Rebirth: 100 Days Before Doomsday - Chapter 281

Chapter 281: A Ray of Hope
The heavy doors of the meeting room slammed shut behind Grace, leaving an eerie silence in her wake.

The leaders of the Great Alliance were sitting motionless. Their faces were a mix of disbelief, frustration, and deep contemplation.

The first to break the silence was General Ryker. He was from Country R, a battle-hardened man with scars running down his right cheek. He let out a slow exhale and leaned forward, interlocking his fingers.

“She’s dangerous,” he muttered.

Across the table was sitting a sharp-eyed woman who had once been a high-ranking official in the old world’s government. Her name was Chancellor Vega. She scoffed before speaking, “She’s necessary.”

“Necessary now,” Ryker countered as he turned his gaze toward her. “But what about later? The more power she accumulates, the less control we have over her. She made her stance clear… she answers to no one.”

“She can be the only reason our safe zones will not be swarming with Monster Beasts and infected in the future,” President Zhang interjected. He had remained quiet throughout the meeting, observing rather than speaking. “The barriers she’s constructed are beyond anything we have ever seen. Are we really in a position to question her methods?”

President Rayden smirked, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “It’s not her methods that concern us. It’s what happens when she decides we are no longer useful to her.”

President Grant sighed. “We have seen it before… powerful individuals who become rulers rather than protectors. The only reason we are sitting here now, still making decisions, is because she hasn’t chosen to take that from us. But what if one day she does?”

A tense silence settled over the room. No one had an answer.

Finally, President Carter, the leader of Country S and also the nominal leader of the Great Alliance, spoke up. “For now, we let her do what she does best. Build the barriers, strengthen the defenses, and keep the dangers at bay. But we need contingencies. If she ever turns against us…”

His words trailed off, but the implication was clear.

Vega nodded. “Agreed. We start monitoring her movements, her alliances, her weaknesses. We cannot afford to be blind to the possibility of another power shift.”

Ryker exchanged glances with Carter before giving a single nod. The decision had been made.

They needed to keep their guards up against Grace Blackwood.

* * *

Far from the political scheming, Grace continued her plan of building Starfall Isle once she returned there after the successful meeting she had with the leaders of the Great Alliance.

While the rest of the Alliance immediately launched their mission of collecting high level Spirit Stones, she continued making Starfall her strongest base.

The original 2,000 survivors she had rescued were no longer alone. Over the past month, that number had grown to 3,000 and more kept arriving by the day.

Some came guided by her warriors, others made it to either Greenstone or Hilton Base after hearing rumors of an island untouched by the horrors of the apocalypse. They came as engineers, farmers, healers, craftsmen… all desperate for safety. Each one of them was willing to contribute however they could in exchange of a place in her stronghold.

This particular evening, Grace was standing in the balcony of her villa, watching the expanse of the city down the cliff.

Beside her, Rune stretched lazily with his signature smirk playing on his lips. “You look proud.” He then moved closer and wrapped his arms around her from the back before adding, “And you deserve to be proud. You are doing a fabulous job of building this city.”

He sounded proud, and it made Grace feel a sense of warmth filling her insides. She relaxed against his chest, letting him carry her weight. “It’s just the beginning.”

The island had become a fortress. It had been over two months since she first arrived here with 2000 survivors, and the island had already changed a lot.

“Any new reports?” She asked, turning around to face the man.

Rune nodded his head, aware of exactly what she was asking about. “Yeah, we have got another 600 survivors incoming. It’s a mixed batch – fighters, civilians, a handful of researchers, and some military from before the collapse.” He glanced at her. “Should bring our numbers close to 4,000.”

Grace nodded. “Good. Keep them coming.”

For weeks, she had sent teams to rescue those still struggling to survive. Every new group strengthened her bases.

They were silent for a while before their attention shifted to Dr. Kian who just walked out on the balcony. Just a look at his face made the two realize that something was up.

Grace was immediately pulling out of Rune’s arms, who let her go without any hesitation, and moving to stand next to Dr. Kian. “Is everything alright?”

The doctor gave a little shake of his head and took his time to glanced between her and Rune. It was hard to tell what was going on in his mind by looking at his expression.

“Doc, just spill it.” Rune pressed, not liking the tension Kian’s silence was building.

“I have a news for you guys.” Dr. Kian finally spoke, once again glancing between the two of them. “A couple is expecting twins. The mother is six weeks into her pregnancy.”

It took Grace a while to process what she just learned, and even then, she was too shocked to say anything.

“Well?” Dr. Kian asked when she remained silent for way too long. Even Rune was waiting for her reaction.

Grace was finally able to pull herself out of the shock, and a genuine smile spread across her lips. “It’s such a great news. I’ll ask Aleena to make proper arrangements for the couple to make sure the babies are born healthy and safe.”

The viruses of the two rains not only changed humans, but they also affected their ability of reproducing. Hence, over the past three years, very few babies were born around the world, and even lesser among them survived through the first five months of their birth.

Hence, this news of pregnancy was like a ray of hope in the darkness that was clutching humanity.