1. Aurelia

ONE

"Now presenting, the graduating class of 3051…" the announcer's voice boomed across the large room that boasted all the graduates of the UGSF's Flight School.

A day I'd been waiting for, counting down to for the last fifteen years. Ever since I was ten years old, I'd been dreaming ofthis moment: the day I crossed the stage and became a pilot for the United Galactic Space Federation. It was so close, I could almost taste it. Though, staring at the stars would pale compared to actually being up there.

"Aurelia Callisto!" The announcer, an older woman with white hair, called out my name, propelling me into motion across the stage.

This was it. My moment. The beginning of the rest of my life. At twenty-five years old, I hadn't accomplished a lot of the things on my list. But this was a start. The rest would come in time.

"Thank you," I said, tightly grasping hands with the Dean of the Samuel D. Callisto Flight Academy.

They'd named it after my father, one of the most famous pilots of this century, following his disappearance on his last mission when I was twelve. Thirteen years later, and the wound still stung. Most of all, because they never found out what happened to him, or how he met his end.

One day, I hoped to find out.

"Your father would have been so proud of you," Dean Baliss said.

Anderson Baliss was my dad's best friend, and I'd practically grown up around him and his family. His daughter was still one of my best friends.

I got choked up, trying to swallow the lump in my throat. "I appreciate it."

"We miss him every day."

I nodded, unable to say anything else.

There wasn't a way to describe that grief. It was a deep ache, a loss I felt every day. It wasn't something that could be summed up with kind words or well wishes.

He should have been here.

With my diploma in hand, I headed back to my seat, waiting for the rest of the graduates to walk before they would hand out our assignments.

Everyone had their own wishes for where they'd be stationed in the UGSF's fleet, from smaller crafts to the massive starship transports and space stations. I had bigger dreams. A mission. See the stars, travel to worlds unknown.

Follow in my dad's footsteps. Make him proud.

Once the last graduate had crossed the stage, taking his place back in the last row, Dean Baliss stepped back up to the podium.

"Congratulations to all of you. All of us here at the Samuel D. Callisto Flight Academy couldn't be more proud of our graduates, and we cannot wait to watch the amazing things our new pilots will do as you go out into the world. While some of you will stay closer to home, others will travel to worlds far beyond this galaxy. Beyond even the wildest reaches of the known universe."

A shiver ran down my spine just thinking about it.

"Now, as you all know, the last part of our graduation ceremony is receiving your assigned position. Though we did our best to comply with requests—" The dean's face formed into a frown. "—not all of them could be accommodated. However, we did our best to place each of you in a rank and on a ship we thought was befitting of your skill set." He nodded to the woman helping him as the large screen at the top of the stage flickered on. "Each graduating cadet's name will now be displayed on the screen with their assigned craft, in rank order. Please applaud as each name is announced."

All my years of schooling culminated in this. I crossed my fingers, and toes, like that would help me achieve my desired result. Though I'd already done everything I could, working my ass off every year, forgoing parties and relationships so I could focus on exams and simulations.

My name was the first one on the screen, in large, block letters.

Aurelia S. Callisto

Second Pilot, S.S. Octavia

My stomach sank. The Octavia was a smaller, older ship, mostly flying the same route between the space station outside of Earth's orbit and our colony on Mars to transport supplies. As the Second Pilot, I'd be the backup, flying the ship when the Head Pilot was otherwise occupied, off the ship, or needed relief. I already knew from all of my research that it was a two-year assignment.

There was no normal, not with space voyages, but I'd had my eyes on a research mission. Besides studying for graduation, my entire last semester had been spent scrutinizing every flight path, looking for the perfect one. I'd requested, well… it didn't matter now. The perfect mission, the perfect ship—neither of them was mine. I shook my head, like I was shaking away the idea. Best not to dwell on things that hadn't happened.

Instead, I pasted a smile on my face.

