Dueling life in a futuristic world

 Welp, it appears I was even more behind on the schedule than I thought. Not only am I returning to earth today, but I will also not even have any time to adapt before I’m at the NWDA again, in the thick of it… I didn’t know how to feel about that.

 The director gave the reasoning for this decision in a briefing — Which he somehow forgot to repeat when I was speaking with him — It boiled down to operational security. There’s a war going on, and duelists are particularly valuable, and so it makes more sense to land a shuttle out in an island in the middle of the ocean and have it out of commission while it’s transported it back by boat, rather than have it land in a still operating public spaceport where assassin’s/saboteurs could be waiting.

 Now don’t get me wrong, I was glad to know I would have something other than titanium-ceramic alloy under my feet — thank Naeko for that distinction. With that said, I left the academy with a lot of unfinished business, and something told me the first few days back would be a rollercoaster for me as I tried to get everything in order.

 I would have appreciated some time to prepare myself mentally, and that’s when the 5-hour plane ride would have come in. Yes, I know I complained about the plane ride before, and I meant everything I said there, but that didn’t mean I preferred being thrown in with no preparation.

 Still, the fact remains, I have just short of four hours before touchdown and that’s all the prep time I’m going to get.

 It’s 13:10 and I am at the ship’s cafeteria having lunch with the girls. They were waiting for me to get back so we could go have lunch, and while my conversation with Haruna and Yasuna took some time, it wasn’t long before we were walking here in a group, with them unfortunately having to shield me in the middle to avoid bothersome interactions.

 “I guess there are worse people to act as bodyguards…” I sulk as I look down at the artificial Marconi on my plate.

 Haruna looks over and asks, “Did you say something?”

 I shake my head, urging, “Nothing, now what were you saying about that afterparty?”

 After getting caught off-guard, I asked Haruna if she could summarize everything she’d heard would happen with our return. We are in the middle of that.

 Haruna’s lips form a frown, but she shakes it away and looks on with an inquisitive smile, “Well, after all’s set and done and the duel between Aya and Anna is finished, the NWDA will have an afterparty to celebrate our status as the number one academy in the tournament. If we also get the number one duelist depends on Aya’s performance, but that first title is guaranteed.”

 “Erg, and when will take place?”

 “A month. It’s going down at the same venue that Aya will have her remote duel against Anna. We’ll have to be ready for that.” Haruna says as a matter of fact.

 I groan at that. “Great… And that’s everything, right? No more events?”

 Nanako looks at me and asks with narrowed eyes. “Why do you sound so depressed? Aren’t you excited for that!? Everyone at the academy will watch that event and we will be cheering for Aya on our home turf! We’ll be the stars of the show!”

 Before I’m able to give an excuse, Naeko pitches in. “Nana, stop that. She’s feeling overwhelmed. Can’t you see?”

 The dark-skinned cheerleader questions her. “And how do you know?”

 I look on with Nanako at Neko, also curious.

 She sighs and reveals. “She’s making the same face I made when my calculus 2 final landed on the same day as the advanced duel theory one AND the presentation of one of my projects.” The genius girl visibly winces. “That’s an experience I don’t want to repeat ever again…”

 Looking on with curious eyes, I ask, “How did you even handle that?” I had my bad experiences in college, but that just sounds like a particularly evil type of hell.

 Naeko shrugs, leaning away from the table. “Well, I whined about it to just about everyone that would listen, cried a few times, then worked my ass off and managed it somehow.”

 ‘Yup, that sound about right.’

 Still, I frown, shaking my head at that. “Nah, that would be weird. I don’t want to dump my worries on you guys just to feel better.”

 “Then how about we all talk about our plans?!” Mia suggests excitingly, “That way, you wouldn’t have to do it alone.”

 The girls look around at each other before their eyes eventually land on me.

 Feeling the pressure, I accept with a light sigh. “Erm… Sure, if you insist… But you go first.”

 She just smiles, tilting her head, “Great!” Taking a deep breath in, she starts. “Well, as soon as we land, I’m running over to the cheer team gym to sign up!”

