to the thickness of the wintery blanket, but also treacherous. It was difficult enough struggling to the greenhouse at noon, without other numerous trips to the kitchen to eat, before returning to the cottage to sleep.


    Nathan remained stubborn though. "I do not want to move," he told Dexter as he ate the delicious baked potato and sweet potato slices with a topping of spicy tinned tuna and red onion. It was very delicious. He ate not in the kitchen with the abundance of noise and banter, but in solitude in the living room before a crackling fire. Or at least that was the case until Dexter and Ren Zexian came to speak with him.


    "I know," Dexter replied, calmly. "It''s noisy with so many people coming and going. I get that. But the snow is too deep for Lucy to cope with and although Aslan happily ferries her back and forth when he can, it would be better for them to move into the mansion."


    "Then they can do that," Nathan agreed. It hadn''t been his choice for Lucy to stay with him, but admittedly, he was used to her constant presence in his life now. He would miss her when she moved out.


    "You should also stay here," Ren Zexian coaxed. "There are also plants to take care of in the sunrooms as well as the greenhouse, so you would be nearer to them."


    Nathan thought about this for a moment, but as much as he loved his plants, he did not feel it necessary to move in with them. He could still travel here to take care of them everyday as he had been. He really did not like change and saw no reason why he should. Things were well the way they were... weren''t they?


    A slightly mischievous twinkle lit up Dexter''s eyes for a moment and the corners of his lips curled. "It''s a shame," he drawled, rising from his kneeling position. "You could have stayed in Ren''s room; there''s room in there after all." Ren Zexian glanced upward sharply; what was Dexter attempting to imply? His bed was large, indeed, but it was the only bed in the bedroom he used.


    However, how could he protest when those two, azure eyes looked at him so...

 Chapter 54 Chapter Fifty Four - There is Warmth in Snowstorms

    Nathan was not one to wake slowly, nor was he usually one to linger in bed. On this morning, he kept to the former habit, but the latter was swept away due to the scene before him. Curled upon one side, as was his usual, unmoving position through the sleeping period of night, he did not need to move his head nor his body in order to change his view and on this morning, that view was of Ren Zexian''s clear profile. The older man slept as still as Nathan, the other had learned in these past three nights and always slept upon his back, face towards the ceiling. Thus Nathan awoke to be witness to the smooth line of his forehead, his nose and his lips and chin, all framed by a glorious mane of midnight.


    Nathan felt his lips curl upward slightly and a warm feeling spread through his stomach. He identified that this was not due to their combined body heat (although they were not touching each other directly, Nathan could still feel the heat of the other leaping across the distinct gap between them), however he was not sure what emotion that this feeling could be. He did have emotions, he was not lacking like he had heard those young women employed to look after his parent''s property. He felt happy when his plants flourished beneath his care, angry when the seedlings were mistaken as weeds by those claiming that they were being ''helpful''. Scared that time Ren Zexian was attacked by that ugly, grey person, unhappy when others invaded his space... well that didn''t include everyone. His parents, his nanny and the old gardener... the Teacher had been tolerable... and then there was Ren Zexian.


    Ren Zexian could stand close to him and not make Nathan wish to escape his presence or push him away. Ren Zexian could touch him and not make his skin feel wrong. Ren Zexian could speak to him and his ears would want to hear more.


    His mother had a very sharp voice, like thorns on a rose bush, which did soften to feel like the leaves upon touch should she speak directly to him. But although this was okay, he did feel as if this was not her real voice.


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    His father had a deep, powerful voice. He looked like a soft peach, but his voice was that hard stone inside. It also rumbled through the listener and was loud, reminding Nathan of a petrol lawnmower. He didn''t like the lawnmower, he used to stay away when others cut the grass. Gradually, he even claimed more of the lawn for planting so the space that was cut was smaller. It was still a big lawn, though. The cottage garden had no lawn at all remaining after Nathan moved in.


    Anyway, his dad was aware that his voice was often too much for Nathan to bear, so although there were times he would still need to speak to Nathan, most of the time, they exchanged conversation in gestures. Such as splaying fingers out wide to catch Nathan''s attention, let him know that his father wished to speak with him. It was easier to cope with if he knew it was coming. And the old man spoke in short sentences as well.


    Ren Zexian''s voice was different. Ren Zexian''s voice was like a cool breeze rustling through the trees on a hot day. It was like the soft, unscented petals of calla lilies, simple and elegant. When Ren Zexian spoke, he wanted to listen. When Ren Zexian was silent, Nathan wanted to hear him speak. He didn''t know the reason. In fact, he didn''t care that he didn''t know the reason, it was enough to know this truth.


    But there was something else he had been curious about recently and it was only times like these, when the rest of the house was quiet and there was no urge to rise from the bed and get on with preparing himself for the day ahead, when he could think about it. Yesterday, he had seen the rugged man, Jonah, the one like a gnarly old tree and Brooke, the girl he thought was like a stalk of foxgloves, pressing their lips together. It''s not that he hadn''t seen people pressing their lips against another''s skin or mouth before; his mother had a tendency to place hers upon his father''s forehead and the chef from his childhood pressed lips with a woman who cleaned the rooms of the east side of the property. He''d just never thought much about it before.


    And yet, now, his eyes were drawn to the thin lips of Ren Zexian''s profile wondering about this action. He pressed his fingers to his own mouth. His fingertips were a bit cold and rough so he didn''t find it pleasant. He did notice though, that his lips felt different to other parts of his skin. There was also a lingering feeling after he removed his fingers, which he couldn''t place as being good or bad. His hand retreated beneath the cover, the heat beneath warming his fingers.


    And then an impulse overcame him and his hand crept out from the warmth and up towards Ren Zexian''s lips. His fingers hovered over Ren Zexian''s mouth for a moment and he felt the air moving in exhale from the man, his skin tingling as he began to slowly drop his reach lower...


    A flurry of noise pattered against the window, startling Nathan and he quickly withdrew his hand and reached for his ears. The sound wasn''t loud, though, so he didn''t try and muffle it in the end. Instead, he rolled over and sat up to glance out of the window to see if he could see what had made the noises. Behind him, he did not notice that a stain of colour rose upon the pale skin of the man he lie with.


    *****


    Lucy was also gazing with wide eyes out of the window, despite her breath fogging up the panes of glass as it touched it. Only when the mistiness had covered the area before her eyes did she flop back down upon the bed she was sharing. Then she crawled over the hillock created by body and duvet and poked the tender white flesh peeking out. A soft groan of complaint followed and that part that could be seen disappeared as the person retreated deeper into the covers.


    And so Lucy attempted to rouse the third person, who reacted in a slightly different way.


    "Put your hands in the air where I can see ''em!"


    A tangled mess of hair appeared, like a monstrous witch from a fairy tale, rising from the bed with two nail-chipped hands landing atop the covers. The disorientated one glanced back and forth before two eyes peered out of the knotted locks and fell upon a smiling child. "Ugh, Lu Lu," a slightly croaky, female voice spoke. "Go back to sleep, is too early!"


    She grasped the covered in her hand and attempted to pull them back over her head, but Lucy would not allow it. The child bounced up and down upon the bed and pointed out of the window.


    "Why so noisy?" The other occupant, also clearly a woman from the tone of her voice complained.


    In fact this pair was Monika and Autumn, who had shared a room since arriving at the small mansion. Originally, the room contained two single beds, however when little Lucy decided that she wished to share a bed with Autumn, they had to reconsider the sleeping arrangements. A single bed was definitely not large enough for a full bodied young woman and a child. Monika had proposed that they simply push the beds together, then they had topped it with a spare double duvet and sandwiched between that and their own covers. All three slept quite contentedly this way, with Lucy safely tucked between them.


    "I dunno," Monika complained, beginning to shiver with half of her body exposed to the chilly air. Even full-sleeved cotton pajama''s were no match for this bitter winter that they were experiencing and they had not been able to obtain fleece ones. It was fortunate enough that they''d found thick bathrobes at the clothing store that time, but Monika did not want to sleep in them, too uncomfortable. "You deal with her, I''m going back to sleep."


    "Oh," Autumn groaned and peered out from beneath the covers to see Lucy''s expression, filled to the brim with expectation. How could she be so cruel to deny the little girl when she looked at her with those eyes? So as Monika shuffled deeper into the remnant warmth beneath the duvet, Autumn gingerly crept out of it. Lucy saw that the woman was paying attention to her and grabbed her hands, which were warm and soft and once more pointed to the window. Autumn glanced up to see the curtains had been drawn back, she could feel the icy air about the glass panes from here, but she dutifully looked outside.


    Her eyes widened, unaccustomed to such a sight; flakes of white were hurtling past the window almost horizontally as the fierce winds captured them in their grip and flung them about beneath the steel coloured dawn light. She shook her head in disbelief. Last winter, they would have been lucky to see a dusting of snow covering the ground before it melted beneath the weak morning sun and now it was Siberia in their usually temperate county. It definitely seemed that the weather was as warped as the rest of nature after the apocalypse...

 Chapter 55 - Fifty Five - Pranks and Clean Up Duties

    The snowstorm lasted three nights and two days, effectively trapping them within the small mansion. Were it not for the fact that the property was fairly large and spacious, tension caused by numerous personalities in close quarters could have been higher. As it was a few spats did break out.


    One such happened due to a misunderstanding, simply a bit of a mistake over bathing schedules. Despite the number of bathrooms in a property this large, there was still limited water resources. At this time, Nathan and Tyler could fill up one bath every day without effecting the necessary supplies of water for drinking, watering the plants within the property and cleaning dishes and other things. So the property occupants could only bathe once every four days and couldn''t guarantee they would get to bathe first that day.


    On this day, it was the women who had the chance to soak in the water. As usual Brooke had cajoled Autumn and Monika into allowing her to bathe before them; likely she would have fought to be able to wash before the child, Lucy, as well, however the two women never gave her this chance. "What if she pees in the water?" Brooke had complained at first. Her complaint had been ignored.


    Brooke''s stomach was swelling decently, but it was not so large to cause her much discomfort beyond vanity. She looked unappeased at herself in the bathroom''s full length mirror, witnessing her disappearing waistline. At this rate, she felt, even Autumn would look more appealing than herself, at least the woman still could claim as having curves! She looked like she had an expanding balloon in her tummy! Oh my god! Is that a stretch mark?! With a pout, she slipped into the lukewarm water, it having cooled while she examined her changing body. It did not stop her from sinking down into it, the air in the property was not that warm after all.


    She was in the middle of washing her hair when the door began to open; Jonah did not like her locking it, always worried for herself and the baby. Thus she spun upon her side, ready to appease the overly concerned man or curse the other women for rushing her. Who knew that Jimmy would saunter in nonchalantly, thinking that it was his groups turn to bathe?! Actually, that had been a joke of Arthur and Cole''s but the men never thought of the consequences of their actions. A scream ripped through the mansion, followed by screeches and swearing.


    Nathan, who had been watering the plants in the eastern sunroom, fell to his knees, clutching his ears and trembling. It took a while for Ren Zexian to coax him from his panicked state, even as it took Jonah and Autumn to calm Brooke. Arthur and Cole were punished to clean and mop the bathroom after the women had finished as well as found themselves stuck on this chore for the next week. Jimmy had already suffered a wicked slap to the face, a red mark branded there for the entire day, as well as a bit of frostbite as Brooke had accidentally activated her abilities on him. Jonah considered that enough of a punishment, considering he hadn''t meant to peep on his woman. Brooke was unreconciled and threw several jabs at the poor man over the next few days.


    On the third morning, they woke up to see sunshine weakly overcoming the steely grey sky, the cloud cover thinning enough to let the rays peer through. Nathan rushed to the backdoor of the kitchen, as Autumn was chasing out a couple of men with sticky fingers from picking at food before it was cooked. His wellington boots were already on his feet and his coat zipped up to his neck. He hadn''t put his gloves on yet, but was still fiddling with the lock ready to escape the house.


    "Wait," Autumn coaxed him. She was one of the people here that Nathan found most tolerable, with the exception of Ren Zexian and little Lucy. The food she made was tasty and she always remembered not to make his food spicy, as he found this sort of flavouring too overwhelming to eat. She also harvested vegetables and fruit from the garden with care, not harming the plants as she did so. "Wait for Ren to come and help you. The snow looks awfully deep."


    He didn''t understand her concern, but waiting for Ren Zexian to leave the house beside him was a suggestion he liked, so he remained at the door, shuffling from foot to foot as until Ren Zexian appeared. And then, before the Cultivator could even take a breath to greet Autumn and Dexter, who was sitting chatting lightly to the woman by that time, he was grabbed by the hand and pulled towards the door.


    "Oi, oi! Let Ren get a coat on Nathan!" Dexter chuckled, softly and quickly grabbed a random coat from the hallway closet, tossing it to the older man. As it happened, it wasn''t too big on the slender man.


    The snow was as thick as Autumn feared, thigh deep, something that had not been seen in this part of the country since records began, if ever. Having a root of fire, Ren Zexian naturally had a high body temperature and could manipulate the air around him to reflect this as well. As the man approached the plains of white, the snow began to hiss and steam, melting before them. A little of the water spilled into the kitchen, for which Ren Zexian apologised and Autumn rebuffed him, saying that it could not be helped.


    The two men stepped into the Siberian landscape, heavy snow coating the ground and causing the boughs of some trees to bend. A layer of ice had formed beneath the cold, white blanket, however with each step Ren Zexian took, it cracked and evaporated, allowing Nathan to follow him safely. Slowly, the pair made their way to the greenhouse.


    After a breakfast of toast and jam, tiny apple pastries, (using the last of the normal apples that had wrinkled slightly due to age) and toasted chestnuts, Autumn set aside a portion for Ren Zexian and Nathan, who had yet to return. It was Harry that had pointed out their absence to everyone else.


    "Yeah, they went out earlier," Dexter mentioned as he tossed his plate into the bubbly water in the sink and gave it a rinse. "Probably to check out the plants in the greenhouse."


    "Speaking of checking things out," Harry mentioned, noticing the apple peel in the scraps bucket. "We should probably look in on the sheep." Dexter nodded in agreement, but they did not have Ren Zexian to make a path for them in the snow and had to rely on shovels. At least until Chang Min noticed them.


    "Why not have Tyler or the girl Brooke melt the snow for you?" He asked them. The two men, coated in rapidly cooling sweat, glanced at each other and laughed in self ridicule. Tyler was then roped in to lead the way, however Chang Min also accompanied them after the former complained about it.


    "Who knows what''s lurking beneath that lot?" He''d pointed out in wide gesture. "I''m no Ren, I can''t detect zombies on radar!"


    "But the wall..."


    "Stops zombies from getting through it, but what about over it or under it?" Indeed, after Tyler melted an amount of snow from the white surface down toward the hidden ground, there was a frozen corpse. It appeared to be a duck or wading bird of some sort, but it''s half feathered wings and patchy skull indicated that it had likely zombified at some point. How it came to be here and become buried, they did not know, nor did they care. Chang Min severed its head with a flick of his sword before anyone formed these questions, just in case a defrosted undead was a revived undead.


    The three sheep happened to be fine, hungry but fine, so while they tucked aggressively into the fruit and vegetable scraps as well as a warm watery rice porridge, Tyler cleared their fenced area, melting and partially evaporating the snow, in order that they could continue to graze on whatever grass lie beneath.

 Chapter 56 - Fifty Six - Spring Can Begin In December

    The plants in the greenhouse were not week, for the most part; their constant diet of carefully balanced nutrition and the blessed water produced by their keeper ensured they were strong of root and blight free. Therefore, despite the fact that the soil in the pots was not as moist as three days prior and the light within had been smothered in part by a blanket of snow, the vegetation seemed no real worse for wear. However, it was still winter and the air within the walls of glass windows was still cool. There was no flowers nor fruit upon the leafy planting. If it weren''t for a few winter cabbages and spinach grown in the central beds, there would be nothing fresh to harvest at all in the coming days.


    Ren Zexian gathered a strong gust of chilly air to knock loose the thick snow and allow more light to pour in through the roof, while Nathan took care of his beloved plants. One by one, he adjusted the liquid feed doses to be added to the water he gathered to moisten their soil.


    Once the youth had completely shown his love for them, he reappeared at Ren Zexian''s side. "I want to visit my house," he said, pointing in the direction of the cottage. He''d not taken much from the cottage, just a few clothes, which already were heaped into a pile ready to be cleaned or feebly attempting to dry upon an airer in an atmosphere too cool to properly allow this. He also wanted to see how the small garden outside his home was faring. They found no issues with the property, the plants in the garden were quietly dormant beneath the blanket of white, however they left there with more than they expected.


    *****


    Autumn placed fresh toast in front of Ren Zexian and Nathan with the chestnuts and pastries she had saved them as well as a cup of precious hot chocolate to warm them. This was also poured for Dexter and the others as they entered, pale and shivering after serving the sheep and they took it gratefully, warming hands and inner bodies. Dexter praised her thoughtfulness, causing her to blush. Chang Min also took the drink, but unlike the others, he seemed non-perturbed by the cold.


    "Chang Min is in the middle of the body tempering phase," Ren Zexian commented, proudly. "His tolerance towards extreme temperature is much greater than our own."


    "Body tempering phase?" As usual a simple question sounded scornful spilling from Tyler''s lips, but he was indeed curious.


    "En," Ren Zexian responded. "Cultivation stages primary through to tertiary represent the core formation phase, then quaternary through to senary represent mind tempering phase and septenary through to nonary are the soul tempering phase. Each stage takes longer to Cultivate through successfully, yet even at Chang Min''s youthful age, he has come so far." Chang Min was indeed his apprentice and had never failed his expectations. Chang Min beamed beneath his Master''s praise, while Nathan felt uncomfortable in his seat and unable to comprehend why. He just knew that he no longer wished to sit here at the table eating and listening to these words.


    However, before he could rise and flee, Ren Zexian''s hand gently lay upon his wrist and his attention was wholly captured. "One day you and the others will be as strong as Chang Min, perhaps stronger," he smiled, gently.


    "I will be as strong as you," Nathan stated, before resuming the consumption of his meal.


    The curve of Ren Zexian''s lips faltered slightly and he inwardly sighed. It would be some time before he was as strong as his own apprentice once more! He glanced towards Tyler, who was refilling the kitchen''s two water tanks, translucent and light barrels meant for brewing beer upon a small scale. They had found a handful of these in one of the village properties during their initial searches. Another was in the bathroom upstairs for hand and face washing, and another in the living room, so that water to be obtained at anytime. Usually, Tyler was the one to fill these, though Nathan had helped on occasion during the time he had lived here.


    "Tyler," Ren Zexian called to him in order to capture his attention. "This may be of use to you." He placed a hand-sized teardrop crystal upon the table. It was one of the natural crystal''s formed upon the skinny, leafless tree in Nathan''s garden. Inside the crystal was a miniature snowstorm, much reflective of the sky that had been outside of their windows for the past few days. It was cool to the touch, but not cooler than the glass panes during the bitter winter. Tyler took it in hand and felt it resonate with his spirit. He recalled how Dexter had felt much the same with the crystal that had captured the lightning blast.


    Still he couldn''t help but glance at Nathan, wondering why Ren Zexian hadn''t handed it to his little boyfriend to use. Yes, he knew that the pair were not an official couple, but the whole puppy-dog eyes and air of ambiguity that swirled around the pair was so obvious that everyone in the house knew it was only a matter of time. In fact, there were even bets on when they would admit to it.


    "For me?" Tyler questioned, reluctant to keep it, reluctant to give it up. "Nathan''s also has water abilities..."


    "This is more useful for you," Ren Zexian replied. "Nathan''s cultivation... Nathan requires more guidance at this time." Well, it was true that he hadn''t been able to come up with an appropriate cultivation method given Nathan''s triple root system, however it just so happened that Nathan had yet to circulate his spirit using the basic method once by himself yet. In fact, after lunch, it was Nathan''s habit to drag him back to their room in order that they could cultivate together, he as active guide and Nathan as passive student. He seemed to look forward to it even.


    Others did not take Ren Zexian''s words at more than face value; they did not really know better. The Ren they knew never lied nor whitewashed things, why would they assume to read between the lines? However, Chang Min was different.


    Once they had finished eating, Nathan thought to cultivate with Ren Zexian now rather than wait and mentioned it to the older man, who did not disagree. But before they could journey upstairs to the bedroom, Chang Min caught his master''s sleeve and expressed; "Master, could I speak to you a moment?"


    Ren Zexian turned to glance at Nathan first and said softly; "Go on up, I''ll join you in a few moments."


    "I can wait for you here," Nathan replied. His heart felt sore when he looked at the two oriental men standing side by side. Both had exotic features, long hair of midnight and skin like white rose petals, eyes like peach blossoms. Chang Min was a tiny bit shorter, but his physical appearance no less refined and his face was circular like the sun and his smile just as bright. When they were together, they made an amazing view. Nathan felt as if he were the weed in their garden. He did not want to be a weed. His calloused hands with skin still bearing a little colour from the sun were captured in Ren Zexian''s elegant ones. The pain eased a little and he finally agreed to go to their room first, but he still glanced over his shoulder at the pair as he reached the last steps.


    Chang Min watched the forlorn youth disappear upstairs before voicing his mind; "Master, do you like him?" He asked. "Do you like Nathan?" It was not that he had not had some small suspicions before, but Chang Min had not really had many chances to view the interactions of people in intimate relationsh.i.p.s during his time in the old world. The people of this world, he found were very forward, hence as his Master and Nathan were too subtle in their affections, he had dismissed own his thoughts. Just assumed they were a bit closer than the Master was with his other new students. That Ren Zexian was fond of Nathan. However, no Master would indulge their student with personal guidance for a long period of time or how would the student ever be able to cope alone?


    Ren Zexian did not falter in his response. "Yes."


    A smile bloomed upon Chang Min''s thin lips as he said; "I have only had the honour of calling you Master for a hundred years or so, but I have heard from the others how aloof you held yourself from them. I am glad you have found the one that you can stand beside."


    "Thank you, Chang Min."


    "Only, Master," his apprentice could not help but add, "Why is there a distance remaining between you both? You have not..." With his strength, he would have an inkling if their spiritual energies had mingled, making it more obvious to him their closeness, but...


    "No," Ren Zexian admitted. "I fear pushing him too fast. He does not see the world in the way that we do."


    "He does not," Chang Min agreed. "But then, who does in this world? We awoke in a world that had adapted to being fit for our ways, but I understand that it was not always that way. We would not have been so readily accepted in their previous world. Cole explained Nathan''s condition as being one that was also not fit for their world in which they lived, so he created a small world for himself. One where he did not have to adapt to others, where he could express his intelligence and caring nature without being judged. And yet, albeit slowly, I can see that he has adapted to you, Master."


    His words caused a fluctuation in the speed in which Ren Zexian''s heart beat. "What are you suggesting?"


    "Well, I''m not suggesting it be so direct as to make him your Dao Companion, though I believe that will be the inevitable road, but perhaps make clear your feelings for him?" Chang Min noticed the shadow still lingering upon the landing and pushed Ren Zexian in the right direction. "I believe he is waiting for you to make the first move, Master."

 Chapter 57 - Fifty Seven - No Longer Walking Alone

    Six months; it had been six months since Nathan''s small world had changed. He did not count the months before where everyone had disappeared, dying and transforming into walking corpses that are people. His world had been a solitary one with passerby''s and occasional visitors. Even his parents were more like guests than permanent fixtures, not because they were not around much, just that they had helped Nathan form his world and allowed him to prosper in his own way. And that way, was solitary. There had been other guides upon his path such as the Nanny, Gardener and his Teacher, but they all left him alone in the end.


    And then six months ago, a man had appeared, a softly spoken man who did not treat him as if he was a fragile, exotic flower in a greenhouse and out of its natural habitat or as a small, prickly weed in an otherwise blooming garden. There was no anger nor coldness when Nathan did not meet his gaze nor impatience when Nathan was panicked by sudden sounds blasting through his sensitive ears. Nathan had felt secure when close to him during their first time meeting and had slowly come to rely on him more and more. And wanted to be closer to him more and more.


    And then Chang Min had appeared.


    Chang Min was not the first to appear beside Ren Zexian. Firstly, there were those other men, Dexter, Tyler, Patrick and the others. They were loud men and had big presences. However, they were not unkind to him and they respected his garden and personal space, so he had slowly accepted their being in his parents'' home. There had always been people in the house, so it wasn''t too much to replace the former occupants in his mind with these men.


    The next group of people were not so easy to accept, be it their numbers or their mannerisms. And so, with perhaps the exception of Autumn and Nan Li Liang, who was naturally a quiet and serious youth, Nathan had skirted around them most of the time and generally, they also kept their distance from him unless Ren Zexian was beside him. He felt he could deal with anyone so long as Ren Zexian was with him.


    But Chang Min was not like those others, Chang Min was much more like a Ren Zexian, quietly spoken, would walk with his hands behind his back and he could discuss with Ren Zexian things that only they could comprehend. Ren Zexian also treated Chang Min different to the others. Perhaps because of this, Nathan had grown to dislike Chang Min. But as Chang Min had a bright sunny smile and a genuine manner, never spoke to him using those unpleasant tones Nathan had become used to when growing up, Nathan could not hate Chang Min. Still, he did not want to leave Chang Min and Ren Zexian alone together. It made his stomach feel really sour.


    When Ren Zexian has asked him to wait in their room (their room, the one he now shared with Ren Zexian, not Chang Min!) so he could speak with Chang Min alone, Nathan was reluctant. His eyes had felt pricked with thorns and he felt the water gathering in them. Why? He had wanted to ask, but could not.


    Why do you want to be alone with that man, why do you want me to go away and why do I feel as sad as when I could not save mother''s favourite lilac tree?


    His world had been a solitary one so he had never truly experienced the joy of having someone else walk beside him in that world, the pain and the need to keep them close. But although he hadn''t and did not completely understand what was happening to his heart, he did understand that Ren Zexian was not a guide, guest or passerby in his world. He just didn''t have the word to explain who he was to him.


    *****


    Ren Zexian was also experiencing conflicting emotions, but not due to the fact that he did not know who Nathan was to him. To sum up such in words was less simple, but this was only because using words seemed too simple, to crass to use to do so. If he were pushed to express such using words, however, he would say that: although he knew that there could be a person he could walk besides upon this unending quest for immortality, he had been content enough to journey alone with guests and passerby''s as he did so, until he met Nathan.


    In this, he and Nathan were the same, though neither of them truly knew it. Ren Zexian had come to find that Nathan was the part of his heart, his soul, his entire being that he had not known was missing. And now that he was aware, he did not believe he could continue on this journey without him there beside him. Thus, he was not conflicted on what Nathan meant to him.


    He was conflicted on how to express this to Nathan and how to convince Nathan to accept him.


    In some ways, Nathan was as innocent as a child. He could not lie, he could not express what he did not mean and he was straightforward in his manner. He liked what he liked, he hated what he hated. However, that did not mean he had the same level of trust or shallow experiences of a child. He did not trust and respect others blindly and without reason. He knew that he was not like other people and refused to accept the disdain nor pity of anyone.


    Therefore, Ren Zexian felt that he had to step lightly, to not reveal his feelings in a way that looked down on Nathan''s social understandings, yet to make them clear enough that Nathan could not mistake his meanings for anything else. His heart beat for him.


    As he approached the top step and realised that Nathan was hovering just a little away from the stairs, that heart began to race and a cold sweat broke upon the brow that ever seemed cool and collected. How much had Nathan heard him state?


    Nathan, deep in his own thoughts, glanced up, startled, before bouncing away like a frightened deer towards their shared room. After a moment''s hesitation, Ren Zexian was hot upon his tail. And who was Ren Zexian? His body might not have been quite what it was in his heyday, however, he was not lacking. He certainly could outrace a youth who''d only taken baby steps upon the path of cultivation.


    The bedroom door swung shut beside them and Nathan stood beside the bed, his eyes darting about the room and refusing to meet Ren Zexian''s. Ren Zexian also could barely control himself, his arms reaching forward, wanting to touch, wanting to hold, but fearing to do so. Fearing that Nathan would not abide the strong need within him, that he would be rejected. Nathan was a sensitive person inside, Ren Zexian worried he would overwhelm him.


    Finally, it was Nathan who broke the standoff between them.


    "Why?" He blurted out, then gripped at his ears as if he found his own voice too loud or perhaps he simply did not want to hear the answer. Seeing his knuckles turn white, Ren Zexian feared that Nathan would hurt himself and finally placed his hands over the youth''s, carefully peeling them away.


    "Nathan," he called to him, gently, though his tone was not without a little of the stirring emotions dwelling within him. "Nathan, I have something I wish to speak with you about. But first, do you have something to ask me?" His question was intended for two reasons, only one was as he wished to understand Nathan''s earlier query. Otherwise, he cursed himself as a true coward, prolonging this matter between them.


    "Why can''t it be me?" Nathan shouted, wincing at the volume, but finally feeling that some clarity was forming with his sentence. That was right! When he witnessed Chang Min standing together with Ren Zexian and when Ren Zexian praised Chang Min, he did not like it, because he wanted to be the one standing with Ren Zexian and he wanted to be the one praised by Ren Zexian. Ren Zexian was in his world not as a guest, nor guide nor passerby but as...


    "Why can''t what not be you, Nathan?" Ren Zexian raises a hand to tentatively wipe away the salty tears running down the face filled with frustration. It was the first time he''d ever seen this expression on his dear boy''s face; his nose wrinkled at the bridge, his brow furrowed so deeply it looked quite painful. He bit at his lower lip, drawing Ren Zexian''s eyes and inflicting a need to kiss away the wound.


    But the question was proving too much for Nathan, who had no answer and the youth simply shook his head, so it was up to Ren Zexian to attempt to translate his words, his actions.


    "There are many things you are, Nathan," Ren Zexian said, more calmly than he felt. "You are honest, you are bright, you are an excellent gardener." Nathan shook his head once more, so Ren Zexian continued to speak, his hands wandered to brush the lengthening chestnut strands from Nathan''s face with a smile. He would soon be able to tie his hair back and not long after, arrange it into a noble crown. "You are talented and strong and generous. You''ve give us all a way to survive. You are amazing, Nathan."


    "But I am not Chang Min," Nathan finally replied.


    "Why would you need to be Chang Min?" Ren Zexian asked, confused. "You are perfect the way you are. You are more than perfect." Nathan was shaking his head once more, he was not perfect. He was not like other people, he knew that, so how could he be perfect? "Nathan, what can I do in order that you will believe me, believe me that I believe you are perfect?"


    "Stay with me?" Nathan told him. "I don''t want to watch you go away."


    "Where would I be planning to go?" Ren Zexian found himself chuckling and shook his own head. "Nathan, even if I had to leave here, to leave this house, to leave this place, I would want to take you with me. Nathan, I have strong feelings for you. Not those of a friend or a brother, nor of a parent or a Teacher, but of a person who wishes be the closest person to you in this life, in this world. Closer than you are to even your beloved plants."


    "But you are closer to me than the plants," Nathan pointed out, lifting the hand which was still being held.


    "Do you like me more than the plants?" Ren Zexian asked him in half-tease.


    Nathan looked thoughtful for a moment and then a look of complete clarity shone in his stunning eyes. "Yes," he replied, earnestly. "I like you more than I like the plants!" His smile was worth a thousand sunrises, but it faltered as he shyly asked; "Do you like me more than the plants?"


    "Yes, Nathan, I do," Ren Zexian replied.


    "More than Chang Min?"


    And it was then that Ren Zexian felt as he had when he had first pierced the bottleneck preventing him from proceeding further in his cultivation. Nathan had been jealous of Chang Min? The warmth welling within him began to simmer with happiness. "Yes, Nathan, most definitely more than Chang Min. Nathan, the feeling I have for you is love. I love you. I want to be with you forever and want you to be with me forever. To wake up with you, to breakfast with you, to hold your hand as we walk within beneath the sun, to hold you close when we shelter from the cold. I want to raise your plants with you, want to cultivate with you and want you to be the last thing I see before I close my eyes to sleep."


    Nathan''s smile regained its vitality. Ren Zexian was not a guest nor a guide, he was the person within his world that he had been waiting, wanting to find.

 Chapter 58 - Fifty Eight - Advancing in These Times

    One of the rooms in the east side of the property happened to be used as a small gym; set up with a treadmill, cross trainer, exercise bike, rowing machine and one of those large, gym balls that happened to be deep purple in colour. There were also some small weights, not dumbbells nor barbells, just something with a minor mass to be held or attached to wrists and legs while exercising and other small pieces of equipment. The treadmill could no longer be used and the gym ball had been wedged into a corner, but the rest still had some function, even if the electronic parts were pointless.


    Desperate for something to do, especially when the storm had been swirling around the property, this had become a den heavy with testosterone of late. Currently, Harry was stretching his calf muscles having finished a long round upon the exercise bike, while Arthur was upon the rowing machine and Winston was jumping rope. Cole entered the room and gave the others a curt nod before strapping on some weights and approaching the bike.


    "Not hanging out with Chang Min?" Arthur asked, but there was a hint of subtext to his words. Cole raised an eyebrow in response to his tone, but shook his head regardless.


    "Chang Min had something to do," Cole replied, shortly.


    Harry didn''t understand the inflexion in Arthur''s tone either, but thought it had to have something to do with the whole meditation-cultivation thing. Cole had awoken abilities that were not dissimilar to the ones Chang Min had, so it really was not surprising that Ren Zexian thought Cole should learn from him. Besides, Ren Zexian was one man, there was only so many people he could teach his knowledge to at anyone time. That and recently, most of his time had been spent with Nathan.


    "Hey, do you think that Ren and Nathan ever will...you know, cross the line," Harry mused, aloud.


    "Get it on?" Winston grinned, lewdly between heavy breaths as he took a break. Sweat beaded across his brow and he swept his hand through his frizzy black hair, before thinking that he seriously needed a cut. "Hard to imagine, really. Hey, who do you think would be on top?"


    Arthur rose to his feet, abandoning his work out with heavy sounding words; "I''m not homophobic or anything, but doesn''t mean I want to imagine that kind of thing between guys!" Winston and Harry simply laughed, in reality, they joked about it, but couldn''t imagine nor wanted to imagine about it either! S.e.x aside, they thought Ren Zexian and Nathan made a saccharine sweet picture when together and had no ill thoughts about their relationship.


    "Ren''ll be on top," Cole suddenly added nonchalantly, drawing glances his way and an awkward pause. Cole ignored them all, continuing to cycle upon the bike as they groped around for a different topic or at least some small talk to gloss over the previous one. Suddenly, Cole stopped moving and shuddered inwardly, rubbing briskly at his arms.


    A sense of deja vu whispered over Harry, whose brown eyes were trained on the odd motions. "Are you alright?"


    "Yeah, I think," Cole responded, though his brows were furrowed.


    Arthur slipped out of the gym room, heading towards the bathroom; he wouldn''t be able to bathe, not his turn, but there was usually enough spare water that he could wash up a bit with soap and a cloth. As he reached the stairs, a foggy black shape appeared then vanished again before reappearing upon the landing and bounding down the hall. Not thinking much of it, he ran up the stairs, taking two at a time, before having to pause at the top as the little guy, Patrick rushed past.


    "Sorry!" The flaxen-haired man apologised as he rubbed at his arms and headed in the same direction as the hound.


    Arthur was an observant man, it helped to be so in the force, after all, he realised that something odd was happening. Actually, despite seeming to adapt well to the changes that had occurred since the end, deep down he was very uncomfortable about it all. He joined the police as to have some sense of control after experiencing crime as a victim; nothing major, a burglary within his parents home when he was twelve. Coming home, seeing his room turned upside down and his console missing wasn''t much compared to what his parents must have felt. And it was nothing compared to other crimes he''d dealt with in the aftermath.


    But since the end, since the rising of zombies and the mutation of animals and plants, since laws no longer meant anything anymore and some people gained powers only found in comics or the movies... the control he sought within the force amounted to practically nothing. He didn''t like it.


    Following Jonah and the others as part of a squad to find food and deal with the zombies had given him a grasping sense of normality. None of them had developed so called super-powers, they were just ordinary people trying to help create some order in the chaos. He hadn''t been that happy, if he had to admit it, when Shaun joined their already formed squad, but he had dealt with it by ignoring it. Besides, with Shaun there was a sense of balance in a way; he had his abilities, but he was still bound to a wheelchair. F.u.c.k it, even he winced inwardly when he thought about it that way. Their group expanded more, Brooke had powers, but they were both useful and kind of lame. She liked to rely on others anyway and were it not for her ability, they''d have had it tougher during that time. He never once thought that they wouldn''t survive without her, though.


    Coming here, finding more people with powers was unbalancing, but no sooner had they arrived, they''d gone out raiding, keeping his mind from being overly bothered about it. Tyler and Patrick proved that they were strong, but not without weakness, that their powers didn''t mean they weren''t vulnerable. Admittedly, Ren Zexian and Chang Min were something else, but keeping his body busy meant he didn''t need to dwell on things.


    In the end, though, he couldn''t ignore reality forever and when Cole, one of their own that despite his history of being on the other side of the law he could claim as brother now, had developed powers, he felt that last straw of normality turn to ash.


    Silently, he was trying hard to accept things, he knew his chances of survival would be pretty slim if he could not get over his issues. But the weirdness just kept on getting weirder. He took a deep breath and followed in the wake of Patrick and Aslan, finding them both outside of a closed door.


    "Whose room is this?" He indicated the door casually with his thumb.


    "Tyler''s," Patrick replied, excitedly. Before he could ask any further, the door beside it, but further down the hall, opened. Ren Zexian stepped out, with Nathan following. The oriental man''s smile seemed less like a physical boundary for some reason and more welcoming, while Nathan''s face seemed flushed with feeling. Patrick clearly could detect the alteration in the aura about them as he clapped his hands together and took a deep breath. He waggled a finger, pointing at both of them, even as he bounced upon his heels in giddy excitement.


    Neither man said anything in response to Patrick''s unspoken question, however Arthur could see that Nathan''s hand no longer grasped the sleeve of Ren Zexian''s robe, but instead the man''s pale fingers. What was there to question?


    Ren Zexian''s sparkling, black eyes glanced towards the closed bedroom door. "It seems that Tyler will be advancing soon," he murmured, causing Arthur to frown. He didn''t understand what this meant, however the smaller man beside him was obviously aware.


    "I thought it would be me next," he pouted, childishly. "I mean, I''ve been cultivating longer than he has!"


    Cultivating... that had to do with those mediation techniques. There were officers in the force that used to swear by things like that, claimed that it helped to loosen the stress of the job. Arthur had favoured physical exercise over those ''well-being'' methods. However, at that time, he''d never imagined that such would become the norm in this small base of survivors and even considered beneficial to strengthening powers and abilities.


    "I have explained," Ren Zexian was saying, "that the speed in which one can advance has to do with technique, talent and fortune. I have given you the best techniques that I am able to, talent is innate, I cannot help that. A single root means the concentration of spiritual energy is focused upon a lone path, two roots and the energy is split two ways. Your fortune may not be as great as Tyler''s but it is greater than others, mine for example."


    "Really?" Patrick questioned, sceptically.


    "Truly," Ren Zexian agreed. Otherwise, how could he have only been of nonary stage after ten thousand years?! Nathan gripped his hand more tightly, revealing his discomfort in the stirring atmosphere centring on the man locked in his room. "Come, his advancement still may take a while."


    "You aren''t going to help him?" Patrick recalled how Ren Zexian had been there throughout Dexter''s advancement.


    Ren Zexian simply smiled and replied with a slightly wry expression; "I honestly do not believe that Tyler requires assistance." And with that, he calmly lead Nathan away.


    Arthur sighed, he really didn''t get this shit at all.


    Tyler advanced in the middle of the night. The first thing he did following his advancement was to fumble to his en-suite bathroom in the dark, leaving sticky black prints upon the wall. Once there, he proceeded to create hot water for a good bath.

 Chapter 59 - Fifty Nine - Holding Hope in our Hands

    Following Winter will always be Spring, even if that season seems quite reluctant to arrive.


    After the second bout of heavy snowstorms came a particularly bitter period with temperatures plummeting to a low never experienced in the formerly temperate country. Though it had been cold before and the snow not willing to melt upon the frozen ground, the steely grey skies had helped keep the thermometer at a relative constant a handful of degrees below zero. And then those clouds parted, but the sun was not kind and the night less so.


    Spare duvets, blankets, sleeping bags and unused towels were thrown upon beds in order to keep their occupants as warm as possible, but there was the odd night when the chattering of teeth was all that could be heard within the silence of the sunless period. From then on, the fire in the living room was kept burning, while the occupants huddled around it when not in the gym, burning calories to keep warm, helping to cook in the kitchen or watering the plants, a few of which died, unable to bear the cold.


    The former I.T technician, Eraj, fell sick during this period and for a while, it seemed as if he might not pull through. He had no roots, none of Ren Zexian''s precious pills were suitable to help him pull through, they could only watch helplessly as they tried to keep him warm, keep him fed and hydrated. His fever abated after the third night and finally, they could breath a sigh of relief, but they still hovered close as he slowly recovered.


    Ren Zexian''s inner fire kept his body from noticing the bitterness, thus he was not so uncomfortable in this period of time. And each night, his beloved would take advantage of this, draping his cold limbs over Ren Zexian''s body and enjoying the warmth he found. Nathan had become closer to Ren Zexian since his confession, usually unwilling to part from his side at anytime, but apart from this, their relationship was not much different that from before. Holding the sleeping youth close to him within their bed was both a joy and a trial as he enjoyed the freedom of embrace, but with that last barrier still between them. The connecting of their bodies in that most primitive and yet spiritual of ways. At least, there was no mention of Nathan moving out of his room and back to the cottage in the Spring, thus Ren Zexian held hope.


    And of course, when he had first kissed those tender lips, there had been no rejection, just innocent curiosity. Their kisses had increased in frequency, although had remained somewhat in the realm of chasteness. Still, He could wait. Ren Zexian had lived for ten millennia, he knew patience.


    The bitter cold period lasted close to two weeks, wearing away at their bodies as they exhausted themselves in attempts to keep warm and to sleep through the icy nights. After that, the temperatures slowly rose to above freezing, remaining chilly, but no longer so unbearable. Nathan''s care allowed for the recovery of some of the plants within the property and greenhouse and the snow and treacherous ice covering the ground finally began to melt.


    It was now March, a time when the ground needed to be broken into and prepared for planting, in which Nathan needed to begin sprouting numerous seeds to be planted after the last of the frosts and in which they looked in despair at the sparseness of their rapidly dwindling food supplies. All of the dried pasta and other grains had been eaten, there was no dried fruit or pulses either. The tins and jarred produce was finished. The root vegetables were no more, with the exception of powdered sweet potato and a couple of jars of pickles. Pickles were all that remained of last year''s harvest and two jars of jam. Otherwise, what they mostly had on hand was flour, thanks to that last raid in the early Fall of the previous year. It was lucky that Autumn could make noodles and bread with the flour and Nathan could still harvest some leafy greens and new potatoes from the greenhouse, otherwise, their bellies would be well and truly suffering. However, meals, for a while would be either repetitive or bland until new harvests could be made.


    Fortunately, the mushrooms from the five kits were beginning to flourish, having not done much in the coldest months and these would soon supplement their meals.


    Almost everyone leant a hand, breaking ground, removing weeds and fertilising the new


    patches for the vegetables. The space to grow vegetables almost tripled in size for it had become obvious that they would not easily last another winter on what Nathan''s garden produced the previous year. Not that that was the youth''s fault, just that the numbers the garden needed to support had grown and there would be little or no food to supplement it from tins or imports next time around.


    The greenhouse shelves were covered in seedlings, some that would be planted outside in the following month, some that would be retained in the greenhouse. With the help of Nan Li Liang, there was also a miniature paddy field formed to the rear of the greenhouse, but it would still be a while until this received its inhabitants.


    As for the wheat grain, they decided to split the seeds into two halves, planting some in a newly formed small field in the back of Nathan''s garden and the rest in the front garden of one of the other mansions; the furbished one. Here, also, a small field for corn was cleared and another for potatoes. Although the last one could not be put to use for now, they planned to cycle the quickly growing crop into this space during the summer, when they had seed spare.


    For this whole early period, every man, woman and child were kept busy with the digging, planting and wall repairs and other things.


    Lucy resumed her duties with her small watering can, riding on the back of Aslan as they ''leapt'' from one sunroom to the other, to the greenhouse and back again in quick time, so they could spend more time playing.


    Shaun, who created a pair of metal shears after a few experiments, helped clip the three sheep from his wheelchair as Paul tried to hold them down. He laughed a lot as Paul was thrown off or blasted with a brief, but strong gust of air to slide across the mud and grass. The result was the sheep looked patchy, like badly groomed ugly poodles.


    Nan Li Liang recalled learning about ancient methods of spinning sheep''s wool from history in primary school. So they washed the smelly wool and made some attempts, the resulting thread was lumpy at first and the scarf that he and Patrick knitted together was ugly. It turned out that Patrick had learned such skills as knitting and sewing at his grandmother''s knees, but his parents had dissuaded him from entering college to study home economics and clothing design, considering it as unstable. So his skills had been reduced to a pass time, without the time over the last few years.


    Meanwhile, the teenager proved to have an incalculable gift as well, though not one linked to the world of cultivation; he had an eidetic memory. If he had read something or watched something in the past, he could recall it. This was not perfect recall, for insignificant, unnecessary details escaped him, but all the important points would remain. Such as once when bored in a shop where his mother was looking at tablecloths, he read through a bunch of knitting patterns. He couldn''t understand them, but he could write them down perfectly for others who could.


    However, there was one, who was less able than others for she was nearing the end of her own most important task, but was not one to sit back quietly and appreciate. Brooke felt fat and ungainly, her pale flesh was marked with lines as her skin had been forced to stretch around her sheltering midriff. The unborn child was boisterous, kicking her from the inside and performing flips at a whim. Her back ached, her ankles were swollen and she craved meat and sweets. There was never a day of late, where she did not complain about the food or therefore lack of and she eyed the sheep with abandon, but was unable to fulfil her desire.


    In the opinion of others, his immediate subordinates especially, Jonah suffered along with her. He rubbed her ankles and massaged her back on a daily basis. He gave her some of his own meal to supplement her own, which she devoured despite the fact it was bland or lacked salt. He never complained as she cursed him for his part in her transformed form nor when she wept her apologies and promised not to swear at him again.


    And it was at the beginning of April, when the men and Monika dug holes according to Nathan''s strict instructions ready for the seedlings and sprouted corn, when a scream ripped through the mansion, sending Nathan running back to his small cottage and locking his doors, while the others rushed to the main property. Autumn had shooed them all away, taking control like a mother hen, although she was not as calm as she appeared. She had been a university student learning to be a chef, what did she know about midwifery?


    With Nan Li Liang''s curious memory, hot water was summoned and Monika brought fresh towels into the room. Jonah spoke softly to his young girlfriend as she screamed and complained about the pain and to ''get it out of her, quick!''


    "Do you know what you are doing?" Monika whispered as Autumn tugged off Brooke''s leggings and underwear.


    "Not a clue," Autumn whispered back. She had listened to Nan Li Liang repeat something''s regarding the television program his mother used to like to watch about midwives in the fifties, but that was a fictional series at the end of the day. What it contained about the reality of childbirth was still somewhat limited. Autumn could only spread her cousin''s legs beneath the dignity of a blanket and pray that she''d figure out what to do.


    Perhaps the heavens were listening to her, Brooke''s waters broke without any need for intervention and the little one was positioned head first, ready to descend. Actually, encouraging Brooke to push through the contractions was likely the hardest thing that they had to do as she complained that it hurt too much and that she was too tired. But soon, Autumn caught sight of the baby as it crowned and she carefully positioned her hands to guide it out. And with one final push, an adorable baby boy was brought into the world, crying with more gusto than his mother.


    Jonah took the bundled child from Autumn''s arms, his face one of sheer delight as he looked at his newborn son. "I''m so proud of you," he murmured to the exhausted Brooke, who said nothing as Autumn cleaned her limp body with a hot towel.


    Later these words were repeated, but it was not Jonah that whispered them, nor Brooke that received them.


    Author''s notes; If you want to suggest names for the new addition, please feel free or vote for someone else''s suggestion.

 Chapter 60 - Characters

    Author''s note; I realise that this book has many more characters than other books and as there are so many personalities, it may get a bit confusing. So I''ve complied a list of characters so far. I can''t say this list won''t get bigger in the future as there are some nameless characters that have been mentioned along the way as well as the army officer who hasn''t made it to the list!


    Cultivators;


    Ren Zexian; Long, black hair and black eyes, 10k years of age. A very calm and collected person, also elegant and genteel. Very gentlemanly and masculine of presence, although his appearance is somewhat androgynous.


    He is our MC!


    Roots; Fire (major(1)) , Air (minor(2)), ? (body(3))


    Chang Min; around 100 years of age, long, black hair and dark eyes. Round, sunny face and bright appearance. Is much more energetic and positive in personality. Dislikes being alone. He is Ren Zexian''s last disciple.


    Root; Earth (1)


    Yu Zhang; Oldest of the Cultivator''s at 15k years of age


    Long Wenwen; female Cultivator and Yu Zhang''s apprentice


    Lu Ting; Became a zombie on Earth, now deceased.


    Surviving Villagers


    Nathan Tobias Mattison; Autistic. Traits include, not being able to meet another''s gaze, sensitive to sound and touch. Slight OCD''s such as having preferred routines, liking cleanliness (with the exception of when he is gardening), won''t wear the same clothes two days in a row. Obsessed with his garden, plants and gardening. Dislikes crowds and being stared at. Cannot lie.


    He is our ML. He has chestnut brown hair, which is about shoulder length, sapphire blue eyes and he is of average height and small of frame.


    Roots; Water (1), Plants (2), Blessed (3)


    Lucy; Abandoned/lost child of the village. Doesn''t or rarely speaks. Golden blond hair, doe brown eyes. Very attached to her dog, Aslan. Her adorable personality has made her very much loved by the occupants of the House.


    Aslan; Lucy''s loyal hound. Large, black and was possibly a mongrel before his mutation. He has fog abilities and is able to turn himself and others (usually Lucy) into fog to move about quickly and without barriers.


    First Squad


    Dexter; Leader of the First Squad. Has tanned, weathered skin, although he is only in his early thirties. Brown hair, sturdy frame. He can be fairly crass and straightforward. Respected by his squad. Former construction worker.


    Root; Lightning (2)


    Tyler; flawless, pale skin, light, blond hair and is fairly good looking. But he can be a major arsehole, stubborn and temperamental. He is a former lawyer and avid reader. He''s taken on a role of logistics for the House.


    Root; Water (1)


    Patrick; short, round faced person with a bright personality. Very lively and fun. He has flax coloured hair. Happens to have some skill at sewing and knitting.


    Roots; Gravity (2), Spark (3)


    Harry; large, imposing man with very dark, rich skin tone. He is friendly and capable.


    Paul; best friend of Shaun, very protective of his best friend. Can only cook stir fries reasonably well.


    Winston; dark skin tone, former construction worker. Likes to tinker with cars.


    Second Squad


    Jonah Shaw; Leader of the second squad. Former police sergeant. Is not attractive, his face is weathered and lined and can be deemed scary (by Nathan), but despite being gruff, he is a good man and gives off the feeling of being reliable. Respectful and respected. He is in his early fifties and has a soft spot for his young girlfriend and newborn son.


    Root(s); Unknown and dormant.


    Jimmy; former police officer. Comes across a bit of a joker.


    Monika; former police officer. Sees herself as ''one of the guys''. Doesn''t want or allow others to treat her any different from her comrades just because she is female.


    Arthur; former police officer. A quiet, deep thinking sort of person. Is slow to accept change, but his loyalty is unwavering.


    Cole; former thug and criminal. In certain person''s words, he is ''built like a tank''. Likes to work out his body a lot, loyal to Jonah as the man has earned his respect. Is known for having a questionable temper, but usually manages to keep it under control of late.


    Roots; Rock (2), Sand (2)


    Shaun; wheelchair bound due to an accident when he was younger, but not the sort of person to let it get to him. Tends to be light hearted. His best friend is Paul.


    Root; Metal (1)


    Eraj; slim, average height. Former I.T technician.


    Others


    Brooke; petite and waif-like of frame, she has green eyes, high cheekbones and sandy brown hair and very pretty. She is Jonah''s girlfriend and mother of his baby. She is spoiled and a bit petty. She also seems to prefer when she is the centre of attention and her cousin acts as her foil. As she feels no longer useful, her mood has soured and much of the blame has fallen unknowingly onto Ren Zexian''s shoulder''s.


    Root; Ice(2)


    Autumn; cousin of Brooke. She is also Brooke''s opposite in stature being very curvy and plush of build. She has similar brown hair, slightly darker in colour and brown eyes. She loves food, cooking and eating! She is very motherly of personality and looks after and cares for other people, often at the expense of herself.


    Root(s); Unknown


    Nan Li Liang; Teenager, of mixed Chinese and Indian heritage. He has soft black hair and brown eyes. He has an eidetic memory, from even before the apocalypse.


    Baby Shaw; still nameless! Born of Jonah and Brooke. The favourite or most mentioned name is currently James (on Wattpad). Other suggestions include Von, Lynn, Rain, Janus and Genesis (). There is still a couple of days to suggest or vote!

 Chapter 61 - Sixty - Into Every Life, Some Rain Must Fall

    With Spring came new life, just as expected in this season. The trees that had suffered a longer Winter than they were used to burst into blossom, early wildflowers sprouted in the warming soil and the animals that had survived the apocalypse began to mate and give birth to young. The two female sheep had, at some point, fallen pregnant with offspring and were due soon, and one human baby had given renewed hope to the survivors living in the mansion.


    Jonah names the baby James Lynn Shaw; the child''s first name was inherited from his uncle, who passed on a few years before in a car accident and the second name was to give the baby more connection to his mother.  Lynn had the meaning of ''lake''.  Giving him this name was more than symbolic, it was a tie, a bond, something that Brooke hadn''t developed with her newborn as yet.


    Autumn was startled from her sleep by the baby''s loud cry and rubbing her tired eyes, climbed out of bed to see if the little one''s father required any help.  She found the man in the kitchen, gently rocking his tiny son in his arms as he waited for the water to boil upon the stove.  "Hey," she called out, her voice cracking due to some dryness.  "Everything alright?"


    Jonah glanced up with weary, but soft eyes.  He never imagined that one day he''d be a father, that he''d have a child of his own.  He had long put his career before his personal life and when he''d noticed the lack of the latter, he''d felt that it had already been too late for him.  That and he could never have claimed to have been popular with the ladies before the apocalypse.  "Yeah," he replied as the water began to bubble.  Autumn shooed him to one side with a gesture and took over making the baby''s formula.  Fortunately, Jonah had picked up several tins of it during their last raid, seeing as Brooke was struggling to b.r.e.a.s.tfeed.  Autumn believed that her cousin was just too overwhelmed with the responsibility the little one brought with him, after all, she''d always been the one being taken care of.  Still, Autumn held hope that Brooke would learn and finally let go of others'' hands.


    Unfortunately, into each life, new or old, some rain must fall.  This was the era following the apocalypse.  There was new life, but there was also death and the dead refused to lie still and be buried.  Since the ice had melted and the frosts subsided, the numbers of zombies wandering through the area seeking life in order to replenish their energies had been on the increase.  Although their numbers were small, making them less attractive a food source than other established bases, zombies still followed their scents upon the wind and were drawn to them.  The wall was an obstacle, not a deterrent.


    Now, duties were split between patrolling and maintaining the wall and developing the fields.  The stronger and more able members focused upon the wall, the rest focused on farming, though this was not a hard and fast rule.  For one thing, Eraj happened to be a natural plant killer, even the cactuses he tried to raise at home died at his hand.  So he stuck to household chores or using his twenty-twenty vision to scout beside Cole or Dexter''s side.  Autumn split her time between looking after the baby, cooking and coaxing Brooke.


    Have to say that Brooke did not hate her child, nor did she really blame him for the fact her stomach was no longer flat and smooth.  But changing nappies was gross, being peed and puked on was unpleasant and the screaming just got on her nerves.  Her b.o.o.b.s were sore and heavy and n.i.p.p.l.es were cracked and this whole motherhood thing, she felt, was overrated.  That ''rush of love'' experience hadn''t happened either.  Still, she thought that she had managed to at least bring an attractive baby into this word, rather than some ugly, wrinkled thing.


    The other thing that occurred in spring was the fact that Nathan had fled back to his cottage and the peace and quiet it provided.  And Ren Zexian had naturally followed him.  As Lucy had chosen to remain to live with Autumn and Monika, the second bedroom was once more filled with green.  Seedlings were abundant, from a new batch of strawberry plants to carrots and parsnips.  From tomatoes and cuc.u.mbers to cauliflower and broccoli.  A few pots were slowly growing trees from apple seeds and plum stones, which would take a few years until they would produce fruit. Plus there were several trays of rice, corn and wheat seedlings ready to be planted into their new respective beds.


    Just as the false dawn painted the sky in numerous colours before once more vanishing to black, Nathan opened his eyes and stared at his ceiling, for a moment.  He blinked twice, before turning to glance at the man beside him, who was also stirring from his sleep. Ren Zexian''s glanced at his boy, complimenting curves fashioned his eyes and lips as he bid; "Good morning."


    "Good morning," Nathan murmured, before rising from the bed, watching as Ren Zexian did the same and together they replaced the covers carefully, using a stroking hand to remove the creases of their presence. Ren Zexian''s head tilted to once side as he watched Nathan perform his morning stretches and together they then made their way out of the bedroom. Ren Zexian headed for the kitchen, while Nathan made his way to the bathroom to deal with his needs and wash with a damp towel and soapy water.


    After selecting some clothes that were clean, he left his room to head for the kitchen. Ren Zexian had boiled water to make tea and all was harmonious as they drank the hot beverages while waiting for the main house to stir.


    Fortunately, Autumn, despite being tired from checking up on the baby and his daddy, was not one to linger in bed long in the morning and was already making her way into the large kitchen downstairs and lower still, into the bas.e.m.e.nt.  Upon a shelf in the cool space, three bowls of proving dough were waiting for her, which she brought into the kitchen. Soon, the aroma of freshly baking bread seeped out of the kitchen and drifted on upstairs and along the hallways.


    Dexter was the first person to enter the warm room, saying nothing but offering Autumn a smile as he dried the cleaned bowls that had been placed upon the drainer beside the sink. Autumn blushed and glanced away, a little fl.u.s.tered, before scampering back down into the bas.e.m.e.nt to grab the opened jar of blackberry jam and the basket of fresh greens that Nathan had brought her the day before. Breakfast these days consisted of bread and jam or toast and jam, while lunch was soup made from fresh greens (cabbage, kale and the like) and bread and dinner was usually noodles and more greens and picked onions. The meals were small, their bellies often grumbled, but it was better than starvation. However, Autumn had decided to reconstitute the rest of the sweet potato flour to make mash that evening, less the others go mad from the monotony, while they waited for the next batches of vegetables to appear.


    The others appeared from their rooms or from the gym, from the cottage, the wall or in the case of Aslan, from thin air! And breakfast was soon in full swing.


    Yet, no sooner was the first bites taken when Aslan began to growl and Ren Zexian stood up at the table, his hand placed upon his stomach. "Not good," he muttered, glancing towards the south east. As others froze around the table, he bent down, placed a kiss upon Nathan''s forehead before requesting; "Stay here, be safe."


    Jonah''s eyes were filled with concern as he bid his lover words along the same lines, before they flickered to Autumn in unspoken request before following Ren Zexian out of the door. With his move to depart, Dexter, Monika and the men responsible for patrolling did the same. Lucy tugged on Autumn''s skirt, before placing her thumb in her mouth as Aslan licked her face before also disappearing into fog.


    "Is it more wandering zombies?" Patrick asked as he panted, chasing those who had already climbed the wall. "Or the herd?" The wall was now thicker and taller than before, sturdier with an even stronger foundation. Parts of it were coated in metal, though that additional coating was not complete as they had only one man who could manipulate the material. The garage doors had spikes that dove into the road, preventing any from opening it from outside and making more secure the gap between the doors and the ground. The stairs fixed along its length were steep and a little troublesome for someone of Patrick''s stature, but he still pressed on to reach the top to see the troubled looks upon his friends faces.


    "No," Harry said as his eyes were fixed to locations close to the ground but still a hundred metres out. Patrick followed his gaze to see a heaving sea of small bodies approaching the wall, pouring along the distant road and through gaps in abandoned garden fences and from bushes. In his panic, he reached out to increase the weight of the air, fixing the front runners of one incoming mass to the ground, however they were simply crawled over by those behind them.


    "F.u.c.k!" Cole swore as he too began to unleash his abilities. Deep potholes formed in the road as it collapsed, only to be quickly filled by small bodies and the undead rush continued. "F.u.c.k!" He cried out again as the other ability users quickly began to strike with globes of lightning and fire, with a rain of rocks and icicles. "I f.u.c.k.i.n.g hate rats!"

 Chapter 62 - Sixty One - Rodent Zombie Hoard

    To say it was a hoard of zombie rats was too simplistic for it soon became apparent that there were numerous zombified rodents in the rotting mass moving swiftly towards the wall. The smallest, the mice and voles were the most numerous, weaving in and out of their larger cousins, making themselves very hard targets to hit individually, but still crushed in volume beneath the weight of fist sized rocks that had been manipulated by gravity, making them much more deadly. Rabbits and hares, the largest leapt up at the wall, launching themselves at it, fortunately the wall was high enough, at least in the beginning, for the rodents began to pile up at the walls, creating a platform from which the creatures could jump. This pile was also a larger target for balls of black fire that once touched the dry flesh and bone, quickly ignited and spread.


