[Erax]

Admiral Wiers' private log, SGY 2400.2:

Fate sometimes plays us strange cards. I was never meant to be fully in charge here. To the Imperial Fleet, I was always a necessity, someone whose job needed to be done before they could take off in their shiny ships to do the real work.

They call officers like me planet builders. But they have other names they use when we're not around. Dirtsiders. Rockhuggers. Dock jocks. They might promote me, but they would never let me work unsupervised.

But it happened. Yesterday we launched the Nova I, with 14 million colonists aboard her. They should reach Virgillia I within the tenth. She was the crudest, ugliest ship I ever launched.

When she took off, she was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen.

Nova I will do her job. In my heart, I know it.

But will I ?