In front of the cold, unfeeling eyes of his liutenant, the soldiers didn't dare turn up their heads. The only thing they knew was that their liutenant was to be trusted. The only person willing to sacrifice things to save everyone was only liutenant Liang. No matter how cold or unfeeling he might be, he was the softest, and the one everyone could freely relate to.
Liutenant Liang was one of the most talented people in the army. He was perfect. Furthermore, he was the son of the retired Liang Bing, who was once dubbed a monster in the army. Liutenant Liang, although just a liutenant, held more powers than that of a normal liutenant. Several soldiers didn't want to be allocated under liutenant Liang for various reasons, but some who did were just desperate for his help.
Liang Xingbai looked at how they shivered and trembled under his feet. Was this the feeling his father also felt once when all his sons knelt down in front of him? Was this the feeling his father also felt when one held a power to decide another's life and death?
It wasn't that he held a high position in the army, he was merely a liutenant after all. However, no one in the army wanted to go against that monster Liang Bing. Even after he got so old, no one dared to approach Liang Bing. Even rumours were quickly hushed and were done in the depth of the slums.
"The supplies of base B? What's the matter?" Liang Xingbai looked at the soldiers who dared not raise their heads an inch. Both of them were shaking heavily due to the aura the liutenant leaked. Several high ranking generals loved how everyone were afraid of Liang Xingbai. They thought that if no one wanted to be under Liang Xingbai, then Liang Xingbai's powers would dreatly diminish and slowly, they would be able to gobble up a huge chuck, but they had never expected Liang Xingbai's part of the army to still be so strong for so long.
"It's slowly draining out, Liutenant sir," the first soldier said, "the supplies simply wouldn't help fending off the rest of the zombies for another month."
Liang Xingbai rose an eyebrow at that matter, "Oh? The finance department had checked over it numerous times. It should've lasted for three months, how was it not enough? If you used it sparingly, it could even last up to four and a half months."
The soldiers shuddered. The leader over in base B had slowly drained all their supplies to party and please the women from the red light district. Due to body enchances, all of the women became incomparably beautiful, which they could only stare at but the leader enjoyed. They were the ones fighting with the zombies while that leader invited his friends and lots of beautiful women, giving them food and supplies to bring back home.
While the soldiers fought a life or death battle, seeing their comrades dying one by one, dying the earth red... the leader was dead drunk on booze and didn't mind the amount of soldiers that slowly decreased. The leader acted as if the reports given to him didn't exist. The soldiers didn't understand why they wasted their lives for such a scum. He could just rot in base B with his numerous women.
However, there were still children and elderlies within the base. They couldn't sacrifice lives like that. Especially once someone dies, they now had to be cremated. People couldn't risk them turning into zombies the moment they were buried. The leader didn't even think much about it. He even told them to burn them all if it meant lowering the amount of mouths they had to feed. All of these happened in base B, a single report wasn't given to the main base, base A.
Only at times like this, when the trainees were recalled back to base A, could the soldiers come back to base A with the trainees and asked for liutenant Liang's help. Although the liutenant was famous for being harsh on his men, he was one that rewarded them kindly as well. Which soldier wouldn't want that?
Liang Xingbai sighed, "even if I do something about that leader, his position is above mine. He is a base leader, on the other hand, what can I, a mere liutenant do?"
The second soldier, as if he suddenly gained courage, jumped to persuade Liang Xingbai, "everyone knew you had the backing of Liang Bing, your father. With him, I think we might be able to save everyone in base B!"
Liang Xingbai's frown deepened as the second soldier mentioned his father. The first soldier nudged the second soldier and with whispered, "Roberts, how could you be so stupid?"
"But Meliana is still there and is in danger! She's my wife Gorreth. I wouldn't trade her for anything else, I love her!" Roberts whispered at the first soldier, Gorreth, "Have you no feelings for Lisa? For Miki and Yuka?"
"Silence!" Liang Xingbai couldn't take all the love speech any longer. He remembered the cold gaze of his father whenever his family was mentioned. His family didn't mean as much as a speck to him. It was ironic, as everyone worshipped his father like how they worshipped Ares in the past. He looked like the God of War...if the War was a cold blooded one, then he was.
His father would never agree on saving base B.
"Send this letter to the the leader of base B, tell him I took fancy towards you and would like you and your family to move to base A," Liang Xingbai said, "this is the much I can do."
"Please reconsider, liutenant. Numerous lives could be saved and humanity might get the chance to defeat what we feared the most!" Roberts said.
"There's limited things that my father's reputation could do. He is now an enterpreneur, not the bloody image of the God of War he was once before," Liang Xingbai said, "If you want to save the base, you should've gone to colonel Sanders. He held more powers within than I do."