    Smoke from the burning corpses filled the air with the pungent smell of death and disease, threatening also to mar the defenders vision, however a deft breeze dispersed the worst of it. Lightning paralysed a squirrel that had scampered up the walls and this was finished off by a bludgeon weapon. Ice pinned down several monstrosities at a distance. Paul, who was throwing knives and projectiles, as were a few others, noticed the oddity first.


    "Look," he cried out, flinching as a gunshot sounded. "Look at what the rats are doing!"


    Of course their attention was captured by that scene for a moment, however what the rats were doing actually occurred in many places at once. The rats were not as numerous as first thought and happened to be spread out amongst the mass of rodents. Their movement was much more stilted as well, for they paused from time to time before running along with the rest. And during that point in which they stopped, they bowed down to consume the squashed or killed remnants of their companions, eating the rotting flesh in large mouthfuls!


    "It''s like when the herd ate the dogs," Paul murmured, before a ball of lightning whizzed past his head and electrocuted the gerbil about to take a bite.


    "Pay attention!" Dexter demanded.


    The rats paused before the burning mound of former rodents, while those around them leapt into the inferno, without any form of self preservation. A few squirrels fell from the wall, captured in blocks of ice. Their frozen forms disappeared into the spreading flames, but there was no calming of the flames with the melting of the ice. One rat squeaked angrily as a heavy flint fell from the heavens towards it, however it managed to dodge, unlike the rabbit beside it. The creature looked at the rabbit, then turned to the rat nearby. These tricky rodents seemed wiser than the rest of the seething, brainless mass and began to back away, hissing and squeaking in fury.


    "Woe, shit!" Jimmy shot an undead squirrel that had scampered up the wall from the other side, it''s tail no more than a flat scrap of rotten flesh.


    "They breeched the walls?"  Indeed, a smaller, nearly unnoticed run of rodents was running along the ground inside their fortifications, having breeched the walls of the southern most mansion at some point.  The stairs were steep enough, though that only the squirrels could still clamber up them, though a rabbit tried its luck, hopping up them only to be blasted away by a force of air.  A series of fire balls followed, red fire rather than the deadly black, but still enough to kill and burn many of the rodents.  Vines hidden within the hedges snatched at the ones to escape the flames.


    Chang Min''s stone rain suddenly paused. "Master!" He yelled out in a panic. "I heard a scream!" Ren Zexian paled. A Cultivator of Chang Min''s ability naturally had hearing above and beyond, it would not be beyond his scope to hear loud sounds from the main house.  It seemed that the small breech from the southern walls had not been the only one.


    Without consideration for others, Ren Zexian leapt down from the wall and rushed towards the house. He was followed by Jonah, though at a slower pace, however there was no way this man would not try and protect his lover and child from whatever was threatening them. Unfortunately, with Ren Zexian missing, the flames stopped their endless spread and simply burned the corpses at a more sedate pace, the heat no longer as intense. The red eyes of the rats twinkled in realisation and no longer hesitated. The continuous mass began to smother the flames with their rotten bodies.


    "Cole, attempt to create spikes using the earth!" Chang Min instructed. Cole''s twin abilities, despite their namesakes were the manipulation and the alteration of earth, meaning he could use the dirt of the ground make varying shapes or move it to where he wanted it too and he could change the soil into sand. Chang Min had advised him that as his abilities developed, he would also be able to shape and manipulate stone, chalk and sand, and even alter these thinks into other types of earth. He''d been practicing turning soil into sand and moving soil, hence being able to make those pits. He had not tried much else as the Winter had frozen the ground for a long time. Still, he knew the theory.


    Gritting his teeth, he gestured and a series of small spines grew upward from the ground. Unfortunately, the damage was minimal, the rodents either too agile, or the spines too small. Chang Min''s spikes had better effect, but even then, they only speared a few rabbits and squirrels. "Min, it''s not working. They are too fast!"


    Chang Min switched back to creating a rain of rocks, however more of the rodents were reaching close to the height of the wall. Arthur batted a rabbit that leapt in range and sent it flying. Jimmy blasted several through the skull with bullets, but his ammo was running thin. Harry resorted to kicking the squirrels and mice with his steel toe cap boots. Tyler suddenly had an epiphany. He''d been so focused on creating ice, he''d forgotten that trick! Water rained thickly upon the thickest mass of rodents, including several of the tricky rats.


    "Dexter! Send some bolts now!" He yelled out, before summoning another deluge.


    Dexter''s eyes flashed, catching on with Tyler''s meaning and a blast of intense, white lightning descended onto the soaked bodies and was drawn outward like a web, crackling over the water and zombie rodents. The smell of singed fur joined the rank air and many of the bodies twitched as the electricity continued to course through them.


    The few remaining rats fled and for a moment, the hoard continued its mindless attack upon the wall, before things became chaotic. That wasn''t to say that a few rodents did not leap at the columns of fresh, living flesh upon the wall, seeking to taste, just that a few of the rodents turned on each other. Mice ate the remnants of the unmoving rabbits, squirrels bit and scratched at the voles and one hare raced after a hamster before biting it in half. The hare then found its own demise on the spire of earth that formed from below its body.


    Perhaps the most noticeable thing was that these few rodents targeted the most vulnerable, the heavily wounded or paralysed, in the mass or ate that which had died.  Otherwise, the humans were still a much more interesting a choice meal.


    Oh, but it happened that the rats did not flee very far, before many met their end at the vengeful teeth of a large black dog that appeared from a sudden fog.


    Cole wobbled upon the wall, his stance becoming precarious and he found himself held up by Arthur as he panted for breath.  Patrick was also looking worse for wear and unashamedly used Harry and Winston as his shields as he caught his breath.  Dexter and Tyler gritted their teeth as they continued to plow through the smaller numbers along with Chang Min, who hadn''t yet broken a sweat.  Later, someone would ask him why he hadn''t opened a big pit in the ground and buried the undead within and he would say that the wall would not cope with the tremors such a sudden crack may cause.  However, this would become the basis of certain traps formed for ground sieges such as this at a later time.


    "How do you reckon things are back at the house?" Jimmy asked Monika, who accurately pinned a squirrel to the ground with a thrown blade. She could only shrug in response to his query.


    They would find out soon enough, she thought, once they had cleared away the last of this threat. But she sincerely hoped that they would not have to face another one as soon as they returned home.

 Chapter 63 - Sixty Two - Hidden Dangers in a Garden

    The second breech had also occurred in the southern mansion, this one much larger than the force that caused the defenders to notice this. There had been another attempt to breech the wall much further up, past the defenders, but this one had ended as quickly as it began and the rotting bodies were now sustenance for the leafy mutant vines lurking within the hedgerow.


    The fat, one eyed rat twitched its whisker-less nose determining that the living upon the walls were not the only fresh meat available in the vicinity and ''guided'' the rodents around it towards that other source. They scampered unseen towards the delicious meal source, easily scampering beneath and between the long bars with the metallic scent and through the unkempt weeds nearby, before rushing through a line of bushes. Suddenly, the last squeaks of the fallen echoed around the rat and several of the rodents, mostly rabbits and the one hare it controlled, fell, twitching upon the ground. It did not stop to eat sensing danger, instead it hurried its minions towards the human habitat and had the remaining rabbits throw themselves at the currently sealed openings. Soon there was a loud crack...


    Ren Zexian''s air root was not only useful in creating blades and bullets from the surrounding atmosphere, but the element allowed him swiftness of movement, speed and with enough strength he would even be able to fly again. Right now, it was enough that he could guide the energy to his feet and legs, to gain speed as he ran towards the mansion base... and his lover. He gave only a cursory glance at the dead bodies lying within a patch of rose bushes and the same to the wriggling ivy as it strangled a few bodies in its ceaseless grip. The glass of the living room window had a clear hole, large enough for the rodents, though a streak of black-green blood was upon one jagged edge, clearly it hadn''t been enough to stop the zombie rodents from breeching the property.


    The front doors burst open with the force of gales, breaking the lock and damaging the door, but Ren Zexian could not care about this destruction right now. Using his grasp of the air, he sent out his internal energies, scanning the property for movement. The air brushed against many unmoving objects before sensing that which it sort; easier than attempting to find out which room or hallway the crashing noises and baby cries were coming from. Quickly, Ren Zexian made his way towards the gym.


    The gym equipment was mismatched, from unusable running machines to weights. But there was something all had in common; metal.


    *****


    The baby had started crying not long after the others had left to intercept the zombies. Autumn glanced over at Brooke, who was carelessly finishing her meal with added complaints that it was boring and not satisfying. She didn''t like the jam, so dry bread was all she could consume. Autumn turned away and went to see the baby herself. He was just a bit wet and uncomfortable, so she changed his nappy, noting that he was quickly making his way through the newborn size that they had, maybe they would last a fortnight or so? Fortunately, he was growing well, the next size up would be a bit big, if they had to use them too soon, but not for long.


    As the baby had no intention of going back to sleep in his cot, Autumn wrapped him in a blanket and felt her heart melt as he nestled into her hold. What did it matter that the little one had a mother that was not on the maternal side as yet? He had a couple of aunties and a whole slew of uncles already looking out for him. Not to mention his loving daddy. Brooke would surely come around at some point as well, her cousin was mostly self-centred, but she was not an uncaring person.


    Good job she came to this conclusion as when she descended the stairs, for she heard said cousin complaining loudly; "Am I going to have to consume that lettuce soup for lunch, again? What am I? A rabbit?"


    There was the sound of glass cracking and it didn''t come from the kitchen. Autumn, glanced into the living room to see the distorted face of what possibly could have been a cute bunny over a year ago, smack into the window. It left a streak of grey-green as drool slid down the cracked pane from it''s jawless mouth. Autumn clapped a hand over her mouth and slipped back into the kitchen.


    "We have to get out of here!" She said to the others at the table urgently.


    "Eh, why?" Brooke questioned. Perhaps she had become too content with their easier life at the mansion and had forgotten the horrors of when they were still in town struggling to survive. It would certainly explain why she continuously complained about the taste and lack of variety about the food.


    Before Autumn could explain, the cracking noise came again and was much louder this time. They all froze as they heard the squeaking and squealing come from the living room. Brooke became the fastest upon her feet, Autumn, who was nearest the door followed with the baby, while one teenager picked up one toddler and followed. "Come on Nathan," Shaun urged the youth who was staring at the back door as if waiting for it to open. He''d been a little dazed for a while, but he looked around when called, his azure eyes glinting green in the light.


    Eraj pushed Shaun''s chair through the kitchen door, just as Brooke screamed loudly, causing Nathan clutch his ears in pain. A thin wall of metal blocked the living room door where a handful of undead rodents had rushed towards them, squeals of anger followed along with scratching.


    "It won''t hold for long," Shaun admitted, his brow coated in sweat. Using his small energies to create metal from nothing was draining, even this weak barrier. It was not pure and not strong. Sure enough, claw marks appeared within seconds. Brooke began to run up the stairs.


    "Where are you going?" Autumn asked.


    "Hide upstairs, they can''t get us so easily if we get to the loft!"


    "What about Shaun?" Brooke''s nose wrinkled as she looked at the man stuck in the wheelchair. Who asked him to not be able to climb and want others to risk their lives for his?


    "Go to the gym!" Eraj suggested. "There''s lots of metal there and Shaun can, maybe use it?" He had some elementary knowledge about their abilities, having much the same curiosity as Patrick, just not the same levels of exuberant enthusiasm. Besides, it was not like he could use it himself.


    Shaun nodded; it would certainly be easier using that which existed already over that which did not. He wanted to be strong, not wanting to let the chair define him. He didn''t want to be protected all the time, wanting to protect others instead. Surely, he couldn''t turn down an opportunity to test himself?! Brooke watched as they headed to the gym, but hesitated. Glancing at the increasingly large tear in the thin metal barrier, she bit her lip and followed after them.


    The metal from the weights became a thicker barrier, but one with a series of very narrow gaps. More metal became poles with dangerously pointed ends; it was Shaun''s intention to use these as spears, piercing the undead with the ends as they attacked the bars. Only problem was that there was a serious lack of muscle from their point of view. Autumn and Eraj held the spear and thrust it through the narrow gaps, the scraping of metal on metal causing sparks. They barely scratched the rabbit gnawing at the bars with its sharp teeth, but managed to pierce into the flesh of a vole. The next couple of attempts were in vain.


    "At least hit one!" Brooke complained in a panic as she held her crying baby in the corner. She was wishing she had taken to the loft now! She didn''t want to die!


    "Trying!" Eraj replied, gritting his teeth.


    "What about Shaun controlling it?" She asked, looking accusingly at the man now flopped in his chair.


    He shook his head, a look of irritation mixed with frustration upon his face. "I can''t, I''ve no energy left!" A bottle of water suddenly appeared in front of him, held by Nathan, but the man waved it away. "Thank you, but I''m not thirsty, just feeling completely drained."


    Nathan backed away, clutching the bottle to his chest for a moment before he tilted his head and opened the window. "Nathan, stop!" Eraj went to grab his wrist, worried he''d let more zombies in. Instead, a long, flower topped stem appeared in the gap and shook its yellow petals. It looked somewhat like a dandelion, only bigger and its yellow petals had red tips.


    A bar suddenly snapped, distracting them and the rabbit with diamond tipped teeth was shoved forward and the bar fell from the door, taking with it the top of the wooden frame. The smaller rodents began to rush through. Eraj began to curse profusely, while Brooke screamed again and began to cry, even snatching the bottle of water from Nathan''s hand and to throw it at the rodents. Shaun gritted his teeth and used what little energy he could summon to toss a weight at them, crushing a few.


    The flower aged suddenly and the green bulb remaining burst into a head of white. It shook itself again and the seeds floated through the window and as if drawn to the zombie mice, landed upon them. A series of small explosions happened over the rodents bodies and they collapsed, twitching as if in shock, their remnant fur and flesh wriggling about weirdly. Roots suddenly burst from their corpses as well as small green shoots and leaves. The girls and Eraj both heaved, it was pretty shocking to see.


    "Now that''s just freaking weird," Nan Li Liang muttered, while Shaun managed a weak laugh.


    The rodents still outside the barrier had also paused at the sight for some reason, Eraj and Autumn took the opportunity to stab one of the remaining rabbits, while the last also became a flower bed of mutant dandelions. The one eyed rat fled only to meet its demise at the end of a blast of angry black fire which consumed it in seconds, leaving only ash behind.


    Ren Zexian ignored the carnage at his feet, to press against the metal bars and to see that the ones they had left behind in the house were alright and he exhaled a breath. "You are all well," he said, aloud to solidify this fact. But as he said it, his eyes were on one person alone. His worries were washed away with one tender smile from his Nathan.

 Chapter 64 - Sixty Three - Wanting to Be Stronger

    It took another hour before Shaun felt as if he had the reserves to collapse the metal bars and release those stuck in the gym. He couldn''t reform the metal into the weights at that time, the metal became a lump stuck in the corner for quite sometime after the attack.


    As soon as the barrier came down, Ren Zexian lost his usual composure and hurried into the room, closely followed by Jonah, who had been pacing the hall behind him.  Nathan seemed mostly unaffected by the whole ordeal, just that there were marks over his ears, indicating that the noises had been too much for him.  He allowed Ren Zexian to embrace him and check over every inch of him before being embraced again.  He snuggled into the other man''s hold.


    Jonah also took Brooke into his arms, engulfing her in his strong embrace, his eyes wet from relief and the curve of his lips deepened when he realised as he was holding Brooke, she was holding their son.  This was his family, he felt complete at this moment, if at no other time.


    Not long following, Paul rushed in to interrogate Shaun, who smacked him about the head as he was bent over checking for injuries.  "Stop being an idiot," Shaun chided him.  "I''m fine, we''re all fine.  Shaken up, maybe, but alive and well."


    "But..."


    "Gees, what are you?" Winston teased from the broken door way.  "His mum?"  He poked at the damage in the door frame, splinters coming away in his finger tips.  "Your work, Ren?"  He asked, knowing that the oriental man was responsible for damaging the lock on the front door.  They''d have to see if they could replace the whole door with one from the village.


    "No," Ren Zexian replied, nonchalantly and indicated the culprit.  "His."


    All eyes turned upon Shaun, who lazily looked at them from his chair, wondering how he''d get past Paul and retire to his room to sleep.  He''d wanted to escape without more of Paul''s mothering, but he could barely lift a finger at that moment, let alone move his wheelchair.  "Well, the zombie rabbit contributed," he drawled, before a yawn escaped him.  Paul, sensing his friend''s tiredness began to push him out of the room, towards his bedroom, where he would be lifted into bed before being securely tucked in.


    Autumn had ceased trembling, the shock and panic catching up with her after the ordeal was at an end and with a firm expression, she approached Ren Zexian.  "C-can you awaken my root-things?" She asked him, she''d been uncertain before, her weak confidence pressing down upon her, but she never wanted to feel so powerless ever again.


    "En," Ren Zexian agreed and glanced up at Brooke, who was crying her grievances to her man.  As she met his eyes, he suggested; "It would be a good time to begin to train Brooke as well, now the baby is safely born and mother is healthy.  You can learn together."


    "Don''t bother," Brooke grumbled, however Jonah whispered something in her ear and she reluctantly retracted her statement.


    *****


    Autumn, with Ren Zexian, awakened a diamond root.  This was a body root, waste root in the eyes of some long dead others, but in Ren Zexian''s more open mind, this root was a treasure.  While it could not help protect others, it would protect Autumn.  She would be able to harden her skin to diamond like quality, encasing herself in a natural barrier that was nearly impossible to pierce, unless she, herself, was careless.  This quality of physic could not be obtained by a normal Cultivator until they had completed the senary stage of cultivation, thus completing the body tempering phase. Her diamond like physique would also mean that her fingernails could be as sharp as cut diamonds, should she chose, giving her the ability of being a living weapon.  This was unlikely, though, due to her soft temperament.  Such would also not be possible until she had cultivated a while, just like obtaining full armour coverage of her plush skin.


    Autumn couldn''t say how she felt about the root herself, but as the eyes of others were joyful and maybe a bit envious, she understood that her ability was not a bad thing.  Ren Zexian had guided her every step of the way, helping her from failing due to apprehension and lack of confidence.  It had not been easy.  Worse, it took her almost a week to awaken her root and open her meridians, this was pointed out by Brooke, who was just a bit smug that her own had opened without intervention.


    At the beginning of this week, Nathan had filled up some pots with soil and placed them by the ivy on the house and by the vines by the bush, while others cleaned away the mess left behind by the zombie rats and fixed the carnage caused due to the small force breaking into the property.  There was also talk about increasing the height of the wall, but this had not been completely decided upon.  The breach had not occurred due to a lack of foundation, but due to the fact they had not counted upon creatures with the ability to climb the craggy flint and earth walls.  Finishing the covering of metal should help to deter this.


    At the end of the week, Ren Zexian descended from Autumn''s room, leaving the woman to rest after the long time it had taken to awaken her roots.  Fortunately, although she had been in deep meditation, he, with the aid of Dexter kept her fed and watered so she remained strong throughout.  He yawned, for it was a mentally draining task to assist someone for so long and absorbed the glorious sunshine for a moment before seeking his boy.  He had missed him, sorely.


    He found Nathan lifting pots from the corner of the house and placing them on a trolley that Shaun had created for him after he had long recovered from battle.  "Hey, Nathan," he called out when he approached.


    The smile he received was worth the pain of being away from his side, he felt, but he did not wish to be away from Nathan for so long next time.  Since this had been their first separation since confirming their relationship, Ren Zexian felt that he had never experienced anything more difficult.  And they had only been apart by a few metres, what would a longer distance do?


    He glanced at the pots of earth.  These six contained ivy shoots and another three contained the thicker vines that grew along and within the surrounding hedges.  "What are you doing?" He asked, softly.


    "Ah, they want to grow elsewhere," he explained, gently arranging the leaves on one of the ivy shoots.


    "Where would they like to grow?" Ren Zexian asked.  Nathan''s symbiotic relationship never ceased to amaze him.  Others might mistaken his ability as a result of a mutation in his plant root, however, Ren Zexian believed the explanation lie with his third root.  It was a body root and just like the one that Autumn had come to awaken, this root would only affect Nathan personally.  At least, that is how it should be.  However Nathan''s root could be called Blessed for a reason, his root literally Blessed his other roots, improving the nature of them.  Thus he could not only manipulate plants, it was more as if they were an extension of himself.  Not adversely, or he would suffer quite painfully when they died naturally due to age or illness, but enough that he knew what they needed and in turn they seemed to know what he needed and acted automatically in his best interests.


    His mind could interpret that the plants wanted to move to new locations, when in actual fact, he was instinctively expanding his sphere of influence, planting the mutated ivy and vines where they could help protect him more.  In this case, the walls and hedges outside of his garden.  It was likely that the mutant rose bush, that had sprayed its thorns to down many of the rodents would have its seeds taken to grow offspring next year, while the dandelion could spread its own vicious seeds itself.


    Ren Zexian nodded, understanding completely his meaning and walked the very nervous boy out of the shelter of his garden.  In truth, Nathan had not left the grounds in more than a year and that was for a doctor''s appointment as his regular doctor had retired and this one would not make house calls.  It had been very stressful and his parents had sought to arrange a new doctor for him.  That particular thing had never happened in the end as the apocalypse had come, his parents were away...


    The ivy wrapped around his wrist in reassurance and he took his first step out into the base.  Looking around, he first saw the wall stretching from his garden to cover the road and join with the wall that formed the outer rim of the grounds opposite.  This gave him some comfort and he felt more secure upon seeing it.  It felt as if his home, his garden had just increased in size and he could ignore the fact that he''d actually just left it.  He approached the intersection where the new wall merged with the old and he began to dig a hole.


    "Which one wishes to be placed here?" Ren Zexian asked and Nathan pointed to one of the pots of ivy, which the Cultivator placed in his arms.  Nathan beamed lovingly and proceeded to plant the offshoot.


    They then moved into the garden of the next house and Nathan, nervously glanced about before feeling disappointed that the garden was a bit plain.  This house had been due for renovation, the garden probably would have been landscaped afterwards, but now it was a mess of loosely cut grass and weeds.  The mutant grass was still amongst this lot, Nathan naturally detected and avoided it, but he did not disdain it.  It just didn''t need anything from him, it was already satisfied with a zombie vole that had strayed its way.


    He noticed the long and wide muddy patch that took up half of the large front garden on the one side of the straight and imposing drive and asked Ren Zexian; "Is that where the rest of the wheat will be planted?"


    "Yes, I believe that is the plan," came the reply.


    "Good," Nathan nodded with approval.  "The plants will like it there."  Soon after, close to the field and a couple of other places upon the wall were the new locations for the vine and ivy offshoots.

 Chapter 65 - Sixty Four - Purifying Water and New Forming Connections

    Autumn glanced out of the kitchen window as she placed another clean dish upon the drainer, watching the droplets of rain trickle down the glass with a small sigh.  From her peripheral vision, she caught a shadow of movement and quickly glanced back, only to see that it was just Eraj, coming to grab bottles of water, probably for those passing time in the gym.


    The contaminate in the rain had not lessened and while it was doubtful that a little would cause harm or lead to mutation, it did not mean it was wise to prolong exposure outside.  Therefore, just as during Winter, they were somewhat confined.  Well, not everyone was.


    The monotonous meals and also with certain other supplies dwindling fast, half of them had once more driven beyond the walls in hopes that they might be fortunate enough to be able to get something, anything to improve the food and living circ.u.mstances.  Take soap, for example.  All of the shower gels had long since been used up, the last drops in between snowstorms and with the hard soap they had but one left and no others.  Scraps of newspaper had been folded neatly in each bathroom, along with scraps of cloth.  The latter could be washed and reused, the former... once it was gone, there was nothing to replace it.  Tyler refused to sacrifice the books in the library for such.


    As the new father that was Jonah adamantly insisted on remaining at home with his newborn, though no one had even thought to insist otherwise, it was Dexter that was leading others out on expedition.  Most of his original squad had followed him, with the exception of Paul and Ren Zexian.  The former had been worrying for days over Shaun, who took three days to reshape the lump of metal in the gym into usable weights,tiring himself out as he did so.  The latter would not leave Nathan''s side.  Right now, the pair were holed up in the cottage in the garden and not one person had seen them since a break in the weather, yesterday afternoon when Nathan brought in new potatoes, a winter cabbage, spring onions and some newly grown radishes.


    Instead of those two men, Chang Min had joined them, providing more than enough firepower to keep them safe from unexpected surprises.  However, although it had been intended that the group would take a quick trip to a village some few miles away, the rains had begun to fall with little pause an hour or so following their departure.


    Placing the last plate upon the drainer, left the water in the sink for purifying.  This had been one of the things Ren Zexian had tried to teach Tyler and Brooke, though, as he had explained, being that water was not his element, he could only advise them of the theory and not demonstrate or guide them more clearly.


    "As with cultivation," he had advised, "there are some abilities in which hand signs are required in order to help focus and guide the mind.  A former senior of mine learnt the purification technique as he felt boiled water still held too much impurities and would taint his body.  Thus I can teach you the hand signs.  The rest will rely on your comprehension of them."


    Brooke had been a little embarrassed, at first, thinking she probably looked ridiculous as she placed finger to finger, thumb to finger, finger to palm and so on, however Tyler had taken it in his stride, even seemed elegant while doing these movements.  "Just look at it as if you are speaking in sign language," he''d suggested, as Brooke had begun to pout red-faced.  "And besides, if you purify dirty water this way, who exactly is going to laugh at you?  How precious is water?"


    So she had fallen into practice once more, fumbling then muttering; "What about Nathan, why isn''t he doing this as well?"


    Tyler had rolled his eyes heavenward.  Some people could accept a disability such as autism, without accepting it as well.  Nathan''s type was not obvious, but that did not mean he did not have it.  In his world, if Nathan did not see the point of something, explaining it would also be pointless.  Why would Nathan purify water, when he can just make some?  So Tyler had not deemed Brooke worthy of an answer.


    The whole idea of purifying water was to reuse it, not as drinkable water or for cooking, but if they could clean water for dishes, for bathing, wouldn''t this make life a bit easier?  When asked why Ren Zexian hadn''t put forward this suggestion before, he replied; "I''d forgotten about it.  I last saw my senior four thousand five hundred years ago.  He failed the tribulations a season later, I heard.  I only recalled once I gave that cultivation technique to Brooke, the Gentle Rains from the North technique was what he practiced.  He was blessed with the lone Ice root as well."


    Strangely enough, it seemed Brooke was destined to follow in this senior''s early footsteps, for she comprehended how to purify water quite quickly and although the amounts of water she could purify were not great due to her low cultivation, it gave her immense satisfaction to reduce the dirt and soap in the bath water she used, even this tiny bit.  Tyler took much longer at comprehending the technique and still his ability was less than Brooke''s, making her happier still.


    Autumn wandered down the hall, wrinkling her nose as the scent of sweaty men was noticeable from the gym.  Eraj, Arthur and Cole were in there, Cole looking displeased.  Actually he''d worn such a face for the past couple of days.  Autumn shook her head.  She wasn''t about to ask him why he was in such a mood, perhaps it was due to being forced to stay behind while the others went.  There were several times in the Winter when he was like a caged beast pacing the hallways or burning off excess energies in the gym, at least until Chang Min coaxed him to cultivate.  Apparently cultivation did not come naturally to Cole due to his erratic temper, but when he was calm, his patience was enduring and his progress was abundant.


    "You are so cheating!" Paul''s complaint came from Shaun''s bedroom, followed by hysterical laughter.  Shaun had created some dice from metal, but he couldn''t be trusted to play fairly with them.  He''d just gotten sixes too often to be true.  He didn''t deny his fault though and Paul continued to fall for his reassurances that he''ll behave next time.


    Finally, Autumn reached the distant sunroom in the east of the property.  She''d been watching carefully as a couple of chilli''s ripened on the plant.  That and there was some mushrooms beginning to develop in the most shadowy corner of the room.  She was longing to add these to a soup or something, just for something a little more in their diet.  Although, Nathan''s first radishes were definitely a good step to add a new flavour to their current meals.


    Lucy was sitting in a chair in the sunroom, singing to herself.  The little girl never spoke much, but was an expressive, adorable little thing and Autumn was very fond of her.  Her heart melted as a bright grin was directed her way and she rubbed the mess of blond hair that never seemed to stay neat for long with one hand.  "If I ever have a little girl like you in the future," she smiled warmly, "then I will be the luckiest person ever."


    "Don''t you think that''s a redundant wish?" Monika appeared behind her.  In her hands were a small batch of seedlings that Nathan had passed to her.  In the future, they should produce cherry tomatoes and lettuce leaves, small things, but easily grown indoors.  They''d not had too much luck with the plants they tried to grow in winter, not expecting the blast of cold weather that had them huddling in just a few rooms to keep warm in the end.  Many of their indoor plants had died, with the exception of a few that Nathan managed to save and move into a living room to keep warm.  He''d given the House these seedlings to replace the lost plants now the weather was warmer.


    "Why do you say that?" Autumn asked her, suddenly conscious of her curves.  It wasn''t that she hadn''t lost weight, she thought, inwardly, but her h.i.p.s were still large and her bust size still abundant.  Her belly was still soft and her face still a bit round, but did that mean she was really doomed to never find a husband to have children with?  Perhaps it was too selfish to bring children into this harsh world to begin with... but holding her cousin''s son in her arms felt too wonderful...


    As if she could sense what Autumn was feeling, Monika flicked her forehead in rebuke.  "Stupid," she laughed, placing the seedlings upon an empty shelf.  "How much does this little girl look up to you already?  Aren''t you already like her mum?"  Lucy smiled and placed her small paw on top of Autumn''s hand.  The woman''s melancholy thoughts vanished without a trace.


    "Then what about you?" Autumn retorted, though her lips curved with the happy sensation Monika''s words brought her.  "She shares both our room!"


    Monika gestured dismissively.  "I think I''m more like an aunt, you know, the one who happens to be a questionable influence."  Autumn laughed joyfully and Lucy giggled along.  "Now you just gotta get her a dad."


    Autumn stuck out her tongue before softly saying; "And how am I supposed to do that?  Men like girls like Brooke."  Monika rolled her eyes, partially in agreement, but also because Autumn was too lacking in self-confidence.


    "Bet I can think of one man who''d be happy to keep you company for the rest of your days," Monika purred, teasingly.  Autumn frowned wondering what the woman was on about.  "Shall I give you a clue?  He''s usually the second in the kitchen in the morning, after yourself and he often takes the kitchen scraps for you to the compost and he was always the first to bring you a blanket whenever you were cold or a drink of water, whenever you were thirsty..."


    A blush spread over Autumn''s cheeks.

 Chapter 66 - Sixty Five - Death Cannot Seperate

    Dexter and his men returned home on the morning of the following day, as the winds had blown the persistent rainclouds towards the north west during the night. Their fortunes had been quite mixed. The village they hoped to raid and then return from had actually been picked pretty clean; food items, duvets, toilet paper, cleaning products and soaps, all had been taken from the homes.


    It had been eerie to see the dusty properties abandoned to the elements and none of them felt like speaking as they crept through each house, devoid of both life and undead. That''s not to say they found nothing; a salt and pepper set with some of each condiment within remained in one house, pocket tissues had fallen beneath a person''s abandoned bed. Curtains and rugs hadn''t actually been taken, nor had a box of nearly full contraception that Dexter swooped a hold of. After all, Jonah wouldn''t want to get Brooke pregnant again after they became intimate again... was what Dexter told himself.


    During the search, it had begun to rain, so they hung about in the house they currently had been searching through. Tyler had gathered up many books including children''s ones and even found some crayons and colouring books for Lucy. She didn''t have many toys, just the few they''d brought from her village, but she didn''t play with them much, so Tyler hoped she''d enjoy these and he could teach her to read at some point as well. Seeing as they couldn''t yet leave, he sat down and begun reading one of the books he''d collected, while Dexter took opinions on what they should do next.


    "Want to try somewhere else?" Patrick asked him. "Another village or maybe town?"


    "From the looks of things," Tyler pointed out, without raising his head. "The local areas are probably all much the same. The raid that emptied out this village was organised."


    "Army base?" Harry suggested.


    "No evidence," Tyler replied, "but more likely than a civilian job. Ordinary people just aren''t so thorough."


    "That and the place doesn''t look like it''s been torn apart by burglars," Dexter sighed, agreeing with Tyler''s conjecture. He pulled out an old map from a road atlas found in their library and found their location. Using his finger to trace the local roads, it landed on another village, followed by another, both on winding roads that would eventually lead back into town... close their original base, in fact. If the army were as thorough as they theorised, he doubted the zombies nor their gathered supplies back then escaped the army''s sweep. "Let''s try these villages," Dexter suggested, "and then head home regardless."


    Their theory solidified as they came to find slim pickings in those villages, running between houses whenever the rain lightened or stopped enough, spending a night in one house when the rain became quite heavy. Despondent, they intended on heading straight home, however Chang Min discovered an abundance of spiritual energy coming a place within the rambling fields along the side of the road and insisted they head to it. As it happened, a dirt road appeared ahead of them, so they didn''t have to brave exiting the truck to trudge who knows how far towards whatever the young Cultivator sought.


    The dirt road, which was mostly lost to weeds and grass, carried on for a mile. Chang Min did what he could to make the journey smoother, but all their teeth rattled in their heads by the time they arrived at the abandoned farmhouse.  It was fair sized, with scattered outbuildings and had a rustic feel to it, despite being built of brick and tile.  Wire fencing surrounded an empty coop to one side, which had no signs of movement or breakage from within; they could only conclude that it had always been empty.


    "How useful would a handful of hens be right now," Patrick lamented with a pout.


    "They are those flightless, ugly birds that lay eggs for consumption?" Chang Min inquired.  "The army base had rescued many of those from a nearby property." He added after they confirmed his words with a brief nod.


    "Hah," Patrick sighed.  "I miss eating eggs.  Fried, poached, scrambled, omelettes..."


    "Shut the f.u.c.k up!" Tyler told him, bitterly.


    Breaking into the house was not difficult, the lock was old and in obvious need of replacement.  The front door opened onto a hallway with red flagstones upon the floor, coated in a fair layer of undisturbed dust.  They listened out for any growling or shuffling sounds, but nothing came to ear.  Still, they kept alert as they stepped inside, the air stale with an undertone of unpleasantness that they often had the misfortune to smell since the end; usually a mix of rotten food, odours from non-emptied bins, dry drains and corpses.


    The first reception room had furnishings that didn''t match the old-world feeling of the property, too modern as if they had been especially selected from a city lifestyle magazine.  It especially clashed with the open fireplace and its ash coated bricks.  The dining room was much the same, the table being of brushed metal and glass, set upon an old flagstone tiled floor.  Both rooms had clearly not been cleaned in a very long time.  The team split in half, one group heading for the kitchen to try their luck within its abundant wooden cupboards, while the others headed upstairs.


    Dexter lead the way for the latter group, including Chang Min as they carefully inspected the rooms leading off the upstairs hallway.  None contained anything untoward.  There was a bathroom suite with old porcelain fixtures, two toothbrushes in a stainless steel cup and a library with a mix of romance novels, historical reference books and books on raising chickens, for making herbal medicines and tonics.  There were two empty bedrooms with a single bed in each and not much else.


    And then they discovered the master bedroom.  Upon the double bed were two bodies, their appearances lost to time, however one appeared to be a man and the other a woman.  The smaller body was the more decomposed and beside it on the bed side cabinet were empty foil shells that once contained medicine and an empty glass.


    As for the larger corpse...


    "From what I can see," Chang Min mentioned as he examined the remains, "this man died of the illness."  Although much had rotted, there were still certain signs upon the body; the blackened parts of the teeth, the grey nails upon what was left of the fingers for example.


    "But he didn''t rise as a zombie?" Dexter questioned with a frown.


    "I could theorise..." Chang Min felt that though it was impossible to be certain without touching the body and risking disturbing any remnant yin poison within it, from the fact that the two individuals were likely to have died close together and the fact that one had decomposed at a much greater rate, it was still likely.  "If I am right, then this man has yang roots or body, strong enough that the yin poison within him did not cause him to rise in grievance, despite losing his life to it."


    Dexter picked up the framed photograph of a young man and woman beaming happily at the camera as they captured the moment, tall, steel and glass buildings within their background.  The expressions upon their face, the closeness of their bodies, clearly they had once been deeply in love.


    Perhaps, from the clues they''d found, this couple had moved to the countryside from the city, perhaps seeking a different pace of life.  However, the apocalypse had occurred, the man had fallen sick and died.  Perhaps the woman could not contain her grief and decided to follow him, taking her own life or just dying of a broken heart.  The farmhouse that had been their dream home had become their mausoleum.


    They had no time to feel the guilt as tomb raiders, however, simply continued to take what was deemed useful, leave what was not.  They gathered up tins and sealed packages, knowing that not all of the food may still be edible.  Cleaning products and essentials, books and clothes were also placed at the door and they quietly spent the night in the living room, waiting for the rain to finally pass overhead, before leaving the property the next day.  But as they silently left, Chang Min sealed the couple''s bedroom chamber that they might continue to sleep undisturbed.

 Chapter 67 - Sixty Six - The Way To A Woman’s Heart

    A weekly shop for two people was never going to be very large, certainly when such was then to stretch between more than ten people, however a change of flavour, a change of texture, these, even if it was just for a handful of meals was still welcome. Autumn stirred the contents of the tinned soup in a pan and the air filled with the homely, familiar scent of tomatoes. In a second pan, cream of mushroom soup had been poured from two tins and was beginning to simmer. Mouths watered in anticipation.


    As the a.d.u.l.ts savoured their lunch, the mood was comfortable, despite the discussion at the table; that there was a serious lack of extraneous supplies now lurking in the abandoned villages and towns. It was to be expected, at the end of the day, food had become the top priority of the survivors after all, to cover them as their first harvests came to fruition and to help them live through their first unknown winter. Still, some couldn''t help but lament.


    "Ah, if it had been like those manga''s, where someone was reborn before the apocalypse," Patrick was saying aloud, though the expressions of most of his listeners remained clueless and blank. "Then we could have gathered up hens or quails or ducks and maybe rabbits..."


    "Patrick," Dexter, the only one to get his point sighed, "let it go."


    "We''re luckier than most," Harry pointed out, thinking about the small herd of sheep with the two new additions pottering about in the front garden. Despite the animals having some control over the wind, as the a.d.u.l.ts had previously been tamed and used to humans and there was no threat to their lives currently, they didn''t use their powers so much. But it didn''t mean that they were never used.


    Part of the reason for keeping the three animals alive so long was in order that they reproduce; more animals meant more meat later on, but also meant that there would be milk. Only, no one knew how to milk an animal and the ram had been less than impressed that the humans were pestering his females. Strangely, it was Lucy that had calmed the ''white puppy'' and allowed the grown ups time to figure out how to steal a bit of the mothers'' milk. The little girl had wrinkled her nose when the acc.u.mulation of their first attempt was handed to her to drink. It did not have the same flavour as cows milk after all.


    Coaxed and cajoled, she''d eventually drank it and the a.d.u.l.ts were pleased that they could provide their princess with the extra nutrition. Still, it might be another year or so before they took the life of one of the sheep and sampled the taste of mutton, but at least this plan was on the right track.


    "Would be nice to still have eggs though," Autumn admitted, thinking of all the things she could cook if she just had access to a source of eggs.


    "Didn''t Chang Min say that the army base had eggs?" Patrick pointed out, causing all those who hadn''t heard about this to sit up and take notice.


    "And how are we supposed to get hold of them?" Tyler slapped him about the head in rebuke. "It''s not like we have anything left to trade with, at least nothing that I can''t imagine that they do not already have."


    "Wouldn''t hurt to sound them out," Jonah sat back in his chair, after cleaning out his bowl with a piece of bread. A small cry filled the air and caught his notice. He glanced at his girl beside him, however, Brooke''s head was down and she still had a little soup left in her bowl. He sighed. Since the rodent attacks, Brooke had seemed to lose interest in their son once more. He didn''t know what else he could do to stir her feelings towards the baby. Resigned, he pushed back his chair and gratefully took the bottle that Autumn had already prepared for him, before heading upstairs to see to his son.


    "We''ll visit the base when we next go out," Dexter suggested as Jonah returned carrying the small bun in his thick arms. The little one sucked at the bottle with ease, his bright little eyes starring happily up at his old man, who was watching him in turn with a soft expression. It caught the imagination of the other man, who surreptitiously glanced up at the bubbly woman grabbing bowls and heading towards the sink.


    One by one, people dispersed, some heading for the garden to help with the weeding, others heading towards the wall to exchange with those who''d remained to patrol while their friends ate lunch. Autumn was heating yet more tinned soup for Monika, Arthur and Chang Min who were due to come eat. Dexter moved over to the sink, using the excuse of cleaning dishes to linger longer. He glanced over his shoulder at the woman standing with her back to him near the range cooker and an uncharacteristic shiver of nerves caused discomfort in his stomach.


    "Lunch was good," he said, aloud, trying to make conversation.


    Autumn felt her lips curve as she mentioned; "Just tinned soup, nothing more than heating required."


    "True, true," he replied. "But, you made the bread."


    "Yes, I did," Autumn answered. She looked over with a touch of shyness and a blush blossomed as her eyes met his, which then flickered away first due to his nervousness.


    "There''s something I''ve been meaning to ask you," Dexter scratched his forehead then grimaced as he realised his hands were wet and covered in bubbles. Autumn turned around to chuckle, quietly, before clearing her throat quietly and saying;


    "Go ahead."


    "You can turn me down," Dexter began to prattle on a bit, as he attempted to steal towards what he was trying to say, "so don''t feel like it''s a big issue and don''t feel like, you know, you have to or anything, just because I asked..." Autumn felt his nervousness within her own belly and remembered the way Monika teased her the other day. Her heart skipped and her palms began to feel sweaty. Would he really ask her...? Her of all people? Dexter took a deep breath; "Do you wanna... would you... ah..." he grabbed a tea towel, wiping his hands before stepping in front of her. Perspiration began to bead on his forehead. "Autumn, I like you. Would you go out with me? Damn, that seems a weird thing to ask in the circ.u.mstances."


    "It does," Autumn agreed, shyly, glancing down, suddenly interesting in her feet.


    "Still... would you?" Dexter asked once more, quietly and gently. Her head rose and her eyes met his... She''d never been asked out before, not seriously anyway and even though it briefly crossed her mind that he was only asking as she was only one of two single women in the house, the thought left as quickly as it came. There was no desperation of that sort, just honest affection...


    Voices began to echo in the hallway, increasing in volume as they approached the kitchen. Dexter stepped backwards, reactively, while Autumn spin to stir the soup at that same moment. Monika glanced over the ''guilty'' pair with a grin, before sitting at the table besides Arthur. Chang Min entered a moment later. "So...." the woman was tempted to ask just what was happening, but upon seeing Autumn''s blushing expression, decided to alter the question; "What''s for lunch?"


    "Um, there was only carrot and coriander left," Autumn replied. "I hope that''s okay." She poured the soup between three bowls. It was not much, but these tins of soup stretched only so far. The three offered smiles as they broke the offered bread between their fingers and began to eat. Autumn took the pan to the sink, where Dexter had continued to wash the remaining bowls.


    The woman glanced over her shoulder to make sure the others were busy with their meal rather than watching what she was doing, before standing on tip toes and whispering "Yes." Dexter barely paused in his scrubbing, but a large smile nearly split his face in two.

 Chapter 68 - Sixty Seven - A Date That Ended With A Squeal

    Before the end of the world, Dexter couldn''t claim to have been a saint nor did he bother to ''keep himself pure'' for marriage or the one.  He fooled around here and there, dated a bit, but there was never anyone serious for him.  In a way, after the end came, he sort of regretted not having experienced a serious relationship and sort of didn''t regret.  After all it would have been hard if the wife or girlfriend had turned or not survived the initial zombie attacks.


    But after the set up of the bases, as more and more survivors gathered together, hoping to lean on others in order to help them survive these dark times, one thing became very clear; there were far more men than women now.  No one could say that those who died and rose as monsters were mostly one s.e.x or the other, no one would bother to tally that sort of thing even if it were possible.  However, women had natural disadvantages and during the initial period of ''every man for themselves'', who had time to protect others from relentless zombie attacks?


    Dexter wouldn''t lie and claim that his initial interest in Autumn wasn''t due to the fact that three flowers had suddenly appeared in a garden of evergreens.  She was very much his type, soft, curvy and adorable, making it even more difficult to look away.  But this was the end of the world, he couldn''t exactly try to get to know her over dinner, especially as she was the chef!  Plus, there had been so many other things to deal with; making sure they had enough warm clothing and enough food to get them over the Winter, which happened to be exceptionally harsh, dealing with attacks from zombies and undead animals, cultivating in order to be stronger and more fit to survive.  So, getting to know the young woman in a closer manner was pushed to the back of his mind.  But it was never something that went away.


    Amazingly, she shared his feelings and he was ecstatic, only, he now had another problem?  How did one date at the end of the world?


    While he wasn''t a saint, he also wasn''t some bastard, he wasn''t going to sweep her off of her feet and straight into bed.  Autumn deserved more than that.  But it wasn''t as if they could go to the movies, buy popcorn and tacos and laugh at corny jokes.


    So, instead after breakfast the following morning, he coaxed her outside for a walk in the gardens of the neighbouring property.


    The garden had grown a bit wild, the weeds as prominent in some places as the shrubs, but there was still some beauty to be found, such as the tulips poking through the foliage and revealing their colours. Naturally, there were also mutant plants here, but apart from the bladed grass, they were not hostile, just odd looking. The strangest one was possibly once a hydrangea bush, but as some of the tiny flower buds opened, the resulting petals detached from the stems and fluttered upon the winds towards some weaker looking plants, landing upon them for a moment before returning. The weaker plants seemed quite drained and dry afterwards, as if the vitality had become a little lost.


    Such a dangerous beauty, like a thorny rose for the new age. The man and woman walking side by side while holding hands didn''t pay much attention to it, however and the fluttering petals avoided them as they danced upon the winds.


    The warmth of Dexter''s hand was like a loud bell within Autumn''s mind, giving both joy and comfort as well as nervousness. She hoped her own palms weren''t sweating and off putting, she could hardly keep her mind on what he was saying. Actually, it wasn''t much, just small talk for Dexter was just as nervous as she for this first date of theirs. Her lips curved in realisation and at that moment, he turned to look at her and a wide smile lit up his own rugged face, causing her to blush.


    The gardens were quite extensive, probably just as large or just a bit less than Nathan''s gardens, but much more of it was landscaped and given to flora or water features. There was a large pond, near the rear of the gardens, surrounded by willow trees and ornate shrubs. The only life it held were water favouring insects, however. The koi within had all died, reduced to skeletons thanks to a couple that morphed into zombie fish. Those had been dealt with before winter.


    Autumn glanced upward and noticed that a couple of small birds had made a nest within a tree and were chirping quietly. This was a hopeful sign. She hoped there were eggs in the nest and that they would hatch and survive to a.d.u.l.thood. Dexter followed her gaze and squeezed her hand.


    Suddenly, there was the sound of a large crash ahead of them. The songbirds flew upwards with a panicked cry, before quickly returning to their nest, ready to protect it and whatever it held. The two humans beneath them drew closer together, Dexter wrapping one arm around Autumn''s midriff, while a ball of plasma began to form in the other.


    Two large, angry eyes glanced over the area, looking at them but losing interest just as quickly. It''s glistening snout snorted and snuffled, before a deep squeal echoed from its large throat and it charged forward and away from them.


    Autumn stared after the hairy, large monster with dripping tusks and tapped Dexter''s arm in her fright. "What... what was that?" She gasped.


    "Not sure," Dexter admitted, though he had a feeling the mutant beast used to be an animal a lot smaller. That thing rivalled an Indian elephant! His eyes winced as he looked at the wake of destruction of its path. "But damn, it f.u.c.k.i.e.d up the wall!"


    "The wall?!" Autumn saw the rubble strewn across the ground with leaves and chunks of hedgerow. "But, doesn''t that mean..."


    Dexter glanced at the hole in their defences and sighed. "Don''t worry about it. Let''s get back to the house. I figure we''ll have to deal with that thing before we worry about anything else right now!"


    *****


    The creature was large, at the peak of its hunched spine it was about eight feet high, it''s legs were thick and seemed stubby in comparison to its weighty body, which was made heavier due to the thick dreads of hair covering its form. It''s tail, in comparison was wiry with a tuft of hair upon its tip and its lowered head was adorned with two vicious looking, tusks that curved forward and reached beyond its large snout.


    The walls and hedges that surrounded the three properties and also separated them were not much hindrance to it as it burst through and continued onwards to what it sought. Neither was the hound that burst into its sight in a sudden swirl of smoke, growling at it.


    It stepped back a pace, then recalling that it was not the little swine it had once been, squealed loudly at the ferocious beast, screaming that it was no longer afraid. It swung its tusked snout, trying to catch the canine off guard, but the beast vanished into fog, before reappearing a few paces away, snapping its jaws loudly. The mutant flicked its tail in disdain before stomping forward again.


    It fended off the hounds attacks again and again as it continued on, squealing once more in frustration, before its tusks hit the next barrier, another wall. This wall was not of earth, but its foundations were and the strain of the ground which moved beneath it caused a breech, which its hard tusks easily dealt with. Its eyes swirled with madness as its nose caught hold of the heavenly scent once more. Its wild ancestors were omnivores, but it recalled that it had been raised by humans and the mixed feed given was a balance of grain and vegetables. However, as it snuffled about in the trough, fighting with the others for the best bits, it used to have its own favourite. It didn''t know what it was called, but Nathan did.


    "No!" He cried out as the large, ugly thing dove its big fat nose into the bed of radishes, that were ready for harvest. "Stop it!" The thing squealed at him and he instantly fell to his knees covering his ears, the sound was just too painful! A shadow fell over his crouched form, he glanced up to see the long mane of silken black draping down like a cloak from the confident frame and suddenly felt safe.


    Ren Zexian withdrew his sword, sheltering his lover, ready to fight this monster should it attack. However it was too interested in stuffing its face with their vegetables. Ren Zexian frowned, naturally he realised that this was not a good thing. "Master?" Chang Min appeared beside him. Ren Zexian nodded and Chang Min began to alter the earth beneath the creatures stubby legs to entrap it.


    However, they had not banked on the fact that it could shake the hardening soil away as if it was no moment. The two Cultivators frowned. Ren Zexian glanced down at Nathan, worriedly, but his brave, sweet Nathan tugged at his robes and whispered; "The plants." Ren Zexian smiled and inwardly sighed.


    "Look after him," he instructed Chang Min and threw a fire ball at the creature. The scent of burnt hair filled the air and the created shrieked in pain, it''s mad eyes whirling. Its already bent back lowered further as it pawed the ground and began to charge at Ren Zexian. The cultivator dodged with ease, side stepping and using swift movement to create a distance, before taunting the beast with fire once more. The mutant was not the same as it once was, but it was also not much different. Yes it was bigger, tougher and more monstrous than its former self, but it was not all that smart. Ren Zexian easily drew it away from Nathan''s vegetable gardens before he attacked.


    The beasts hide proved to be tough, however, his sharp blade struggled to penetrate it, Dexter''s lightning did not hinder it and no earth attacks only slowed it a bit, as it also had this ability. The fight became prolonged, the creature covered in shallow cuts and singed hair, but not weakened, instead swinging its snout crazily and destructively. Tyler crept over with Patrick. Neither considered themselves fit or dumb enough to fight the monster head on, they could only attempt their attacks from a distance.


    Patrick forced the beast down, using gravity to hold it and Chang Min took advantage to reinforce this hold with clay and rock. Tyler then formed a large bubble of water and surrounded the beast''s large head. It was a cruel death and it was not swift, but they could not be kind to a monster that threatened their food supply and destroyed their haven.


    Finally, the mad light in the beast''s eyes faded and its struggle ended.


    The men gasped for air, grasping their chests, for with the exception of the two Cultivators, this sort of thing they were not at ease with. In contrast, it was easier to kill zombies as in reality, they were already dead. This beast had been a living creature.


    Nathan, who''d been lead away by Autumn in the end, came out to see the monster, checking to see that it was dead so it could no longer harm his precious garden. Satisfied, he wandered over to Ren Zexian and wrapped his arms about the other''s chest. Ren Zexian smiled over his stickiness, gentle running his fingers through Nathan''s hair, before leading him away from the corpse.


    Patrick curled his legs into a sitting position and leaned forward, hand on his chin, listening as Dexter spoke to Chang Min about the lost walls. His eyes fell upon the beast and he finally took a good look at it. "Say," he said out loud. "Doesn''t this thing kind of resemble a wild boar?"


    "Wild boar?" Tyler tilted his head, thinking over it. "Wait, isn''t that like a pig?"


    Suddenly everyone''s eyes were on the dead creature.

 Chapter 69 - Sixty Eight - A Mountain of Pork

    Dealing with the overgrown ''pig'' had not been easy, nor had it been a task for the faint hearted; Patrick fled heaving and had regurgitated all his breakfast into a bucket before collapsing.  After dealing with walking corpses, some with their guts hanging out of dry tears in their grey stomachs, he had thought he''d be able to cope, but alas it had not been so.  There had been so much blood.  Plus, their had been parasites in its sizeable length of intestines.  So in the end, it had been too much for the small man and he escaped.


    They already were aware that the mutant''s hair covered skin was tough, but fortunately, most of its armour had actually been due to its abilities.  Now that it was dead, a strong and sharp blade combined with good strength was all that was required to pierce and peel back the hide.  The scent of fresh, raw meat was somewhat overwhelming and that had been the point that Tyler tactfully retired.  Aslan had long since left, carrying a curious toddler carefully by the back of her clothing like a protective mother hound. Patrick fled soon after with Nathan following him, the latter losing interest and wanting to see what remained of his radish plants.


    Autumn was the first to admit that her butchering skills were very much on amateur levels, though she somewhat knew the theory. Nan Li Liang also had theoretical knowledge stored in his bright mind and the pair muddled through with Dexter, Harry and with Shaun sharpening their heavy knives as best he could. The shape of the beast was somewhat warped, with its spine now curving upwards and the peak of which topped with a hard, but flexible fin-shaped bone. The meat attached could not be said to be like the shoulder and not like the loin. There was a thick layer of fat as well as a thinner layer of tender meat attached to the bone. Otherwise, the mutant''s inner anatomy was not too much different to a standard swine, just much, much larger.


    Slowly, layered upon stretches of tarpaulin, a mountain of pork cuts, organs and offal appeared. In theory, most if not all of this sea of red and white could be used, however there were certain ''theories'' that they just couldn''t put into practice. Take the intestines. It was common knowledge that casings from sausages could be obtained from them. However, looking at the mess of long and somewhat large ''smaller'' intestines, they chose to dismiss this as currently possible for them. These, along with other pig parts that they chose not to use, were fed to the carnivorous mutant plants.


    Other parts, the lungs, brains, tongue and a few scrap cuts were placed aside to turn into dog food. Aslan had been living on a mix of dry dog food and vegetables, the tinned food all having been finished at the end of winter. This would be a good change of diet for him. Having pulled out four of the largest soup pots she could find, Autumn began the long process of rendering the bones and trotters into soup stock with Tyler''s aid. The trotters were too large, so after scrubbing them and removing the remaining bristly hairs, they had to be cut up with force along with the bones before being added to the boiling and slightly salted water.


    In the meantime, the men cleaned up outside. Chang Min had already dealt with the gaping hole in the wall as well as a luckless zombie that had wandered into distant garden. The numbers of zombies lurking outside their boundaries had slowly increased since the snow had melted, drawn by the scent of bodies, but the number was not unmanageable, probably as they themselves were low in number. It was likely that the army base a few miles down the road would distract most zombies attention with the more concentrated smell of living flesh there, thus leaving their own small hideaway much safer for the most part. And those zombies that did try their walls mostly did so near the gates where the scent was thicker and the vines could not reach them. Their patrols kept the worst of the monsters at bay so far.


    In their own garden, while Nathan gently tucked those few plants which had the tenacity to survive back into the ground and mourned the loss of several partially eaten or destroyed ones, the usually unused patio was being cleared of weeds and dead leaves. Aslan and Lucy looked on curiously as the a.d.u.l.t men produced a large metal thing, which they cleaned before filling its barrel like base with black stones. Ren Zexian tossed a spark of blazing fire onto the stones after a request from Harry and they slowly heated up, just like they had in the fireplace during the cold months. A massive slab of meat, one that could easily have equalled the small girl in length, was brought into the garden from the gap in the hedge, carried carefully by Jimmy and Arthur and taken into the kitchen.


    Lucy yawned and snuggled against the black fur of her four-legged protector, dozing in the light of the sun for a short while until a delicious scent wafted out of the kitchen, reaching her before dispersing on the cool wind. Her small belly began to rubble in earnest.


    While she''d been sleeping, the men had transported more of the meat into the house, including Aslan''s portions, taking it into the bas.e.m.e.nt to keep cool until they could properly deal with it. Autumn''s pots were bubbling softly, with the impurities removed and bundles of herbs added to enhance the meaty flavour, the scent leaking out from the sealed lids. Leftover bones were piled upon a work surface, but she hesitated making more soup with them, worried that she would run out of glass containers. She still needed to render some of the fat in order that they had lard and oil in the future. Not far from the bones were a small pile of steak-cuts, soaking in a thrown together marinade of chilli''s, spring onions and vinegar and seasoned with a little salt and pepper to reduce the unpleasant raw smell.


    Dexter stole a kiss from Autumn''s plump lips before stealing away the steaks. A hissing sound emanated from outside and the heavy scent of barbecue began to sweep inside, drowning out the more delicate scent of her soups. She sighed, before hurrying towards the sunroom to see what fresh leaves were ready to make a quick salad. She also should make a soup, they would need something to help them digest the pork they insisted on eating today, otherwise, wouldn''t they all just regret it later?


    Actually, she worried a little too much over it. While a couple of them, Jonah for one and Eraj, did suffer from some stomach pangs, for the most part, they all coped with being reintroduced to meat fairly well. In reality, it had only been a handful of months since they had last eaten something containing a bit of meat, so any side effects were minimal. They did cut Lucy''s portion up into tiny pieces and generously gave Aslan the fatty chunks that they felt the little girl would not be able to eat. The black hound also revealed his hidden cute side, the necessary skill all pups learned at their mother''s side; how to beg with large, pleading eyes. He scored himself several more mouthfuls after this and tucked into the dry dog food poured into his bowl much more cheerfully later on.


    After the impromptu barbecue, they hovered around the warm, dying coals, discussing the other cuts of meat sitting in the bas.e.m.e.nt. The legs and shoulders were sizeable, likely would need to be cut smaller to fit in their freezer. There were also the oversized heart, kidneys and liver, the tenderloin, ribs...


    "It''s not all going to fit," Tyler announced with some certainty.


    "We don''t have enough salt to preserve it all by curing alone," Autumn mused aloud, "I know it can be smoked to help preserve it, but I''ve never done it myself. Oh, I can make pork jerky though... I think." Her mind wandered, considering the leftover spices and condiments in her stocks. With her homemade vinegar, it just be alright...


    "What if we take some to trade?" Jonah suggested, enlightening many. They''d almost forgotten about those plans; they wanted hens from the army base in order to gain a supply of eggs, but lacked good supplies to trade with. Wasn''t the huge shoulder or leg cuts a perfect solution to their problems?


    "Then we''ll have to go tomorrow," Dexter replied. "Don''t want to leave the meat too long or it''ll go bad.


    "Take some of the left over bones," Autumn suggested. "I don''t know how big the population is on the base, but there''s definitely enough to make a good amount of soup for a lot of people." She didn''t say what they all felt; even with the size that monster had been, it was doubtful that everyone would be able to eat a portion of meat considering how many people lived at the base when Chang Min lived amongst them. Besides, they weren''t willing to hand over too much of their hard earned spoils.


    In the end it was decided to take a shoulder and a leg as well as half of the liver, some of the remaining bones as well as a couple of jars of the clear, ochre stock that Autumn had made. Dexter would lead the team and Chang Min would be a part of it, after all, he knew the base better than any of them. They just had to hope that the army base was willing to give them a chance to trade.

 Chapter 70 - Sixty Nine - Travelling To The Base

    The American Military Base was located some way North West of the village and in times past, it would take between twenty and twenty five minutes to get to its entrance by road.  Just as in past times of crisis, civilians would seek guidance from the authorities, the police, the politicians and if they were not available, then the army.  Even though the men and women stationed there were not of the same nationality, just the fact they were a military organisation was enough for them to represent a beacon of hope for those who survived the end of the world.


    Of course, just because the Americans were military, did not mean that they didn''t suffer the effects of the apocalypse within their tall wire fences.  A percentage of their personnel did die to the sickness and rise as mindless, starving corpses and it was just as difficult for them to put down this new enemy, for they were not the blank faces of opponent soldiers in a foreign land.  But however difficult, they swept through the housing and barracks with decisiveness after an initial hesitation with deathly force and only lost one healthy man in the process due to a moment''s distraction cost him his life.  His death was not in vain as it taught them a valuable lesson; do not get bitten.


    The first wave of survivors came to knock upon their doors just two days later and at first, they were not willing to let them in.  Some of the soldiers wanted to focus on their own survival first and hopefully make it back home, others were fearful that these refugees might carry the virus.  But, the survivors kept arriving and were unwilling to leave, begging to be allowed into the dubious safety of the wire fence walls.


