"Astrid!"
The line erupted.
For a second, nobody moved.
Astrid stood frozen, one hand pressed against her stomach.
The man who had collided with her stared at her, then at his own hands. Then he ran.
Marco moved first.
The warmth vanished from his face. He drew his pistol and fired.
The crack echoed throughout the area.
The man cried out and stumbled, clutching his leg. Somehow, he kept moving.
"Aisha!"
"I've got him!"
Aisha sprinted after him.
Marco lowered the pistol and turned.
Chase was already beside Astrid.
"Astrid! Look at me."
"I'm fine," she whispered.
"You're not."
He looked toward Corvin.
"Help me!"
Corvin stepped forward.
Then stopped.
Machines made sense.
They had parts. Systems. Failure points.
He could take something apart, find what was wrong, and fix it.
Astrid wasn't a machine.
He didn't know where she'd been injured. He didn't know how deep the wound was. He didn't know whether moving her would make things worse.
His hands remained at his sides.
"I…"
Nothing came.
Priya stood with one hand over her mouth.
Mei Lin couldn't take her eyes off Astrid.
Dimitri stared silently at the blood on her clothes.
"Move!"
A medical worker came rushing out of the cafeteria.
Chase immediately gave her room.
"Where were you hit?"
Astrid pointed weakly toward her stomach.
The woman examined her.
"She needs the clinic."
"Is it bad?" Aisha called.
"It could be."
The medical worker looked at the wound again.
"If it reached an internal organ, it could be fatal. We won't know until we examine her properly."
Chase's face tightened.
"Then let's get her there."
He helped the medical staff take Astrid toward the clinic.
Aisha turned back.
Movement caught her eye.
Marco was already there.
The injured man was limping toward them, Aisha gripping his arm.
Marco walked straight up to him and seized his collar.
The pistol came up and the barrel stopped against the man's forehead.
"Wait—"
Marco's voice was quiet.
Way too quiet.
"You're going to the clinic."
The man's breathing shook.
"And you're going to cooperate."
Marco stared at him.
"The bullet went through. You'll live."
"It was an accident."
The man's eyes filled with tears.
"I didn't mean to stab her."
His voice cracked.
"Why did you shoot me?"
Marco didn't answer.
One second.
Two.
Three.
The cafeteria remained silent.
Finally, Marco lowered the pistol.
"Yes."
He swallowed.
"It was excessive."
The man's face remained terrified.
Marco released his collar.
"But you were running."
He stepped back.
"Go to the clinic."
Aisha caught the man when his injured leg nearly gave out.
Marco watched them leave.
The anger had disappeared from his face.
What remained was harder to read.
---
The cafeteria slowly returned to motion.
Then a security guard approached Marco.
Marco glanced at the man's badge.
TRAVIS HARPER.
He recognized him.
The same guard from the main gate. The one who had knocked out the student trying to interfere with the gates.
The one who had taken Ali's weapon and pinned him down without hesitation.
Travis stopped in front of him.
"You shot him."
Marco nodded.
"You fired a gun in a crowded cafeteria."
"He was running after stabbing Astrid."
"I saw."
Travis stepped closer.
"And you still fired."
Marco said nothing.
"The girl was after him."
Silence.
"You had a choice."
Marco's jaw tightened.
Travis's eyes dropped briefly to the pistol.
"That thing isn't a solution to every problem."
Marco looked away.
"You're lucky the bullet went through his leg."
Travis paused.
"If it hadn't, you'd be standing here explaining a dead body."
Marco's expression hardened.
"You're a student."
Travis looked directly into his eyes.
"Not an executioner."
Marco didn't respond.
Travis turned away, then stopped.
His eyes returned to Marco.
Something about them caught his attention.
He had seen that look before.
Not in students. Not in civilians. In people who had spent too much time around violence.
A rumor surfaced in his memory.
A kid from a powerful mafia family was supposedly attending Drake University that year.
Travis studied Marco for another second and walked away.
Dimitri watched him go.
Something beneath the guard's sleeve had caught his eye.
A faded military insignia.
Dimitri said nothing.
---
Marco returned to his position.
His usual grin was gone.
He picked up the megaphone.
"Listen up."
The cafeteria quieted.
"If your name isn't on the distribution list, leave."
A few students exchanged glances.
"Now."
Nobody moved.
Marco's eyes passed over the line.
"If you interfere with our work, I'm already angry."
Someone near the back muttered something.
Marco turned.
"Don't."
Silence.
He raised the megaphone again.
"If your name is on the list, stay. You'll receive what you're supposed to receive."
His voice became calmer.
"Nobody is going to hurt you."
One student stepped out.
Then another.
Then several more.
Within minutes, the line had thinned considerably.
Nobody argued.
Nobody tested him.
Marco lowered the megaphone.
