Serving in the Coalition of Systems Navy is a good way to get by. Reliable food, housing, and whenever you hit port you have enough pay lined up to spend your leave with a smile. Unfortunately, serving in the CSMC, the Marine department of such a navy is quite the drag. Worse food, worse housing, and your best chance of rest is quote "During an unplanned exterior hull reconnaissance mission following a rapid decompression maneuver" as your superiors so enjoy calling getting spaced after your dropship's hull gets fragmented by some munition or other.

However. Its not a thankless job, Posters displaying the signature helmet and heavy armor of the CSMC are practically everywhere, and tales of some particularly motivated breach crews turning the tides of battle often earn Marine squads a few drinks at the bar.

Being the pilot of the drop ships and strike craft however? Entirely unrecognized. Partially because its almost exclusive to voidborn servicemen and women, and because their survival rate is quite unimportant as long as the payload is delivered. Only the best of the best get more than a few major battles before Innevitably, getting turned to dust, losing engines and falling into atmosphere, or some other hapless event.

Aeryn is.. Lucky in some ways. Shuttle pilots are decently safe, compared to bombers or interceptors at least. But being born in space changes humans... bones are less dense, taller, lankier, with weird proportions. Such differences make it easy to take higher G's in flight, but make surface living much more difficult. Can't be a Marine, Marines are all surface born. A distinct subcategory of living that not all people are comfortable around, considering the elongated torso and birdlike bones.

Luckily, The Marines always take time to thank their pilots. If a mission goes wrong on either end, ground or air, theyre all screwed the same. Aeryn recently graduated from the Academy, attached to her first strike group, and is about to meet her first marine platoon, Your platoon.