 This results in laughter from all three cheerleaders, especially Nanako. “Hahaha! Wow, I should’ve guessed you’d be eager; You know that the recruitment period only starts in January, right?”

 The cheerful girl’s face drops right away, and she gapes. “What? But that’s two months away!”

 Chuckling, Haruna calls. “Oh, don’t be like that, Nana. Just look at her, that smile practically screams cheerleader, let’s not let technicalities like that crush her dreams.” She looks over at Mia and says, “We made an exception for Yuumi, we can make another.”

 Naeko furrows her brow at Haruna in response, but she doesn’t speak up. I’m guessing that recruiting a member out of the recruiting period is more complex than Haruna is making it out to be.

 Still, with Mia’s excitement radiating all around the table, the cheer team members seem content, and so I give my own comment. “I can’t say I was expecting you to join, Mia, but it will be nice to have another newbie around before the floodgates open.”

 “Newbie?” Nanako says in a quizzing tone. “Bitch, you not only created a brand-new category of cheer techniques, but you’ve also been in more tournament performances than all the other members, excluding us. You can’t call yourself a newbie anymore.”

 I blush, trying to ignore Nana, and say to Mia with a stutter, “A-Anyway, I look forward to seeing you at practice, Mia.”

 She smiles brightly, “Thanks! I’ll be in your care Yuumi.”

 As Mia finishes, our eyes hover to the groggy girl sitting next to her, who’s vigorously munching away on a large burger.

 “What about you Aiko? Want to join with your sister?” Haruna teases.

 She chokes on a bite, but coughs it out just in time to deny, “N-No, I don’t think that’s for me, thanks.” After calming down with a deep breath, she reveals. “If the tournament taught me anything, is that if I want to compete with Mia, then I’ll have to study a lot harder. I’m going to the books. Maybe I can make time for some extracurriculars when I rank up to blue.”

 “That’s the spirit!” The green-haired girl with tanned skin next to Aiko exclaims, “And when you get there, you can be sure I’ll give you a warm welcome!”

 Aiko turns to Yasuna with a defiant smile. “Really? And who says I won’t get there first? Don’t forget about our rematch.”

 Yasuna narrows her eyes and I swear I can see sparks flying between the two. “Are you challenging me?”

 The blue-haired girl’s smile turns smug. “And what if I am?”

 “Then I hope you came ready to lose, because I’m on, and I play to win.”

 Aiko just keeps on smiling. “We’ll see about that.”

 …

 “What just happened?” Neako asks the pertinent question in a muted tone.

 “That, my dear Neko, is what happens when two VERY good friends decide they need some drama in their life. I’d recommend steering clear.” Nanako offers.

 I quirk an eyebrow at her. “Are you suggesting there’s something more there? I feel like that’s a reach.”

 “No, no, not that! I meant as in rivals!” she hastes to dismiss. “God, get your head out of the gutter Yuumi…” and yet, she narrows her eyes, mumbling, “Unless…”

 Before she can go further into the shipping rabbit hole, Aiko seems to perk up, “Right… I also have that check up at the academy clinic to look forward to…”

 Quirking an eyebrow, I ask, “What’s going on? You’re sick?”

 Her face suddenly shifts, and her mouth opens slightly as she stammers, “Ah! N-No, forget I said anything!”

 I look at her with suspicion, while the girls around the table look on, disappointedly.

 “Sis, you should tell her.” Mia urges, placing a hand on her shoulder.

 Yasuna adds, “Yeah, we all know already. It’s unfair to only keep her in the dark.”

 While I look with curious eyes, Aiko sighs and looks down. “Alright, it’s only fair.” With a shake of her head, she looks back up and eyes me. “There’s something important I haven’t been completely clear about…”

—

 NGAoE or “Non-genetically augmented or enhanced.” It’s a term I haven’t even heard of before, but with what Aiko just told me, not knowing about such a thing might as well mean I can’t consider myself her a friend.

 The fact that everyone was supposed to have been genetically modified as a newborn was something even my sheltered self knew about. It left the people of this world immune to many diseases and practically all genetic maladies. Nanobots took care of the external threats, while genetic modification fixed internal ones; that’s how healthcare worked here.

