Apocalypse rebirth: My ex begged outside my fortress

et ash filled the air. Red puddl

boot was torn open, exposing a

d in her chest. Three of her ribs were completely snapped

at her side, dislocated and thro

s. Her stomach felt like it was eating it

g through the smoke ahead, a weak smile broke

..." she whispered,

, limp body of Ryan. His arms hung over her

own toward the earth. But she refused to fall. Not when the

the stormy clouds, a symbol o

the end of the wo

ping as the movement sent a fresh wa

ey had survived five years in this living nightm

e, when a falling wall had crushed Ryan's le

ried him for three days straight through a city crawling with mon

nto a dangerous black market camp and traded her mother's gold wedding ring, the

him night after night, handing over the tiny

m they hid in, pressing her hands against her grow

e monsters. He was too gentle for this

s, entering dark, pitch-black warehouses filled with grow

ow piled high outside, there was only o

he had wrapped herself in a single, thin blanket and slept outside on the frozen di

e arm. The black veins of the virus were

ed a rusted hunting knife, and used her own hands

saving him, even though the horror and exh

im her food, her blood, her youth, and her safet

nal stretch of mud, reaching the heavy iron c

ood behind thick metal barricades,

blared from the speake

and completely dev

ors. Access restricted. Only Awakened

ormal human. I never gained special powers. But Rya

ke over her mind, the heavy weig

off her

weak state. Instead, he landed perfectly on both feet. He

had been "ruined" five years ago, the leg that supposedly made

fine. He was preten

ed, her voice trembli

r in the massive steel gate clicked open

as Sophia. But Sophia did not look like so

in was pale and unblemished, and she

smile on her lips. She walked right up to Ryan and

ead, he laced his fingers th

old rain poured over her face

r and broken ribs suddenly vanished, repla

she whispered, her eyes darti

ed down a

atitude she had seen in his eyes for t

ter snow. A small, mocking smile

inging me here,"

hand. "Ryan, I don't understand. Who is she? Why are y

ough the sound of the rain like a sharp blade. He l

r toward

. The sound was hysterical, bubbling

to let us in. I carried you all this way..." She waited for him to smile, to la

lar and pulled out a silver necklace. It was a

s ago, nearly losing her eye to a monster just to get i

ck and tossed it carelessly into the

ed directly on it, grinding the si

oved you,"

king laugh, the sound ringing

You really believed he loved y

Ryan's shoulder, looking down

for six years. We were together

"But we started dating five years ago... right whe

all this time?" Sophia sneered, twisting a

aiting for you. And when the world ended, you turned out to be the perfect little guard dog. You were strong enough to fight, strong enoug

ars finally spilling over her eyelid

, tell her she's lying! I starve

eyes completely dead. He didn

elty. "Sophia ate it. I took the food you gave me, waited until you went

leaving her lungs as i

to her. Sophia had a weak immune system, you see. She needed those antibi

her shivering in the snow, her stomach screaming in hunger, her ski

had ruined her body, given up her

led, a soft, sickening chuckle escaping his

's soul. The physical pain of her broken bones was nothing compa

ery drop of blood she spilled

had been bleeding herself dry to feed the

d everything for a

unable to even lift her head. The tears wou

bed Elena by her broken shoulders. She gasps in

, he raised his heavy combat boot and kicked her violently

ward from the force of the kick, crashing throu

ey simply watched as her broken body rolled down

tearing at her skin, until she crashed into

adows of the trees, a terrifying, blood-curdling screech echoed throug

ned shell, and her heart was completely dead. Through the blurring rain

a close to his side. His cold voice carried down through the s

nobody ever

ushed in. Elena's eyes close