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CHAPTER 255
~Valerie's POV~
The hours passed in a blur of roads and fading city lines. I must've dozed off somewhere along the way, because by the time I opened my eyes again, the sun had dipped halfway across the sky.
The air changed, and the engine slowed. The bus finally pulled to a stop.
Outside the windows, the skyline was different from what I was used to in Starcity, new, expansive.
Mountains in the distance, tall pine trees dotting the road, and a warm, golden glow falling across the pavement as we rolled into a cleaner, quieter place.
"Welcome," a voice called from the front.
It was Professor Winnie, our Biology teacher.
She stood at the centre of the gathering crowd after we'd all disembarked, clipboard in hand and a breezy energy that didn't match how much her heels were sinking into the earth.