 But — And I can squarely blame my upbringing for my ignorance — I did not know that newborn genetic modification was actually a costly procedure, and that the city expected parents to shoulder that cost… It’s… incredibly cruel.

 Back to Aiko, let’s just say her parents weren’t prepared for twins… And when Aiko and Mia were born, they had a choice to make, one which I can’t envy…

 Aiko’s constant exposure to the elevated radiation levels present in interstellar space, which are completely harmless to genetically modified folks like me, caused her to take a dose so high that even Rad-Away — a nanobot-based medicine made to revert cell damage from radiation exposure — couldn’t revert the damage completely. As a result, she needs some specialized care that the clinic aboard the UP Colossus was not equipped to deliver.

 After she finishes telling all of this, I can muster but a single question. “S-So, you’re saying that all this time we were up there, partying and having fun, you were silently suffering?”

 Aiko winces. “I-I-Sort off? It’s not like I didn’t have fun there as well. I just needed some medicine to compensate.” She looks off to the side and murmurs, “Besides, I didn’t want to have you all worrying about me all the time when there was nothing any of you could do.”

 I look off to the side with the palm of my left hand over my mouth. Of course, I want to chastize her about hiding something so important, but doing so would just prove she was right about hiding it — I can’t say I wouldn’t have been worrying about her the whole time if she said anything.

 “Alright… I guess it was your choice to make.” I say after a bout of silence. “Still, how the hell did you hide that from us—” The image of the pain-management symbol on the back of her academy badge flashes in my mind and I ask with a sigh. “Are you kidding me?”

 A cheeky smirk draws across the girl’s face. “Teehe! Surprised? Can’t help but marvel at the result of my training?”

 “Well… Yeah.” I say as matter-of-factly. “But I can’t say I’m happy seeing you use your academy training to hide that you’re in pain…”

 An overbearing silence draws upon the table before Aiko speaks up. “I get it… I promise I won’t do it again.”

 I nod. “Good, I wouldn’t want us to have such big secrets between us.” I say with otherworldly memories and a demon sealed up in my soul.

 With that said, Yasuna suddenly turns to me. “Great! now that that’s settled, it’s time for you to make good on your promise! Tell us what’s worrying you.”

 I arch an eyebrow at the sudden off-topic question, but with a look around the table, I can see the reason. Awkward expressions are shared by almost all the girls, and when I look at Aiko again, I can see her looking on expectingly. So, since nobody seems to want to talk about her anymore, I go along with Yasuna’s suggestion.

 After repeating what was going through my head, the rest of lunch went on with inconsequential conversation, and, as we wrapped up lunch, me and the members of the cheer team gave Yasuna and the twins a temporary goodbye before we went to our respective rooms. We all had packing to do and some other final preparations for our return trip.

—

 It’s time… Well, it’s 3:50PM, but the departures deck on the UP Colossus couldn’t be any busier.

 Many of the return shuttles are being boarded by eager passengers as we speak. Loud clunks mark minutes, shuttles undocking and beginning their relatively short journey between the UP Colossus and spaceports all over the Lothian Union, some even charted to the Dragoon City spaceport.

 To the shuttles that undock, a long multi-hour journey of 400 thousand kilometers in the harsh conditions of space awaits, followed by an even fiercer reentry into earth’s atmosphere. But for the passengers whose shuttles are still firmly attached to the ship’s hull, getting to be boarded, they wait by looking out of small windows and at the fragile green marble in the blackness, home.

 Still, even with such an amazing view, worries still linger among some clients.

 “Where the hell are they? They should be here by now. It’s almost time for us to board.” Director Light whines and he looks around the deck with impatient eyes.

 His assistant tries her best to calm him down. “They will be here shortly, sir. Yuumi herself said it in a message you received just five minutes ago. We needn’t worry.”

 Accompanied by Light and Nikki — Light’s assistant — a pale girl with striking blue eyes nervously twirled her long, golden-blond hair. The sound of her black platform boots clacking echoed as she paced anxiously. ‘Crap, crap, crap! Why do they have to be late?’ She’d come early on purpose and now there were only 10 minutes until departure and no sign of the person she came to see. ‘How the hell is she not here!?’

