Academy Bound

By J.C. Mastro

I lost my mom eight years ago in the Secession War between Earth and the colonies.

Everyone acts like she's dead, but I know deep down that's not the truth.

That's why I'm joining the Earth Alliance Fleet Academy. To become a command officer, reach the stars, and find the answers.

It doesn't matter if the mention of her name draws angry glares and unfair treatment from Fleet and Academy leaders. I'm not giving up.

My mother is still out there, and I'm going to find her no matter who or what stands in my way.

Failure is not an option.

 

**Winner of the Outstanding Creator Award for Best Space Opera and Best Cover Fall 2022**

 

Sixteen-year-old Zach Aurelian has held the same dream since he was eight years old—to attend the Earth System Alliance Fleet Academy and train to become a command officer like his mother, who went missing in the system-wide civil war that fractured the Alliance. He believes in his soul that she's still alive and is determined to reach the stars to find her, no matter the challenge. Zach soon learns that not only will he face down his anxiety disorder and the rigors of the Academy, but the ghosts of his mother's past who would stand in his way.

 

From Outstanding Creator award-winning contributing author and editor of Dragons of a Different Tail: 17 Unusual Dragon Tales comes this exciting debut young adult science fiction novel. A coming of age, space military academy adventure that follows Zach's journey to join the Fleet and find his mother. He'll take on fighter pilot training, navigate friendships and budding romance, and learn what it means to be a true leader and serve in the ESA Fleet.
But the spiteful Commandant Trask has made it his mission to see him wash out of the Academy, and tensions of reignited interstellar war are building. Zach's anxiety disorder and body will be pushed to their limits as he musters the courage to fight through whatever Trask and the Academy throw at him, lean on his friends and allies for support, and step up as a Command Cadet when everything he knows and believes changes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Starbound Press
• Release date: Aug 10, 2022
• ISBN: 9798986243412

Book preview

Part One: Failure Is Not an Option

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Chapter 1

Blowing up ICW starships in a virtual reality simulation won’t bring my mom back. But it makes me feel better. The real ICW—Independent Colony Worlds—took her from me eight years ago during their stupid Secession War from the Earth Alliance. She’d fought back in Fleet Special Tactics and went missing during the final battle that ended the war. She’s still out there, though. I know it deep down in my soul. And when I attend the Fleet Academy to become a command officer, I’m going to find her.

Just one problem—I’ve got to get in first. This simulation is just a game, but I’ve been playing for a few years and I’m really good. I’m talking Top Ten good. I know what you’re thinking. It’s just a game, Zach. Nothing like the real thing. I get that. But I need every advantage I can get for the academy. Failure is not an option.

The ICW Gladius fighter I’ve been chasing pulls a gut-wrenching dive in front of me. Nice try. They always attempt evasive maneuvers like that. Their pilots can’t see very well to the sides because of the over-large heavy wings on the cobbled-together, Earth remnant ships. It’s a weakness a skilled pilot like me can exploit.

I roll my more maneuverable Mk. II Interceptor over 180 degrees—which puts the Gladius above me—and climb after him. Space is cool like that—directions are relevant to your current orientation. He falls right into my crosshairs, and I let loose with my railguns. The hyper-fast projectiles tear through his shields and then the engines. The micro fusion reactor goes critical in an impressive ball of flame and wreckage that lights up my cockpit. I let out the breath I was holding and bank away.

Great shot, Zach! Russell White says over the comm channel. He’s my best friend and wingman for this mission.

Thanks, Russ. I turn my Interceptor back on course toward the ICW cruiser. Bomber wings two and three, regroup for your next run.

Copy that, Flight Leader.

An urgent alarm sounds, and my radar display lights up like a field of red stars. A dozen or more contacts swarm away from the cruiser.

Hack! Russ, we’ve got Darts. I hate these things.

I see them. I’m with you.

I check my railgun ammo and punch the throttle to full power. We have to eliminate the nimble, automated fighters before they get to our bombers. They aren’t much of a threat by themselves. Pretty much just an engine and a particle cannon. But in large numbers they’ll quickly overwhelm our slower bombers.

Bomber wings, I say, you’ve got Darts inbound. We’ll be there in two minutes.

Copy that.

My Interceptor’s reactor thrums and the drive pods flare. I’m shoved back into the seat as my ship shoots across open space. Russ flies tight on my left wing. In a thousand kilometers we’ll be on the Dart swarm.

Hey, Zach, Russ cuts in over our private comm channel, did you tell your dad about the Academy exam yet?

