to, or we wouldn't last long out there in space."

The three fledgling spacemen were silent, watching and listening with
awe and envy as the _Polaris_ crew continued their indoctrination. They
considered themselves lucky to have been drawn by these famous cadets
for their hazing. The names of Corbett, Manning, and Astro were becoming
synonymous with great adventure in space. But, with all their
hairbreadth escapes, the _Polaris_ unit was still just learning its job.
The boys were still working off demerits, arguing with instructors on
theory, listening to endless study spools, learning the latest advanced
methods of astrogation, communication, and reactor-unit operation. They
were working toward the day when they would discard the vivid blue
uniforms of the Space Cadet Corps and don the magnificent black and gold
of the Solar Guard.

Tom was aware of the eager expressions on the faces of the Earthworms
and he smiled to himself. It was not a smile of smugness or conceit, but
rather of honest satisfaction. More than once he had shaken his head in
wonder at being a Space Cadet. The odds against it were enormous. Each
year thousands of boys from all the major planets and the occupied
satellites competed for entrance to the famed Academy and pitifully few
were accepted. And he was happy at having two unit mates like Roger
Manning and Astro to depend on when he was out in space, commanding one
of the finest ships ever built, the powerful rocket cruiser _Polaris_.

As Roger and Astro continued to talk to the fledglings, Tom sipped his
tea and thought of his own first days at the Academy. He remembered his
fear and insecurity, and how hard he had fought to make what was then
Unit 42-D a success, the unit that eventually became the _Polaris_ unit.
And how each assignment had brought him closer to his dream of becoming