Finally in space

Class Lupus flew away from planet Spark for the first time. Class Ovis and Class Serpens were slightly behind in their ships They were to the left and the right respectively of the Lupus ship. A common formation for flying. Class Lupus got a bigger ship than the other two due to Instructor Mok's military experience and accomplishments. This only made Lupus have even more pride in him.

All three ships were designed for a 10-person crew but Lupus's ship was not only bigger but also more powerful. It was fully equipped for space combat and loaded with ammunition. They wouldn't be using it on this mission, though it provided an extra sense of seriousness to the exam given that they weren't on some kiddy ship, but on a genuine small warship.

The entire class was on the bridge with instructor Mok, the room was located at the front of the ship and it had a giant windshield that provided a view of the cosmos from the inside. The windshield could also display video calls from other centers of communication. Instructor Mok showed the class all of the functions of this area.

Brigham and Curro stood next to each other glued to the windshield admiring the view of the open cosmos. Such vast emptiness stretches to eternity. Billions of planets and stars are all in view but out of reach. Most of it is empty and in total silence. How incredible for humanity to be sailing this dark sea. Magellan, Colombo, Vespucci, and many other explorers of the new world felt a grand sense of discovery as they made their way to the undiscovered and unknown sites on Earth. This so-called first generation of kids is the generation that is prime to map out this uncharted new frontier in front of them.

While warp-speed technology allowed for quick space travel, colonization, and migration. Scientists estimate that in the year 1989. humanity has explored less than 0.01% of what is the Milky Way galaxy.

"You know Curro, what I said back there to the president I meant every word of it," Brigham said turning his head to his friend. "About wanting to fight poverty, hunger, inequality. I know it's idealistic but it's something I genuinely want humanity to be rid of."

"I know," Curro smiled at Brigham. "Everyone always tells you that you are overly idealistic, that you won't be able to move the world and other things old people say. I don't believe them. It's a lame excuse for those who resist change. I believe you can do it! You have a gift of leading and inspiring people!"

"I am not planning on taking it all on alone. I will be counting on you, Curro. When things get tough I will be counting on you to back me up!"

"That goes without saying!" Curro raised his fist and the two fist bumped.

"Thank you," Brigham said lowering his head trying to hide how touched he was. He turned his gaze to the cosmos once again. Brigham continued to speak trying to change the subject before he was overwhelmed with emotion:

"We've come so far as humanity that we are exploring a place that nature never intended us to reach. Yet we cling to so many animalistic and outdated ideas. War, division, racism, subjugation… We cling to the idea of the nation-state, even in a borderless place like space. We are still in a pointless Cold War of East and West and for what?"

"People can't get along. They create in-groups and out-groups. It makes it easy who the enemies and allies are. Nobody wants to think too deeply about big issues. Maybe one day you will unite us all." Curro winked at his friend.

Mok clapped his hands "May I have your attention, please. I know all of you are star-struck right now." Mok paused and waited for a reaction but no one laughed. "You know because you're in space for the first time…" Still, no one laughed and it made the situation even more awkward. "Never mind. You young kids have no sense of humor."

The instructor recomposed himself and said: "From the bridge, you can issue commands to the engine, control propulsion, set a course, fire the missiles activate warp speed, and so on. You can do that using AI auto-pilot commands, exactly how I did for the lift-off. Simply issue the commands and AI will roughly perform the tasks you've given it. Technically one person could pilot this ship from point A to point B using nothing but AI commands."

Mok raised his index finger and continued to explain: "But that doesn't work in most situations, the least of which in combat. While AI can be useful for simple commands, it is often imprecise and limited. All of the functions and commands can be done manually from a part of the ship. Coordination is the essence of a good crew. A captain needs to be able to give direct orders to each part of the ship from the bridge while his subordinates execute his commands swiftly and effectively. It is key for the crew to be in sync, to be like an organism, the beating heart of the vessel.

