Candidates
Manned Spaceflight Center, Awara, Daitō
UTC 0900
16 June, 1998
The room was loud and felt stuffy as members of Daitō's aerospace and scientific community, a select few military and civilian pilots, scientists, engineers, and others, entered. Some of the brightest men and women of their generation, they had come here after being selected as candidates for the NASDA's Ūchunaut Group 17, likely among the first to fly aboard the nation's next generation Space Station. Some recognized each other, whether it be due to them having worked together in the past or having attended previous courses in an effort to become official ūchunauts. Among these were Mitsuo Yanagida and Taichi Yukawa, who had met while serving aboard the IDN Utsugi back in the day.
"Well, look at what the cat dragged in." Taichi said as he caught a glimpse of his former comrade.
"Had a feeling you would be here, Taichi." Mitsuo replied, taking a seat next to him. "Had a feeling you'd be here. First time?"
"Yeah, well, not everyone gets picked twice." Taichi stated, leaning back in his seat. "You think we're the only guys outa Utsu?"
"I mean, I didn't see anyone I recognized so probably." Mitsuo said with a slight laugh. There wasn't any way he'd know for sure since it had been a few years since he got transferred off the vessel. "But hey, as long as the two of us stick together, we should come out mostly unscathed." He would've said more if he could, but he was soon interrupted by someone else entering the room, someone far more important than anyone else there, at least in terms of his renown.
The room went quiet for a moment as the door opened and a man, aged at least 70 and standing around 1.8 or so meters tall entered the room. Of course, everyone immediately recognized him, after all, he was perhaps the greatest role model for many of those there. Kanji Akasaki had been a national hero, after all, since he had flown their first mission to space back in 1961.
"Alright, take a seat so we can get started." Kanji said, walking over to his desk at the front of the room. Essentially immediately, everyone else sat down as they were told, as though they were all back in school, because in a way, they were. "My name is Kanji Akasaki, and I'm here to welcome you to NASDA. But first, my congratulations. As of this moment, you are officially ūchunaut candidates." He continued, taking a seat on he edge of his desk, his arms crossed as he looked across the room. "You've come from near and far, all across the Empire and in some cases, even beyond. I know I recognize a few faces, Mitsuo Yanagida-san, but for the rest of you, this'll be something of a rude awakening. This is a rigorous, 24/7 training program which'll prepare you for space travel. Of the thirty of you here, far less will be here a year from now. If we're being honest, I don't know if any of you will make it." He added. "This is how this'll work: I will be grading you as we proceed, and everything you do will be graded. I'm talking pilot performance, academics, your character and motivation. From this moment until you either flunk out or you make it through, your life will be under a microscope. I'll be posting your results periodically out in the hall; if you do not see your name on that list, pack up your things and get out. You're cut."
For a moment he paused, watching his new pupils very, very closely. Some were taking notes, others listening closely, and a few seemed as though they hadn't been paying attention in the slightest. They would be among those likely not to make it, but that remained to be seen. The rest of them? They may have promise, he admitted. Most of what he said was meant to push them to try as hard as they could. Even Yanagida had a good chance, after all, he only barely failed in the last round of selection.
With a sigh, Kanji spoke up once more. "Okay, kill the lights. Lets get to the program overview." He said, motioning towards one of the light switches before one of the candidates turned off the light. "This will call for basic science programs, jet qualification, celestial navigation, simulator training, guidance, navigation and control training. Just for the UHS, the bird most of you will be riding, we'll be covering some eleven-hundred pages going through every system onboard." He said, pointing to various parts of a sheet on the projector. "That's on top of a lot of other things, but we'll get into that in time. Next up will be Personnel Launch System training. Like the UHS, many of you will be flying on her in time, then working with the Chiheisen laboratory..." He trailed on for hours, going in detail through every major and minor part of their training.
By the time they finished, it was nearly five in the afternoon, at which point they were released for the first of their actual classes. Another five hours on that one. So much work, just to get a chance, not a guarantee, to fly.