The Woes Of The Horse Breeder

Senior Specialist Yunfeer had dealt with many young and promising cadets during his long tenure in the Imperial Forces. Troubled orphans, isolated geniuses, juvenile criminals, unruly royal heirs — Yunfeer had dealt with all of them.

Yunfeer had helped every single one of them with their personal problems and given them the inner strength, skills, and discipline to succeed at anything they wished to do in life. And he had also given them something even greater: A permanent home in the Imperial Forces.

For this, he was beloved in the Imperial Forces by several generations of high-ranking officers, generals, and admirals. Some called him the finest 'horse breeder' in the Empire's history.

He was a man who could take a lump of ordinary coal and turn it into a sterling diamond. But truth be told, he had hit a bump in the road as of late. A unique problem he had never encountered before in all his years as an instructor...

That problem's name was... Aetna Erandeusi.

Aetna was Yunfeer's current 'project,' at the behest of Commander Telam. And although he acknowledged that the lad was gifted — brighter than most of his peers — the boy was beyond stubborn, possibly more than he was capable of fixing.

He equated Aetna to a wild dragon rather than a domesticated stallion. Even though it was a grand creature, it was not a domesticated animal. It was a feral creature, down to the marrow of its bones.

Yunfeer could tame unruly horses, but a wild dragon? That was a different matter altogether...

Types like Aetna were incredibly rare and almost always could never be tamed. At their core, they did what as they wished and could not be reasoned with. They were free spirits and individualists that usually operated on different moral and ethical codes than normal people.

Simply put, these people were not a good fit in the Imperial Forces. They scoffed at authority, acted outside of the sphere of the law, and couldn't be controlled.

To be fair, though, unconventional thinking was a tactical advantage, but only when used in moderation. Too much of it was a recipe for disaster, in Yunfeer's opinion.

When Yunfeer first read the reports on what Aetna had done before his transfer to the 1st Fleet, he immediately understood what he was dealing with. The boy was a true diamond in the rough.

Aetna's various escape attempts — irritating as they were — displayed how abnormally gifted he was when he had a purpose that motivated him to act. Yunfeer's job, in essence, was to create a purpose for him to direct his gifts toward a better direction. Preferably, a direction that would prove productive for the Empire.

The first preliminary investigation into Aetna's personal history had uncovered a few... concerning details about him, to say the least.

For one, all of his academic scores indicated that they were well within what was considered to be average. In fact, they were so mediocre... they had deviated by about a hundredth of a percentile of the galactic average.

In 2697, Aetna graduated from the University of Fahne with an engineering degree without any honors or notable commendations to speak of. A thorough inspection of his exam scores actually revealed that he had barely graduated.

It was clearly an unnatural trend. A red flag, to be sure. Anyone with half a brain was capable of concluding that he had been deliberately manipulating his academic scores.

Not through underhanded means, of course. But through a thoughtful and measured methodology of intentional failure to conceal his actual intelligence.

The investigation determined that he might have been hiding his gifts as early as age ten. Possibly even earlier.

Further investigations into his personal life exposed that he had developed a hidden interest in Jameson-Lao Field Theory and N-Dimensional Theory — both critical subjects in the restricted field of N-Field Travel (NFT).

It was important to note that research into NFT and NFT-related material was classified top secret by the Solastora Empire. All information related to the design, construction, and theory behind NFT drives was prohibited because only a handful of people in the Empire were allowed to access them...

And any illegal access to the aforementioned materials was punishable by immediate death.

Aetna's unique awareness of critical flaws within the Empire's warships was another major point of contention in his personal evaluation. It was still unknown how he had hijacked the propulsion systems of the flagship he had been assigned to during the infamous Ispex-Training Accident.

It was evidently clear that he possessed an incredibly intimate understanding of the Empire's ships, enough for him to have successfully hijacked a cutting-edge military ship by himself, if only temporarily.

The report concluded that Aetna's value to the Empire was enough to evaluate him as a Tier-One Asset on paper — the same level of value as an Elite Cadet. This evaluation, though, was determined on the condition that he could be disciplined and rehabilitated. As Aetna was now, he was more of a growing liability than an asset...