    The smarter individuals realised that if the numbers continued to grow, they would not only attract wandering zombies, but might also threaten the safety of those within the gates.  So there was a compromise, the initial wave of people were placed into an empty house and kept in quarantine for three days.  Not only did the soldiers hope that this would identify any who could become zombies, but gave them time to think about solutions to the refugee problem.  It was not as if they had a great deal of family housing that could be used to accommodate these people.


    Eventually, the people were assimilated, but while they were in quarantine, new arrivals came.  These people were quarantined elsewhere.  Another group of survivors brought with them a mob of hungry zombies, who''d followed their noisy vehicles and had to be dealt with first, before the survivors could be.  It was then that some soldiers noticed they had weird super-powers.  They were no J*stice Leag*e nor X-m#n though, their powers didn''t make them much stronger than normal.  However, those handful that could summon water came to be treated like Kings and made to retreat behind the lines.


    When the utilities no longer worked, the soldiers began recruiting the strongest of the survivors to help them scavenge food and supplies.  As the base numbers continued to grow, survivors were put to work strengthening the wall and building temporary housing from wood and brick.  If people did not work, they did not get fed, that was the rule.  One mostly civilian squad had the idea of bringing back caravans and campervans from driveways and the base continued to grow.


    "When I arrived at the base," Chang Min reminisced as the truck slowly trundled down the broken road, "there were no spare beds, people slept with padded green blankets upon floors or on couches.  It was not difficult for me to adapt, but there were many grumbles from the people I arrived with.  They also complained about the food and the work.  I do not think that they were well received by the others.  But I had performed my duties as a bodyguard, so I let them do as they pleased and made myself useful."


    Chang Min had never been a stranger to hardship.


    "How many people were on the base when you left?" Dexter asked him.  The squad that he''d taken with him was somewhat a show of force with the big guys Harry, Arthur and Winston displaying the majority of the muscle, while himself, Chang Min and Cole had good abilities as well.  Tyler had been left behind this time as water users were precious and they didn''t want to reveal all of their cards, not knowing just what sort of reception they''d receive.  This was also the reason for leaving all the women behind as well, even if Monika had proven more than once that she could look after herself.


    "Around three thousand four hundred," Chang Min replied.  "Of which around five hundred were originally military or personnel and another one or two hundred were family members."


    "I thought it would be bigger," Harry admitted, aloud, with some melancholy in his voice.  They could not blame him.  The two towns that the base was located in between used to have tens of thousands of people living within them, not to mention the smaller populations of the scattered villages close by.


    "There may have been others like us," Dexter suggested, "that grouped together outside military bases.  Plus isn''t there another military base about an hour or so away?"


    "You mean the one that houses members of our own Royal Air Force?" Winston asked, before swerving to miss a particularly large pothole. The men unfortunate enough to be in the back braced themselves against the cold metal walls of the van''s storage area. Fortunately, the ice packed metal containers that Shaun and Tyler had rigged up were secured well; they were suffering enough bruises from the bumps and other obstacles in the road, let alone broken bones from the containers.


    "Yeah," came the reply.  "Some people have rooted biases, like Tyler or maybe it was just the first place that came to mind.  They could have gone there."  It was a pretty dream, but no one really bought it.  Who''d go so far a field when there were soldiers on your doorstep?


    "Still, that''s a lot of people to feed over winter," Cole mused, "it''s no wonder we almost came to blows with them in the wheat field."


    "That was just greed," Arthur said, softly from the passenger seat. It was not as if they were planning to take a lot of the wheat having wanted it just in order to start their own wheat field in the spring and not in order to produce flour.


    "Officer Randell was not a bright man," Chang Min mentioned the man that had been in charge of their expedition. "And he is inflexible. He will follow his orders to the letter and cannot see in more than black and white. But he is very much trusted."


    "A good soldier not a good team leader," Dexter came to his own judgement about the man. No one really blamed him for his actions, however, if they were in his position facing a force that potentially threatened his mission, they can''t claim that they wouldn''t have done the same. Especially when they had a weapon like Chang Min to rely on. A pity for him, then, that the weapon defected or rather was simply biding his time until he could return to Ren Zexian''s side.


    The conversation lapsed into silence for a few minutes before Winston swore and deftly avoided yet another zombie. Fortunately, it seemed to be an ordinary one and not an evolved one again. That massive monster had chased after them fiercely, using its long arms as momentum and swinging like an ape as what remained of its legs were nothing but stumps. Fortunately or unfortunately, they also ran into the Herd.


    They had not seen the group of zombified cattle for a while, but they had grown uglier. Their numbers seemed neither larger nor smaller than in the autumn, but there was a massive bug-eyed, bull in amongst them now. Its horns had looked vicious and it swung its still intact tail about swatting the flies from exposed, rotting holes in its large body. When it had charged, however, it decidedly ignored the metallic van and hint of live flesh for the zombie chasing it. The rest of the herd had followed it in a rush, smacking against the walls of the van as they did, leaving a large dent in its side, but apart from scaring the shit out of them as the truck teetered to one side for a breath, there was no other damage and they lost the tailing zombie.


    "There''s more zombies up ahead," Winston mentioned. The one he''d almost hit was a straggler from the crowds it appeared.


    "Not surprising," Dexter drawled, "there''s a buffet in a tin up ahead as well. Question is, how do we get past them in order to get inside that tin?"


    "Not to worry," Chang Min mentioned, breezily and stood up in order to see the situation ahead. "The base likely have measures of their own in order to allow their own people inside. But for now, allow me to deal with them."


    "Do you need any assistance, Min," Cole murmured behind him.


    "This small matter, I can deal with," Chang Min advised him, confidently. "I just require someone to attract them towards us first." Winston glanced towards Dexter as he slowed the vehicle to a near halt, who shrugged in response. As his boss had no opinion on it, he pressed hard upon the van''s horn, filling the air with a loud squeaking sound.


    After a pause, Harry couldn''t help but ask; "What was that?"


    Dexter smirked behind his hand, before coughing. "It was rather weak for a van this size. I mean I wasn''t expecting a low, blasting horn like in a lorry, but..."


    "It''s not like we ever bothered testing it when we claimed it from the garage," Cole rolled his eyes as they continued to jest at the second squad''s expense.


    "Can we just deal with them right now?" Arthur asked, making an attempt to be the voice or reason as numerous zombies waddled, crawled and otherwise made their way towards them.


    "No evolved ones?" Winston pointed out this small fact as no fireballs, lightning strikes or blades of ice came towards them.


    "At least nothing threatening," Dexter said in response. "The base would be real idiots not to deal with evolved zombies as soon as they appeared. But dealing with low numbers of small fry is probably a waste of resources." Chang Min nodded in agreement. There always seemed to be small numbers of zombies surrounding the base, no matter how many were cleansed and without strong powers, the soldiers relied on bullets. But they could only rely on them for so long. It was deemed better to use them on the strongest zombies and otherwise keep the numbers of weaker zombies low by going out as a force once or twice a weak with melee weapons instead. There also should be pits here and there, formed by Chang Min when he was around to help control the numbers, but not upon the road.


    And speaking of pits... the ground began to tremble.

 Chapter 71 - Seventy - Beginning Negotiations

    The unnatural quaking of the earth was naturally going to attract those meant to be protecting the walls; soldiers and recruited civilians rushed to the gates and proceeded to climb up ready to defend their base from what they feared.  But as they withdrew their guns and crossbows, they came to realise that actually, it was not an earth-based zombie at all.  In fact, the lurking undead that had gathered at the gates, growling without much threat had been lured away.  They grabbed binoculars and small scopes off of their belts or the hands of others, jostling about until one voice yelled out; "It''s Chang Min!  He''s come back!"


    There were numerous whispers in the crowd of guards and a few curious onlookers, who seeing that the soldiers were not shooting down the lingering zombies, paused mid flee and began to return to see if they could figure out what was going on.  Chang Min''s name to some was well known, to others it was a myth or legend.  He was the man whose powers had not been weak and could make the ground tremble at a mere thought.  He was the man that had much of the original surrounding walls thrust upward from the earth with a gesture.  He was the man that could deal with a whole swarm of undead by himself using a sword and his powers.


    The men and women on the wall watched wide eyed as the crowd of zombies suddenly vanished from the road as it vanished beneath them.  The pit they descended into closed suddenly causing a loud bang and a ripple effect that forced the occupants of the base to stumble and many more to fall.  Fortunately, no one who fell from the wall hurt themselves badly nor fell into the dangerous zone outside.  But more than one person cursed Chang Min at that moment.


    Word of Chang Min''s return reached the barracks shortly after the weakened tremor and a couple of officer''s stood from their desk chairs and jumped onto the solar powered golf cart parked outside after exiting the building.  The vehicle was not fast, but the journey from the barracks to the gates was not short.  As Officer Rouse drove, Officer Randall muttered crossly; "That Chang Min ought to be tried for insubordination and desertion. And on top to try break down the walls!"


    "What are you on about, Randall?" Rouse sighed. Losing Chang Min had been a blow to the base, but it couldn''t have been helped. However, Zane Randall had always taken the matter of Chang Min leaving personally. Chang Min had left them while out on a mission he lead after all. As for the walls, the report stated that Chang Min was dealing with the crowd of lurking zombies out front. How was that destroying the base defences?


    "But Sir, he betrayed us!"


    "Chang Min was a civilian, Randall," Rouse reminded him. "The agreement between us and civilians like him is of mutual cooperation. He helped us with the walls, with reducing zombie numbers and even went out on several supply runs. He chose to leave the base of his own accord. It was never up to us to stop him."


    "This is why I say that all ability users ought to be conscripted," Randall muttered, his arms crossed about his chest.


    Rouse sighed. "Just shut the f.u.c.k up about that crap. We''re an army in name only. If ever the civilians decide that we''re not on their side, do you think the fact that we were soldiers before the end will subdue ''em? Stop being a fool."


    The golf cart pulled up to the gates in silence and was greeted by a soldier who saluted them and told them of the current situation. "Sirs, Chang Min is waiting outside of the gates with a group of survivors. He says they wish to discuss trade with us."


    The two officers glanced at each other, the disdain still evident on Randall''s face, while Rouse couldn''t hide his curiosity. He gestured for the twin set of gates to be opened. This was an additional security measure. The walls at the gates had been formed in the shape of an eye, with the gates at the widest points from each other. That way any zombies that managed to scr.a.p.e in through the outer gates would be killed in the gap between the walls and not breech the base itself. The walls themselves were currently around ten feet high in this area. Others were a little lower, topped up with barbed wire. The same barbed wire that thickened defences in other areas while the walls themselves were strengthened over time. Having dealt with metal ability zombies and earth ability zombies as well as undead that could leap to great heights had forced them to realise that they could not rely on the walls they originally had built.


    A large van drove through the gates, smeared in places by zombie remains and with a hefty dent in one side. A few experienced guards began to hose down the van with water stored in barrels and butts specifically for this task. It was not pure like that from a water user, but the virus was believed to be less potent in the water than in zombie guts. That was the theory anyway based on the few facts they currently knew. No one was willing to test it.


    Chang Min exited the vehicle with five other men, all fairly imposing individuals. However, the gate guards and the officers were soldiers, not so easily intimidated. Still, Chang Min himself was a walking powerhouse. It would be an idiot who was disrespectful. Rouse through a glare of warning at Randall, before Chang Min amicably introduced his comrades.


    Dexter''s eyes ran over the officers, just as they were checking him out. He hadn''t been there when Jonah found Chang Min, so he didn''t know if any of these people before them had been amongst those who''d been there that day. He could only speculate. Seeing as Rouse was definitely more ready to welcome them, he stuck out a hand in greeting towards the officer. "Nice to meet you, as Chang Min stated, I''m Dexter," he said. "I was a construction worker before the end. For whatever reason, some of my former neighbours and co-workers decided to form a squad with me and with others, we''ve been helping each other to survive since."


    "Welcome to the Base," Rouse shook his hand, noting the firmness of the other. "The name''s Rouse." His eyes flickered about the area, noting the growing crowds. "My soldiers inform me you want to discuss some sort of trade?"


    "En," Dexter agreed. He too noticed that the number of people gathering around them was increasing so did not elaborate. Chang Min had mentioned that there were a few thousand people on base. There definitely was not enough meat to go around. Rouse gave a curt nod and gestured that Dexter join him, Cole followed looking over his shoulder as Chang Min leapt on top of the van and settled upon it. Harry and the others also remained with the truck. This was the arrangement that they had discussed, worried that their produce would be coveted. It was doubtful that the base would assume they had brought something as precious as meat to trade, but why take the risk?


    Randall glared angrily at Chang Min, but followed Rouse and the others in the direction of the barracks.


    Cole and Dexter did not retain their curiosity as their eyes noted a few solar panels upon roof-tops, while a child set up a smaller set of solar panels and plugged in a mobile phone device. There were a few individuals calmly chatting as they pumped water into buckets and large plastic bottles, before picking the precious resource and walking away, presumably to their homes. Further into the base, a few stalls were set up with people bartering over trinkets, spices and a rather grey looking thin paper that the vendor claimed was for toiletry purposes.


    "That building over there is our kitchens," Rouse mentioned, pointing to one of the large warehouses on sight, making small talk as they walked. "People on base can earn points and trade them for things, including meals. But as you can see, lots of people have begun to trade between themselves, anything from mending clothes to homegrown lettuce leaves."


    "You must have squads out and about all the time then," Dexter said, aloud. After all, without things that people wanted, what was there to trade? Unless someone could reproduce certain products that they had been so spoilt with before the end, those things were finite.


    "Yeah," Rouse agreed. "There''s still some that reckon they can find gold in town, despite others going over most places with a fine tooth comb. Worse case scenario, they come back with wood to burn and reduce zombies by a small number. The greater majority of people just try to get by on base, helping to grow food, improving the walls that sort of thing."


    "You need a lot of food for a place this size," Cole murmured behind them. There were a few people wandering back to and from the kitchens holding plastic tubs. He couldn''t see what was in the ones that potentially contained food, but he could see those holding them were more cautious.


    "We have many greenhouses," Rouse replied, simply.


    "You don''t grow food outside?" Cole blurted out only for the still irritated Randall to jump on his words.


    "Are you crazy!? You know a lot of plants mutate after it rains! How can anyone grow crops with that risk? Just how have you survived so long?"


    Cole shrugged, there was a slight frown on his face, while Dexter''s expression remained calm. He knew just how unique their treasured landlord was, but it was easy to become complacent when one was used to things in a certain way. Rouse looked at the men with curiosity, not able to ignore Randall''s words. There had been too many points that rose questions.


    They arrived at the barracks and Rouse lead them to his office before shutting the door on all nosy outsiders. Randall also found himself shut out and angrily went to share his complaints with a junior officer he happened to corner.


    Ignorant of that junior''s inward tears, Rouse offered the men a seat before stated plainly; "What is it you want to trade with and for?"


    "We''d heard that you have egg laying hens," Dexter admitted, not saying where the information came from, both parties were clearly aware. "Originally we wanted to discuss this."


    "You want eggs?" Rouse''s brows rose. If this was so, what was with the show that the base had been treated to with the six formidable, apocalypse hardened men?


    "Not exactly," Dexter admitted. "We want a few hens. As you can probably imagine, we''ve our own small base. We''ve been fortunate to establish a good foundation for ourselves. But we naturally seek to improve upon it. Our first notion was just to discuss with you terms. But as it happens, before we could make our way here, something happened, so we were able to bring with us something you might be interested in. Whether it''s worth a few hens, I''ll leave that up to you to decide."


    Rouse leaned across his desk as Dexter mentioned what was in the van. He now understood why Chang Min was left to guard it. However, the hens were a very precious living commodity. They may have multiplied in number, but Rouse didn''t feel that he had the authority alone to exchange any of them at the moment.


    "I need to discuss this..." Rouse admitted, though he suspected a few of the army officers would be tempted, while others would want to refuse. They already knew that meat would be on their menus once the new generation of roosters were grown enough. Rouse himself felt they would be unwise to reject outright any trade. This unknown base must have survived zombies and the freezing winter, while obtaining fresh, edible meat. They also had the powerhouse that was Chang Min, plus that person that Chang Min called Master, who definitely would not be a simple person either.


    Dexter sat in his chair feeling relaxed. He reckoned the result of this expedition would be a positive one.

 Chapter 72 - Seventy One - Decisions Of The Few

    The situation was pretty much as Rouse thought; of the twelve senior officers currently in charge of the base, three wanted to completely deny the request, one wanted to generously fill the request and five thought it would be good to negotiate.  The other three were watching to see in which way the winds went.  Actually, not all of the ''officers'' were previously officers of the original army members based here.  Of the original senior officers there had been deaths; becoming zombies in the first wave, dying as the base was secured or during missions to secure food and supplies in those chaotic first couple of months.  One had taken his gun and ended his own life, unable to cope any longer after losing his wife and his son.


    Rouse was one of the few remaining originals, but commanding an army at the end of the world was not the same as doing so in times of peace.  Even fighting skirmishes in war-torn countries could not be considered a comparison.  The enemy was a mob of mindless humanoid monsters, which were not easily killed, could not be captured alive and were driven by unending hunger to eat them.  And if that was not enough, they had to face greed and dissatisfaction of those who should be striving along side them in these dark times.


    The base looked peaceful and the people seemed to be working together in order to better their lives, but human nature is to want what cannot be had.  The fact that they had to have constant patrols around the greenhouses and storage warehouses proved that.


    "As tempting as the pork sounds," Victor, a former councillor of the nearest town said aloud, "a standard pig leg can not feed many.  It would be an unfair trade to take and give a live chicken, who can produce many more eggs through its lifetime, so feed that many more people for it."


    "Send them packing!" Hughes grunted.  Hughes was unfortunately also one of the original top senior officers here, a stubborn old man who was set in his ways.  Unsurprisingly, perhaps, that Randall was one of his men.


    Randall was now considered an officer, but he did not have the seniority or authority to attend this meeting, for which Rouse was thankful for.  Dealing with Hughes was difficult enough.  "From what I understand," he informed them, "the pig that the meat came from had mutated."  He allowed this information to sink in; they already knew that animals that had not become zombies at the end could mutate, even gain abilities.


    One of their survivors, a middle-aged woman who had driven to the base in her own camper van, arrived with her numerous pet cats.  They only allowed her entry with them when she assured them that she would be responsible for feeding the animals and not rely on the base.  From then on, she had generally kept to herself and did as she promised, no one could say a word against her.  And then the flocks of zombified seagulls descended on them.  It had been complete chaos with screaming, terrified civilians hindering soldiers trying to protect them, while they tried to deal with the winged monsters as well as send the people to shelter.  Chang Min had been in base at that time, but earth abilities were always going to be weaker against flying beasts and he''d had to be careful not to hurt the men and women he was trying to save.  He could only try pelt the zombies with raining rocks in areas less populated and prone to damage.


    One person had been caught, Rouse remembered with vivid detail; the man had tripped, not looking where he was going as he tried to shelter his head from the threat from above.  The moment he fell, a large group of the gulls had descended and began picking his flesh from his body while he was still alive!  His screams had been awful and as his living flesh began to show signs zombification, having been infected by the gulls, Rouse had made the brutal decision to shoot him and end his suffering, before turning attentions of the gulls.  But of course, that caused the gulls to turn their attention to him.


    Then out of apparently nowhere, two tabbies and a black and white cat had appeared close to him.  The two tabbies had even glanced at him as if to question what he would do now, one had even began licking its paws, completely unperturbed by everything that was going on about it.  The black and white had pawed the air before it and a strange anomaly occurred; the gulls that had spread their wings to leap back into the air, suddenly seemed to have lost the ability of flight.


    It could be said that in hindsight, it was really out of scientific reason that a bird with wings in a state of rot and disrepair could still fly, but what about the whole zombie apocalypse could be said to be in the realms of known science anyway?  Yet when he had seen a small, black and white feline stretch out a paw and display abilities, he couldn''t at all fathom what he was seeing!  At that point the two tabbies had leapt forward towards the grounded gulls and their bodies  had dissolved into lengths of such brilliant white, which almost blinded him.  The air had been filled with crackling sounds and sharp mini-explosions.  When he had glanced back, the two tabbies were once more licking their paws and ignoring everything else and a pile of singed and burnt gulls lay unmoving on the ground.


    Elsewhere, it was rumoured that a huge, wild cat like beast had roared and swatted down gulls as it leapt in between caravans and trucks.  Some said it must have been a tiger or lion escaped from the zoo.  But after the fight, the animal seemed to disappear completely, so no one could be sure.  However, Rouse requested the squads that answered to him gather tins of pet food... just in case.


    "The outsiders claim that the animal was roughly the size of an elephant," Rouse continued, "but with a larger head and with tusks like a wild boar.  The meat itself is a bit tougher, but still has the flavour of a pig.  They ate a portion of the meat the day before yesterday and had no adverse reactions to it.  They sent over a generous portion of it, not just one leg and also their chefs sent a couple of large jars of pork stock that they had rendered from the bones as a soup base, so more people can get access to the flavour and some nutrients."  Even the hardest of hearts had to acknowledge the thoughtfulness behind this offering.


    "The day before yesterday?" One queried.  Would it be any good to eat now?


    "They claim to have it on ice," Rouse advised them.  He didn''t doubt this considering it could be proven or disproven the moment the containers were opened.  What had surprised him the most and doubtless surprised the fellows before him, was that they had the ability to produce ice.  This in itself would interest them.


    "Well, it''s not like I''m unwilling to trade some eggs with them," Hughes mentioned, a little testily and somewhat beneath his breath.


    One of the other former civilians, an entrepreneur''s shrewd, young daughter named Justine, who had handed over the keys to her deceased father''s business the day she had arrived, said suddenly; "This Chang Min, I recall he is quite powerful," she smiled as she pointed out this fact.  The woman could be said to be a representative of all women on the base, but in actual fact she was very intelligent.


    Her father had run a business selling and developing solar panel technology, specifically small, portable packs for laptops and mobile phones.  Although small technologies were definitely not a priority in the scheme of things, she had convinced them to carry out the raid on her warehouses for the items as the need for entertainment could not be considered lightly.  If people were bored or struggling dealing with this more mundane life or suffering with the constant fear knowing what the world outside the base was like, people would try resolve their issues through other means.  Fighting amongst themselves was the least of their problems.  Without anything to distract them, they might have ideas, ways that they thought would make their own personal lots better and such would ultimately be troublesome and counterproductive.  Ideas were all well and good, but right now, they could wait.


    "Yes, Chang Min''s power is many times stronger than Soldier Lutz."  The mentioned youth had similar abilities to the oriental man, but the former could just push a small rock with his mind to roll a bit or cause bumps to rise in the ground.  Mostly, his ability had been used to look for cracks in the earth walls surrounding them.


    "Lutz told me that Chang Min once tried to help him improve his ability," she said in an almost casual tone, "but the methods... well, Lutz did suggest that Chang Min must have read too many comics from his own country."


    "What are you getting at?" Hughes demanded, grouchily.


    "Isn''t it obvious?" She sighed, her posture and expression becoming serious.  "Let''s review the facts, shall we?  Chang Min''s abilities are ridiculous when compared to other ability users.  Just why is he so strong, yet all others barely seem to differ?  And then he left us to rejoin someone he called ''Master.''  At first this sounds a servile relationship, but if one considers the culture of other countries, it can also be a term of respect between a teacher and apprentice, suggesting that Chang Min was taught.  What he was taught by that person is speculation, I admit.  However, what if he is so strong because he had someone to teach him?"


    "That would suggest," Victor pointed out the flaw in her argument, "that Chang Min had his abilities before the end.  He only arrived here in the second month.  I was one of the survivors that he helped."  He did not speak about the others with them at that time, he held those people in contempt.  "He briefly mentioned that he was seeking his Master, hoped that he would be on base, and that he hadn''t seen him for a long time."


    "Even so," another officer sighed.  "Chang Min did offer to teach a few soldiers with abilities to help them improve their powers and they all turned him down thinking that the methods sounded ridiculous.  At the time we were considering using zombie cores..." No one wanted to mention how that experiment had turned out, it was a dark page in their brief history.  "Then Chang Min left, so it was forgotten."


    "Look, I am not suggesting Chang Min is going to be able to teach our ability users," Justine clarified.  "However the zombies are getting stronger and in comparison we are not.  Seeing as he has returned, shouldn''t we take this opportunity to see?  They want our valuable hens, you all believe that what they offer is not enough to exchange for them.  Negotiation is always an option."


    Finally, the officer-Council came to an agreement.

 Chapter 73 - Seventy Two - The Trade

    Rouse conveyed the words to the outsiders who were waiting in the truck for the base''s decision. Dexter turned to glance at Chang Min, who had suddenly become the centre point of these negotiations. The latter nodded his head slightly after a moment''s thought and discussions went a little more swiftly. In the end, six hens and one rooster would be exchanged for the containers of meat and lessons for five weeks for five students of the base''s choice; these individuals would be taught how to improve their abilities, but they would learn under Dexter''s people''s roof.


    In fact, this was also an exchange about trust and while it seemed heavily in favour of the base, this was in part as the base hadn''t much faith that Chang Min could raise the abilities of the five individuals on his words alone. If the five did not improve, the base would take the loss, this was their point of view. The reason that Dexter and Chang Min accepted their terms was different, for while they would reveal their own haven to the base, they could be considered as protecting it at the same time. The more people wonder about their place, the more people might covert it and try find it without the officers'' knowledge and attempt to take it or what was hidden within for themselves. Dexter and the others were strong, but they were few. However by proving their worth to the base, people would at least think of the consequences and reprisal if they upset the officers who were in charge of all of the soldiers on base.


    As a sort of favour, the base bought the jars of pork stock for points, suggesting that this way, the six men could explore and trade as they will. In addition, Rouse offered to show them around the entire base, even the key areas as a show of faith.


    The key areas actually were just the sheds, kitchen and greenhouses, there wasn''t much to see in the barracks, which were also used as offices for the soldiers and officers. People could leave their complaints at the barracks for soldiers to deal with, such as theft, harassment and sometimes just that so-and-so had let grass grow outside their front door. It sounded trivial, but in actual fact, letting plants grow outside of a greenhouse or property was a crime in the base. Too many plants mutated in heavy rains and many of those strains were malevolent. A lot of people had been injured due to the blood-thirsty and poisonous varieties of those mutant plants. There had even been a few recorded deaths. So leaving weeds to grow was a crime, people who committed this crime were usually fined points. For more serious crimes, a person might have to do community service, such as clearing out the drains or cleaning up dead zombies outside the wall. For the worst crimes, such as murder or ****, the criminal would be exiled from base. On their own, it would be extremely lucky if they could survive long enough to get to shelter or another base. Fortunately, the latter hadn''t happened as yet, but the officers had let it be known the consequences hoping that this deterrent would be enough.


    They weren''t allowed in to most of the warehouses, those were locked up tight with essential supplies, but from Chang Min''s memory, that would be tinned and dried food, toiletries and cleaning products. How many of these were left, only the base personnel knew. One warehouse though was home to the chickens. A mess of fluffy yellow chicks followed around their clucking mothers and five large men, one Chang Min and Officer Rouse looked out of place against this backdrop of cuteness.


    The a.d.u.l.t hens, mostly brown feathered birds without an apparent strain of mutation, must have numbered around thirty though and Rouse admitted that these were the first and second generation of birds. There were currently three large roosters as the rest had grown up and found themselves on dinner tables as an offering mid winter, when they roughly calculated should be Christmas. The numbers of birds slaughtered really didn''t cover the numbers of people on base, so the bones had been boiled and the meat spread thinly amongst dishes such as stew, pastries and curries. But still, most people had more mouthfuls of vegetables each but with just a shadow of the taste of chicken. There were always those that would be ungrateful and grumble about this, though the majority were still grateful.


    Dexter and the other''s chosen hens would be second generation, not of the first, which already had less egg laying years in comparison. Actually, the originals numbered just over ten, found in the garden of a village house and no one knew how old they were. These ten, however, had given birth to a new generation, allowing the base to be rest assured that they would have this treasured food source for a long time to come.


    The greenhouses were of all sizes, it seemed, and all shapes. From small, plastic covered ones that had their sides carefully pinned to the ground to prevent rain leaking in, to huge glass greenhouses the size of a large bedroom. There were plastic tunnels as well, lean-to''s that relied on other buildings in order to be usable and simple wooden standing ones with lift up glass covers. This latter was something that might be found in a small garden of a family wanting to grow small plants or lettuces. Dexter noticed in the one they walked past, it contained seedlings and herbs.


    Rouse took them into the largest one, this one had rows of barrels and large tires that formed the shape of large pots. "This is one of the places where we grow potatoes and some other root vegetables," he advised. It was warm inside the greenhouse, although the roof skylights were currently open for ventilation. A few people wandered amongst the rows, testing the soil, watering where necessary. The organisation of the matter showed just how dedicated and determined the base was to growing food.


    More greenhouses were dedicated to tomatoes, another had walls of vines that could be peas or beans once grown. It turned out that certain types of squash could also be grown in a small place by training their vines to grow in much the same way as the peas. If a plant could grow in a pot, it was placed on shelves, if it needed the ground, it was placed on raised beds so the soil could not be contaminated by the outside world. Seeing as it was April, the greenery was not abundant as many things still needed the time to grow.


    "Nathan would be amazed," Cole suggested, aloud, naturally raising Rouse''s curiosity over the unfamiliar name.


    Dexter shook his head in disagreement. Nathan wouldn''t like this. Although he leaned towards growing his plants in an organised way, each was raised with love and care. He treated their food crops with no less energy that he did with the ivies that protected him or the roses he''d once mentioned were his mother''s flowers or those strawberries that the boy was really very fond of.


    And speaking of Nathan''s favourite fruit, there were some strawberries and raspberries in pots in one place and an even a smaller greenhouse with carefully tied brambles so that blackberries could be picked in autumn. But there were not a lot of fruit trees, just some small apple, pear and plum trees. They would not produce a huge crop come autumn. Rouse admitted that the trees, while advantageous due to the fact that they produced fruit year after year, just took up too much room that was desperately needed for other more filling crops.


    After they left the greenhouse with corn shoots sticking up in rows within their raised bed, Rouse took them back to the base run shops to look around, perhaps use their points for purchases. The points were in the form of gambling ch.i.p.s, which while simple, were no longer easily replicated. Indeed, if they had continued on their original thought of using pennies, they might have been subject to fraud if a metal ability user became skilful enough.


    The shop sold lots of different things; recycled paper, Tupperware, cotton sheets and underwear to name a few. There was also potted plants; herbs, tomato seedlings amongst others. Chang Min mentioned that last year it also sold potatoes and onions, bread rolls and some cans of fruit. Perhaps selling vegetables would become a reoccurrence if the amount of crops produced was good this year as well in order that people could feed themselves rather than rely on the kitchens for filling soups and porridges.


    The men discussed it for a bit and in the end picked up a couple of the solar panels for charging phones as well as two established strawberry plants for Nathan''s garden; the plants from last year all had to be dug up due to mutation and his new seedlings would not produce fruit this year. It was probably not surprising that the small solar panel devices cost as many points as one plant. As they passed a civilian''s store to return to their truck, they noticed some children''s hair accessories and a ribbon and couldn''t help purchase these for Lucy. They then picked a toy rattle for the smallest member of their happy tribe. They were left with only eight points of their original 500.


    At the truck, Randall was waiting for them along with four men and one women. All were dressed in military uniform and all carried backpacks and were waiting with patient, stoic expressions... unlike their commanding officer. The eyes of one sparkled with not quite hidden excitement as he noticed Chang Min and the others approach.


    Randall ignored the six and turned to Rouse with a sullen; "These are the ones that Officer Hughes and Justine picked to leave with them." Rouse winced a little when he heard that Hughes had been involved, but inwardly relaxed at Justine''s name. She was shrewd, she''d never let Hughes be biased and pick his own loyal men without considering the needs of the base as a whole. It''s not that Hughes would specifically stir up trouble, he just had slight control issues and didn''t like anything that was out of his expectations and calculations. His goal was still the same as the other officers, no matter his methods, though; to keep the base safe, survive the apocalypse and rebuild the foundations of the human race.


    Rouse looked over the four men and one woman with a careful eye, then nodded in satisfaction. While one could produce water, he was severely lacking compared to the others, so they could afford to let him go. Another was the same soldier, Lutz, who originally turned down Chang Min''s offer to help him develop his Earth-based skills. If he could improve, they would definitely feel more secure about the walls. Of the other three, he knew the woman could manipulate metal a bit, but this hadn''t proven useful as yet and the two other men had shown particularly useless abilities; rotting wood at a touch and the other could make his finger glow in the dark. None of these people''s abilities they could afford not to lose, though no one wanted to really lose the water producer nor Lutz, but if they could be made decent or stronger, then no one could deny it wouldn''t be a boon to the base.

 Chapter 74 - Seventy Three - Home and Family

    It was late afternoon when the truck left the base with its new passengers.  Of those five, three had varying expressions of wariness, one looked laid back and arrogant with either overconfidence in himself or disdain regarding the six civilians he''d found himself stuck with.  Granted one was Chang Min, but most of those who''d interacted with the oriental man knew that he was a bit of a weirdo.  This man especially thought that this whole deal between them and the base was pointless; these guys should have simply been sent packing.


    The last fellow had sparkling, bright eyes filled with excitement and had absolutely no barriers raised it seemed.  He reminded Dexter greatly of Patrick, just much taller and happened to have olive toned skin and black hair rather than Patrick''s pale, easily burnt skin and a mop blond curls, that had only become obvious over winter.  After all, there were no barbers amongst their group!


    "Are we really going to be able to strengthen our powers?" This excited solider couldn''t help but blurt out.  He earned eye rolls from the arrogant Lutz.


    "Pfft," the man muttered beneath his breath.  "You really believe that?"


    "And I take it that you do not?" Cole sneered.  He''d taken an instant dislike to the man named Thomas Lutz.  Chang Min has told him that this man had an earth ability, like themselves, but it was not strong.  Thus Chang Min had attempted to take him under his wing and teach him.  Just that fact alone made Cole somewhat uncomfortable, but to know that Chang Min''s kindness was not only rejected, this man dared to continue to deny the help, pissed him off a lot.


    "Please," the man''s face twisted into one of ridicule, "I read my fair share of superhero comic books and manga as a teen.  I know the truth between reality and fiction."


    "And yet, fiction became reality," Harry mocked, pointing out a zombie hovering by the roadside.  The monster barely had half a face left, it''s skin peeled to reveal chunks of muscle and bone.  It''s eyeless skull seemed to just stare at the passing truck, but otherwise it made no other movement.  In a way, this was more freaky that having zombies launch attacks upon them.


    "We were like you," Dexter admitted aloud, thinking that it had been about a year since their fates crossed with the man who could be said to be at least half of their reason for surviving outside a large community like the American army base for so long.  "We had no belief either..."


    "Except for Patrick," Harry chuckled.


    "Yeah well, I''d say Patrick was open minded," Dexter ridiculed without any heat behind his words, "but he''s just a kid at heart and more than willing to want to play hero.  Speaking of him as an example to prove you wrong," he directed his words back at the cynical Lutz, "Patrick didn''t awaken any abilities at the end.  I added him to my squad... well I think I just felt sorry for him, seeing as he just really wanted to be useful to our original base.  Now I could say that he''s an important member of our family."


    "Family?" Lutz snickered, while Patrick number two, also known as Luke Marsh, looked a bit melancholy.  The other three glanced at each other, but their expressions varied.


    "That''s right," Dexter reasserted.  "The people of our base are my family.  So I would appreciate that you don''t do anything out of line."  He held up his hand and condensed a ball of plasma in his palm.  The flickering sphere of lightning bolts naturally caught the attention of the soldiers.  "I am very protective towards my family, you know."


    Their eyes remained unmoving, staring at his palm.  They also knew of others with lightning abilities, but none seemed as bright and instinctively dangerous as this tamed electric ball.  Luke''s eyes began to sparkle anew, while the others became more on their guard.  Even Thomas Lutz lost a little of his previous composure.


    The rest of the journey was made in silence... well as quiet as it can get with the hum of the engine and the clucking of caged birds.  The hens and rooster had black cloth tossed over their cages to reduce the disturbance they were likely suffering due to transport, so even if the creatures felt the rising tension in the air, fortunately they were not frightened to death by Dexter''s display.  His ''family'' would have killed him!


    As the truck pulled up to the wall, the gates were opened as those on guard identified them and they entered their home base with an inward sigh of relief.  Arthur jumped out of the passenger side first even as Winston, who''d been driving commented lightly that they needed to find fuel before their next outing.  They hadn''t completely drained the cars remaining in the village yet, but some contained petrol while others had diesel, so it wouldn''t be long before they required a new source.


    Monika was on the front wall with Eraj, though only the former held a weapon. She looked rather relaxed as she called down to the men exiting the truck; "How''d it go?"


    "You could say that we got more than we bargained for!" Winston joked as Arthur rolled his eyes before unlocking the back of the truck. The first thing Monika and Eraj noticed was the sounds of like chickens, causing them both to smile cheerfully, but these smiles froze as five strange faces left the back of the truck with their friends.


    Before they could question anyone, Chang Min called up to them; "Is Master no longer patrolling the wall?" Ren Zexian had been on duty in the morning, even seeing them off with an amicable nod and a wave of his sword, decapitating the zombie that tried its luck when the truck sped out of the gates.


    "Ah, Ren heard about Dexter and Autumn''s date," Monika grinned, "and he was taken with the concept."


    Eraj''s whole face seemed to brighten in awe as he added; "He leapt outside of the wall, self-handedly took on several troublesome zombies that we had been keeping an eye on all morning, then once things were more or less clear, he took off to find Nathan."


    "Reckon he can convince him to leave the greenhouse?" Harry chuckled, while the others exchanged knowing looks and sly smiles. The five soldiers were at a loss, but could only remain in the dark for the time being. They were in foreign territory effectively without knowledge of the lay of the land. Could only continue to observe.


    However, Faith, the woman of the group, felt the tension in her body lessen at the sight of another woman with a gun. It showed that for all the testosterone displayed in the truck, they did not look down on women. She inwardly sneered recalling a survivor''s account of how some prehistoric specimens tried to take his daughter from him when he was living in a base that later fell. There were hints dropped from those people that few surviving women ought to be gathered up and ''nobly protected'' so that their w.o.m.bs could be later used for repopulation (not in so many words of course). That father had some nasty fire abilities and suggested the bastards see what happened if someone tried to touch his child! Poor kid had been around thirteen, still a child herself, how could she be expected to raise another life at her age! It was obvious what the bastards had been after! Maybe it was no surprise that he didn''t help defend the base as it fell, just fled to keep her safe instead.


    *****


    As Monika had mentioned, Ren Zexian had thought that a date with his Nathan was a fine idea and while the other had no real feelings about the notion either way, it was not as hard to draw him from the garden and his beloved plants as might be imagined. To check the condition of the flora in the abundant second garden was a wonderful idea! Nathan had noticed some new plants that he had never seen before that time he had visited to plant vines and ivies, but hadn''t the time to take stock and observe.


    His large sapphire eyes sparkled like the gems in sunlight as he examined what appeared to be a type of nettle growing in the shadows of the trees to the rear of the garden. Ren Zexian watched on lovingly as the youth knelt down to look more closely, before sharing his joy with the older man with a bright smile. "It looks like a normal stinging nettle," Nathan said excitedly, "but it isn''t!" Ren Zexian knelt beside him and was drawn to glance at the tooth edged, tender leaves, noting the ever so slight red edges of the leaves and stems, which reminded him of something that Long Wenwen once told him about nettles... what had it been again...


    Twin softness brushed against his lips and he quickly snapped from his thoughts to see his Nathan''s honest expression. He didn''t know what had come over his innocent love for him to be proactive at this time, possibly someone mentioned something in the house; there were very few secrets amongst the closely living men and women and Nathan had sensitive hearing, could easily pick up spoken things. However, he wasn''t about to pass up such a sweet gesture and gently cupped Nathan''s jaw in one palm as he encouraged a repeat performance.


    Kisses that had been chaste for so long had slowly become more over the past month or so; lips pressed together for more than a few seconds, tentative movement, a little opening of the mouth ready to deepen things further. Nathan was honest, he liked the kissing and liked sharing the heat of the man who lay beside him at night. When this man touched him, it felt right and safe.


    But now, as Ren Zexian''s tongue slipped from its confines to tease his lower lip, his first thought was to wonder why his physical state was awakening that first thing morning way, something he''d experienced a bit in his teenaged years and a bit more frequently of late. But it surely shouldn''t happen now, should it? It was not morning now...


    A bird leapt from the tree above startling the two men as the leaves rustled in its wake. Ren Zexian instinctively glanced up to note that it was just an ordinary bird and sighed with relief. However, Nathan stood suddenly and backed away from him some paces. "Nathan, are you alright?" Ren Zexian asked him more calmly than he actually felt. Had he pushed too fast this time? He admitted to himself that coaxing Nathan took a great deal of patience, but even at his age, such wore eventually thin.


    "I..." Nathan''s cheeks had become rosy and his large eyes glistened with a sheen of water. "I need to take a shower," he blurted out before hurrying away, leaving Ren Zexian to stare after him in a slight state of confusion.

 Chapter 75 - Seventy Four - Green stands for Danger

    Possibly the first question within the five soldiers minds were not about accommodation nor when were they going to learn how to increase their abilities, but actually; why was the inside of this base so green?!


    The wall appeared thick and tall, perhaps not as great as their own, but there was a feeling of security from it being there... were it not for the Ivy vines creeping up its height at one side of the metal gate.  Then there was the lightly trimmed grass upon the verges either side of the road, even weeds peeking out of the pothole forming to one side.  Trees, thick hedges, even multicoloured tulips, these were all in the space of a few metres from their location and all were exposed to the elements.  Were the people of this base not dicing with death?


    It was the loud and opinionated Thomas who was the one to speak the words they all thought aloud; "Shit, are you people crazy?  Why the f.u.c.k have you let the plants grow wild in here?"


    Glances were exchanged and Dexter scratched at his temple before realising something.  "I guess we forgot to warn you about this.  Our policies are a bit different than the ones at your base.  Here, we don''t cut plants or trees down willy nilly.  Not that you lot are wrong to clear your base of plants, mutant species can be f.u.c.kers, but that wouldn''t work here."


    "Why not?" Luke asked.


    "The landlord wouldn''t like it!" Eraj chuckled, recalling how Nathan had first been introduced to them when they arrived at this hidden haven late last summer.


    The five soldiers naturally didn''t get the jest and their initial reaction was to assume these people had gone nuts during the days following the apocalypse.  It''s not like there weren''t a few of those on base, just that they hadn''t caused any serious disturbances, so they were left alone.  But, reconsidering it, if they truly were mentally challenged in any way shape or form, how had they survived so long and so well up until now?  They were clearly well nourished, strong and determined, from what they had witnessed so far, so they obviously had access to plentiful food over the winter.  The clothes they wore seemed clean and food wasn''t the only necessary resource for survival, so they apparently also had a good water source as well.  So, it wasn''t just luck that had seen them through these days.  The only thing they could do was to wait and see what the hell was up with this place.


    Dexter guided them, not to their living space, but to the second mansion on their land.  He''d decided this right from the beginning for them to stay in there rather than crowd their own home further.  For one thing, although there were a couple of bedrooms free, accepting strangers in their home now was not something he thought any of them would be comfortable with.  They weren''t going to be staying that long either, the barrier between them and us wasn''t going to disintegrate in that time, better to give them their own space for the time being.  Plus he wasn''t sure just how Nathan would cope with the new faces so suddenly in their midst.  He''d have to see them eventually, but better to introduce the idea slowly...


    He never thought he wouldn''t have the chance of that.


    *****


    Nathan''s head was not clear and his body was reacting strangely, he did not like it. When his body first reacted in such a manner at the tender age of fourteen, he''d not reacted well at that time either. It had taken Nanny several hours to coax him from his bedroom to find out the situation from him. In her usual calm and collect manner, she had explained that this was a normal thing for a teenaged boy to experience. That he might find his lower body become stiff at other times, not just in the mornings. After factually speaking about s.e.x, for the old woman had long since discovered that so long as certain subjects were spoken of in a scientific way rather than an emotional one, her charge was much more adaptive to new ideas, she had suggested cool showers as a manner to allow his body to return to a non-s.e.x.u.a.lised state.


    At the time, he''d managed to calm, though he still worried for a little while about this bodily function that seemed to have nothing to do with him, but as the cool showers helped and the phenomenon only occurred a few times and only in the morning, he felt as if normality had been resumed.


    However, the old woman had discussed with him s.e.x between a man and a woman and that his p.e.n.i.s needed to be stiff to engage in the act of making children. She never once mentioned what would be the meaning of his body reacting to the man he liked. So he could only assume that there was something wrong with his body and deal with it in the only manner he knew how.


    So the distressed youth really wasn''t prepared to deal with newcomers, stopping dead along the path as they came into view. They stared at him, he felt their eyes upon his body even as he broke the fleeting eye contact between them and he shuffled from side to side, uncomfortable and unsure what to do. Dexter did happen to be with them, that person Nathan had become more used to, but although he was kind, his voice was still quite loud at times as could be the lightning that shot from his hands and struck things.


    "Ah Nathan," Dexter called out the moment he saw him. "No Ren?" Nathan didn''t know what to say, his heart suddenly felt sore. He''d ran away from Ren Zexian hadn''t he, but to go back now... couldn''t go forward either...


    Before he fell into panic, the sound of leaves rustling caught his attention. The thick flora along the pathway seemed to bend and even move to one side forming a new pathway off to the side. Honeysuckle unwound from a wire pyramid and beckoned him to take the pathway and he did not hesitate to do so, fleeing into the shrubs and flowers from the soldiers'' views. The path quickly closed behind him.


    The soldiers stood stunned for a moment before Thomas angrily turned to see Dexter shaking his head with a sigh. "You didn''t stop him?!" The man accused, thinking the worst of the plants before him. Shit, it seemed they even had to be wary of normal looking plants now! That poor kid..!


    "What for?" Dexter questioned, before realisation hit him and he rolled his eyes. "Ah, well, how do I explain this. Those plants didn''t move for any nefarious reasons. They moved ''cos Nathan wanted them to. He''s got some connection to plants."


    "Plant abilities?" The soldiers exchanged confused glances. It wasn''t that there weren''t others with plant abilities, but those ranged from sprouting seeds to use as one time weapons; traps, obstacles, that kind of thing or speeding up growth of plants. But with the former, the plant died immediately after the seed was used and there was a danger of the same when speeding up the growth of a plant too much. After all, a flowering season for a vegetable plant was only so long, speeding up its life cycle simply shortened this so there was a chance for much less food to be grown, fruits didn''t grow as well or as decent a size, even if it was all quicker to produce.


    "Is this the result of his training?" Luke asked, his anticipation once more growing.


    "Nathan''s abilities have improved due to training," a new voice broke into the conversation and the five soldiers looked up to see an oriental man with an extremely calm and soothing expression upon his amicable face. His hair was grown long, just as Chang Min, but his way of dressing was unusual. None of these men and woman had seen a man wear an ancient style Hanfu outside of a television set, yet he somehow did not seem out of place wearing it in front of them. "However," The man continued without a trace of accent, "Nathan''s connection to the plants could be considered unique as well. Even this humble man does not have the answers to every question in the known world."


    "Master!" Chang Min stepped forward from behind the soldiers to greet the man before them, enlightening them and confusing them at the same time. This man was Chang Min''s Master? How was that possible? He didn''t look any older than Chang Min!?


    "Chang Min," The man greeted in return with a warmed smile.


    "Master, we brought back the egg laying hens," Chang Min informed him. "However, this was in part in exchange for teaching five people from the base how to better their abilities. As this is the case, it would be better for them to learn from you rather than me."


    Ren Zexian''s slender brows rose in question. "You attempted to teach them before?"


    Chang Min looked slightly sheepish. In their old world, he was still a student and a child in his elders'' eyes, not ready to teach others. "I only suggested a generic form of cultivation, Master, I would never impart knowledge I did not fully understand."


    "It is good that you know," Ren Zexian did not chide him. In truth, he knew Chang Min wouldn''t have done anything to jeopardise their lives. A life taken was not a life that could return and one with regrets or grievances might not even make it into the reincarnation cycle at all.


    Thomas Lutz stood watching these two men as if they were performing a play and his cynicism increased a fold. Thinking of that ridiculous form of meditation that Chang Min had once tried to convince him to perform, he realised that the man''s ''Master'' would likely try force him to learn something similar. F.u.c.k, he really wanted to head back to base and forget about this farce.


    "Come on," Dexter drew their attention to himself. "We cleaned up the place last year after the zombies broke out... ah but we could only replace the glass with boards and it might be a bit dusty in there now. We''ll leave that up to you to deal with. There are beds upstairs, but we took all the bedding... we can bring some back with the mops and buckets... though I understand you have sleeping bags?"


    Naturally each soldier brought with him and her some essentials such as sleeping bags, some bottles of water, toothbrushes and Faith had a small bar of soap she''d managed to save up enough points for. They honestly hadn''t expected to gain actual beds to sleep in when coming to this base.


    "This place only had an electric cooker, but we''re not assholes, I''ll talk to the others about arranging meals for you guys. In the meantime, I''ll leave you lot to Chang and Ren." The five turned automatically towards their new teachers, who lead them into the mansion house.

 Chapter 76 - Seventy Five - Reasons for Weakness

    "How is it, Master?"


    Ren Zexian removed his fingers from the last newcomer''s wrist, his mind only partially on the task that his apprentice had placed upon his shoulders. In all honesty, he hadn''t wanted to stop and test these people, wanted instead to chase down and speak to his Nathan to understand what was running through his mind. However, he''d been cornered not just by Chang Min, but also by Dexter. The newcomers had doubts that their abilities could be strengthened here, they wanted to prove them wrong.


    He indicated to each with a curt nod of his head as he announced the results. "The one called Luke has the major water root and also feather and illumination body roots. Thomas has earth root and lightning root. This man, Theo is in possession of wood and curse body root, while this Zak has a single root, the secondary Light root. And the woman, Miss Faith has the secondary steel root."


    "What does he mean?" Faith whispered beneath her breath to her companions, but Chang Min and Ren Zexian both clearly heard her words.


    "You have noticed that you have abilities beyond normal people," Ren Zexian said, calmly, the cadence of his voice reminding them of a few past teachers and lecturers. "What you may not know is that your abilities are due to spiritual roots within your bodies. You have always had them, but before the world changed, they remained dormant in any born with them."


    "So our root reflects our powers?" Luke questioned, excitedly and then his expression became one of confusion. "But I never had any more than the one ability."


    "Neither have I," Thomas said, curtly. He didn''t believe any of this shit. He had been cynical when Officer Hughes had asked him to be involved in this farce. It had been the opinion of the man that Thomas had had some connection with Chang Min when the other had been a part of their base, therefore he could get along with him better. He reckoned it was Hughes'' wish to get the oriental guy to return and work for them again.


    "Body roots are not very apparent," Ren Zexian explained. "They will have manifested, just as the water root, wood, earth... but you may not be as aware. You may even be like Dexter''s people were, only thinking that each person had only one ability, therefore not recognising any others."


    "Then what do feather and illumination roots do?" Luke pressed on.


    "Feather root affects speed and agility, while illumination..." Ren Zexian wondered how to put the term ''waste'' politely. "Well it could be said that it is a weaker version of the Light root."


    "Those with light or dark roots are especially good when it comes to things like exorcism," Chang Min added, helpfully. "People with light and illumination roots repel the undead, malevolent spirits and ghosts, while those with dark roots attract them."


    "I repel zombies?" Luke naturally looked quite pleased by the prospect as did Zak, who''d assumed he''d got some trash, pointless ability that was simply an embarrassment to a fighting man like himself.


    "That is uncertain," Ren Zexian dampened their enthusiasm quickly. "The undead zombies are not simply restless dead, their bodies contain a poisonous yin energy. I cannot say for certain whether your abilities will repel them as easily as walking corpses that we had met before. Also, strengthening the illumination root will be difficult for it is always harder to advance the more roots one needs to share spirit with."


    Thomas let loose a loud snort. What a load of baloney! "What is ''cursed body''?" Theo questioned, worriedly, earning a sneer from the cynical soldier. He frowned in response. Fair enough that the man didn''t believe, he was having trouble himself, but there was no way he could ignore the idea that he was cursed!


    Ren Zexian smiled, gently as if understanding his concerns. "It is not as bad as you think," Ren Zexian advised him. "Good luck follows bad and bad luck follows good. You won''t suffer some horrific fate because of your root, fate is a separate entity after all. However, it may affect your main root, wood."


    "Wait," the man suddenly felt enlightened and despite his doubts, he couldn''t help but wonder if everything this man was saying had some basis in fact. "Could that be why my ability only seems to be being able to ''rot wood''?" After all, couldn''t such an ability be considered a bit of a curse?


    "En," Ren Zexian agreed, "those with single wood roots would have an affinity to the material, reproduce it, speed the growth of trees and connect with plants. In a similar way to Nathan.  However, from your words, the cursed root is certainly affecting this. Do not worry, I can help you control the cursed root, turn a hinderance into a help." He lit a single flame in his palm, it was an amber and red calm light with little heat, but in the next moment it changed into a blazing hot, black flame, oppressive and dark despite not changing in size. "I share this curse root, do not be alarmed."


    "I have a question," the female soldier suddenly spoke, just as Ren Zexian extinguished the flame. "You called mine ''steel''. Why not metal?" After all, she''d been able to manipulate all sorts of metal, not just steel, although it was only a little.


    "Steel root is a lesser form of the metal root, in reality, it''s just a name," Ren Zexian shrugged. "While you can manipulate metal, you cannot create it yourself. It is also not as powerful as the main root, but it is still good and it can be cultivated with ease."


    "There are people that can actually create metal like I can create water?" Luke''s eyes opened wide with surprise!


    "En, our friend Shaun has a single metal root," Chang Min revealed without censure.


    "This is so much to take in," Faith admitted. Her mind was a little blown in fact. She was far closer to believing than some of the others, after all, despite being out of this world, so much of Chang Min''s master''s words made sense. Her ability wasn''t that powerful, nor were the others if they would be honest. It seemed there were reasons, hers being that her root was weak, while Luke was because he had too many roots to have one strong ability. What about Thomas? She mentioned her thought aloud.


    "Conflicting roots," Ren Zexian said honestly.


    "What does that mean?" Thomas couldn''t help but enquire.


    "Abilities naturally have their opposites in nature, as well as those complimentary abilities," Ren Zexian advised him. "Lightning and earth naturally oppose, but due to the earth root being superior, it reveals itself while the lightning root is suppressed. While it is possible to suppress one completely and raise the other, it is not without cost. Still with hard work, I believe I can raise your earth ability within these weeks to be no worse than Cole''s was at the beginning and given more time you will be his equal.  How impressive your lightning root will be though, I cannot say."


    "Cole?"


    "My apprentice," Chang Min said in a warm and proud tone. "He has two secondary parallel roots of sand and rock, thus his overall potential is only a little less than mine."


    As Faith had already claimed, there was a lot for these soldiers to take in, but while it was not all good news, it was not all bad either. Chang Min''s Master had already suggested that he could help them develop their abilities, though the proof had not yet been presented, most of them could no longer hold onto completely defiant views. As they were mulling over the possibilities, the man, Dexter opened door to the second mansion''s living room, where they were currently seated. There was a softness to his expression that hadn''t been there during his time at the base or as they travelled here.


    "Autumn wanted me to call you to our kitchen for dinner," he told them, with a slightly goofy smile that he himself was unaware he was wearing. The soldiers were curious, but Chang Min and Ren Zexian didn''t mention anything about it.


    "So soon?" Chang Min judged it early considering the light still in the sky. All meals were eaten before sunset, just for convenience sake, but by his judgement, they still had some two hours before then. Actually, they''d just expected some meal boxes to be sent over for the soldiers, not that these people would be invited over to eat.


    "It was Autumn''s idea," Dexter shrugged, but he didn''t seem unhappy about it. "She decided to add another shift to the evening meal due to numbers. She considers you guys guests so should be served first." He said this to the five soldiers, none of whom could be said to be unmoved by the gesture. At the base, they received meals, but it was usually something like corn porridge, maybe with a bit of scrambled omelette and dinner was casserole or soup heavily made up with thin gravy, potatoes or pasta and some all year vegetable like spinach. Anything else these days needed to be purchased by additional points. Despite this monotony, the queues to the dining hall were always long, they seldom got to eat at a decent hour.


    They weren''t expecting much more than this, after travelling from the second mansion to the first, so were completely shocked by the display of food on the table and even more so by the smiling woman''s humble words. "I wasn''t expecting more people," she said as she placed a jug of fresh water in the middle of the table, "so I quickly threw together a bean and corn soup from some tinned vegetables with dumplings to make up the difference. Otherwise it''s just a green vegetable stir fry with some minced pork and julienned new potatoes, hope that''s alright."


    "Minced pork?" Even Thomas could not hide his interest in the idea of eating meat. Each soldier began to salivate, gulping sharply as if they could not believe their senses. It looked great and it smelled delicious. It wasn''t a huge meal, they definitely believed that their appetites wouldn''t be satisfied, but when was the last time they had eaten their fill completely?


    "Yeah, this overgrown porker jumped into our laps and begged to be eaten!" Dexter joked as he took a seat before indicating the soldiers should do the same. Curiously, the plump, amicable woman was dishing up some of the food into Tupperware, which she handed to Ren Zexian before he thanked her and hurried away, leaving them to dine without him. "So we tried our luck trading some pork for your chickens and got you lot instead!"


    The soldiers, who had been feeling a little guilty that they got to eat meat, while their comrades couldn''t, suddenly had their feelings dry up. Nothing more could stop them from picking up their forks and tucking into the meal before them.

 Chapter 77 - Seventy Six - The Mind of a Scholar

    The soldiers settled in to their new, though temporary accommodation and given tools to keep it clean. Ren Zexian also provided lessons on how to cultivate, teaching Luke, Thomas and Theo a generic cultivation method, for their root combinations were not simple. As for Faith, he felt that the Dancing Sword method was best for the female warrior, while he had only one cultivation method to offer Zak; the Radiance of Heart method.


    Each cultivation method had its benefits and its flaws, for example, the water method he had taught Tyler primarily focused upon the variations of ice and cold, thus would his body become more cold to the touch and he would find being in such weather more comfortable as he progressed. And in counterbalance, he would find heat unpleasant, although this side effect was easily countered by one''s own spiritual energy.


    The Dancing Sword was a flexible and gentle cultivation method, even though it was for the metal based roots. This effected the manipulation of the element, but one''s inner spirit. Like all cultivation methods, one''s temperament could be effected if one was susceptible to influence. Of course, Masters generally would not have selected such people to apprentice less they become affected by heart demons and fall upon the demonic path.


    The Radiance of the Heart method... well... it was the only light based cultivation method in Ren Zexian''s repertoire, so no need to worry the fellow learning it.


    As for the others studying the generic method, Ren Zexian did not plan for this to be a long term solution. In the previous world, he was something of a scholar and had adapted and improved cultivation methods based on his understanding of such things. He was certain he could create more person cultivation methods for each student at some point.


    Ah, Chang Min thought of the stories Elder Yu Zhang had told him about Ren Zexian''s long history, if the souls of former Cultivators from his world were aware he was gifting his wisdom so freely, they would spit ectoplasm and curse his new students to never enter the reincarnation cycle upon their deaths! Not that his Master wasn''t a generous man, only that he used to disappear for decades at a time, wandering in search of ancient scripts or hide away in deep contemplation, not willing to be disturbed while he was pondering over things. Or so he''d heard.


    While the new students were debating whether or not to go along with the ''delusions'' of meditation, the small haven''s occupants were sorting out accommodating the hens.  The birds were naturally nervous of their new environment, used to a warehouse without much natural light and frankly they hadn''t arranged coops nor henhouses, thinking their luck wouldn''t be so great to obtain hens on their first attempt of trade.  So for the first night, they were placed in a shed on the second mansion''s grounds.  This actually proved to be a wise decision, the dim light calming the hens.


    During the second day, the truck left for the old farmhouse that they had last raided to take the ready made fencing and coops for the hens, then the birds, shed and everything else was set up next to the sheep''s home.  Dexter lead Winston and Paul into adapting the ensemble so that the hens'' new two story home had a permanent roof and was only a little exposed to the elements; they could still root around in dirt and grass beneath the stilts of their coop and an area surrounding it. The sheep were hardy, already mutated and so were less vulnerable to the contaminated rain, but the birds were all normal. Better to be a bit safer than sorry.


    They thought it would take several more days before the birds felt settled enough to begin to breed and lay eggs, but the group kept checking in on them daily, just in case.


    *****


    A tray of fertile soil rest upon the tabletop. Several small holes had been poked into the dark earth and happened to be spaced extremely evenly across and along the rectangular tray as if someone had taken a ruler to ensure the spacing was exact. A seed dropped into the first hole and then the second.


    The seeds were very small, tiny specs of brown. If scattered upon the soil, they would vanish, completely camouflaged. In fact scattering them would have been the way most other gardeners would have dealt with the tiny seeds and then they would have thinned out the seedlings, pulling out the weaker ones or unnecessarily ones so that the rest had space to grow. However, Nathan couldn''t bear to harm any seedlings, so could only painstakingly plant seeds this way. Plus, he didn''t really view it as a chore.


    With the numerous, spaced holes now containing a lone seed, Nathan gently filled them with more soil then sprinkled water from his own hand over them. He then placed the tray on a shelving unit in the second bedroom, before grabbing another tray; this one used to be a wooden tray to carry food before it got demoted to growing it instead. Nathan shovelled compost from a bucket into the water-blistered base of the tray before taking a stick and meticulously prodding holes into the soil.