"Next."
The line moved quickly.
By the time their duty ended, the distribution was almost finished.
The group received their own shares, along with Chase's and Astrid's.
Six months of supplies.
It sounded small when said aloud.
It didn't look small.
Boxes of food.
Water.
Medical supplies.
Blankets.
Hygiene products.
And the additional supplies they'd earned for the extra work.
The other students received shopping carts.For eight people, that wasn't going to work.
The staff eventually loaded everything into a van instead.
Box after box disappeared into the back.
Corvin stared at the packed vehicle.
"So that's six months."
"More than six," Marco said.
The extra supplies are included.
Once everything was secured, they split up.
Corvin and Marco headed for the clinic.
The others returned to Favilla Hall.
Chase was waiting outside the treatment room when they arrived.
His hands were clasped tightly together.
"How is she?" Corvin asked.
"They're still treating her."
The door opened.
A doctor stepped out.
"It was a close call."
All three stood.
"But she's safe."
Chase exhaled.
The doctor continued.
"The knife just nicked an internal organ. We caught it quickly enough to prevent anything worse."
Marco's shoulders relaxed slightly.
"Will she recover?"
"She should. No lasting injury is expected."
Chase nodded.
"She'll need rest. About two weeks before she should return to normal activity."
"Thank you, Doctor," Chase said.
Corvin nodded.
Marco followed.
The doctor stepped aside.
"You can see her. Keep the visit short."
Astrid was pale when they entered, but awake.
She looked at them.
"You guys look terrible."
Chase laughed under his breath.
"You're one to talk."
He pulled up a chair.
"You scared the hell out of us."
---
Mei Lin carried another box up the stairs.
The van had already been emptied. Now the ground-floor lobby was slowly filling with supplies.
"Come on!" Priya called. "We can finish before they get back!"
Aisha grabbed two smaller boxes.
"That's the spirit."
Mei Lin watched them.
Neither of them stopped for long.
Whenever Astrid came up in conversation, one of them quickly found something else to talk about.
"Do you think this is enough water?" Aisha asked.
"Probably," Priya said.
A pause.
"She'll be fine. Right?"
"Yeah."
Aisha picked up another box.
"Of course she will."
Dimitri carried another box upstairs.
He hadn't mentioned Astrid once.
"Dimitri," Priya called, "you know you can take a break."
"Why?"
"Because you've been doing this for half an hour."
"We have supplies to organize."
"That wasn't my question."
Dimitri looked at her and picked up another box.
"We should finish."
Priya sighed.
"Of course."
Mei Lin watched him disappear upstairs.
Whatever he was thinking, he gave nothing away.
Aisha glanced toward the entrance.
"Think they're.on their way back?"
"They'll come when they come," Priya said.
"Right."
She picked up another box.
"Let's keep going."
Mei Lin looked toward the entrance too.
So did Priya.
Then Dimitri.
Only for a moment.
---
Mei Lin stopped halfway up the stairs.
"Wait."
Priya nearly walked into her.
"What?"
Mei Lin looked toward the fourth floor.
"We're doing this wrong."
Dimitri raised an eyebrow.
"How?"
"We're putting everything on the fourth floor."
Aisha looked at the growing pile.
"That's where we're staying."
"We don't have to."
Mei Lin shifted the box in her arms.
"We're the only people left in Favilla Hall."
Priya frowned.
"So?"
"We have an entire dormitory."
Aisha's expression changed.
Mei Lin pointed toward the stairs.
"Store everything on the third floor. Four of us can stay upstairs. Four can use the second floor."
Priya immediately shook her head.
"We're splitting up?"
"Not really."
"It sounds pretty split."
Aisha shrugged.
"She has a point."
Priya folded her arms.
"What happens if someone needs help?"
"We're one floor apart," Aisha said.
"That's not the same."
Her voice softened.
"After today, shouldn't we stay together?"
Mei Lin looked at her.
"If something happens, we have radios."
Priya stared at Dimitri.
"That's not the point."
Aisha smiled.
"You really want everyone within shouting distance, huh?"
"Yes."
Priya didn't hesitate.
"Very much."
Mei Lin looked down the empty hallway.
"We can still eat together. Work together. Meet on the third floor."
She looked back at Priya.
"We don't have to sleep in the same place to stay together."
Priya was quiet. She looked at the boxes and at the empty dormitory.
Finally, she sighed.
"Fine."
Aisha grinned.
"That's a yes."
"It's a reluctant yes."
Dimitri picked up another box.
"Then we should start."
Priya groaned.
"You could at least pretend that was difficult."
"I don't see why."
---
By the time they finished, the third-floor lobby had become their storage room.
Food was stacked together.
Water had its own section.
Medical supplies were separated from everything else.
The four of them finally sat down.