The rest of the ceremony was a blur, and then we were shuffled out of the room, all of us in our dress uniforms. I missed the comfort of my flight suit. I'd practically lived in it the last two years, despite only learning on flight simulators and airplanes. Neither were the real thing.

Besides, I'd be living in it day in and day out soon, as a pilot on an actual starship.

A grin split my face as a giddy feeling bubbled up through my system. Hell yes. I did it.

The crowd was full of loved ones congratulating their graduates, laughter and excitement and shrieks from those embracing their significant others.

All I had was—"Aurelia." My mom's voice brought my feet to a halt.

She looked so much older today, her sandy blonde hair brushed back into a low bun, the tight navy dress revealing just how much of my genes I'd gotten from her. I liked to imagine my father standing beside her, both of their faces beaming at me as I clutched my diploma in my hand, running into their open arms.

But just as quick as it came, the vision was gone, leaving my mom standing alone.

"Mom." Her hands cupped my face as my eyes flooded with tears.

"Congratulations, baby girl." She hugged me tight.

"Thanks for coming." I finally pulled out of our hug so I could look at her. We shared so many features—her curvy hips and that small, slightly upturned nose, but I'd gotten dad's coloring. His russet-brown hair. Though mine was a shade lighter than his, I still loved the reddish streaks in it.

"I wish your father was here," she said, resting her forehead against my own. It was like she knew what I was thinking about—because Elara Callisto had always been a bit of a mind reader. Or maybe it was just that she knew me too well.

"Me too."

"He'd never stop bragging about how proud he was of his little girl if he was here." She tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

"I know," I said, a laugh slipping from my lips as my smile grew wider. "He would have loved all of this. Boasting about me, seeing his buddies. Screaming about how I was number one."

He would have yelled for me till his voice grew hoarse. The thought brought a smile to my lips, even as I wiped a few beads of moisture from my eyes. The thought of never knowing what happened to him—never flying the same route—caused a sharp pain in my heart. I'd made a vow that first day at the academy, and I definitely wasn't going to break it now.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, and I knew she could sense some of my earlier disappointment. Yup, mind reader. Though she just called it her mom-tuition.

"Good. It might not be the assignment I wanted, but it's going to be amazing. I'll make sure of it." I gave a sharp nod. It's going to be amazing was my new mantra. Maybe if I repeated it enough times, it would be the truth.

"That's my girl," she said, squeezing my upper arm before letting me go to loop an arm through mine. "Now, what do you say we try to track down some food? I'm starving."

I laughed, following my mom towards the celebratory banquet, knowing that each step I took was one closer to my future.

Closer to a life amongst the stars.

I laid in my childhood bedroom, looking up at the constellations of LED stars my dad and I had installed when I was younger. They were a perfect replica of the night sky above California, and I'd begged him for weeks to do them with me.

We'd finished them the night before he'd left on a six month mission, and they lit up my ceiling for years. I didn't have the heart to take them down, to patch the holes they left behind.

Soon, though, I'd be leaving all of this behind.

I'd moved out of my apartment today, getting ready for my mission. There was no point in paying credits when I wouldn't be on the planet for the next two years, so all of my furniture—what little I had—was now in storage, and the rest of the possessions I owned were now shoved in my closet.

Mom hadn't moved after we lost my dad. I thought this house would be too painful, that there would be too many memories here, but maybe that was the exact reason she hadn't left. Here, she felt close to him. Like she could almost pretend that he was still going to walk in that front door and come home to us.

I wished it was that easy. To pretend he'd just been on a long mission. Like when I was younger, and he'd open the door, and I'd raced into his arms every time.

But there was no coming back. Thirteen years had passed, and it was time to face the truth.

My communication device buzzed, startling me out of my thoughts. I scrambled to grab it off my nightstand, almost hitting myself in the face with it.

"Aurelia." Vice Admiral Rist's name popped up on my communicator, and I almost had to do a double take.

"Yes, Vice Admiral?"