    A short while later, his eyes flickered up towards the open doorway of the second bedroom noticing Ren Zexian walking past the opening, mumbling to himself. Nathan returned his attention to his planting. After dealing with the little broccoli seeds, he''d turned his attention to planting melon seeds gathered carefully last summer from a cantaloupe melon. He also had seeds of other melons that Jonah and the others had brought with them when they first came to live in the main house, but melons needed warm, light spaces and there was only so much space in the greenhouse, so he focused on just this type for now.


    Poking the seeds in even spaces of soil along the length and breadth of the soil, he noticed Ren Zexian wander past again and a small frown marred his smooth forehead. Ren Zexian had been like this for a while of late, walking around as if his legs had no choice but to move, while saying strange words beneath his breath. It had started the day that the strangers had moved into the large house next door.


    The large house had belonged to a man and a woman who were married to each other. They also had had children, one of whom had been Nathan''s age, but Nathan had not got along with that boy, who ran around everywhere and anywhere. He once had snuck into their garden through a gap in the hedge and had traipsed all over the vegetable bed that the old gardener had helped him set up. He had been six years of age and it had been his first attempt at growing tomatoes. Finding the other boy jumping up and down on his precious seedlings, none of which had been taller than eight centimetres in height, had made him angry and upset. So he had pushed the other boy, who had pushed him back and screamed at him, causing him to fall into a panic and clutch his pained ears.


    His nanny had found him this way, curled up and rocking back and forth with the other boy poking him with a stick and yelling at him. The boy''s parents had come and collected him, had been apologetic, but Nathan had seen the strange looks in their eyes, the mix of pity and disdain. Nathan had not wanted to leave his room the next day nor the next. It had taken his nanny and his mother almost a week to coax him out of the room and show him that not all of his plants had died. He took a great deal of care over the surviving three tomato plants, to the point where his nanny was worried about his lack of attention to his studies. However, his parents said to let him alone for now.


    After the plants were around one metre and twenty centimetres tall, covered in an array of tiny yellow flowers and small green fruits, he''d finally turned more of his attentions to school work. His teacher had inspired him to practice writing about his experiments growing the plants and practice drawing and colouring using them and the cherry tomatoes as a model. Mathematics became counting the flowers and subtracting the number of fruits from the number of flowers...


    As for that boy, Nathan saw him once when he was ten and due for a dentist appointment and another time when he was twelve and the family next door were celebrating a wedding. They made a lot of noise and set off fireworks that caused Nathan a lot of discomfort. His parents had been away and his nanny tried to keep him calm through nursery rhymes, but in the end, it was the gardener that had helped him. He guided Nathan in planting seeds for a few hours, teaching him how much space each plant needed as it grew up...


    Ren Zexian came into his vision once more. He paused, his eyes widened then he hurried away, patting his dress as if looking for something. Nathan stared the empty doorway for two minutes, but Ren Zexian didn''t return and the youth wasn''t sure how he felt about that. Eventually, he returned to planting seeds, but after finishing this tray of melons, he didn''t actually feel like planting anymore. He felt strange and unsure. While these feelings were not unknown to him, he''d never once not been able to settle his disturbed emotions by seeding, planting or watering. Even weeding could help.


    He glanced at the drizzling rain outside of the window. Ren Zexian had said before not to go out in the rain. He, himself, would do so, would cover the delicate seedlings for him to protect them as they had lost weak plants to the bad rain. Heavier rain could hurt the established vegetables as well, though it was usually alright and they wouldn''t suffer too many bad mutations. But it wasn''t easy to know when rain was coming, they could only do their best. It would be better if he had a bigger greenhouse.


    Suddenly, Ren Zexian hurried into the second bedroom with a bright smile upon his face. "Nathan," his voice was low in volume as usual, but the calm was somewhat tinged with excitement, like a sudden breeze rippling through tree leaves. "It seems I have managed to figure out an excellent formula for your cultivation. Would you allow me to teach you?"


    The world became right once more as Nathan''s rapidly beating heart settled the discontentment in his belly. The edges of his lips curled as he met the jewel-black eyes of Ren Zexian for a long moment. Then he reached to lay his hand in the one on offer and allowed himself to be pulled into the first bedroom to cultivate.

 Chapter 78 - Seventy Seven - Formulas for Success

    The five main roots had many developed formulas or methods for cultivation.  This was to be expected.  Those with one of the five elements as their root were considered to have the most potential and talent.  Naturally, this was mainly so when they just had a lone root and to have just one root was not an uncommon thing amongst Cultivators, just it was more common to have two.


    Most secondary roots also had a fair few formulas for each; they were not too difficult to create as relative passages were usually taken from those methods meant for the main root in their making.  For example, the method that Cole was cultivating was derived from Chang Min''s; Cole''s sand and rock roots derived from the main Earth root after all.


    But there was also exceptions to this, such as Dexter''s lightning root.  That root, though considered secondary was not so simple.  The lightning root was found not to derive from the five main elements, but was not a main element itself and was not as strong and versatile as them either.  Still it could be considered a cut above other secondary roots, thus research had developed cultivation methods in its favour regardless.


    However, when it came to tertiary roots or body roots, the options thinned to next to nothing.  Body roots were looked down upon for very few were considered useful, plus those who had a body root as well as another root would find their cultivation slower, sluggish.  Like comparing a turtle upon land to a turtle within the water and this only worsened with an increased number of roots.  Thus they became known as waste roots, unhelpful and useless.  For Cultivators, it was also the most common variety of root.


    Ren Zexian had a body root, the cursed body root and were it not for his Master''s more enlightened views of the world, he would likely have been prevented from stepping on the path of cultivation before his foot had the chance to fall.  As it was, he experienced much disdain and oppression, those with better talent and luck believing seeing as he would never become much, he might as well give up his allotment of pills and resources to them.  Becoming a scholar of cultivation methods had been due to hoping to improve his lot, to understand his own body, meridians and just maybe figure out how he might cultivate better.


    He''d quickly become absorbed in learning to the point that ten years passed by before he finally put down his books to take a breath.  The majority of those that he had enrolled in the Sect with had progressed, moved on or had been encouraged to leave.  Only the untalented and most stubborn remained and were mixed in with a fresh batch of young, hopeful faces.  Ren Zexian had not been deterred and carried on his studies, while cultivating at the snail''s pace.  His breakthrough of cultivation had followed an epiphany of the mind.


    Cultivator roots were the stem of a plant, the innersea its root-crop, while the meridians were the leaves bathing in sunlight, taking it in and circulating spiritual energy.  This was a ridiculously simple evaluation, but it was not without some truth.  Just that the root could be one, it could be three or more, but there was only one root-crop, thus the energy from the leaves must pass through as many stems as there were to reach the bud.  The stems were also entwined, passing through each other, dependant on each other as well.  One could not hope to just pass the energy through one stem alone or the others would wither, the energy pouring into them would no longer reach the root-crop, thus it would take longer for the whole plant to blooms and even then, the flower might grow flawed.


    However, this was the normal approach when it came to Cultivators with body roots; these burdensome stems were ignored.  The formula for cultivation must take into consideration all roots and their elemental types for the best results or immortality would be forever out of the reach of those with waste or multiple roots.


    Ren Zexian had been practicing a fire based method with wind influence, drawing the energies into his body, refining it within his meridians and roots before storing it in his inner sea.  But the fire was impure, producing too much smoke, not settling in his sea as if something was amiss.


    The curse root was somewhat derived, it was believed, from the dark root which had always been linked to the earth root.  Ren Zexian felt this evaluation was flawed.  Darkness was the absence of light and light came from fire... he wrote a thesis upon it and was ridiculed.  Disregarding his theory, he came to believe that the curse root was not derived from neither earth nor fire, but more was a mutation though he could not say what from.


    His cursed body made his fire burn black and air blow more sharply.  It was volatile, dangerous and uncontrolled, even without the spiritual energy developing the root.  It took him another five years to figure out a formula that could draw energy into this root cleanly.  The root had somewhat withered and he''d risked taking pills to reopen the blocked passages, the spiritual energy had blazed through his body causing increasing agony with every minute he cultivated.  He had barely endured.  However, after that bitter night, he had noticed that the fire in his belly was burning less brightly, yet less wildly and the air above it was no longer so thick with smog.


    He integrated the formula into his cultivation method, but found the method lacking in other parts and eagerly sought ways to improve it...


    After another ten years, he''d swept through the tertiary stage and was nearing the peak of it, this improved speed catching the attention of his Sect''s Leader.  Had to be mentioned that another person in a Ren Zexian''s shoes was likely to still be lingering in secondary or if they were fortunate about to breakthrough to tertiary.  At this point, Ren Zexian was around thirty three years of age.


    Now, many thousands of years later, he had had a new realisation, but it was not about his own body root, but about Nathan''s.  He had thought that Nathan''s blessed root was simply the opposite of his own, just as darkness was to light, but that did not mean that it would be as simple as reversing the formula he used to cultivate for his boy.  His own body root was not passive, just originally had always been activated and it had taken over a hundred years of tempering before he could ''switch off'' the effect of it.  Otherwise his abilities would always have its violent strengthening.


    However the blessed root was not the same, it was completely passive, gently giving its natural offerings to better the abilities of the other roots.  It didn''t need to be controlled, but it needed to be improved that Nathan''s other gifts would follow suit even without being separately tempered.


    He had Nathan sit comfortably before him and gently cupped Nathan''s jaw with his hands, the tremor in his fingers only noticeable to himself.  Suppressing his body''s eagerness to touch, Ren Zexian placed his forehead upon Nathan''s own and both allowed their eyes to close as they fell into a meditative state.  Before, he had used a variation of the basic cultivation method, allowing the main or strongest root to take charge of the spiritual energy circulating around the body, though with Nathan it was the plant root due to his own favouritism of it. Stimulated, the innersea and meridians would draw in more spiritual energy and thus the flow would still be made to come through lesser roots along with the main.  This was what the three soldiers with more than one root were given to cultivate with.


    The trick for his lover, Ren Zexian had discovered, was to allow Nathan''s blessed root to take the lead in the cultivation for the spiritual energy passing through it would become purer, more fluid, streamlining the cultivation through his other roots and perhaps even improving the overall state of his meridians.


    He stirred the store energies within Nathan''s innersea, focusing on the glowing flower at its heart, speaking to it softly in unknown words.  The flowerhead burst into a multitude of glowing seeds and floated in the air before being taken alone to circle the meridians, reaching every extremity before retreating in an almost childlike manner.  Sure enough the external energy attracted to it became purer once drawn into Nathan''s body and touched by the stored energy that had passed through his tertiary root. Soon, the plants and trees in the innersea blossomed into a colourful display, shedding petals, regrowing flowers, while the water droplets became clearer and more pristine. It could be imagined that to taste this water would to have the most refreshing drink ever known.


    Ren Zexian withdrew his consciousness gently, observing Nathan who remained deep in cultivation by himself. This had been the progress of many, many times cultivating together, though Nathan would not take the initiative to cultivate by himself, at least he would not follow Ren Zexian and interrupt his progress any longer. The thin spiritual air circled his young lover much more enthusiastically than in the past, leading Ren Zexian to believe he was quite right in his evaluation and creation of this unique method. He had been worrying over those other soldiers'' own body roots when he had thought of this.


    In actuality, he had already thought of a solution for both the water user, Luke and the wood user, Theo. It was the man with the conflicting roots that he found intriguing. He had not felt stimulated over a problem requiring resolution for such a long time, he had almost lost himself in the need to solve it. But then he''d felt Nathan''s eyes seek him out and his thoughts became centred upon the youth instead, thus leading to this matter.


    He sighed inwardly. "Become stronger, break through your limitations and fears that we may truly come together and never part in this lifetime," he murmured, before placing a kiss upon Nathan''s forehead.

 Chapter 79 - Seventy Eight - Plants verses Zombies

    With round eyes that seemed to protrude from its green and near hairless head, the small undead humanoid lurched forward.  Each step was taken slowly but steadily, even if it appeared that it would never reach the goal it sought, the gap was closing.  Its mouth was stuck open, its remnant teeth and fleshy tongue could just be viewed; it was hungry and it could only be sated by living flesh.  And then an oversized, green pea smacked it in the chest for the umpteenth time and its head fell off its rotten body onto the ground and vanished.  The headless corpse staggered on a pace before also falling and disappearing.


    A banner appeared, declaring that the level had been won and a cheer could be heard.


    "What are you doing?"


    Patrick shrieked in surprise, patting his chest where his leaping heart lie before spinning his head around to glare at the man who''d surprised him.  Tyler just gave him a look of equal impoliteness while waiting for a response from the smaller man.  Patrick''s expression became a pout, but he finally replied; "One of the people who originally worked for Nathan''s parents had a version of Plants vs Zombies that didn''t need an online connection to play.  I found it after I accidentally guessed his unlock code."  Really, having ''123456'' as the password to your phone was just asking for troubles.


    The two solar panel chargers couldn''t charge every mobile phone in the house, nor the ones they ran back to the village to find. They were already aware that even then, they would not be able to use the phones, perhaps not even unlock them. But people used their phones for all manner of things, but they couldn''t help hoping for things such as small games, the odd application that might be useful, perhaps some sort of reading material or downloaded music.


    So far, though, with this phone unlocked, the useful devices numbered two. The other didn''t have a password set up nor had the previous owner downloaded any applications; it only had what it came with. That did, however, include a type of ''notebook'' so Tyler suggested that they record any useful information they could think of on this phone for now. It happened to have a spacious and excellent memory. Currently, young Nan Li Liang had it in his possession, pouring the sometimes random but large amount of things stored in his brain onto the device for others to sort through.


    Patrick loaded the next level of the game, while Tyler sat on the sofa behind him and began to peruse through one of the books stored in the old farmhouse.  It could definitely be seen from the titles of books they''d collected there that one or both of the couple had had a dream of living off of the land; farming, foraging, making remedies and tinctures... it was a shame for them that they had not fulfilled their dream, but what they had gathered was a treasure for the apocalypse survivors.


    The book in Tyler''s hand happened to mention wild plants and mushrooms, how to identify, which ones were poisonous and which ones could be eaten.  He never would have guessed that sap collected from birch trees in early March had such excellent medicinal properties as well as a being sweet tasting treat.  Some of these plants, also labelled weeds to the average gardener, might even be found in the gardens; dandelions being an common one.  He was already aware that Autumn picked the leaves of these whenever she threw together a leaf and herb salad, but he wondered if she knew about some of these other plants.  Some should already be in their growth periods.


    Autumn did know that some common weeds and wild plants could be eaten, but it didn''t mean that she was confident of identifying them.  She had been wary of seeking mushrooms last autumn, worried she might pick the wrong ones and make everyone sick.  However, at this moment, they had a new food source; the hens had already started to lay eggs.


    "I thought it might take them a good couple of weeks to settle," Dexter admitted as he carefully held the basket in which his girlfriend was collecting the oval treasures into.  Between the six hens, five had laid eggs the day before and now all six had produced an offering.


    "Me too," Autumn smiled as she looked up at the man, the heat in her cheeks not necessarily from the warm morning sun. The rooster crowed loudly, causing both to jump in surprise. The noisy bird had begun to ''sing'' early two days ago, waking up most of the residents as well as causing them both mixed smiles and panic. For while it could be considered a ridiculous hour to be wakened, it represented an achievement, but also worryingly a large summoning bell for zombies and zombified beasts.


    The herd had been amongst the first to become drawn to the noise, but their instincts remained sharp and on learning that the noise came from the wall in which the vines that had thinned their herd more than once with their swift and accurate attacks. Wandering, two legged zombies were not so bright and waddled, crept and crawled to their destruction as knives, crossbow bolts and sharpened rocks flew towards them.


    The crossbow bolts came from a weapon created by Shaun with the aid of the soldiers Faith and Luke, the latter being a weapons enthusiast. However theory and reality often were not quite on the same page, the first bow didn''t shoot, the second wouldn''t shoot more than once and the third''s range was pathetic.  However, with the two metal manipulators and Luke''s enthusiasm, a working model was finally produced.  The range was still not great and on occasion, it still became jammed and needed fiddling with, but it was, in its way better than a gun that had only a handful of bullets left.  Faith was using the creation of bolts as practice for control over her ability, though it was still early days in her cultivation, so on a good day, she could mould three.


    Her progress could still be somewhat seen, however it was not so for some of her comrades. Luke was still optimistic, that was a part of who he was, so despite not producing more than a millilitre more water than before, he was fine with this. "It''s been just over a week," he reminded them, his smile still warm as they wandered over towards the first mansion.


    "I still don''t see how this ''meditation'' rubbish is going to work," Thomas complained.


    "Don''t you feel... different afterwards though?" Zak asked. "Sort of refreshed."


    "No."


    "Oh, I do!" Luke agreed without hesitation. "I look forward to doing it again the next afternoon as well!" Ren Zexian had suggested that they ''cultivate'' after lunch in the afternoon, when, as he put it, the yang energy was at its peak for the day. He wanted them to focus on cultivating for at least one hour each afternoon, more if possible, but they must stop before dark. He had told them he would reassess their conditions after a month.


    The others either nodded in view of everyone or chose to do so in their hearts, with the exception of Thomas. Faith looked at the stubborn man and wondered if he was even following the instructions at all, but could only sigh in her heart. No one could force him to learn if he truly didn''t want to. She could only hope he changed his mind when the rest of them produced some sort of results.


    They reached the door of the first mansion, it was unlocked as expected and they let themselves in, completely drawn in by the fragrance of delicious food emanating from the kitchen. Their mouths began to water and they forgot all about cultivating and abilities. They also didn''t notice that Thomas lagged behind a bit, his eyes drawn upwards towards a window on the first floor. He hesitated a moment longer, before following his comrades in.


    Breakfast was a small omelette with some fried mushrooms, bacon and salad greens with herbs on the side and a cup of tea, which tasted a little like black tea, but not quite. "It''s raspberry leaf tea, made from some new leaves from our raspberry bushes," Autumn explained as she poured it. "Nan Li Liang, he''s the oldest of the children here, mentioned his mother used to like this drink and once made it from fresh leaves rather than boxed tea from a supermarket."


    "It''s full of vitamins, such as B vitamins, vitamin c, potassium and magnesium," Tyler mentioned as he entered the kitchen, still reading his book, which just happened to be on a page mentioning these facts. Autumn passed him a cup of the hot beverage and he thanked her.


    "There''s cheese in the omelette??" Luke almost squeaked with wonder.


    Autumn blushed as Dexter teased her; "My girl has been keeping some secrets from me. She produced this from where she''d stashed it in the bas.e.m.e.nt this morning."


    "I wasn''t sure if I could make it well," she admitted, after all, she had experimented once with unpasteurised cows milk, but this was sheep''s milk. Who knew how the final product would turn out with the vinegar she had made during the winter months from apple cider brought back from the supermarket that time. The cheese was somewhat gamey and a hint of sharpness thanks to the vinegar, but it burst into flavour upon tastebuds that had sorely missed the fatty product in any incarnation.


    "There''s no bread?" Brooke happened to question as she sat with the second seating for breakfast. Monika rolled her eyes behind her back, but said nothing out of respect for her boss sitting beside the young woman. She honestly felt like Autumn''s cousin had become more unreasonable over the past couple of weeks. The little baby boy, currently asleep in Autumn''s arms, had become her excuse when Brooke didn''t want to help with something, such as the gardening, washing clothes or simple dusting. However, she''d still managed time to sneak out to the third property across the road and sunbathe in its grassy gardens, leaving the baby with Tyler at that time as Jonah had been guarding the wall.


    What had followed, when the older man had found out, had been quite the argument. Jonah had been completely right to chastise her, not for just neglecting their son and lazing around while everyone else worked tirelessly, but also because she''d been alone, exposed. Zombies did not just walk or run across the ground.


    "What if you''d attracted a flying type?" He''d yelled at her, hoping to get her to understand. "What if you''d left James without a mother, me without my usually clever and amazing woman?"


    Some apologies and sweet sounding words later and he''d forgiven her, but in Monika''s opinion, the girl hadn''t learned her lesson. But what could she do? So long as Brooke didn''t cause anyone any harm, she''d put up with her as always. They all would.


    Patrick entered the kitchen not long after, Autumn explained that they were down to the last sack of flour, which might only last two or three weeks if she continued making loaves every day.  He sat in a chair opposite Monika in a manner that suggested he was not only sulking, but wanted someone to ask him what was wrong. Monika obliged him; she found the vertically challenged man amusing. "So I was playing Plants vs Zombies, I''d unlocked a phone," he grumbled, "but as I was attempting to beat level twelve for the third time, the phone ran out of charge! I was just about to clear it as well..."


    "Really, playing games?" Dexter lay a large hand on his shoulder. "Weren''t you down for weeding the corn and wheat fields across the street today?"


    "Ha ha," Patrick scratched his head. "I''ll get on to that after breakfast?"


    "You sure will."

 Chapter 80 - Seventy Nine - The Method Of Touching

    Author''s note; I originally wanted to skim over this subject, so I could move on to the next bit (you''ll understand why in a few chapters, I hope), but Ren Zexian insisted otherwise.  So this chapter is 18+ and I will post a second update.


    Ren Zexian lie upon his side, late evening, the warmth beside him naturally cooling as the duvet had been thrown to one side in Nathan''s panicked state as he once more declared that he required a shower.


    This had occurred some five times in the past week, each time following a loving kiss that had deepened with passion in mind.  Of course, Ren Zexian would be a fool to not notice that something was not right with Nathan and he''d already concluded that it had to do with arousal.  However, what to do to resolve whatever dilemma Nathan had with it was giving the Cultivator pause.  Originally, he had hoped that Nathan would open up to him, tell him the problem, but he hadn''t. This sort of thing had never happened to Ren Zexian before.


    He was not a saint, even if had never been the promiscuous sort.  In the early decades of his life, his body had reacted with want and s.e.x.u.a.l needs and he had resolved those matters, simply.  But even though he''d had a tong fang with whom to learn matters of the body, he''d never been a l.u.s.tful sort and when he had entered the Sect, he''d left the servant girl behind and never looked back. Later, while others were chasing after and attempting to impress the few women in the Sect, he was deep within his learning, practically devouring any material he could get his hands on. It was sometime after this, when gaining access to another level of the Sect''s library did he learn of double yang relationsh.i.p.s and cultivation between them.


    Intrigued, he had considered the numerous, healthy cultivating men within the Sect. He could not say that he was the most handsome man in amongst his peers, but he certain held an attraction of face. However his personal prospects...


    That aside, s.e.x.u.a.l matters in his own world were generally learned in youth amongst most men and even women (though he admittedly, he suspected that the latter were not taught to practice in the same manner as he happened to be as a woman''s v.i.r.g.i.nity was held like a rare pearl in her palms), so it never occurred to him that Nathan did not know.


    Indeed, Nathan was aware of s.e.x.u.a.l matters... from a biological point of view; procreation. A man inserted his p.e.n.i.s while it was stiff into the v.a.g.i.n.a of a woman. His s.p.e.r.m would fertilise the woman''s egg. Nine months later, there would be a baby. This was the very basics of what he knew about mammal procreation, there was a little bit more, but the science regarding the procreation of plants was far more of interest to him. So Nathan hadn''t actually linked his body''s ''abnormal'' behaviour with s.e.x.u.a.l matters; there was no woman involved.


    He stood n.a.k.e.d beneath a showering, cool rain that he was creating himself, willing his disobedient body part to return to normal. In his worry, he had forgotten to close the door behind him and his pulsing heart drowned out the sounds that would have otherwise entered his sensitive ears. It was not until Ren Zexian was a two steps behind him did he hear the tones that usually soothed him call to him.


    "Nathan, tell me what is upsetting you."


    The youth turned, completely not embarrassed by his state of undress and his eyes met with Ren Zexian''s for a moment before they slipped away, unable to maintain the eye contact. "My p.e.n.i.s won''t stay down," he said, honestly, "I have to take a shower to make it do so. I''m going to finish now." He began to turn around, revealing once more the pale skin upon his back and the two snowy white buns atop his shapely legs.


    "Nathan," Ren Zexian called back to him, his voice hoarse as he was unable to maintain the distance between them any longer. He pressed himself flush against the other''s back though he made no attempt at capturing him in his arms and removing the freedom to move that he knew the other required. Nathan froze, unsure what to make of this yet the warmth of Ren Zexian''s body against his cold skin made him instinctively lean into it. "Nathan, are you finding that your body reacts when I kiss you?"


    Nathan shivered and nodded an agreement, as that part of him also throbbed in confirmation. He felt a little bit dizzy, but there was security in the shape of Ren Zexian, so he didn''t try to sit down to ease it.


    "Nathan, it is normal for you to react to me," Ren Zexian gently placed his hands on his sweetheart''s shoulders and turned him around to face him. His long fingers upon his left hand then slid down Nathan''s arms, following the droplets of water still trickling down his skin, before loosely grasping his hand. He moved that hand to his own robed body, where his own desire was evident. "I also react to you."


    He bit down on a groan as Nathan curiously squeezed his saluting member. "Should we shower together?" Nathan asked, innocently, causing him to chuckle.


    "I wish to show you another way," Ren Zexian advised him, his midnight eyes seeming like two black holes swallowing the remaining light of the descending sun. "Please, trust me." He wrapped a towel about Nathan''s shoulders and guided him into the bedroom. He would not take things all the way tonight; Nathan needed first to learn how these matters worked between too men and he almost felt as if he was taking advantage of the youth as it was. But he could no longer suffer to wait!


    Nathan lay back as per Ren Zexian''s instructions and trembled as the man''s fingers lightly ran down his body. The hair on his arms seemed to stand on end and his skin break out in goose-pimples. But while this was an odd feeling, he did not feel as if it was bad. He watched as Ren Zexian removed his own outer robes and his eyes looked over the familiar nuances of the other''s body. His chest was more defined than his own and finished with two disc''s the colour of dark pear wood rather than the blush rose upon his own skinny frame. Remaining still, his eyes continued to wander as Ren Zexian lay beside him, noting the nest of midnight that framed the genitals, noting the subtle roundness of his muscles and flatness of his stomach. Noting that the man''s hands were larger than his by a finger width as they wrapped around his p.e.n.i.s and gently stroked it.


    Flashes of white seemed to steal his vision and his hands automatically grasped upon Ren Zexian''s arms as if about to stop him touching. But instead, his fingers curled around the man''s forearms as his brain tried to analyse the sensations stealing his breath.  His heart was racing and gasps were escaping his throat.  His h.i.p.s seemed to gain a mind of their own as he thrust into the man''s hold, shaking as he did so.  And then the motion paused, he whimpered, honest with himself that he liked the feelings and wanted more.  Wanted Ren Zexian to touch him more.


    Ren Zexian whispered that he should lie upon his side and he did as instructed, his hands tentatively moving to Ren Zexian''s upper arms as the man closed the distance between them.  He placed a kiss upon Nathan''s lips before capturing his p.e.n.i.s once more in his grasp.  Nathan breath caught once more as he felt the sensation was different all of a sudden, hotter and as if there was something else pressing upon his length and he glanced downward.  Ren Zexian''s stiff p.e.n.i.s was captured in hold with his and his fingers were sliding over them both.  His member throbbed, brushing against the silk covered steel of the other, the sensation almost frightened him, but at the same time, it felt so right.  His h.i.p.s moved him closer wanting that feeling again and Ren Zexian''s hand almost faltered before gaining a new momentum.


    Neither could stop themselves riding on the wave of pleasure that imprisoned them.  Ren Zexian pressed his mouth lightly over Nathan''s, his tongue slipping along the other''s lips but although a possessive desire was rising within him, he did not want to stop the other''s faltering breaths.  "Re-en," Nathan called out, a note of panic in his voice as he felt a new strangeness he was not familiar with beginning to overwhelm him completely.


    "Call me Xian, my love," Ren Zexian murmured, before adding gently; "let go, Nathan.  Trust me to take care of you, always."


    Nathan barely managed a nod, before his toes curled and a shudder trailed up the length of his spine, his p.e.n.i.s shooting out a substance as it did so.  A haziness descended over him and he collapsed in the other man''s arms, suddenly lethargic, yet suddenly euphoric.  A smile came unbidden to his lips and his clouded eyes sought out Ren Zexian''s wanting the contact of them.  His nose wrinkled in the next moment, a strange smell coming from the sticky patch he realised was upon his stomach.  The sensation made his skin crawl a bit and he was torn between running to the bathroom to washing it off and remaining in Ren Zexian''s warm hold.


    Xian''s hold.


    Fortunately the man seemed to have a solution, grasping a tissue from the box beside the bed and wiping their stomach''s almost clean.  Well, a shower would have been better to remove the traces, but the method of touching was so much more pleasant than easing it in a shower.  "We should do that again."


    Ren Zexian... Xian... chuckled aloud before placing a kiss upon his forehead and replying; "We shall."


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 Chapter 81 - Eighty - Darkness Attracts Undead

    The sky was overcast and the temperature had dropped.  This in itself would have been refreshing as the heat of a late spring day had begun to become a little oppressive, hinting at another hot and somewhat unbearable summer.  However, along with the cooler air came ferocious winds, which slammed into trees aggressively.  It was not near what it might have taken to uproot the established ones, but dead twigs, remaining blossoms and not more than a few leaves were ripped away and scattered in their wake.


    There were some worries about the tender stalks of the tomato plants and the certain less sturdy vines of immature squashes; would they survive this windy storm?  In some places, shrubs seemed to move block the wind and bushes stretched their branches to provide shelter.  It would not solve all the exposed spaces the vegetables were planted within, but it certainly helped ease some fears.


    But not all.


    The rooster happened to be very silent this morning.  Coupled with the gloomy, stormy weather, an ominous feeling had set in.  Lucy sat quiet and still at the table, her thumb firmly in her mouth, while Aslan remained alert by her side.  The a.d.u.l.ts tiptoed around them, also effected by the solemn atmosphere.


    This sort of thing was what a windswept Jimmy walked into, after a shift upon the wall and happened to voice aloud; "Why do I feel like something is about to happen?"


    Aslan angry growls suddenly filled the kitchen, echoing in empty spaces before travelling down the hall.  "Crow beak," Monika cursed him as she turned to exit after following him in.  Dexter looked up out of the kitchen window from the sink, but was unable to see anything untoward.  It did not settle the feelings and Aslan''s voice was increasing in volume as well.  Dexter glanced at Autumn, who shared a look of concern before encouraging him.  "Go.  Just in case."


    He placed a kiss upon her plush lips, causing her cheeks to warm a little, before he and Jimmy made their way to the front door.  Opening it, he witnessed Ren Zexian speeding along the path with all haste.  In turn, Chang Min leapt from a window above him into sight and proceeded to follow.  "Shit, this can''t be good."


    They did not head for the front/ eastern side of the wall, but hurried instead down the long drive of the property opposite and through its extensive grassy gardens and the wheatfield beside it.  Loud thuds entered their ears and as they got nearer the thick hedge that framed the inside of the tall outer wall, the heard falling of light rubble and dust hit the leaves and ground.


    Both Chang Min and Ren Zexian seemed to leap effortlessly over the hedge, not moved by the wind at all as they landed on the wide expanse on top of the wall.  A cloud of black fog solidified into a hound beside them.  The others could only stare in awe and curse before running for the stone steps built close by.


    Angry howl of tongueless voices filled the air and the thuds paused.  The two Cultivators glanced down in an almost casual way to see a group of five zombies hammering at the wall a few feet below them.  They did not look like ordinary wandering zombies.  One had lost its arms, but its body had thickened into a shapeless column upon sturdy legs.  With a helmet fastened to its skull, it uncaringly threw itself against the wall and was doing damage not only to the outer metal coating, but the stone foundation beneath.  Another zombie was tearing at the metal, the stumps of its fingers lengthened by stretches of thin, sharpened bone like claws upon what must have once been fingers.  It''s feet were in a similar condition and its spine curled unnaturally as it moved.


    The third was a little more like a corpse, just jawless, but its eyes shone with a frightening light as if it had awareness.  Drool dripped from its teeth down the torn shirt covering its chest.  The fourth corpse was small, it was also loud.  Most of the howling sounds actually were escaping it''s throat as it moved shakily, but excitably.  It suddenly leapt at the wall, only its own diminutive height prevented it from reaching the top.


    The fifth zombie seemed as if it had been dipped entirely in black ink.  It stood back, its shadow more dark than the others, somehow larger than the others.  "Darkness root," Chang Min surmised.


    Ren Zexian nodded.  "What attracts others of its kin, but this.  Look."  As the others carefully made their way over the wall as it trembled from time to time, crouching low so not to be too hampered by the gale, the oriental man pointed to the a few undead rodents lurking close by as if reinforcements.  He glanced up and witnessed corpse birds hovering in the sky.  "This will not be like the last wave," Ren Zexian warned them.  This zombie did not control them, this zombie did not need to.  It could be said that this zombie ruled them instead.


    "Should we take out this King first?" Dexter asked, noticing Monika leading their own reinforcements to their location with Reggie.  They''d brought along Tyler, Harry and Arthur as well as the soldiers from the other property.


    "I think they will protect him," Ren Zexian replied.  "In a game of chess, one must find the opponents weak link."  Glancing over the group of five, Dexter wasn''t too sure that there was one.


    "The birds, the rats?" Patrick glanced at the numerous smaller bodies which were becoming increasingly agitated around the dark Zombie King.


    "Pawns," Ren Zexian withdrew his sword from its sheath and glanced with a nod at Chang Min, who nodded perceptively back.  "To be taken down at leisure.  We''ll leave them to you."  The two men then leapt from the wall, Aslan closely in their wake, leaving Dexter to curse, but he had no time to think beyond that as the birds swooped down, losing a few feathers as they did.


    Monika was swift, abandoning climbing the wall for the crossbow on her back and taking aim.  If the crossbow had been better made, she may have pierced its body with the first bolt, but skimming it still caused it to lose grasp of the wind keeping it in the air and it tumbled to the ground where it met the heavy foot of her comrade; Arthur.  Bolts of lightning streaked from Dexter''s palms, burning another of the flying monsters, causing it to die completely.  The rodents began to run at the wall and leap up at it with the child zombie.


    It and a couple of rats managed to grasp the ragged edges caused by the claws of digit-less zombie and rocked their bodies in order to leap up again.  As they jumped, Patrick behind Dexter made an unmanly squeal before surrounding the rising undead with heavy gravity, causing them to fail and slam back down to Earth.  The little zombie rose and prepared another attempt, but it''s head was suddenly separated from its shoulders by a long blade.  It rolled for a pace or two before a rat bit into it and began tugging it away.


    Chang Min and Ren Zexian had leapt in amidst the five, but the corpses had not automatically surrounded them.  In fact the zombie ramming the wall did not cease its attacks and the smallest zombie had shied out of reach.  It was the long clawed undead that reached to attack them.  Chang Min blocked its claws with his sword, to find that the bones were not at all brittle and had to reevaluate how he dealt with it.


    In the meantime, Ren Zexian moved towards the zombie with glistening, wide eyes, considering that this might actually be the Dark Zombie''s most important piece.  Indeed it''s eyes flashed and lengths of sturdy pine wood shot from the ground, stretching branches only when they reached a certain height and creating a wall between the Cultivators, itself and its King.  He could only send bursts of flames in order to weaken the wall.


    Chang Min had removed one of the clawed zombie''s arms in counterattack before stepping back and removing the head off of the leaping zombie.  He was almost exposed and vulnerable in that moment, but still the zombie was not as fast as Chang Min and failed to take advantage of it.  Rodents seeking to fish in troubled waters also failed, killed by a vicious dog made of fog.


    The barrel chested zombie smacked hard against the wall and a large crack formed behind the metal covering, which in turn gave in weakness as it thrust its entire body through the wall.  Patrick fell, grabbed by the collar by Dexter before being tossed to Harry, close by.  He then had to fall flat on his stomach upon the top of the wall as one of the few remaining birds attempted to take a bite from his flesh.  The rodents ran to and through the hole in the wall squealing in delight as they sought the living flesh beyond it.


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 Chapter 82 - Eighty One - Battling Upon Two Sides

    The wall sealed behind them, the earth manipulated from both sides of it to not only cut this portion of the zombie forces from the main tide, but also capturing and crushing undead rodents that could not escape in time.  Half of one rat dropped to the ground, scrambling at the dust with its front paws as it dragged its severed corpse into the long grass.


    The armless zombie swung its upper body, regaining its balance with strong flexibility; the fact it had no limbs did not seem to phase it at all.  Its eyes darkened as its vision fell upon the feast surrounding it, its senses filled with the aroma of living flesh and viscous drool began to drip from its mouth.  Unable to restrain itself, it threw itself forward at the nearest target, the muscles in its thighs not wasted but like thick, taut springs.  It easily ignored the soft thuds as lengths of metal sank into the depths of its body and the ice wall that appeared before it was shattered with its momentum.  However, it did make it fall short and its teeth fell short from sinking into hot flesh, not even scraping a taste causing it to roar in frustration.


    "Move idiot!" Harry pulled Thomas from his horrified daze and much further from zombie that had landed only half a metre from him, its jaws snapping at his face and dousing him with its disgusting breath.


    The man was still a trained soldier, however, pulling himself together in the next heartbeat, his shock from witnessing the fearsomeness of this evolved monster finally shed from his shoulders.  He threw a knife at the monster, aiming for its neck, but landing in its chest beside the bolts still embedded in it.


    Needle like spikes rose from the ground, piercing a few of the rodents, if not killing them outright at least immobilising them.  Harry and Arthur used baseball bats to finish them off swiftly.  A squirrel with one eye dangling from its socket and long cracked teeth hanging from its bald face squealed as it leapt at Patrick from behind, landing on his shirt.  However, it fell in the next moment, twitching violently as tiny specks of light crackled along it remnant fur.


    The armless zombie was ready to move once more, not feeling the pain of the various metal objects sticking out of its torso, nor the spines and jagged edges of the earth beneath its massive feet.  It tensed it''s muscles once more, its thighs thickening as it prepared to leap once more.  Yet a moment before it could spring forward, a wide knife sliced into its legs.  It should have been a shallow cut, for its skin was quite thick even if its insides were rotten, but the metal blade continued to sink in slowly until it reached the solid bone before finally stopping.  Its leap was weakened, ineffective and its roars began once more as it flung its upper body around trying in anyway to close the distance between itself and the food.  The scent of sweat was becoming especially intense, driving it wild with hunger.


    More objects embedded themselves into its legs, sinking into the depths of its flesh making it as weak as a fledgling corpse and it keeled over, no longer able to maintain its balance and fell to the ground with a thud.


    "I want to test something," Zak murmured. Faith and Theo beside him nodded in unison, meaning to cover him from any surprise attacks as he focused.  A couple of weeks or so ago, Zak could only summon the light into his finger tips, now his whole hand began to glow.  Around him, the undead rodents actually began to hesitate, even creep backwards and away from him, repelled by the light he projected.  The large, fallen zombie began to scream as the glow came nearer and nearer to its face, no longer did it want to eat, it only wanted to flee.


    The light couldn''t last for a lengthened amount of time and although Zak had been successful, he had no clue of what to do next, so his hand returned to normal and a could only use the altered pipe to slice into the zombies head with all of his might.  After a second swing, the light in its black eyes finally died.


    Outside of the wall, the battle was also coming to an end.  The sharp-clawed zombie had completely lost its weapons and could only shuffle on the ground in vain.  Aslan had completely subdued the remaining rodents, while Dexter upon the wall ahead seen off many attacks from above.  Chang Min thrust his blade through a half rotted badger, removing its unlife with a direct hit to its core.  Ren Zexian''s sword was no less stained, however, the bright eyed zombie and its Master had been too cunning, using the ability of wood to create a mutant forest wall and the distraction of numerous small minions.


    When the wall had finally collapsed, either wilting or even crumbling to dust, the dark zombie King and the jawless zombie were nowhere to be seen.


    If any rodents were left, they quickly scuttled away, disappearing into the surroundings, no longer attacking, while the few flying zombies travelled along the dying winds southward, where Ren Zexian suspected that the King had also retreated towards.  He shook the green and red remains off of his sword, whilst tossing balls of black flames onto any corpses close by.  Chang Min finished off the declawed zombie before moving to the wall to complete his hasty work upon its outer structure.  As he ran his hands over its surface, sealing any cracks and hardening the dirt as he went, his lips curved as he noticed the spiritual energy of his apprentice within the inner portion of the wall.  It seemed Cole had had a similar notion to himself.  He nodded, most satisfied with his first ever apprentice, his heart beating with glee.


    Ren Zexian watched as the corpses burned, controlling the fires so that they did not burn any of the grass and foliage untainted by the zombies innards.  The smoke pouring off of them still contained yin energy, yet it seemed purified which gave him relief.  If the poison yin could be dealt with this way, there was hope that the balance could be restored, thus this world could be restored.  Unfortunately, even if his flames could do this, did not mean he could burn the entire world and allow it to resurrect like a phoenix from the ashes; there was life still dependant on this world as it was.


    The two men did not hurry to rescue those trapped inside with other zombies; every Cultivator knew that the more their juniors were assisted, the less strength they would have in their futures.  Overly protecting them would be detrimental to their growth, so only once the ash was caught on the wind and sent into the distance did they leap over the wall.


    Dexter was resting on top after seeing that the zombies that had breached the wall had been dealt with, lazily closed his eyes to circulate his spiritual energy and regain a bit of strength.  He''d practically drained himself frying all of those flying zombies, he didn''t even have the will to move now!


    After the largest zombie had fallen, the soldiers and survivors had remained cautious for a while.  A few of the remaining undead rodents had attacked them, but there was no coordination and although they were small, they were weak and were killed off one by one.  After no more attacks came in the following minutes, they slowly began to let down their guard and the soldiers let the previously unasked questions spill from their tongues.


    "How comes that squirrel died went it touched you?" Luke asked Patrick, as the smaller man continued to scan the long grass.  "I thought you were dead for sure!"


    Patrick waved away the notion, pretending as if he had not been completely freaked out when he felt the critter cling to his clothing, ready to take a bite.  "I''ve a body root, Ren calls it a Spark root.  Basically I can make lightning run over my skin like a shield.  Ah but I can''t project it like Dexter can!"  His tone indicated that the matter had been completely under his control, when in fact it had been a bit of a fluke!  He''d never needed to activate the ability before so his control of it was actually weak.  Fortunately, instinct had given a helping hand!


    "You created those spines?" Thomas pressed Cole, who met his hostile stare with an even more hostile one of his own and sparks seemed to form between them.


    Cole inwardly sneered, he knew this type.  There were many of this type in prison; trying to be the bigger man with intimidation, waving about what little strength and authority they thought they had.  "I did," Cole finally agreed.  There was no point hiding his abilities in front of this person who somewhat shared them.  He suspected that this soldier was disgruntled that his own power was just so weak, unable to accept that someone other than Chang Min had talent in this element.  "I''ve been practicing under Chang Min''s guidance for three quarters of a year, I''d be useless if I couldn''t do this much."


    He brushed past Thomas without another word, then focused on the ground thinking to do a last sweep to make sure that there was absolutely no more hostile movement.  This was something Chang Min had taught him recently.  He felt his sour mood ease as he thought about his small Master; the man only reached his chin in height, was so strong but not in the least bit arrogant.  He laughed more than Ren Zexian and while serious when necessary, could be a little more playful when he wished to be.  He was so beautiful when he fought with his sword, his movement like dancing.  Ren Zexian often chided him for excessive movements, but those movements were hypnotising.  It would surprise Cole if he couldn''t stop enemies in their tracks by them alone.


    Wrapped up in his thoughts, he only noticed the subtle motion at the last possible moment and by that time, Jimmy had already shouted from panicked and pain.  He turned to see Monika red eyed as she thrust a bolt through a rat that had only half a body, blood still dripping from its sharp teeth.  Jimmy''s ankle had a piece of flesh missing, the edges of the wound had begun to turn black.


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 Chapter 83 - Eighty Two - Attempting To Prevent Death

    Breaths were held, realities were shaken, it was the worst news for the survivors; one of their own had become infected.


    Thomas was a soldier, had not known this small man for longer than a few days and even then their interactions had not been more than shallow. He decisively removed the gun from his waist, removed the safety and aimed. There was only one bullet in the barrel, each soldier had been gifted a lone bullet. This was the gift for being loyal the end, the chance to end their own life swiftly if the worse should happen. Thomas had never thought to use this on himself, so didn''t think that it might be a waste to use it on a civilian; he felt instead that this was a kindness.


    Monika automatically placed her body between the barrel of the gun and Jimmy''s wounded body. "No!"


    "Are you stupid? He''s been infected!" Thomas yelled at her, angrily. "No matter which way you look at it, he''s a dead man!"


    "I know... but..." her mouth opened, but her throat would not spill another word as if her mind had become blank. Tears spilled from her eyes. This was Jimmy, her colleague of old and her friend! Could the bastard at least understand that? And she was not the only one who felt the sting of pain within their eyes and hearts.


    "Monika," Jimmy gritted his teeth through the pain. Dammit that rat surely had taken a bite out of him! Rivers of agony shot up his leg causing him to grunt. "Monika, he is right. It''s better this way."


    She bit into her lower lip, unwilling, but Arthur, whose eyes had reddened due to the salt of his own sadness gently tugged at her arm, easing her away. Thomas once more lifted his arm to aim.


    "There may be another solution," Ren Zexian landed with Chang Min, having leapt over the wall moments ago to witness and quickly evaluate the situation. Monika''s expression twisted, agonising internally whether to grasp this olive branch of hope or not let her feelings rise too much less the disappointment make this ever so much more painful. She was not the only one.


    "Can you really save him?" Harry asked, spitting out the words as if they were scratching his throat. He... they all had witnessed too many people die in front of them. None of them wished to see another life lost, but they knew what being bitten meant.


    Ren Zexian''s coal black eyes examined the wound intently. Indeed the edges were an unsightly shade, however he felt that the poison yin was not actually invading the flesh and blood of this man with the swiftness in which it tried to claim his body. Perhaps it was the difference between being bitten by a lowly rodent that had not, or had only evolved a little, compared to a former Cultivator who had completed the Body Tempering Phase. He shook his head inwardly before his attention was caught by the soldier wielding the blasting weapon, who was clearly pressing forward to end this.


    But he reluctantly yielded to pressure expelled by the oriental man and lowered his gun as if it''s it weight had suddenly become too great.


    And then the Cultivator''s attention fell upon a soldier behind him. "How is your cultivation going?" He asked Zak, who looked startled at the diversion of subject.


    "We don''t have time for this!" Thomas snarled. "Tell you what, you want to play with your lives? Fine, just don''t bother playing with mine!" He clicked on the safety function and placed the weapon back in his belt before walking off.


    Ren Zexian seemed unperturbed by the man''s attitude, his gaze quietly remaining on the Light user, who became increasingly uncomfortable beneath his stare. He glanced at Theo, close by him, who simply shrugged.  "It... seems to be working?"


    The oriental man nodded and beckoned him over.  "Show me."


    "Now?"  The soldiers all felt increasingly perplexed, however the survivors of this base showed no such signs, perhaps more used to the man''s ways.


    "En," Ren Zexian replied to his query.  "I wish you to summon your light to your finger tips then place your hand... here."  He indicated Jimmy''s knee.  Naturally, the soldier could not help but feel reluctant.  Although mutations tended to occur over several hours, he had heard that there were exceptions.  There had been a rumour on the army base about a woman who''d been bitten and had transformed in under an hour, though there was not enough evidence to support this, so it had just been hearsay.


    The survivors eyes fell upon him, flickers of hope within their depths, causing him to waver in the desire to refuse.  Zak stepped forward, clenching the weapon he held to his chest for a moment, before handing it to his comrade.  He took a deep breath and lifted his hand which began to softly glow before his eyes.  It trembled as it lowered to the man''s leg and hesitated before lightly touching the Jimmy''s knee.


    Jimmy groaned; the warmth of the light was so comfortable, but the pain was intensifying.  Yet it was also different, for instead of the pain shooting towards his knee, it seemed to falter, not rising so high but concentrated more at the wound.  It still seemed to be spreading everywhere else and now included his foot, however.  "Bring light to your other hand," Ren Zexian encouraged him, while he fumbled for the pouch upon his robe''s belt.  "Then, beginning at his toes, bring your hand upward until you can grasp his ankle, ah, but do not touch nor rise your hand above the wound."


    Zak looked puzzled and did as instructed.  Beads of sweat began to form at his temple as he concentrated; this was harder than sustaining the light within one hand.  Plus he''d already used the ability earlier, but stopped when he felt a bit tired, worried that weariness would cause him to make a mistake.  Right now he felt as if he was draining his body of the rest of its reserves.


    "Alright," Ren Zexian nodded, his words holding a tone of praise for the man as well as encouragement, while Jimmy bit hard his lip trying not to move and ease the agony that was now pulsating through the flesh of his calf muscle and leg bone.  Ren Zexian suddenly pushed a pill into the infected man''s mouth, which melted on contact with his tongue and he swallowed automatically.  He suddenly as if he''d sank into a soothing bath; he still felt as if his body was telling him that his leg hurt, but he felt dissociated from it enough to feel relief.  That said, he did not feel as he was in any way without other faculties, meaning, he did not feel under any questionable influence.


    "That''s a good painkiller," he joked, lightly, causing his friends to smile slightly.  Really, he could still joke at a time like this?


    Ren Zexian also smiled, but it lacked the sadness of the others, just filled them with a calmness they did not feel before.  "Now, Zak, slide your hand from his knee towards the wound."


    The soldier did so and the blood began to flow, pushing past the blackened flesh.  At first it was dark crimson, but it became a shade something like a dark, rotten olive, along with a taint of black-brown and this liquid oozed out of the wound and onto the ground, where a concentrated burst of black flame dealt with it in the next moment.  Zak had jumped back at this point, the light vanishing from his fingers as he avoided the contaminated blood.


    Monika grasped Arthur''s hand as she witnessed this and couldn''t help but blurt out; "Will he be fine now?  Is he cured?"


    To her disappointment, Ren Zexian frowned and sighed.  He glanced towards Zak, who instinctively knew what he wished to ask, but the soldier could only shake his head.  He didn''t even think he had enough energy to rise to his feet right now, let alone summon more light!


    Jimmy also sighed.  Although the pain was no longer affecting him, he still felt its presence and it was slowly increasing along the length of his leg, now unheeded.  It''s pace was reduced, but nonetheless it was growing.  He reckoned that the soldier''s ability had probably bought him a few more hours at best.


    Ren Zexian felt the same and pondered over the dilemma.  Jimmy could not prevent the spread of the infection in the same way that Ren Zexian had suppressed it; Jimmy was an ordinary man without cultivation nor the ability to cultivate.  In that sense it was hopeless.  He had hoped the light would repel it in the same way that darkness could attract it.  He paused upon this point.


    He''d always believed that the cursed root was derived or mutated from something other than darkness, but perhaps that theory hadn''t been right or at least there was more to it than he''d originally thought. He still did not feel that he was completely wrong, but really, he didn''t have time to dwell on that point now. What he was considering was that it was not due to just who infected himself that caused the swiftness of its spread, but his own cursed root attracting, no stirring into a frenzy, this unpleasant poison. This was why he could not force it to leave his body. It was different to how the dark zombie attracted others; he theorised that if he had been the one to turn, he would not only attract other monsters, but feed off of them to increase the amount of poison yin in his body and those zombies would literally throw themselves upon his plate.


    The only reason the intelligent zombie and its king remained wary of him was due to them being aware that his strength being higher than theirs.  Likely they fled due to this and his smouldering flames.  But not all zombies had developed the instinct to avoid him and Chang Min hence they still had to deal with numerous undead.


    All this ran through his mind in one second and in the next, he took out a fasting pill and knife with a sharp jade blade, the former he swallowed and the latter was ran over the length of his palm.  "Master!" Chang Min gasped as his fresh blood began to drip and stain his pale skin.


    "All will be well, Chang Min," Ren Zexian smiled at him. "However, I may have to go into closed cultivation for a while.  Look after Nathan for me.  Tell him, I''ll see him soon."  And with that, he knelt upon the ground and placed his open wound upon Jimmy''s ankle.  Sure enough, he sensed the poison yin excitedly shoot back down through Jimmy''s veins and abandon his dying calf muscle for his cursed blood.  His skin paled as he focused on holding the poison in his palm with his spiritual energies, nodding to his disciple who quickly lead him to the large and empty mansion not far away.


    The others watched him leave, completely unable to fathom what had just happened and all glanced down at Jimmy''s bitten ankle.  The wound was still quite raw and open to the elements, blood still oozed from the flesh, but it was a healthy red.  It was as if blackened edges and gangrene had never existed.  Arthur gently pushed Monika aside and ripped a length off of his T-shirt to wrap around the wound.


    "Unbelievable," Theo stated in one word how they all felt.


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 Chapter 84 - Eighty Three - As The Winds Died Down

    The strong winds had died down by the following day and the air now carried a stillness to it, as if echoing the atmosphere in the first mansion.  The occupants spoke in hushed and somewhat joyless tones for the most part, shaken by the events and perhaps the realisation of how vulnerable they all still were hitting home.  They had lived too well and securely under the protective umbrella that Ren Zexian had formed along side their little landlord and later Chang Min.  True, they had worked hard, creating the wall, developing their strengths and abilities, but without Ren Zexian guiding them from behind with his gentle manner and vast knowledge, where would they be right now?  Only once the umbrella had broken had they noticed that he was no longer able to always be there to shelter them.


    Plus, as the next two weeks slowly dragged on, the precariousness of their living situation became more apparent.


    Autumn skimmed the sc.u.m from the surface of the pork rib soup as it boiled its contents to tenderness.  In all honesty, she hadn''t felt like cooking, this haven of hers actually was doing little to make her feel balanced and comfortable as it always had in the past.  Of course, she was not the only one feeling the increasing strain.


    Behind her, Dexter sat at the table, stretching his legs out underneath it as he shelled the first harvest of broad beans from their pods.  It was an arduous job, but while he might have jokingly complained as he had the previous year as he shelled peas that time, he was in no mood to banter about it today.


    Little Lucy walked through the kitchen to the open backdoor holding her small watering can while Aslan trailed behind her.  Autumn watched as she disappeared into the garden, sighing.  The child was equally effected by the solemn atmosphere, yet everyday she would take her small watering can to the cottage in the gardens, knock on Nathan''s door and wait patiently for him to answer.  She waited a little longer everyday.


    "We should probably encourage her to speak to Tyler for water in the future," Autumn said softly as she removed the last of the sc.u.m before moving the two large pots to a cooler place on the range cooker in order to simmer for a prolonged time.  She seasoned the soup then placed on the lids.


    "Tyler did offer, but was rejected," Dexter replied, tossing a bean that had escaped the bowl back into it.


    Patrick entered from the garden at that point, carrying a basket with some radishes and a mix of stubby and long thin carrots.  He scratched his temple sheepishly as Autumn questioned the selection with an expression.  "Ah, we weren''t sure which ones to harvest," he admitted; such things had always been guided by Nathan.  The young man always knew which were ready for harvesting and which needed longer, but he''d not left his cottage for the past three days now and before that, he had lingered in his home for longer periods of time.  Patrick picked out a carrot that had a wide top, but was no more than a couple of inches long.  "We thought to look at the tops first, but as you can see, that didn''t really work either."


    "Never mind," Autumn sighed.  She, too, had been enjoying the fruits of Nathan''s labours to the point where she could forget the state of the world.  After all, every cooks dream was to work with fresh produce as excellent and delicious as Nathan''s vegetables.  She took the basket from Patrick so she could clean the vegetables before putting them in the soup pots.


    "I take it Nathan''s nowhere to be seen again," Dexter mused.  He stretched his taut back as the last pod was emptied of its fruits.


    "Actually, I did see him," Patrick admitted.  "But he was heading in the direction of the third mansion."


    Dexter''s eyes widened as he registered those words and he leapt from his lazy sitting position to his feet.  "Why didn''t you stop him?"


    "Chang Min was with him," Patrick replied, stepping back a pace, surprised over Dexter''s reactions.  The Cultivator had actually followed the youth, as he and little Lucy with her empty watering can watched on.


    "Isn''t it fine?" Autumn asked worriedly, drying her hands so she could comfort her man.  Nothing had been easy since they had settled their relationship, yet instead of creating a distance between them, they''d actually grown closer instead.  "If Ren had... if something serious had happened, Chang Min would have mentioned something."


    Dexter rubbed his temples and wrapped his other arm around Autumn''s waist.  "You''re right, you''re right.  Sorry, I''m more messed up about this than I realised."  Since little James had been born, Dexter had taken on more of the role of leader than before as Jonah had to care for his son in the wake of Brooke''s indifference.  Dexter hadn''t felt uncomfortable about the growing weight on his shoulders, until the pillar supporting him vanished.  He worried constantly about being strong enough to protect them, worried about their food supplies as each day another plant seemed to wilt; its leaves yellowing.  He had Chang Min as an effective sword, but at the end of the day, he was still just one man and couldn''t be everywhere at once.  Plus there was the dissidence in the second mansion.


    In the opinion of those five soldiers; Ren Zexian took the virus from Jimmy''s blood by whatever means, that simply meant he would zombify instead.  In conclusion, he should have been killed before he could turn.  They had not witnessed his strength personally, but seeing that Chang Min called him Master suggested that he was no less weaker than the other.  He''d likely turn into a deadly zombie and kill them all if he was not dealt with.  Chang Min had tried to reassure them, just as Dexter''s first squad confessed that Ren Zexian had been bitten before and survived, but the soldiers were not all convinced.


    Or rather it was Thomas that remained unconvinced and loud in his opinion.


    The man had been stumped to learn that his comrade''s glowing finger wasn''t some pointless ability and actually did have an effect on not only the undead, but the strange virus that turned those infected by it.  However, he''d not shown such on his face; he''d years of experience hiding his disdain of others.  But finding out that Ren Zexian had sucked out the virus from the bitten man and taken it into his own body caused his mask to crack.


    At first, he still wanted to kill Jimmy, completely disbelieving that the man was no longer infected.  But while Jimmy was pale and subdued, there was still a pink tinge to his face and his eyes were completely clear.  Even the wound that his friend was redressing showed the red of raw but healthy flesh, not the distinct blackened edges of the infection.  So he''d wanted to find Ren Zexian, to put an end to the threat within these walls once and for all.  He was stopped by Chang Min and that shadow of his.


    "My Master is in control of the situation," Chang Min had insisted.  "There is no need for you to fear."


    He''d backed down that time, remembering his side mission; he had to try convince Chang Min to return with them to the base.  A thought came to him.  This situation could actually be the key to getting the stubborn youth to return to the base with him, he just had to make him see that there was no saving an infected man.  As for others telling him that Ren Zexian had been bitten before and survived, he didn''t believe it.  If there was a scar, it must have come from a healthy man, maybe a former lover that turned at some point afterwards leading to the delusion that he survived an infection.


    So he''d became increasingly vocal and difficult, trying to get to the man in seclusion in the third mansion, so he could at least get photographic proof that the man had turned or was at least infected on his solar charged phone.  But Chang Min and that annoying Cole had stopped him each and every time until Dexter had finally turned around and declared that if Thomas didn''t want to abide by their rules, he could leave and make his way back to base.  They''d even provide him with enough fuel for one of the many cars rusting away in the village.


    He''d narrowed his eyes and had decided to give up on these stupid people; there was enough of that type on base, they didn''t need anymore.  As he had thought, this whole experience had been a waste of his time.  His abilities hadn''t improved and he could have been protecting the base walls and his comrades rather than trying to fix what could not be.  "You coming?" He''d turned to the other soldiers to ask.  They had somewhat hesitated.  Unlike Thomas, they had experienced growth in their abilities and it had become even more noticeable in this past week or so.  But if Ren Zexian was dying and no longer able to teach them, was there any point staying?


    "I''ll come," Faith eventually said.  She missed her wife, she didn''t want to lose her life here and not see the woman she loved anymore.  Zak wanted to stay, he decided to put his trust in Chang Min and hoped to continue learning from Ren Zexian soon.  Theo chose to remain with him, while Luke was completely undecided for sometime.  In the end, Dexter made a request that he stay;  Nathan was not willing or perhaps not able to provide water for their home so they had solely been relying on Tyler and whatever water they had stored, but it would only last so long.  Feeling that he was needed, Luke agreed to remain for a little longer.


    The two soldiers packed their stuff into a car while Winston poured a few litres of their precious fuel into it.  Chang Min suggested that they inform their superiors about the dark Zombie king for it would likely return at some point in the future, likely with a larger undead hoard.


    "Wait for me!"


    Everyone turned around shocked as they heard the voice from the near distance.  Hair tied back and holding a small carryall, the young woman approached them with a determined expression.


    "Brooke, what are you doing?" Monika questioned her, her eyes narrowing.


    "What does it look like I am doing?" Brooke retorted.  As her decision had been made, she was open with her dislike of the woman before her.  "I''m going to the base.  I''m not going to wait here to die!"  This is what she said aloud, but deep in her heart were far more dark reasons.  As a girl who had always been the centre of others attention, she had lived the past few months in increasing obscurity, while her dowdy cousin bloomed and experienced spring!  She blamed Jonah for it; he''d given up his duties as a leader of this place and wanted her to settle down with him as his baby''s mother, to be one of the little workers rather than the queen bee!  That could not be all destiny had in mind for her, surely!  She was not born to be ordinary!


    "What about Jonah?  What about your son?"  Monika argued, equally disliking the arrogant young woman, who she felt had never really woken up to the realities of the apocalypse.


    Brooke did have the shame to glance away as Monika mentioned the child, but her eyes caught Thomas'' fervent ones and she felt more secure in her decision.  "He has his father and his aunt," she replied.  "He''s never really needed me."


