Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 89: Whatever Lay Ahead

Chapter 89: Whatever Lay Ahead

"I don’t understand," said Fan Teng Fei as he stared at the supplies he was so worried about. How did they get here? Where was here?

"Our family has been around since the beginning of time. We have studied the teachings of the ancients and, in turn, tried to pass them on to those around us," said the old voice, and all of a sudden, an elderly gentleman stepped into the light in front of Fan Teng Fei.

He wore the traditional robes of a Shaolin monk, and Fan Teng Fei could smell the sandalwood beads hanging around his neck. In his hand was a monk’s staff, the twelve bronze loops at the top of the wooden staff shining in the light.

Fan Teng Fei bowed his head and saluted the ancient one in front of him.

"I am honored," he said softly. He still had no idea what was going on, but if he was able to bring supplies into this space, then that was all that was important. He would have the ability to make sure that his brothers had what they needed.

"And that is why you are the only descendent in over 400 years to be granted this space," said the old man as he reached forward and touched Fen Teng Fei’s head. The gentle clinking of the loops gave Fan Teng Fei a sense of peace that he had never known before.

Fan Teng Fei remained silent, not sure what he should or even could say to the being in front of him.

"You protect those around you and expect nothing in return. You have practiced the words of the Ancients in both your thoughts and heart and spread those teachings to everyone around you. You are the only one worthy of entering this space."

"Am I dead?" asked Fan Teng Fei, more than a little concerned. He needed to get back to his teammates. He needed to get back to Wang Tian Mu.

"No," assured the Ancient with a slight smile on his face. "You are not dead; you just have to wish yourself out. Just like you have to wish things in, including yourself."

"Thank you for this," said Fan Teng Fei, dropping to his knees and bowing before the old man. This space was everything to him.

"Go back," smiled the Ancient. "Find more supplies and bring them in here. I’ll have them sorted out so you can find them again. You are going to need a lot. There are many trials in front of you. You must fight hard for what you want. This place will also give you a few surprises when you least expect it."

"Thank you, Ancient One," whispered Fan Teng Fei as he came to his feet.

"Please, call me Fan Liu Kang."

----

I looked around the primary bunker and breathed a sigh of relief. I had finally managed to clean everything up and get the place smelling right again.

Unfortunately, it took so long that it was now 9 pm, and all my other plans had gone down the drain.

Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

Going over to the kitchen, I took the bacon from the fridge and started placing them on the baking sheet.

It was so much easier to cook it this way and much less of a mess, too.

Once everything had been laid out in a single row, I put the sheet into the oven and turned it to 425 degrees.

"You know, you don’t have to go find us," said Ye Yao Zu as he appeared on the counter beside us. "In fact, I speak for all of us when I say that we would much rather have you safe in this bunker than out in the world."

I looked at him and narrowed my eyes at his statement. I was hearing voices in my head and seeing hallucinations. Did he really think I was in a good place mentally? I clearly couldn’t spend the rest of my life alone in this bunker without going certifiably insane.

"You might not think it is important, but I do," I said at long last.

I didn’t even want to admit to myself how scared I have been lately. I feel like I have been going insane. And other times, I would swear that this was just an elaborate dream, and I was really hooked up to a bunch of tubes in a hospital in Toronto, waiting to die.

And I was tired of just sitting around, waiting to die.

I needed to go out and live. Even if it ended up biting me in the ass later, I needed to know that this wasn’t just a fucked-up dream.

"Fine," groaned Ye Yao Zu. "I never could win an argument against you."

"Meh, I just don’t think you tried hard enough," I shrugged, smiling to myself as I put the bread in the toaster.

If an EMP really did hit, then I would be coming back here as soon as possible. I couldn’t live without electricity and modern conveniences like toasters, ovens, and fridges.

No, I would go out, find the guys, and get my ass back to the bunker as soon as humanly possible.

Mind you, it would be easier if the GPS was still working. But it was just my luck that they were fried.

Twenty minutes later and I was sitting down to a massive bacon sandwich with bacon, mayonnaise, and lettuce. No way I could have a tomato on it. That would make everything too wet and nasty.

I closed my eyes and breathed in the scent of Bai Long Qiang behind me.

"You’ll be safe, right?" he asked softly as he kissed my neck. "I need you to be safe."

"I will," I answered him, tilting my head to give him more room. We had never really gone much further... Bai Long Qiang felt that I was still a little too young, but that didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy these moments.

"I need you to be safe."

"I know."

"And I am so sorry for not listening to you in the first place. I should have stayed home with you, then none of this would have happened, and you wouldn’t have had to survive by yourself."

"There is no point in crying over spilled milk," I chuckled. "Everything happens for a reason, I am sure."

"Still," grumbled Bai Long Qiang as I got up and washed my dishes. I needed to go through my bug-out bags to make sure I had everything I needed for my ’adventure’.

Satisfied that I was good, I set my alarm for 7 in the morning and crawled into bed.

One thing I knew... morning always came too early, and I needed as much sleep as I could get for whatever lay ahead.