A bright smile flashed across André’s round face. He sat up, fixed his eyes upon the basketball net in far corner of the room, and launched his stress ball towards it. In the six years he had been at the University, André had never managed to sink anything into the obnoxious net. Today was his last chance. The ball soared through the air as a voice blared over the tannoys.
“Docking protocol activated, Artificial gravity will terminate.”
André gripped the frame of his bed as the speaker made its announcement. The ball thudded lazily into the ceiling. André rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“The one time I was actually on target.” He chuckled to himself. Pushing off from the bed he let himself float lazily over to the sink. If they were coming into land, he should probably make himself look presentable. He was about to be offered his dream job after all.
Flames rippled past the window as he angled himself in front of the mirror. The sight from the viewing deck would be incredible. Every inch of the floor was transparent, and the view entering Prometheon was something many people would die to see. It was a sign of privilege. It was said all those who witnessed the inferno as the station entered a planet’s atmosphere were destined for greatness. Foolish superstition. Destiny had nothing to do with it. You get from life what you put into it, and there were many amongst André’s classmates who lacked the drive for anything more than average. Money only gets you so far if you’ve got nothing to back it up with.
He looked up at his own reflection. The man who stared back was almost unrecognisable from the weak, flabby boy that had boarded the Platides back on Earth. Physical fitness was a key part of each of the courses here, and even though his track wasn’t combat focused, he still had to hold his own on a battlefield. That had been the hardest thing. He had to push himself to his limits, and break through them multiple times just to stand up to the weakest of the other students. He had worked religiously both inside of classes and on his own time. Still, it had barely been enough. Pulling off the tank top he slept in, André examined his body. He was a weed in a ship filled with adonises. More than half of them could flatten him with a single punch if they felt like it. But he could hold his own against the average soldier, and thankfully, that was enough.
Graduation was one of the few events that required students to wear the school’s formal uniform. A blue shirt, black tie, bright white trousers and jacket. It was all very military in style. Even down to the cap, which, much to the disgust of many non-Eurasian citizens, was emblazoned with the insignia of a Starfleet officer. The same emblem appeared on the jacket, alongside the crest of the university. The head of its founder; Nestor Platides at the centre of the Milky Way galaxy. This image, which André had always thought presumptuous, was surrounded by the University’s motto. Ὁ μέλλων ἐν τοῖς ἀστέρεσιν, ‘The one who will be among the stars.’ A smirk escaped him as he realised, he was born deeper into those very stars than Nestor got his entire life.
Still smiling to himself, he straightened his tie and dragged a comb through his ginger hair. The father of the Hermes drive did deserve some credit though. Without him humanity would still be stuck on a dying rock, if they existed at all.
“Attention! We are about to make port in Deucalion, will all graduates please report to their designated docking bay.” André opened a small compartment at the side of the sink. He watched a pair of rimless glasses float out of it. No matter how hard his instructors had pushed him towards laser correction, Andrè wouldn’t feel complete without them. He gave a quick smile before he caught them and slipped them onto his face. One last glance in the mirror before leaving told him everything was in the right place. There was a rumour that the white clothes were a final test. That any student whose uniform wasn’t pristine wouldn’t be allowed to graduate. Andrè had no doubt that this was an unfound fallacy, but still it couldn’t hurt to be too careful, could it?