The heavy, reinforced glass doors of the Grand Cafeteria slid shut behind them with a soft, pneumatic hiss.
The sharp contrast of the afternoon sun hit Jack immediately. He squinted behind his glasses, raising a hand to shield his eyes as they adjusted to the bright, shadowless light reflecting off the wide, open grounds. The air outside felt entirely different from the food-heavy atmosphere of the dining hall. It was crisp, carrying the faint, earthy scent of damp soil and the sharp, clean aroma of eucalyptus from the perfectly manicured trees lining the wide, white-paved walkways.
Jack let out a long, slow breath, his shoulders dropping a fraction of an inch. The chaotic energy of the lunch table had been exhilarating, but it was also completely overwhelming for a boy who had spent the last few days thinking his life was over.
Liam walked beside him, his hands stuffed casually into the pockets of his green trousers. He glanced sideways at the younger boy, a faint, knowing smile touching his lips.
"You look like you just survived a war zone in there," Liam noted, his voice calm and steady. "I know they can be a bit intense when they get going, especially when food is involved."
Jack nodded, falling into step beside Liam and adjusting the strap of his bag. "They argue a lot more than I expected. For a second there, I genuinely thought Senior Riya was going to throw her Bhature straight at Senior Isabella's mouth just to prove her point about spices."
Liam chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "That's just their way of communicating. When you are locked away from the rest of the world for years, you tend to hold onto whatever pieces of your home you have left. For them, it's the food. But make no mistake—they'd jump in front of a moving train for each other."
Liam paused. He tilted his face upward, staring into the vast blue sky for a long moment with narrowed eyes, as if he were trying to calculate the exact mathematical probability of that claim actually being true.
"At least," he continued, finally bringing his gaze back down to Jack with a dry, knowing smirk, "that's what they tell me. Though, after watching them nearly start a third world war over whose culture has the superior cuisine… I'm starting to have my doubts."
Jack chuckled softly.
Liam stopped near the edge of the main pathway, his eyes scanning the paved routes that branched out in every direction like the veins of a massive leaf. He turned to Jack, tilting his head slightly.
"By the way, I meant to ask you earlier," Liam said, his brow furrowing in mild curiosity. "How exactly did you get to the cafeteria from the dormitories this morning?"
Jack blinked, adjusting the strap of his messenger bag higher on his shoulder. 'I walked the entire way. I just followed the road signs until I finally found this place. It took me nearly forty-five minutes to get here."
Liam froze. He stared at the younger boy for a solid three seconds in pure disbelief. He pulled his right hand out of his pocket and rubbed the back of his neck, looking at Jack as if the boy had just grown a second head.
"You walked the entire way?" Liam asked, his voice flat with shock. "Jack, the dormitories are nearly three kilometers away from the Grand Cafeteria. This campus spans a massive amount of land. If you plan on walking everywhere, you are literally going to spend half of your time here just staring at the pavement."
Jack's face went crimson as he stared down at his shoes, his fingers nervously twisting the fabric of his bag strap. "I—I didn't know," he stammered, his voice barely a whisper. "Nobody mentioned any other way, and I didn't want to… you know, get in trouble or anything. Not on my first day."
"Well, that is fair enough," Liam sighed, the shock fading into a reassuring smile. He gestured with his chin toward a long, metallic awning heavily shaded by the eucalyptus trees. "Come on, follow me. Let me introduce you to something that will save your legs for the next few years."
Jack followed Liam under the awning. Lined up in perfect, seamless rows were dozens of sleek, matte-black machines. They looked like bicycles, but they lacked any visible chains, gears, or spokes. The frames were cast from a single, continuous piece of dark metal, resting heavily on thick, completely treadless rubber tires.
"These are called Aero-Cycles," Liam explained, stepping up to the nearest one and running his fingers lightly over the smooth, cold handlebars. "Walking is perfectly fine if you are just moving between adjacent buildings. But for getting to your daily classes, heading to the recreation zones on the weekends, or traveling to the training sectors, every single student uses one of these."
Jack stepped closer, leaning down slightly to study the futuristic design of the machine. "They don't even have pedals. How do you actually move them forward without pushing?"
"They are fully electric, and completely silent when they run," Liam said, turning to face Jack. His eyes dropped deliberately to the younger boy's hands. "But before we get into the specs… did the medical wing finish your physical intake yesterday? I mean, did they do the final procedure after the blood tests—the one involving your hand?"
