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"Jack Taldrin, you have been accused of high treason. How do you plead?" The stern-looking judge spoke, her grey hair pulled back in a ponytail. A single glare from the judge quickly hushed the audience's murmur. Jack Taldrin, sitting in his seat wearing an orange jumpsuit and shackles around his ankles and handcuffs binding him to the table. Jack wore a smirk and let out a chuckle as he finally looked up at the room instead of the papers in front of him. He cleared his throat louder than necessary. "High treason... that is what they finally decided on for my charge? That is amusing; all I did was play a little game with the Pentagon." Jack said, much to the annoyance of his lawyer. "Sir, I don't consider hijacking the government servers for over 24 hours and forcing every computer to play 'can't touch this' on repeat on full blast, a game. You put many people at risk and for what... your own amusement?" The judge spat. Jack smiled and sighed out loud. "Well, for one, that was hilarious. And second, I didn't do any actual harm." Jack said. Jack's lawyer sat silently, already giving up after the blatant confession. "Well, Jack, this is not your first time in here for hacking government facilities for your own amusement. Since you think this is a game, and jail isn't a threat to you... I have the perfect punishment." The judge spoke, sitting up straight and adjusting her glasses. "Defendant rise for sentencing," She said in her professional tone. Jack stood, awaiting the punishment; he didn't outwardly show it, but he was nervous. "Jack Taldrin, for the crime of high treason, this court finds you guilty. You have been sentenced to a lifetime of exile from Planet Earth." She commanded, whispers from the audience filling the room in confusion. "What do you mean, how can I be exiled from Earth?" Jack said. Earning a smile from the judge. I am pleased to inform you that NASA has been actively seeking a volunteer for a fun little spaceflight. I would tell you more, but I won't spoil their fun. If you try to escape, your Passport will be flagged for immediate arrest." She spoke, her body relaxing again. Jack sat silently; he wasn't expecting anything close to being kicked off Earth. He felt his heart thump hard in his chest, his vision blurring slightly as he felt a firm grip on his arm, the officer unlocking him from the table. He stared blankly at the judge, her victory evident in her smile. He stumbled slightly as the officer moved him to the court exit, the transport bus idling outside waiting for him. Jack sat in the back of the van, his reality hitting like a ton of bricks. The door slammed shut, and he felt the van begin to move. Hours later, the signs for the NASA space center started popping up. Jack looked outside and saw the massive field and launch pad. The van slowed and turned into the parking lot. A man wearing a suit and tie stood waiting at the entrance. He felt the van grind to a halt, the front doors opening and closing. Soon, the back door opened, the cool morning air making Jack shiver slightly. One of the officers unlocked Jack's shackles and handcuffs. He rubbed his wrists, finally free of the metal. "Now, Jack, no running off or you will be locked up again." The driver said, pointing a finger at him like scolding a kid. "And risk life in prison, no thanks." Jack joked. The man in the suit approached and placed his heavy hand on Jack's shoulder, the man's expensive cologne making Jack gag. "He's all yours, just don't let him near a computer, and you should be fine." The driver joked as the two retreated to the front of the van, climbed inside, and quickly drove away. "So, Mister Taldrin, you are the volunteer we have been waiting for. Well, you can call me The Director since you won't be here long enough to care about my actual name. Follow me, I will take you to your room." The Director said, turning on his heel and walking off without waiting for Jack to follow. Jack caught up with The Director, keeping pace as they entered the building and passed through a keycard-access door. The hallways reminded Jack of a hospital, with plain white walls and a laminate tile floor. Pictures of rockets and famous astronauts lined the walls. The Director halted in front of a door and opened it for Jack. "Here we are, Jack, your home for two days while we get your ship ready to go. I trust you will not run; my staff have been informed of your... circumstances, so if you run, the police will be notified." As he turned to leave, the Director paused and looked at Jack. "And please... do enjoy your stay, don't think of this as the death