The soldiers gritted their teeth, unable to receive the result. With Liang Bing's powers, they definitely would be able to save the whole base. Could it be that they were wrong? That Liang Xingbai was the same as other power hungry people in the apocalypse? The soldiers didn't know what else to do. With hopeless souls, they prepared to walk out of the room.
"Wait a second," that was when Liang Xingbai decided to interject, "It seems that your problem had some connections with mine, therefore, I would help you. But do remember that the height of my authority is limited. I would help you to the best I can."
The soldiers looked at Liang Xingbai with gratitude in their eyes as they nodded and went back to their base happily.
The club room was filled with people, there to enjoy probably the last moments of their life. Liang Xingbai almost retched at the smell of sweat and booze filling the room. He didn't even know how they could be so relaxed in the face of death. Dancing, sticking their bodies with each other while sharing slobbery kisses. Liang Xingbai pursed his lips as he braved himself through the sea of sweaty bodies, trying to press to him as well.
Made a lot of sense, he was dressed neatly, looking like a rich tycoon. Which rich person would visit such a low class club such as this? Probably just a person getting that type of uniform from work. Although it didn't seem so. A person who got such a neat and clean uniform for work wouldn't dirty them in such a down place.
The people who run this place were nice and friendly. The messy, unlawful club was just a mask as the real club was underground. The club still had several bottles of champagne, something that would be very rare during the apocalypse. While the people above could only drink cheap beer, they drunk champagne and high class wine. Those might not be the last ones available but the supply of liquor could hardly suffice the requests, thus causing an inflation on these things.
Although money no longer worked during the apocalypse, the people who could enter the underground club were children of people with great merits. For example, the girl in the skimpy dress. Although she looked like the drunk girls you'd see above, she was actually the daughter of Colonel Sanders' left hand man. Illegitimate.
"Liutenant...ah liutenant," and this man wearing a pair of thick nerdy glasses and yellowed teeth was supposedly his brother. The illegitimate son of his father and the only brother left after the apocalypse. He was older, but being illegitimate as a title hung above his head, Liang Xingbai wasn't surprised the guy held some sort of grudge against him.
"The 'hero' is here," another young master, fat with grease all over his body, chuckled, "fancy seeing you, the righteous and kind liutenant visiting some unlawful business right here. What do you say you stay here for the day? I could give you the service you'd like as son of the God of War."
"And am I not?" his brother asked with a teasing tone.
"Ah you too...you too young master Liang...," the fat young master wheezed as he held a beautiful girl in his arms. The girl was an employee, figures from the lack of clothing present on her skin. Though, she didn't look like she was rejecting him. During the apocalypse, things that were previously visible could never be seen anymore. The tiger had wiped its stripes.
"But young master Fu~ He is just an illegitimate son~," the girl clutched 'young master Fu's arm and said teasingly, only earning a slap from 'young master Fu'. She clutched her cheek in surprise and widened her eyes so much he could finally see them from the thick layer of eyeliner.
She looked like those punk metal rockstars he'd occasionaly see before the apocalypse.
"Young master Fu? Why?"
Did she not know? She just insulted a son of Liang Bing. No matter what, she would, of course, be the target of humiliation for the night. Everyone knew not to offend a son of Liang. Liang Xingbai watched as his brother angrily beat the girl up, purposefully hitting her face until it resembled a pig's head. Medicine during the apocalypse were scarce, everyone knew so wounding someone meant they could only heal themselves slowly.
"Bring this girl to the upper floor, put her in the secret room and make her today's for free. Make it a week," his brother looked the girl, ruthlessness in evident in his eyes, "I'm pretty sure those lowlives would like to have such a high-ranking girl. They must be thirsty."
And this was almost what happened every single day in the club. The apocalypse by itself turned earth into such an unlawful place, the club became even more unlawful. Although it used to be the same, the feeling were different. The meaning of everything changed from the initials. While the girl was screaming for forgiveness, the other young masters were just watching her like they would to an animal.
"That girl just made a fool out of herself. Fu Baoru, you just dug a grave for yourself!" the daughter of colonel Sanders' left hand man chuckled, "Let's see how Liang Bing would deal with you after third young master Liang said something to father dearest."
"Shut your mouth as well," the young master Fu glared at the skimpily clad woman, "You aren't any better."
"You guys, stop arguing! Shouldn't you be listening to third young master Liang's achievement in taking over base B."
So it was indeed his third brother. Liang Xingbai narrowed his eyes as he was pulled to sit in the group. He looked as the young masters in the group unreservedly took a glass of champagne from the waiters' tray. Though, that wasn't why he was there, it was because of the information in front of him.