Jack rubbed the back of his neck, shifting his weight. "Yeah, they finished everything. Ran a bunch of scans, took some blood samples, and then the nurse did some quick thing to my hand before letting me go. Why do you ask? Is there a problem?"
"Hold out your right hand for a second," Liam instructed, stepping slightly closer.
Jack raised his right hand, palm facing the ground. Liam reached over, lightly pressing his thumb into the fleshy webbing between Jack's thumb and index finger.
Jack flinched slightly, pulling his hand back a fraction. "Ow. Yeah, there's a small bump right there. It feels like a solid grain of rice stuck just under my skin. The nurse who did the procedure told me it was a standard health monitor to track my vitals and provide basic access, like unlocking my dorm door so I wouldn't have to carry a key. She said the orientation team would explain the rest on Monday."
"Well, she wasn't lying. It does monitor your vitals, but it is primarily a biometric tracker," Liam corrected gently, dropping his hand. "Every student gets one embedded upon arrival. Think of it as your entire identity here. It acts as your official ID, the key to your dorm room, and the ignition system for these cycles. Go ahead and put your hand over the right handlebar. Don't grab the metal yet, just hover your palm directly over the grip."
Jack stepped up to the cycle next to Liam's. He extended his right hand, hovering it an inch above the dark metal grip.
Instantly, a faint, circular blue light pulsed beneath the surface of the handlebar. A soft, melodic electronic chime rang out from the frame.
Before Jack's eyes, the heavy machine shifted. It lifted itself perfectly upright, the kickstand retracting automatically with a smooth click. But what truly shocked Jack was the tires. They weren't touching the ground anymore. The entire cycle was hovering a few millimeters above the paved white stone, suspended in a state of flawless, weightless balance.
Jack's jaw dropped, his eyes locked on the gap between the rubber and the stone. "It's actually floating. It isn't even touching the ground anymore."
"It runs on magnetic levitation," Liam said casually, swinging his own leg over the seat of his cycle. His machine chimed softly and lifted the moment his skin brushed the dark grip. "All the paved pathways around the entire academy are embedded with a subsurface magnetic rail system. The cycles lock directly onto that grid. When you move, you are literally gliding over the ground. There is zero friction, and absolutely zero noise."
Jack cautiously grabbed the handlebars and swung his leg over the seat. The cycle didn't wobble or dip under his weight; it remained perfectly stable.
"The right grip acts as your throttle. If you need to stop, you just squeeze the left grip for the brake," Liam instructed, his tone shifting smoothly into a patient, guiding rhythm. "They can max out at sixty kilometers an hour if you are ever in a massive hurry or running late for a final exam. But since this is your first time, we will just cruise at a comfortable twenty-five today. And don't worry about tipping over. The internal sensors will keep you perfectly balanced no matter what. You could literally ride this while having a mid-life crisis or a nap, and it still wouldn't tip over. Unless you decide to professionally throw yourself off, you're stuck being upright."
Liam leaned his forearms heavily against the handlebars, his dark eyes locking onto Jack's face to ensure the younger boy was paying absolute attention.
"But you need to remember this, Jack," Liam warned, his voice turning incredibly serious, stripping away any trace of the friendly senior student. "You only ever ride these machines on the designated paved paths. And more importantly, you never, under any circumstances, trigger your power while you are out here on the surface. The entire surface level of this academy is a strict no-power zone, without exceptions."
Jack swallowed hard, tightening his grip on the cold metal of the floating cycle. "Senior Nico also mentioned that while we were eating lunch."
"Nico likes to make jokes about everything, but that specific rule is absolute," Liam nodded, his stern expression softening just a fraction as he looked around at the peaceful trees. "And honestly, it is the best rule this academy enforces. We have hundreds of teenagers walking around here who possess the ability to level entire city blocks. If people were allowed to practice or show off outside, this beautiful campus would turn into a war zone overnight. By keeping the surface strictly power-free, the academy guarantees that when you are walking under these trees, or just trying to eat your lunch in the cafeteria, you are completely safe. It makes this place a sanctuary for all of us."
"I understand completely," Jack said, his voice firm and steady despite his lingering nervousness. "You don't have to worry about me. I definitely won't use it."
"That is exactly what I wanted to hear," Liam said, offering a warm, reassuring smile. He adjusted his posture and twisted his right wrist firmly.
With a soft, rushing sound like wind pushing swiftly through a narrow tunnel, Liam's cycle shot forward, gliding effortlessly over the pristine white pavement. Jack took a deep, steadying breath, twisted his own throttle carefully, and followed the older boy into the sprawling campus.