Katie Holt stood in front of the entrance of the Galaxy Garrison,surrounded by other aspirants, her hands were shaking violently and as she stared at her reflection on the doors of the prestigious school, she noticed she seemed much paler than usual. It had been a week since the written exam, which she felt quite confident about it, but the practical test carried out in the facilities of the Garrison were an entirely separate issue.

Her father had told her about the test days before so she could prepare. She would have the main instructors of the academy judging her performance and they would compare both written and practical evaluations to decide whether a student would be accepted or not. Katie had already passed the first hurdle, there were many students who could not pass the written exam and were not called back for the practical test, but her father had mentioned that regardless of a perfect written exam result, it was very possible to be rejected if her performance in the practical test was less than pitiful.

"Hi there" greeted a voice so out of nowhere, she could not help but turn to see to whom it belonged. A tall and dark-skinned brunette stood behind her and looked at her with a flirtatious smile, "It seems that it's true that the Garrison is full of beautiful girls. They should honestly give us a free pass, i mean, what kind of klutz would fail a physical exam?'

Katie looked at him with annoyance, but the boy had already left to greet other girls who seemed to have just arrived. She let out a loud scoff, hoping she wouldn't have to cross paths with such an unpleasant person again. At that moment the doors opened.

Although she had previously been in the academy building, she had never been in any of the practice rooms. Inside, there were simulators and obstacle courses and everything seemed to be of the latest technology.

The applicants were led by a stern-looking woman to a prep room, where they were given uniforms with their applicant numbers marked. Then, they were led to a huge room that had a couple of adjoining locke rooms, one for men and one for women, where they were all given instructions. "You will each go one by one, one man and one woman according to their applicant number. You will be asked to do a series of activities according to the results of your written exam and the necessary skills for the position which you are applying to. Keep in mind there are different exams for pilots, mechanics, and communications technicians." With that, the woman dismissed herself and left the applicants in the room. After just 10 minutes, and with half of the applicants already dressed, an overhead speaker began to call the applicants in, one by one.

Each person left the room, but none of them returned, which led the young woman to conclude that there must be a second door through which the candidates exited after completing their examination. She estimated, by the frequency in which names were announced, that the average duration of the exam was approximately 10 minutes, very little time, she felt, to show the examiners the full extent of her abilities and potential.

Finally there were only a handful of people left, when Katie Holt heard her name announced through the overhead speaker. Her hands were still shaking a little and when she opened the door a chill ran through her body. Clearly, she was very nervous.

As Katie entered the room, her eyes blurred and the room spun for a quick moment, so it took a minute to focus in on her surroundings. She found herself in the middle of a large gym with an obstacle course and a semi-dismantled simulator. Above her, there was a balcony from where you could admire the entirety of the gym, inside were seven people that the girl recognized as the main instructors of the Galaxy Garrison.

The brunette felt her nerves swell, her father almost never mixed his work with his personal life and even so she could perfectly identify each of the instructors. At the ends, she could see Commander and First Captain Mitch Iverson and her own father, Major Samuel Holt; next to them, were the Major and Commander Roy Fokker and the, now very known to her, General Takashi Shirogane. Toward the middle were the Wing Generals, Tim Hendrick and Lauren Montgomery; and finally at the very center, the division General and Director of Galaxy Garrison, Joaquím Dos Santos.

Katie felt increasingly anxious until General Dos Santos's laughter shook her out of her consuming thoughts. She looked at the director with wide eyes, watching the middle-aged man laugh as if he had been told a hilariously funny joke, or perhaps she was the joke.

"Excuse me, sir, but could you tell me what you think is so funny," the girl mustered her courage to stand firm in front of the director. She fought through her fear, keeping her gaze that had crossed with the Generals.

"I apologize for my discourtesy, Miss Holt," replied the director with a laugh, "It's just that I thought it was very funny to see you so nervous." The other instructors joined in his laughter and amusement. Katie looked for her father's semblance, surprised to see that neither he, nor the young General Shirogane, were laughing, both maintained their composure. "Well, on with your examination," continued the director, as he picked up and began reviewing some loose papers in front of him, "Although, I doubt this is even necessary since we are dealing with the daughter of our very own, Samuel Holt." The man smiled at Katie's father, who responded with a slight smile and nod, but his daughter could see the nervousness in his intense gaze.

General Dos Santos asked the girl to repair the simulator in the room. At first, the girl felt it was easier said than done, but in the end it turned out that the solution was painfully obvious: the simulator was simply disassembled. It turned out to be a very simple test and Katie completed it swiftly. She raised her gaze, eyes brimming with pride, but her nerves returned as soon as she saw that all the teachers had a stopwatch in their hands, each one recording the time in which the girl finished and made notes on some sheets placed in front of them.

Again, the Director addressed the young woman with a smile, "Thank you very much, that will be all. You may exit through the door on your left."