This is why Aetna had been sent to the most prestigious military instructor in the Solastora Empire, Yunfeer Jalan.

Even so, it befuddled Yunfeer. Why had they sent the boy to him? Although he begrudgingly admitted that Aetna was a gem, he felt it waste to keep him in the Imperial Forces.

It was a waste of the boy's potential — he belonged in a laboratory more than he did in the deck of a battleship. Yunfeer felt he'd do much better with the Empire's brightest eggheads mentoring him rather than a military instructor.

But perhaps, this was the only option for him, thought Yunfeer. The boy needed someone to reign in his excessive energy and focus it on something that would help the Empire, that would help the people, and with some luck, maybe even the entire galaxy...

Yunfeer recalled his own youth. How he was saved by a military instructor himself when he had lost everything. How he had been brought up in the arms of the military and given a bigger purpose than he could have ever dreamt of — helping the young chase their dreams.

He reminded himself that even the smallest, poorest, and weakest person could become a fountain of hope for others one day and a pillar of stability for the Empire.

So, if someone at the bottom could grow could accomplish that, what would someone as gifted as this child be capable of once he was properly mentored and guided?

Not even Yunfeer could fathom that sort of future, but he knew it would be bright... and that was worth putting all his effort into disciplining Aetna into a respectable young man.

And so, Yunfeer would be hard on him, even harder on him than the rest of the cadets. But not because he disliked him or enjoyed causing him grief, but because it would prepare him for the future.

He would put Aetna through hell now so that he would be equipped to overcome anything and everything that life would certainly throw at him later. That was the essence of his job.

Yunfeer glared at Aetna for a second as he scanned the fellow from top to bottom, checking for any imperfections in his formal uniform. If there was anyone he had his sights on today, it was certainly Aetna.

In his eyes, his biggest concern was the youth who was currently trying his hardest not to move so much as a single millimeter out of alignment. The poor kid nearly perspired his weight in sweat when Yunfeer passed by to inspect his uniform.

Aetna hated it when Yunfeer did that — when he picked on him, but he knew that it was warranted given their troubled history. He, too, would do the same to him if was in Yunfeer's shoes, but it didn't lessen his displeasure about the matter. It was their fault in the first place for not letting him go home...

The time had come. It was 1540 Standard Time, the appointed time that they would arrive — the 1st Elite Cadet Squadron and the Lord Admiral of the 1st Fleet, Leifon Savugh.

Silence filled the Observatory as everyone waited on pins and needles like children. And an eternity seemed to have passed until the familiar hiss the Observatory's pressurized doors opening awoke everyone from their stunted daze.

Everyone immediately saluted when they saw the Lord Admiral take his first step into the Observatory and shifted themselves into attention.

Yunfeer, who stood in front of his misfit squadron, saluted the two people who had entered first and said, "Commander Telam. Lord Leifon. Joyeuse Squadron is honored to have you visit us today."

Commander Telam nodded and said, "At ease, Senior Specialist Yunfeer. You needn't be so formal amongst old friends. Come now, let us not scare our poor cadets."

Of course, that was something Yunfeer already knew. Nevertheless, he was a veteran of the old guard, so he was as rigid as the hull of Joyeuse itself. But if Commander Telam asked him to relax, then he was obliged to follow the request.

"There's no helping Yunfeer, Commander. He's always been like that, so why not let him be?" asked a young man as he struggled to hold in his laughter.

The man who said that was the Lord Admiral, Leifon Savugh. He strolled up to Yunfeer and in a surprising turn of events, gave him a large hug. It was even more surprising to the cadets when Yunfeer... actually returned the sentiment in a shocking display of emotion and humanity.

"It's good to see you haven't kicked the bucket yet, sir," said Leifon as he warmly shook Yunfeer's hand.

Yunfeer chuckled and said, "No need to worry, your royal highness. I've won't be retiring any time soon. Not while there are still more royal brats for me to whip into proper shape, haha..."

