A month ago, ash falling from the sky would have been impossible to imagine.
Now, Priya barely noticed it.
She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.
For several seconds, she had no idea what time it was.
Morning?
Afternoon?
Maybe evening.
Without sunlight, the distinction had become meaningless.
Priya reached for her phone.
The screen told her it was 8:17 a.m.
"Okay," she muttered. "Morning."
She sat up.
Her stomach immediately complained.
"Still morning."
She dragged herself out of bed and opened the curtains.
The world outside Favilla Hall was grey.
Not dark.
Not quite.
Just grey.
A thin veil of ash drifted through the air.
It wasn't particularly heavy today. In fact, compared with most days, it was almost gentle.
Students could move between buildings if they wore masks and carried umbrellas to keep the ash off their clothes.
Priya watched two people crossing the courtyard below.
For a moment, it almost looked like a normal university morning.
Almost.
Then she remembered that there were no classes.
No professors waiting in lecture halls.
No crowded cafeterias.
No clubs.
No parties.
They had barely been freshmen for a week before the world had changed.
Priya sighed.
"Still weird."
She left her room.
The dome-shaped roof of Favilla Hall was doing its job.
Most of the ash slid down along the curved surface and gathered around the base of the building instead of piling heavily on top.
That meant the group still had to clear it regularly.
Corvin and Mei Lin were already outside.
Corvin drove his shovel into the grey pile.
Scrape.
Push.
Scrape.
Push.
Mei Lin worked several metres away.
Neither said much.
They had learned that survival sometimes meant doing the same unpleasant thing over and over again.
Corvin looked toward the courtyard.
A few people were moving around campus.
The lighter ashfall had made that possible.
He watched them for a moment before returning to work.
Mei Lin noticed something else.
A group standing near one of the distant buildings.
Five people.
They weren't doing anything obvious but they were watching Favilla Hall.
Mei Lin's shovel stopped.
She watched them.
One of them turned away.
Another said something to the others then they disappeared inside.
Mei Lin's grip tightened around the shovel.
"Corvin."
He looked over.
"What?"
"Those people."
Corvin followed her gaze.
The courtyard was empty now.
"They're gone."
"They were watching us."
Corvin studied the building they'd disappeared into.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
She hesitated.
"I have a bad feeling."
He didn't dismiss her.
"Let's go inside."
By the time they returned, Astrid and Chase were sorting through their remaining food.
Astrid held up a package.
"This expires soon."
Chase looked at it.
"How soon?"
"Three days."
"Then we eat it today."
Astrid nodded and placed it separately.
Priya wandered into the room.
"Food?"
"Breakfast," Astrid said.
Priya smiled.
"Best word in the English language."
Astrid handed her a plate.
Then she pointed toward a small container.
"And Vitamin D."
Priya froze.
"Oh."
"You forgot yesterday."
"I remembered."
"You remembered after you forgot."
"That's still remembering."
Chase laughed.
Astrid gave Priya a look.
"Take it."
"Yes, doctor."
"I'm not a doctor."
"I know."
Priya swallowed the tablet.
"Done."
Across the room, Corvin checked the time.
"The air filter needs replacing."
Chase looked at him.
"Again?"
"Last replacement was a week ago."
Chase sighed.
"Ash really is determined to kill us."
Corvin didn't smile.
"It's trying."
Priya suddenly looked up.
"How is Aisha doing?"
Astrid's expression softened.
"She's fine."
"She's still resting?"
"She needs to. Her period started yesterday, and she wasn't feeling great."
Priya nodded.
"Aisha actually listened?"
"Mostly."
Chase laughed.
"That might be the most impressive thing that's happened all week."
Priya smiled.
"I hope she stays in bed."
"She won't," Astrid said.
Nobody disagreed.
After breakfast, everyone split up.
Priya and Mei Lin headed upstairs while Corvin took the stairs toward the basement.
The basement was the closest thing Favilla Hall had to a mechanical heart.
If those machines stopped working, Favilla Hall would stop functioning with them.
Corvin set his tools beside the filtration system and began checking the equipment.
Upstairs, Priya and Mei Lin found Marco and Dimitri near the fourth-floor windows.
Marco looked over.
"Morning."
Mei Lin waited until the others had settled before speaking.
"There were five people watching the building."
Marco's expression changed not dramatically.