Katie turned to her left and to her surprise a young man was there, he must have been there from the beginning and he seemed to be carefully observing her, judging by his uniform, he seemed to be another applicant just like her. She gave a small bow to the teachers and made her way toward the young man beside the door. She could hear the next applicant being called in, while scanning him from head to toe. He was not very tall, his hair a deep black, so much so that he blended in with the shadows, but what really stood out about him was his blue-gray eyes, solitary and intense, like someone who did not have many friends.

For some reason the brunette found herself wanting to talk to him, but the boy had stopped looking at her from the moment they had called the next applicant. His gaze pierced behind Katie's head, she was about to approach him when Iverson's laughter filled the room, the girl felt a chill run throughout body and could not help but turn around. Next to the adjacent door, a boy lied facedown on the floor, she could only assume the boy must have fallen upon entering the room.

"What was a great exhibition! I don't think there's anything else we need to see," Iverson said laughing while applauding loudly, sarcastically, " You're dismissed, the door is right there."

Katie looked stunned toward the balcony of teachers, expecting one of them to speak up or correct Iverson, but it was not like that. Katie looked at her father as he jotted something down in the sheets in his noted, beside him, Shiro crossed his arms, observing the recruit loosely. Nobody appeared to be as remotely interested in the applicant, a dramatic change to when Katie entered the room. The brunette watched the poor boy raise his misty, wet eyes to look at the instructors, the droplets of tears threatening to overflow. She couldn't stand it anymore, she returned to the exam room, each step more determined than the first as her piercing honey eyes glared up at the instructors.

"You can't do this! You have to let him do his exam!" Katie felt her nerves completely disappear and the once shy teenager transformed into a fierce and confident young woman, facing the adults in front of her "Who do you think you are!? Watching us from above as if you all are some kind of judge and executioner!You're just a bunch of pompous, presumptuous braggarts!"

"Miss Holt, I order you to leave this room immediately!" Iverson commanded in a frightening tone, but the girl stood her ground, unfazed.

"You can't order me to do anything! Nobody here can! I can't even say that I have even the slightest respect for anyone of you!"

"Katie!" Her father raised his voice and stood abruptly, "The boy will be allowed to do his exam, but please, leave here at once!"

"And you think that'll satisfy me!?"

"Keith! Get her out of here! Now!"

This time it was Shiro who raised his voice, the boy who was standing by the door approached her, but the girl moved quickly and managed to lift two heavy wrenches and one toward the teachers and the other toward the stranger approaching her. The boy named Keith managed to narrowly miss the tool, as the girl walked toward him, she turned her face impertinently as she passed by him whipping him with her ponytail and left the room slamming the door behind her.

Katie was unable to calm down until after she had returned home. Her mother asked her how the exam went, but the brunette simply redirected, saying she was tired and proceeded to lock herself in her room. She took out her small wooden musical box to soothe her raging emotions. The melody once again danced into her dreamscape, taking the shape of a huge forest. Katie dreamt she was crossing a long river on a gondola directed by a curious being that looked like a sloth standing two meters tall. They came to a place where a dome-like structure made of leaves, foliage and vines was situated. As she began to climb to the top of the strange dome she seemed to hear a voice, more than that it appeared to be a feeling conveyed through the energy of the leaves, she looked down at her feet and saw huge yellow eyes blazing through the roots of the dome and with a choked cry... she woke up.

Katie wiped the sweat from her face and got up, making her way to her personal bathroom to wash her face. The dark of the night peered through her bathroom window, by Katie's calculations it should've soon been approaching dawn. The girl walked to the door of her, intending to get a glass of water to calm her nerves after that strange dream, but when she opened the door she heard her parent's voices.

"Insubordination?" she recognized alarm in her mother's voice, "Our Katie would never do such a thing!"

"That's what happened" said her father, fatigue rich in his tone, "she even attacked the board of directors and a fellow student who was observing the examinations"

"What does this mean for Katie, will they reject her application?"

" I'm not sure, Joaquim refused my petition to participate in the decision, but even if they do accept her, they wouldn't let her off so easily. The managers are furious and won't let her in without a punishment that serves as an example to her fellow classmates."

"What can we do?"

Katie couldn't hear her father's answer, she shut herself up again in her room feeling dejected by the situation her actions had put her family in. She remembered the look of the teary-eyed boy and suddenly her guilt had vanished, it was true. She knew it, she acknowledged it. Her actions were without a doubt an act of insubordination and what was worse was that she did not regret them, whatever punishment (acceptance or no acceptance) the Galaxy Garrison had prepared for her she was determined to face. She had spent the past sleepless nights thinking about how to ensure that her father's presence and her brother's reputation would not give her unfair recognition, she wanted desperately to become an ordinary student in the academy and without realizing it, she had achieved her goal.