Not yet. But I got the exam date today. So, I guess I’ll have to after he gets home.

He’s gonna be seriously hacked. You think he’ll let you attend? Can’t break up our team.

I have to make it in, first.

You’ll make it, man.

Thanks. I hope so.

I agree with Master Russell, says the British-accented voice of Giles, my Personal Artificial Intelligence. PAI for short. I customized the default PAI personality after the fictional butler character in my favorite classic superhero stories. Giles is always with me in my PAI watch. He’s connected to everything and always ready to help—or throw a sarcastic jab my way.

Your father will indeed be... hacked, sir, he continues. I suppose I had better find something productive to do with my time while you’re grounded.

Thanks for the confidence boost, Giles.

"That is my job, Master Zach."

Targeting alerts blink across my display. Cut the chatter, guys. The Darts are in range. They fill the view out my cockpit, zipping around each other like giant, freaky, space bugs. Headed right for the bombers just like I knew they would. Open fire before they reach the bombers!

I line up my crosshairs on the nearest Darts and squeeze the trigger. My railguns blaze to life and spray the swarm like an exterminator. Two Darts explode in the first salvo. Russ snags a pair himself.

That got their attention, he says.

The Darts shift as a single unit, reversing course and punching their high-velocity engines to overcome inertia. I nail two more as they blow past. My shields flash with multiple weapon hits, but, thankfully, they hold.

Don’t let them surround you, Russ says.

Yeah, I know! Bank left. He means well, but he should know me better than that. I punch my fighter through the last of them and bank a high-g turn to come back and catch several more with a sideways strafing run.

They’re on me, Zach!

Right behind you. I reverse orientation and hit the afterburner, then drop in right behind the Darts on Russ’s tail. I fire, blasting one apart and winging another that careens into two more.

Thanks, Russ says. The rest are giving up on us and going after the bombers.

Alright, Russ... Let’s do this.

While we’d distracted the Darts, the bombers had closed within range of the cruiser. I pull my Interceptor into a hard backward loop, flip it over at the top, and thrust in the opposite direction.

Bomber leader, what’s your status? I ask.

Starting our bombing run now, Flight Leader. Fusion bombs locked and loaded.

Awesome. We’re kicking ass, and I think it’s time I show Russ a new trick. Hey, Russ. Check this out.

I tweak a few settings on my cockpit menu and program a missile for manual detonation. I pull the trigger and it zips across space, plowing into the center of the remaining Darts. That’s when I trigger it. It blows most of them to space dust. Damn, that feels good!

How’d you do that? Russ asks.

I grin to myself. Like that? New trick I saw in a gameplay vid.

You’re gonna show me how to do that, right? Just then, one of the last few Darts barrels rage-quit style into one of our bombers. Oh, hack!

Bombers, keep going! I order.

The space around the ICW cruiser blooms with defensive energy fire. But it won’t do any good. Our bombers have them.

Bombs away! the bomber flight leader says. Five brilliant comet trails burst from their wings and blaze across space toward the cruiser.

All wings, pull out! I spin and reverse at full burn to get clear of the coming destruction.

An instant later, my cockpit windows flare white and my radar goes blank as the fusion bombs detonate on target. There’s no explosion sound. Only the hum of my engines and the excited cheers over the buzzing comm channel. I flip the display to a reverse view where only a fiery white ball of super-heated debris and billowing shockwaves remains.

Great job, everyone, I say. That was an awesome mission!

A notification appears on my display congratulating our flight team with a Mission Accomplished prompt and a big chunk of points awarded.

Nicely done, Master Zach, Giles says. Your leaderboard status just climbed one position.

Hack, yes! Feels good to achieve something, even if it’s just a game.

The VR cockpit fades into the game’s Pilot Lobby where our avatars gather for congrats and high fives. Russ comes over to me.

That was fun, he says. I’m gonna log out now. My parents will be home soon, and I want to study some more for the Academy exam.

Probability based upon completed study sessions shows the likelihood of failure to be minimal, says the monotone robot voice of Russ’s PAI. You. Can. Do. It. Russ.

Thanks, Quark, Russ says sheepishly. You can be quiet now.

Quark isn’t wrong. Russ is the smartest guy I know. We’ve been best friends since elementary school when my dad and I moved here after losing my mom. We’ve shared the same dream of attending the academy, too. Except while I was being anxious and indecisive, he’d applied to take the exam. His knowledge of science and engineering makes him a prime candidate for the Fleet Sciences specialization. Even if he can’t get his PAI programmed quite right.

