Return to earth

She looked a little annoyed at my insistence. She didn't expect me to act that way.

She looked down the hallway and since she didn't see anyone, she approached me and spoke to me.

"Someone is trying to get rid of one of us."

"How do you know that?" I asked him.

"I heard rumors of the presence of half-Ungeziefer people at the academy, and I tapped into communications."

"And so? Is it true?"

"I checked. Yes there are lieutenants of that race, but I can't leave this academy, it might raise suspicions, and I'd have to start from scratch. Just avoid acting strange from now on, but first you have to get back to earth alive. Just don't bother the captain."

Hearing her, I ran out, without saying anything to her. It was an impulse and a need to warn my brother, I knew it was probably to get rid of my brother on this trip or hurt his career as a pilot. Maybe the Ungeziefer already knew. I thought of a thousand things. One of them to go look at the ship's power structure, which was the problem we were having getting back to earth.

[...]

I got to the electrical room and noticed it had also been sabotaged. There were objects that did not correspond to the required wiring, for that was of lousy quality. It would not hold so much energy. A person who did not know the standards would not notice it. This could cause a failure in the system and would burn for all the voltage needed by a machine like this, we would be incommunicado and sailing aimlessly through space.

I walked away from there in the middle of that darkness and kept running. Up to the area where the ship was piloted. I could not waste any more time, since at any moment the system would start to fail; however, one of the pilots and almost graduates shouted at me.

"Don't run cadet!"

I ignored him and continued my way through the narrow place. Until I reached the place where the ship was being handled.

I was shaken, the gravity on the ship was different on earth. I was getting tired much faster and my body was not resisting much.

There were only five people in charge of that place. I tried to talk and give them the information.

"There is a problem with the energy, "I said. 

"If it was already decided that it was not important. Don't worry about it, cadet".

"The wiring is not adequate. It could generate a general failure in the whole system."

All the cadets looked at each other and one of them decided to call all my colleagues through the communication system. Even the detective who was with us. Just as I thought, they didn't even know that.

I sat down on one of the chairs and tried to breathe. So much physical effort in such a place was very difficult.

I watched as one by one all the crew members of the ship arrived, and Miguel was the last one to arrive. He looked a little upset and gave me a dirty look. His partner informed him of the situation, and they started arguing about it. After that, my brother walked over to me.

"Cadet, you should know that if you messed up this time, I will have you suspended for overstepping your duties."

"I know, but I'm right!"

I was getting carried away with sibling conflict. We always argued like that. Miguel was annoyed, but one of his classmates spoke up.

"The cadet is right. The wiring is not adequate. This caused the damage to the gasoline system. We don't know if they were changed precisely when the ship was sent to us or shortly before takeoff. We have to return to Earth immediately, a short could occur and melt the system. We will be cut off and lost in space."

The captain decided to give an order.

"Shut down shields, communication and everything to do with defense. We must decrease power consumption and the wiring will hold out long enough."

It felt pretty good to win, this battle against my brother, but I remained serious, as my father taught me. I was not supposed to show any emotion in front of anyone, but I had a lot of doubts about the way my Miguel was acting. He was supposed to communicate immediately with the academy to report the situation, but he didn't do it. He was afraid of making a mistake and damaging his career. 

My mind began to wander as I watched Miguel in silence. Why didn't he want to inform the academy about the situation? Did it have something to do with the rumors of the presence of Ungeziefer people? Suspicions and doubts swirled in my head, but I didn't have time to think about it at that moment. The priority was to ensure the crew's survival and return to Earth safely.

As the ship continued on course, some of my crewmates were trying to time the ship's operation to reduce power consumption. The tension in the control room was uncomfortable, but everyone was trying their best to remain calm and do their job as best they could.

In the meantime, I decided to approach the detective who was accompanying us on this mission. Maybe he could give some advice on what was going on.

"Detective, excuse the interruption, but there's something wrong with all this," I said in a low tone.

He looked at me curiously and replied, "Tell me, cadet, what's troubling you?"

"The captain, he, refuses to communicate this situation to the academy. And that makes me suspect that there is something else behind all this. Will you write this down in your notebook, or will you help us in this mission?"

The detective frowned and seemed to ponder my words for a moment. Then he sighed and said, "I can neither confirm nor deny your comments at this time. But what I can tell you is that you are suspicious for some reason, Cadet. He is not acting as he should in this situation, but that is respectable. I'm just a spectator and not interfering."

His words only added to my unease. Did he already know he was the target? Did he want to get to the station and escape? I decided not to approach him, not to speak to him until we were out of this place. 

As the ship approached the Earth, I continued to closely observe the movements of the navigation system. I knew that if they were damaged before passing the atmosphere it would be the end of us, and we would be left to our fate, since without this system we would not be able to communicate with anyone. We would be lucky if any ship found us.

I leaned against the wall to rest a little and to see where I would lean on the moment we fell to earth.

I looked at my companions and they were all scared. I tried to remain calm as I watched my companions, who reflected the fear on their faces. I knew it was my responsibility to maintain hope and serenity at that critical moment.

The ship began to shake violently as we entered the Earth's atmosphere. We clung to whatever support was available, trying to stay stable as chaos reigned all around us. Lights flickered, and alarm sounds filled the space.