"Now I could just turn on the auto-pilot and wait for us to reach the Rubin asteroid belt. But what would be the point of that? I will now assign all of you a post and we will do the command prompts manually. Not all of you will be doing manual prompts though. Keep in mind the non-computer posts are just as important as the manual input ones since they can't be done by an AI. While I do expect you to do your job manually don't be afraid to briefly turn on AI assistance if you need to go to the bathroom for a break."

Class Lupus received their posts. Mok was a strong authority in the class, everyone accepted their assignments without any protest. His authority didn't come from any kind of fear, it came from genuine respect and admiration.

Ana was assigned to the navigation computer located on the port side of the ship(the left side). She had to calculate the route the ship was taking, calculating the entry and exit out of warp speed and matching velocities with orbital astral bodies they were supposed to land on. If done manually it requires an unbroken focus and a lot of work. Although most ships today just use the auto-pilot function unless in a warzone.

Roy was assigned to the communication relay on the starboard side of the ship(the right side). It made him very happy that he was on the exact opposite side of Ana, he could easily avoid her for the remained of their trip to NB011. The communication officer uses the relay to send short or long-range signals for communication.

Short range is used for ship-to-ship contact like the class Ovis and Class Serpens ships next to them. The long-range signals are used to contact home or to send out distress signals. Finally, there were video signals, if such signals would come Roy would have to scramble the signal for the captain in order to get the video feed on the windshield.

Emidio was placed in the propulsion room at the back of the ship. Not to be confused with the engine room on the butt of the vessel, where the warp speed machine is located which is a room that will remain vacant. The engine room is only entered in order to fix issues with the ship. On the other hand, the propulsion room controls the ship's propulsion during liftoff and in space. Because there is no gravity in space the ship travels on the inertia.

Hence the propulsion room is used to adjust the speed of the ship with boosters on the back, front, and sides. It is a crucial component to be used for maneuvers during battles and to make proper manual landings and lift-offs. While they weren't expecting any battles, the landing and speed adjustments were already a serious challenge for Emidio. He felt like his incompetence would get them all killed. He was prepared to turn on the auto-pilot once they had to land on NB011. He didn't feel a sliver of confidence that he could pull off a manual landing, considering he had trouble keeping the ship on course.

Curro was in charge of the central computer room. Located in the exact center of the ship. The main computer was there to make sure all other systems were working in order and to oversee and assist other officers on board. On the main computer, Curro would be able to see the manual inputs of all of the other officers, therefore he has to correct mistakes and assist them with their troubles. It was the most demanding task intellectually, a perfect job for Curro, the biggest nerd in class. He had to not only work his job but hunt for mistakes in other's work, Emidio gave him a lot to work with.

The main computer also is where missiles and other weapons are controlled and launched. The ship was fully armed and stocked with ammo but that wasn't going to be used on this mission, much to the disappointment of Curro.

Lei Mei was assigned to the kitchen and mess hall of the vessel. She was an incredible cook and a gourmet tasked with preparing the meals for the crew. A very comfortable assignment for Lei Mei.

Hitomi was going to be in the infirmary, treating the injured if it came to that. She was the only person who had a non-compulsory beginner medical exam complete. The pink-haired girl was the only student on the ship who would be able to perform this task.

Finally, Khalid and Ljubiša were on guard duty. They were supposed to patrol the vessel and keep the hallways safe. Neither of the two were the thinking types so a physical job was appropriate. The two boys would patrol different halves of the ship.

Brigham got his dream position. He was going to be with Mok as his deputy. The instructor was going to show him the ropes of what it takes to be a captain. The two of them together would be in charge as Mok made it clear that Brigham had the best qualifications to be captain. This is officially the best day of my life, the blue-haired boy thought to himself. All of his dreams were coming true, this was everything he could have hoped for.

With the division of labor complete. The next phase of the mission could proceed. Class Lupus moved with smiles on their faces, unbeknownst to what kind of horror they were walking themselves into.