    Monika wanted to bite back that of course the baby needed his mother, but as Arthur''s hand fell on her shoulder, she came to the conclusion; when did Brooke ever act like a mother?  So they watched her depart with the two soldiers.


    In a bedroom, holding his fussy infant, Jonah rubbed his reddened eyes as the day he''d felt was approaching for a while, finally came into being.

 Chapter 85 - Eighty Four - Rescue is Not Without Self Interest

    A military organisation was formed on rules, discipline, the orders of a superior being carried out without question by a subordinate. Therefore there had to be trust that the superior knew what they were doing and the subordinate would perform their instructions to a tee. However, when the chain of command was broken, there could be chaos and confusion until a new chain was formed. But the army base no longer could be anchored by their superiors overseas, so though a new stake to anchor them had been planted in their current location, there was not just one chain attached and trust between these chains was fragile.


    When everyones goals were the same, establishing the base, rescuing survivors, hunting for food and supplies in order to ensure they could make it through winter and beyond, these metaphorical chains lie parallel. With the survivors settling into a routine and becoming more comfortable in this new world, there would become chains that began to distance themselves from the others. Such was not currently apparent, there was still too much uncertainty, but that did not mean that there was not some small signs of it occurring already.


    For instance, two soldiers having returned to base were called to report in, but both went to different superiors to do so.


    "How is it?" Officer Rouse asked the female solider standing smartly before him, with her hands behind her back. Her lips curved slightly and she gave a curt nod before picking up an old tin can she had managed to find on route to his office. She demonstrated the improvement of control over her ability; upon her palm the can twisted with a squeal of protest, lengthening, narrowing and eventually reforming into an arrow bolt, while the red rust formerly upon its surface fell to the floor.


    "So long as I have the metal, I can reform it into more useful things," she replied. "However, there is a limit to the amount I can do in a day. For example, I can probably make one or two more bolts over the course, but this has improved from before. I believe I will continue to make progress." She placed the bolt upon the desk and it was picked up to examine.


    "Can you teach others?" Was the next question.


    Faith frowned, slightly and made some attempt to explain; "I''m not entirely sure." Her commanding officer looked at her with a questioning expression. "The man who taught us, Chang Min''s Master, each taught us different methods of something called cultivation. I can only describe it as a meditation technique, but although it sounds... unscientific, I''ve always felt refreshed after performing the meditation. In addition, my ability seems to improve following the session, although it would only be noticeable to others in the long term."


    Elsewhere similar questions were asked but in a more blunt manner and the responding answers were not so positive. "It was as I thought, sir," Thomas told the man sitting before him. "They tried to convince us that performing some ''new age'' meditation would improve our abilities, but I had no improvement whatsoever. That place ought to be labelled a cult rather than a base. Unfortunately, while I was not sucked into their ridiculous beliefs, my comrades lacked similar will."


    "That''s not surprising," the officer grunted, before explaining. "In times of hardship, men and women throughout history have sought something to believe in, in order to give them hope and the ability to survive. In times past, it would have been God, but there has always been unsavoury groups leading people astray even then. The question is, will this group be a threat to us."


    Thomas hesitated; "I would have said no, but I am not too certain now."


    Hughes narrowed his eyes before tapping the desk with heavy fingers. "Explain."


    Faith was also attempting to display the facts, though she was doing so in a manner that without bias. "Their base was attacked, by a being they had dubbed a Zombie King," she shook her head. "Unfortunately, I was unable to see what this creature looked like, so I only have second hand information on it. My team and I were busy dealing with a humanoid zombie and a group of undead rodents that had managed to breech the walls."


    "Understood, continue," Rouse encouraged.


    "Chang Min and his Master reportedly fought outside the walls, while their leader, the man Dexter, dealt with numerous bird-type zombies, with some help from another member of his people. At the end of the battle, it was found that one of the smaller rodents managed to evade our defences and bit one of their people. They were reluctant to immediately deal with this." Rouse sighed, but nodded. Who could not understand how they felt, however it was a necessary matter, regardless.


    "What happened next?"


    Thomas had to hesitate once more. At this point, he only had hearsay having left the scene in a temper. However admitting this could be seen as a dereliction of duty, so he could only temper his words to ensure they painted him in a better light. "As we''d missed one, naturally there could have been others, so I moved to patrol. The other members of my squad were there to witness, having an additional person was unnecessary, I thought. However, according to what A and b shared with me, there was an attempt to cure the infected man."


    His superior sat up straight within his chair and looked Thomas directly in the eye. "Are you serious?" Thomas nodded, curtly. "Did they succeed?"


    "When I next saw the man, he appeared to be healthy," Thomas could only admit.


    "So you are saying that Rogers may have had a hand in healing that man??" Rouse questioned Faith more closely.


    "I cannot say for certain," she replied. "Zak''s ability was not quite enough, but I did see with my own eyes that some of the poison in the man''s blood had been purged by him, before Chang Min''s Master, Ren Zexian, managed to remove the rest with his own blood as lure. However, from my understanding, the infection is now in Ren Zexian''s body. According to Chang Min, Ren Zexian had not turned during the time that followed and if he is to be believed then the man has miraculously managed to surpass the usual rate of infection, however, the place that Ren Zexian isolated himself was not accessible to me nor my comrades. I was unable to confirm this either way."


    Rouse felt this matter was incredible and difficult to believe. Whether those people were shielding a strong zombie in their midst aside, they had managed to cure one person of the infection completely. A number of incredible ideas crossed his mind, but did not take root; he felt that the information to hand was not complete enough. "Why did the others not return with you?"


    Thomas sneered; "Like I said, they have been completely taken in by that cult. They honestly believed that Chang Min''s so called ''Master'' will survive the infection. I could neither convince them nor the civilians there otherwise, well except for one."


    "I heard that you brought back a woman," his superior said, a hidden tone in his voice. "Are you sure she''s not some spy?"


    "I am certain, sir," Thomas replied, but he could not hide the softening of his eyes as he spoke of her. A pretty, sweet flower as fresh as spring blossom was reflected in his vision, one strong enough to survive the frost. Of course, his superior did not have the same rose-tinted glasses upon his face, so he could only respond to the man''s questioning in an attempt to convince him otherwise. "Brooke, like many of their people, has abilities, though somewhat small. She has some control over water, but for some reason, she cannot produce it herself. She has shown she can alter its temperature, manipulate it and purify it. Also she can locate water sources."


    "What about the others on their base, what abilities do they have?" Hughes asked him.


    "Naturally, you know of Chang Min and his Earth abilities," Faith responded to a similar query. "There is another man with similar abilities of a lower level, but that man is still stronger than any of our earth users. Ren Zexian actually had two abilities, one of Fire and one of air. Their leader, Dexter, has control over lightning. There is also a man who can not only produce water, but can produce ice."


    "Ice?" Rouse quickly became interested in this person. He naturally thought along the lines that the person they spoke of had; ice would be useful in creating cold storage in order to store food for prolonged periods of time.


    "There was also some guy who could control gravity," Thomas'' report was much the same, but the tone of his voice differed. He was sullen when describing those with more impressive ability than himself and full of disdain over those he thought had developed trash ability. Actually, the tone did not sound much different in either case. "I think that was all... no actually, there was that plant guy."


    "Plant guy?" His superior was not unfamiliar about the unprofessional way Thomas could report, however, as he was loyal to himself and did not seem to be wavering in his support, he let this flaw slide.


    "There was this young man, didn''t talk much," Thomas continued, "he had a strong ability over plant life. The base had greenery everywhere, yet they weren''t bothered about even the most dangerous of mutated plants. It seems to be thanks to this youth. Because of him, they even dared to plant vegetables and grain outside!"


    Officer Hughes began tapping his fingers upon the desk once more, thoughts running through his head on how to exploit such a valuable resource. "How interesting."


    Following the reports of the two soldiers, the council members came together to discuss and make decisions. The first was definitely to order their people to return to base; their lives were potentially at risk by being close to the unknown factor of Ren Zexian. He also was a matter of discussion. However, they all had to agree that he could only be labelled a danger.


    They had already witnessed how an ability user became a zombie with the same ability. This Ren Zexian, who Chang Min claimed as Master, could not be underestimated in power. Although neither Faith nor Thomas had personally witnessed his strength, this person had the entire small base in thrall of his ability, as well as Chang Min''s loyalty. It was concluded that he could not be less in power than the earth user they respected for his strength. If such a man became a zombie, it could only be a threat to their continuing survival. Therefore, he had be dealt with.


    If he had already turned, which was the most likely case, then they had to be benevolent and offer those people sanctuary.


    A strong squad of twenty men and women were chosen for this duty, though all were very much aware of the danger, they were promised high rewards by two officers, who happened to separately wish to secure certain people. They left the following morning.


    The convoy was tense, silent as Thomas and Faith led them back to the small base in the village some distance from their own. Zombies were sparse in number, they noticed as they travelled over bumpy, narrow roads and there was only the strange sounds of guttural moo''s echoing from afar. They soon pulled up to the village boundary, the smattering of houses abandoned, with not too few standing in brick rubble, where just a bit further along a tall and extensive wall was very apparent. In order not to appear so hostile, they stopped their vehicles and half headed over on foot.


    They were spotted easily from the wall.


    "Ho, what''s this? Hostile takeover?" A voice filled with sarcasm came from the peak of it, causing them to look up at a sharp angle. Thomas recognised the man as the one who''d been cured of infection. There was a healthy glow in his cheeks as if he''d never been bitten at all.


    Jimmy shouldn''t have been up on the wall, but nursing his injury. Such a wound was not going to heal completely in two weeks. But though there was some discomfort, the man was fed up with lazing around and had pestered Arthur until the other carried him over and tossed him on top, before patrolling the length along with Monika.


    "No such thing," Thomas denied as he lifted his helmet to reveal his face. "We''ve orders to escort our people back. In addition, we were planning on rescuing you people."


    Jimmy tilted his head in question; "Thanks but no thanks, we''ve no need of rescuing. But I''ll call over your people, just a second." He turned away, before yelling out; "Oi, Cole! Go get them lot from the second property! They''ve been summoned!" He looked back down at the gathering soldiers, his expressive face hiding the feelings actually stirring inside himself. F.u.c.k.i.n.g shit! Bastards! What the hell! And they left me alone to deal with it!


    "What do you mean you don''t need rescuing?" Thomas sneered, ignoring the glares of Faith behind him, the woman tugging down her helmet so not to seen by Jimmy upon the walls. Or any of the other people here for that matter. "Haven''t you a threat lurking in your walls?"


    "What threat?" Jimmy sighed with relief as Dexter climbed up on the wall in the next minute, having just come from the first property to look over the crops in front of the third. With Nathan having no interest in his gardens, each person had to check more carefully for mutations and the like. Watering was also the responsibility of every man and woman not already on duty on the walls or caring for the children.


    "You know, Chang Min''s former Master," Thomas responded, unconcerned that this ''leader'' had appeared before him. "You can''t convince me that he''s not turned and isolated in the third mansion for some delusional belief that he can cure himself!"


    The gates suddenly parted to reveal the road leading inside the walls and a number of men standing upon it. Three happened to be the soldiers that the army squad had come to collect, however there was also others.


    Including a serene, oriental man whose arm was wrapped around a blushing youth with long, loose sun kissed copper hair.  "This Gongzi... What seems to be the problem here?"

 Chapter 86 - Eighty Five - Unable To Find His Way

    To rewind a little...


    Nathan had become a cause of concern for many within the survivors'' base; his link to the plant life in the gardens was too strong and the signs that he was not doing well were increasing everyday that Ren Zexian spent in isolation. For instance, the lettuce and cabbage out leaves were more yellow than green. Many of the flowers budding on the tomato plants, established chilli pepper plants and even the wild blackberry bushes had dropped off of the plants before even opening their petals to awaiting insects. The vines on the house were drooping, peeling away from the walls as if too weary to grasp upon the brick and render any longer.


    The child, Lucy, was only one of his visitors attempting to raise his spirits throughout this difficult time.


    The day before that which Brooke left with the two soldiers, Nathan found a couple of worried visitors in his living room.  It seemed he had forgotten to lock the door the night before.


    It was morning, Nathan had awoken at dawn as usual, but one side of the bed remained cold causing a discordant note in the pattern he''d become used to.  This had been the tenth morning of Ren Zexian''s absence, since they told him that Ren Zexian had isolated himself due to the sickness in his blood in order that he might purge it without risking others.  The sickness that would cause a different man to die and become a zombie.  Chang Min had assured Nathan that Ren Zexian would return to him, that he would not die and leave his side forever, but each morning that Nathan had woken up since, Ren Zexian still wasn''t there.


    He rose from his bed, feeling as if his roots were pot-bound and lacking the ability to stretch and breath, making his way to the bathroom as usual to deal with his bladder and wash his body to refresh his skin.  Glancing in the mirror, he noticed that his hair had grown another half-inch since winter and his bangs completely covered his eyes, when not swept aside.  Ordinarily, this would bother him, but Ren Zexian would help him deal tie back his hair after running his fingers through it a few times.  Ren Zexian enjoyed the length of it and often told him so.


    Leaving the bathroom fully dressed, he paused at the table separating the kitchen from the living room.  There was no teapot upon it, stewing freshly brewed tea created from a mix of herbs and tealeaves, no two cups waiting to be filled.  This was how Ren Zexian favoured spending his first few minutes after awakening and once the tea had been poured, they would quietly sip the amber liquid, before Ren Zexian went to wash.  And afterwards, both would sit upon the bed for an hour or so and cultivate together in the morning rays pouring through the window.


    But now, Nathan could only sit at the lonely table inwardly fl.u.s.tered; he no longer knew what he should be doing next.  It was if the carefully planned garden path he always took through the shrubs and flowers was broken and beyond it was just an empty darkness that he could no longer see beyond.  He couldn''t go around it, for that would require him to leave the path and he couldn''t do that.  Leaving the path felt wrong.  And although he understood that the path he used to walk upon was slightly different from this one, he couldn''t turn around and go back and find it either, so all he could do was stop and wait.


    "Nathan," the calmness of the voice had him glancing upward, his eyes brightening beneath his bangs, but in the next moment the light faded as he came to realise that the voice was not quite right of tone.  Indeed, it belonged to an owner that was not a Ren Zexian.  Chang Min looked worriedly at Cole, who''d come with him to check on his Master''s young lover.  The two men had entered while Nathan was in the bathroom, after knocking received no response, so sat upon the sofa waiting for him, but the youth had failed to notice them.  Cole offered Chang Min encouragement in terms of a slight smile.  In truth, he didn''t know what to do either; in the past, when his own emotions had overwhelmed him, that is when he''d used his fists.  He was completely out of his depths sympathising most people, but especially someone as closed off as Nathan.


    "Nathan, Master will recover, I''m sure," Chang Min''s eyes reddened, unsure whether he was reassuring Nathan or himself.  Still he continued; "Master wouldn''t want you to worry about him so."


    The young man just shook his head furiously and wrapped his arms about his chest, rocking slightly upon his chair.


    Cole and Chang Min exchanged glances once more, but the former looked away quickly, unable to endure the large brown eyes begging him for his assistance.  "Why don''t you come with us, get something to eat?"


    Nathan frowned and glanced at the empty table before glancing at the clock.  "I can''t do that," he replied.  "I have to... Xian has to... its not time yet."  He twisted his fingers still reeling in frustration.  His stomach rumbled announcing its displeasure, but he ignored it.


    "Are you not hungry?" Chang Min questioned him after hearing it.


    "It''s not time yet," Nathan insisted, before suddenly rising from his chair and fleeing to his bedroom.  Chang Min turned helplessly to the man beside him.


    "What should we do now?"


    "Do we need to do anything?" Cole couldn''t help but ask, after all, Nathan was an a.d.u.l.t man.  Sure his mind was wired a bit differently, but he was not incapable.


    "I promised Master that I would keep an eye upon him," Chang Min sighed, rising from the sofa and looking in the direction of the closed bedroom door.  "And you have seen how many of the plants in the garden seem to have wilted."  Unlike most here, Chang Min had taken care of plant life before, mostly herbs and rice for the inner Sect and its cruel masters.  He was not without some experience and could see that if nothing changed, many of the crops would fail at this rate.  Ren Zexian had shared a little of his knowledge about Nathan''s abilities with Chang Min thus the latter knew that no amount of fertiliser and tender care would save most of them should Nathan continue to falter.


    Nathan''s abilities were not like plant and wood users that he had known before, nor like the person who shared that plant root on the army base.  The person in base could see out weak and sick plants, helping the latter as a normal farmer might, while removing the latter to not infect the rest, but that was all.  And the Cultivators of his former realm would use their abilities to control plants, force seed to grow into vine in order to trap people, cause trees to bend without wind.  There was no developed link between themselves and the plant, once the plant had no more use, the Cultivator would move on and the plant would be left behind to survive or die as nature dictated.  But Nathan did not move on and his links with the plants in the gardens had reached a symbiotic level.  Things would have been fine if things had continued as Nathan did not have any real grievances towards the people sharing his gardens, however Chang Min was privy to something that could make the gardens no longer hospitable to anyone.


    Chang Min walked over to the bedroom door and tapped upon the wood, Cole quickly followed in his wake.  Chang Min''s glanced over his shoulders into his disciple''s eyes, seeming to seek answers within them, hoping his decision would not be the wrong one.  Cole was not sure what he intended until he spoke.


    "Nathan, I was planning on visiting Master this morning.  Do you wish to go with me?"


    The bedroom door creaked open and two large, sky-coloured eyes peered out from the crack between it and its frame.  "You are going to see Xian?"  They had told him before that Ren Zexian was cultivating and could not be disturbed, so he''d not been able to see him, could only wait for him to return.  The path before Nathan''s eyes seemed to reveal itself as Chang Min nodded in acknowledgement.


    Nathan rushed past him and towards the cottage door, waiting there impatiently for a moment until Chang Min began to follow.


    "Chang Min..." Cole wanted to follow, but the smaller man placed a jade white hand upon his chest to stop him.  Even separated by the thin jersey cotton, the heat from it caused his heart to speed up rapidly and he was mesmerised for a moment.  When he came to his senses, his small ''Master'' and Nathan had already left the cottage.

 Chapter 87 - Eighty Six - Time Is Not Forgiving

    The roses lining the mansion driveway shivered as if a sharp breeze had cut through them, but there was very little wind stirring the air.  The few sunflowers ceased seeking the sun with their large abundant blooms, but instead began to face south.  Other parts of the garden seemed strangely still.


    Nathan took a deep breath as he stepped outside of the front gate with Chang Min; he still did not feel that beyond the boundary of his home was comfortable, especially when he had no Ren Zexian beside him.  He glanced at his calloused fingers before rubbing them together, trying to recall what it felt like to have Ren Zexian''s long, slender fingers entwined with them.  Chang Min patiently waited for him to settle his nerves, needing no apology and Nathan did not provide him with one.  They eyes simply met, however briefly, once Nathan was ready to cross the used road to the third mansion.


    The newly established vines upon the wall moved in excitement as he passed, catching his vision and causing him to relax a little.  And though there was no flowers in the large spacious front gardens before the empty third property, the grass, that had been sagging in the heat of the sun suddenly stretched tall as if to look more impressive.  Even the deadly mutated patch, with its thin, green blades, reacted to him passing, seeming so much more benign.


    Nathan sensed the garden reacting to him, but did not acknowledge the strange feeling for his mind was filled with not flora, but a tall, oriental man that resembled bamboo; strong, willowy, flexible yet quietly elegant.  His heart beat rapidly in his chest and he glanced at Chang Min, who seemed not to want to hurry forward.  Nathan was tempted to push him, even acknowledging that such an act would be rude, even though he did not want to touch the other, but he couldn''t stop the longing in his heart to reach Ren Zexian sooner.


    He''d never really thought of concepts such as time before, simply using the measure of it to plan his days and his gardening tasks, but now he believed he finally understood some of the odd phrases his nanny had used;


    "A watched pot never boils..."


    "Yes it does," the nine year old him had argued.  "It took eight minutes and thirty seconds to boil when the chef heated water to cook pasta."


    "It''s a saying, my sweet.  It simply means that when you wait for something that you want badly, that time seems to take a long time to pass.  A second may seem like a minute, a minute like an hour..."


    "It definitely did not take longer than eight minutes and thirty seconds," he had stubbornly insisted.  Nanny had not argued with him.


    Now he was walking to the third property and it had taken twenty minutes last time he had visited here to walk from his gates to the back of the garden where they had planted the small fields of wheat and corn.  Yet at this moment, if someone had told him that hours had past just to reach the mansion''s front door, he would have believed it.


    The mansion had been in midst of renovation before the end; the carpets had been taken up and most of the downstairs floor was bare floorboards that creaked underfoot or cold, grey concrete.  The rooms themselves were empty, without any furnishings.  There was no kitchen cupboards, a toilet in just one bathroom and some pipes.  But this desolate place was where his Ren Zexian had been cultivating for the past few days.


    Nathan frowned; at home they cultivated on the bed... would the floor boards not be uncomfortable?  Actually, the man was in a large sunroom, surrounded by the glass of its walls and upon a rug covered concrete floor.  His eyes were closed and his skin as translucent as tracing paper.  Nathan''s heart felt sore.  He rushed forward despite Chang Min''s attempts to stop him.


    "Nathan...!" Chang Min faltered.  "There... please come back, there is something you need to know."


    Nathan ignored him, kneeling before the man he longed for, ignoring the discomfort in his knees.  His fingers reached forward, trembling slightly as he touched the worn face, tracing the thin black lines beneath the skin.  His eyes were drawn to the strangely purple lips.


    "Nathan," Chang Min urged, his hand upon the sword at his hip, reading himself if necessary.  His Master had been trying to keep the poison at bay for these past ten days, but as Chang Min had seen with his eyes, the man he''d looked up to for so long was struggling to suppress the spread of it.  He feared the day he would have to return here, sword unsheathed.  "It''s of no use, Nathan, I don''t think... Master is dying."


    Nathan frowned and shook his head before cupping his hands.  "Xian promised he would not leave me," he told Chang Min, who looked on in pained exasperation.  Crystal clear water suddenly formed in the younger man''s cupped hands.


    "What are you doing?" Chang Min asked him.


    "His lips are cracked and dry," Nathan informed him.  "That is a sign that Xian is dehydrated, needs a drink."  That is something he''d learned from his nanny.  Just that it was his first time caring for someone who was sick; before when he''d given water to Aslan and Lucy, they''d been conscious enough to drink by themselves.  The water spilled down Ren Zexian''s robes a little.


    "N..." Chang Min was about to tell him the futility of his actions.  Not only had Ren Zexian consumed a fasting pill, negating his need for food and water, his body was being transformed by the poison making his need for the latter less so.  However, the words became stuck in his throat as he noticed the gem in his Master''s throat move as he swallowed instinctively the precious resource from his lover''s hands.


    In the end, Nathan produced and helped Ren Zexian to drink three times.  A hint of colour filled the otherwise pale cheeks and his lips seemed less stained with illness. Movement could be seen beneath the closed lids and slowly, the dark lashes framing them parted and two obsidian eyes met the sapphire ones and the owner of the former''s lips began to curve upward.


    However, they paused mid-curl.


    "Nathan, how is it you are here?" The youth didn''t answer him, just glanced to one side and to the feet of the culprit guilty of bringing him here.  "Chang Min?"


    "Master, I... I thought he needed to know," his disciple told him, honestly.


    A sigh escaped Ren Zexian''s parted lips and he quickly evaluated the condition of his body.  He didn''t know entirely what had happened to allow him this time with his beloved one, but he suspected what had occurred; there was still wetness upon his lips and moisture upon his robes after all.  In truth, he was both overjoyed and deeply in remorse, able to see his lover this last time, yet regretting that he still had to leave him.


    "Nathan," he murmured softly, catching his beloved''s attention.  "I''ve missed you and I''m sorry I''ve had to be away from your side.  However, I can''t return to you... yet."  He almost did not add the word of hope onto his sentence, did not want Nathan to believe in something that was increasingly seeming not to be true. But he also didn''t want to see the pain in Nathan''s eyes.  And besides, he came from a realm where miracles were rare but not unheard of...  "I have to continue cultivating in order to suppress the poison yin inside me."


    "I will cultivate with you," Nathan gave him a bright smile.  This is what they always did together at home, before breakfast.  Although he could not describe it in words, when Ren Zexian joined him within the garden inside his mind, he always felt it was wonderful and right.


    Chang Min''s eyes widened at the ambiguous nature of the young man''s words and perhaps because in immortal terms, he was as much a youth as the other, he couldn''t help but blurt out; "You dual-cultivate together?"


    Ren Zexian''s pale cheeks coloured with a full blush, but he couldn''t quickly correct his disciple as Nathan questioned; "what is dual-cultivate?"


    "Never mind," Ren Zexian said quickly, clearing his throat one realising the hoarse tone of his words.  However Nathan looked at him with very inquisitive eyes; Nathan was always very interesting in things that involved gardening and now things that involved Ren Zexian.  Very interested.  "It is another way for two people to cultivate together, not too akin to our current practices of cultivation.  Do not concern yourself with details, my love."  Honestly, if he could reverse time, he would perhaps been less of the gentleman... he sighed, no that was unlikely.  He would never force his adorable Nathan to do something he was not ready for.  And he had not been ready for such an intimate act, not quite.


    "But this... wouldn''t this not help you, Master?" Chang Min pressed, then had the shame to blush.  Dual-cultivation was usually beneficial to the parties involved, but also, for the most part, very intimate between the parties involved.  The trust between the two people had to be perfect, there would be no barriers to protect their minds, their souls.  If there was a hint of a heart demon, both could meet tragic fates.  Worse, if that heart demon had grown and tempted one partner into devil cultivation.


    Ren Zexian frowned; he was quickly aware of what Chang Min was implying.


    Ordinarily, dual-cultivation required a body of yin and a body of yang creating a blending of two energies that balanced and complemented each other and could heighten cultivation to a new level.  The more compatible, the better, otherwise it was simply another expression of love.  However, it was not wholly necessary for yin and yang to come together; two bodies of yang could join physically as was required in the method, while two bodies of yin had their own methods to join more spiritually.  In his and Nathan''s case, as he required more yang energy in order to suppress the poison yin, their joining would be very beneficial for him, but...


    He looked into Nathan''s innocent eyes, torn between righteous selflessness and selfish hope.  Nathan remained silent, patiently waiting for Ren Zexian''s approval to cultivate together.  In the end, Ren Zexian''s heart won the inner battle within.


    "Nathan, do you trust me?"

 Chapter 88 - Eighty Seven - Love, S.e.x and Dao Companionship

    Author''s note; One person asked me to indicate where the 18+ stuff begins and ends... unfortunately, I will have to leave that up to everyone''s personal interpretation!  If this was just about s.e.x then I could likely point it out, but the Dual Cultivation description part is mixed in as well which I don''t think could be considered 18+ at all!  Plus I ended up writing two chapters to cover everything.  That said, there is most definitely 18+ stuff in chapter two and trust me, it is obvious where that begins!  I did think about writing a censored version... but I''ve never done that before, so I figured, why do it now?


    *****


    Were Ren Zexian to chose the moment that he took his innocent lover''s first time, it would have been upon a comfortable bed, perhaps one adorned with silken sheets.  The lighting would be subdued and there would be an ambience of sorts.  It was not that he was a romantic man, just that he would have liked to ensure Nathan be as relaxed as possible as they came together to share intimate love reflecting that which they already felt inside.  This ideal experience would just be two men expressing that affection.


    He couldn''t have imagined that his beloved''s v.i.r.g.i.nity would need be lost in order to share yang essence, hopefully strengthening his own reserves in the process so his life might be saved.  It seemed calculating and cold.  He could only inwardly promise to make it up to him later and protect him during the process.  He really worried the poison yin would attempt to spread into Nathan''s body during their joining.  He would never forgive himself should this occur.


    But before the two men could lie together, there were a few things necessary in preparation.  Those physical things, Chang Min had rushed off to obtain.  In the meantime, Ren Zexian sought to enlarge Nathan''s straightforward views.


    "Dual cultivation, in simple terms," Ren Zexian informed him, with just a hint of blush in his pale cheeks, "is achieved through cultivating while... making love."  He hoped that Nathan could understand this term.


    As it happened, he had heard of it before; his father had sat him down at the tender age of twelve and had made some attempt at explaining the side of s.e.x.u.a.l intercourse that was not necessarily about procreation, but about feelings.  The older man had used this term as well.  "Teacher explained in order to have s.e.x.u.a.l intercourse," he had told the red-faced man, "that I would have to touch a girl and she would have to touch me.  I don''t want to touch one."


    "You might change your mind, Nathan," his father had sighed, in truth, he had also wanted to warn of the repercussions of unprotected s.e.x, but he perhaps realised that was definitely a discussion unnecessary for the time being.  "You might find that there comes a time when you find a girl that you like and want to do these things with."


    In the present time, Nathan had found a person he did not mind touching, but it was not a girl.  He shook his head and voiced his thoughts, almost causing Ren Zexian''s heart to break; "We can''t do that, Xian.  We are both men."  Grasping hold of his last sentence, Ren Zexian quickly realised that Nathan knew nothing about the relations between men.


    "Nathan, it is possible for a man to make love to another man," he murmured softly and sure enough, his lover questioned this with open curiosity.


    "How?"


    "You understand how a man makes love to a woman?" Nathan replied an affirmative.  "It is not dissimilar, but men do not have the same... intimate opening as a woman, thus another place is used in substitute.  The entry point is the anus."


    Nathan blinked.  His face was not an overly expressive one, though Ren Zexian easily caught the sparkle in his eyes when he was interested in something, the slight curve of them when he was happy and way he twisted his fingers when sad or distressed.  But at that moment, he couldn''t figure out what was going through the younger man''s mind.  He worried that he had caused his beloved a fright and attempted to soften the blow of the sudden enlightenment.


    "I would do my best to prepare you..." Nathan''s eyes glanced over the other''s distressed expression.  He''d always struggled to interpret the projection of emotions coming from other people, which had often caused misunderstandings and harsh words (although he had never understood what exactly he''d done wrong to receive such).  However he felt the same towards Ren Zexian, at that moment, as he did towards the plants in his garden, like he could feel the older man''s heart.  He suddenly felt the impulse to place a kiss upon Ren Zexian''s dry lips, the whisper of them reassured the Cultivator immensely.


    Still it couldn''t be said that both men''s train''s of thought were upon parallel tracks; there was a gap of understanding that could only be closed through physical exchanges.


    Ren Zexian''s lips covered Nathan''s as he gently pushed the man onto the rug beneath them, his head resting on the pillow Chang Min had brought back for him amongst other things and his fingers began to slide beneath the other''s thin t-shirt, increasing their closeness.  Nathan shuddered slightly when his sensitive skin was subject to the touches, but he didn''t find them unpleasant.  He knew that Ren Zexian would never intentionally do anything to cause him distress and that was further made apparent in the gentleness of his hands.


    One man''s robes were loosened that most of his body was revealed while the other found himself bereft of trousers.  A hand reached to lower the underwear still covering him, but Nathan was fine with this as his p.e.n.i.s had stiffened due to the exchange of kisses and other sensations.  He welcomed Ren Zexian''s assistance.  He wasn''t sure why this was part of the Dual Cultivation; the touching and kissing, but he liked it nonetheless.


    With his sensitivity, it was not long before he spilled his essence into Ren Zexian''s hand becoming boneless in the wake of it.  So he did not struggle nor resist the man''s next movements, just watched as Ren Zexian coated his fingers in a herbal scented oil before those fingers disappeared into the cleft of his rounded bottom.  He instinctively froze, unable to prevent the reaction of his body to the invasion of his anus, his mind quickly analysing the sensation as well as the words Ren Zexian had used before.


    In order for them to connect in Dual Cultivation, Ren Zexian would have s.e.x.u.a.l intercourse with him and that in order for two men to do this, one would stick their p.e.n.i.s into the other''s anus.  At that moment, he had brought up a diagram subsection of a man''s lower body from memory complete with labels and had thought that it did not seem possible that a man''s p.e.n.i.s could fit in the small opening.  But he still trusted Ren Zexian''s words, so brushed the matter aside.


    However, the circ.u.mference of Ren Zexian''s finger was many times smaller that the circ.u.mference of his p.e.n.i.s and just this small invasion was not comfortable that Nathan became nervous.  As if sensing his increasing resistance, the other man whispered softly, hoping to reassure him and relax him with his words.  "Please trust me, Nathan."


    Such a simple sentence, but this worked upon the youth, for following these words before, Ren Zexian had opened a new world of intimacy between them that Nathan not only enjoyed but felt a sense of completion through.  Perhaps when their bodies were joined he would feel the same?


    "It hurts!"  Tears openly shed from his eyes and trailed down the side of his face as sometime later his mind completely retracted his earlier thoughts.  Ren Zexian had pushed his p.e.n.i.s into his anus and there was pain.  He tried to push the other off of him, to escape from the discomfort which was definitely unlike scratches from brambles or blisters in his hands from preparing numerous beds for vegetable plantings.


    "I know, I''m sorry," Ren Zexian covered him completely, his own body revelling in the tight warmth of the other, using willpower tempered through millennia to not seek fruition within the depths.  His heart ached at seeing the results of his own needs, unhappy that this moment was not joyous for his beloved like he had once imagined.  "The pain should recede soon, my love.  I have wronged you."


    Nathan couldn''t help nod in agreement, he did indeed feel wronged!  He couldn''t push the man off of him either and was forced to endure, but as Ren Zexian did not do anything else down there, the pain didn''t seem as bad as at first.  Kisses softly peppered his face and Nathan closed his eyes to focus on the lips gently pressing against his skin.  A thought came to him unbidden.  "Will you really leave me if we don''t Dual Cultivate?"


    "Leaving you would never be my choice, Nathan," Ren Zexian replied, his voice hoarse with emotion.  "However, my ability to fight this poison was not as strong as I had thought.  I can only rely on this last gift you have presented me with."


    "Gift?" Nathan questioned his choice of words, opening his eyes to search the expression of the other, even willing himself to understand it.


    "Yes, beloved," Ren Zexian''s eye''s curved softly and his eyes seemed warm like coals lit to create heat.  "Just allowing us to connect our bodies is a gift in my heart.  However, Dual Cultivation is an even more perfect gift bestowed, for just by agreeing, you have become my Dao Companion; my life partner."  Seeing no understanding, he continued; "It is like a marriage, but it is also not.  It is so much more, my love.  One would only leave there Dao Companion in the event of death and even that may not be an eternal separation."


    "Marriage," Nathan smiled, didn''t he once overhear his grandmother''s concerns that he would not be able to do so when he was small?  His parents had said that was not an issue and Nathan didn''t get the point of marriage, but wouldn''t his parents still be happy that he had a husband... husbands married wives... so what would that make him.  With his thoughts wandering that way and this, he hadn''t noticed the pain was no longer a bother, but Ren Zexian could clearly feel that the other''s hands were no longer pressed against his chest in resistance.


    "Nathan," he called out, lowering his forehead to lightly press against his lover''s.  "Remember the method of cultivation I taught you.  Begin the opening sequence in your  mind, I will join you shortly."  He could not help him through the initial stages as he had always done in the past, he needed to begin his own cultivation before he could split his concentration between them and ensure the smooth transition into a Dual Cultivation method.


    He had worried that the poison yin would attempt to invade Nathan''s body, but it seemed that worry was superfluous; the tainted yin evaded the place where they were connected, instead seeking to attack his body wildly and randomly as if it had awareness and was throwing a tantrum.  Ren Zexian didn''t think overly on this point, the water he had drank had given him the energy to keep it from his vital organs for a while longer.  Yes, Nathan''s water was truly blessed, giving just what was needed at that point in time, such as the small boost Dexter had needed to breakthrough at that time, giving the plants a little extra resistance against the poison yin, hence practically none of his healthy, established crops mutated.  Only sprouts and saplings and plants vulnerable for other reasons were still likely too when it rained, but that was another matter altogether. For Ren Zexian, the water had given him what he needed most; a little more time. Actually, there was more to it, but analysation of it would have to wait, this was not the moment for it.


    Nathan didn''t like to initiate cultivation without Ren Zexian, but with the promise of their souls coming together after a short moment, he did as he was bid.  In his innersea, petals and leaves dropped from stalks and branches, swirling together with dew and water droplets before streaming towards the light of the central, glowing flower.  The particles inherited the glow and danced around through his body in the formation Ren Zexian had taught until he felt as his every cell of his body had become a part of this dance.  He hummed in satisfaction and was not startled by the voice which entered his mind;


    "Very good, now guide it this way."  A whole new path appeared in his mind and he guided the stream of energy towards a hot and frightening hell.

 Chapter 89 - Eighty Eight - A Gift From The Heavens

    Part two of two


    *****


    Ren Zexian''s innersea was not like the beautiful landscaped garden within Nathan. It was unlikely it could be anymore different.


    There was fire everywhere, not only the hot red and orange flames that Nathan often witnessed within his stove, but also there was a fire in the heart of it all that had flames that were black and scalding, threatening to disintegrate to ash anything that they touched. Winds blew violently through the sea of flames, whipping them into a frenzy and even causing whirlwinds of flickering red to burst into the burgundy sky. And there, two moons could be seen. One moon was golden, yet there were spiderweb thin cracks upon one side of it. The other was white-silver, yet there was a swirling mass of darkness violently throwing itself against the silvery edges.


    In amidst of all this, Ren Zexian was standing peacefully, robed and with his hands clasped lightly behind his back. The flames did not touch him, just kissed the hem of his clothing once in a while as if as subdued and gentle as the vines guarding Nathan''s gardens.


    Worried his beloved would be terrified by his volatile energies within his innersea, Ren Zexian had left a projection of himself in wait for his beloved, while he quietly guided his own energies towards Nathan''s body. That projection held out his hand to Nathan and the youth took it without hesitation.


    The petals burned to ash, as they were swept along in the winds, feeding the flames which burned more hungrily. Then the droplets tempered them with their coolness and they fell back a little subdued. The steam and ash produced still held a soft glow and rose into the sky with the wind. The swirling mass inside the silver moon paused its battle and seemed to even retreat, however the wind had no time for it, instead, sweeping the unified energies into the web of meridians beyond the innersea.


    Poison yin fled in the face of it, retreating and as more and more of the gentle glow of the foreign yang energy poured into the meridians, it found the routes of retreat cut off. It was corralled into the innersea, attracted by the black flames, yet resisting the attraction as if aware that in them lie only destruction. The swirling mass in the silvery moon became volatile once more as if demanding the taint to retreat, but there was no choice. It was swept into the shelter of the prison and became trapped inside.


    Meanwhile, the scalding, windswept energy from had entered Nathan''s innersea, burning the plants within his garden before the flames were subdued beneath a wave of water, drawn like a waterspout from the pond. The ash settled on the ground and from it, new stronger shoots of green appeared, their unfurling leaves verdant and with more vitality than before. The water steamed creating a mist in which the glow of the central flower seemed even more bright. The small flickering black flames that still burned here and there was both attracted and repelled by the light and the two came together and formed a sphere as they circled each other.


    As the poison was no longer and issue, the glowing light had gathered more and more inside Ren Zexian''s innersea, it too finding itself caught in dance with the black flames. Both spheres reflected the other and the energies that had been circling within the meridians, burning, soothing, stretching, easing, strengthening and healing were drawn towards the yin yang like spheres circling around them like asteroids around a sun, faster, more excitedly, more thickly until seemingly solid. This mass came in contact with the equalling growing spheres and the energies became less defined, became more compact until the mass could no longer spin due to weight. And then it cracked and exploded.


    Ren Zexian''s eye''s fluttered open as the sparkling dust settled inside his innersea, landing on the sea of flames which crackled contentedly beneath a solid golden moon and calmed silver one. Beneath him, his lover still lie eyes shut but from the movement below his lids, he would also awaken soon. Overwhelmed with joy, Ren Zexian placed a loving kiss upon the youth''s forehead, but felt it did not express a fraction of the emotion welling inside of himself at that moment. This youth, this beautiful young man, it was as if the heavens had given him a most priceless and invaluable treasure.


    His affection had long ago become love and that love had long since solidified in his heart, but now the connection he felt was indescribable. His beloved had not only allowed him this gift of Dao Companionship, but had further more aided his rise to breakthrough the tertiary stage and fix his damaged core. Even more amazing, he''d felt his beloved breakthrough to secondary, thus the youth was more firmly on the path of cultivation, extending his life and the life they could share together.


    Ren Zexian kissed him again.


    As he pulled away from his beloved, Nathan opened his eyes and offered Ren Zexian a beautiful smile. That smile froze for a moment and Ren Zexian felt a tightness grip him in the location that they were connected and almost groaned aloud. "Your p.e.n.i.s is still in me," Nathan mentioned, his thoughts along the line of wondering whether that was so as they need Dual Cultivate some more.


    "I wish to make love to you now, Nathan," Ren Zexian told him, his heart still bursting needing to vent and such would be a perfect way; he could reveal to Nathan just how much he loved him though his body.


    "Haven''t we already had s.e.x.u.a.l intercourse?" Nathan queried.


    Ren Zexian shook his head and placed a kiss upon his lips. "I will show you the difference now." Their lips were once more pressed together and Nathan felt the invasion of Ren Zexian''s tongue, but welcomed it with his own. The skin of his chest was once more subject of exploration, this time, the small soft circles there were lightly brushed over sending sparks of sensation running over his body. At first he couldn''t be sure if he liked it, yet his body was more honest and arched slightly towards the fingers teasing it. A soft whimper escaped his throat.


    At the same time, Nathan became aware of a friction down below. At first he thought Ren Zexian was removing his p.e.n.i.s from his anus, but the movement reversed and the connection deepened. It felt strange, sort of itchy, his body tightened again against the invasion, loosening, then tightened again trying to prevent the loss; he hadn''t finished analysing how he felt with it filling him! He felt Ren Zexian push inside him again, brushing against the tight ring of his hole and expanding his innerwalls and decided although it was strange, he didn''t dislike it.


    Other touches were happening at the same time, his stiff p.e.n.i.s was gripped in a familiar way, stroked until he was drowning in the pleasure again, his h.i.p.s moving in rhythm in complete want. He sought the sensation of fruition, but couldn''t concentrate on seeking it as there was too much information screaming along his senses as sparks of pleasure tricked from his n.i.p.p.l.es, from his p.e.n.i.s, from... lights seemed to explode in front of his eyes as a new burst of feeling came from inside of his body, seeming to originate from a place close to Ren Zexian''s invasion. No, it was caused due to the invasion!


    The thick object brushed against that place again, drowning out the other sensations, demanding Nathan''s attention and his body gripped that which was causing it. Ren Zexian felt the increased tightness and almost shuddered with an explosion of his own, but the timing was not right now.  He willed himself to calm as he continued his persistent, stable movements. His breath caught as Nathan tightened about him again, a gasp coming from the youth in unison, enlightening Ren Zexian. He ensured he pushed inside against the secret within his lover, enjoying the reactions he caused as he drove forward to bring Nathan even more pleasure.


    His beloved''s release came suddenly, his yang essence spilling out between them and the youth flopped exhaustedly beneath him, but Ren Zexian did not stop moving above him, so his sensitive body leaking tears as the pleasure continued to tremor through him. Fortunately before he was too overwhelmed by it, a different sort of warmth filled him down below and the thrusting juddered to a halt.


    Ren Zexian kissed his damp face, once more feeling full of emotion, but he no longer felt the need to expel any of it. He withdrew his now flaccid member and lay beside Nathan upon the rug, sharing the one pillow. Nathan sniffled a little, his body humming in contentment while his mind was swept within the rippling echoes of sensation and to that end, he instinctively curled into Ren Zexian''s embrace and fell asleep.


    Ren Zexian remained awake for sometime, covering them both in his spare robes while using his high internal body heat to keep Nathan comfortable, protectively watching over his beloved''s rest. He did not count the minutes or hours, just peacefully continued to watch.


    The remnant daylight receded into night and the night once more passed once the sun rose in the early hours of the following morning. Nathan''s closed eyes trembled a little bit as he groggily awoke, still nestled into his lover''s embrace.


    "Good morning, Nathan," Ren Zexian murmured softly and pressed a kiss upon his forehead. "How are you feeling?"


    "My anus is sore," Nathan admitted, bluntly. It was aching, lightly burning a little, but it was not unbearable. Other places felt some discomfort too, he also felt sticky and a bit itchy in places. He wanted a shower to clean his body quite desperately and rose from the place they lay in order to do so. However, his legs seemed unstable, he couldn''t quite find his footing. The expression he gave Ren Zexian was one aggrieved.


    The older man did not chuckle out loud, but stood to support his beloved for a moment, then decidedly swept him into his arms, causing Nathan to yelp in surprise. "Trust me," he told the youth before he could struggle instinctively, once more feeling the need to kiss his forehead and express his emotions.


    He took them outside as there was actually no bathroom they could use in the house, they would have to make do with towels that Chang Min had brought them with the pillow and other things, Nathan had to produce water for them to wash with, but he would have done this anyway.  There was no one too close to the property during this hour, the air was still warm thanks to the summer heat and they were further blessed to be undisturbed by flying or sneaky rodent zombies.  Ren Zexian made sure to clean Nathan inside and out, which further brought verbal complaint, but he also used a medication salve to ease his beloved''s discomfort.  There was not a lot left of this healing salve from his own world, so he had not used it in this one, but his heart couldn''t bare to leave his lover in pain.  Nathan was not aware such a treasure was used upon him, but was happy the discomfort was gone from that place at least.


    They sat at the open patio doors of the sun room for a while, drying Nathan''s somewhat cleaned t-shirt while brewing a pot of tea upon a wood fire they''d created on a clear part of the paved patio.  Nathan leaned contentedly against Ren Zexian, a glow still in his cheeks and his eyes unknowingly languid and brilliant.  The web discolouration beneath Ren Zexian''s skin had vanished, his flesh seemed even more pure than before as if carved from the purest, mutton-fat jade, his eyes seemed even more deeper an obsidian than before.  They basked in this glow for sometime, enjoying the refreshment before putting out the fire and slowly they made their way towards the main property for something to eat.


    However, before they could reach it, they were drawn towards a disturbance, an altercation, it seemed, between people of the army base and those of their own haven.  Jimmy was a top the high wall and turned his head to yell inward; "Oi, Cole!  Go get them lot from the second property!  They''ve been summoned!"


    At that moment, both he and Cole, who happened to be with Dexter noticed the pair with their ambiguous aura wandering from the third property''s boundary.  Cole nodded towards them, a smile upon his face before he hurried off to go find the three soldiers, while Dexter seemed to shed a large burden, his shoulders lifting before he too nodded and made his way to the wall.


    The three soldiers were shocked when they saw Ren Zexian, but after they had picked up their jaws, their smiles could not be any less glad than the others.  Ren Zexian greeted everyone with a similar gesture before frowning as he heard the accusations coming from beyond the wall.  His eyes flickered up towards Cole, who grinned as he made his way to open the gates.


    "This Gongzi..." he drawled, with sardonic intention towards the one ''student'' he could say never appreciated his teachings, "What seems to be the problem here?"


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 Chapter 90 - Eighty Nine - Clarify; Just Who Is The Real Enemy

    "Impossible!"


    Ren Zexian was calm of nature, an intellect and someone whose temper had been refined over the millennia. It is not to say that in his youth he was never hot-tempered nor could he say that he was never foolish, however such impulsive reactions had become sharpened on the edge of both instinct and physical honing; he retained swift and decisive action for the battlefield as it had been so for many, many centuries. But, it could not be said that he had no bottom line.


    His obsidian eyes narrowed as they examined the twenty or so men and women before human; their uniform, their equipment, their auras or therefore lack of. He was quick to notice Faith, who still hid her face in the shadow of her headwear, embarrassed by the behaviour of Thomas, who remained brash and unapologetic in the face of facts.


    "Do elaborate," Ren Zexian urged, the curve of his lips remaining soft even though his eyes had hardened. This disturbance upon his serene morning with his beloved was unfortunate at best, as long as misunderstandings were smoothed over, he could continue to enjoy it. He was not the only one who felt discomfort, Nathan gripped his robes a lot more blatant in his unhappiness than his lover.


    Thomas was unwilling and turned with an expression of accusation towards Faith; he had not seen the events that led the woman and the three soldiers who''d remained behind to believe that Ren Zexian carried the infection.  Now seeing that the man not only had no signs of zombification after many days had passed, even appearing to be brimming with health, he felt that the information he''d been fed had been misleading, causing him to be embarrassed in front of a superior.


    "Will someone please tell me just what is going on?" The man in charge of this mission was a few years older than Thomas and someone who he''d looked up to since being stationed in this foreign country.


    "Sir..." he began, uncertain where to start.  As much as he would like to pass the blame, he knew that this officer''s personality was such that he disliked those that pushed bias and refused to take responsibility.


    Faith sighed and stepped forward to advise him from her own point of view, but before a sound could escape her throat, a low guttural noise came from a short distance along with the small rumble of hooves upon dry mud.  Both Dexter and Jimmy glanced down the road from which the soldiers originally came, while a few soldiers followed suit.


    "The herd?" Jimmy questioned.


    Dexter nodded.  "Sounds like it."  He returned his attention to the soldiers and sighed.  "You lot better come inside unless you want turn into a bovine meal."  He received some odd expressions.  "A cow could kill a human even before becoming undead, imagine what a herd of them can do now."


    The officer in charge ushered his people inside in an orderly fashion and the gates were closed behind them just as Dexter caught glance of the bull of the herd staring at the wall with mad, hungry eyes.  Smoke blew from its nostrils before it turned towards the left and lead the herd in that direction.  Dexter shuddered before slapping Jimmy''s shoulder, who happened to look equally as disturbed and was rethinking his decision to end his bed-rest early.


    *****


    The company of soldiers glanced about the green verges and crawling ivy and vines uncomfortably, just as those they''d come to retrieve had all those weeks ago. But again they were quickly warned not to touch the seemingly harmless vegetation and could only linger close to the centre of the crumbling road that linked the three large acreage properties of this small base. Uncomfortable, they really doubted the wisdom of their mission. Before they''d had a goal; eliminate the potentially dangerous undead man that could easily be a threat to their base''s survival and rescue any survivors, prioritising their own men first. Only their commanding officer as well as Faith and Thomas understood that there was slightly more to this command, although the former did not know the political stand point complicating his mission further, but he suspected of much.


    One of those people acting as his superiors had asked him to look out, with the aid of Faith, for a man who could manipulate water into ice and another had asked him to trust Thomas to guide him to a young man who had excellent control over plant life.  Inwardly, he had sneered.  He was not a fool, he understood how important the capabilities of these two could improve the circ.u.mstances at the base, however already from what little his eyes had gleamed from the moment he had arrived here, the close rapport that the men living here was not one they could weaken. It would be difficult to convince those men to accept the double-edged invitation of the base.


    Tossing the secondary mission to the back of his mind, he spied Faith amongst his squad and quietly approached her.  "Clarify; is the initial target that Chinese with the weird get up?"


    Unlike those closest to her, she was not startled by his silent appearance, not so taut of nerve as her comrades due to being in this place.  She nodded slowly, her eyes sweeping towards Ren Zexian and the youth nestling against his side.  The pair, or rather, the oriental man was speaking with Dexter, this base''s clear leader, but she could not hear what was being said.


    "He doesn''t look zombified to me," the man muttered.  In fact, he appeared to be glowing like a man who''d found water after suffering a long drought and if his eyes weren''t deceiving him, that kid he holding close to him had been the one to quench his thirst.


    Faith''s expression twisted slightly before she admitted; "Actually, the survivors here did claim that he''d be able to... fend off the infection and not turn.  But I couldn''t imagine it and Thomas... well you know him better than I, sir."


    The man grunted, not seeming to agree nor disagree with her last statement.  He scratched the lengthening hair upon his chin, momentarily thinking about how many points it was going to cost him for a new razor since his last one had become too blunt to use, before returning to the matter at hand.  The primary mission was clearly defunct, that man was not a zombie and their men (and the secondary targets) were not in need of rescue.  They''d charged here acting like some noble and righteous force only to appear like a hostile one.  Some diplomacy was going to be necessary.


    "Well this sucks," the man sighed; he was a soldier through and through, talking really wasn''t his strong point and he disliked being lead around in circles by words. So despite being more qualified to lead the remnant army in the base than most, he''d left it to others and instead had led squads on numerous missions for food, to rescue survivors and kill zombies.  In his point of view, killing zombies was easier than dealing with the enemy soldiers in Afghanistan; zombies were unthinking monsters, walking corpses and were no longer men with friends or family.  Sure, it might have been tougher if he''d been back in the States, surrounded by familiar neighbours, people he grew up with, folks who''d cared for him, but that was not the case here.


    Finally making a decision, he approached the person Faith pointed out as leading this group of civilian survivors, just as the boy was ushered protectively away and towards the nearest property, the main house according to the schematics he''d received of this place.  "We should talk," he said, bluntly.


    Dexter looked at the robust man in army attire before him.  "Alright."


    It was suggested, then followed through, that the soldiers ought take shelter in the second property''s walls rather than remain in the middle of the road under the increasingly hot rays of the summer sun. Zak and his comrades led the others there, while Dexter hesitated before leading their commanding officer towards the main house; it wasn''t as if no base soldiers had been here before. No point hiding their verdant ''wealth'' now. And so the officer had to walk for many tense minutes up the drive and between rose bushes that seemed normal and mutated, yet benign, with stretches of green lawn beyond them.


    He saw the large chicken coop first, aware that there had been some arrangement during his last outing with these people and the higher ups in which they managed to obtain hens and a rooster from them. He very surprised to see the small herd of sheep lazily grazing on grass beyond that; again, he was aware from the reports that the base owned sheep, a small fact that interested the higher ups immensely, but the fact they were eating outside...? Many thoughts ran through the man''s mind, but he couldn''t decide whether these people were brave or foolish; everyone knew the risks that lie in eating food exposed to the outside world these days and that went for animals as well as humans. Was this whole place a ticking time bomb after all?


    Still, he was not as quick to make snap judgement as Thomas and others he could name, his time in Afghanistan and other places he''d been stationed throughout his years in the army had seen to that. He''d seen men and women who doctors claimed would die from their bloody wounds live to recover. He''d seen soldiers who were destined to live life in a wheelchair due to lost legs get up to walk and run again on prosthetic limbs. He believed in miracles. He believed that facts could not solely explain things that happened in this world.


    Take the whole meditation thing that Chang Min and now his Master attempted to teach the few who had awakened unexplainable abilities since the end. Sure on paper it sounded ridiculous, but in this officer''s mind, it could only truly be dismissed as pointless if it did not show results. They were at war and the enemy''s strength was increasing! Chang Min had long proven his strength was beyond any one ability user the base had, why would they refuse to listen to his words of advice? He, himself, had no ability, but that didn''t mean he hadn''t suggested that the soldiers most loyal to him ignore Chang Min''s words. So he knew of at least two soldiers who usually joined his squad had improved their powers. This had been kept from the higher ups though, those two didn''t want to be assigned for the benefit of those people only.


    So despite instinctive reservations, the officer was open and willing to see what this base was all about for himself. Fortunately, this Dexter guy was a straightforward man, blunt and to the point making things less of a chore and he felt that under other circ.u.mstances, he''d get on well with him.


    Much later, he would leave here understanding how narrow the base''s view had become, though they were not entirely to blame for it. He would speak to those in charge about a policy that was mostly of non-interference with some beneficial co-operation between two parties and remind them that everyone should refocus on the real enemies beyond their walls; zombies. To this end he would even urge them to send more ability users to the civilian base to learn from Chang Min and Chang Min''s Master (he wanted his own men to gain more strength at the very least). Naturally, this suggestion once again split the council''s opinion and lead to bickering, but the officer just rolled his eyes and caused himself a headache trying to think of a scheme to send the two he had on his mind to the other base. Damn it was harder than organising an assault on an enemy''s weapon depot!


    Then, he returned to his small, one room quarters and cracked open a can of beer he''d stashed beneath his bed for a while. He f.u.c.k.i.n.g hated all this negotiation and talking shit.

 Chapter 91 - Ninety - Life Goes On

    Life goes on.


    They''d face their loved ones dying and rising again as ravenous undead as well as finding that many of the survivors were no longer just ordinary men and women.  They''d lost their homes more than once, but were still blessed enough to find a place to once more put down roots.  They''d made new friends, new family, brought together by the strings of fate and had to watch as one of their own walked away without looking back.  Yet life carried on.


    The sheep roamed around looking for fresh and tender grass to graze on, the rooster resumed his early morning salutations towards the sun and the hens still laid eggs.  The plants in the fields, greenhouse and sunrooms continued to absorb the sunlight and demand their roots be refreshed with water now and then and in return, their blossoms bloomed and their fruits swelled in size waiting for the opportune moment to ripen.


    The main house still had twenty occupants, twenty one if Asian the dog was included, while the second property currently had three.  The soldiers, Luke, Theo and Zak remained after the last confrontation between the two bases, still aware that they had much to learn in order to advance their powers, like the youth dubbed landlord, Nathan.


    He, himself, did not fully comprehend what Ren Zexian referred to when he claimed that he''d risen in cultivation to secondary level, just took the older man''s word for it.  However, he was quick to discover that his capacity for creating water had almost doubled from before and he was now able to sense the plant-life beyond the boundaries of his gardens without needing to move towards other areas.  At this point, if he stood outside his cottage door, he could feel the mood of the ivies growing beside the wall''s gates and the pretty, flowering beds of the just beyond the hedge boundary of his garden.


    Ren Zexian appeared behind him, so Nathan retracted his mind from reaching out towards all of the plants and flowers about himself, feeling a little dizzy as he did.  Ren Zexian gently stroked his temple with one hand, while grasping his (Nathan''s) fingers with the other until the strangeness passed.  Then they walked slowly to the main property for breakfast.


    "A fair few zombies seem to be gathering at the Southern most wall," Dexter mentioned as he sipped the raspberry leaf tea, with an inward sigh.  The beverage was refreshing, but he still missed drinking a good cup of coffee now and then.  "But its not like anyone is guiding them; Eraj noticed other northward bound zombies just bypass us and continue on.  They move a lot faster at night these days."


    The whole limbering, sluggish zombie of yesterday were fewer in between.  Now they walked or crawled at a speed the equivalent to a casual walk and only revealed a little stiffness in their joints.  At least, that was the case until a short while after sunrise when many slowed to linger in the shade of nearby trees or of the wall itself.  If this was just after the end, one might have blamed this upon the undead fearing the daylight.  Now it seemed that the rays of the sun were the problem for the walls were always silent after the sun reached a certain point in the sky and until the sun descended somewhat in the west.  This was only on a day like today, however, when the sky was cloudless.


    It was Tyler who''d pointed out these growing patterns, his analytical mind noticing these points during the few hours a week that he helped scout the walls.  To ensure his ice shards would not melt before severing the brain stem of their targets, this was usually in the early morning at sunrise, but he also helped out on rainy days as his ability of water could protect him from the weather.  Basically, he theorised, in layman''s terms to ensure that most of his audience could understand, the zombies were trying not to get sunburnt!  But even he had no answer for Dexter and Eraj''s observation that a lot of the zombies seemed to be heading north.


    Not all, mind you, there were still the odd attacks from varying animal types at the other walls, but for the humanoid ones, north seemed to be the destination of choice.


    After a breakfast of bean and noodle soup, where everyone was lucky if they managed to scrap more than one noodle from their bowl, Ren Zexian kissed the back of Nathan''s hand before heading to the wall.  He and Chang Min were relied on greatly to clear of reduce excessive gatherings of zombies or to deal with the more ferocious animal types, but it was not as if others were not working hard.  For example, Shaun used his metal abilities everyday to develop crossbows and bolts, spears and throwing knives.  And when he wasn''t doing that, he was forcing the metal blades of various kitchen equipment to spin rapidly.  Lucy and Nathan especially enjoyed the strawberry milk he helped make.


    So it was of no surprise (at least to the other ability users in the house) that Shaun swept swiftly through to secondary cultivation stage not long after Nathan.


    Patrick felt a little off about it, as he was still firmly stuck in primary cultivation.  Ren Zexian checked his pulse for him.


    "There is nothing wrong with your pace," the Cultivator assured him.  "There are no obstructions that have formed in your meridians either.  You just require a little more time and patience."


    He was not reconciled.


    Patrick had a bit of a gamer''s mentality when it came to raising his cultivation as if he could mentally picture an experience bar that he needed to fill before he could break through to secondary stage.  Or rather, two experience bars, one for each root.  He also imagined that Dexter and the others had the same.


    This was all in his imagination, but he was not completely wrong in his views; for example, cultivation through meditation of a technique had more benefits that simply constant use of ability, but it wasn''t that practicing those abilities had no benefit at all.  He saw it that if he used his abilities, the relative experience bar filled up a tiny bit, while if he meditated, both filled up a lot more.  This very simple view did not take into account many other factors, such as sudden rare moments of enlightenment that have been known to have allowed Cultivators sudden breakthroughs or life and death battles which have also caused sudden boosts to overall cultivation.


    But following his beliefs, while he reluctantly accepted that it was possible for Shaun to breakthrough as he had a lone root so his later start in cultivation didn''t prevent him from overtaking himself in this regard, Nathan with his two* roots and late start should not.  He would have been even more distressed had he learned that Nathan actually had three roots.


    At first, he decided to practice using his abilities more as Ren Zexian prevented him from meditating during certain times so he had no opportunities to increase cultivation that way.  However, his body root was currently passive, it only activated when his body was attempting to protect itself and so he had no way of pushing this ability in his quest to breakthrough.  He felt that only by battling zombies he might actually have a chance to improve, just that his fighting skills sucked so he was always kept in the rear lines of battle to use his gravity powers from a distance.


