Keneric felt amazing now that exams had ended. It was Sunday too. Still, a part of him longed to return home to his family after such a long semester. Too bad Easter break was still a month away.
So, instead of wasting time roaming around Melbourne University, Keneric and a few friends decided to play two-versus-two volleyball matches right after breakfast.
And so it began…
"Mine!" Keneric yelled, diving for a receive.
The ball, however, bounced off his forearm at an unnatural angle before flying outside. Miko, his teammate, wasn't ready to accept this outcome. She instantly chased the ball and caught up to it just in time, returning it to the court.
Keneric wasn't sitting idly either. He jumped back into position and, when the moment was right, soared high and with a sharp slap, scored their first point.
"I thought this was a casual game," Taha grumbled from the other side.
"Hey," Keneric smiled like a shark. "If I'm playing, I might as well win, right?"
A comment that made Taha even more frustrated.
In the background, the two girls—Isse and Miko—just shook their heads. They knew Keneric and Taha were best friends off court and rivals on it. They had seen this exact scene unfold again and again over the past three years of college life. Plus, jumping into the conversation now was like shooting yourself in the foot. So they let Taha do the talking, which was shouting at this point.
The volleyball game resumed shortly, and both teams started scoring left and right. Even Keneric had to stop bullying Taha after Isse began playing seriously. Soon, the match became more about tactics than pure dominance.
By afternoon, they had played five full sets—twenty-five points each. Keneric and Miko won, using their lead from the earlier rounds.
"I'm so done," Isse said, collapsing to the ground. She was spent and became part of the scenery rather than the conversation.
"So next Sunday? Ken? Miko?" Taha asked, a towel slung over his shoulder.
"Sure," said Keneric, while Miko only nodded in response.
The three went on to return the volleyballs to the equipment room.
Just as they were about to leave, Keneric announced, "You guys go ahead. I'll help myself to the showers here."
"But you hate public showers," Miko turned around with raised eyebrows. "What happened to the one in your room?"
"Let's just say someone decided to try lightsaber battles with the showerhead in their drunken wisdom."
At this, Taha started sweating profusely.
"Guys, I just remembered—I've got classes later this afternoon," he said before disappearing out of the gymnasium.
"Today is Sunday, you walnut!" Miko screamed after him, but Taha was already gone.
Not satisfied, she grabbed Isse—who was still one with the floor—and chased after him, maybe to uncover the full lightsaber story. Who knows?
Keneric laughed watching them disappear, then made his way toward the locker rooms. He entered a shower pod tucked into a corner.
Soon, steam rose in lazy spirals as Keneric got over his disgust for public showers and enjoyed the warm water drumming against his skin.
Outside, though, it wasn't so calm.
His phone, sitting on a bench, buzzed continuously. Row after row of messages and missed calls lit up the screen, easily drowned out by the sound of running water. The last message read:
[Earthquake Alert: Heavy tremors expected. Find shelter quickly.]
But by the time Keneric stepped out of the shower, the screen had gone completely dark—like whatever happened in the last ten minutes was a dream.
Suspecting nothing, Keneric got dressed.
But before he could walk out of the locker room, the earthquake hit.
It started mild, like the low rumbling of distant trucks on a quiet road. But within seconds, the tremors intensified, and the entire gymnasium shuddered under its weight.
Keneric ran toward the exit but didn't make it out. Instead, he ducked under the arch of the doorway.
To his left, glass shattered and rained down onto the gymnasium floor. To his right, inside the locker room, the lockers broke apart and slammed against the ground.
Outside was even worse.
Most of the trees had been yanked out of the earth and now lay flat. Soon, cracks spread across the ground, and from them sprayed bubbling green water—like sprinklers in farmland gone mad.
And it didn't stop there.
Whatever the water touched, it changed.
The soil absorbed it instantly and became soft and aerated. The grass turned into long, spiky straws. When the water vapours touched the sky, it stained the virgin blue into a muddy green. Even the sun looked hazy—its light now tinted with a pinkish, magenta hue.
But the biggest change was the terrain.
The once-pristine campus grounds transformed into an overlapping wetland, filled with green puddles, yellowish patches, and barren land that snuggled to the rising wind.
The earthquake lasted for twenty minutes.
Somehow, the gymnasium didn't collapse. But it felt colder, darker, and more eerie without electricity.
The world Keneric once knew was gone.
Because this was the day the world became a swamp.