 Just as she turned around, a pack of girls with briefcases in tow came into view, rushing towards them in a frenzy. Leading this lively group was a girl with vibrant purple hair, who felt it necessary to holler, “We’re here!!! Don’t go without us!”

 The Director looked at the girls and pinched his nose. “And here comes the source of my headache…” He primed himself and just as the girls settled around him, he demanded. “What the hell held you up for so long!? We have a shuttle to catch!”

 Out of the group, another girl with tan skin and green hair styled in a ponytail jumped forward. “Sorry! We just underestimated how long it would take to pack out stuff up.”

 Director Light narrowed his eyes at Yasuna. “I thought I told you to pack up yesterday.”

 Yasuna took a step back, flustered. “That… is true…”

 Coming to her rescue from this uncomfortable situation was a tall girl with brilliant pink hair, styled in a pixie cut, who approached her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t be too tough on her, Director; we might’ve held them up last night.”

 Various eyebrows shot up in response to that declaration.

 “I’m sorry,” Light asked, “but since when did you two get along?” He wasn’t completely clueless about Yasuna’s feelings towards the cheer squad, especially Haruna. Yasuna had been the most vocal about her objections to bringing Yuumi along with them. Her constant ramblings even made Light contemplate the idea of housing the penta-summoner separately from the rest of the squad, but the pre-planned nature of their accommodation made it impossible.

 Haruna smirked. “What are you saying, Director? We’re her biggest supporters, of course! After all, if she’s gunning for the blue dorm, she’ll need some allies.”

 “Right…” Light drew on, giving Yasuna a look that screamed: “If they’re holding you hostage, blink twice.” or something along those lines.

 Yet, much to his surprise, Yasuna reiterated. “Well… I’ve gotten to know them better.” Taking a step forward, she added. “And I think I might’ve been too harsh before.”

 The Director furrowed his brow. “That easy, huh? Alright, it’s not a bad thing for you exactly, having some trustworthy seniors will help you in your dueling journey. Just don’t let them control you.”

 With Yasuna giving him a nod, the Director moved along and turned his attention to the rest of the group. “Alright, we’re a little on the dot, but still not late. Follow me, pass your bags along to the staff, and we’ll be on-route to the academy before you know it.”

 Just as the Director turned around and started walking, one of the twins from the group spotted Aya awkwardly looking on and took a step forward. “Aya! You’re here!” She skipped next to her and went in for a hug, which Aya, despite looking uncomfortable, was too slow to avoid. “OMG, we thought we’d have to wrestle you away from Anna!”

 “Aiko!!!” her twin sister shouted before also scooting forward. Pulling her away from the blond girl, she said, “Don’t overwhelm her like that!”

 While the twins scuttled away, Aya stood there stiffly, but only for long enough for her to spot Yuumi looking her way with wide-open eyes that quickly locked onto hers.

 “Aya?” she called with surprise.

 The stunned looking blonde snapped out of her daze and answered. “Ah, yes; Yuumi, it’s good to see you…”

 Taking a step forward, the penta-summoner stopped in front of Aya. “Honestly, I was a little surprised when I heard you were missing since the incident. Is everything alright?”

 “Y-Yes… I mean…” she stuttered out.

 Yuumi tilted her head to the side. “You’re okay, right? Anna didn’t do anything too extreme, did she?”

 “N-No! Of course not!” Aya looked off to the side while grabbing her arm. “She’s… Very—.”

 [“Group 215: Call for boarding on gate 21”]

 “That’s us!” The Director called out, interrupting the shy girl’s introduction. “Stop messing around! We have a shuttle to catch.”

—

 We might’ve arrived a little late to the shuttle bay, and for that I can squarely blame the ludicrous amounts of packing to be done, which an impromptu last minute make-out session might’ve delayed even more. Still, after that was done, we still arrived with some time to spare — not that Light would let anyone see it that way.

 ‘10 minutes early is not on “On the dot” thank you very much.’

 Yasuna and the twins didn’t fare any better. We met up with them running to the shuttle bay with suitcases trailing. I didn’t care to ask what held them up. Getting there was more important.