Just enough.
"Where?"
Mei Lin explained.
All three listened silently.
Marco leaned back.
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
Marco glanced toward Dimitri.
Dimitri stood.
"Then we should assume they are interested in the supplies."
Marco nodded.
"Agreed. All right"
Marco pushed himself away from the wall.
"Get your gun."
Dimitri nodded and went toward his room.
Priya watched him leave.
"Do we really need them?"
Marco looked toward the window.
"I hope not."
Then he glanced back at her.
"But I'd rather be prepared."
Back on the third floor, Chase and Astrid were waiting for Marco and Dimitri to finish their breakfast so they could get on with the day's work.
The two eventually appeared.
Both had their guns secured at their hips.
Chase raised both hands.
"I didn't do anything."
Nobody answered.
Chase lowered them.
"Right. Bad time."
A few minutes later, the lights went out.
The room fell silent.
Priya looked around.
"What?"
Marco reached for his radio.
Corvin's voice came through.
"Don't panic. I shut the power down."
Priya stared at the ceiling.
"You shut it down?"
"I need to replace a damaged component."
"How long?"
"Several minutes."
The fan stopped.
Aisha's voice suddenly came from the hallway.
"What the hell happened?"
She appeared at the doorway, one hand pressed against her stomach.
"The fan stopped working. I was sleeping nicely too."
Priya burst out laughing.
Aisha frowned.
"What's funny?"
"You sound personally betrayed by electricity."
"I am."
Astrid picked up a plate.
"I was about to bring you breakfast."
Aisha's expression softened.
"Thank you."
She noticed the guns.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Why are you armed?"
Marco opened his mouth.
Priya's radio crackled.
He turned it on.
"Priya?"
A voice came through.
"Five people approaching Favilla Hall."
The room went quiet.
Marco stood.
"Everyone to your positions."
The five strangers entered the building.
Marco and Dimitri rushed to the second-floor staircase.
Dimitri stayed behind the wall, only leaning out enough to see the stairs.
Marco crouched behind the opposite side.
Aisha stood behind him.
She had taken a hammer from her room.
She hated standing back.
But today wasn't a good day for her to be fighting. Her body simply wasn't cooperating.
Astrid remained inside her room with Chase near the door.
Mei Lin stayed with Priya.
The radio crackled again.
"Emergency frequency. Favilla Hall."
Fiona answered.
"Go ahead."
"We have five unknown people inside the building."
A pause.
"Security is responding. Six guards are on their way."
Marco heard footsteps.
He raised his gun.
Five people appeared at the bottom of the staircase.
"Stop."
They did.
Marco's voice was calm.
"Turn around and leave."
One of them stepped forward.
"We know you have supplies."
Marco didn't move.
"So?"
"We don't want trouble."
"Then leave."
The man glanced toward the others.
"We can shut down your facilities."
Marco's eyes narrowed.
A radio crackled.
Corvin.
"Marco."
"What?"
"They're threatening the systems?"
"Yes."
"Don't let them near the basement. If they damage the electrical board, the refrigeration and filtration systems could fail."
Marco's jaw tightened.
"Understood."
The strangers backed away.
One of them raised his hands.
"Fine."
They turned.
Marco watched them leave.
He waited.
Ten seconds.
Nothing.
Then Dimitri looked toward the lower hallway.
"They didn't leave."
Marco looked at him.
"How do you know?"
"They were too quiet."
Dimitri pointed.
"The basement."
Marco immediately understood.
"Corvin."
No answer.
Marco's voice hardened.
"Corvin, they're coming for the basement."
Static.
Then—
"Already here."
Corvin slammed the basement door shut.
The reinforced door shook almost immediately.
Once.
Twice.
The third impact made the hinges groan.
Corvin looked around.
The basement was packed with equipment.
Water pumps.
Filtration machinery.
Electrical systems.
Storage.
Pipes.
Too many blind corners.
Too little room.
And five people trying to force their way inside.
Corvin grabbed a pipe wrench the door shook again.
He stepped backward.
The lock wouldn't hold forever.
The door burst open.
Five people entered.
Corvin disappeared behind a large machine.
One of the raiders shouted.
"Find the electrical board!"
They spread out.
Corvin waited.
One walked past the machine.
Corvin stepped out.
