Jim stepped into the large classroom, his tablet tucked under his arm. Towards the left of the room the first year cadets huddled together. The second years stood in a bunch on the right. There was no intermingling of the groups except for Sy and 628, who stood with Braxton and Matt at the edge of the group of second years. Jim crossed over to join them.

"Hey guys."

"You're late."

"I was the only one that didn't bring my tablet to breakfast, and class hasn't started, so I'm not-"

"Welcome class!" At the front of the classroom a motherly woman smiled at the two groups. "For those of you that don't know me, my name is Mrs. Parr, and this is my assistant, Mr. Da Silva, a helicopter pilot from Brazil."

"Come. Fly with me, gatinhos!"

Matt and Braxton exchanged glances. Jim and 628 had their eyes locked on Mrs. Parr. She seemed unperturbed by the attention from the various young men. Moving with the ease of self confidence, she crossed the room to a large bin. "Now, today should be fairly simple. Our second years will 'fly' and the first years will support. All the second years have seen our controls before, today will be our first day in the seats for the first years. Second years, it is your first time leading I know, but speak up! Don't be afraid! The first year students are depending upon you, and you will not succeed if you do not take charge."

Braxton turned to his partner. "We got this 628."

Matt groaned. "That's right, I'm odd man out." He sighed and shook his head. "I'll go see about finding a first year." He turned and eyed over Sy. "We've got one right here, actually."

"Get your own." Jim slung his arm around Sy's shoulders and pulled him in closer. "This one's mine." Matt laughed and headed by himself to the thinning crowd of younger students.

"After you have partnered up," Mrs. Parr's accent cut through the chattering boys, "come and get yourselves a pair of goggles, then get settled into your cockpits."

The young men organized themselves slowly. Sy and Jim settled into the seats of their selected unit. Jim looked over the controls to familiarize himself with the particular layout. "Sputnic observer, probably a PA or PB. Hard to tell from just a cockpit."

"And you can tell all that from some buttons and a tiller?" Sy was impressed. "I would have been able to identify it as a rocket style instead of a ship style, and that's about it."

Jim was pleased with the compliment. He was hesitant to offer the explanation, though he found himself speaking all the same. "My dad...he, um….when I was little, I wanted to learn everything I could about his people. My interests were in rockets and space travel, so that's where I focused my attention. His people don't have space flight yet, but there's a program to recruit and prepare for their entrance into space. Natives who can monitor and communicate so they develop properly on their own, and to integrate them appropriately."

His voice was quiet as he accepted the difficult memories. "There's a couple countries that they have programs in. The sputnik program is from my father's home. I can tell you almost everything about every model ever made up until nine years ago."

"That is very specific." Sy could tell something was wrong, but he wasn't sure exactly what the best way to handle the situation was.

Jim curtly changed the subject. "We should listen to the instructions."

"Right." Sy sighed softly.

"Alright boys! Your mission will be to circle the planet two times. This is an observation mission, you will be expected to take pictures of any abnormalities you spot. If I were you, I would use the first circle to take preliminary pictures and to get a feel for the planet. On the second lap locate and photograph the abnormalities." Mrs. Parr beamed at the boys. "You will have additional instructions once the program starts. I'll close your pods. Goggles on!" The button was farther away than Jim thought she could reach, but the lids started to close as Mrs. Parr slammed her fist into it.

The last thing the boys heard before the glass clicked into place was, "Come. Fly with me, gatinhos!"