 ‘For all I know, it could’ve been something with Aiko. Thank Solus we’re getting out of here…’

 When we arrived, my eyes right away landed on Aya… She was fidgeting like crazy and looked really anxious. So much so that she only noticed us when Aiko went to give her a hug.

 I tried talking with her, but our group got called up, and so we had to run to the gate.

 After some frantic shuffling of baggage, we’re finally aboard the shuttle. The interior is brightly lit, with white panels covering the walls of the tube-shaped cabin and not a single hanging wire in sight, a brash contrast to the ragged shuttle which brought us up here. Two rows of paired seats draw along the sides and take up most of the space, with a narrow passage through the middle making up a narrow walking space.

 There are more than enough seats here for the nine of us and so I pick a comfortable window-side spot and settle down.

 My colleagues seem to follow my convention with the only expection being the Director and his assistant, which pick seats next to each other at the front of the shuttle.

 Or so I think.

 “Hmm, Yuumi, may I sit down next to you?” A jittery Aya asks in an uneasy voice.

 I look at her with a cocked eyebrow. “I guess? But are you sure you don’t want a window seat?”

 She crosses her arms and insists, “No, I’m not in the mood for star sighting.”

 Smiling at her, I say, “Well, then help yourself, please.”

 “Thanks,” she says before sitting down next to me.

 [“Please fasten your holding harnesses. We will undock in approximately two minutes.”] A robotic voice announces in the meantime.

 As soon as we finish strapping in, I turn to Aya and ask, “So, you were telling me about Anna before we got called up. How is she?”

 Her checks glow a deep red and she covers her face. “Ah… She’s… very… G-ge—”

 I look at her with a smug smile and ask, “Come on, spit it out. You know I won’t judge you.”

 “Gentle…”

 “Come again?”

 She shakes her head and yells, “Anna’s very gentle, okay!?”

 …

 …

 A couple of seconds pass and the realization of what she yelled out loud dawns on Aya. Her head lowers into her arms as she tries her best to hide away.

 ‘Cute… Lucky catch you got here Anna…’

 “Alright, I’m sorry, I just thought it was funny you get so embarrassed about it. Relax, she’s your partner. Learn to be proud of what you two have.” I tell while shrugging.

 She stays hidden away, pouting, but then a loud clunk reverberates around the cabin.

 “Ahh!” Aya yelps, looking around, with panic evident in her eyes.

 An announcement follows. [“Undocking successful”]

 The invisible force pulling me down vanishes and a sense of weightlessness dawn over me; I notice bits of my shirt where the harness doesn’t cover beginning to float freely and, looking out of the window, I can see us moving away from our mothership, the UP Colossus.

 Aya recovers quickly after the announcement, leaning back into her seat with her eyes closed, breathing deeply.

 I narrow my eyes at her, asking, “That scared you? Are you sure you’re going to be alright without Anna around?”

 Aya grunts, “Yes… Just got caught off guard… Let it go…”

 Still, I can’t help but be suspicious. Her behavior seems to have taken a complete 180-degree turn ever since she started dating Anna. If I was one for conspiracies, I would think Anna did something to her. But that just doesn’t fit what I know about Anna. I dueled against her, and just like fistfights, dueling tells you a lot about who people are on the inside.

 No, something else happened… And I’m tired of guessing, “Hey,” I call, “I’ve been meaning to ask… How did you and Anna meet?”

 Her eyes widen, panic clear in her gaze. Stuttering, her words stumble out, “W-w-w-well…” She shakes her head, attempting to gather her thoughts. She’s breathing heavily, and through her long sleeves, I notice her arms shaking.

 Fearing that she’s about to have a panic attack, I urge. “Hey, hey, HEY! Look at me,” I say urgently.

 With teary eyes, she turns to me, leading me to think. ‘Holy shit… That’s way worse than I expected…’

 Gathering my composure, I take a deep breath. “If you’re not ready to talk about it yet, that’s okay. Anna wouldn’t want you to rush through this,” I reassure her.

 Aya remains silent, but, with a gulp, she nods, and I can see her breathing gradually becoming steady once more. She then reaches for her phone, focusing on it.

