Interstellar Age

Erich awoke the next day in Yumi's hotel room. He had only a vague notion of what had transpired the night before. After all, he had drank far more alcohol than what was considered the legal limit of consumption within the Empire.

Normally alcohol would have no effect on the man's body, due to the nanites which were swarming in his bloodstream, known more commonly as NeuroLink, as well as the genetic enhancements he had received at birth, but he had whitelisted the toxin known as alcohol, allowing him to get drunk for the first time in his life.

But one thing was abundantly clear in Erich's mind. He had finally graduated from the status of a virgin boy and had become a man in his own right. As much as Erich feared anyone finding out about what he had just done, Yumi assured him that nobody would be any the wiser, especially the authorities.

Evidently, this was not her first time sleeping with a Germanic man, despite the strict penalties associated with the crime of miscegenation, because she was not worried in the slightest that the authorities would investigate their little dalliance.

Thus, came an end to their brief relationship, as Yumi gave Erich a slight peck on the lips, before kicking him out of her room, instructing him never to contact her again. From the start Erich knew that no real relationship would come from this one-night stand, but after being given the opportunity to lose his virginity, something he feared he would never be able to accomplish in this life due to his genetic abnormalities, he was more than willing to take Yumi up on her offer.

After absconding from Yumi's hotel room, Erich made his way to the Naval Academy, where he was supposed to register the night before as a new cadet. The Petty Officer at the front desk gave the young man a stern look before scolding him for his tardiness.

"Jaeger, huh? It says here in the system that your transport arrived in Germania last night. Why have you waited until now to report for duty?" 𝒃𝙚𝙙𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝒍．𝒏𝒆𝒕

Normally this was a question that would land Erich in hot water, but Yumi had given him a valid excuse for his tardiness, and thus he did not waver as he explained the situation that had prevented him from arriving at the Naval Academy sooner.

"I was held up by a foreign diplomat who requested my support in a personal matter. We met on the flight to Germania. Her name is Kondo Yumi, and she is a representative of the Oni Emperor."

The Petty Officer looked at Erich with suspicion in his blue eyes for several moments in silence. Evidently, he was using the grid to confirm whether or not Erich's story was true. After waiting for no more than five seconds, he sighed before reaching into a nearby cabinet where he handed Erich a basket full of various items such as his new uniform, grooming supplies, a change of clothes for physical training, among other things. After doing this, the man informed Erich of which barracks he would be living in for the next four years of his life.

"I have confirmed your story to be accurate. Although I don't know what a fresh cadet could offer a representative of the Oni Emperor, I have been informed that this matter is not to be investigated any further. Thus, you will not be assigned a punishment for your tardiness.

Normally there would be an orientation for the new class of cadets, but since you are three months early, due to your abnormality... You will have to wait for the others to arrive. In the meantime, you will report to your barracks in the west wing of the academy, room 526257, where you will get dressed in your new uniform before joining the other mutants in their early classes.

After you have completed your duties for the day, you will be given the rest of the night to complete your assigned work before getting some shuteye. The Curfew is 9:30 PM. You will only get this one warning, so listen carefully! If you are caught outside of your barracks after hours, you will be severely punished. Do I make myself clear?"

Erich immediately snapped to attention and saluted the Petty Officer before responding to his question with a solid voice.

"Yes, sir!"

The Petty Officer remained stoic as he gave one final order before getting back to his terminal.

"Dismissed!"

Upon hearing this, Erich began to clamber his way through the massive campus, which housed millions of young cadets. Germania was a super earth with a radius 50% larger than the Earth, and a surface gravity which was nearly twice the weight of Earth's.

Not only was it a significantly larger planet than the world which birthed the Germanic race, but it was also an Ecumenopolis, meaning the entire planet was one giant city, much like all the core worlds of the Germanic Star-Empire.

How was such a giant planet, with trillions of inhabitants able to sustain itself? Well, for energy concerns they made use of Dyson swarms, and antimatter reactors which provided more than enough power for the planet to function off of for the next few centuries, even if they were to somehow lose access to their means of generating energy.

As for means of agriculture. The Germanic Star-Empire made use of orbital farms which were scattered across the globe, which provided an ease of transportation to the planet without fear of supply lines being disrupted.

Thus, Germania was able to house several giant military academies which were the size of Earth cities from the 21st century.

Luckily for Erich, there was free public transport, and a navigation chart of the planet which had been automatically uploaded to his NeuroLink the moment he first stepped foot on Germania. This allowed him to quickly find his way to wherever he wanted to go.

As Erich stepped on the hovertrain, which would take him to the barracks, he noticed several other cadets who were several years older than him sitting around and listening to music, which they played for the entire cabin to suffer through.

Erich immediately knew what girl group they were listening to, and could not help but groan as he heard the grown men argue about which of the up-and-coming teenage idols were the hottest of the group.

