Chapter 2: Welcome to Hope's Refuge
The air shimmered as Ava stepped through the glowing portal, and her room vanished behind her. For a moment, she felt like she was being stretched like dough, her insides trying to keep up with the rest of her. Then—pop!—the world around her snapped into focus.
She stood on a wide meadow bathed in warm golden light. The sky overhead glowed like an endless sunset, streaked with faint lavender clouds. The grass swayed gently in a breeze that smelled faintly of honey and fresh bread. Somewhere far off, a stream trickled musically, and birds she had never seen before chirped in soft harmony.
Ava blinked several times, rubbing her eyes. "Okay… either I just teleported into a meditation app background, or the apocalypse has a very weird sense of humor."
[Welcome to Hope's Refuge. This is your private survival domain.]
The glowing screen hovered cheerfully before her, and Ava squinted at the animated cream puff icon bobbing in the corner.
"Private domain, huh?" she muttered, hands on her hips. "So… mine? Like, I own this? I get the deed, keys, and maybe a WiFi password?"
[Correct. Host may expand and upgrade Refuge through resource collection, skill development, and quest completion.]
Ava's eyes sparkled. "So basically Animal Crossing, but if Tom Nook had murder dungeons and doomsday vibes. Cool."
She turned slowly in a circle, taking everything in. Not far from where she stood was a log cabin, small but sturdy, smoke curling lazily from its stone chimney. A fenced-off patch of soil sat beside it, freshly tilled as if waiting for seeds. To the other side, Ava spotted what looked like a clear, bubbling spring with a wooden bucket resting on its edge. A stretch of open ground, marked with painted lines and wooden dummies, looked suspiciously like a training field.
"Wow," she whispered, unable to stop the grin tugging at her lips. "It's like someone built me a starter base in Minecraft."
She strode confidently toward the cabin. The wooden porch creaked under her steps, and the door swung open with only the faintest groan. Inside, the air smelled of cedar and something faintly sweet, like freshly baked bread.
The interior was simple but cozy: a bed covered in neatly folded sheets, a sturdy table and chairs, a small hearth with unlit logs, and shelves waiting to be filled. But Ava's eyes locked on a single object resting on the counter.
A box. A shiny, glowing box.
"Loot box?" Ava whispered hopefully, clasping her hands together like she was praying to the gods of free starter items.
[Starter Pack Unlocked.]
With a ding! the box popped open, light spilling across the cabin. Ava leaned forward eagerly.
Inside were… canned goods, bottled water, a small first aid kit, and three packets of something she recognized instantly.
Trail mix.
Ava froze. Then slowly, very slowly, she reached in and picked up one of the bags, turning it over in her hands.
"…Trail mix," she repeated in a flat voice. "Not chocolate. Not cookies. Not chips. Trail mix."
The cream puff bounced happily on the system screen as though it had gifted her the secret to eternal life.
"This is discrimination," Ava declared, tossing the bag back in the box. "Trail mix is just raisins cosplaying as food. Nobody—and I mean nobody—has ever said, 'Wow, I sure hope my snack today tastes like disappointment and bird seed.'"
For a split second, her smile twitched. Her eye gave the tiniest tick. The kind of twitch people get when they're this close to snapping.
[Note: Host nutritional preferences have been logged.]
Her head snapped toward the screen. "You better not be logging my snack habits, cream puff."
The cream puff blinked innocently.
Ava squinted at it. Then whispered, almost sweetly: "Touch my chocolate supply, and I'll bake you into a soufflé."
The cream puff bounced nervously.
Satisfied, she shoved the supplies back into the box and flopped down on the bed. The mattress was surprisingly soft, the kind of soft that made her want to sink into it forever. Her fingers drummed against her stomach, which gave a faint growl.
"Alright, apocalypse," she muttered. "Fine. You win. But if this is my life now, I'm doing it my way. Which means step one: survive. Step two: stockpile snacks."
The cream puff bounced approvingly, though Ava thought it looked a little wary now.
She lay there for a moment, staring at the wooden ceiling beams. Yesterday she'd been an ordinary high school graduate stressing over entrance exams and whether she could sneak chocolate into the library. Now she was in a magical safehouse built for the end of the world, with a cream puff acting as her system guide.
Her lips curled into a grin. "Y'know what? I'm not mad. This might actually be fun."
A new message blinked across the screen.
[New Quest: Explore Hope's Refuge. Reward: Beginner Resource Pack.]
Ava sat up straighter. "Now that sounds promising. Maybe this pack has actual candy." She slid off the bed, brushing the wrinkles from her shirt.
Her eyes gleamed with determination as she strode toward the door. Her apocalypse might be starting, but she wasn't going to face it with fear or misery.
No, Ava Raven Blackwood was going to face the end of the world with sass, sarcasm, and the eternal hope that somewhere, somehow, there was chocolate waiting for her.
And if not—well, she'd just have to make some herself.
Somewhere in the corner, the cream puff shivered.