It still sounds like a robot, I say. If you can’t fix it, maybe it’s just broken?

Quark emits a sound like a game show buzzer. That is not nice. I am fully functional.

Be nice to him, Zach, Russ pretends to sound hurt, He’s sensitive.

Thank you, Russell, Quark says.

If you say so. I sigh. I’m logging out, too. I need to talk to my dad soon.

Yes, you do. Message me later. Tell me how it goes.

Will do.

Russ logs off, and I press the Logout button on my heads-up display. The view goes dark and the simulated physical sensation of standing in the lobby is replaced with the real one of lying on my bed. I take the VR rig off my face and wipe the sweat from my eyes before setting it on the nightstand next to my favorite picture.

Dad’s gonna shit, Mom, I say out loud. It was taken on my eighth birthday at Coronado Beach in San Diego during her shore leave before that last mission. I’m holding her tight around the waist. Our matching dark-brown eyes squint against the sun. Same short, brown hair wet and caked with sand. Behind us stands the Victorian-style towers of the historic Hotel del Coronado. Light waves lap at the beach. It was a perfect day. And my last happy memory of her.

If I may, Master Zach? Giles pops up his holographic avatar from my watch. He’s fifteen centimeters tall and dressed in a finely tailored black suit. Hands held behind his back and prominent chin raised ever so slightly.

Your father is a reasonable man, and he loves you very much. I am certain he will understand your decision.

He hates the Fleet. He’ll never be okay with me joining up. He thinks I’m crazy for hoping she’s still alive, too. But she’s out there, Giles. I know it. If I get into the Academy, I’ll have my dream career and a way to find her.

As you’ve said on many occasions, sir. Though, I caution you not to set your hopes too high. For that matter, your expectations of your father should not be too low.

That’s helpful, I say sarcastically.

He grins. "That is why I’m here, sir."

I sigh and slide off the bed. Should probably get it over with, then.

Chapter 2

Iglance at the time. 5:34pm, and Dad will be home soon.

Giles, can you read the acceptance letter to me again? My anxiety is building thinking about dropping this on him.

Being approved to even take the exam is a big deal. I worked my ass off in school classes and studying Fleet operations in my spare time to get this far. And the flight sims, of course. Pass the exam and earn a place at the Earth Alliance Fleet Academy and train to become a Fleet officer. It’s what my mom did, choosing a dangerous career in Fleet Special Tactics. I’m interested in Fleet Command, and my aptitude scores are good enough for it. But that doesn’t make any difference to my dad.

Pardon me, sir, but I’ve read you the message eight times already.

C’mon, Giles. I need the motivation before I talk to him.

He lets out a sigh. Very well.

Giles reads the message in an over-enthusiastic tone.

"Dear Zachariah Aurelian,

Thank you for the submission of your school records and Academy admissions application. We are pleased to inform you that your application has been approved, and you are hereby scheduled to take the entrance exam at Fleet Base San Diego in two weeks’ time for potential admission to the four-year Fleet Officer’s Training program.

Since you are 16, the age of enrollment, there will be no retakes offered to you after this term begins. Study hard and arrive physically prepared for the challenges of the exam. Attached, you will find your temporary FBSD Identification.

We look forward to meeting you on exam day and are hopeful for your future Earth Alliance Fleet service.

Regards,

Anya Dhar

Admissions Director, Earth Alliance Academy"

Feeling motivated, sir?

As much as I’ll ever be.

I take a deep breath and slide down the banister to wait for my dad downstairs. It’s been just us these last eight years since Mom was lost. Dad and I’ve made the best of things, and we have a pretty close relationship. Her absence is something I’ve never gotten used to, though.

I walk into the kitchen and take out a frozen pizza to heat up for dinner. I’m not necessarily trying to butter Dad up by making dinner... Who am I kidding? Of course, I am.

I’ve wanted to attend the Academy since I was little. Get out to the stars, maybe find some answers about Mom. And to fight back against the hacking ICW who’d taken her from me. Dad, though... He’d smile and nod whenever I brought it up, but in recent years he’d outright forbid it and shut down the conversation. I get it. He’s afraid he’ll lose me out there like he lost Mom. But Fleet service is my life’s goal, and I need him to get that, too.

Moments later, the front door in the other room opens. Here we go. I tear the packaging off the pizza and place it in the quick-bake oven. Deep breaths, Zach. You can do this... After we eat.

Good luck, sir. I’ll be here if you need me.

Thanks, Giles.

