Elara’s POV

I didn’t miss the system the way people expect you to miss a place.

There was no ache for the corridors, no phantom vibration of badge scanners in my hand, no muscle memory pulling me toward dashboards I no longer had access to. What lingered instead was quieter and harder to name—a sensation like standing up too fast after sitting for years, the body briefly unsure how to balance without something solid to lean against.

I had been a fixed point for so long.

Not a leader. Not a figu