    So he could only suffer a bit longer in frustration and try to remain patient as a Ren Zexian had originally suggested.


    And then that commanding officer returned to their gate, but this time, it was with his usual squad members, including two ability users.  One had some control over fire, but he could not create it himself and the other was able to make trees grow rapidly from seeds, but they would lose their vitality after a short time and crumble.  This pair had already received some basic instruction from Chang Min which had improved their abilities already, but wished to learn more; the fire user wanted to be able to create fire and the Wood ability user wanted more control and for the trees not to die.


    The commanding officer had ''smuggled'' them here using the excuse of a mission.  "My ''superiors'' seem to think they still need more proof that your teachings here work," he was clearly scornful when he said this. While the council bickered, the enemy was getting stronger. Just because the majority of walking corpses seemed to be bypassing the base heading north these days, didn''t mean they weren''t still a threat. Plus there were still zombified beasts to deal with. Complacency meant death. Wasting precious time picking holes in an offered solution because it''s not scientific, but without any better solution could also end up leading to death. The officer was not a selfless man, he wasn''t gonna hang around endlessly until a zombie that he couldn''t deal with came and killed him, but he wouldn''t abandoned his duties, so he could only make his chances of survival and that of his subordinates better.


    Ren Zexian had no opinion about teaching the two newcomers and noticed the interest in the eyes of these men and women, believing he may have more students in the future. "Since you''re leaving these two here," Dexter clarified out loud, "will your squad''s lives be compromised in anyway."


    "We''re not going on some overly dangerous mission," the officer mentioned. Or at least on a scale of one to ten, it could be considered about a five. They were heading to one of the two major roads in this region to scavenge through abandoned vehicles. Not that they were predicting much, just ensuring no stone was unturned. The base was more comfortable with more supplies, so even the fuel in the tanks of those cars was wanted. Plus cars were metal and the demand for such had recently increased. There was also the chance to check out any fields on the routes, see if any had reseeded crops missed from last autumn; after all a missed potato could sprout and become a new viable food source. "Of course, two less people is going to make some difference, but we''ll live."


    "Would you accept outside assistance?" Cole asked. Their people seldom left the base, especially after a couple of less than fruitful excursions making them question if it was worth the effort. Cole''s heart was also within these tall, thick walls, but his mental state was suffering for the same reason. No matter how hard he convinced himself that the haven was not a prison, the walls were for their protection, not incarceration, he could not escape the feeling of being closed in. He needed to go out for a bit.


    His eyes glanced guiltily towards Chang Min, who was simply smiling, happy his apprentice wished to gain more experience. The commanding officer looked a little taken aback, but on hearing that Cole had powers over the earth, he did not refuse. Seeing this, Patrick also excitedly volunteered to go with them.


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 Chapter 92 - Ninety One - Feathering The Nest

    As the longest day came and brought with it the shortest of nights, the fruits within the garden began to mature.  Globes of red and orange began to appear amongst the otherwise green tomatoes on their supported stalks.  The first of the deep purple aubergines'' were ready to be cut from their plants.  Cuc.u.mbers, gherkins and courgettes were hiding amongst the leaves of their vines with a handful here and there waiting to be picked.  Food within the garden was becoming ever more abundant and plentiful.  So, although there was no more flour to make bread or noodles, there was more than enough to fill stomachs with all of the fresh produce at hand and the pork in the ice cellar.


    Thus the decision was made to allow the hens to keep their fertilised eggs for hatching.


    According to the book that they had regarding raising chickens, this shouldn''t be an easy thing; many egg laying hens raised by people had lost their natural maternal instincts and it was not as if they had incubation equipment.  They asked the soldiers about the base''s hens, but only Luke had any contact with those birds, as he helped fill up their water tank sometimes.


    "There was one or two hens that just began to act odd, wouldn''t let us near their nests, wouldn''t leave them to get food," he recalled, vaguely.  "Their keepers weren''t experienced either, were worried about them being sick and spreading bugs, so the healthy birds were moved and the keepers put feed right in front of the others to make sure they''d eat.  Sometime after, the eggs beneath them hatched."  Since then, the maternal hens were allowed to breed, while the other hens kept supplying eggs for consumption.  But that was the base''s lucky situation.


    Tyler, Dexter and Autumn could only stare at the hens, see if any of their girls were broody.  They couldn''t really tell.


    A certain little girl nudged in between them to stare along side, then tugged Autumn''s blouse with one hand.  The woman smiled indulgently and kneeled beside the child she adored.  "What is it?"


    Lucy pointed to one of the birds, then pointed to another and another before dropping her raised hand.  Autumn and the men frowned in confusion, then looked at the three hens'' Lucy had pointed to.  They didn''t seem any different to the other birds... but what to say to the child not to disappoint nor discourage her...  "Does Lucy want to play with them?" Autumn asked, only for the little girl to shake her head.  Then she looked behind them at someone in the distance and waved.


    Autumn rose to her feet as all three a.d.u.l.ts noticed Ren Zexian approaching in an unhurried manner.  Nathan was walking close by his side.  "Good morning," Ren Zexian smiled lightly as he greeted them.


    Since the last incident which had forced the couple to separate, the two men had become even closer and stickier, the atmosphere about them so pink that even a person with no imagination thought they saw blooms of roses with sparkling dew upon silken petals surrounding them both. Not that neither man physically clung to the other, just that if there was a space between them while they walked together, it was nothing more than a hair''s breadth. And after breakfast and in the evening after dinner, they could be seen walking together closely.


    Lucy didn''t seem disturbed by the atmosphere surrounding the Cultivator and his lover nor did she worry about coming in between them.  She rushed over without qualms to tug at Ren Zexian''s loose sleeves, before indicating the hens once more. "Ah, I see," Ren Zexian patted her little head as he replied.


    The three a.d.u.l.ts opposite looked at him in query, urging him to share his understandings with their eyes. He chuckled, before saying; "she simply is indicating which of these birds you should pick."


    Dexter scratched his head, still confused. "For what?" He couldn''t help but ask, but Autumn had a small epiphany and kneeled back down to face the little girl.


    "Those birds want to be mother birds?" She asked the child, who smiled brightly and nodded, before receiving a warm hug that caused her to giggle. "My daughter is just so clever!"  It came naturally for Autumn to refer to Lucy so, just as Lucy had come to call her ''mama'' when speaking those rare times.  And as for other times, no one thought to question her lack of speech, just knew that she would do so more freely when she was ready to.


    "How does she know?" Tyler questioned, slightly sceptical, as he peered into the cage to once more attempt to figure out differences between all of the hens behaviours.


    "Ah, did I never mention?" Ren Zexian answered him, nonchalantly. "Lucy has a spirit root."


    Spirit Roots were secondary roots and whilst they were under the umbrella of the same name, they tended to manifest in different ways which made the root quite mysterious. For instance, Ren Zexian once met a Healer with spirit roots who could always tell where the sickness lie within his patients and then there was a junior sister who could always distinguish those who were lying from those telling the truth. But while to the uniformed, these abilities seemed as if they were developed from differing body roots, in fact, that Healer and that junior sister could cultivate using the same spirit methods and techniques.


    In little Lucy, the ability was already quite apparent, it was an affinity with animals and beasts. Had she been a part of his old world, the child would have already caught the eye of many Beast Taming Masters.


    "You did not," Tyler replied in retort.


    Regardless of the misinformation, with the small details that Luke could share with them, the decision was made to seperate the three hens from the rest. A large wooden shed that had seen better days was purloined from the abandoned village, along with any useable planks from fences or sheds. The shed was fixed up a bit, the roof recovered and three reasonable spaced pens were built within, each with their own small henhouse. With little Lucy''s help, the three hens were transferred into their new homes over the next week, to nurture a number of eggs believed to be fertile.


    As they were in the midst of this, the army base squad returned with Cole and Patrick and took back their own men.  The pair had been gifted new techniques by Ren Zexian to better suit their roots of Flame and Wood with advice and information regarding their abilities. The fire user was disappointed that he would be unable to create fire himself, while the Wood ability user was surprised just how powerful his own abilities could be in the future. And while it was early days, they both felt the differences in the old technique given to them by Chang Min and the ones taught by his Master, so overall both were grateful.


    The squad had picked up bits and pieces including a truck filled with pallets, the wood ever suitable for building or burning, siphoned fuel from cars, both petrol and diesel and bags of clothing that had been intended for charity. Cole and Patrick had asked if they could take a few coats and boots from these, something their household lacked. The soldiers freely gave them and it was agreed that if the squad went out again soon, that the ability users could come back to learn a few things, while Cole and Patrick or anyone else who wished to, could got out with the squad to gain experience. Autumn sent them away with a jar of pickled gherkins, which they felt a little guilty accepting, but also reinforced the determination to keep and nurture this new alliance between themselves and these people. Even if it meant defying the higher ups in their own base in the future (though they doubted it would ever come to something so drastic).


    Cole thanked the commanding officer, the man answering to the name Rhodes, before making a beeline towards the one he missed the most during his time away, while Patrick went to find Ren Zexian, to see if he had improved his cultivation.

 Chapter 93 - Ninety Two - Enduring Relationsh.i.p.s

    The night was quiet with a slither of a moon surrounded by an ocean of stars above the sleeping world. Chang Min had awoken a little bit before the end and had experienced the hazy amber aura caused by the artificial lighting that the humans of this world used instead of torch or Mage light, but he could definitely say that he felt less perturbed by the current world that was without. As he sat upon the wall, listening to the occasional rustle of leaves and the distant scuffling of unknown entities, he could feel the similarities between his home realm and this one in broken moments such as this.


    But there were differences as well.


    The spiritual energy was thin, not too different from his home realm, but different in the way that it was natural here for it to be so. That and due to the current situation the world had fallen in, this energy leaned towards being predominantly yin. But the other differences were the attachments; the attachments he had formed back in the realm of his birth were all in amongst that small group of travelling Cultivators that he had become a part of. Those he knew not the fate of he did somewhat feel the lack of, though as he had already found his Master, they were a little like shadows at the cusp of noon in summer in his heart.


    In this realm, in this place he''d formed new attachments. Not so much with the people he''d protected in the army base, but here amongst this small family. And at this moment, in the quiet of the warm, solemn night, he felt strongly the attachment of one person who was not currently beside him.


    Footsteps disturbed his musings and he glanced upward to witness Tyler and Eraj walking along the wall towards him. Both had pulled night duty this week with him, along with Harry and Arthur and two of the soldiers from the second property. One ability user would be paired with one ordinary person, Chang Min and Ren Zexian were the exception.


    "How is it?" Tyler asked beneath his breath. He''d volunteered for night duties; the heat of the summer days had become unbearably too much for his slightly altered body. Eventually, his own abilities tempered towards the variant of ice would help him cope with future heatwaves, but at this time, he could only endure. It did not interfere with his other duties of providing drinking water and ensuring their ice cellar remained frozen.


    Chang Min turned his attentions back out westward before replying; "About three li in that direction, there currently passes a small zombie hoard of roughly two hundred bodies. From their footfall, I''d say they were predominantly humanoid. They move north, as the rest." Tyler calculated; from what he had learned of the youth Nan Li Liang, a li was a length that differed in meaning over his father''s ancestral history. However, they had deduced from speaking to both Chang Min and Ren Zexian that where they were from originally, it was somewhat over 500 metres. Where the strange pair were from originally... the rest of them had thrown this long since to the back of their minds. It no longer mattered in the scheme of things.


    "Don''t you find it odd?" Eraj voiced his opinion, thinking of the zombies that had brushed past the wall the previous night. His excellent night vision was not a fortune when seeing the distorted bodies of those that had once been human. Fortunately, the zombies had seemed less interested in attacking the wall for the food above their heads than they had been travelling north. "That they all seem to be heading in the same direction?"


    "Like birds," Tyler mumbled, causing Eraj to look at him in question. "Don''t birds fly south in the winter only to return in the summer? It''s not impossible that the zombies aren''t doing something similar. They all disappear by noon as well remember."


    "Noon is when the yang energy is at its strongest," Chang Min replied, touching upon something for the moment, but it quickly escaped his grasp as he rose to his feet to begin his patrol. He would leave Tyler and Eraj here to continue to watch while they rested as he moved towards the pair watching a different portion of the wall.


    Eraj watched him go. "He seemed a bit... distracted."


    Tyler''s expression was drawn into a sneer. "That''s not surprising, did his burly shadow not leave on another mission with that army squad just the day before yesterday." Not only him, but Patrick also left the compound to assist, while two soldiers one again remained to receive Ren Zexian''s teachings.


    The gears took a while to tick in Eraj''s mind before his eyes widened as he stared at Tyler in realisation, the latter nodding in confirmation. "Ah, everyone seems to be pairing off these days! Why do I have to remain single?!"


    "No one is forcing you to," Tyler pointed out, but as both men''s minds considered the lone single woman amongst them, they shook their heads in unison. Neither felt capable of wooing that one, even if Monika was in the mood to be receptive to such. Melancholy fell over both of the single and straight men, who then proceeded to comfort themselves silently that perhaps out of all of them, Jonah should be pitied the most.


    However, as pitiful as they considered themselves to be, Dexter was experiencing dispiritedness of a different sort.


    Just as the last body left the kitchen, stomach padded with a slightly oily breakfast of wafer-thin bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes, sliced potatoes and half a boiled egg, Autumn began chopping the last of the harvested spring vegetables for soup for lunch. Dexter placed the damp t-towel to one side, planning on hanging it out to dry later, before he looked at his nearly inexhaustible woman.


    Every morning, she was the first to rise to brew some sort of herbal tea and prepare a breakfast of sorts for their large family and the soldiers who''d already handed over the small supplies they''d brought with them to eat, naturally preferring home cooking to instant noodles, rice or pasta. And as soon as the many waves of breakfast were over, she''d handle lunch before taking a break to cultivate then beginning dinner. She did this day in and day out, occasionally with an assistant, but mostly she was content without. However, Dexter was not content at all.


    Rubbing the stubble on his beard, for his last razor was waiting upon Shaun to clean it up and sharpen it''s blades, he decided that things needed to change. Everyone in the base had at least a day off in a week to rest, everyone it seemed except his lover. His eyes narrowed in contemplation.


    Ren Zexian''s eye''s were also narrowed in similar contemplation as he observed the slight frame of his lover as the youth examined the few melon vines sheltered in the greenhouse for the male and female flowers on the ones not yet bearing fruit.  Comfortable in the older man''s presence, Nathan softly rambled on; "That empty house, it could be good if we can grow more things in some of the brighter rooms.  The strawberries, the radishes and the peas don''t like the rain, but there''s only so much room in here.  And the radishes aren''t good in the heat."


    Actually, they could no longer eat radish or lettuce.  The high temperatures had encouraged these both to bolt and flower.  As it happened, the small, green seed pods produced by the radishes were still edible, but the lettuce leaves no longer tasted good and were tougher.  Nathan could only collect their seeds and wait until it was cooler to plant a fresh.  Some of the north facing rooms in the empty house could be good for lettuce growing...


    "We''ll speak to Dexter and the others about it," Ren Zexian promised as he sat in a relaxed manner close by, earning himself a bright smile which caused his aching heart to thump.


    Following the hurried yet still unforgettable experience of their first joining, their relationship had not so much progressed as had taken a step or so back.  Nathan did not shy away from his kisses and gentle embrace, but would call a stop at more intimacy, not even following through on his original wish for Ren Zexian to help him when his body troubled him.  Instead, he would retreat and call forth water to shower.  Ren Zexian knew he had experienced some pain during and discomfort following, he could only bide his time at first, but it seemed that the more he waited, the more Nathan would push him to endure.


    "Nathan," he said with an inaudible sigh.  The youth looked at him with crystal clear eyes.  "Do you dislike what we did that day in the empty house?"


    Nathan blinked once or twice, his eyes sliding sideways, but he truthfully answered; "No.  It did hurt at first, but it made you well.  You stayed with me."


    "Yes, dual cultivating with you did make me well," his eyes curved, joyful inside despite the frustration. "What about when I made love to you, after cultivating, how did you feel?"


    "Scared."


    Ren Zexian sat upright, slightly startled by his response. There was a flicker of concern within the depths of his black pupils as he questioned Nathan; "Why did you feel so?"


    Nathan frowned, lines etched upon his brow, trying to find the words. "So many things..." he murmured then added; "My heart was racing really fast in my chest, I thought it would burst and my brain as well. I couldn''t even see for a time, it was all white!"


    Ren Zexian was swift to interpret his words; "I overwhelmed you," he rose to his feet to encompass Nathan in his arms. "I''ll admit, making love to you was extremely wonderful for me and I would like to do so again, but when you are ready."


    "You liked it?"


    "Very much so," Ren Zexian advised him. "But if it frightens you, then I won''t do so. I will wait."


    Nathan nestled in his arms, laying his cheek upon the other''s shoulder. What was running through his mind, only he would know, but what came from his lips was; "It was scary, but it was okay because I was with you. And I like you, Xian."


    "I love you, Nathan," the Cultivator felt at ease in his heart, as if it sensed that everything would be fine between them once more. He''d tasted his beloved once and in doing so he''d become impatient to do so again. Their relationship was still developing, still being tested, that was normal. As long as they continued to communicate openly, continued to share affection, they would overcome this minor obstacle and all obstacles that formed in their way. Such a love would always endure.


    The following day, breakfast, lunch and dinner were all types of stir fries. There were some complaints, which were quickly silenced by one glare from Dexter, who then proceeded to pamper his woman.


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 Chapter 94 - Ninety Three - New People Bring New Troubles

    The ground rumbled beneath their feet and a small grey green nose poked out from the crumbling soil, followed by a hairless, blind head with rotted, black teeth. It sensed a living form and hissed before attempting to dive back into its hole. However, the long metal blade of a sword pierced into its fragile skull, killing it then drawing its ugly corpse from the earth.


    It wasn''t known when these undead moles had burrowed into their garden, only that they were somewhat harmless compared to other zombies. They weren''t so interested in living flesh and blood seeking instead rotting corpses within and above the ground to feed upon. Generally, the survivors burned any undead that they killed out and within their walls and nothing, not even bone, could escape Ren Zexian''s vicious flames. However, that which fell foul of the mutant vines were not necessarily treated the same way, not to mention that the survivors had only buried the inedible offal from the giant boar-pig that time. It was suspected that this had caught the scavenging moles attention.


    The corpse was tossed onto the pile of its brethren, its skin suddenly shrinking, wrinkling like the skin of an apple left too long beneath the sun. Chang Min tapped the ground with his foot sending minute tremors through the soil before glancing back up at his Master.


    "I believe that was the last one," he advised the other man, who sighed before revealing a relieved smile. Even for a cultivator with his inner fire, the weather seemed too hot this day.


    Ren Zexian nodded to Chang Min, who hurried to grab a drink of water to quench his thirst as his master added to the heated atmosphere with a obsidian bonfire. Sweat beaded on his brow as he watched the corpse pile burn to cinders before dismissing the fire and retreating into the slightly cooler space within the first property. Large bowls of ice appeared were dotted around the large reception room to further bring down the temperature, Tyler would refreeze the water whenever it melted too much and several bodies congregated to enjoy the substitute air cooling system.


    Nathan hurried to his side with an originally empty glass which began to fill as he did so. Ren Zexian took it from his hands, gratefully. His beloved would not usually join a gathering such as this which went to offer yet another reminder of just how unbearable the temperature had become.


    Many of the windows within the greenhouse were open, allowing the hot air to escape, while shade had been provided for the sheep as well as constant fresh water. The chicken''s pen had been expanded to allow most of them to freely roam beneath shade. The mothers had to make do with melting ice in the corner furthest from their nests as well as an adjusted door, the top half open to allow fresh air to circulate.


    Those having to watch the wall were cycled out every half an hour to refreshen up with drinks or beneath a make shift shower, the water provided by the soldier, Luke. None of the patrollers on the day shift were having an easy time of it. From the kitchen came chilled cuc.u.mber and herb soup, fruit salad made with a mix of berries and melon, topped with toasted melon seeds and a little cream skimmed from the sheep''s milk and combined with a hint of mint. With all dishes having been cooled slightly within ice, they were especially refreshing.


    As the afternoon progressed, a breeze began to pick up speed providing a little more relief and as those on patrol savoured it, they noticed movement upon the road; the allied squad had returned. They were not alone.


    Amongst the increasingly familiar faces of the soldiers in the squad and not far away from Patrick and Cole were a mix of eight men, women and children.  They looked tired with varying levels of dispair within their eyes, tear stains marred the girl-child''s cheeks and the eldest woman''s long skirt was torn.


    The squad''s commander, Rhodes, looked sheepish, scratching his neck as he gave Dexter a run down on what they had encountered out there. These people were survivors from a small fallen base little over an hour away by road.


    "We''d been checking out some fields further north; it''s not like we had the space to store all of last year''s harvest after we stripped the local fields bare, we had to abandon some," he stated.


    This had been their mission, as well as searching houses in the town and villages along the way. It had been a lengthy journey spanning a few days with mixed results. For instance, they found a practically untouched village, with a few weak zombies still trapped in their abodes with tins and packaged food still surprisingly intact, a bit was even in date. The town had clearly been a target of survivors, doors torn off hinges or smashed in and left to the elements, cupboard doors broken and the front window glass shattered as shops had been vandalised and pillaged. But the worst thing was that the majority of the plants in the fields had mutated.


    "At the last tiny village we got to, we called it a night with plans to return home. But as the sun began to set, we suddenly heard the cries of people as well as the screams."


    Surprisingly, in the middle of one of those mutated fields was a garden nursery, large connected buildings of both brick and glass. In the latter, before the end, used to be a massive variety of pot plants, flowers, shrubs and even edible plants, all for purchase for gardens, while in the brick buildings pots, soil and seeds were sold and stored. There was even a small cafe with its own kitchenette. Naturally, this place made quite the base in a world where plants could turn into monsters if left outside and zombies were generally concentrated where once populations of the living had been. Of course, it can''t be stated to be the most secure place, but at first, wandering zombies were few and weak, the roof prevented birds from getting in and then the fields of mutated plants actually protected them even more.


    They quietly lived and farmed in this group of buildings after gathering from abandoned villages and farmhouses close by. But their luck did not hold forever.


    "They were attacked by a large group of zombies, which seemed to be led by one with ash black skin and another with no jaw. The mutant plants were burned down or otherwise pacified. They were surrounded in all directions and the zombies threw rocks or themselves at the glass until it began to break. Some fought, some took refuge in more secure spaces, one group, who were injured in the fight tried to lead the majority of the zombies away. There would have been no hope at all for any of them had the sun not risen and the majority suddenly upped sticks and left."


    Out of more than five hundred people, only sixty odd survived that attack. Seizing the chance once the sun was past the highest point in the sky, the remaining people fled from their fallen base, but the wandering zombies did not make it easy for them. Worse, the mutant plants that had not been set on fire to burn that night once more came to life to claim new nutrients for themselves. The people could only run, fight and pray. They arrived at the village chased by a pack of mutant foxes, who caught an older man in their hunt before the soldiers shot them down in an attempt to save him. Unfortunately, he took his last breath before they could reach him.


    Now only thirty nine survivors lived.


    They had watched friends and family, people they had grown close to and supported while in turn being supported, bitten and consumed by undead zombies, torn apart and dissolved by mutant plants and hunted to death by ravenous beasts. It was no wonder they were weary to the core of their souls.


    "We travelled back with them, taking the majority to the base. It was just this family wanted to stay together, but the base couldn''t ensure that was possible. We just don''t have the space for such a large group."


    In truth, the group could have split up a bit. As far as blood relations were concerned, there was an a.d.u.l.t man in his twenties and his teenaged nephew, an a.d.u.l.t woman, her twin brother and his two young children, then another man, who looked about thirty and his middle aged mother. That last man also happened to be distantly related to the twin brother and sister, while the first man had developed an intimate relationship with the sister over the last year and they didn''t want to be apart.


    Dexter frowned glancing over at the cousin and his mother, guessing that theirs was less a reliant relationship due to blood, but that the brother and sister were tall pillars to lean on. Sure enough, the brother revealed that he had joint fire and lightning abilities, while the boyfriend''s nephew could produce water.


    "No!"


    All three and a half feet of blond princess upon the back of her loyal black hound pointed at the cousin and his mother with defiance. Aslan growled viciously, causing the smallest of the three children to burst into tears. The brother hushed the toddler in his arms, whispering softly in an attempt to comfort him.


    The other man and middle-aged relative looked startled then glanced at each other, before the woman fell to her knees dramatically and began to weep loudly. The man bent his back and cautiously sidled forward. "Could it be," he said with a wheedling, saddened tone, "my June actually survived?"


    Dexter''s hands curled into fists, his heart suddenly furious, yet at the same time sore as they commanded more and more attention from those around them, while they staked their claims.


    "Praise be to God!" The woman wailed and shuffled closer to little Lucy, opening out her arms as if to embrace her.


    Aslan did not allow her to get any closer to his ward and did not quieten his growls.


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 Chapter 95 - Ninety Four - Putting Children First

    Lucy''s circ.u.mstances only those of the first squad, Ren Zexian and Nathan understood, the others had not enquired.  In those first few weeks of these trying and difficult times, it had not been unusual to find children alone and without much support.  Two such children lived amongst them, though Nan Li Liang had had the advantage of age and learning aiding his survival.  A toddler surviving in these circ.u.mstances could only be due to a miracle.


    Said miracle was currently growing loudly, his black fur bristled upon his body to the point where the hair seemed to leap from his frame, turning into dissipating fog before their eyes.  He clearly did not look like a normal, large dog and caused the older woman to hesitate even retreat a few steps.


    "Monster!" She blurted and clutched the clothes of her son.  That man had turned pale white, even attempted to shove his mother''s body in front of him, revealing his cowardly nature.


    "What is going on here?" Rhodes nudged Cole who could only shake his head, glancing instead at Patrick.


    Being much more in the know, the shorter man informed them; "Well, when we settled here originally, we explored the village for resources.  We discovered Lucy and Aslan there.  He is very protective of her, we believe it was thanks to him that she managed to survive."


    Rhodes frowned.  "How long into the apocalypse was that?"


    "Just over three months."


    A hint of guilt and shame flickered in the son''s expression but was gone in the next heartbeat.  "Maybe we were mistaken," he tittered.  "She simply looks like my daughter did."  His mother nodded heavily still staring warily at Aslan who''s growls had quietened.  The hound licked his black nose before his eyes shifted towards his ward for a moment and then he sat down, allowing the child to slide from his back.


    Lucy ran to Dexter, raising her arms to be lifted by the man, who naturally obliged.  She pointed at the shameless couple, repeating that they were ''bad'' before sticking her thumb in her mouth and nestling her head into the man''s shoulder.  Her sight did not waver from the older woman and her son as if she was still guarding against them.


    Having lived for many, many lifetimes, Ren Zexian was not a man that did not understand human nature.  Humans were often selfish, prioritising themselves over others and not every parent would die to protect their children, let alone children unrelated to them.  Being young did not save them either.  Emperors were known for wiping out whole families including babies due to the sins of one man or woman.  Cultivators had killed good seedlings, fearful that they might be a threat to them in the future.  Peasants in the village of his birth sold their children during droughts and times of famine, so at least they would not starve.


    And it was easy to imagine that a father might abandon his daughter to the wave of undead zombies in his village in order that he might live.


    That said, there were many times where he''d witnessed scenes that could only be considered altruistic, without any fathomable ulterior motive, without thought to their own reputation or to their own well being. Such as the time a mortal doctor joined a small group of Healers and headed into an area experiencing an disease of epidemic proportions to help ease the suffering of the sick and dying, to try to find a cure with those immortal men and women, whose chances of catching the disease was so much less. Ren Zexian, himself, had helped with containment; a much crueller task that it sounded as he''d had to kill more than one mortal attempting to escape the epidemic and would not listen to reason or be coaxed to turn back. As it was, of a million mortals, only a hundred thousand survived, that mortal doctor still experienced a brush with death in the end, but survived. Had the containment been unsuccessful, billions of more people could have been at risk as well.


    So where there were shadows, there was also light. Where there was selfishness, there would also be selflessness. Where a man might sacrifice a child to save himself, a man might also save a child regardless of the price. The male cousin of the man, who may have just sacrificed the little blond girl twice, frowned as he held his own children closer to his frame.  His blood-related daughter, who currently held his leg, sensitive to the undercurrents of tension in the air, was his life.  Her birth had expanded his world, his views and awakened a protective nature within him that he had never before imagined that he had.  Granted, things had not worked out with her mother, they''d both been children themselves, but the first thing he had done when the apocalypse hit was to rush to his former girlfriend''s door to find his daughter and he''d arrived just in time to save her from her mother''s hungry grasp.  His blood turned cold whenever he thought about what would have happened had he arrived just half a minute late.


    While he was not as close to his little son, the child left to him by a friend during their flight to find a safe place, one that she had not reached in the end, he couldn''t imagine abandoning him just because they did not share blood.  His eyes fell upon the little blond-haired girl who he knew did not share his cousin''s blood.  If he recalled correctly, the little girl, June, was the daughter of his wife.


    "You said that your stepdaughter was lost with her mother," he pointed out, suddenly not willing to let his cousin off so lightly.  He''d never actually liked the man, but he was his uncle''s son and the older woman his uncle''s wife.  They were family, so he and his sister had supported them as such.


    "She was, she was!" His cousin insisted, his eyes shifting from side to side, unable to meet the other''s intense gaze.


    "We would have been eaten by my daughter-in-law had we not escaped!" His aunt added to reinforce their story.  This was not completely untrue; the sick young woman had slept downstairs so not disturb her husband''s rest and they''d found her limbered around downstairs that morning. She''d hurried towards them once she''d caught their scent, seeking their flesh.


    "So you saw June killed or turned?" The man pressed on.


    "Y-yeah, yes!"  No one missed the fact that they exchanged glances before replying.  There was a wave of disgust throughout the survivors watching this scene.  While none of them could claim to have been altruistic during the apocalypse, indeed all had had moments where they had to weigh the lives of others against their own lives or lives they were already responsible for, but Lucy was one of their own.  To imagine that she, a small child, had been abandoned without hesitation made them sick to their stomachs.


    Dexter immediately wanted to refuse this selfish pair a chance to enter their home, however before he could open his mouth to speak, the male twin stepped in first.  "Cousin, admit your mistakes before you make an even greater fool of yourself." Before his cousin could refute, he turned towards Dexter, who still held the girl child to his chest.  "We hoped to be able to find a place together in your base, however, we understand if that is not possible.  What they have done... they are our relations, taking responsibility for their actions is not unexpected."


    Subconsciously, Dexter glances at the daughter of his heart, who nodded, brushing her small face against his chest as she did so.  "It''s not that we don''t welcome you," he then told the other man, "but if you want us to let that pair in, I''m afraid we can''t agree."


    "Understood," the man replied and turned towards the rest of his family to discuss it.  The cousin and his mother sidled over, hoping to cling to the twins'' thighs, not willing to be abandoned themselves.  However, in all of the time that the twins had been supporting this mother and son pair, they had not once attempted to better themselves.  The son was lazy and overly proud, using the excuse of his relative''s strength to subdue unhappy voices and gain more resources for himself.  While the older woman was the complaining type; her feet hurt, her arms ached, there was pain in her lower back!  The food was cold, unseasoned, boring!  The children were too naughty and tiring!  She was too ''old'' to deal with them!  Both barely did the minimum amount of work in base.


    In this era, people could not live without relying on themselves first and such relatives were an anchor weight that would only do them harm in the end.  They had children to think of as well as themselves and if this pair could abandon a step-child without a second thought, they could easily leave their own children to fend for themselves as well and of course neither the twins nor the girl''s partner could accept this.


    The young woman turned towards Rhodes and his men.  "I don''t like to ask under the circ.u.mstances, but they are still family," she began, her shoulders resigned, "but could you please allow them entry into the army base.  I don''t wish their death."


    "You''re going to leave us?" The cousin stiffened and the older woman looked shocked, as if she''d never anticipated such could happen to them.  In all honesty, if it hadn''t been for the brother/sister pair fighting their way clear, protecting them all the way, they would not have survived the fall of their small base.  Even the sister''s partner had raised a baseball bat in attempts to smash the bodies of mutants who approached to near. How could they survive without clinging to their relative''s thighs?!


    "No, no, no, you can''t possibly!" The middle-aged woman begged the twin cousins.  "Look, these people are just making excuses, probably don''t want any of us here.  We''ll all go back to base.  After a while, I''m sure we can earn ourselves a place together..."


    "Aunt, please don''t make this any more difficult for us," the boyfriend grabbed his girlfriend''s hands to comfort her as the young woman wavered.  He was never fond of this pair of leeches; they had long drained his compassion as relatives of his girlfriend with their lazy ways and large mouths.  When their small community had been thriving, it had been a nuisance, but they weren''t alone in their antics and the majority of people had pulled enough weight to cover them and their ilk.  Despite the growing dislike for them, no one had been heartless enough to throw the minority out to their potential doom.  They''d seen enough death and experienced enough heartache.  He hardened his heart.  "We have children to think about.  We have to put them first."


    The pair turned to glance towards the child in Dexter''s arms, immediately retracting their former claims to attempt to cling to her tiny, golden thigh.  "A child should be with their relatives, right?" The older woman cajoled.


    "No," Lucy repeated, before grabbing Dexter''s neck with her small arms.  "My daddy."  Dexter melted before the princess and Aslan chuffed and moved to sit at the man''s feet.


    In the end, the pair that had left their village home after almost being attacked by their wife and daughter-in-law, forgetting the small child upstairs asleep in her cot as they fled, were abandoned by their relations thanks to this heartless action.  They were taken to the base where their days of coasting on by and relying on other''s strong thighs were at an end.

 Chapter 96 - Ninety Five - Lacking condiments and spice

    The remaining six family members were allowed to settle in the second property with the soldiers, who''s temporary stay was coming to a close anyway. With them, they only brought the clothes upon their backs.  However, Patrick and Cole did bring back a few tins of pineapple and peaches, a packet of rice and a box of teabags from their scavenging as well as some balls of wool that the former wanted to practice his ''skills'' with.  The rest had been claimed by the base.  Dexter and the others had nothing to say about that considering the base also took on many more mouths to feed in addition.


    When Autumn came to see how ''skinny'' the children were, she ushered them all into the kitchen and proceeded to scramble eggs for the little ones as well as dish up bowls of  braised pork soup that had been intended for everyone''s dinner anyway.  They''d all have to have a mouthful or two less this evening was all.  To have meat and eggs after so long, the a.d.u.l.ts eyes filmed with water and they watched contentedly as the children wolfed down their eggs, quickly as if worried they would disappear.  They were not so keen on the sheep''s milk, but were eventually encouraged to drink it.


    Lucy clung to Autumn as the woman served the food, so she worriedly asked the child what was wrong.  Dexter explained with a calm he did not feel, grasping his lover''s shoulder as he notice her tremble with anger.  "It''s okay now," he reassured her.  "Lucy''s our daughter and she always will be, just as we discussed.  She''s not going anywhere with anyone else."


    The woman bit her lip, noticing the concerned, nervous looks from the people very loosely related to the child who''d stolen her heart and simply made sure to dish up eggs for the little girl, before making her sit at the table.  She then scooped out a bowl of soup for Dexter and herself, not settling until the bowls were emptied.  She then scooped Lucy to her generous chest, before leaving the kitchen with the child; someone else could serve the meal and clean up tonight!


    As they''d already mentioned and as Ren Zexian confirmed, the nephew, Kairo, who was a teenaged boy a couple of years younger than Nan Li Liang, could produce water.  His root was a lone one and though he could not produce the quantities of water that Tyler nor Nathan could, it really wasn''t bad.  He was also of a good age to cultivate, so it likely would not take long for him to catch up.  Rohan, the brother of the dragon and phoenix twins, had dual roots; lightning and fire.  Combined, they were powerful and not weaker than Dexter prior to him breaking through to Secondary stage.  As it happened, his daughter, Sienna, had latent roots, but there was still time for them to awaken; she was only seven years of age now.  The toddler, Jaiden and the uncle, Logan did not have any roots and would not be able to cultivate in the future.  Phoebe, the sister-twin, was a unique case.


    The scholar within Ren Zexian was naturally excited and intrigued by the revelation.  Although mutated roots had not been common, they were not unknown, but even in all of his 100 centuries of life, he had never discovered nor heard of a mutated Thunder root.


    An ordinary thunder root was not much.  It was a body root and as with other tertiary/body roots it gave some specific enhancements to the owner''s body.  Just as Luke''s feather root enhanced his speed of movement, the thunder root enhanced the owner''s hearing and audio perception.  This meant that they could not only hear sounds from a great distance, but they could receive a greater range of sounds that the human body could not normally perceive.  Phoebe''s root had mutated, in a beneficial direction.


    Not all mutations were great, but fortunately, the majority were.  And in the woman''s case, it increased her sensitivity to distinguish better between the sounds that others with the same root or had completed the Body Tempering, could hear.  Also...


    The sacrificed glass bottle smashed into fragments before the eyes of many witnesses.  Phoebe stepped back and glanced back at the crowd that were her new neighbours.  It was probably not surprising that Jimmy broke the awed silence first.  "Impressive... I''d heard that opera singers could shatter glass with their voices, but I''d never actually seen it.  This... was much cooler!"


    The woman''s cheeks flushed red slightly, not sure how to take his response.  The oriental man who had questioned her intensely about her abilities nodded with soothing black eyes and said; "It''s been hard on you."  Her chest tightened and eyes stung with a fresh assault of tears as she nodded in agreement.  It had been hard.  Her extraordinary auditory functions were powerful and an ordinary person having suddenly been exposed to a new world of sound would naturally suffer side effects.  The migraines that tore apart her brain from time to time when little or no medication was available, they were torture.  Thankfully, Logan, her boyfriend was always there for her during the episodes.  Even now, he reached for her hands.


    It was decided that the twins, Rohan and Phoebe, could take a daylight shift on the wall and skip taking the night shifts in order to care more for the small children with them.  Kairo would help with their family water and a certain amount of small fruit plants and fresh lettuces were sent over to them to nurture and help provide extra sustenance.  Logan had been a teacher of primary school children before the end, so once a day, he would teach the two little girls to read and write and other things, but he would also help with the farming.  He also offered to cook.


    "I''m not a Michelin star chef, but I used to cook for my family as my parents worked long hours," he said, sheepishly.  "I know enough to be able to follow recipes at least."


    After being warned about various things such as being wary of the mutated plants around the area, but letting them alone and not going in the cottage on the eastern side of the first property, they were left to settle in their new home.


    The peak of the summer days brought with it the first large harvest and anyone who was not already upon the wall needed to roll up their sleeves and work hard.  The wheat was mostly healthy and golden with just a minor amount of mutation; these stalks were set aside for the time being.  They all agreed, half of the grain would be ground into flour and half set aside for an expanded field the following year.  It did mean that winter might be a lean one, but they would find a way to cope.


    Plush, red tomatoes were picked from their branches, some turned into soup or sauce, some dried out in the heat of the summer sun with chillies and sweet potatoes.  Cuc.u.mbers not to be eaten that day, were pickled with vinegar and salt, along with the first of the summer cabbages.  Some vegetables could be partially cooked and frozen, but not all would last well that way.  For instance, cauliflowers would yellow not long after being harvested, so they had not grown too many of these and they became a staple food for a while, allowing them to hoard more of the first harvest for winter months, while the last harvests could hopefully sustain them through spring instead. Ordinarily, having to eat a particular vegetable over and over could be repetitive, but Autumn naturally knew many ways to cook this versatile vegetable. Over the weeks people came to taste more than boiled cauliflower as a side dish, but also tasted it roasted, grated as an alternative to rice, as part of a vegetable gratin and curried with spinach and potatoes.


    The amount of condiments and seasonings to do all of these things greatly reduced their stocks; salt and spices (with the exception of chillies) were naturally going to be difficult to replace. Autumn mentioned her concerns aloud one morning.


    "We''ll have to check to see if we can get any in base," Dexter soothed her, but wasn''t overly optimistic. The soldiers had mentioned that spices were not really used in their canteen''s food, more worried about getting bellies filled and nutrients distributed than considering taste. The three men really weren''t looking forward to going back to such a diet and had vowed secretly to join Rhodes team so they could come back and bum a meal every so often.


    "What would we have to trade?" Tyler questioned, thinking over what they had in storage. They certainly didn''t want to give up the last of the meat, not that there was much left in the freezer. They''d already decided to hoard it now that there was plenty of produce coming from the gardens and the wild produce left to grow in certain areas.


    Dexter thought about it for a moment, his eyes wandering around the gardens to notice in the distance that Nathan had stopped below a particular tree to gently pat its trunk before he and Ren Zexian continued their walk side by side towards the kitchens. "Apples!" He finally responded with a bright grin. There were both mutant and ordinary apples in the gardens, as well as a crabapple tree next door.  Nathan also had a plum tree, but it was just one, the sapling''s they''d managed to grow from it would take some time to develop, and the lime and olive trees, although recovered from their brush with death in the garden section of the hardware store last year, had not flowered this year. Apples were currently their best option; the base did not grow much fruit themselves.


    Tyler nodded in understanding. "Melons too," he suggested. They hadn''t planted much, but if they were sliced or quartered, the survivors on base might want to purchase smaller pieces for a handful of points.


    "What are we discussing?" Ren Zexian asked as he entered the kitchens. The produce of the garden was Nathan''s pride and joy, therefore his in connection. So upon hearing fruits being mentioned, he naturally had to voice the question. His beloved fidgeted upon his feet uncomfortably over the discussion, a frown upon his brow, hidden beneath his long bangs. Ren Zexian gently squeezed his hand, comfortingly.


    Dexter allowed Autumn to explain; Nathan seemed to like her voice, which was mid-tone and warm, rather than his own, raspy from many years of smoking prior to the end. He never seemed to mind Tyler''s either, despite the sharpness of the words that often spilled from his mouth causing misunderstandings, but then, the man did put more effort into being polite and eloquent with his speech when Nathan was around.


    Nathan visibly relaxed. Understanding that the fruit was to be exchanged to others to eat and enjoy soothed him. He preferred to share the produce of the gardens than allow it to rot and waste. The plants wished to spread their seeds so made their fruit tasty to attract herbivores and birds in order to do this, having too much rot into the soil and the seeds forced to compete for space was not the most efficient way to produce descendants. Thus he nodded softly in agreement, before taking a seat at the table. Autumn served him breakfast with a gentle smile. The russet potatoes, fried tomatoes and mushroom omelette smelled heavenly. Though the portions were not large, they were satisfying and the freshly brewed tea helped fill the stomach full.


    Ren Zexian also sat down, his mind wandering over what Dexter had to say, when a sudden memory came to mind. "You might not need to trade for salt, actually..."

 Chapter 97 - Ninety Six - Not The Only Transmigrators

    A ''herb'' was defined in this world as a plant whose leaves were used in cooking or in medicine. But the herbs that the two otherworldly cultivators had come across in this world were quite ordinary and unlike the spiritual plant life of their own; they could not boost their cultivation nor did they provide ''miraculous'' healing effects. However, the plant life in this world had begun to change, mutating, becoming something unlike what it was originally. Many of these changes were not benevolent, some were even deadly to living animal life, but occasionally, the mutant plants would offer the survivors something new, even amazing.


    The garden of the second property had been left mostly untouched; no flowers had been dug up to make room for crops, weeds were generally ignored or left alone. The most the bushes and trees experienced was a bit of a trim to prevent overgrowth. This also meant that wild blackberries were abundant in one particular location that also happened to adjoin the garden of the third property and also stinging nettles grew unrestrained in the very rear of the garden. Amongst this ordinary latter, grew an unordinary plant.


    It had been Nathan who had noticed this small intruder first, excitedly pointing it out to Ren Zexian as the latter had attempted to take lessons from Dexter and Autumn and treat his beloved to a sort of date. Their walk around the wild beauty of these gardens had eventually led them here, to discover the camouflaged herb in amongst the nettles as well as other things. Ren Zexian had become too distracted then to realise what they had discovered and then too many events had occurred for him to dwell upon it later, meaning it was only now that clarity allowed him to see what he had failed to then. It seemed that the wandering cultivators of which Ren Zexian and Chang Min were a part of, were not the only ones to have crossed over to this world.


    Ren Zexian dug up the large bulbous rooted herb with care; the plant had managed not only to hide successfully amongst the ordinary stinging nettles, but take on some of their characteristics, including the painful nature of their jagged edged leaves. Chang Min, who had raised common herbs and grain in the dusty fields of the outer sect he''d originally belonged to, recognised it immediately.


    "That''s a False Nettle Herb?" He pointed to it as Ren Zexian lay it upon the kitchen table, revealing this treasure to the others.  Quite a crowd had gathered in the kitchen, the large room now feeling small as the only curious bodies not to come and see this thing were patrolling the walls.  Nathan pressed himself against Ren Zexian''s side, clearly uncomfortable, but too curious over the ''mutant'' plant that his lover had taken from the second property''s gardens.  Ren Zexian gently placed an arm about his body, offering him shelter from the crowd.


    "What''s a False Nettle Herb?" He whispered into Ren Zexian''s ear.  His breath teased the sensitive tissue, but the latter managed not to lose his calm expression despite this.


    Still, he felt the need to clear his throat before he explained.  "This herb is not simple... not like the herbs that X¨©ng¨¡n grows, though it was quite common amongst the herbs still living in the land of my birth.  Like the Crystal Teardrop tree within the grounds, this one too gathers spiritual energy from its surroundings, but stores it in the large root.  Such means it was sought after by man and beast thus developed its own way of protecting itself; by growing in the camouflage of other nettles.  Were it not for X¨©ng¨¡n''s eye, it would have continued to hide well in the growth of those Stinging Nettles."


    Chang Min''s brows rose at the endearment his Master had recently began to use for Nathan, but understood his meaning.  The language of these people, while not difficult for those such as themselves, was sometimes lacking;  Nathan''s name did not role easily off the tongue nor did first names hold importance in the heart.  Yet Master still wished to express his feelings in words so could only rely on such.  Chang Min sighed inwardly.  Such a strong love, others could only look on envious.  Unknowingly, his eyes glanced over his shoulder at the large man shadowing him and suddenly, he felt content.


    Autumn looked over the ugly, white root bulb and her forehead became marred with slight lines.  She was not disdaining the plant for its unattractiveness, there were many things that looked unpleasant when it came to food, but whose taste could not be better, she just had never seen anything like it before.  "What do we do with it?"


    A hint of sheepishness dimmed the sparkle in Ren Zexian''s eyes.  "Well, I''d read that in Medicinal Cuisine, the False Nettle Root was used as a flavour substitute for salt, but I''m not certain of the finer details."  Seeing many hopeful expressions, he further dampened their excitement with an honest fact.  "There is also the issue that herbs such as these can''t always be consumed in much quantities by mortals - those without spiritual roots.  The body cannot support it and it might become detrimental in the end."


    "So ordinary people can''t eat this?" Jonah asked, his small son grabbing at the lengthening beard upon his chin as he held him in his arms.  Successful, the child tugged, causing the older man to wince, but he gently unwrapped the tiny fingers from the hair and tapped lightly his nose.  The baby giggled brightly.


    Smiles lifted the corners of every person''s lips and any worries seemed to melt away thanks to the boy''s antics.


    "Actually," Chang Min lightly interrupted the improved mood, "poorer folk couldn''t always afford salt," couldn''t hope to attain salt in his small village, "so we''d boil the leaves of the False Nettle and use the salty water to flavour the food."


    The designated cooks nodded in understanding along with bright eyed Nan Li Liang.  Wasn''t it just a case of experimenting?  If it could flavour the food, this was not bad, though it would be even better if this also provided a similar nutrition to salt.  They could only wait and see.


    "Do we have more than just this one plant?" Dexter asked, thinking long term for this new species.


    Ren Zexian shook his head.  "It''s unlikely.  This plant is greedy, will not share its bed with others of its ilk.  It''s seeds tend to scatter upon the wind, not unlike those of the dandelion.  However, it will only germinate in the soil already containing nettles, attaching itself to their roots in order to mimic a likeness.  It''s not difficult to distinguish, just need to seek the fine line of white upon the leaf vein and shoot."  He pointed to the deep green of the leaves and sure enough, when one looked carefully enough, one could see the difference.  As Patrick and Cole left the base the most, they tried to memorise this detail in order to forage more in the future.


    In the meantime, the plant was potted in a large container and given Nathan''s water to nourish it.  It was unlikely that it would survive long term this way, especially as it no longer had access to the extensive root network of the common nettles, but it would be enough for them to work with for a time.


    That same day, Autumn wore gloves in order to pluck a couple of leaves to boil and found that after ten minutes, there was a slight hint of saltiness to the water, which increased greatly after half an hour.  Some of the water was set aside as they wished to boil this dry and see if they could obtain salt in a power form, while the rest was used instead of separate salt and warm water for the first bread Autumn planned to make since the harvest.


    Flour ground fresh from wheat grain contained wheat germ and could not be kept for a long period.  The soldiers had discovered this from farmers and gardeners who had survived to seek refuge in their base at the beginning of the end.  These few men and women were as much a part of the backbone of their base as the army in charge of order and protection.  Without them, it was likely they would have not have had a second generation of hens nor knowledge of how to produce a good amount of food in a small space.  The base had very little space at this time to grow much wheat, so they relied heavily upon the grain harvested from the fields the previous year, but they would have to find a solution to this problem soon or find alternatives to grain in their diets.


    The wheat grown in the first and third gardens was not a small amount, but it was not a large amount either.  They also saved more grain than they planted so they could expand their planting areas the following year.  Using Nan Li Liang''s clever memory, Chang Min and Shaun fashioned a manual mill that ground the grain quite finely, but it did not have a large capacity.  This was fine though, so long as enough flour could be produced for the expanding families each day, they wouldn''t require anything substantial.  Autumn also didn''t wish to waste too much in the experiment either and had Dexter grind just enough for a few rolls.  They''d judged that with the number of people now living on their base, their grain would last at most three months.  It was planned to store most for winter as with other foodstuffs that could be kept for the longer time.


    The experiment was not bad, the rolls were a little saltier than normal suggesting that Autumn ought to either boil the leaves less or dilute the water more before using it.  Originally, the woman thought to share the rolls amongst the children, but worried that the salt was too much so saved them for those on the wall instead to share; these were also more filling than plain white rolls they''d eaten before.


    As for boiling the water dry, for whatever reason, there really wasn''t enough salt residue to be worthy of collecting.  It seemed that the salt in the leaves was just stronger in flavour than normal salt and couldn''t replace the white crystals directly.  Still, the substitute was not disdained and reduced the worries in the kitchen a little.  As for the root that had value to cultivators, that would have to be set aside for now.  Ren Zexian''s knowledge in the area of pills and medicinal cuisine was not great, just covering the bases, but even if he had hold of a few recipes, he could not follow them without all of the ingredients to hand.

 Chapter 98 - Ninety Seven - Protecting the man you love

    The hot sun shone brightly in the cloudless sky, pouring its heat upon the world below.  It was oppressive and intimidating, but pure of vital energy.  Those that had the ability risked their fragile skin to absorb the energy into their bodies and circulate it about their meridians.  Those who did not took to hiding in rooms and beneath the shade of trees, savouring what little breeze brushed past their sweaty bodies.


    As two who no longer needed to rely on this thick yang energy to balance the yin within their bodies, Ren Zexian and Chang Min took to the walls to keep watch.  The walls encompassing the three properties did not form a square and were thick enough for one person to walk along in some places, two in areas that Chang Min had thickened in his spare time.  A stroll around the high pathway would take a man just over an hour, more if their vigilance was high and their pace guarded.  For the two Cultivators, speeding around the winding length even giving attention to specific details  was a ten minute sprint, if that.


    During this time of day, in these temperatures, not even a zombie mouse could be seen rustling in the patches of long, dry grasses lining the fallow fields outside the wall.  Humanoid zombies no longer lurched passed in the night; no one had witnessed one in almost a week.  Animal zombies still attempted to breech the walls during the cooler hours between sun set and sunrise before scurrying or rushing away to find shelter from the oppressive day, leaving this time for ordinary and mutant beasts to traverse the land and sky.


    And at a few random times, packs or flocks of the mutant beasts would attack the walls or fly over them directly seeking the men and women within.  If all were skinny, with bones obvious beneath fur or feathers, it could be said that these beasts were just desperate for food, but such was not always the case.  For the pack of dogs, with both ordinary and mutated animals in their midst, hunger was the driving force, their desperation having brought them to this point; most of these dogs had once been domesticated and had only so much hunting instinct left.  Plus, the prey were not always as defenceless as they once were.  One had to be heartless (or from a much crueller realm) to not feel ill at ease when they fought against the hungry canines, feeling every pained yelp as if it were stabbing them in the gut.  Fortunately, the Alpha of this pack was intelligent enough to understand that they could not grasp food here, only death and they fled in the end.


    The flock of ravens that flew easily over the walls were an entirely different case.  Beaks sharpened, clawed toes like miniature knives, if not for the quick responses of several, they would likely have had lost chunks of living flesh to these vicious mutants.  They were not any larger than they''d been prior to the End, but now resembled much more the ominous omens created in historic man''s imaginations and were definitely a cause of fear.  They also were less easily subdued than the hungry dog pack; diving down relentlessly despite the sharp, flaming winds stirred by one man, which a few failed to agilely avoid, learning to keep a distance from the vines or cut them with their claws before they could be entangled.  One managed to clench the seemingly plush flesh of one prey''s arm, only for its claws to shatter in the next second.  Despite the bird''s improved intelligence, it was unable to figure out what had occurred before its neck was snapped by a hound that burst through a sudden fog.


    Once the last raven flew away, they left a few injuries, but none too serious, but...


    "Why did he feel the need to throw himself before me as a shield?" Chang Min ranted as he vented his energies while circling the wall with his Master.  Ren Zexian shrugged.  If it had been the ancient man''s distant path, such sacrifices would not be too uncommon, but as they breeched the final era when their realm was upon its final breaths, such instances were too far and few between. From Chang Min''s description of his parents, they were two such folk with self-less hearts, but if other village folk were in their shoes, it would not be so unlikely to find that the children were sold or simply given up in order that there be less mouths to feed. Ren Zexian was not so unkind to shatter his apprentice''s last impression of his parents with his own cynical views, though or even the impression he suspected the younger man had of himself. Ren Zexian had not shielded or protected the youth who had wanted to follow him, just given him the tools to become stronger and able to rely on himself. Chang Min had always considered this matter more generously and saw the other as his saviour as well as his master.


    However, in this realm, upon meeting the one who he couldn''t help but wish to protect and shield, perhaps an inkling of understanding had taken root and Ren Zexian actually was able to see what his apprentice could not. Cole''s intent towards Chang Min was not so much self-sacrificing as the need to protect his heart.


    "Chang Min," Ren Zexian injected into the other''s continued rant, "Cole''s wounds were deep, but no vital vein nor meridian was severed. He will heal in time." And likely wear the scars as a badge of honour for they represented something deep to him.


    "But he was so foolish trying to hide it," Chang Min complained. They''d naturally seen the blood upon Cole''s back, but he had claimed it was ''just a scratch'' and that what they had seen upon his shirt was much worse than it truly was. His attempt to reassure others, or more likely, Chang Min, had backfired as everyone actually caught by the claws of those ravens suffered from mild fevers... except him who burned for two entire days and nights. Chang Min had not left his side the entire time, cooling his body with Tyler''s icy water and begging Ren Zexian for one of the pills still in his possession from the old realm.


    Ren Zexian had felt helpless to refuse this apprentice of his, but the hard ice pills in his possession were for unnatural fevers of blisteringly high temperatures and could cause frost damage to a man''s internal organs.  They were only meant as a last resort, so Ren Zexian promised that if Cole''s fever did not abate but increase in temperature, he would provide one of the precious pills.  Fortunately, it broke after a few long hours, becoming milder over the course of the following day and Cole woke from the feverish coma.  Chang Min had taken to the walls while the man rested in order to shake off the restless tension still coursing through his veins.


    They paused at the gate, noticing that approaching down the road was the distant rumbling of vehicles.  Sure enough, a convoy was heading in their direction.


    Rhodes squad was on another gathering mission.  He was stopping by to see if their small base wanted to join them.  Ren Zexian explained about the attack they suffered from the mutant birds and the subsequent fevers endured by those scratched by the creatures'' talons.  Patrick was well enough, but decided to forgo this mission; it was far to hot to leave the shady shelter of mansion, come again next time.


    Bemused, Rhodes left with his men, but not before Ren Zexian checked upon his two students amongst them.  Both were doing reasonably well with their cultivation, the man was pleased with their progress.  It estimated that they would likely reach Secondary Stage either in the Winter or early next spring.  "See if your people can be left here for those months," Ren Zexian suggested.  "It is better to advance in a space which is sheltered and without much disturbance, less deviation occur and the body become irreparably damaged."


    As the heat of the day eased, others came to take a shift guarding the walls allowing the two Cultivators to seek sustenance.  Chang Min left the kitchen with two bowls of mushroom soup and headed up the stairs to the room he shared with Cole.  The other man was lying upon his stomach upon one of the two single beds, reading a book to pass the time, his back wrapped in clean bandages.  Chang Min''s attention was caught by the broadness of the man''s shoulders and the ripple of muscles relaxing beneath the sun blessed skin before his eyes became pained as they considered what was hidden beneath the bandages.


    Cole had told him that it had not been his fault, that he had moved automatically when the raven had dived towards the other''s blindside while he (Chang Min) had been dealing with the birds defending against his blade with their beaks.  But Chang Min felt he was to blame, that as Cole''s Master and superior in cultivation, he should have been able to prevent Cole from this foolish attempt to use his flesh and body as a shield.  He could have pushed Cole aside, could have dealt with the diving bird with other means.  As it was he''d used his sword to bring down the raven''s biting it to the earth so that the spikes he then released at his feet pierced their bodies at the same moment he''d noticed Cole''s silhouette.  He''d turned to give the other a smile, perhaps he actually wanted to see the appreciation in his apprentice''s eyes in regards to his abilities, but all he''d seen was the other flinch and grit his teeth.  Sweat began to bead upon Cole''s forehead just as he felt his own blood begin to freeze.


    The image superimposed over the smiling one provided him by Cole now.  The latter''s expression fell as he caught the glassiness and haunted black eyes staring through him.  "Hey," he called out to Chang Min, who just blinked still caught beneath his own illusions.  So despite the uncomfortable stretch of his wounds, he dragged himself out of bed to reach for the other, automatically wrapping his thick arms about the man and pulling him close.  Cole''s beating heart within his warm chest was enough to drag Chang Min from the nightmare.  He suddenly slapped that same, hard chest.


    "Don''t you ever do something so stupid again!" He commanded once more.  This would have been the third time these words passed his lips.


    The last two times, Cole had reassured him that he wouldn''t but it seemed that Chang Min didn''t believe him.  He had every right not to.  Cole had been lying after all.  His eyes curved as they witnessed the black flames stirring in the other''s eyes and sighed.  "I can''t say that I won''t do it in the future, sorry."


    "Why?"


    "Isn''t it instinct to want to protect the ones... the man you love?"


    Cole watched as Chang Min''s eyes widened then the body that had always seemed so strong suddenly softened in his embrace and he felt two arms reach cautiously about his waist.  "That''s why you really can''t do it again," Chang Min muttered into his chest.  Even with the open windows bringing in a refreshing breeze, the temperature of the room was still really warm.