sentence it most likely is, you will be the first ever to go the speed of light... You may be here as per court orders, but you will be famous; you are a part of human history." He paused before giving a slight nod and walking away, his hard-soled shoes clacking down the hallway even after he was out of view. Jack felt his stomach turn. He looked at the interior of his room: a single twin-sized bed with a nightstand against one wall, a big window showing the launch pad, and a bathroom with a small shower, toilet, and sink. He closed the door and sat on the bed, the surprisingly comfortable surface sinking under his weight. There was a knock on the door, and Jack opened it to see a young, 5-foot-tall blond-haired woman standing in front of him, holding a small stack of clothes. She saw his puzzled look and, with a smile, she said. "You didn't think we would keep you in those prisoner clothes, did you? Can't have news cameras on you looking like you were forced into doing this." She said, holding out the clothes. Jack took them; the soft fabric felt much better than the prison jumpsuit. "But I was forced to do this; I had no choice," Jack replied sarcastically. "Well, you made the choice to piss off the government," she retorted before walking away. He closed the door and looked over the clothes. One set was a simple tracksuit with the NASA logo on the leg and back of the jacket; the other was an obvious flight suit. He set the clothes on the bed and went for a shower, the hot water momentarily making him forget his situation. After drying off, he put on the tracksuit and wandered through the facility, or at least the areas he could go without a guide. He found the cafeteria and grabbed a chicken salad sandwich since he had missed breakfast, and it was too early for lunch. Once he was back in his room, he found a schedule on his bed, and almost as a cruel joke, the launch time in two days was highlighted for him. In the lead-up to the launch, his schedule was filled with training. 'At least I will get a little training for this,' he thought. Jack arrived at his first lesson, something called ship familiarization. Jack sat in the single seat at the front of the classroom. He looked out the window, saw the parking lot, and noticed the window was open; he was on the ground floor. An idea popped into his head that he could easily escape, and it could be at least 10 minutes before anybody realized he had escaped... but where would... could an exiled person go if he was not allowed to be on the planet? He sighed in defeat. He heard the door open, and an older man entered the room wearing a lab coat; in his hands, he held a stack of papers and a pen. "Jack, is it?" he said as he placed the stack of papers in front of Jack, laying the pen on top. Jack noticed at least a package's worth of 'sign here' stickers. He looked at the man, searching for an ounce of mercy, only to find him grinning back. "Don't worry, Jack, those are just in case you die, get injured, blow up in the spacecraft, or get lost in space." He said, answering the unasked question. "Lost in space doesn't sound fun. What am I signing for if that happens?" Jack asked, dreading the answer. "Oh, it is more so that we don't get sued by your family in any scenario and keep up with the image of you doing this voluntarily, don't get me wrong, with your special circumstances of being here, we here at NASA, don't give a dam what happens to you after you hit light speed." He said, sending chills up Jack's spine. He spent the next 20 minutes signing and initialling different pages; by the end, his wrist was throbbing. As soon as he was finished, the old man grabbed the papers and dropped a thick, metal-ring-bound book in front of Jack; it looked like it had at least 1000 pages, a picture of the ship on the front, and a red strip of tape that said 'top secret' across the opening of the book, binding it shut. Jack tore the thin piece of tape, opening the book, and instantly hated everything about it. The small writing, endless technical terms, lack of definitions, and strings of mathematics that might as well have been written in braille. The diagrams looked more confusing than the wording. He spent the first few minutes staring at the first page, the wording giving him a headache. "This is a joke... right. Is this even English?" Jack said, earning a laugh from the old man. "You can ignore most of it; the pictures seem to be of your level of education." He said, making Jack clench his jaw at the verbal jab. Jack studied the pictures, arrows pointing to various buttons, levers, switches and touchscreens. Jack set the book down and noticed the old