The ferry cut through the blue-green waters and left a frothy wake behind as New Vein Academy's atoll shrank in the distance. I leaned against the railing while enjoying the salt spray on my face and the brief reprieve from Braxton's torture sessions that he insisted on calling training.
A stiff breeze carried the scent of brine and something that almost felt like freedom, and I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen my classmates looking so damn alive.
The light danced across the water's surface in a hypnotic pattern that almost made me forget the constant weight of the System's expectations pressing down on my shoulders. The ferry itself wasn't particularly impressive with its chipped paint and seats that had seen better decades, but today it felt like a luxury cruise ship simply because it was taking us away from that hellish island for a few precious hours.