 99 Chapter Ninety Eight - Apples and Pairs

    The suffering endured by the pack of single dogs reached new heights. ; But what could this group of mostly straight men do when there was a serious lack of available straight women (or single gay males, one particular person pouted during the testosterone filled gym session vent)? ; Eyes began wandering towards the one woman still roaming free, but she just stared them down one by one and dropped their hopes into a deep barrel of excretion. ; "Don''t even bother thinking about it," she warned them as she polished the custom crossbow Shaun had not long finished creating. ;


    It was not that Monika didn''t want to find a man to walk beside in her future, just that even before the End, her standards had been higher and she herself would confess to being higher maintenance than their former ''princess'' Brooke and she felt no reason to change that. ; She would have said that she didn''t particularly mind about his appearance, but he couldn''t be too ugly, he didn''t have to be a kind person, so long as he was kind to her. ; The pay check didn''t matter too much, but there was no way she''d accept some loafer who wanted to sponge off of her. ; Equally, he shouldn''t be tight with money, but not a spendthrift. ; Educated enough, she couldn''t stand dumbasses, but not so educated that they looked down on the publicly educated with average grades like herself. ; Naturally no criminals, no addicts, men with bad habits could be fixed but ones with disgusting habits were to be avoided. ; The list continued on... obviously now there were a few adjustments, such as the money thing. ;


    She didn''t particularly want children herself, but she also recognised that it might be unavoidable; this was an era of survival, if she could get pregnant and chose not too, wasn''t that being just a bit too selfish in the long term? ; Not that she disliked kids, Lucy was adorable, little x was very cute, despite being a boy filled with drool, but she hadn''t the patience for raising them herself, so that would fall on her future man''s shoulders... along with all the farming, at least half the housework, the cooking (she burned water) and she wanted a pampering massage at least once a week on top. ; Then her inner Empress might just be satisfied. ;


    So the single straight men that outnumbered her quite a bit dropped this idea and all volunteered to be amongst the group transporting the first harvest of apples to the army base. ;


    Autumn giggled once Dexter told her, while he was tapping a pen upon a notepad writing a list of supplies she wanted him to try seek out. ; Salt was no longer on the list, but also, they weren''t ready to share their discovery wanting to see how their experiments developed before they offered the results to the base. ; This wasn''t just out of selfishness. ; As Ren Zexian had mentioned, the root of the False Nettle was too potent for the consumption of ordinary people, but if they knew about the plant and did not heed the verbal warnings, blame might still land on their doorstep. ; What they were hoping to develop instead to share, was a universal ''salt'' in dried leaf form for the purpose of cooking, with instructions for its usage. ; That way, they could offer this salt solution safely to outsiders. ;


    "Well, I wish them luck," Autumn washed the courgettes, tomatoes and aubergines in a bowl of clean water before placing them to one side. ;


    "They''ll need more than luck," Dexter sighed, tossing down the pen. ; "I definitely recall seeing more men than women at the base last time. ; What''s the chance of their being a girl who doesn''t have a few men chasing her? ; That and I can''t take them all with me. ; Who''ll be left to defend home?" ; Autumn dried her hands on a tea towel and came over to squeeze his tense shoulders. ; His hand covered hers as he head leaned back to rest against her warm chest. ; ;


    "I was actually going to ask, if I could go with you," she confessed, softly, causing him to look sharply upward, his body becoming tense once more. ; "I want to help you... but also I wanted to check on Brooke." Seeing his frown, she added; "I know I don''t owe her anything, it''s just that, it was my mother''s last wish for me to look after her." ;


    "It was her choice to leave," he reminded her. ; He''d couldn''t say he''d agreed with that decision, she''d abandoned Jonah and her child, but a small part of him had been glad. ; Brooke had treated Autumn like shit. ;


    "I know," Autumn nodded in agreement, "I just wanted to check on her. ; Make sure that she is okay." Despite wanting to refuse without room to protest, Dexter admitted the weakness within him of wanting his woman to be happy and agreed to it. ;


    In the end, he only allowed the addition of two single dogs, requesting the Chang Min/Cole duo join the team as extra protection for Autumn. Just Chang Min was a lone man army by himself, but with Cole constantly shadowing him and having his back, they were almost a fluid a machine of war as the former would be with his master. Just that Ren Zexian would not leave without Nathan. "Do you wish to go?" The older man asked his young lover. ;


    "No." ;


    That left Harry, Winston, Tyler, Paul, Arthur, Jimmy and Eraj gathered around a small metal container filled with metal sticks, two of which had the term ''winner'' embedded in its side. It had been created by Shaun, who chose not to participate for practical reasons and remain behind with Jonah, who would remain behind for his son and Patrick, who had no interest in finding a woman and didn''t want to squabble with the ones who did. He wasn''t so desperate for a lover, thank you! ;


    ''Loser!'' Tyler tossed his stick aside with a sore comment of how this was a stupid way to make a decision before hinting that he had better things to do. Eraj watched him go before waving his ''winner'' stick in a smug manner. Jimmy took the opportunity to tug it from his fingers and replace it with one that said ''Not in this lifetime!'' ;


    "Hey!" Eraj complained rushing after Jimmy, who tumbled back in hysterics over his own prank. Arthur sighed before grabbing the metal stick in Jimmy''s hand and passing it back to the other. "Thanks, Arthur." ;


    "Don''t mention it," he replied, before placing the small stick ''admit defeat'' back into the pot, that he himself had pulled. ;


    "Hey," Paul sidled over to his friend, who watched the men draw lots with amus.e.m.e.nt. "You can change the words on the sticks right?" He looked with hopeful eyes at Shaun, whose brows rose upward. ;


    "Are you asking me to cheat?" Shaun accused in a teasing tone. ;


    "Not cheating per say," Paul mumbled an excuse, "more like helping out your best buddy." ;


    "Don''t feel like it," Shaun yawned as if he''d been drained of spirit just creating this little game for them, before wheeling his chair out of the room. Paul clambered after him, hoping to change his mind. ;


    ***** ;


    Crates of apples were placed in the truck, the crop this year had been abundant, weighing down the branches of the trees until they were well in reach of all of the a.d.u.l.ts. Autumn had taken many into her kitchen, dried them out into snacks and placed them into little plastic pouches no more than a hand wide. She had thought about making sauces or chutney with the apples, but both required sugar, something they were also running low on and she''d wanted to keep these for producing jams and potentially cider, if they could get the equipment. Either way, they''d not produce enough to keep for themselves let alone share with others. ;


    Still, they not only packed the fresh and dried fruit, but also decided to take a chance upon the apple ''butter'' and oil produced by the mutant tree. The oily pulp of the shelled fruit had a similar consistency to apple pur¨¦e when mashed down and was sweet enough by itself to flavour toast and crackers. It didn''t taste bad with pork either, just milder than what a normal apple sauce would be like, the only complaint would be that it was a little greasy. The oil, however, went well as a salad dressing or heated to stir fry vegetables, providing sweetness while vinegar provided the sour. Surely that would sell, right? ;


    "It seems that people are overly wary of mutant plants," Autumn sighed as the person she had spoken to fled in light of the truth of where the oil came from. ;


    "Can''t blame them," Dexter said in response as he packed five apples into one person''s carrier bag after receiving a handful of points in exchange. It seemed that the one thing people still had plenty of, even after the end, were carrier bags. ;


    Arriving at the base walls, they''d experienced the expected interrogation and were checked for wounds and such. Cole''s scratch had healed enough to have scabbed over, waiting to reveal the new skin beneath, but it was enough for the soldiers to want to quarantine him. Fortunately, they still had enough respect for Chang Min to give him some face, at least enough to report to their superiors for their opinion. On hearing that the wound was now two weeks old and due to mutant birds, not zombified ones, the medic sent to glance over it gave him the all clear. ;


    "There is no sign of black rot or inflammation," the man told the cautious guards, "this man''s temperature is normal. His gums, eyes and fingernail beds reflect that of a healthy, young man. A full quarantine really isn''t necessary, just the usual two hours will be sufficient. If he has any signs of changing, I''ll turn in my medic''s badge!" ;


    "Don''t joke, Doc," the guard leader replied, "everyone knows that you really do want to hand in that badge." ;


    "Who let me be one of only five medical staff and the only fully qualified doctor!" The man harrumphed. "Every time someone''s temperature rises a single degree or they receive a slight graze they come panicking to me! As if a paper cut is going to cause them to turn!" He tossed crossly any equipment he used in a separate bag in order for his assistant to sterilise later, only calming down when Chang Min offered him fruit free of charge. The doctor was not humble enough to bother even thinking of rejecting it. ;


    Before arriving at the market, Dexter spoke to the man running a small greengrocers, wanting to get an idea of the value of their apples. ; This shop had been added since they''d last been here. This man was selling off the excess produce from the farms or rather, the lower quality vegetables that either did not grow well, such as stubby carrots, or had been left aside for too long, such as the cuc.u.mbers that now tasted slightly bitter. ;


    He also sold some fruit, including apples. The cafeteria hadn''t wanted these; there had been a change in the way things were on the army base. Since setting up the base, the army had taken responsibility for everything from shelter to clean water, from safety to food. The rule in exchange was that people needed to work for these small luxuries. ; There was work in the green-house farms, on the walls, in the cafeteria, even just sweeping the streets and lighting braziers during the winter. ; Not to mention the squads made up of soldiers and civilians both that could leave the base in search of things to benefit everyone. ; However there was always the minority that would slowly become lazy and lax, perhaps cutting corners, claiming sick or sponging off of others. ; ;


    There was the added difficulty that the greenhouse farms produced limited amounts of food, despite all of their hard work and preparation and the water users worked from daybreak to dusk with barely a break exhausting themselves. ; To make up for the missing amounts of food and water, the base had their people raid every house, every shop and warehouse in order to hoard as much long term as possible. ; But eventually, this food would either all be eaten or not be fit to eat at all. ; Somethings had to change. ;

 100 Chapter Ninety Nine - Spice Enthusias

    There was still those who grumbled, after all, there was no gas and not enough electrics for people to use to cook their own foods with.  A small bakers shop had recently opened, but they only sold a hundred rolls of bread a day and they were not cheap at all.


    Others were more entrepreneurial and opened foot stalls in the market place and would serve roasted potatoes and other root vegetables or soups with varying contents.  They''d purchased charcoal from a survivor who happened to work in this old occupation before the end and used barbecues to cook upon or nest food within.  In autumn, a couple of stalls sold blackberries, crab apples and other wild fruit.  It was obvious that these had come from outside and had been washed in the rain, at first, people dare not risk them, but when it came known that squads had eaten these outside, they let down their guard.  They''d still wash them in boiling water first though.  At this time, the scent of unsweetened roasting chestnuts filled the air.


    The five men and one woman had guardedly transported their produce to the market place; thieves still roamed hidden amongst the civilians on base, becoming more of a nuisance since the food rules had changed and they were outsiders, most likely a rich irresistible pie for them.  Of course, they wouldn''t allow themselves to be so easily eaten.


    So this opportunistic man had joined forces with a small squad who, by themselves, were no longer strong enough to face the increasing threats outside of the base and formed a ''protection'' area and rented out their collection of folding tables and wallpaper pasting tables to form this market place.  As the cost was not extortionate and the ''protected'' zone not encompassing living accommodations, the army turned a blind eye.  In fact, no one was forced to pay the fee, but if they didn''t, they were seriously on their own if problems occurred.


    Dexter still had a few points left from their last visit, but even if he hadn''t, the manager would have accepted a couple of apples instead.  They''d priced the fruit at five points, the same as the ones in the greengrocer''s shop, which was a little dearer than those crabapples sold on the stall a few down from them.  However, their apples were larger and sweeter which was enough to attract eyes.  They freely told people that they were grown themselves and were not wild, many were also interested in the snack-packs of dried apples.  These were priced the same as a whole apple, but they definitely did not contain a whole apple, likely just half.  Nonetheless, these would keep longer, perhaps into the cold months when there was a considerable lack of fruit or even some vegetables.


    Some people expressed interest in the oil and butter, but on learning their origins, the majority of people turned away.  One woman, who gave her name as Justine, was a little more open about the products and purchased one bottle of oil and one small jar of the butter.  "I happen to know a couple of the researchers on base," she advised them.  "If these can pass their checks then people will be less wary about buying them."


    Actually, unbeknownst to them, this woman could be considered a ''higher up'', just that she was a civilian representative and not everyone knew of her as she liked keeping a low profile.  Still, she did not tell a lie.  She was interested in the fact that these came from a mutant apple tree and were tried and tested by these people.  If more mutant products were found to be safe for human consumption, would that not ease a little of the worries regarding food longterm.  It had taken a while for the people to accept wild food from outside, despite having eaten such in the cafeteria for months unawares.  Perhaps it was time to introduce a stamp of approval after their researchers, who''d formally been teachers or science students for the most part with just one woman who''s research actually lie in cosmetics, tested these and proved them safe.


    As the day stretched on, Autumn and Dexter spoke about leaving the stall to look for condiments; sugar, salt and spices.  A man, who''d been glancing at the apples in interest glanced upwards at that.  "Are you interested in just the old powdered stuff or would you also buy it fresh?" The man asked, interrupting their conversation without apology.


    "What do you mean?"


    "I grew a fair sized crop of ginger this year," he replied, stroking back the small amount of hair upon his balding head. He did not look that old, but his genes had seen him gain a receding hairline as soon as his youth faded. He also had a bit of a beer gut that did not wish to vanish despite the end being one of the highest contributors to weight loss. "I wondered if you''d be up to purchasing it or even trading it would be alright."


    Autumn''s eyes lit up brightly. "You know how to grow ginger?"


    "Yeah, this and other spices," he admitted. Before the apocalypse, he''d been an office worker and spice enthusiast, which had eventually involved growing what he could fresh. But as many, he hurried here with the clothes on his back and a carrier bag filled with dried foods that were not a burden to carry and had left his precious spice plants behind. Thanks to his hobby, he was able to find work in the greenhouse section, helping to cultivate herbs, peppers and chillis. However, he although he was grateful overall, the lack of spices in the cafeteria food did leave him wanting.


    Luckily, early last summer, he happened upon a returning squad who''d raided a small Indian grocery store. At that time, civilian groups gave up not only a portion of food in taxes, the army had first chance to purchase 75% of the remaining in exchange for points. The squad had to turn over a lot and amongst that which remained, there were things they weren''t optimistic about selling or trading on. The man had purchased a good amount of ginger root and even more turmeric root fairly cheap. With some effort, he managed to acquire clean soil and a couple of pots and planted those rhizomes in his small room situated in a shared house.


    "When the ginger filled the pot, I sold more than half of it on for a good deal of points," a smile appeared on his round face in memory. Those points had been enough to see that he had plenty of warm blankets and could help with the household charcoal needs over the winter. In all honesty, he''d been a fairly lazy man back in the years before, doing the minimal of work in the office to get by, his small hobby only required effort here and there and the rest of the time, he could just enjoy the fruits of his labour. Seeing as he''d managed so well selling the ginger, he''d hoped to grow more of this and the slower, less abundant turmeric root. Not only this, he''d managed to harvest a few mustard and cilantro seeds, also known as coriander, on the sly, adding to this the purchased chilli pepper plant and his now half of his room was an abundance of green. Only...


    "Since the cafeteria pared back what they were prepared to offer, they then weren''t up for purchasing much of the ginger or other spices," he complained. The plainness of the fair, which was mostly a potash style stew, ratatouille (if it could be called that as it lacked the added sweetness of sugar and sourness of vinegar) or a watery mash potato, was disheartening to him. He couldn''t imagine how the soldiers felt with this on offer three times a day with the occasional bread roll and egg he''d heard they could get as well! "Apparently, not everyone is good with spices, so they use only a bit of herbs for flavour. At least that''s their excuse." A foodie could never understand the logic...


    "I''m interested!" Autumn blurted out, before glancing at Dexter and the others who simply grinned.


    "You''re the boss in that department!" Was the general consensus. They negotiated for a good half of an hour and where the man provided coriander, mustard seed, turmeric and ginger, they traded with both apples and a good percentage of their earned points. These points were meant to be spent on spices amongst other things, so they did not feel that they had lost anything.


    Before Cole and Chang Min followed to make the trade, Dexter made the man an additional offer. "Do you want to come to our base to live and grow spices?"


    The man did seriously think about it for a moment, but then shook his head. He was still a lazy man at heart and seeing the bodies of these younger men with most being broad and well muscled and the other two while slimmer, were definitely not unhealthy nor out of shape, he felt that being amongst them might seriously mean more work for him and besides... "While I had thoughts of just lazing around and growing spices in my room," he voiced his reasons for refusal, "this place ain''t so bad. I get on well with my housemates and so long as everyone brings something for the pot, the kid downstairs will cook a decent meal for us all. He''s particularly good at making curry style foods and spicy noodle soups."


    There were knowing smiles and Autumn gave him a bottle of oil suggesting that the boy try using it in his cooking for a hint of something extra. The man accepted it as he felt Autumn was a kindred spirit when it came to food, so he also mentioned, since she was looking for spices, that all she need do is dry out and ground red peppers to make paprika. The flavour and heat of the paprika depended on the flavour and heat of the peppers. Autumn thanked him once more, appreciating his gesture.


    After this, only a couple of familiar faces purchased the apple oil; these were Rhodes'' men. The remaining apples sold out quickly as well. They packed up early and discussed whether it was worth looking for salt, black pepper and sugar before heading home. But before that, Autumn met two familiar eyes and decided to take a detour.


    "Brooke..."

 101 Chapter One Hundred - Saying Goodbye To The Pas

    Those eyes flickered over the people who''d she''d once lived with, before returning to the woman she was most familiar with.


    "Autumn," Brooke greeted her, though there was a lack of warmth and not a small amount of tension in her stance.


    "How are you doing?"  Autumn asked, clearly concerned about her cousin.  She knew she shouldn''t be, that leaving was Brooke''s choice, but it was ingrained into her DNA.


    Brooke shrugged and replied nonchalantly; "I''m well enough."


    "That''s good then," Autumn sighed inwardly, feeling the large distance that had grown between them.  But then, when were she and her cousin ever really close?  Only on Brooke''s terms had they a connection and it could never be said to be an equal relationship.  They were blood-related, but Autumn had always been the shadow to Brooke''s light.  "I''m relieved."


    "I''m so glad that you are relieved," Brooke retorted with not a small amount of bite.  "I should sleep so excellently knowing that you are relieved."


    Beside Autumn, Dexter''s face fell.  He''d never really liked Brooke, never disliked her either, it was more that he never felt that this little girl was on the same page as the rest of them.  The world had gone to shit, yet Brooke wanted life to continue on more or less the way it had for her before, where she was in the spotlight heading for some glorious future that only she could imagine.  But celebrities, V.I.P''s, royalty, all of them were not immune to the sickness that had befallen the world and caused the apocalypse.  All of them for all their influence and wealth were likely in the same boat as common people.  There no longer was a glorious future, surviving was what most hoped for, living was what only a few could obtain.


    Still, Dexter didn''t hate Brooke, until she tried to step on his lover, to suppress her once more.  His Autumn was beautiful and kind, too kind, but this girl was her cousin, so he''d always bit his tongue in the past so not to upset Autumn.  He wouldn''t continue to do so.  He stepped forward to shadow Brooke, crossing his arms about his chest.  She glared at him with anger swirling in her eyes.


    "Can we go somewhere and talk?" Autumn asked Brooke.  The girl did not answer, just spun on her heel, head held high.  However, this was not a refusal; Brooke would do this sort of thing in the past and Autumn would always rush to appease her.  Although the latter had no intension of doing so now, she still followed after her cousin.


    Brooke led her into a large building, once a place for single army soldiers to sleep, often they had to share rooms between two.  Now single men slept in a room of up to four so that civilian men could also move in.  Thomas had been more fortunate and share his room with one other man, but that man had moved out to be with a civilian woman in the small camper van that she owned.  He could have lost this gained privacy easily to men looking for a little more space, living in more cramped quarters, but Brooke had moved in with him.  They were currently on the waiting list for a bigger space, but the wait had increased thanks to the new arrivals on base.


    The room originally had twin beds, they''d been pushed together, but otherwise the room was not too much unlike the other army men''s rooms; simple with few personal items.  They shared a bathroom with four other rooms, but the plumbing had long since been turned off, they had to bring their own water to wash with.  There was a laptop on a chest of drawers, currently it was being charged by a solar panel device.  But that was it for luxuries.  The couple didn''t even attempt to keep a tomato or fruit plant for additional vitamins.


    Brooke placed the small bag with her purchases on a simple office chair, before taking off her shoes and tossing them under the bed.  Then she turned around to her cousin, her arms crossed about her chest.


    "So what exactly do you want to talk about?" Brooke asked her, before adding; "Or is it that you just wanted to let go of your guilty conscious?"


    "What do you mean?" Autumn queried, frowning.


    Brooke''s eyes reddened and her expression was no longer proud, but of one who felt wronged.  "We were supposed to stick together, Autumn," her voice cracked with emotion, "we swore we would!"


    "But it was you that made the decision to leave..." a feeling of guilt that had not been there before suddenly began to stir in Autumn''s stomach and her voice became small.


    "You could have come with me, but you didn''t!" Brooke continued her tirade, pushing Autumn into a virtual corner.


    "Brooke, that''s not fair, I..." Autumn''s heart faltered along with her speech.


    "You threw me to the side for a man, just like you felt that I did to you.  So I suspect you now feel that we are even.  Am I right?"


    ''Am I right?'' Those three words snapped Autumn from the whirlpool of condemnation that she''d felt sucked into.  Shaking herself free, she forced herself to harden her heart.  Brooke''s ability to twist things to suit herself, she had long been aware of, but thanks to her own lack of confidence, she always succumbed, placing herself in the position of the wrong-doer while Brooke always appeared the victim or the one wronged.  Of course it would only worsen if she argued, so she did not say anything, just no longer slouched, no longer tried to make herself small, weakened by Brooke''s words.


    Brooke''s eyes widened, a hint of panic flickering in them as she realised that her control had slipped.  This wasn''t how things were meant to be, her cousin was deviating from the script.  She''d imagined a thousand times meeting Autumn, getting her to come here then having her continued support, so that her life would become a lot smoother.  Sure Thomas treated her right, but her world was more confined than she''d imagined and the soldier was not as powerful as she''d thought.


    He should have been; he was younger than Jonah, he had abilities, but in reality, he was just a small soldier one of many and his powers weren''t increasing in strength.  He laughed at her, teasingly, when she meditated in the afternoons to the point she now only did so when he wasn''t around and then she found it difficult to concentrate.  Her own growth was halting and for the first time in her life, she felt real fear.  The threat of the zombies had never felt real in comparison, there had always been someone to protect her.  She didn''t know what to do anymore...


    The image of the man she''d abandoned for this flickered in her mind.


    "How is... everyone?" She found herself asking.


    "Not going to ask about Jonah? About James, your son?" Autumn questioned, unable to help herself, the guilt replaced by anger.  Did Brooke think that Autumn would believe she really cared?!  In her mind, no mother would abandon their child, even her own mother didn''t really like her, but never neglected her.


    "Forget I asked!" Brooke snapped, defensively.


    Autumn took a deep breath, pushing down the anger in her heart.  "Brooke, is this really what you wanted?" She asked when she''d suppressed it.  "I''m not talking about leaving Jonah, relationship break ups happen.  But you left James."


    "So what if I left that kid!?" Brooke grumbled, refusing to meet her eyes.  Did she feel some guilt after all?


    "That kid... he''s your son!" Autumn burst out, she ached for that small baby.  He was so small, helpless, yet his mother walked away from him!  How could she not get angry with Brooke for that?!  "You carried him for nine months, gave birth to him..."


    "But I didn''t want him!"  Brooke snapped again, pointing her finger at Autumn, her own anger pouring to the surface.  "You don''t get it!  They were all so happy for Jonah, just because he finally had the chance to be a father, but did they ever think about me?  Twenty years old and knocked up already?!"  Her gestures became more unrestrained as she poured out everything she had felt during those nine long months!  With all of this in her heart, how did she have the space to give a damn about the kid that had grown inside of her?!


    "And then, it''s not like I can see a doctor and make sure everything was okay and I then had to rely on you to give birth!  Do you know how scared I was?!  I thought I was going to die!"  The pain of giving birth burned brightly in her memories. "After that it was all about James!  Brooke, the baby needs changing, Brooke, the baby needs feeding, Brooke, the baby is awake!  I didn''t feel like I was me anymore, just Jonah''s girlfriend and James'' mother.  Thomas gave me a chance to escape all of that, so I took it."  She smacked her chest with the flat of her palm, daring Autumn to claim that she was wrong.  Thomas made her feel special again, Thomas made her feel like she was one amongst a billion.  So when he offered to take her away, she went willingly.  Regrets may have come later, but she could not say that she wouldn''t have left Jonah and James even if she''d not chosen to follow Thomas at that time.


    Autumn allowed herself a moment to absorb Brooke''s words, but although she could, perhaps, understand some of Brooke''s fears during the pregnancy, she still couldn''t understand the woman''s final decision.  She admitted something she''d held in her own heart for a long time; "I''ve never understood you, Brooke.  I''ve tried to, but I just can''t."


    "Stop acting so self-righteous!" Brooke sneered at her cousin.  "Of course you''ve never understood me, what I''ve suffered.  Your parents didn''t die and leave you!  You had a secure childhood, Aunty and Uncle cared so much for you!"  Autumn''s anger once more surfaced, this time less a wave and more a tsunami.  Bringing up Aunt and Uncle as if they chose to die and leave Brooke behind!  And what was secure?  Just because she had two parents?  Two parents who literally bent over backwards to make Brooke feel welcome and included, even at the exclusion of their own daughter sometimes?!


    "They cared for you as well!  You never went without!" Autumn raged at the white-eyed wolf before her.  "My mother bent over backwards to make you happy!  On her request, I gave way to you at every turn!  The reason I took time off of university was due to her request to take care of you when you were sick!  Even her last words for me were not about me at all, they were about you!"  Brooke looked a little startled, there were a few doubts in her eyes, but they were covered up by her own feelings of surety.  She turned her head aside, refusing to acknowledge Autumn''s words.


    Autumn felt refreshed, but also a little deflated.  Brooke would never change, would she?  She''d probably die rather than admit her mistakes.  But Autumn was done supporting her, covering for her.  They were both adult women, capable of making their own decisions, capable of deciding their own paths.  And Brooke had decided upon her''s, Autumn didn''t want to follow it.  She turned around to leave, one hand upon the door and spoke a few parting words; "Brooke, you are my cousin, nothing can change that.  I still think that you are wrong, selfish, but I really didn''t come here to argue with you.  Brooke, take care of yourself."  She didn''t notice the light in Brooke''s eyes falter, redden nor that her expression had turned complicated.  Autumn left without looking back.


    Brooke, I no longer want to be your shadow.

 102 Chapter One Hundred and One - New Connections and Considerations

    On a more positive note, Winston had met a woman who''d been selling scarves, hats and jumpers that she''d knitted herself. Although the few jumpers meant for men were a bit pricey, the scarves and hats were a good deal and so Winston had purchased a few for the children. He''d also discussed the fact that there was the possibility of providing her with wool, just that it wasn''t woven. The woman didn''t know how to do this, nor did she know anyone who could, but she did say she would naturally be happy to trade if they were able to spin it or find spun wool in the future. Her former hobby was now her livelihood, she''d feared that it was a finite one. Winston gave her hope. A pity she could give Winston nothing in return; she was his senior with almost twice his years and the mother of two adopted, older teenaged boys, who''d enrolled into the army''s ranks. She wasn''t about to leave them.


    Eraj also had met with a woman, one with impressively large eyes upon her otherwise ordinary face. She''d also turned her former hobby into her livelihood; making soaps. She''d not been the only woman to do so, forming a rivalry between that person and herself, but her competition had strong backup; her man was the leader of a civilian squad. While he was out scavenging, he would try to bring back all types of soap; decorative ones to small, half-used portions. His woman would reform and reshape it into small bars of soap and sell them on.


    Her rival, the woman before Eraj, was different. She made soap using old methods, from scratch, the theory she had learned long before the end, even while using modern methods in actuality. Now her soaps were often a little oily, not sweet smelling and the colours were not crisp, but ugly shades of brown. But they still worked well and she had hope to improve them over time, even hoped to be able to harvest flowers to provide scent and a better appearance. But currently, they did not sell as well as the other woman''s, who enjoyed reminding her often.


    Eraj jumped on the chance to invite her to return with him to their base where her skills would be greatly appreciated.


    The woman had blushed before confessing; "Well, if you''d asked me a month a go, I might have honestly be willing. But now... I collect ash from our base''s charcoal maker to make a caustic agent for the soap, I came to know him quite well and we decided to try making a go of things..."


    They packed up to return home with the leftover apple oil and apple butter. Trying to sell these items hadn''t proved to be a successful venture, unlike the fresh apples and dried apple slices, this time. But they weren''t overly perturbed about that, knowing they could be used by themselves.


    In the future, though, the situation would drastically reverse; the apple oil was proven by the base''s scientists to be edible and a reasonable substitute for other oils. Though the flavour was a little sweeter than other oil, it did not detract from the flavour of fried vegetables and with the right spice, could even enhance them. This reduced the pressure on the base to grow sunflowers for their seed oil, freeing room for other bulk crops. Sunflower seeds were then sold whole for purchases to eat as snacks or even grow themselves in their own homes.


    Autumn and Logan also discovered that the ''butter'' or mutant apple pulp had enough sugar to help in sustaining pickles when added to the vinegar and salt brine, lessening the need for the small white and brown crystal grains. It was no help in making any jams though, but when mixed with mashed ordinary apple, made a rather tart but acceptable apple sauce substitute.


    But all of this was quite some time in the future, this wouldn''t help them now.


    They went home with their small purchases, which included soft toys for the children and the collection of fresh spices.


    *****


    Driving through the gates of their own haven home was a kin to stepping through a warm waterfall, washing off the negative and all six visibly relaxed.


    Dexter kissed Autumn on the forehead, suggesting she go on ahead, while he helped the men unload the truck.  She gave a gentle nod and smiled.  There was a slight fatigue behind her eyes, but also she felt lighter than she had in many years.  There was a tiny part of her, she believed, that would always feel worried about her cousin.  It was branded in her DNA, just as birds let their chicks jump out of their nests to fall or fly, Autumn knew letting go of the burdens she''d placed upon herself thanks to her mother and cousin was for the best.


    And speaking of chicks, the daughter of her heart could be once more found being circled by them.  When they''d hatched a few weeks ago, there had been much celebration.  Nine eggs had be warmed by the two broody hens, eight had hatched.  They hadn''t been able to understand why the last one failed to, could only bury it outside the walls, where they now buried all of the meat and non-compostable waste.  Without the specialised feed that was developed in modern times before the end, they could only try make up a mix of tiny vegetable seeds and mix in a bit of grain here and there until the tiny yellow chicks grew into their feathers, following the instructions within the book they had found on a raid.


    The chicks grew surprisingly fast, not faster than what was written, but fast in the eyes of the inexperienced and clueless.  Their lack saw the loss of another two chicks, but although they were saddened, their brood had already doubled, with four new hens and two roosters.  At this time they were around six weeks old, able to eat some kitchen scraps with their elders, most of whom they now lived with.  One hen had become broody a couple of weeks ago and was sitting on a grand six eggs, trying to prove her ability.


    One thing that was different about the second generation to the first, they were quite attached to small Lucy and often followed her about the gardens when allowed to roam more freely.


    "Mummy!" Lucy caught sight of Autumn and ran over on short legs, her brood following closely at her heels.  Her infectious grin had Autumn automatically respond with a smile of her own and she hugged the child holding her thighs.  The noisy birds greeted the woman enthusiastically as well.


    "Have you been a good girl?"  Autumn asked her, knowing full well that the child was obedient and not overly mischievous.  Lucy nodded, happily and babbled on a bit about reading a book with Sienna, the girl-child from the second property. Autumn helped her daughter put the chicks into the pen and guided her to wash her hands before they entered the kitchen together.


    There, Logan (from the second property) was stir frying vegetable ribbons with a little salt and pepper seasoning. He''d also made a mixed tomato salad, taking advantage of the numerous varieties in Nathan''s gardens. Autumn thanked him; she''d really not been in the mood to cook that evening. "It''s fine for me to do this much," Logan waved away her gratitude, "Your people have already done and given so much for us. After we lost our homes for the second time, we believed that we''d never have another chance to live. If anything, we want to do more to protect this place."


    "Don''t worry," Dexter said, appearing from behind Autumn, carrying a box of bottled and jarred oil, "we''ll put you all to work so many times, you''ll want to take back those words!"


    It would be soon time to harvest the corn in the two large beds allocated them. The crop in Nathan''s gardens was impressive and the second crop in the third property didn''t lag behind too much. Some other crops were nearing the end of their viability; the weather expected to move from summer to autumn with the rain and cooler temperatures to follow. They needed to harvest everything before the rains became serious and they lost too much. Fortunately, they''d only had short showers that didn''t have any visible effect on the plants and vegetables this summer and one electrical storm, which did cause some damage here and there, reducing edible yields. Anything grown outside of the first property had a shorter life expectancy thanks to this or higher mutation rates. A portion of the corn in the third property had turned purple, their flowers black. Ren Zexian had burned a dozen or so stalks to prevent any possible spread of the mutation. Although the loss wasn''t great, it still stabbed at their hearts each and every time such things occurred.


    This had led to discussions about growing more in greenhouses. It was just that the summers were so very hot and Nathan sometimes watered the plants within the greenhouse twice a day to keep them vitalised. With this and his water needed for the gardens, he was unable to help with other needs. The soldier, Luke, had also returned to the base, so until late, Tyler had been the only one they could rely on. So Ren Zexian informed them of his beloved''s vision about the third property. The rooms within a house were only exposed to the sun at certain times of the day and therefore only certain rooms, such as south facing ones and conservatories with glass roofs would heat up to nearly unbearable temperatures in the summer.


    The third property was a half of a shell, suitable to be used whichever way they wished. Although it would take some preparation and deep understanding of plants individual needs and such, turning it into a sheltered farm was not impossible. They could also move the hens and sheep into it during the winter...


    With this new project at hand, there was a buzz of excitement and anticipation in the air. Dexter sought Nathan for his advice, but found that the youth had his thoughts on other matters.

 103 Chapter One Hundred and Two - A Spiritual Type of Grain

    Even at that point, he had felt some uncertainty, but Nan Li Liang had reassured him of the possibility, though his own experiments during school had required an indoor space heating lights to create a steady temperature, the boy had indeed grown a few stalks of rice paddy in a bucket. It had only produced about half a bowl of unpolished rice grain, it was not as soft and delicate as white rice, but it hadn''t been without its own charm; the knowledge that it had been grown by oneself.


    So, he had soaked a quarter of a cup of rice for half a day in water produced by his own hand, not willing to waste the packet he''d purloined from their food stocks over half a year prior, then drained the water before gently pressing them between too tea towels to keep warm and damp. Not unlike when he''d first grown a bean in amongst damp cotton wool as a child, he had mused.


    Not all of the rice had sprouted, perhaps no longer viable for the length of time it had been packaged and kept or too ''damaged'' to use, but about a fourth of the rice produced seedlings. Really shouldn''t be underestimated how many seedlings that still came into being, though from this small amount. Nathan had nearing two hundred seedlings to plant into his make shift paddy. There would not be enough space!


    From Nan Li Liang''s memory, the seedlings should be planted anywhere between 6inches and a foot apart in the bed. It wasn''t that he was confused, it was that this information was researched from many different websites and varied between varieties. Also where one would say each seedling is placed every 6 inches in rows 6 inches apart, another would say 4 inches with rows nine inches apart. Then also, he''d grown rice in a bucket with five stalks, four around the circumference and one in the middle, not in a field or bedding space.


    Nathan chose the 6x6 method as determining between rows and columns, he didn''t see the point and he could always move the plants if the space was insufficient. The remaining plants were scattered amongst plastic troughs and pots and were placed in the sun rooms for Nan Li Liang to care for.


    Whenever he entered the green house to care for them, they would shake almost excitedly and he sensed they welcomed him or more specifically, the water he produced. He did think of speaking to Ren Zexian about this, but decided against this. Growing rice was meant to be his gift to Ren Zexian, telling him about it would lessen the achievement.


    However, who was Ren Zexian, but a man who''d lived many, many more lifetimes than Nathan could imagine. Although he was not familiar with the process of growing paddy, he''d passed by paddy fields and places which grew wild rice on many occasions. He could tell that the grass had taken root within the green house and it would have done so by his beloved''s hand. And he could not help but noticed the rich density of spiritual energy swirling about each plant...


    Naturally, he was aware before his beloved that the paddy growing here was far richer in colour and when finally Nathan came to shyly admit that he''d been growing rice for Ren Zexian to eat, the grain they harvested was not what they had expected.


    Nan Li Liang''s rice, which was already quite good, enough for a few meals per person, was pale brown and long in shape similar as to what the plants originated from.  Nathan''s rice was shaped as long but more plump and the colour was pale gold and even seemed to glisten as they were held in sunlight.  Once cooked, both original and mutant varieties smelled appetising, but every man and woman with a spiritual root would be drawn more towards the golden rice.  That was Ren Zexian''s perception as he Nathan and Nan Li Liang produced two small bowls to test.


    The ordinary rice did indeed have good flavour and texture, Ren Zexian couldn''t help but savour it; it had been a long while since he had had the opportunity to eat rice.  He hadn''t realised how much he''d missed it once it was no longer available.  He was first to taste the mutant rice out of the three and had to pause in thought, before preventing Nan Li Liang from eating any more than a mouthful.


    Ren Zexian had been reminded of a variety of rice that had once grown in the realm of his birth.  It had been known as Jade rice and had high spiritual properties.  It should be mentioned that this type of rice was not the only spiritual rice to grow in the many middle and high realms, but this type had been exclusive to his birth realm, thus it was what he recalled best.


    Jade rice was difficult to grow, for it insisted on certain peak conditions as well as an abundant source of spiritual energy and water so clear that it could be glass.  It did not like moving water, so any disturbances would prevent the plant from maturing and it did not like the cold, thus sudden temperature drops would also have it wilt.  Once each stalk had grown tall, it''s panicles numbered only one or two, so a good harvest would be twenty grains per stalk.  Still, it was highly sought after as each grain was thick with spiritual energy, beneficial to even Cultivators who no longer needed food to live.


    Nathan''s grain took much of the characteristics of its source, but had a spiritual grass'' greed for spiritual energy and pure water.  It was not as potent and rich as Jade rice, but it produced as much grain as its ancestor.  Nathan''s gold spirit rice was still a wondrous thing to discover in this land.


    What Ren Zexian had consider was whether it could be consumed by ordinary people; Jade rice could not.  As he circulated the energy through his meridians, he felt that the gold spirit rice would not be harmful in small amounts for ordinary people, it might even be beneficial, but they would suffer if they tried to eat too much.  He tested his theory through Nan Li Liang''s pulse and believed his hypothesis to be true, voicing it aloud.  Only then did Nan Li Liang willingly put down his spoon; rice had been as much a part of his diet as it had the man before him.  He could only step back and look on as others ate.


    ******


    The rice harvest was a boon, no matter how large or small the quantities were, they gave everyone hope for the future.  The whole grain rice which Nathan had carefully hoarded returned to the kitchen for storage, while a tenth of his gold spirit rice and the uneaten portion of Nan Li Liang''s was placed to one side to be seed for future harvests.  The rest of the gold spirit rice would be added before consumption to cooked whole grain rice to dilute its potency and then only once a month would it be served, perhaps twice in Winter as the amount of yang energy for absorption was at its weakest then.


    Once this matter had been decided, Dexter followed Nathan and Ren Zexian to the third property to begin planning out the layout.  Dexter found that Nathan was especially chatty when both accompanied by the oriental man and speaking of his favourite subject; plants.


    "Peppers, tomatoes, chilli''s, these can all be grown in winter, but not much and then must be placed in the rooms that are the sunniest. Lettuces, radishes, carrots... Ah, greens can be grown from garlic bulbs, um... I''ve not tried it before though. Mushrooms don''t mind less sun, but I don''t know about how to harvest and spread spore. Potatoes and sweet potatoes can be grown in light rooms, don''t need as much attention as the fruits..."


    The sun room in which both Ren Zexian and Nathan found enlightenment was chosen to have the burden of the crops as well as the largest room, likely once the living room of the property before it was stripped of its assets. Herbs, greens and root crops for the latter while the salad fruits were to be placed in the former. Dexter thought it would be wise to renovate a couple of rooms in case the weather became harsh and anyone caring for the plants could not return to their main home to rest. He had Harry chose a few men to scrounge things from the abandoned village while he, Winston and Paul began to work with what was on hand.


    But before they could truly get too involved in the renovation, they were dragged to help harvest the corn first.

 104 Chapter One Hundred and Three - Confessions and Proposals

    The corn was harvested, dried out and stored to become seed for the following year or corn flour for the winter.  A few cobs were greedily savoured prior to that, each bite a sweet sensation, despite only being boiled and without garnish.


    The second set of fluffy chicks were born, this time all of the eggs beneath the hen successfully cracked open and the community looked forward to being able to eat eggs more often during the winter months.  During that time also, it was decided that the hens would be moved into the third property to keep them sheltered better from the winter snows, just in case they happened to be as strong and deep as the year before.


    Thus as the work in the gardens wound down and there was nothing to harvest outside of the first properties gardens, work became more focused within the property and patrols once more increased upon the walls; small crowds of humanoid zombies had reappeared at the walls as the temperatures began to fall.


    If the walking corpses had been frightening before, these appeared more so.  Their green-grey skins had noticeable charred edges as parts had peeled away from the body.  Essence no longer oozed from the cracks within the flesh, instead was crusted into a thick, blackened layer.  Eyes were no longer reddened and bloodshot, but the whites had yellowed and the veins were dark, the black pupil shone grey whenever the light hit them, yet despite the fogginess, their vision was still sharp enough to catch movement.  Few had ears, the extraneous skin having been lost, maybe deemed unnecessary or burnt by the summer sun until they flaked away unheeded.  In all honesty, finding just one that retained the four limbs, two hands, two feet, two eyes, ears, nose and jaw thus resembling the human they had once been was difficult.


    The zombies were more vicious as well, their joints appeared less stiff than before the summer overall and many more seemed to have abilities.  Fortunately, as the two strongest of the defenders were able to stave off a few more frightening attacks and there were others who could stand on par in strength against the rest, they were able to fend off these small assaults against their walls.


    However, fearing what was to come, the ability users spent every spare moment cultivating in a bid to get stronger in fear of what could follow.


    *****


    Cole also understood he would feel the tenderness of blackened marks come the morning, but at this time buried as he was in his lover''s welcoming body, he really did not care. He and Chang Min were not like the patient Ren Zexian and innocent Nathan; once feelings had been established, they were quick to explore the physical side of their blossoming relationship. Likely they would have tumbled after the first confession was made, if not for the bloody wound on Cole''s back at that time.


    There was also no distinguishing who would attack and who would receive, they''d explored both sides of the coin, but it just so happened that Chang Min preferred being able to curl his legs around Cole''s sturdy waist while Cole plundered his body at a steady pace as was happening now. It did not mean that tomorrow he wouldn''t want to press Cole down and enjoy what else his lover''s body could offer him.


    The two entwined until sticky and sated, their bodies having released their essence and fallen into the relaxing afterglow of love making. Chang Min curled into the other''s warm chest, listening to the slowing heartbeat within it. He was exceedingly happy. Memories crossed his mind of his journey to this point, where he finally found the person who he felt best matched him in body and soul and he could finally shed the vestiges of loneliness that had shadowed him for so long.


    It was true that he''d not been truly alone much in his life; he''d had the parents that raised him and siblings, there had been the other youths in the outer sect before it had fallen. Then there had been his master and the others... It was just that, his parents had given him up, though he''d always reassured himself that it was for his survival. And then the other youths left his side one by one due to promotion or vanished as they scattered after the Sect fell. Then when the realm crumbled to dust, he''d lost track of his master and the wandering cultivators he''d become close to. He''d blessed his luck that he had found his master again and even more that the master had found his heart in this place... but the shadow of people leaving him was etched upon his mind and couldn''t help cause endless doubts. He feared losing this latest group of people to enter his life.


    He feared losing Cole.


    So when Cole had become hurt, he could no longer hold back his feelings and spilled them only to receive them back not in rejection but in mutual affection. To be joined in physical expression of their love was even more perfect. Cole truly was his, he felt and he was Cole''s. That they were both men never once crossed his mind, the Cultivation world didn''t really discriminate, such biases were just a waste of time and energy that could better be channeled into getting stronger, into reaching the elusive goal of immortality.


    He felt Cole''s lips press upon his forehead and the warmth within him swelled further. He loved this man. Thinking about it, why not further their relationship? He couldn''t help but hesitate, biting his bottom lip as he dwelled upon it.


    While he was certain in his heart and was certain of Cole''s, he also understood that the latter was not a man who could stand being caged and while the step of becoming Dao Companions was not entrapment, it did creating a binding connection that could not be undone. He didn''t want Cole to feel that he no longer had freedom.


    Closing his eyes on this thought, his sleep that should have been blessed as he lie in the comfort of his lover''s arms became restless and that was obvious as he roamed the walls the following day. Cole even had to tug him back as a fireball flew in his direction from a child sized zombie that wildly unleashed its ability. Cole nudged the earth beneath its feet, spikes burst from the ground, but Cole''s cultivation was still only in the primary stage and his speed was lacking.  The zombie child sensed the danger and leapt back with ease.


    "What''s wrong?" Cole questioned his lover, worriedly, his eyes not filled with chagrin but concern.


    Chang Min guiltily withdrew his line of sight and attempted to reassure him with a small smile.  "Nothing, just overthinking," he said after a moment.


    Cole wasn''t reassured, even though Chang Min became refocused and sent a flurry of sharp rocks to rain upon the gathering zombies.  A few of the weaker ones fell, crushed by the assault that was many times more deadly than Cole''s.  After the two soldiers (who had remained by request) took over from their patrol, Cole grabbed his wrist and tugged him, without giving Chang Min a chance to refute him, back to their room.


    "You''ve been a little off all morning," Cole accused him, though it was in a matter of fact way, not harsh and deriding.  "Tell me what''s wrong."  In order to show his sincerity, he took Chang Min''s hands into his own and was unable to help himself from stroking the smooth palms.  These hands should be rough with callouses from handling a sword yet were more like marble, he always marvelled over the contradiction of the silky skin that lie flush on a body that was more like steel in strength.


    Chang Min sensed that Cole would not be satisfied with a perfunctory explanation, but didn''t know what words to use, so he could only look at him, his eyes filled with a mix of emotions.


    Cole almost panicked, unable to interpret the depths of feelings within those black eyes.  There was love, fear, as well as a shadow of something else and Cole gathered him tightly to his chest, worried that Chang Min wanted to leave him.  Cole''s feelings for Chang Min had been developing for so long, since he became interested in the adorable, yet untouchable man on seeing him last summer.  On the one hand, he was brimming with youth, his round face still plush with collagen and his eyes clear and bright, yet he claimed to be older than any of them, even Jonah.  Then there was his slender frame, his height a little shorter than Ren Zexian''s, his seemingly untrained form, with little obvious muscle, though not skinny and malnourished either.  And he could easily pick up weights with one hand that took Cole both arms and braced back and knees to deal with.


    Interest had deepened as he was personally trained to manage his new found abilities with Chang Min''s help, the need to be standing equal or of use to the other blossomed in his heart.  The need to be with him warred with the need to escape the four spread out walls that always seemed to enclose him as the days passed and lengthened.  Everything was teetering on a fine edge as he tried to balance his emotions that pressed at him from many directions.  After all, what if Chang Min found the idea of being with him repugnant?  He was a man after all.  Although he accepted easily the feelings his Master had for another man, did not mean Chang Min would accept a man pursuing him.  But he so wanted to openly love Chang Min, yet he also feared ruining the close friendship they had now.  Discovering Chang Min cared for him as well simply allowed him to unleash the affection locked in his heart, he''d never be able to step away from him now.  To ask him to do so, might as well ask him to step out of these walls separating them all from the monstrous existences outside, never to return.


    "Don''t leave me," he blurted out the core fear tearing him asunder.


    Chang Min stiffened within his arms unable to fathom what he had just heard.  Cole''s arms tightened about him and he melted into the warm embrace.  "I never planned to," he told him as he wrapped his own arms about Cole''s waist.  "You won''t leave me either, right?"


    Cole''s hands cupped his face and Chang Min looked up to see the panicked expression etched there, his own worries faded with the need to comfort the other.  "Not leaving, not leaving," Chang Min repeated until he soothed the other, soothing himself unknowingly at the same time.


    A sigh escaped from the other as his shoulders relaxed, his lips then descended to press kisses on Chang Min''s face, reassuring himself with the sensations of touch.  "I need you in my life," Cole told him, pulling him once more into his embrace.  "Have you been worrying that I would not want you for some reason?"


    "I guess, I was overthinking," Chang Min admitted sheepishly.


    "Why?  What brought this on?"  Cole listened as his lover explained that he''d been left alone many times before and suddenly had become startled at the thought of Cole doing the same in the future because... his words tapered off.  "Because what?"


    Two rose blushes darkened Chang Min''s face as he shyly admitted; "Because I want to become Dao Companion''s with you."  He held Cole tighter, still scared he might flee.


    Cole did stiffen in his arms, but not for the reason he thought; "What''s a Dao Companion?"

 105 Chapter One Hundred and Four - Knowing Needs and Limits

    Regardless, Chang Min was feeling more comfortable that the proposition was out there. He really wanted Cole to agree to it, there was no doubts in his own mind that the man was the one he wanted walking beside himself for the rest of this lifetime. But he didn''t want to force a decision that later might develop regret and cause them both to suffer in the future, so he pressed down any urgency in his heart and didn''t speak of it again. Perhaps this warmed Cole''s heart even more for after the initial awkwardness that latest more than a couple of days, the man became even more affectionate to the point that the members of his original squad wondered if he''d been swapped out and replaced by a foreign entity.


    "I just think he wants to rub his relationship in our faces," Jimmy complained once more as he watched from the walls as the pair passed by in the distance, their heads close together and no space apparently between their bodies.


    "Stop bitching about it," Monika replied as she aimed her crossbow at a particularly insistent zombie, it''s drool dripping constantly and steaming as it hit the ground before its feet. Although it was midday and the majority of the zombies had wandered to take shelter from the hot sun that beamed unheeded upon the earth this early autumn day, this one seemed oblivious to the burning light and leapt up at the walls, trying to reach the fresh meat on top. Two metal bolt pierced through its brains, the shortened distance making it nearly impossible to miss it and it crumpled to the ground.


    The woman sighed as she fanned herself with her gloved hand; on the walls it was best to wear as many skin covering things as possible to reduce the risk of infection. They had slacked upon this rule in the summer, the temperatures had been too high and they would have impeded themselves if they had continued to cover themselves completely. Plus, the threat of the undead had reduced a bit then. Now, with the steadily rising numbers of evolved zombies attempting to breach the walls, they once more adopted this method of protection. It was just difficult with this day being summer''s last hurrah before the cooler temperatures truly settled in.


    Arthur handed her a bottle of cool water after replacing a metal bolt into his crossbow, ready for any further threats, before turning to Jimmy to chide him. "Less worrying about them, concentrate on protecting the walls for now."


    He wasn''t the only one to consider this. Dexter was mulling over a list of things in the kitchen that he''d had Tyler compile regarding their supplies and what was required for the coming winter. He also had a report from the second property having asked them to detail anything they required or thought of regarding their base as a fresh perception likely could see any problems that they had not considered. Winston had reported all of the materials they required to finish the refurbish the third property for their needs that they couldn''t get from the village, though it wasn''t much.


    "Let''s go out again," Jonah suggested, handing his wiggling son to Autumn for a moment, "before the zombies get any more active."


    Jonah had focused on caring for his small son all this while and well as nursing his old, broken heart.  Autumn hadn''t told him that she''d cut off relations with her cousin during the time she confronted her in the army base, just had quietly mentioned that her cousin seemed well and left it at that.  Jonah still cared for Brooke and couldn''t help but feel at ease hearing this, even if a small part of him wanted her to not be okay, so she''d have to come back to him and let him look after her.  He knew it was better this way, their son didn''t need a mother that didn''t want him and could leave him at the drop of a hat.


    His son was healthy, happy, the bright light in the darkness of this era and he could not love him more.  And he didn''t want to be a mopey, useless old man for the kid, especially when he faced an uncertain future as it was, so he''d pulled himself together to once more attempt to be a pillar in their community, rather than a burden.


    "Didn''t the base practically strip the surrounding towns and villages of anything of worth?" Dexter pointed out as he circled the word ''coal'' on the supplies list.  Charcoal was being produced on the army base now, although they didn''t have much points left from their last trip to cover the cost.  Perhaps they could sell any excess squash vegetables this time, they had quite the abundant harvest currently ripening in the beds.


    "I doubt they ran off with all of the windows, doors, metal pipes and things like that," Jonah pointed out. Many of the village houses were in complete ruins as they''d removed these things already; the doors decorated a few outside walls to keep in more heat, the metal pipes had become crossbow bolts or helped to created the extra layer on the walls protecting them and windows had helped towards Nathan''s greenhouse. They hoped to gather more to make another greenhouse on the second property''s grounds in the future. Bricks were also taken and added to their already high walls and they already understood that there was a need to do this again. A new supply would soon be needed.


    "That''s true," Dexter relented. He tapped the paper with his pen for a moment in thought. "We did prioritise grabbing things that were easily removed rather than bulky items, so it''s not to say there is nothing left in some of those houses."


    "Patrick mentioned that the squad he joins sometimes usually look further afield, in urban areas where there''s more likely to be pickings," Jonah mentioned. "So many we should try a different approach. You had a bit of luck finding that remote farmhouse. There are likely more about the place, whether they hold anything..." he shrugged. "But looking costs fuel and so the gains might not outweigh the risk, if you know what I am saying."


    Dexter collected his thoughts and grinned. "I''ve got you. Farmhouses aren''t the only ones with some more remote locations, there are also a few hotels that used to rely on picturesque scenery and campsites in forest locations. Risky though." The farms used to have animals; whether they lived, mutated or zombified no one knew, but animals tended at that time to be more dangerous than humanoid zombies. Although by now most of the animals likely dispersed, didn''t mean that the thought of the risk wasn''t still embedded in people''s minds. Only those happy to gamble might think otherwise. Same with the forests, in fact, the risk there was even greater due to unclear line of sight and mutated vegetation.


    "Don''t doubt that!" Jonah agreed. "So we could take the risk ourselves or team up with that army squad again."


    "Let''s ask for a few opinions later," Dexter suggested. They were stronger now than they used to be, but so were many of the animals and zombies. Everyone had to understand the risks that would come with this mission and decide whether it was worth it.

 106 Chapter One Hundred and Five - Best Laid Plans...

    It was also their last chance to do such a thing as well, as while the numbers of humanoid zombies were still low compared to the months of spring, they were rising every day.


    However, before they could put their plan into action, it began to rain.


    It wasn''t a thunderous downpour, the heavens literally tipping water from the sky down onto the Earth, but more a persistent steady rainfall that lasted for three days, drenching their home in water and making the ground soggy in this period.  Any plants with weak foundations or that were already nearing the end of their annual life cycle didn''t survive; they lost the last batch of tomatoes and cucumbers, which blackened within their watery graves and the melon vines, which fortunately no longer held fruit, shrivelled to dust.


    The plants and vegetables of the first property had less chance of dying or mutating than elsewhere, the cannibalistic grass in the third property''s grounds expanded and there were signs of more mutated flowers in the second.  These latter ones looked harmless, so they could only keep an eye on them for now.


    Plants were not the only thing that could be effected by the tainted rain, so anyone without a cultivation foundation were requested to not leave the shelter of the houses for any long period of time, while only those of secondary stage and above could man the walls, meaning long shifts for all of them.  These were Ren Zexian''s recommendations and the people of the base had become used to listening to him so agreed.


    Shaun was the exception, which frustrated him to no end.  Before the apocalypse, he''d never felt that his lack was a burden, for the modern lifestyle meant that his disability didn''t make his life much more difficult that a person with full mobility, just that he had to do a few things differently.  And when he''d gained his powers over metal, he once again held that feeling of independence.  But although he was as strong as many others in the base, he often felt helpless to prove it.


    He could only watch as Dexter dragged his feet through the back door to eat a sweet potato style curry with cauliflower rice that Autumn had busied herself in preparing during the day with precious coarse bread rolls to bolster the defending men''s energy.  He could only grit his teeth as he listened along with the woman as Dexter described the situation on the walls.


    The rain had made the clusters of returning zombies bold.


    "It looked like the rain messed with our scents," Dexter mentioned as he slowed down his intake of food now his stomach felt a little more comfortable.  "The zombies weren''t drawn to any of us on the walls until we moved, at which point we had to contend with a long ranged assault of stones, icicles, tree branches, some lightning.  Not so much fire though."  The rain had given the zombies some advantages, but a few disadvantages as well.


    When Dexter left to once more tackle the task of defence, Shaun felt his mood lowering further.  He tapped a finger on the table for a while, deep in thought, before being startled out of them with Autumn''s request that he pass some of the used dishes over.  Her simple sentence actually made him feel better as while it was true that he couldn''t help out on the walls, no one blamed him for it and no one treated him any differently because he relied on a wheelchair.  So he himself shouldn''t sulk about it and consider the things he could do or could try to do.


    Which was why he requested he be added to the squad leaving the base for supplies.


    Although the weather had turned in their favour, the walls still needed to be manned, yet the squad also could not be weak.  Naturally, they needed Chang Min and Ren Zexian, as the strongest of the cultivators to split up onto separate teams.  Chang Min usually ventured out with them thanks to the close ties between Nathan and Ren Zexian, but this time the apprentice requested that he remain within the walls, not go out.


    "I''ve been feeling for the past week or so that I soon might make a breakthrough, Master," Chang Min advised him.  He allowed Ren Zexian to check his pulse and his Master came to agree with him.  Ordinarily, a person of higher cultivation wouldn''t allow this level of intimacy or would instinctively struggle against it, causing a clash of two spiritual energies and perhaps a backlash.  So this showed just how much he trusted his Master.


    "Yes, it would be unwise for you to be outside now," Ren Zexian acknowledged, "less you breakthrough in an unfamiliar and dangerous location."  That had been a common problem amongst wandering cultivators.  Lone ones would hide in deep caves, set up arrays and talismans as well as block themselves in, in order to protect them at this most vulnerable time.  Cultivators in groups would also do this and if they were close to their fellows, they could rely on their additional protection.  If they could not, then they might vanish even deeper into isolation.


    Their circumstances had changed, these people were not untrustworthy as their needs aligned.  Were they different, Ren Zexian would want Chang Min to enter closed cultivation until his breakthrough, perhaps he would still prefer this, but couldn''t suggest it as their support was strongly required.


    But of course, this situation required Ren Zexian to leave, however briefly, Nathan''s side.  Nathan couldn''t leave his home, this centre of his world.  It pained Ren Zexian that his beloved retained this fragility, but he also loved this about him.


    "I don''t wish to leave you," Ren Zexian enfolded him into his arms and placed a kiss upon his forehead.  Nathan nestled deeper into his embrace, despite his low mood.


    "Then don''t."  To Nathan, it was just this simple.


    "It is required," Ren Zexian replied, helplessly.  "In order to ensure that we can grow more plants and vegetation, in order to ensure that this winter is not as harsh as it might otherwise be, I must protect the ones seeking items in the outside world to ensure this."


    "Whenever you are not here," Nathan said after a moment, "my chest is pained and my stomach feels hollow."


    Ren Zexian''s heart felt sweet and sour as he heard those words and as if his soul suddenly reflected Nathan''s emotions, a longing welled up in him that he could not ignore.  He gently raised Nathan''s chin with his finger that he might have access to his soft lips.  His tongue slipped inside the hollow of Nathan''s mouth to tangle with his beloved''s own tongue.  His hands began the arduous task of unfastening buttons.


    Nathan''s mind was swept away with the pleasure and his mind fell blank, he didn''t notice that he was divested of garments until his underwear slid down his legs with ease.  His body had already responded to Ren Zexian''s desire and as Xian always helped him when his penis stood tall, he relaxed and allowed the man''s hands to touch the plains of his body.  He only became alert when an exploratory digit slipped in between the mounds of his bottom and pressed against the hidden opening there.


    Ren Zexian noticed his beloved''s startled eyes and kissed them gently.  "I won''t lie to you," he said, softly.  "I wish to join with you."  They hadn''t come together since they''d had the choice removed and had to join intimately for the sake of saving his life.  Nathan had been adverse to crossing that boundary again, Ren Zexian understood that he feared the sensations he had experienced, so he had not pushed him into making love that way again.  But...  "I want for you to remember the feeling of our being as one so that even when we are apart you can know that our connection is not one that will ever be easily severed.  I will return here to you."


    Nathan feared the intimacy, but he feared being forever apart from Ren Zexian more.  It was not Ren Zexian''s meaning, it was Nathan''s misunderstanding that had him give his consent.  However, the gentle, affectionate attention that Ren Zexian gave his body could not be misunderstood.  He was a flower raised in his Xian''s palm, loved and cared for until he blossomed beautifully just for him.

 107 Chapter One Hundred and Six - One Man’s Trash

    They''d travelled first along a few backroads, some of which had now been mostly reclaimed by grass and greenery making them difficult to traverse along. They''d had mixed success with the smattering of properties located there, but as they were not looking for food as this was the most unlikely thing for them to find, their pickings really weren''t bad overall. With Shaun insisting on travelling with them, their task had become somewhat easier; he could directly pluck the pipes and radiators from the walls rather than them smash them up like yobs. If there was any water lingering in them, Tyler evaporated it with his abilities, while the others sought in every corner for salvage.


    Abandoned properties are more at risk from the elements; one bungalow had a few broken roof tiles allowing the rain to seep in damaging carpets and wood flooring as well as causing mould to grow on other fabrics. The smell of that place had been heavily musty, but it had not been the only property to be exposed to the elements. One house had several smashed windows and doors within, the patio doors had been broken from the inside. It was most likely that a zombie had broken out from inside.


    Apart from metal pipes, nails and nuts, they gathered up curtains and other fabrics. These could be repurposed, perhaps or used to thicken their own window coverings this winter and help keep any warmth inside. Harry located a bunch of candles and tea lights in a loft along with a toy train set and building blocks. They''d been covered in plastic bags, so didn''t need much cleaning up.


    This hidden cottage was a fairly old property, built many centuries ago and still had its large fireplace in the living room and wood burning range oven in the kitchen. They stayed there that night, reheating several flasks of squash and bean soup over a fire and the next morning they used all their ability and strength to steal the oven. They planned to try install it in the second property in order that the occupants could live there more comfortably in winter.


    On a farm, the found a truck that still had some fuel in its tank and a horse box which could be attached to it. This was quickly filled with items from the farmhouse itself, though there was not a great deal to take. This place had clearly been found and stripped of any essentials so mostly what they took was metal, paint and some rusting tools hidden in a barn.


    As they were about to leave, they noticed an old tree that had lost vitality and was simply dry wood waiting to fall. They took the time to chop it down and into movable chunks, placing it into the smaller truck''s open bed.


    It wasn''t completely smooth sailing either, but there was only one encounter that could be considered life threatening.  That was a mess of mutant felines whose territory they had travelled into.  They decided to flee, Ren Zexian covering their backs and sweeping aside the vicious cat pride, while they left the barns and farm property labelled them as a loss.