man was gone. Another person walked into the room, dragging a large plastic crate on wheels; this time, a younger man, who looked at Jack and opened the case. "This is your space suit; it is not the one usually used by astronauts. This is designed to let you breathe indefinitely without a ship cleaning the air; it also regulates your body temperature and prevents radiation from reaching you. Try it on." He said, standing back from the case. Jack stood up with a stretch, his neck hurting from the bad posture he had held for hours. He stood in front of the case and looked in. A thin, black space suit stared back at him, the helmet looking more like a motorcycle helmet. He slipped the suit on, the material feeling like neoprene, the helmet fitting snugly to his head. The instant the helmet was in place, the visor lit up with a heads-up display showing his oxygen levels inside and outside the helmet, as well as his heart rate. "This is cool," Jack said. "Glad you like it, you will get to wear it for the rest of your life." He replied, before walking away. Jack felt his stomach twist in knots with the reminder that he was about to be exiled. Jack stripped the suit off and walked back to his room while deep in thought. He fell backwards on his bed, his thoughts spinning in his brain as time ticked by. Sooner than he'd have liked, it was morning again, and he woke to the sound of the thump of a fist on his door. Looking at the time, he shot out of bed. He had slept in and was about to be late for... 'Why is my flight suit on my bed?' Jack thought as another thump hit the door. "Open this dam door, Jack, before I kick it in." The angry voice called out. Jack opened the door to see the Director looking impatiently at his watch, and back at Jack. "Good news, Jack, with an impending weather system showing up, you get to leave today. Now eat up, you will not be having another meal on earth." He said, handing him a tray of breakfast and walking away. Jack looked at the tray, and a note on top read '10:30 AM lift off'. Jack ate his mildly warm food, tasting mostly bland. '9:00 AM' Jack slipped on the space suit, feeling the soft material fit perfectly. He grabbed the ship manual and slipped it into a pants pocket. '9:30 AM' Jack grabbed his helmet and left the room. He was shaking nervously as he walked past NASA scientists, who checked his suit over. The Director walked with him through the building until they arrived at a set of double doors. The Director stopped Jack and looked at him. "Listen, Jack, this may be a court-ordered sentence, but what you are about to do is very important. You will go down in history as the first person to go the speed of light. So, when you walk through these doors, please smile for the cameras. Jack nodded silently. The Director opened the door and walked him through. Waiting for them were a shuttle and news crews. Jack smiled at the cameras and ignored questions as the Director pushed past the crowd. Jack quickly got into the shuttle, and the vehicle sped off down to the launch pad. The shuttle came to a stop next to the spaceship. Looking at it, it seemed to be the size of a camper van, at 8 feet tall, 26 feet long, and 7 feet wide; the massive thrusters at the rear of the vehicle were large enough to crawl into. A clean, white, and black painted exterior, heavy-tinted windows in the front and on the airlock hatch on the side. Standing next to the vehicle was the judge in ordinary clothes, obviously sent to ensure he carried out his punishment. She held out her hand for a handshake, to which Jack replied by looking at her offered hand and saying: "No thanks, the last time I saw you raise that hand, it held the gavel that took my life from me, don't pretend you deserve courtesy from the dammed." He glared at her and walked away. Jack stood, staring at the vehicle in front of him. The hatch was open, but with the sun's position, it was too dark to see inside. He felt his eyes well up with tears, so he placed the helmet on his head, cutting off the fresh air of the earth, which he would never have the luxury of breathing again. From now on, it was recycled air until the unit stopped working. He ignored the thoughts in his head, screaming for him to run away. Jack stepped forward onto the open hatch, his boots now felt like a thousand pounds each as he was reluctant to go in the flying death trap. As he stood inside the doorway, he reached up to the door controls and closed the door. Once the door hissed shut, he fell to his knees, hyperventilating, the timer on the cockpit overhead display reading 10:15 AM. He closed his eyes and tried to calm down. An automated voice