Interstellar Age
Chapter 3 Graduation Day

Three days came and went, and before Erich knew it, he had completed the remainder of his classes, as well as his final exams. On the fourth day, he was required to attend his graduation, which was a ceremony which he detested to be a part of. Nevertheless, rules were rules, and though Erich had a history of breaking many of the more petty laws in Germanic society, this was not something so easily skirted.

Thus, on the morning of the fourth day, Erich awoke bright and early, where he proceeded to shower and get dressed before approaching the dining room, where his mother was already in the act of preparing his breakfast.

Krista appeared in a particularly good mood, as she hummed one of her favorite pop songs, while cooking sausage, eggs, sauerkraut, and pancakes. She also prepared a large glass of fresh milk for her eldest son, who was about to have his big day.

While the woman cooked for her family, most of which who were not even awake yet, she watched the news on a holographic projection, paying attention to the latest happenings across the Germanic Star Empire, and beyond its borders.

Erich was quite skeptical of the media within the Empire, as every network was state funded and operated. They acted more as a means of propaganda than the distribution of information. Of course, to watch any other source of the news than one that was State sponsored was a criminal act, and thus the only way Erich had been able to understand what was really going on in the galaxy, was through bypassing the national firewall on the grid, and accessing underground news networks.

However, since he was currently being punished for owning contraband, he did not currently have access to his usual sources, and thus could only scoff as he heard the Empire's primary news network speak their usual propaganda. This was something that the boy's mother immediately noticed, but did not comment on, instead she listened with interest to the reporter, who was speaking about some rather harrowing news in a distant part of the galaxy.

"And in other news, the world of Rylon 7 has been attacked by the galactic menace commonly known as the Naraku. For those who are not educated about the various alien species of the galaxy, the Naraku are a species of insectoids who are classified as a devouring swarm. This means that they traverse the galaxy in their hive fleets and devour all organic life that they come into contact with.

It is believed by the Empire's foremost experts in xenomorphology, that the Naraku utilize the organic material which they consume to speed up their evolution, thus making them a particularly troublesome opponent for most interstellar civilizations.

However, the Supreme Leader has assured us that this is not an issue we should be worried about, as the Alfheim Dominion has personally dispatched their fifth fleet to deal with these troublesome pests. Not to mention that the nearest Hive Fleet is several thousand light years away from our borders. The Empress of the Light Elves has also declared she will use her military might to annihilate any insectoid which dares to enter into her quadrant of space."

Erich scoffed once more when he heard this news. What the broadcaster had failed to mention was the fact that most insectoid species were not classified as devouring swarms, and thus were not any larger of a threat than any other species which the Empire came into contact with.

The fact that the Empress of the Light Elves declared that she would annihilate every insectoid in her quadrant of space had more to do with the borderline obsession with vanity that her species had, then it did with the actual threat of insectoids.

The Light Elves of the Alfheim Dominion were one of four major galactic powers, and the territory that fell into their sphere of influence was roughly one fourth of the milky way galaxy. Included in this vast swath of space was the Germanic Star-Empire, who were a direct vassal of the Alfheim Dominion.

This afforded the Germanic people certain privileges, such as the direct protection of a major galactic power, and the only reason they, or any other species, were able to gain such a privilege would be due to one very specific factor. Whether or not the Light Elves found their species to be physically attractive.

Though the Light Elves were very similar to the Germanic Star Empire in regards to their views of miscegenation, they were obsessed with aesthetics, and would not sponsor any race they found to be ugly or unappealing.

The fact that a recent galactic upstart like the Germanic Star-Empire could even survive in the greater galaxy, let alone rapidly expand into a regional power, was specifically because they were a vassal of the Alfheim Dominion. Still, Erich did not really care that much about the lives of insectoids. What he was more concerned about was just how the Alfheim Dominion's fifth fleet would deal with the Naraku hive fleet located in their territory. He could not help but comment on this aloud, which was something that drew his mother's ire.

"Let me guess, the Alfheim dominion is going to send their favorite attack dog to do their dirty work, just like they always do."

Immediately after saying this, Erich felt his skull get pounded by a synthetic spoon as his mother stood over him with a furious look in her eyes. She was quick to scold er son about his distasteful comments.

"How dare you call your own people mere attack dogs! It is the honor of our race to fight for the glory of the Empire! You know as well as I do that for every major victory we gain on behalf of our Suzerains, we are rewarded with the terraforming of a new planet! Our people would not be as powerful as they are today without the benefits we gain from this pact! The other races may refer to us as mere attack dogs out of sheer jealousy, but a member of my own flesh and blood will never refer to his people with such a derogatory term!"