    Otherwise the number of zombies they encountered was minimal, just a few wandering groups that were low in number, heading in similar directions towards the south.  It was clear from their rambling, unhurried pace and that there were no large mobs that there was nothing of interest in this area for a zombie; there was no food for them.


    They encountered just one trapped zombie in still lingering in its original home.  It had turned to face them, its hunger clear, but as it moved, its dry skin cracked and began to flake.  Its muscles had decayed to the point where they even fell from its rattling skeleton, falling to the ground like small sacks of dust, thudding and crumbling.  Tendons tore, hanging loose and as the bones had little or nothing to keep them together, they broke away from the main body, the zombie literally collapsed like an unstable house of cards.  Desiccated organs and a thin, long strand of intestines scattered as it fell and the remaining light in its eyes faded.


    Tyler vomited off to the side, while others swallowed rising bile several times before coming to their senses.  It was not as if they hadn''t seen and smelled other disgusting sights during this era, but this had still been quite a shocking thing to behold. The zombie had been trapped since the end, unable to feed, without the ability to evolve, its end had been inevitable.


    They drove off of the narrow country roads and onto a main road, skirting around the odd abandoned vehicle until they encountered a dual carriageway. Wide and with several cars and lorries left ignored to rust, they took advantage to seek fuel for the two vehicles they were currently using. Some of the trucks had clearly been siphoned clean, but eventually they found half a tank of diesel in a large family car. It couldn''t fill the hungry tank that was within their van, but it was not an insignificant find either.


    Consulting old paper maps, they plotted the quickest route home. It had been two days and nights since they left their base and their finds were enough to celebrate with. Winston carefully manoeuvred the truck through a narrow opening between an abandoned car and another car that had swerved into the central barriers separating the sides of the carriageway roads. Shaun was sitting in between him and Dexter, who happened to lazily be glancing out of the window, but not really observing the sights, just thinking of his girl back home.


    "Wait! Stop the truck!" Shaun said, startling Dexter out of his revelry and causing Winston to swerve.


    "What the fuck?" Tyler yelled from in the back, losing his balance and falling to his knees.


    "Shaun?!" Dexter yelled, half berating him, half questioning him.


    "Sorry! It''s just that I noticed a lot of metal in the trees!" Shaun said, excitedly. He''d been testing his abilities over the last few days, seeing what he could sense, whether he could tell the difference between metals, how much he could move with his mind alone, that sort of thing. The cars and trucks left on the road was naturally all metal, he couldn''t yet tell between types, but he had been able to ''see'' rough shapes of the metal bodies of them. He hadn''t expected to find a lorry-shaped vehicle in amongst the woodland trees that bordered thickly this road. He couldn''t help but wonder whether it had ever been noticed before.


    Trucks and lorry were often transport vehicles, transporting numerous things from peoples possessions to food or livestock, fuel, clothes, furnishings... naturally this road had already been a target of survivors seeking things to better their survival and their lives. The evidence of such was scattered all about the place; broken locks, dented and damaged doors, even holes within containers. So their own people hadn''t thought of searching for anything more than a bit of fuel.


    But what if...


    Dexter understood his conjecture and nodded to Winston to turn the truck around, quickly stopping beside the van following them to let Harry and Ren Zexian, who was sitting beside the other man, what was happening. Harry was towing a horse box, it really wouldn''t be easy for him to turn around, Tyler jumped out of the van to remain at his side to protect him, while Ren Zexian joined the others risking the woodlands.


    The lorry seemed to have swerved off the main road and had ended up quite deep in the woods before hitting a tree. It couldn''t have been going too fast or the damage would have been far more serious, likely the lorry and much of the surrounding woodlands wouldn''t have survived the impact and subsequent explosion. Dexter and Ren Zexian exited the van with caution, Ren Zexian with his blade drawn ready for any hostile targets as they slowly approached the lorry. From the words printed on the sides of the lorry, it belonged to a large supermarket chain.


    This find at this time last year would have completely excited Dexter, the potential for it containing food, toiletries or just cleaning products was high. But what were the chances of the food still being edible or the products still being intact after suffering the heat of the summer twice while stuck in a metal container. Granted, it had the benefit of shade, but...


    Still, they also couldn''t ignore it, so Dexter nodded to Ren Zexian whose sharp blade cut through the doors of the truck like they were made of butter until an opening was formed.


    Dexter glanced at the first things to enter his vision and couldn''t help but grin. "Shaun, you blessed bastard!"

 108 Chapter One Hundred and Seven - Blessings and Curses

    Otherwise, there were movable metal storage containing medicines, sunscreen, moisturiser and soaps, as well as plastic trays containing trays plastic wrapped pieces of clothing, though they would need to go through it properly to see specifics. Toys and electronic games were stored in cardboard boxes, unfortunately much of this was useless due to the lack of electricity at this time, but there were also boxes of cushions and fleecy blankets in matching colours, towels and bathroom mats. They definitely could not say that this stuff lacked use.


    Shaun was carried out of the other truck to seal this one, before Cole started it up to check its fuel situation in order to take the vehicle back as intact. The tyres lacked some pressure, they worked together with Ren Zexian to rectify this, but it was clear that one of the tyres had a slow puncture. They could only hope it held for a bit as they slowly trawled back to their base.


    *****


    Meanwhile, all cultivation had been put on pause for those remaining on base as they vigilantly manned the walls. With the exception of Chang Min and Nathan, those that remained behind were all of primary cultivation or were ordinary people. Their experience manning this walls was also mixed, with the newcomers having only taken on this duty for a matter of weeks. Fortunately, the threats were minimal. Lone wandering zombies provided a moving target for development purposes, small groups could help tighten teamwork and anything more serious was quickly dealt with by Chang Min.


    Just that this morning, Chang Min felt he was about to breakthrough and had to abandon the teams on the wall.


    "Ah, let''s just hope nothing serious hits the walls," Jimmy said as he preloaded several metal crossbows as he gazed over the scenic fields, which were heavily filled with wildflowers and yellow grasses.


    "Shut up!" Monika hissed at him. Arthur also glared at his comrade in arms.


    "What for?" Jimmy complained, pitying himself as he thought that they were ganging up on him again.


    "Just stop talking, crow beak!" Monika demanded. "Everyone knows that when you say something like that, it''s bound to happen!"


    "Holy crap! That doesn''t look human!" Jimmy complained as he lifted the first crossbow to shoot at the monstrous form. The bolt went wide and he found his crossbows snatched from him by Monika who also judged him as useless.


    "Go find help," she ordered him as she began firing the weapons into the undead thing. Before now, all of the zombies that they had faced could be roughly distinguished based on their original forms, no matter how ugly or disgusting that form had become as it rotted away over time. But this thing, it had two thick legs, but no feet. It had two arms, but attached to them were long, sharp claws of bone, there were no palms visible. It''s stomach was bloated and it''s neck had collapsed so that it''s head was nestled into its collarbones. For some reason it only faced upward with a wide, open mouth filled with blackened teeth dominating the face and its eyes had sank to the sides of its head and moved around in their sockets freely. But the most frightening thing had to have been its size; it was almost four metres in height.


    Jimmy leapt off of the wall to dart across the gardens towards where he knew Patrick was patrolling with the brother of the twin pair from the second property, Rohan. Both had strong abilities and should be the closest over all.


    Monika aimed for the zombie''s eyes, but a long tongue flicked out of the open mouth and batted away the bolt. "Is this thing for fucking real??" She shrieked as she grabbed two of the other already loaded crossbows and shot them both at the same time. Obviously, her aim was not going to be specific, but one of the bolts sank into its chest, even though the other was deflected by its claws this time.


    Arthur could only grunt in response as he threw another javelin. This one sank into its thigh, but it did not slow its progress in the slightest. They threw everything they had prepared at it before retreating back.  The walls were six metres high upon that side, this thing only needed to lift its arms to reach the top and though its bone digits did not look capable of grasping at things, did not mean it couldn''t.  Sure enough, the tips of its claws touched the top most bricks before scraping downwards, the horrible sound of the bone on metal and stone reverberating through their eardrums.


    Disorientated, Monika and Arthur were momentarily stunned as they covered their ears.  The sound stopped and there was nothing but the sound of strange slurping noises for several moments.  Monika was tempted to look over the wall, to see what it was doing, but didn''t dare at the same time.  She was right not to do so, for suddenly, the bony claws once more appeared over the wall edge, but this time, it gripped onto the area of brick and concrete and pulled hard.  A second later, cracks began to show.


    "Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Monika complained as she reached for the knives tucked into her boots ready to defend herself, though she backed further away.  In agreement, Arthur continued to retreat in the opposite direction.  They were both ordinary people, there were limits to what they could do and neither Chang Min nor Ren Zexian were currently around to aid them.


    The cracks grew, but the grasped stone stubbornly held for a full minute longer before giving way.  As soon as the chunk crumbled away, the bony fingers shot back into the small opening it had formed at the top of the wall and began to yank at its surrounding brick, stone and mortar.  The metal should have provided some support, but it folded like hot fudge as the zombie ripped at the walls.  The breach grew larger, the zombie reached in again, but this time a ball of plasma mixed with fire fell onto its digits, not only burning the bone, but sending shocks of lightning down their lengths.  The claws retreated slowly.


    Once more they were subject to a suspended moment, unable to figure out what the monster wanted to do.  Patrick couldn''t help himself and peered over the wall to see the zombie peering back at him.  "Eep!" Patrick squealed retreating behind Rohan.  "I thought zombies were ugly anyway, but that is hideous!"


    "Doesn''t matter what it looks like," Rohan formed another plasma ball in his palm.  "It has to die."


    Patrick nodded in agreement, but he was clueless on how he could help to stop it.  If it were not already at the wall...?  "Stop it from flailing about!" Monika suggested, showing what she meant by throwing her knife its way.  Its tongue burst from its mouth to deflect the weapon once more.


    Understanding, Patrick didn''t take the time to nod in agreement, just focused his abilities about the flailing appendage.  The zombie suddenly found its throat clogged by a weighted chunk of its own body.  Not that such could kill it, it didn''t need oxygen after all, so it was just an annoyance.  It quickly struck at the wall once more, flinching as the mess of fire and lightning struck it.  Where the flesh was hit, there was the scent of burning, rotten meat.  Where the bones were caught, it flinched and lost its grasp.


    "Javelin," Arthur suddenly suggested and Rohan threw consecutive bolts at the javelin wedged in its thigh.  The metal conducted the heat and electricity into the flesh, burning it from within.  It lost some stability and collapsed to one side.  But it was stubborn.  Its claws pushed into the metal on the walls, trying to create a place to hold in order to pull itself up.  At that point, Patrick increased the gravity about it to force it down, while Rohan continued to blast it.


    From behind Arthur, the two soldiers rushed to reach them.  Zak was more sensitive to the undead thanks to his training and had caught wind of the large zombie from where he and Theo were patrolling.  Zak had also learned a few new skills from Ren Zexian, namely writing exorcist talismans; though his talent for them were not great if he had to be honest. He was lucky if he could successfully produce one paper talisman a day and these were only the most basic of scriptures.  It probably didn''t help that Ren Zexian could only teach him the theory not show him in practice.


    Injecting his light ability into a talisman, he tossed it down onto the monster.  It was a basic light-fire talisman and as its name suggested, it created fire using the power of light.  It was meant as a weapon against undead; Jiang''shi, ghosts as well as lingering resentment and evil.  They had found it worked on zombies just as well.


    The paper burst into flames the moment it touched the monster.  Unlike when the balls of plasma touched it, the zombie screamed in pain, its shoulder destroyed in the short lived fire, though it continued to smoulder despite the flames going out.  It glared with wicked intentions at Zak, though in truth it could do nothing as the barrage of plasma with added crossbow bolts resumed.


    It died by being burned and blasted into pieces until there was nothing left.  The six defenders collapsed with relief.  Jimmy rejoined them, gasping almost as much as he''d ran from here to there, from there to where he thought the soldiers should be, before returning here alone and finding everyone.  "Is it dead?" Jimmy asked, after sucking in air a few times, seeing them less vigilant than before.


    Monika nodded in response.  "It''s dead."


    "Thank fuck for that!" He sighed, before waving his hand about.  He looked at the damaged wall, one crack now descended half of its entirety, though the wide gap was around half a metre deep from where it commenced at the top.  "Well, it could have been worse," he muttered, before everyone yelled at him to ''Shut Up!'' once more.

 109 Chapter One Hundred and Eight - Home is Where the Heart is

    Jimmy pouted, but his stomach rumbled before he could whinge too much about it and he headed towards the kitchens of the first property.  Strolling through the gardens, he noticed the two teenagers pushing the manual mower along the grassy patches, raking the remnants into a pile afterwards.  Nathan was picking the last of the ripe melons and removing their dying vines from the ground to become compost later.


    In the kitchen, the two young girls were helping pick out seeds from the cores of peppers and squash seeds from a pumpkin and an overripe courgette.  The older child was chatty, the younger quiet and attentive, despite their small age gap, they generally got on well.  Autumn was supervising, while feeding a bottle to baby James and Logan was holding Rohan''s small son, who was playing with the messy pith from the squashes.


    "Anything to eat?" Jimmy begged, shamelessly.


    "I prepared some pumpkin soup earlier," Autumn indicated the two huge pots on the back of the stove keeping warm.  "Scoop yourself a bowl, if you like.  There are toasted pumpkin seeds on the plate beside the stove to add to it."


    "Thanks!" He said cheerfully and poured a slightly generous portion for himself, though it was by no means the large bowlful''s he might have claimed before the end.  Still he wasn''t overly greedy, he was aware that this was for everyone to consume, but it was hard to not want a little more.  The soup was thick and well seasoned, warming and filling his stomach in a satisfying way.  He smacked his lips in gratitude before taking his bowl to the sink to wash it.


    "Ah, Jaiden''s fallen asleep!" He heard Autumn croon behind him.


    "So he has," Logan mused, "I''ll go wash his hands before putting him down for a bit.  Be good for Aunty Autumn, okay, Sienna?"  Clearly this was addressed to the older of the two girls.  Jimmy heard a small confirmation from a milky voice before the screech of a chair and footsteps leading out.  He popped the cleaned bowl and spoon onto the drainer and shook his hands dry, splattering water about a bit, carelessly.


    "Yes, Mum," he cheekily joked.


    "Not your mummy," Lucy scowled at him, scrunching up her small face.  "My mummy!"


    "Not sharing, little sis?" Jimmy teased ruffling her hair as he passed her.  She shook her head and crossed her arms about her small chest.  Jimmy threw a glance at Autumn and happily warned her; "This one is possessive!  Sure she''s going to be able to handle it if Dexter and you make babies in the future!"  Autumn couldn''t help blushing fiercely.  Of course she knew it was a possibility in the future, the contraception on hand wouldn''t last forever and then it was up to fate.  Not that she minded either way, but she was too mindful of their current circumstances to think about it, plus, she had always thought she was too young to be a mother, her thoughts on that having not changed since before the end.  Even if it was different now. She glanced towards her adorable, adopted daughter and her heart once more melted. That was right, she was already a mother, why was she worrying about pregnancy!?


    Outside, the sound of a garden fork falling on the path surprised them both and they glanced out of the window to notice that the boys were looking dazed at the fallen tool and Nathan was no where in sight. However, the herbs on the window sill began to look more vibrant and the hanging fruits on the chilli plant all ripened to red at the same time. Autumn''s eyes sparkled in realisation and plucked her child from her seat and spun her around a little, who giggled knowingly.


    "Go see Daddy?" Lucy wrapped her little arms around Autumn''s neck.


    "Absolutely!"


    And so, as three vehicles slowly began to trawl into the sanctuary provided by the tall walls, a small crowd had gathered to welcome them in.


    Dexter jumped out of the supermarket lorry and saw his wife and daughter waiting for him.  He felt a swelling of pride mixed in with an indescribable warmth as he took large strides towards them.  This was the true feeling of home.  He claimed Autumn''s soft, plush lips with his own, marvelling over the silken touch of her skin and the comfortable feeling of her curves as he wrapped an arm around her waist.  He pressed multiple kisses on Lucy''s little cheeks, causing her to giggle out loud, her joyful tone filling the air.


    Close by, Ren Zexian had thrown out millennium of propriety for while holding hands could be seen as an innocent gesture of closeness, he was openly sharing a very deep and loving kiss with his man, who in turn knew no reason to push him away.  Others could only look away in a mixture of envy and embarrassment.


    Cole looked around, but the person he most wanted to see was not around.  His common sense told him that Chang Min, as one of their strongest defenders, would be on the walls, but his heart still felt a bit sour and sore.


    "So did you manage to get a lot?" Jimmy asked him, curiously looking around the trucks, "or did you just bring back these things for extra metal?"  He was referring to the smaller van with its horsebox trailer and the supermarket lorry.


    "Ha ha," Harry chuckled proudly as he slapped the side of the lorry on hearing Jimmy''s question.  "While it couldn''t be said that we slacked off, finding this one was all thanks to Shaun!"  He began to enlighten the other man to a rough sketch of what had occurred the past few days.


    "Where''s Chang Min?" Cole couldn''t help but interrupt, slightly irritable.  "Is he still on the walls somewhere?"


    "Huh?  Ah no," Jimmy scratched the back of his head as he realised Cole was talking to him.  "He went into that whatcha-ma-call it... Closed Cultivation."


    Closed Cultivation?  He couldn''t help but frown, not quite understanding.  It wasn''t that Chang Min didn''t attempt to explain at all, but Cole''s experience with the subject was flawed.  It was said before that Ren Zexian went into ''closed Cultivation'' but that was just an excuse to segregate himself when he was infected by the zombie virus, to stop others worrying for him.  But thanks to his lover, Cole knew the complete truth of the matter.  So when Jimmy mentioned that Chang Min had entered Closed Cultivation, he couldn''t help but worry.


    Noticing that Ren Zexian and Nathan''s greetings had ended, Cole took the opportunity to press the question to him, before the two men slipped away without notice.  "At anytime one feel''s that their cultivation is advancing to the next stage, one needs a period in which they can reflect safely and quietly either alone or if they are fortunate, with their Dao Companion.  In the early stages, one might need a few hours, a day at most, unless forming one''s core, but as one progresses, one might require a much more prolonged length of time to advance.  Sometimes, even, more than one period of Closed Cultivation as well."


    Dao Companion, Chang Min had mentioned this to him as well.  It was the merging of two selves, in body, mind and spirit, tying themselves together for the entirety of their lives.  Not unlike a marriage, but not the same as one either.  There was no ceremony, no celebration and no chance of divorce.  However, there would always be a person beside you until the spring gave way to summer and autumn, until winter set in and the final breaths were cold as they were taken in the last moments.  Chang Min knew such a thing might terrify him and he couldn''t deny that that was true, so he''d promised to wait for him.  Cole felt a slight pang in his chest.


    "Does that mean Chang Min will be out of this Closed Cultivation tonight or tomorrow?"


    Ren Zexian chuckled lightly before replying; "Well, I suppose it is only to sixth stage, not quite the final stage of body transformation, so as long as all goes well, it shouldn''t be more than a lunar month."


    Cole''s mood soured further.

 110 Chapter One Hundred and Nine - Small Sufferings Can Lead To Decent Gains

    And speaking of unpleasant tasks, the sewers were no longer maintained for obvious reasons, just as waste water was no longer treated and that naturally had a knock on effect in the end.  Rather than give up their modern bathroom for centuries old techniques of chamber pots and manual disposal, they had (some distance from their homes) discovered and ''rerouted'' the sewer linked to their home into one of the surrounding fields forming ditches to help ''drain away'' the waste.  The fields were ''fertilised'' and ''watered'' in this manner leading to a growth of new vegetation, mutated and otherwise, which in turn had become a viable habitat for numerous insects and small living rodents.  The disadvantage lie in the fact that the ditches needed to be dredged a couple of times a year or they would back up as badly as some of the sewers.


    The intense smells meant that they had delayed doing this during the hot and sunny summer days when zombies were less abundant and now they had to struggle with the eye watering stenches, the swarms of flies and undead attacks while doing the necessary task.  Chang Min was still in closed Cultivation, most of the ability users were on the walls, which left the unpleasant job to those without abilities beneath the protection of Ren Zexian and Cole.  Ordinarily, this might have left some scars of resentment on the hearts of non-cultivators, however in their community, no matter the abilities, everyone had access to the same everyday resources and everyone pitched where they could.  Even now, whenever Cole was not protecting them with small earthen walls and rock spires, he was using his abilities to help shift the excess soils.  Thus this task was finished in a brisk manner over two days.


    *****


    Dexter opened his eyes slowly before stretching out his body; sitting in this position for so long, he always marvelled that his muscles didn''t ache and he hadn''t lost feeling in his lower extremities.  His skin felt flush from the sunlight directly falling onto it, although a thick cloud was now drifting across its path casting a shadow widely across the ground.  He sighed and reached for the Crystal that should have been in his lap, only to notice that it had crumbled to dust.  A frown marred his previously serene features.  This was the second Crystal he''d been lucky enough to obtain to help his cultivation, having gained it during the last summer storm.  He didn''t know when he''d be able to get another one.


    He laughed helplessly; the potent experience of cultivating with one of the crystal''s from the mutant sapling in Nathan''s cottage garden was too wonderful.  He''d felt out of sorts when the last one had crumbled away the previous year and ecstatic when he''d gained a second.  He hadn''t wanted to drain the electric element it contained so swiftly, but he''d done so anyway and now the pain of losing its boost caused an internal ache.  Fortunately, such didn''t last long.


    He climbed down from the sunroom roof using the convenient metal ladder and entered the rear door of the kitchen.  A small body threw itself at him and his heart softened to hear the sweet address; "Daddy!"


    "Hey, pumpkin, been good?" He kissed the silky golden locks on his daughter''s forehead.


    "Lucy good!" She reassured him before shimmying out of his arms to collect her small watering can in order to finish today''s ''chores''.  Dexter watched as she ran out of the house towards the cottage with a warm smile upon his face.


    "She''s been waiting for you to finish so she could hug you first," Autumn told him as she placed some honey sweetened plums and cinnamon coated apples into the oven.


    Dexter grinned and reached around her waist, pressing himself against her back.  "Have you been waiting for me as well?"


    Her lips curled upward slightly, though she tartly responded; "As if I have time to wait?!"  The side he slept on their bed had already cooled when she had woken up this morning, something that frequently occurred these past few days.  The hours of daylight were noticeably shorter and he woke up as the sun began to rise in the east in order to gain a few hours of cultivation these days; otherwise there was no time for him to do so.  Autumn missed his presence in the mornings, but she couldn''t fault him for it.  He needed to be strong for them and cultivating helped increase his strength.  Her own cultivation was lacklustre, weak, as much as she did try, but even she felt she had benefited from her personal efforts.


    "Ugh, too much PDA''s in the morning!" Patrick swanned in and covered his eyes loosely with splayed fingers.


    "Jealous?" Dexter grinned as he repositioned himself to Autumn''s side, though he didn''t remove both arms from her appealing waist.


    "Absolutely," Patrick was honest, offering a pout before sitting at the table to grab the pot of tea sitting there.  "Still, it''s better seeing you two all lovey dovey than risking the atmosphere surrounding Cole at the moment!"


    Autumn kissed Dexter on his cheek before removing herself from his hold; she still had more things to prepare for breakfast namely washing blackberries and boiling the sheep''s milk.  That one pot of tea would not be enough to satisfy everyone either, so had to heat more water and prepare more leaves and fruit.  The man reluctantly let her go and took a seat opposite Patrick.


    "Ren Zexian did say it could be a month or more," Dexter pointed out as he also poured a cup of tea for himself.  This brew was rosehip, not really to his taste, but his wifey insisted that it was good for his health, containing vitamin c and all that.  Still, he couldn''t help but grimace as he drank it.


    "We''re all gonna die!" Patrick said, dramatically.  Dexter chuckled.  Truthfully, Cole wasn''t that bad, just a little colder to speak to and a little more violent on the walls.  As that ''violence'' wasn''t aimed at anything but undead monsters, it wasn''t too big of a problem.  Plus to further ensure Cole''s energies were put to positive uses, Dexter had him deal with raising and fixing the walls where he could.


    Actually, Cole was grateful for this work as well, fixing his mind and thoughts upon something necessary.  But even after exhausting his strength, when he lay in bed at night alone, his mind wouldn''t shut down in order to rest, but would be filled with thoughts of the man who was missing from his side.  Was Chang Min missing him as well?  He couldn''t help but wonder as he gazed out of the window towards the north where the third property should be, even though he couldn''t see it from this distance and with the trees and such lining the view.  Likely, Chang Min was too focused in the depths of his cultivation to actually miss him, he knew himself how time seemed to pass unnaturally fast while cultivating, but he still comforted himself this way.


    Who knew that in the end, a month hadn''t passed before Chang Min left his closed Cultivation.  He''d failed in his attempt to make a breakthrough this time.

 111 Chapter One Hundred and Ten - Approaching the Second Winter

    To put it in context, if he''d been born around the time of his Master and had begun cultivating at the same tiny age of eight years old, then even as a poor peasant child, his talent and ability would have seen him breakthrough smoothly to tertiary at a similar age, even commence the long path in order to form his core.


    Instead, his unstable foundations needed to be settled, the beams that supported him needed to be restructured less his cultivation stuttered to a fault or worse he suffered deviation in the future. But once his Master was satisfied that there was little chance of either failure in his future, his Master taught him a cultivation method that suited him the most and he began to storm his way towards forming his core. He was thirty five years old when he finally achieved this.


    Age was but a number to a cultivator who had achieved this end for as he began the more painstaking and weaving path of Body Tempering, any lines that had formed on his skin smoothed, grievances caused by malnutrition in his childhood eased and even the midnight hair upon his head that had stubbornly never grown beyond his shoulders began to slowly pour down his back producing a natural cloak of silk. On reaching quinary stage at the age of nearly eighty, one would no longer see any signs of his harsh beginnings, only seeing a handsome, healthy young man whom did not look out of place at all amongst his peers.


    However, reaching senary stage could have been considered a pipe dream at that point for the air was stagnant and the spiritual energy of every part of their world like a bead of moisture in an endless sea of sand. Everyone already considered him blessed to reach this stage, no one could see a future for him or even for themselves, but it hadn''t stopped them from continuing to wander in search of it.


    Now, in this world, despite the balance being askew and the spiritual energy not as abundant as a middle realm, Chang Min had regained that long forgotten chance. Only, this time his luck was not there. Or perhaps it should be better stated as his heart was not.


    "It is not that you cannot," Ren Zexian told him cryptically, "only that you will not unless your heart is clear and your mind focused. Now was not the best time. There will be chances in the future."


    "En," Chang Min agreed, though admittedly, he was disappointed. This was directed at himself.


    "What chasm?" Chang Min snuggled happily into Cole''s hard chest, inhaling the masculine scent that belonged to him alone with a contented sigh.  "Don''t talk nonsense."


    "Hmm, I agree," the speed of Cole''s beating heart had already picked up pace, forcing his blood to race through his veins.  "Let''s not talk..."


    Their bedroom door remained shut after this for quite sometime.


    *****


    Despite some minor setbacks, the harvest had been particularly abundant.  What wasn''t picked to be eaten was frozen, pickled, dried out or made into sauces.  What couldn''t be preserved was placed into a cardboard box and stuffed into the van, ready for a trip to the base.  Fortunately, they''d a lot of cardboard boxes thanks to the abandoned supermarket van.  Of the vegetables packed, they were mostly large squashes such as pumpkins, butternut and spaghetti squash; not that they wouldn''t keep a while, but that these would sell well in base and at this time they wanted to use the points to grab charcoal.  There were also some cauliflowers, cabbages and brocolli, as with the large squashes, the base didn''t grow much of these as they took up too much space.  After some discussion, they packed a box of the apple oil as well.


    They did think about trading some of the clothes and beauty products they''d obtained from their last raid, but decided not to in the end.  There was little to no chance of them being able to obtain new clothing in bulk in the future and would have to rely on second hand things or if they were lucky, some handmade products, but who knew how long that would take?  As for the moisturiser, bath products and suncream... well the women (and Tyler and Patrick) did not wish to share.


    As for the preserved goods, Autumn with the assistance of anyone she could rope in to help, had lined the basement with jars and tupperware of pickles, jams, chutneys and sauces.  There was also an attempt at apple cider bubbling away in a warm space in the kitchen.  The grains and root vegetables were kept in sacks made from old, but breathable pillow cases on a raised platform in the basement.  It appeared that they would be much more prepared for the arduous winter this year.


    Of course, unsatisfied with even this, they had begun work in the third property creating raised beds made of metal in the largest, west and south facing room, which was likely once the living room and shelves for pots in the sunroom also facing south.  Also, the ''kitchen'' area found that it too would be ''refurbished'', gaining a mishmash of cupboards made of recycled materials and reshaped metal, an old Belfast sink from the village and the precious second range cooker they''d found outside the walls.  This was due to questions raised about watering and harvesting come midwinter.


    "I wonder if the snow will be as heavy as last year," Nan Li Liang was looking at the silver cast of the sky as he shivered, unable to be warmed by the sun.


    "Our old home almost turned into an igloo that time," Kairo murmured in remembrance as he helped add more compost to the raised bed.  "Despite there being a lot of glass, it was so dark.  We had to have anyone with wind abilities blow the snow off of the roof or all of the plants would have died."  There was a hint of melancholy to his voice.  Those people had been his neighbours and strangers turned family, but they were mostly gone now.  It made a person not want to become attached to others just in case, but they were human, changing their nature was not so easy.  They could only try to adapt.


    "We had to keep carving paths to the sheep or they would have died of starvation," Nan Li Liang was an ordinary person, he''d only emerged from the house after the heavy work had been done to bring out the kitchen scraps.  Still, the sheep had seemed a bit thinner by the end of winter, even the pregnant ewes.


    Their conversation was overheard and naturally lowered the enthusiasm for this project.  How were they going to deal with regularly watering, feeding and later harvesting of the plants if they had to dig out huge amounts of snow?  It wasn''t the case of a few metres like digging from the front door to the garage!  That and they had planned to move the hens in to the property as well.  What about all the eggs??


    Shaun suggested that they form some long roofed walkways of metal and earth, but time was against them now.  Plus they didn''t want to create them across the road.  Going underground was possible, however tunnels required supports and might take more time.  They also didn''t want to restructure the external walls of the properties, nor could they block up the doors with the walkways.


    "What if someone moved in?  To the third property?" Jonah suggested.  "Those people could take care of everything in here and others could collect the eggs and that every three to five days..."


    Of course that meant still carving out roads every three to five days if the snow was particularly persistent.  And who would want the lonely duty of moving from the community (and from Autumn''s cooking) over winter?  Actually, that wasn''t as difficult a choice as they would have assumed.


    "I would move in with Nathan," Ren Zexian announced.  Nathan had found it particularly difficult to be amongst crowds for prolonged periods of time.  In fact, more than half of Ren Zexian''s winter was spent clearing snow so that Nathan could retreat to the greenhouse to ease his frayed nerves.  This year, there were more people and there had been discussions of those from the second property moving into the first property to reduce the need for fuel for cooking and for warmth.  Mentioning clearing snow actually strengthened the case for this as well, but that would cause more difficulties for his beloved.  Also, Nathan had broken into secondary stage, which while helped his ability to adapt, had also increased his sensitivity slightly.  It was difficult to predict how he would cope in the crowded mansion if forced to move in.  Ren Zexian had originally wished to argue for them to stay in the cottage, but this was perhaps an alternative solution that killed two birds with one stone.


    Still, Ren Zexian''s statement didn''t settle the arguments for a short while, but he would still gain his way.  Only that so would Shaun as his walkways would later be converted into barns for the increasing population of sheep (the older ewes were pregnant again) and chickens.  There would be two, the first would be along the unused drive of the house and part of the existing garage, stretching towards the road and the second would be along part of the drive of the third property.  The remainder of the path and road remain exposed to the winter weather and they would have to clear it as before.


    Once this had all been decided, Dexter and a few others jumped in the van and headed for the base.

 112 Chapter One Hundred and Eleven - Need and Entitlemen

    However, from the occasional visits from the army squad that had remained in contact with them, the higher ups had been getting anxious for their return.


    In actual fact, around a third of the soldiers with abilities now used the basic ''meditation'' methods passed on by Ren Zexian through Chang Min and the soldiers they''d been in contact with and results had varied. Their commanding officers wanted to know why this was the case, but since the episode where they''d ordered squads to infiltrate the smaller base ''for the good of those people'', relations had cooled to the point of being indifferent neighbours. If it wasn''t for the fact that the army base had products valuable to them and the friendly communication of individuals from both bases, likely they''d no longer have anything to do with each other.


    So the higher ups could only rely on the men they''d originally sent there. Not that they''d gained much intelligence; with the exception of Thomas who''d remained stubborn in his stance that the ''meditation'' techniques were a waste of time, the two soldiers that had returned informed their commanders that while the cultivation methods they used worked for them, they had been told that they wouldn''t necessarily work for others. Of course, not everyone would believe from word of mouth, there was pressure to share and to experiment. And those who''d volunteered found that the basic method worked better for them. One even said that Luke''s method was too painful and seemed to burn his insides. If this was not a warning to cease their experiments, who knew what would be.


    Fortunately no one seemed to suffer permanent damage to their abilities. Still, the higher ups craved quick results and resumed making comparisons between the people that didn''t practice any meditation, to the people that practiced the basic method and then Faith and Luke and their specific training. Hungry for more knowledge, they urged their absent subordinates to return whenever they could.


    So now they were returning home.


    *****


    A crowd gathered around the stall covered in vegetables, but there was some reluctance to purchase. Some worried about where the vegetables had come from.  Others weren''t worried, having eaten these people''s apples before, but how to cook the vegetables...  Not everyone had the tools to cook, many had never cooked pumpkins and spaghetti squash. The other vegetables were large and not cheap, they didn''t want to spend their hard earned points which might by them an extra portion of food from the canteen or one of the stalls trading in cooked food, firewood, soaps, extra bottles of water... One person''s query broke some of the stalemate as he asked for a quarter of one of the large cauliflowers and half of a head of broccoli, naturally reducing the cost straight away.


    Logan cut to his specifications and charged him accordingly. That man went away actually munching a floret of cauliflower as he went, many eyes were on him.  These could be eaten raw?


    "I''ll purchase the same!" One voice rose above the crowd.


    "Me too!"


    Sales quickly picked up, the broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage purchased in portions, costing less yet providing much needed supplements.  Others were more cautious still, but after seeing that the man had no adverse affects before vanishing into other drifting crowds, a few put down their guards and also made small purchases.


    The gentleman who exchanged spices with them asked for one of each vegetable, whole, as well as a bottle of the apple oil.  He believed that his housemates would thank him later.  He chatted to Dexter as the cost was calculated, who advised him how he''d seen his wife cook them. The man was excited to hear how the spaghetti squash could actually live up to its name and replace noodles as a dish. He wanted to try right away and added another of the gourds for his household.


    However, the majority of things they brought were eventually sold to the canteen at a slightly reduced price. They also took all of the remaining apple oil as it had been deemed safe. "Our manager asks if you can bring more in the future," Dexter was informed.


    "Ah, we won''t be coming back until at least spring," he admitted. "And then we''d have to see how much oil remains. We only have the one tree providing it."


    "Please think of us first when the time comes then." He nodded to seal this verbal agreement.


    They came away with a lot of points this time, but spending it actually proved difficult. The charcoal was naturally in very high demand and was expensive due to that. Just purchasing one bag would cut a quarter of their profits instantly. Dexter was debating over it with Cole and Logan when a conversation in the crowd came to their attention.


    "I heard that a squad brought back meat!"


    "Meat? Really? Damn when was the last time we tasted some meat?!"


    "Would we even get a chance at tasting some this time?" The voice that spoke these words held much bitterness. "Don''t you recall that rumour in the spring?"


    "Oh yeah, I recall. The higher ups obtained some meat in the spring, but apart from their own soldiers getting a bit, the rest was hoarded by them officers!"


    "That''s not true," a discordant tone trampled their complaints. "They used a soup base for the week that reminded me of pork. There were even flecks of grease upon the surface. Tanya, next door, even claimed to have found spots of pork in her portion once."


    "Probably burnt vegetables or dried herbs," the original complainer argued.


    "Oi! Did you hear!? Someone is selling portions of venison!"


    "Quick! Let''s go or we''ll miss out!" The crowds moved almost as one in a particular direction at first rushing so chaotically that they knocked into others as well as the stalls lining the way. There was a smash of porcelain as well as a shriek. Things calmed down when the market ''supervisor'' took his men to intimidate the crowds.


    "Should we go take a look?" Harry asked Dexter as the number of people close by reduced.


    "Let''s get the coal first," he decided and they opted for two bags. There was no real value in keeping the points as they had no use to them at home.  The third property would need it for cooking as well as warmth and they would just have to rely on it in one or two open fireplaces, stretching it thin before relying on wood. He also recalled that the second property had a wood burning stove for heating. It would be more efficient than an open fire, perhaps it should be relocated...


    The crowd was as dense as they imagined, but as bustling as it was, it soon became apparent that most were just staring wistfully at the men claiming to be selling deer meat. The meat itself was not on show, so there were a few shouting about being tricked, while others declared that the owners had no intention of allowing them to purchase meat at all. There were more than likely individuals with crooked thoughts, but they were held back by the fact that the owners were no weak targets, they had weapons and were wearing army uniforms. If they wanted to make gains, they would have to try their luck thieving from anyone who managed to purchase the meat.


    "I told you this was a stupid idea," a familiar voice sighed heavily as Dexter and his people weaved through the crowd.


    "I only said I was going to discreetly talk to the guys manning the food stalls... who knew I''d attracted such a crowd!"


    "Do you even know how to be discreet?"


    "Should we get out of here?"


    "Is that even possible right now?"


    "Commander Rhodes," a warm voice called out with amused undertones. "I''ve heard that you are selling venison." It appeared that Dexter and his men were not the only ones to have managed to push through the masses. Dexter even vaguely recalled the woman speaking as a customer who''d chanced the apple oil and butters that last time.


    "Miss Justine," the commanding officer of the squad greeted her in wary tones. "You must know that we''ve already handed over a portion of our spoils to the base already. Are you really going to insist that we lose another portion due to some unfair trade."


    The woman pouted somewhat. "That''s a harsh accusation," she replied. "I would never insist on purchasing below market price. Has a price been even set? If not..."


    "Miss Justine, we actually hadn''t planned on selling, exactly," the man admitted, receiving many complaints in raised voices from the surrounding crowds. These were silenced by just a glance from the woman, making Dexter and the others realise that she wasn''t that simple. She couldn''t do much about the low mutterings that replaced them even then, however. "My squad go out of the walls regularly and risk their lives to reduce overall zombie numbers as well as bring back much needed supplies, which help everyone. You''re not going to demand they have to suffer more losses just because others want these small unexpected benefits?"


    "You are soldiers," she reminded him. "You are performing your duties and you are paid and fed for it."


    "I don''t disagree, generally," he drawled, thinking of the ''food'' they all ''enjoyed''. Sure it was enough to fill bellies, but not enough to maintain their spirits. If he wanted to lead these men back out into the fray after losing all of the three of the deer carcasses to the base and higher ups, he could just forget it. "But can you say that my men have ever been slack in their duties or compare us to other ''squads'' who''d rather just say man the walls for the same pay that we receive? We''re working soldiers, not conscripts."


    His speech was spread around the civilian crowds, naturally receiving the mixed reviews. There were those who couldn''t blame him for hoarding a bit of meat for his men, after all, they were an active squad who went outside frequently and not like a civilian squad who only had to hand over a percentage and could do as they pleased with the rest. Army squads had to hand over a larger amount as well as everything to do with specific missions that they had been sent out on.  They couldn''t pick and choose those missions like civilian squads either.  The crowds didn''t know it, but of the three deer they had obtained from the herd they''d discovered, two were confiscated by the base, only leaving the third for face value rather than want.


    Unfortunately, there would always be those who had yet to shed their sense of entitlement and believed they had the right to gain others things. In this case, that the squad should share the meat and that they had the right to bid for it. It was too selfish of the squad otherwise. They never thought about their own selfish stance.


    "Then why come to the market at all?" The woman couldn''t help enquire.


    The commander looked uncomfortable, so the unreliable soldier beside him admitted; "Well, none of us can cook, so we hoped to hire someone..."


    "I think I can help you with that."

 113 Chapter One Hundred and Twelve - A ‘Better’ Life Often Came at a Price

    Such a feast to the senses began its origins the day before when the army squad known on base as the forth caused confusion within the crowds when they wanted to hire someone to cook a whole deer for them to savour having had nearly no access to any meat in well over a year. The people wanted them to sell the deer instead, but in truth, the one buck would definitely not meet the demand and the squad worked hard everyday for the base and this one thing they selfishly wished to reward themselves with. No one was in the wrong, but many were sent away disgruntled, while the squad still had no chef to aid them.


    Until someone offered to help.


    Dexter glanced over at his Autumn as she placed a colourful array of vegetables in amongst the three plentiful meat dishes; a venison meatloaf mixed with pork meat and wrapped in bacon and served with a blackberry sauce, slow baked deer ribs glistening with a sticky sauce, huge pots of venison stew with carrots, onions and swede. She was pissed at him yesterday, that he''d volunteered her hand and kitchen to the squad without asking her opinion, expecting her to turn that deer into a feast that could satisfy more than forty people and most of them were men with large appetites. He suspected that he would have to coax her more later, never thinking once that he was forgiven just because her eyes now glittered with a little pride and satisfaction over the reactions to her cooking. He admitted, he''d likely been too impulsive, but if it wasn''t that the squad were good acquaintances of theirs, he never would have suggested Autumn''s kitchen at all.


    Still, he shook his wrist having been rightly subjected to peeling a whole ton of vegetables, he''d paid some dues right?


    Her expression, with the smile dropped from her eyes as her gaze met with his own informed him that he''d definitely not paid enough yet. He sighed inwardly as he watched her wander out of the room towards the kitchen. She''d made some ''spaghetti and meatballs'' for the younger children, using spaghetti squash, venison meatballs and tomato sauce she''d made a few weeks ago and stored.


    "It''s like thanksgiving or something," one of the soldier''s murmured to his closest comrade.


    "Shit and I thought we were just expecting barbecue!"


    "Well, Er..." their commanding officer snapped out of his awed trance and coughed to hide his embarrassment. "This is thanks to our friends over in this base and thanks to all of you, men, for your hard work this past year and a half. Our lives can''t go back to what they were, we know this, but it doesn''t meant there will never be anything good to look forward to. Like this meal. So enjoy." A slender hand fell upon the shoulder of the red faced man.


    "Oi, oi!" He clicked his tongue, giving her an obvious look of disdain, but she simply laughed in his face and darted out of the room, shielding her pilfered food. She did enjoy teasing that man.


    As soldiers and the people from this ''village'' base quickly followed her lead, the woman glanced towards the rear room where the kitchen was located and made her way towards it. She had to admit, this large place was decorated beautifully before the end, quite tasteful and clearly out of respect for its previous owners, these people had kept it well maintained. Cute, chubby cheeked children sat about a table, not fussing once over the meal in front of them, but tucking into it without reserve. They were joined by an older man, who was feeding a drooling baby with some pur¨¦e and the woman chef, who was placing some of things from the served dishes into several of large lunchboxes.


    "My compliments to the chef," she praised the other woman, startling her slightly, before receiving a small smile in return. "May I join you?"


    "There''s a free seat," the older man told her, his voice raspy in tone. It reminded her nostalgically of her old grandfather, the man had been a chain smoker before he died when she was fifteen. He''d been an opinionated bastard and shamefully a bit bigoted at times, being old fashioned in his ways, but she, his only granddaughter had been his one soft spot and spoiled by him.


    She sat down at the table and began to savour what she had only briefly tasted when stealing bits from the table. She hadn''t gone overboard, but everything had just looked so tasty! She''d assuaged some of her guilt by not touching the ribs, just claiming a half a slice of that thick, juicy meatloaf and a small bowl of the savoury stew. The roasted root vegetables and the Mediterranean style traybake were seasoned well to highlight their taste, the humble broccoli steamed so that it still had bite, the cabbage was stir fried with cauliflower rice and chilli giving some heat and there was a creamy mayonnaise to dress things with. Everything was just too good! Before she knew it, she''d devoured her plate clean.


    With a sigh, she followed the good behaviour of the two young girls and placed her plate upon the side.  Behind her, the man who''d been feeding the baby followed suit.  "Interesting set up you have here," she mentioned, in an attempt to make conversation.


    Actually, she really had been filled with curiosity.  These people lived in a way that didn''t make sense in this rotten era; not fearing death.  Her analysis came from many factors; the fact that they were surrounded by an abundance of potentially deadly greenery as well as saw no reason not to grow food outside, the fact that they were not high in numbers, not fearing that their walls might be overwhelmed by the monsters lurking beyond them as they hadn''t the forces to fend them off, the fact that they didn''t ration water as proven by their overall cleanliness and painless expressions as they handed out a cup of the precious liquid to everyone here to have with that meal.  Then there was that meal...


    Her mouth watered again.


    In the army base, they focused on high yield crops that fit in small spaces such as corn and potatoes and swiftly growing vegetables like radishes, lettuces and spinach.  Things like fruit were a luxury, even those ''risky'' ones grown on wild brambles and trees from the outside and certainly wouldn''t be boiled down into a sauce.  She hadn''t tasted cauliflower nor broccoli in over a year.  These things took up too much space and took a fair amount of time to grow.


    With limited ingredients and seasoning, naturally the taste of the food was lacking.  People mainly ate in the canteens to fill their stomachs now and where they could spent points on ''treats'' such as a handful of wild fruit, chestnuts and a tiny bowl of noodles to satisfy their tastebuds.  Even if some people tried to bring back some standards, most were too busy trying to just live.  But was it really living?


    "I guess you could say that," the man scratched at the rough beard lining his jaw.  That was another thing.  How was it that not many of the men had beards and even then, they were neat and clean.  Where did they get the razors from?  Her last one was so blunt now that using it would only result in lacerations along her legs.


    As if to mock her, she heard voices in the hallway.


    "Hey Shaun, I forgot to ask.  Have you had a chance to fix the blades on my razor yet?"


    "Ah, sorry, Patrick.  I haven''t.  I''m still trying to replace the crossbow bolts used that time!  I don''t even know if I have enough spare metal!  But if you can wait a few more days..."


    "No worries!  I''ll just nag Tyler for a new one from the supplies!"


    Justine''s expression soured.  Perhaps he noticed it, because the older man chuckled as he rinsed their plates.  "I''ve not been to the army base so I can''t say for sure... but you could only say that your place is like a town, while ours is more a tiny village.  Sure ours seems idyllic; we''ve got less people so there''s less demands and resources don''t need to be spread so far, but we also can''t stop working to keep what we''ve got for even a minute.  Even the little ones have to work."  He nodded as he indicated the youngest girl, who''d picked up a small watering can and rushed over to a teenaged boy close by.  That boy touched the side of the watering can until water nearly sloshed over the edge of it.  Beads of sweat appeared upon his temple, but the young pair shared smiles before separating.


    "Well, we''ll rest a bit more midwinter," the man mused after a moment, before shaking his head.  "But not by much."


    Justine understood what he was trying to get at, though.  This place had to have less than fifty occupants, while the base was currently more than a few thousand.  The people who wanted to work hard, did, but others only worked hard enough to get by.  She was in a good position, being on the council so while she did many tasks and oversaw many administrative matters and went to bed tired most nights, she was never exhausted and managed to find an afternoon off at least once a week to rejuvenate her mind.  This ''village'' really had no choice but to work all hours of the day growing food, maintaining their homes and protecting their space as well as strengthening themselves so they could face the growing number of dangerous entities outside the walls.  Spare time must be something close to being elusive for them and constantly being on guard a must less they be overrun.


    So while she did envy them the small things, she knew that she would not be able to live like them.  However, they also continued to help her open her eyes with interest.  She recalled that they had someone shaping metal into crossbow bolts, perhaps that woman could also help her fix her razor on the side...

 114 Chapter One Hundred and Thirteen - Storing Food For The Second Winter

    Not everyone was surprised, however. Tyler kept track of the days almost religiously as he maintained the self made position of senior logistics office of their community. He kept order of all of their supplies and although he did not hold too strong a grip on the amounts of food and essentials, he couldn''t stop himself from frowning whenever someone asked him for something. "Patrick, didn''t I just supply you with a new roll on deodorant the other day?"


    "Er... you did? Oh, but I don''t like the smell. Can I not change it?"


    "No."


    Of course, generally, most members of the community weren''t so frivolous and understood that these things weren''t infinite in supply. Actually, Patrick was also well aware, but the deodorant smelled like something his old grandfather would have liked and he hadn''t been able to help himself from requesting a new one.


    The other person was Nathan. As particular as he was about his routine, within this routine lie a second set that had to do with the changing seasons. He wouldn''t have been such an excellent gardener even before the end had he not had some affinity to the yearly calendar. It was this instinct that had him glancing out of the window most mornings in wait of this first frost. Now was the best time to harvest the brussel sprouts and the cabbages growing in abundance in the gardens. If it weren''t for Ren Zexian reminding him, he may have even excitedly skipped breakfast after sharing tea in order to start the harvest.


    They split into groups; protecting the walls and relieving those on the night shift was the priority, while those not strong enough to defend their community followed Nathan to learn how to carefully harvest the cabbages and things. Autumn left bread rolls and smokey tomato soup for Chang Min and the others to eat, while gathering the babies to entertain them in the warmed living room. She would have kept Lucy and young Sienna by her side as well, but her daughter had already run off with her small watering can and a little wicker basket so she could gather ripe chillis and Sienna had followed shyly in her wake. Anyone would have assumed that Lucy was the older child!


    Just this harvest took most of the day, but soon, several shelves in the cold basement were decorated with the large white and red cabbages, while the sprouts were covered in a moist towel to keep them fresh for a good period. The cold basement was exceptionally full at the moment and it lifted their hearts to see it so. Jars were filled with jams, pickles, sauces and preserves, bottles with vinegars and homemade cider. Tupperware contained dried, edible seeds, beans, dried leaves for tea and dried fruit. There was a couple of crates filled with apples, straw separating them, but also there were squashes, carrots and other root vegetables, onions, sacks of potatoes, dried corn and wheat. There was a container holding the two types of rice they were able to eat (Nathan had already kept aside a few portions as seed for the following year).


    Broccoli and Cauliflower were nearly all eaten, however, as they did not keep too well, only a few of these still remained in their supplies. Eggs were eaten nearly every day and what was not was kept in the kitchen until the next.


    In the freezer were plastic containers of peas, sweet corn, green beans, peppers... but no raw meat remained. Instead, there were cooked and refrozen pieces of pork, minced in the process. That way they could extend their time eating this luxury for a short while longer, even if it was just a spoonful per bowl topping rice or noodles. There was not much meat for Aslan left, but fortunately, they''d obtained several sacks of dog biscuits from the supermarket van, so they didn''t need to worry for him for a while. Plus, he often ate the small amount of leftovers Lucy saved for him each meal. Everyone knew that Autumn snuck her a bit more food due to this, but no one mentioned it.


    At that moment, Lucy was carefully cutting off a brilliant red chilli with a pair of safety scissors, while Sienna used a fine paintbrush to fertilise the few remaining flowers. It was unlikely the numerous little plants would flower anymore now winter had truly set in. Lucy clapped her hands, applauding her for a job well down causing the other girl to glance down shyly. Nathan wandered into the sunroom to check on the new growth of lettuces that everyone was hoping to enjoy that winter, to supplement their diets. Lucy showed him the red chilli and cutely babbled about how they were taking care of all of the indoor plants, her eyes bright and seeking praise from her big brother. Nathan didn''t let her down and although his smile was not wide, he said what she wanted to hear; "Good job."


    Ren Zexian moved his little lover into the third large house the following day. Another frost covered the ground and several steely grey clouds had begun to gather in the east. How thick they were or whether they would cover the pale blue sky above them, they did not know for certain, but it was only a matter of time until they saw snow.


    Nathan had visited this place a few times in the past couple of weeks, focusing on creating a field for potatoes that they could continue to eat these next spring. There was also young chilli plants in the sun room, though they were unlikely to flower until spring, as well as several off shoots of strawberries. The main plants had been moved to the greenhouse and would be cared for by the First household, but just in case something went wrong, the littlest ones were brought here for Nathan''s gentler and much greener touch. Lettuces, kale and spinach were also planted here, though how much greens were picked in the end was uncertain. They could only try.


    Nathan dug holes in a large pot filled with compost to add garlic cloves into it, ready to move onto planting some carrot tops. Although the roots would not regrow, these could still sprout leaves and later flowers for new seed. After that, he hurried Ren Zexian, who had just finished hanging their clothes in the wardrobe in the small downstairs room they would sleep in, so that he could continue harvesting things from the main garden. There were still swede, leeks, more potatoes and parsnips to dig up. Plus, he likely could transplant any of the leeks that weren''t very big to the greenhouse or the third property...

 115 Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen - Together as One

    The second wave of frozen snow came in blizzard form, the strong winds sweeping the falling flakes into a frenzy, blinding anyone unlucky to be out in it.  Zombies did not completely rely on their vision, but any with the ability to hear could only listen to the howling winds and the smells of warm mortal bodies, while not reduced, were carried on the winds in all directions; it was impossible to be lured directly towards their source.  Tyler, Chang Min, Cole and Ren Zexian could also not visually sense the undead, but their other abilities made up for the lack and they ''watched'' the zombies wander frantically in numerous directions before some began to stiffen with the ice freezing their rotting muscles.


    Chang Min adjusted the thick scarves wrapped around his lover''s neck and patted his chest once he was finished.  Leaning close to combat the deafening winds, he murmured into Cole''s ear.  "You should return home.  You''re too cold."


    "No need."  Cole smiled beneath the heavy wool where pin pricks of icy air were burying their way through the tiny gaps in the knit.  It was fucking freezing, he admitted inwardly, but he wasn''t about to let Chang Min suffer out here alone.  That said, his resolve only lasted a short as he embarrassingly was scooped up into princess hold once the chattering of his teeth reached Chang Min''s ears and the shorter man carried him quickly into the shelter of the first property''s hallway.


    Actually, not only in the blizzard conditions, but the unforgiving chill of the night, ordinary people could not expose themselves to the subzero temperatures that plagued them mostly during this time without the relief of any winter sun and could only allow others to suffer in their stead.  Primary stage ability users did not have it much better unless like Rohan, whose fire root provided him with an internal radiator of warmth allowing him to walk outside for much longer periods than he might otherwise.  Those who had cultivated to secondary stage had it a little easier, though it wasn''t wise remain outside for more than an hour even then.  So the duty of night patrols were mostly on Chang Min, Ren Zexian and Tyler''s shoulders.


    And then, he quietly passed through the thin barrier between secondary and tertiary stage without warning.


    "Master!  It has only been a year!" Chang Min spoke his worries about this quietly to his Master, while others were offering their heartfelt or otherwise congratulations and teasing words in the camaraderie sense.


    "Hmm," Ren Zexian agreed, but didn''t share the worries of his student.  "But thing of all that he has done in this year."  Tyler was not only responsible for much of their drinking water, he had to supply bath water and water for washing dishes and clothes.  He practiced purifying dirty water, though his achievements were still not great in this field, plus he insured their freezer room was constantly cold and not at risk of defrosting.  And with all of this, he still took a turn patrolling the walls, fighting when necessary. "Besides, do you believe that the cultivation method that I gave him was ordinary?"


    This last point alone gave Chang Min pause, before his could only shake his head.  Their old friends had often complained cheerfully that his Master considered those very rare and profound methods he collected as common as the basic cultivation method that pretty much every cultivating child was taught.  He never once thought of hoarding precious materials or resources, giving them away willingly as if they were nothing more than waste paper.


    Unlike Tyler, his own protege come lover did not break through to the next level quietly. Anyone with an ability felt a great movement in the atmosphere causing the hair upon their bodies to stand on end and even anyone without an ability could feel the ground tremor beneath their feet, hear the pans rattling in the cupboards, glassware chinking on the sides. And from where he rested in the third property, while holding a nestling youth to his side, Ren Zexian sensed the disturbance of Heaven and Earth coming from the first property.


    Fortunately, no one thought to disturb the person responsible or they would have received a rather x-rated display to add to memory.


    Cole had been considering certain matters between himself and Chang Min for a while. Dao Companionship was a kin to a marriage without divorce, a serious matter that needed much thought and Chang Min had given him this time to do so, thinking that due to the incarceration he experienced in his youth, he did not like to feel trapped. But actually, Cole had not been entirely forthright with his hated life history that was the true caused for him to hesitate this long.


    His parents had actually been devout in their worship of God, self-assured in the morals and rules of their faith and strict upon themselves and their children. It often came about that children will often follow in their parents footsteps or rebel and head in the opposite direction. Cole was listed amongst the latter, but he hadn''t really hated the religious thing, although in prison he came to realise that he didn''t share his parents undying faith. What he hated the most was something else; the fact that their beliefs had them refusing separation and divorce. His parents marriage had more or less been encouraged, to the point that it might as well have been an arranged marriage, by their religious parents and their church. But after marriage, they found that other than their faith, they really did not see eye to eye.


    The more a marriage progresses, the more differences in opinion begin to occur. Where to live, how household chores are divided, over income and expenditure and of course over children, raising, discipline, school... where there is balance and discussion in many marriages, these arguments could be settled, resolved to a degree, but where there are two people who do not wish to give ground, there is nothing but a swiftly crumbling foundation that is literally relying on faith and scripture to hold it up.


    Cole was the second oldest of three children, each would be shaped differently in this toxic family environment. For instance, Cole rebelled strongly, got into fights to vent his frustrations, ended up putting another youth in the hospital and ended up serving a short time in prison. His older brother had sheltered in their faith to the point that he was planning to give up the rights of marriage and adorn a priests frock, while their little sister submissively accepted a proposal of marriage to a man who, in Cole''s opinion, was a Neanderthal in his concepts of women''s rights that even his old man should have frowned upon. Unfortunately, at that time, Cole had already been excommunicated from the church and disowned by his parents, only receiving the news from his older brother, who for his own reasons did not try change the girl''s mind.


    Cole didn''t know what had happened to his family after the End, but the marriage date had been due after the apocalypse, so chances were that it hadn''t gone ahead and zombie or otherwise, Catherine was free from that man... he cast aside any other thoughts regarding her fate or the fate of others he''d encountered in his life.  In this Era, it was better to consider the present, better for one''s survival and sanity.


    Anyway it was safe to say that Cole came out of that environment, not hating marriage but hating marriage without divorce.


    Yet basking in the glow of fulfilment and contentment, enjoying the heat cast by his lover, that hatred had become nothing but a wisp of memory.  In fact, over the weeks in which he''d dwelled upon it, he''d come to realise that divorce happened to couples that chose to part due to their own reasons.  True, he''d thought that divorce would have been the best thing to happen to his own parents at that time, but reality was that it may also have not been the best thing... regardless, that had been his incompatible parents'' choice.  If he had to chose parting from Chang Min?  He really couldn''t do that.


    Ignoring the slight discomfort in his arse and hips as he moved, Cole curled his glistening arms about his lover, who willingly curled into his embrace with a joy felt hum.  "Tell me more about Dao Companionship," Cole murmured after a moment or two.


    "Really?" Chang Min giddily questioned, his lips spread wide in smile.  Cole''s heart skipped a beat and he nodded, feeling that this was definitely right.  Chang Min didn''t give him time to change his mind either, instead rolling on top of his man and lowering his hips in order to take his lover''s hardening part into the warmth of his body this time.  Cole felt an instant rush of pleasure and couldn''t help but groan; Chang Min was so tight and hadn''t prepared himself well, yet that somehow didn''t stop the man from completely enveloping him.


    Chang Min murmured joyfully into his ear, slowly explaining everything he needed to know, answering his stuttered questions as he tried to forget the warmth, the delicious sensations that were being transmitted to his brain more easily than his lover''s instructions.  It seemed like an eternity into their joining when Cole''s mind finally felt enlightened enough for them to proceed and Cole closed his eyes in relief as he began his cultivation, the focus of which stole him away from the torturous pleasure.


    Cole''s inner sea landscape was made of elements of earth, just as Chang Min''s, though the latter was of an imposing mountain when in its normal state, Cole''s was more fluid.  At the beginning, one could see a landscape of gold and red sands interweaving before dusting over soil, chunks of dry clay, pebbles, rocks, flint, which surrounding outcroppings of chalk, limestone, marble...  it was primitive, unformed and seemingly random, yet there was also an attractive rawness to it.


    Excited by the cultivation process, the tiny grains of sands and soil swirled around chunks of clay and stone and two large moving columns began to dominate and consume the landscape before particles were swept from both towards his meridians... and towards Chang Min''s.  In exchange, particles that at first glance did not seem any different from his own poured into him in a wave of unexplainable ecstasy.  The flavour of them was definitely distinguishable from his own, thick with potency and he unconsciously gasped as they entered his inner sea, interweaving with the remnant energy in the earthen columns.


    Possible, he''d been on the edge of breaking through anyway, but within moments of the energies mixing, he felt as if he was unable to hold back; the entire crumbling mass of the columns exploded outwards, tearing through his body.  But there was no pain as he might have expected for a brief moment, only a sensation not unlike a heady orgasm ripping through him and deafening and blinding him for that prolonged moment.  Indeed, his body did interpret things this way and as he collapsed into unconscious, he softened inside Chang Min''s body.


    Chang Min was startled, but thinking over matters, couldn''t help but giggle.  Shaking his head, his eyes filled with warmth, he lifted himself off of Cole, kissed his unmoving lips then fell asleep beside him.  They were now considered as one.