A thousand thoughts flickered through my mind. Why were they calling?

Maybe the Federation had made a mistake. For a moment, I had a wave of anxiety. Had I forgotten to submit something? They'd let me graduate, of course, but what if I'd actually failed one of my final exams? It was a nightmare that kept waking me up at night.

"How are you doing?"

"Um. Good. You know. Getting ready to head out there for my commission."

It had only been a month since the ceremony, but it still felt like I was floating on air. I would have to report soon for my assignment, and I'd been trying to live it up before I headed up to the space station. Well—live it up as much as I normally did. Which often meant curling up on the couch next to my mom with a book in my hands, or grabbing dinner with the girls. I'd taken to a nightly walk along the beach, my favorite part of this house.

"Good, good. That's actually what I called to talk to you about. There's been a change in assignments." The words were stated so casually that I just blinked. Obviously, they couldn't see my face, since this was a voice call, but I still tried to mask my surprise.

"Okay…?" I held my breath, waiting to hear the words I'd only dreamed of. It couldn't be…

"The head pilot position on the S.S. Paradise just became available. Normally, I wouldn't offer it to someone just out of flight school, but the mission is scheduled to leave in a few days, and there's just not enough time to find someone else. I know that this was your requested assignment upon graduation." They took a brief pause. "In fact, it was the only commission you requested."

I was floored. Flabbergasted. Sure, some part of me had hoped that things would still work out, but I hadn't actually expected it to. Which was probably why the only words that escaped my lips were, "That's right." It had seemed crazy to put all of my eggs in one basket—even more so when I'd gotten a different assignment at graduation. Now… it felt like fate.

Or all of the stars aligning to take me exactly where I needed to go.

"Are you sure?"

"Well, you were top of your class, and I know if anyone can do it, you can."

"I—I don't know what to say." Mostly because I wasn't sure this wasn't a dream. I pinched my arm, smoothing over the sting on my skin. Yep, not dreaming.

"Say yes. The position is yours, if you accept it."

Obviously. How could I turn something like this down? It was my dream.

Being the head pilot on the S.S. Paradise was everything I'd ever worked towards. A position most people didn't earn for at least a few years after flight school. It was a five-year mission to the outer reaches of space, places humans used to only dream about exploring.

"Okay," I said, agreeing before they could change their mind. "I'd be honored. Of course I'll take it."

"That's what I like to hear. And just between us, Aurelia, you were always our favorite at the Academy. We know you're going to go far. Your father did too."

I closed my eyes, wondering if the reminders would ever get less painful. If they'd make me miss him less. "Thank you. I'll try to make you all proud."

After they gave me the details of the assignment, the boarding platform and everything I needed to know before departing for my mission in just days, we hung up the phone.

And… Holy shit. It was happening.

My dreams were coming true.

The night skyglimmered with stars, captivating me like it had each night since I was small. There was so much out there in the vastness of space, and I couldn't wait to explore it. My eyes trailed over the constellations as I leaned back against the sand. The sun had long gone down, but I couldn't stop watching the sky as the sound of waves crashing against the beach filled my ears.

There wasn't a single other way I could imagine spending my last night on earth.

"Are you ready?" my best friend, Fionia, asked me.

I hold her gaze, even in the darkness. "Yeah. I've been waiting my whole life for this."

Tomorrow was my first day in the stars, a day I had only dreamed about.

The moon lit up her face, so even in the darkness, I could see Fia trying to hold back her tears. "I'll miss you so much."

"Psh. You'll forget about me so fast." I gave her a small smile, even though I hoped that wasn't true.

But five years was a long time to go with little to no contact. The chances of getting a satellite transmission to Earth from the far reaches of space was almost non-existent. Even if we could, those communications would be reserved for important messages—not for someone who was missing the people she'd left at home.