 Meanwhile, I let out a sigh of relief and try to relax while thinking. ‘Alright, asking her directly is out of the picture. Whatever happened that night had to be a lot more traumatic than I was imagining… Crap, I doubt Anna would tell me. I wouldn’t if I was her…’

 I mull over what I know for a bit and ultimately conclude that, at least for now, there is nothing else I can do for her. I just hope whatever left her like this doesn’t hamper her duel against Anna. After all, she’s still under the impression that’ll make that idiot father of hers proud.

 ‘With a man like that, she’s probably going to end up on the streets eventually, even if she pushes that off with a win… She’s going to be devastated when she finds that out.’

 …

 …

 …

 ‘Wait. Could Anna have opened her eyes to that possibility? But I also pointed that out, and she plainly refused to listen…’

 I turn to Aya for a second, but then look away quickly after. ‘No, If I’m right about this, then right now is not a good time to bring it up. She already got too anxious when I asked about the meeting. I better hold on to that one for later.’

—

 Time passed slowly as the shuttle maneuvered, making  its way to an inevitable and violent reentry while I tried my best to ready myself for the even more inevitable landing that came afterwards. I spent my time mulling over things and distracting myself by browsing GlobalNet, watching news, laughing at bad deck profiles, etc... It kinda reminded me of childhood road trips, and in that way, it was a little nostalgic.

 It's now about 3 and a half hours since we undocked, and the darkness of space has already given way for the brilliant blue hue of the fragile ball I call home and hour ago or so.

 “Grr…” I groan audibly. ‘So much shit to do. It’s almost like all my bottled-up problems are just waiting down there…’

 Closing my eyes, I shake my head. ‘I can’t wait for the landing in silence.’

 I grab my phone, then turn to the ‘Old world’ app, and, in a blink of an eye, my phone’s interface turns to one another part of me remembers pretty well.

 Opening another app with a familiar green icon, I think to myself while scrolling through my playlists. ‘Let’s see, what to listen to? Maybe something spacie? Hmm, If I’m unlucky some of that “elevator music” will be here… Heavy metal? Nah, too intense for now.’

 Continuing, I pass through the obvious candidates.

 ‘Err, why is this so hard? Am I that bad at making choices? … Hmm?’

 I stop at a playlist I made 5 years ago, and with little thought, I press play.

 “Kono mama mo-u sukoshi…”  < AN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5ARlPIgKRI >

 ‘Well… This works.’

 The tone is somber, but still slightly upbeat. Best of all, it stays in the background easily, not too loud or energetic to overpower my own thoughts. With this tune to help me, I mull over my time in space one final time.

 If I were to describe it in one word…… Incredible. For one, in one fell swoop, I had realized a childhood dream of mine I had given up on as soon as I was old enough to know what it entailed. That was not on my list of expectations two months ago, that’s for sure.

 Of course, when the culture shock was over, there were the duels… It was fascinating seeing all those people look up at me, cheering along with whatever routine I and the girls had planned. Again, cheerleading in front of a bunch of thirsty fans for a YGO duel was not on my list of expectations two months ago…

 Skipping some intimate details, the time between the duels was also some of the best time I had for the last 8 years… 20 if you add up my other half.

 ‘Shame those Union FUCKHEADS had to stick their grimy hands were they didn’t belong… It would’ve been perfect! Luxurious recreation in between training and high stakes duels. But no, I had to watch one of my best friends get shot, forcing me to strike a bunch of non-duelists with a field-wipe, then I end up summing a demon that kills 30 people, and, just for good measure, swipes one of my arms in the process!’

 …

 Still, I survived… and the army sure as hell isn’t going to try to pull a stunt like that anytime soon. Not when my legal parents supply them with a third of their equipment in a war that, let’s be honest, isn’t going so well.

 “…Fly at higher game!!”

 The song that was playing ends and I hear an announcement. [“Orientation for reentry verified, beginning braking burn in T-10, 9, 8…”]

 ‘In the end, surviving and being able to look forward is what matters…’

 I anxiously watch the countdown decrement, focusing on a holographic screen projected onto the headrest of the seat in front of me. Meanwhile, varied mechanical noises reverberate around the cabin, with the prominent sound being the flowing of propellant, or so I assume.