"I'm telling you, man, Erika Krieger is a fucking goddess in the flesh. Not only is she just about the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on, but she also has the voice of an angel. And the way she can move her hips, it is fucking unreal! She is quite literally perfect in every way! It is not much of a surprise though, after all, her parents were both exceptional performers in their own rights when they were younger. She definitely deserves the number one spot in With Love."

With Love was a new pop group that had just debuted a few months prior. Its members were all roughly fourteen years old, making them appealing to a male audience, specifically because none of them were engaged yet.

To Erich, who had a relatively unique taste in music, that being music which was now several centuries old, he could not stand the pop industry, which he saw as just another tool of the Empire to keep its population under control. As of late, everywhere he looked, he could see the girls of With Love plastered all over the place. Whether it was on the grid, or in person, he could not get the sight of the pink-haired bimbo out of his mind.

Perhaps what infuriated him most about the pop industry was their dyed hair, which was a mockery to a mutant like himself. Members of the entertainment industry were given certain liberties that the other aspects of society were not permitted. As a result, it was quite common for young pop stars to dye their hairs in flamboyant colors, as a way to prove that they were different from everyone else.

Erich was discriminated against because of his silver hair, but Erika was beloved by the Empire, partially because her bubblegum pink hair was so different from every other woman on the street.

As an actual mutant, born with an abnormality which caused his hair and eyes to be unique, Erich could not help but have disdain for those who would purposely dye their hair an unnatural color, thinking it made them look attractive.

His scorn for the young pop star was made apparent by the expression on his face, which caused the other cadets to pause their music and approach him with ill intentions. It had been a while since any of these young men had seen a mutant, and though they first ignored the pitiful creature, the fact that he had dared to insult their goddess could not go unpunished.

Thus, the leader of the group approached Erich and grabbed hold of his collar while lifting him up into the air, all while screaming at his victim for showing the slightest disinterest in their conversation.

"What's so funny, mutant? Don't tell me you look down on my wife!"

Despite the aggressive posturing by the older cadet, Erich did not appear the least bit intimidated, instead, he scoffed with a look of scorn on his handsome face, before scolding the man for being an idiot.

"Wife? Please, once that goddess of yours has used up her value to society, she will be sold off to some three hundred-year-old party member who wants a hot young wife. You are aware that is the fate of most, if not all, of the young women in the entertainment industry, right? Erika is no exception. She has maybe ten to twenty years left in the industry, before everyone has forgotten about her, and then I feel sorry for whoever has to marry such a brainless bimbo."

If Erich could describe the look on the man's face, whose goddess he had just insulted by speaking the truth, it would be like a baboon who had been kicked in the testicles. The man was so enraged by what had just happened that he did not hesitate to punch Erich in the gut.

Erich was only slightly above the average Germanic male in terms of size. It was because of this that he was selected to become a starfighter pilot and not a star marine. As for the Cadet in front of him, he was clearly chosen for the role of the Empire's most fearsome infantry, because he was over 215cm tall, and easily weighed over 150kgs of pure muscle.

Even if Erich was enhanced with a superior gene serum at birth, he still felt the impact of the man's fist as it collided with his solar plexus. Thus falling to his knees, as he threw up all the alcohol that was still in his stomach from the night before.

As he was heaving on the ground, Erich heard the man curse him out loud, while his friends pulled him away so that he could not further assault the new cadet. Which was an act worthy of expulsion.

"Impudent little shit!"

Despite being forced to vomit his stomach contents all over the floor, Erich simply smiled as he wiped the bile from the side of his mouth, before shouting across the train, towards the man who had assaulted him.

"You have been here longer than me, so you should know that everything you do in this academy is recorded and observed by the staff. Congratulations asshole, you will receive an expulsion for assaulting a new cadet, have fun being a fucking grunt for the next eight years, I wonder if you will be deployed against the Naraku, though I doubt your genetic material will contribute much to their evolution after they devour you!"

To be eaten alive by the Naraku was quite possibly the biggest fear of a Star Marine. There was nothing more embarrassing and dishonorable than dying in such a way. Even if they did manage to get cloned back into existence, the shame of being eaten by a fucking bug would never be washed off their record.

Thus, in an act of rage, the large cadet, broke out of the grips of his comrades, and rushed towards Erich, before punching him in the face, knocking him to his knees, where the silver-haired man continued to laugh at and taunt the brute who was assaulting him.

"Oh sure, dig yourself into a deeper pile of shit! You will definitely be sent into a penal battalion to fight against the bugs now!"

Eventually, the train came to a stop, where the comrades of the large brute pulled him off the train, leaving Erich black and blue. However, this lasted only for a minute, before his body began to regenerate, which was an effect of both the nanites in his bloodstream, and the genetic serum he had received at birth.

As quickly as he had received the injuries, so too did they disappear, leaving Erich spotless as he chuckled. He had been at the Naval Academy for less than an hour, and already he was starting trouble. He wondered how his father would react when he received the news. One thing was certain, the next four years of his life were going to be interesting.