Chapter 74: Arrival at the Heart of the Ecumenopolis, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bureaucracy
The connection cut sharply, leaving an echo of cold static as Hailey's father blinked at the empty air, his mind sputtering in confusion. "Could you repeat that, my sweet? I swear my hearing's finally gone."
Hailey, less than amused by the exchange and impatient to exit her father's presence, repeated herself in a tone so flat it could have frozen magma. "I want you to get me a job in the College of Psionics on Ecumenopolis 7 after my rotation here is done."
This time, her father heard her clearly. The old man's confusion deepened, his brow furrowing as though he had just been hit with a gravitational anomaly. "Are you sure, sweetie? When you graduated at fifteen, you told me you'd never go back to 'that hellhole of a school.' What's changed?"