Dimitri looked at the elevator display.
"Someone called it."
The number changed.
G.
He stood.
"Probably them."
Instead of going down, they headed for the fourth floor.
The elevator doors opened.
Chase stepped out first.
Astrid leaned heavily against him.
"Astrid!"
"What happened?"
"Are you okay?"
"How serious was it?"
Chase raised a hand.
"She'll be fine."
He explained what the doctor had told them.
A close call.
A nicked organ.
Two weeks of rest.
Everyone relaxed.
Corvin and Marco reached the fourth floor a moment later.
Corvin immediately noticed the empty lobby.
"Where are the supplies?"
"Third floor," Mei Lin said.
She explained.
Corvin looked toward the stairs.
"Fine."
Marco smiled.
"Good idea."
Priya looked at him.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
He glanced around the empty floor.
"If eight people spend months packed into one small area, they're going to start getting on each other's nerves."
He looked at Mei Lin.
"More space. Fewer problems."
Mei Lin nodded.
Astrid leaned against Chase.
"Can someone explain why I'm standing in a hallway while everyone's discussing architecture?"
Chase immediately helped her toward her room.
"Sorry."
He carefully lowered her onto the bed.
Everyone followed.
Chase looked around.
"Someone needs to stay here."
Priya's mouth curved into a mischievous smile.
"Seems you're the perfect fit."
Chase and Astrid both blushed.
Chase quickly straightened.
"She was stabbed in the stomach."
The blush disappeared from his face.
"Someone needs to watch her and change her bandages."
Mei Lin nodded.
"I'll help whenever a girl is needed."
"Thanks."
Corvin looked around.
"Then where is everyone staying?"
"She's not moving," Chase said.
Mei Lin nodded.
"By proxy, neither are you."
Chase sighed.
"Yeah."
Aisha raised her hand.
"I'll take the second floor."
"Same," Marco said.
Dimitri nodded.
"Me too."
Priya thought for a moment.
"I'll do it if it's room 208."
Aisha laughed.
"Of course."
Mei Lin looked at Corvin.
"I'll stay upstairs."
"Me too," Chase said.
Corvin simply shrugged.
Astrid frowned.
"So I'm staying upstairs?"
Chase gave her a look.
"You're not going anywhere."
Astrid sank back into the pillow.
"Fair enough."
---
Aisha, Marco, Dimitri, and Priya began moving their things downstairs.
Corvin and Mei Lin helped.
Aisha carried two bags.
"Finally. A room to myself."
"You already had one," Marco said.
"I know. Now it feels official."
Priya carried a box against her hip.
"Don't drop my stuff."
Dimitri looked at her.
"You're carrying your own things."
"I'm supervising."
"That isn't the same thing."
Corvin passed them with another box.
"Argue after we're done."
They reached the second floor.
Aisha claimed her room.
Marco and Dimitri took theirs.
Priya disappeared down the hall.
A moment later, she returned with a satisfied smile.
"Room 208."
Mei Lin placed the last box down.
"That's everything."
Corvin looked down the empty hallway.
"Good."
---
Later, Aisha stepped into the hallway and wandered toward one of the spare rooms.
She stopped.
Marco sat beside the window.
His pistol rested in his hand staring at it.
"You okay?"
Marco looked over.
"Yeah."
He turned the pistol slightly.
"Just thinking."
A moment passed.
Then he smiled faintly.
"You know what's weird?"
"What?"
"None of you are scared of me."
Aisha raised an eyebrow.
"I just shot a human being without flinching."
She shrugged.
"Because you don't seem like a bad guy."
Marco stared at her.
Then laughed.
"If my old friends heard you say that, they'd have a heart attack."
"Why?"
"They had a different opinion of me."
His smile faded.
For a moment, something old passed behind his eyes.
Faces.
Old voices.
People he'd left behind.
Then it was gone.
Marco looked back at Aisha.
"Anyway…"
A small smile returned.
"I'm still me."
Aisha nodded.
"Yeah. You are."
---
Corvin sat alone at the desk.
His notebook was open.
Six months of supplies wasn't going to be enough especially if the Ash Winter persisted.
He wrote.
Water.
Food.
Heating.
Electricity.
Medical supplies.
Repairs.
He stopped.
The list continued in his head.
They couldn't simply consume what the university had given them.
Eventually, it would run out.
He closed the notebook.
Outside, the sun was setting.
For a few minutes, the horizon glowed orange and gold, the last sunlight spilling across the darkening campus.
Then the Ash Cloud reached it.
The orange faded. The sun became a dull red disc then a faint glow eventually nothing.
The horizon disappeared piece by piece beneath the ash.
The sunset was still there the Ash Cloud simply swallowed it.
Corvin watched until the last light vanished.
He closed the curtains.
Tomorrow, there would be more work.