Blood Moon Deadline

The night I found out, I almost fixed it.

Almost.

My assignment had been changed to Everglades Academy. Two thousand miles south. Swamp territory. Three omegas died there last year.

I'd asked Kael to file my school preference. Silver Peak Academy. Together. The way we'd planned since we were twelve, lying in the snow making promises to the stars.Now the screen said Everglades.

I called him immediately.

He picked up on the second ring, relaxed as always. "Hey."

"My assignment," I said. "It says Everglades."

"Oh." Not guilt. Recalibration. "Lil came by while I was filing yours. She wanted to play a prank—switched it to Everglades for a laugh." He laughed. Light. Careless. "Deadline's tomorrow night. Just override it yourself. It takes thirty seconds."

"If I hadn't checked—"

"But you did check." That patience. "Fen. You always check everything. That's why she knew you'd catch it. It was just a joke."

Just a joke.

So my future was a punchline. My life, someone else's entertainment.

I said nothing. I packed my gear. I left for the transport hub on departure day.

Kael found me at the platform. His smile was gone.

"I told you to override it. You didn't change it back?"

"No."

The night I found out, I almost fixed it.

Almost.

My assignment had been changed to Everglades Academy. Two thousand miles south. Swamp territory. Three omegas died there last year.

I'd asked Kael to file my school preference. Silver Peak Academy. Together. The way we'd planned since we were twelve, lying in the snow making promises to the stars.Now the screen said Everglades.

I called him immediately.

He picked up on the second ring, relaxed as always. "Hey."

"My assignment," I said. "It says Everglades."

"Oh." Not guilt. Recalibration. "Lil came by while I was filing yours. She wanted to play a prank—switched it to Everglades for a laugh." He laughed. Light. Careless. "Deadline's tomorrow night. Just override it yourself. It takes thirty seconds."

"If I hadn't checked—"

"But you did check." That patience. "Fen. You always check everything. That's why she knew you'd catch it. It was just a joke."

Just a joke.

So my future was a punchline. My life, someone else's entertainment.

I said nothing. I packed my gear. I left for the transport hub on departure day.

Kael found me at the platform. His smile was gone.

"I told you to override it. You didn't change it back?"

"No."

---

I looked at the Everglades entry. The mortality rate embedded in the fine print. Three names I'd memorized without meaning to.

"She tampered with my future," I said. "That's not a joke. That's a crime. I could report her to the Academy Board."

The patience evaporated.

"Are you serious right now?" His voice dropped. Not cold. Worse—disappointed. The tone that had always made my chest cave in. "Fen. She's been here six months. She doesn't know anyone. I'm her only friend and you want to report her?"

"She changed my assignment—"

"Which you