The wrench struck the man's weapon hand, forcing him to drop what he was holding.
The man stumbled backward.
"What the—"
Another raider heard him.
He rushed over.
Corvin retreated behind the machinery.
The second man followed.
Then a wooden stick struck the floor beside him.
"Sorry!"
The man turned.
Lucy stood there.
She looked almost as surprised as he did.
"Wasn't aiming for you."
Corvin stared.
"Lucy?"
"Hi."
She raised the stick.
"Bad time?"
A gunshot echoed from the doorway.
Not at anyone.
Just enough to make the raiders freeze.
Dimitri stepped inside.
"Very bad time.
Lucy glanced at him.
"Good to see you."
"You too."
The three spread out.
The basement became a maze the raiders couldn't see all of them at once.
Every time two tried to regroup, Corvin moved them away from the electrical board.
Every time one tried to reach the controls, Lucy forced him back.
Dimitri stayed near the entrance, watching the others.
One raider suddenly broke away.
He sprinted toward the electrical panel.
Corvin saw him.
"No."
Corvin moved to intercept.
The man stopped.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then the raider lowered his weapon.
"We need food."
Corvin stared at him.
"You could have asked."
The man laughed bitterly.
"Asked?"
He looked around the basement.
"You've got food. Water. Electricity. Everything."
"And you thought destroying this would help?"
"We thought you'd have enough."
His voice cracked.
"My family is depending on me."
Corvin's expression softened slightly.
"We're not hoarding it."
"Then give us some."
"We will."
The raider looked at him.
"What?"
"If you need food, we can talk about it."
Corvin lowered the wrench slightly.
"But if you damage these machines, you're not just hurting us."
He gestured toward the equipment.
"This keeps water running."
The man looked at the machines.
For the first time, uncertainty appeared on his face.
Another raider shouted from across the room.
"Don't listen to him!"
Dimitri stepped into view.
The man immediately stopped.
The fight continued for only a few more moments.
But it wasn't really a fight anymore.
The raiders had lost their objective.
They couldn't reach the electrical boar.
They couldn't regroup.
And they didn't know where the three defenders would appear next.
Eventually, they dropped their weapons.
Lucy exhaled.
"Are we done?"
Corvin looked around.
"Hopefully.
Footsteps thundered down the hallway.
Six campus guards entered the basement.
They stopped.
Five restrained raiders sat against the wall.
Corvin stood nearby with the pipe wrench.
Lucy held the wooden stick.
Dimitri stood by the doorway.
One guard stared.
"We came expecting a fight."
Marco's voice came through the radio.
"You missed it."
The guard looked at the restrained men.
Then his expression changed.
"I know him."
He pointed at one of the raiders.
"He was caught stealing supplies from the university workers two weeks ago."
The raider looked away.
The guard sighed.
"So this wasn't random."
Mei Lin's voice came over the radio.
"They were watching Favilla Hall."
The guard looked toward the others.
"We've had reports of people watching supply routes too."
Nobody spoke for a moment.
The implication settled over them this wasn't going to be the last time.
By lunchtime, the basement was secure again.
One electrical component had been damaged during the struggle.
Corvin inspected it.
"We can replace it."
"How long?" Marco asked.
"Not long."
He looked at the damaged piece.
"But we'll need another spare."
Marco nodded.
"Add it to the list."
The five raiders had been taken away by security.
The others returned upstairs.
Lucy
Corvin looked at her.
"You came from the purification plant?"
"Yeah."
"With the ash this light, I figured it was a good chance to inspect the system."
She smiled faintly.
"Then Fiona called."
Priya looked at her.
"And you came running?"
Lucy shrugged.
"You needed help."
Marco smiled.
"That's a good enough reason."
Astrid placed another plate on the table.
"We have enough for one more person."
Lucy hesitated.
"You sure?"
Priya pulled out a chair.
"Sit."
Lucy smiled.
"Okay."
She sat.
For the first time in weeks, Favilla Hall felt less like a bunker.
It felt like a home.
Outside, ash continued to fall.
The world remained broken.
The university was still struggling.
There would be more shortages.
More dangers.
More people desperate enough to take what wasn't theirs.
But inside Favilla Hall, eight freshmen had begun building something that felt almost impossible.
A life.
They had spent the past month learning how to survive the ash.
Now they were learning how to protect the life they had built around it.