Leifon smiled. There was nothing more comforting than to see the same instructor who had put him through hell in good shape. Even though Leifon was in charge of the ship Yunfeer was assigned to, that didn't mean that he could always visit him.

The job of an admiral was demanding and often required him to order the ships in his far away, to distant starsectors. There was, after all, a lot of space that needed to be patrolled when one was in charge of defending a galactic empire...

For some reason, Aetna had always possessed a skewed idea of the royal family. He had always pictured them as cold, ruthless machines, given what he knew about them. How they had founded their empire and treated their enemies.

They were, after all, rulers of a galactic dynasty that encompassed thousands of light-years, thousands of habitable worlds, and hundreds of billions of people.

"So, how's work treating you?" said Leifon as he curiously turned an eye toward Yunfeer's cadets and continued, "I've heard you've got some... real troublemakers this time around!"

Yunfeer paused for a second before he said, "That's for sure, but it's nothing I can't handle. They're an unruly bunch, but I'll have them combat-ready in a couple of months."

Leifon nodded in agreement as he began to slowly walk through the squadron's ranks and said, "Of that, I have no doubt. I'm not sure it's even possible for you to fail, Yunfeer..."

'He looks so young! Hell, he doesn't even look a day older than twenty-five,' thought Aetna when he finally got a better view of the Lord Admiral.

Aetna attributed to genetic engineering. It wasn't that uncommon for the rich to delay the aging process, even if it cost them a small fortune. And the royal family was the richest in the Empire, so it didn't feel like much of a stretch to come to that conclusion.

Aetna's interest in the Lord Admiral's youthful image stemmed from the fact that one had to be at least over fifty years of age to even be considered for the rank of admiral.

There were no young men in the highest echelons of the Imperial Forces, so he couldn't help but find the Lord Admiral fascinating...

Even though he knew that genetic therapy had come a long way, the Lord Admiral's youthful appearance challenged what he understood about the anti-aging effects granted by genetic modification.

It was almost as if his youthfulness stemmed from another source. From something else, much akin to a certain Commander that Aetna knew about...

The possibility rattled around in his brain, bugging him. And it made some sense, too. There was no way that the Lord Admiral wasn't a part of what Commander Telam had spoken about.

Aetna rudely examined the Lord Admiral from the bottom-up until his gaze landed on his elegant face, which surprised him.

Two golden orbs creepily stared right back at him, like a predator watching over its prey. Aetna had seen eyes like those before... and they confirmed his suspicions. He hurriedly shifted his gaze forward and prayed to god that Yunfeer hadn't noticed that...

Leifon deftly shifted his gaze to Yunfeer and said, "Hmm, yes... I can feel it in my gut — this squadron's going to be something else. ...Something unique. I have great expectations for what you'll produce this time, Yunfeer. The Empire needs more diamonds to make it shine even brighter."

Nevertheless, Aetna had learned something new — the Lord Admiral's eyes were slightly darker than Commander Telam's eyes. He also had a bit of a reddish tinge around the outer edge of his irises. What that meant, though, was beyond him...

Had Yunfeer caught him eyeing the Lord Admiral as if he were some exotic animal to be examined, it was likely that he would've been torn to pieces. Thankfully, it seemed that the Lord Admiral was looser with the rules than Yunfeer.

'Ohhh, fuuuckk! God fucking dammit! Shiiiiit, shiiiit, shit...!'

When Leifon noticed the dread on Aetna's face, a small smirk formed on his lips.

'He's exactly as the reports described him... What a funny little fellow. I wonder how he'll manage to deal with... Ah well, either way, it'll be fun to watch it all pan out..."

When Lord Admiral had his fill inspecting the cadets of Joyeuse Squadron, he said, "...Well, let us not stand around here like statues. Shall we continue with the mission briefing, gentlemen?"

Commander Telam nodded at Yunfeer, giving him the go-ahead to give the cadets permission to fall out and head towards their assigned seating. The time had come to inform the cadets about their training mission.

And get them acquainted with their new, soon-to-be friends...

The 1st Elite Cadet Squadron.