Rebirth: 100 Days Before Doomsday - Chapter 200

Chapter 200: Project Greenhouses
Over the next few weeks, Greenstone Residential Area underwent a transformation unlike anything the residents were expecting.

What had once been a desperate group of survivors struggling to stay alive – was now turning into a functional, and self-sustaining community, all thanks to the structured system Grace was putting in place.

But survival in an apocalyptic volcanic winter was never easy.

After securing the perimeters of the Residential Area, the second step to secure Greenstone’s future was ensuring its people could fight for their own survival.

From the very next day, Grace launched a new project with Captain Harlow’s help where her team and his soldiers took charge of training the residents. They ensured that those who volunteered for raid teams could handle themselves when faced with danger.

Most of these people had never fought before, had never been in situations where their lives depended on how quickly they could react. But hunger and survival were powerful motivators.

“Again,” Captain Harlow barked as a group of survivors struggled through a drill. “You need to be fast. One second too late, and you are dead.”

The residents pushed themselves beyond their limits. They learned to move in teams, cover for one another, and retreat when necessary.

The best thing among all this was that out of hundred and seventy-two residents, hundred and forty were young people between the ages of twenty-five to forty. This made training them easier.

It was about a week and three days later when the first team was finally confident enough in their skills that the first scavenging raid was launched.

The team had a total of ten residents, along with a few soldiers, who ventured out to secure food, medicine, clothes, and other daily necessities from abandoned supermarkets, warehouses, and supply depots that hadn’t yet been looted.

While Grace and her team didn’t accompany them on the mission, she still provided them with thorough instructions, some weapons, two trucks, and a map with landmarks marked.

“Are you really going to sacrifice the vehicles and the weapons?” 2025 asked her through the mindlink as it watched the system updating the status of the inventory.

“If they succeed, it will not be a sacrifice, but a great investment. And if they ended up losing, I’ll just consider this a lesson for myself.” Grace answered as she stepped away from the floor-to-ceiling window of her living room from where she was watching the trucks leaving the residential area.

And to everyone’s surprise and joy – the mission turned out to be a success. The team returned with a decent haul.

There was food – enough to last Greenstone at least for a week. Warm clothes, mostly blankets, coats, and boots. Some medicines and a five bags of rice that was frozen.

But what surprised Grace the most was what happened next.

When the team returned, they handed everything over to her. She was expectin at least some hesitation, maybe a few residents hoarding supply for themselves, but instead, they placed their trust in her without question.

She raised an eyebrow as she looked at the crates of food and supplies before shifting her gaze to the team. “You are giving it all to me?”

One of the younger members, Lukas, grinned softly. “You are the one who came up with this whole survival plan. We trust you to handle distribution.”

A woman named Nadia nodded. “If we want Greenstone to survive, we have to work together. We get it now.”

Grace stared at them for a moment before letting out a soft chuckle. Trust. It was a dangerous thing in this world. But if they had chosen to trust her, then she wouldn’t let them down.

From that day forward, the raid missions became routine.

There were casualties, of course. Injuries from zombie attacks, skirmishes with other survivors, and the ever-present danger of animals that had started transitioning very recently.

While the latter two weren’t too dangerous, the same couldn’t be said about zombie bites. But with the help of Void Lily, one of the mutated plants Grace had secured, even the most serious wounds were treated before the transition could begin.

Everytime a zombie bit a human, it left behind the virus in that human’s body that forced the transition. However, this transition needed about four to five hours to complete.

Hence, as long as the bitten person could be treated before four hours, the person could be saved. So far, only Void Lily had been able to make this impossible happen, and only Grace had access to this plant and this knowledge.

While the raid teams were securing food and medicine, another team focused on securing firewood and charcoal. These resources were critical for keeping Greenstone warm as the volcanic winter worsened.

While all those people, who had unlocked superpowers, were now able to withstand hunger and cold to certain degrees, there were still a lot of normal people within Greenstone who still needed food and warmth to stay alive.

– – –

While the soldiers and residents of the Greenstone were working hard to survive, Grace decided to take care of the other big plan she had created – setting up the greenhouses.

She chose the basement of Building C4 as the primary location for the greenhouses. The building had four floors underground which provided more than enough space to cultivate food for the two hundred people living in Greenstone.

But it was only when she actually stepped into the basement that she realized just how much manual work was required for the project as she wasn’t inside her space and couldn’t do everything just by clicking on a digital screen.

The basement floors were cluttered with debris that came with the flood, some sections even partially collapsed. The first task was to clear out the space, reinforce the walls, and set up makeshift insulation using scavenged materials like plastic sheets, wooden planks, and old blankets.

A group of twenty residents and five soldiers joined her, Dr. Kian, Rio, and Valeska as they began the Project Greenhouses.