Reborn Before The Apocalypse: Rise Of The Apocalypse Queen

Chapter 1 

A raw scream ripped from Elena Voss’s throat as she bolted upright in bed, face drained of color.

After the Greatquake, the world had collapsed into pure chaos.

Just to claim the last scrap of an energy bar, her boyfriend Ryan Hale and her closest friend Lila Quinn had driven a blade straight into her temple. She still remembered the hot flood of blood and the sudden blackout.

Wait… what was happening? She had died. She was certain of it.

Elena scanned the room. The furniture felt strangely familiar. After a few seconds it hit her—this was the apartment she had rented during her junior year of college.

On the nightstand sat a pink phone, the exact one she had used back in school. Later, during the Floodfall years, she had lost it while scavenging; it had slipped into the water and been ruined beyond repair.

With shaking fingers she unlocked the screen. The date and time stared back at her: March 23, 2024, 11:12 a.m.

Elena’s eyes flew wide. Could it be… she had been reborn?

She slid out of bed and stepped onto the balcony. Below, children laughed as they played. A few elderly neighbors sat around a table, chatting over a game of cards.

It had been so long since she had seen a peaceful scene like this.

Suddenly her phone rang. The moment she answered, tears spilled down her cheeks. “Mom…”

Back then she had been studying at a university far south in Aetheria. When the world fell apart, she never made it home. At first the phones still worked, and she could reach her parents now and then.

But once the Floodfall swallowed the coastal cities, all communication and travel died.

Her father had spent every last cent on a speedboat and headed south to find her—only to never return.

Her mother had stayed behind with Elena’s little brother in their sixth-floor apartment. The place had a small attic, and her cautious parents had already stockpiled food and supplies before the disaster.

Soon after her father’s departure, vicious neighbors forced their way in with a gang of thugs and drove her mother and brother out.

Not long after, both were killed in an acid rainstorm.

Elena had only learned the truth much later, when she finally staggered home after the storms passed.

By then she had witnessed too much darkness on the long road north. She was no longer the naive girl she had once been.

After careful planning she took her revenge, killing the neighbors who had stolen her family’s home. Her cold, blood-chilling fury terrified the few survivors left in the building.

Then she gathered what remained of her mother’s and brother’s corroded bodies, buried them, and headed for the government Survivor Settlement.

That was where she ran into Ryan and Lila again—the same two who had robbed her of every supply and thrown her out of her rented apartment when the apocalypse first began.

“Elena, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Sophia Voss’s voice came through the line. Hearing her daughter cry, she panicked and even used the childhood nickname. “Did something happen? Did you fight with a classmate?”

“No, no.” Elena wiped her tears and drew a shaky breath. “Mom, I just… I just miss you so much.”

She missed her with every fiber of her being.

Eight years. After eight long years, she was finally hearing her mother’s voice again. The joy was almost too much to hold.

“That’s all? You’re already a junior and still this homesick? What’s going to happen once you’re married?” Sophia teased gently.

Elena sniffled and protested, “I’m not getting married. I just want to stay with you and Dad forever.”

“Alright, alright. You’ll be our daughter for life then.” Sophia laughed warmly.

But deep inside, Elena swore to herself that this time she would protect her parents and brother at any cost. She would drive away every threat. She would make sure her family survived safely, even at the end of the world.

“Elena,” Sophia continued, “you and Ryan went on that trip to Coral Bay, didn’t you? I’ll wire you more money to cover your living expenses.”

Only then did Elena remember. In her previous life, right after winter break, she and Ryan had traveled to Coral Bay.

Ryan had claimed most of his allowance was already spent and asked her to cover the costs for now, promising to pay her back once they returned.

Because she agreed, Ryan spent freely the entire trip. He insisted on the best restaurants and nice hotels, never once holding back.

In just nine days they had burned through more than 20,000 dollars.

On top of that, he had set his eyes on a piece of jewelry at a tourist shop—an emerald amulet. To Elena it looked ordinary and overpriced, but Ryan insisted on borrowing the money from her to buy it.

So she handed over her last 10,000 dollars.

Ryan was tall and good-looking, but he came from a modest family.

Elena, on the other hand, had always felt insecure because of the birthmark on her face. That insecurity made her give in to him again and again. They had been dating for more than a year, and most of the expenses came from her pocket.

When she got into a top university, her parents threw a celebration party. Every cash gift from relatives and family friends was given to her. Altogether it came to about 60,000 dollars.

But after she started dating Ryan, all of it disappeared.

That trip to Coral Bay had been the final straw. Ryan called it a loan, but they both knew he never intended to repay her.

Thinking of this, Elena said into the phone, “Yeah, Mom, money’s tight. Can you send me some more? Also, I was thinking of tagging along with a senior named Zara to apply for an internship at a big company. I want to buy a car too—it would make things easier.”

Sophia was quiet for a moment. Then she said, “Jobs are hard to get these days. Starting early is a smart move. But buying a car is a big decision. Let me talk to your dad first. Just the other day he mentioned that electric car prices have dropped. Let him give you some advice.”

“Alright,” Elena agreed quickly.

Of course she couldn’t tell her parents the truth about her rebirth. But the need to stockpile supplies was urgent, so she had to invent excuses to ask for more money.

When the call ended, her lips curved into a cold smile. Adding up everything from the past year and that trip, Ryan owed her far more than 50,000 dollars.

She vowed to take every cent back.

Today was March 23rd. There were only a couple of weeks left before the end of the world began. Every minute counted.

She turned back inside, changed clothes, and headed for the door.

Passing the full-length mirror, she glanced at her reflection and froze.

On her left temple there had always been a dark birthmark.

It was shaped like a jagged mountain range, about the size of a walnut. She had been born with it.

Because of that mark she had always felt less than others, even though her family was comfortable and her parents adored her. She was a pretty girl, but that single flaw made her self-conscious. Other than Ryan, no boy had ever gone out of his way to pursue her.

That was probably why she had fallen so easily for Ryan’s sweet lies in the first place.

But now—her birthmark was gone.

Elena stared into the mirror. What looked back at her was a flawless face, smooth and fair, without a single blemish.

Where had it gone?

Before she could make sense of it, a strange image appeared in her mind. It was a giant white shipping container—square, empty, and stretching over 800 square feet.

Elena had always enjoyed reading fantasy novels online. Looking at this bizarre space in her mind, she couldn’t help connecting it to her missing birthmark.

Had that birthmark been a storage space in disguise all along?

In her last life, Ryan and Lila had stabbed her in the temple. Blood had poured from the wound, and she had died. Was that what had unlocked this space?

Could the birthmark have been the key?

Heart pounding, she decided to test it. She held up her jacket, focused on the thought—and suddenly it vanished from her hands. Her eyes widened. Inside the white storage space, the jacket now floated neatly in view.

She reached out, and in an instant it reappeared in her grasp, completely unchanged.

Elena’s breath caught. Her whole body trembled with excitement, eyes shining bright.

Just moments ago she had been worrying. Even with her knowledge of the future, even if she stockpiled supplies early, how could she possibly keep them safe? The apocalypse would bring the Floodfall, then the Megatsunami, the Inferno, Acidstorm, Icebound, Sundrought, the suffocating Everdark, and finally the Greatquake.

Humanity had been driven from place to place, never safe for long.

Even if she managed to hoard food with her parents, where would they keep it? How would they protect it from fire, floods, or blizzards?

But now the answer was right in front of her.

As long as this storage space could preserve things safely, she wouldn’t have to worry at all.

Elena grabbed a pen and paper and quickly

began sketching a list. She organized survival items in order of urgency. When she finished, she slipped on a face mask and headed out the door.