called out '10 minutes.' he stood up and sat in the pilot's seat, buckling himself with the 5-point harness. The console of buttons, switches, and knobs sat in front of him. The throttle and flight controls sat in between his legs. "All go for launch from our end, what about yours, Jack?" a feminine voice said through the speaker in his helmet. "I can't do this, just send me to prison, abort the launch... please." Jack pleaded. "Jack is go for launch, ready the autopilot and start the engines," she said, obviously to the others in the control room. "Sorry, Jack, you have no choice in this... the flight off the planet and the direction your ship will go is programmed into the computer. Once you are in space, the ship will start the lightspeed sequence. Good luck." She said before the connection cut out. Jack heard the mechanical whirr of the ship coming to life, followed by the ship jerking as the engines turned on. '10:25 AM' The ship started moving forward on its own, heading down the taxiway and towards the runway. The ship came to a halt on the tarmac. '10:29 AM' Jack took one last look at the crowd watching the spectacle, which they believed was voluntary. A speaker crackled to life in the cockpit. "10" ... "9" ... "8" ... "7, Thrusters on." Jack felt the ship's thrusters roar to life. ... "6" ... "5" ... "4" ... "3, release brakes." The ship started rolling forward. ... "2" ... "1, engage." The ship screamed down the runway, the g-forces pushing him back in his seat lightly. The loud rumbling and shaking of the ship ceased as the wheels lifted off the runway. "We have liftoff." The voice called out. The ship flew itself perfectly as the altitude slowly rose. 'This isn't so bad,' Jack thought to himself. "Engage after burn." The voice said, and instantly, Jack could almost feel his ears touch. He was now feeling like he was becoming part of his seat. The sky darkened as his altitude increased quickly. Once the sky went completely dark, he could breathe again, the weight of Earth's gravity no longer affecting him. His speed increased at a steady rate as he looked outside, catching a glimpse of Earth moving away. "Engage lightspeed engines, goodbye Jack." The voice said before cutting out forever. Jack looked outside as the moon started moving closer much faster. He was expecting to be almost instantly crushed by the g-forces, but felt nothing; it was almost eerily calm as the moon seemed to streak across the horizon, stars flying past like snow on a windshield. His controls said he was not actually moving, and moving fast at the same time. He noticed way too late that the autopilot had cut out, and he was now going extremely fast in an unknown direction. Suddenly, there was a loud pop and the sound of an engine failing, an alarm blared through the ship, and Jack hit the emergency stop button. The ship shook, and he jolted hard into the 5-point harness. The ship fired its forward-facing thrusters and began slowing down. He struggled to breathe as it felt like an elephant was standing on his chest, his vision started going blurry, and soon he passed out. An alarm woke Jack up. He blinked a few times, the red pulsating light coming from his display panel indicating he had successfully stopped... somewhere. He took in a deep breath, which he instantly regretted as his ribs expanded with searing pain. Keeping his breathing short, he looked at the navigation panel, which showed an error. He unbuckled his harness and got out of his seat. He finally got a good look at his new world, which fit into roughly 500 square feet and included a bed, a microwave, a pilot seat, and a toilet. Jack groaned as he found the emergency beacon he needed to activate if he survived the test. "Well, at least they will know how far I travelled... maybe... well maybe their great grandkids." He sighed as he looked at the distance travelled, being 200 light-years. Jack sat in the pilot seat again. He tried to start the engine, but realized he had absolutely no idea where Earth was compared to his current location. He stared outside, taking in the view of the stars that had never been seen before. Jack felt uneasy as he came to the crushing realization that he would never be found, and that even if he were, Earth was no longer his home. He felt a tear stream down his cheek as he leaned his head back against the headrest with his eyes closed. Jack covered his eyes as a bright light peered through his window. He cursed and felt his heart skip a few beats. 'Where is that light coming from? I am the only one out here.' He thought. The bright light moves away from his face, and Jack looks outside to see a massive spaceship.