Dad rounds the corner into the kitchen, empties his pockets, and hangs his work bag off the back of a chair. Hey, Zach. Smells good in here.

Hi, Dad. I’m heating up a pizza for us.

Great. How’re you doing, pal? Did you have a good day?

Yeah, I did. Took care of my homework, then Russ and I beat a tough mission in Alliance Fighter VR.

Good for you guys! He washes up while I take our plates out of the cupboard. A minute later, the oven chimes that the pizza is finished, and I take it out and place it on the cutting board.

Hawaiian. Good choice.

How was your day? I ask.

We eat our pizza at the table while Dad tells me about substitute teaching history at my high school. He’ll be filling in for one of the teachers who’s having a baby until the end of the school year in two weeks. He seems glad for it. Steady substitute work is hard to come by, apparently.

Dad finishes his third slice and sits back in his chair. I feel like I’ve done all the talking, he says. What else is new with you?

Guess I can’t stall any longer. I don’t even know how to begin. We could always talk about things, and he rarely gets upset with me. This is different. It’s not like drama with friends, clean your room, or get better grades. This is a major life decision. And a sore subject.

I take a deep breath and just go for it. Remember I’ve been thinking about applying to the Fleet Academy?

He nods his head patiently and crosses his arms lazily across his chest. Yes. His hazel eyes narrow. Why?

Well, now that I’m sixteen and the new term is coming up, I had to make a decision. I gulp down the ball of fear trying to stop my voice. So, I decided to apply. They accepted my application to take the exam.

My heart’s pounding just sitting there waiting for him to say something. Scowl, get angry, anything. He just sits there looking at me for a long, uncomfortable minute.

Then, he slumps with a heavy sigh and runs a hand through his wavy brown hair. I had a feeling you were going to do that. Dammit, Zach. We talked about this.

Stay calm, Zach... I know, and I’m sorry. But that’s why I did it on my own. You would’ve said no. My right leg bounces frantically under the table.

You’re right, and do you know why? He looks down at the table and lowers his voice, I don’t want to lose you like we lost your mom.

I knew he was going to say that. But, Dad, she might still be out there. And if I join the Fleet—

You’re still going on about that? He roughly pushes away his plate and leans his elbows on the table. She’s gone, pal. There’s nothing you or I can do about it.

A tremble rolls through my chest. His definitive belief that she’s dead triggers my deepest fears. And it hacks me off that he’s given up. Maybe. But I’ll never know if I don’t try.

You have no idea what’s really going on out there!

I recoil at his raised voice. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen him this upset.

He points up toward space. The news says that things are getting worse with the ICW. It’ll probably be war again. Your mom... Well, your mom was in FST, for all the good that did anyone.

"It was doing good! I snap back before thinking. She was a hero fighting dangerous missions to keep us all safe! I’ve had to listen to Dad complain about the Fleet and losing her for years. He obviously holds a grudge rather than be proud of the job she did. It hacks me off. I’m proud of that, and I want to do my part like she did."

I’ve had enough of his negativity. I get up from the table and grab our plates. My numb fingers struggle not to drop them into the sink. Dad just stays where he is and stares at his napkin.

You know, my scores are high enough for a Command specialization candidate. That’s a big deal, Dad.

You don’t know what you’re up against, Zach. He bites his lip and slowly shakes his head.

Please, Dad. Let me try.

The look between us freezes for a handful of moments. My pulse is racing, anxious for his next words. But whether he likes it or not, I will be attending the Academy. My mind is made up. It’d just be nice if Dad supports me in it.

I know there’s no way I can talk you out of this, he finally says. But if this is what you really want, then you’ll have to do it on your own.

That’s the plan, isn’t it? But it takes a second for the weight of his statement to break through my anger. I stand there, my emotions bouncing around between defiance and loss.

Dad, I...

I love you, son, unconditionally. But I do not agree with this, and I won’t be able to bring myself to help you pursue it. Another war is coming, and if you want to run off and do your duty or whatever like your mom did, that’s your choice.

He doesn’t sound angry or sad. More like defeated. As if he’s lost me already. Guilt and doubt leap forward and gnaw at my resolve. I feel like I’ve let him down. And what if he’s right and I’m being stupid?

No. He’s the one who’s wrong. And I’m not the one letting someone down.

You’re right. Tears wet the corners of my eyes. It is my choice. I knew you’d have concerns, but I didn’t expect all this. If you won’t support me, I’ll do it on my own.