 [“…1, brace, brace, brace, 0.”]

 *KTCHUNK*

 “Ghn!” I groan as a sudden force pushes me back into my seat.

 The status display to my right shows a whopping 0.7g’s, an infinitely exponential increase from the near-zero gravity I experienced for the last four hours. I glance to my right and spot flames swishing past the small window, revealing the vast expanse of space. The status panel confirms the shuttle is descending engine first, and it remains that way for the next ten minutes. Just as I start to wonder what’s next, another announcement sounds.

 [“Descent into dense atmosphere, initializing thermal atmospheric RCS subsystem and orientation change.”]

 For a moment, the cabin is filled with a sound reminiscent of a jet engine roaring to life. However, just as quickly as it appeared, the noise subsides, fading away to almost imperceptible levels.

 Just a second later, I experience the shift in gravity as the shuttle begins its belly-first descent, perfectly matching the graphic on the display. As I divert my gaze towards the window, I am met with a mesmerizing sight - the once occasional flames have transformed into a magnificent, fiery spectacle resembling a colossal inferno. Surprisingly, the g counter on the display shows a maximum reading of 1.5 and remains steady at that level.

 This goes on for another 20 minutes, before the g counter drops to 1.1, and the inferno outside subsides to reveal blue skies.

 [“Atmospheric reentry complete, initializing atmospheric thermal thrusters and proceeding with planned extended suicide burn for landing.”]

 As the excitement dies down, I end up looking at my phone once again, and find the music player paused. Seeing an estimate of 5 minutes for landing, I hit play, expecting a very nostalgic song to play:

 “Going fast! Makes me feel alive! My heart beats, in hyper-drive…” < AN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxOhz1TJGGo >

 To my surprise, a song I wasn’t expecting plays and I look down at my phone again to see what happened.

 ‘Oh… It was on shuffle.’

 Putting the phone back down, I lean against my seat and draw a satisfied breath in.

 ‘Guess this works too.’

 After a brief pause, I finally catch sight of the academy’s central tower through the window. As I gaze out, I feel another surge of anticipation from below as the shuttle prepares for its final approach. The near hum of engines fills the air, another push from below heightening the sense of excitement.

 As the ground gradually approaches, its details become more distinct, and the anticipation heightens. Before long, a captivating sight comes into view - we are descending towards a floating platform positioned just off the island’s coastline. Surrounding it are numerous boats and makeshift structures, lending temporary support. A second later, a resounding crash reverberates throughout the shuttle’s interior, sending vibrations through my body, as the colossal shuttle makes contact with solid ground.

 When everything settles down, a final announcement rings out.

 [“Landing confirmed. Please unfasten your harnesses and thank you for entrusting KentoDyne with your spaceflight needs.”]

 I do as I’m told, and after I’m done, I wait for Aya to stand up before doing so myself. We walk to the middle of the shuttle, where a single illuminated path leads to an exit staircase.

 The director exits first, his assistant following close behind. Then, one by one, we exit behind him. Yasuna, Haruna, Mia, Nanako, Aiko, Naeko, Aya, and finally, me.

 When I walk out onto the staircase, I can’t help but look up.

 I gaze into the night sky, adorned with a myriad of twinkling stars, painting the darkness with their celestial glow. The full moon beams down, casting a gentle radiance on the world below, its luminosity easily discernible even without aid. It’s a breathtaking spectacle, one that I’ve longed to behold for what feels like an eternity.

 Taking my time, I descend the staircase, my feet finding solace in the firmness of the platform beneath. The salty tang of the sea fills the air, carried by a forceful breeze that caresses my skin in places untouched by the standard academy uniform. Its briny aroma is a welcome reminder of the nearby ocean, its vastness stretching out before me.

 As I immerse myself in this ethereal scene, the symphony of waves crashing against the shore surrounds me. Their rhythmic melody echoes in my ears, a soothing chorus that harmonizes with the tranquil ambiance of the night.

 I barely glance at the Director getting a talking to from his wife just to the side, and instead, look out into the academy and mutter out loud my only thought. “I’m home…”

 “…Greatness thrusts itself into, our lives.”