Thinking about what he had said, Erich realized he should have kept his mouth shut. After all, his mother, like nearly every other living citizen in the Germanic Star-Empire, was fiercely nationalistic. To the point where even being a common war hound for a superior civilization was a matter of pride.

Having chatted with many people from the Great Oni Empire, who were a neighboring civilization and ally of the Germanic Star-Empire, Erich had a view of his own people that was more in line with the rest of the galaxy. Something which he would only dare utter aloud around his mother. Or else he would likely be subject to re-education. Thus, Erich apologized to his mother for his crass remarks. Even if he wasn't sincerely sorry for what he had said.

"I'm sorry mother, I should not have said that..."

The woman still continued to glare at her eldest son with her ice-blue eyes, before finally smiling after several moments of awkward silence. She then placed another sausage on the boy's plate before telling him to get ready for graduation.

"Alright, finish up your breakfast, and then get your butt to school. I still have to wake up your father and siblings, but I will see you at the ceremony when it begins!"

Erich wanted to groan upon hearing this. He knew that the only reason his father or siblings would even bother attending his graduation was because his mother was basically forcing them to do so. Regardless of his feelings towards this whole ordeal, he did as his mother had said, and finished his meal before departing for his school.

---

The graduation ceremony began not long after Erich arrived at the venue. He was dressed in his traditional gown and cap. Normally he would be giving a speech as the Valedictorian of his class, but because he was a mutant, the position was awarded to someone else.

After all, the school could not very well have a mutant representing it on a day such as this. Hell, the fact that he was even allowed to graduate in the first place was a blessing in itself, which was probably only permitted as a sign of respect to his father, who was the sector governor.

Erich stood in the crowd waiting for his name to be called. He watched as kids who only knew him by the nickname "Silber" one by one stood up and received their diplomas. Though there was not really a need for paper products, with everything being in holographic form these days, it was still a tradition, perhaps carried over from the old world to print certain things like diplomas on paper.

After all, each of the Empire's worlds were powered by a Dyson swarm and hundreds of antimatter reactors. Because of this, they were never lacking in energy. No matter how much information was recorded and stored on the interstellar network, it would never disappear from society.

Eventually Erich's name was called, however, like he suspected it was at the very end of his graduating class. Despite things being in alphabetic order, a mutant would always come last, and thus he stepped forward with a stoic expression on his face, as he received his diploma to the applause of literally one person in the entire audience: his mother.

Not even his father or siblings cared enough about Erich to show him their support on a day that would usually be a cause for celebration. Naturally, this caused Krista to pout, which only Erich cared to notice. After receiving his diploma, Erich stepped down from the stage and entered the crowd of other young men who had done the same.

He then waited for the speech given by the headmaster of their school, which would be the last bit of propaganda he would have to endure from the old bastard for the rest of his life. Thus, while Erich listened to a long-winded speech about the future of the Empire, he yawned and thought about more important matters.

"I wanted to congratulate all of you young men today, as your childhood comes to an end, and you officially take your place in our great society. Most of you will be spending the next eight to ten years of your life in the military, where you will work hard to prove your worth to the Empire. Some of you, who have been selected for more prominent positions, may even spend the next twenty years in service to the Empire. For that, you have my greatest envy!

However, I am sure that after your tenure in the Armed Forces comes to an end, that each and every one of you will be able to contribute to society in a way that the party has deemed fitting. Whether you become a politician or a simple sanitary worker, you can rest easy, knowing that your lot in life has been decided based on your own abilities. Go forth and bring glory to the Empire!"

Both the audience and the crowd of graduating students broke out into applause as the headmaster concluded his speech. Only one member who was in attendance to witness it half assed his applause and rolled his eyes. And that was Erich. Luckily, he was just another member of the crowd, and thus nobody witnessed his subtle act of rebellion.

After the ceremony was over, Erich returned to his home, where he lied down and rested in his room. Though a party was being thrown for his graduating class by some of the school's alumni. He was not invited. After all, Erich was a mutant, and nobody would voluntarily associate with him if they were given a choice in the matter.

Erich would only be given two weeks worth of rest before he was shipped out to the Naval Academy in the Empire's capital. Where he would spend the next few years of his life, studying to become an officer in the Imperial Navy.