My best friend had gotten married this summer to her high school sweetheart, and I knew part of her decision had been so I could be there. For as long as I could remember, we'd done everything together: prom, first dates, saying goodbye to high school. We'd walked in to college arm and arm, even though we'd chosen wildly different fields of study. And then we'd graduated together too. Lia Fia, two peas in a pod.

Besides flight school, this was the first thing I was really doing on my own. It was the reminder that from now on, everything I did would be by myself.

Her tone was light, but full of emotion. "Lia…"

"I know." Clasping our hands together, I squeezed hers tight.

I'd miss out on a lot of life by leaving. Of course I knew that. But I was fine with never getting married if I got to live my dream, following in my dad's footsteps. He'd been the greatest pilot our planet had ever known, and hopefully one day, they would say the same thing about me.

"Have you heard much about your new ship?"

I shook my head. "Just a few rumors about the captain, but I'm sure they're not true. But the ship's specs are incredible. And the recreation floor? Wow."

"You're the only person I've ever known who'd get excited about the gym."

I'd always loved running. In some ways, I'd been running ever since my dad had died. Running towards something on the horizon that I wasn't quite aware of yet. Something beyond the stars.

"Do you think he's hot?"

"Who?" I blinked at her.

"The captain!"

I was slightly mortified. "Fia! He's going to be my boss. My superior officer." As far as I was concerned, I wasn't allowed to even think he was hot.

"What? Is it so bad that I want you to be happy? Maybe you'll meet someone on the ship."

"Unlikely." My priorities for this mission definitely did not include falling in love. Absolutely not.

But, okay. I'd definitely peeked at the Captain's photo, and he was gorgeous. And ten years older than me, which made him off-limits in so many ways.

I'd heard about his reputation, though. That he was a little grumpy. Maybe everyone was just exaggerating? I didn't see how you could be the Captain of a massive starship like that and be unhappy.

Either way, I'd make the best of it. This mission was my first choice, and I wouldn't squander this opportunity. My dreams were coming true, even if I had to leave everyone I'd ever known and loved behind.

"Sorry I'm late," said Eliza as she dropped onto the sand next to me. "I brought wine to make up for it."

Eliza Baliss—the one and only daughter of Dean Baliss—and I had grown up together, but our friendship was forged like molten rock. When I'd lost my dad, she'd been my foundation that kept me from crumbling. She was a year older than me, but we'd spent most of my time in flight school together until she'd graduated the year before me.

"That's more like it," I said, throwing my arms around both girls. "In my favorite place with my favorite people."

Eliza waved the bottle of wine around. "We have to celebrate you leaving the planet, after all!" She popped the cork on the bottle.

"No wine for me," Fia said, a small smile tracking over her face.

"Fionia! You're not…" My eyes grew wide, flickering down to her abdomen.

She nodded, joy blossoming over her features. "It's really early, but… I'm so happy."

"And I'm going to miss all of it," I pouted, thinking about my mission. I'd known that life would move on without me—that my friends would get married and have babies all while I was in space—but this was the first time I really had to confront the idea.

Once, I'd imagined that future for myself too. A loving husband, a family—kids. But being a pilot, serving in space left little time to meet someone. Plus, leaving them behind wasn't in the cards for me. I couldn't risk anyone losing me like I'd lost my dad. It hurt too much.

"Hey, more for us," Eliza said with a shrug, drinking straight from the bottle. She handed it over to me, and I muttered a quick what the hell before taking a mouthful of the beverage.

"Everything is changing so fast," I said, staring up at the stars.

"The understatement of the century," Fionia remarked, letting her hand rest over her stomach. "We've got our whole lives ahead of us. Just think, five years is going to fly by." She turned to me.

I couldn't imagine it, and I hadn't even left yet.

"I don't know what's out there," Eliza said, "but I can't wait to find out."

I hugged my knees tighter as a shooting star dazzled its way through the sky, and I sent a wish up to the heavens.

That my mission would go well. That I'd find everything I was looking for.

Because tomorrow, like it or not, everything would change.