I walk out of the kitchen and start up the stairs. I stop on the second step, then look back at him still sitting at the kitchen table. And I’m going to become a Fleet officer, find out what happened to Mom, and make you both proud.

Chapter 3

That was a complete failure of a talk. I head up to my room, shut the door, and flop down on my bed waiting for the trembling to stop.

That could have gone better, Giles says. His hologram pops up again from my PAI.

You think? What am I going to do?

Master Zach... You are an intelligent and resourceful young man. Though, if I may say so, a complete worrywart. As your Personal AI, it is my job to assist you with all your needs. Thus, I took the liberty of checking your credit account and travel arrangements to FBSD while you were stomping up the stairs.

Thanks, Giles. You’re the best. Do I have enough to get there?

Just barely, sir.

Go ahead and buy the travel tickets then.

He freezes for several seconds. Done. Anything else?

No. I’ve got to call Russ.

Very good, sir.

His hologram winks out while I replay the conversation with Dad in my head. I expected him to object, but I hadn’t expected him to abandon me. Deny his support. Could I have handled it differently? I don’t see how... Damn you and your ideals, Dad! I clench my teeth and slam my fist into the mattress.

But I can’t just sit here and be hacked off. I’ve gotta shake this frustration and focus on the exam. Traveling down to Fleet Base San Diego won’t be the tough part. I can manage that on my own. It’s the exam itself that’s twisting my stomach thinking about it. Academy cadets are elite recruits based on aptitude scores and exam performance. Am I really good enough?

Cut the self-doubt shit, Zach. Hack yes, I’m good enough! I’ve worked hard and I’ve earned this shot.

Hey, Giles. Call Russ.

Russ answers before the second ring. On my PAI’s small holoscreen, I see him sitting up on his bed reading his PaDD and noisily reaching into a snack bag of chips.

Hey, man. He tosses a handful into his mouth and crunches loudly. I’ve been waiting for you. Talk to your dad yet?

Yep.

How’d it go?

Shocker... He doesn’t approve and I’m on my own.

Harsh. He keeps on snacking and reading. But you kinda knew he wouldn’t go for it.

Yeah, I guess. I think I can manage it, though. I’ve already bought my HyperLoop ticket to FBSD.

I believe in you, man. He pumps his fist in the air.

I laugh for the first time in hours. It helps. Thanks. What are you studying?

Faster-than-light travel and wormhole theory.

Sounds... fun.

It’s light reading, but interesting. Fleet scientists are working on new theories of quantum entanglement and fusion energy output to create stable wormhole conduits through—

Russ! You’re fact-dumping on me again. He has a habit of doing that when he gets excited about science stuff.

Sorry. This stuff is just so interesting. Besides, I’ll have to understand it to make Sciences spec.

You’ll do great. I better go and study, too. I’ve got ships’ systems and Fleet designations to learn.

K. See you at school tomorrow.

I disconnect and loll my head back on my pillow. I lied to Russ. I don’t feel much like studying. My stomach is in knots and my head aches like it always does after anxious situations.

For as long as I can remember, I’d get stressed out and worried over things that tended to work out in the end. The counselors that Dad and I talked to after we lost Mom had said it was a side effect of that loss. This intense compulsion to control things, or something like that. I’ve learned how to cope with my anxiety for the most part, but it’s still a constant battle I’m going to have to work very hard to keep in check if I ever want to command in the Fleet.

Unless I fail the exam and can’t attend the Academy. Then what? Or, if I do pass but can’t handle the pressure... See what I mean? The struggle is real.

I sit up fast and huff out my breath to steady myself. Failure is not an option. My shot at the dream future I’ve envisioned has arrived. And, anxious or not, in two weeks I’ll be on the HyperLoop traveling to San Diego to make that dream a reality.

Master Zach, it appears that your heartrate has elevated again. Are you feeling alright?

I’m worried, Giles. What if I fail the exam or can’t handle the stress?

Have you ever considered a career in butlering, sir?

Hack off, Giles.

Hacking off, sir.

Chapter 4

Z ach? Hey, Zach, time to get up.

I open my blurry eyes. Dad... Why are you hovering?

Come on, pal, time to get up. I’ve got to head to work.

I groan. Alright, I’m awake.

You fell asleep reading again.

The screen of my PaDD sticks to my cheek as he pulls it out from under my face. Yeah, studying for finals. Last day, woohoo. I roll over and slowly sit up. My mouth tastes like old socks, and I stretch my stiff neck. I could do without aches and pains today. Morning’s suck.

I know, Dad says and sets the PaDD down on my desk