Engagement Criteria - Chapter One

Chapter One

Every morning for more than ten years, before the colony stirred, Tomas Marrow spent a few quiet minutes hoping his son would pick one of the safe futures and stay.

He understood the pressure on kids, on Kes. Media glamorized frontier life, calling fresh graduates to help explore and settle new worlds. It had worked on Tomas. The allure of gaining levels and experience in the Integration sharpened the call. The corporate contract he'd signed muted that call quick enough. Some of Tomas's friends didn't survive the harsh introduction to reality. Thank god he'd met Inés.…