Rayas Colony Shipfitter

Thirty thousand youths in stasis, minds in a virtual school run by an AI. Too soon, the dream of a new world meets some ugly realities. Gabe's friends choose college. But he opts to build spaceships with his own two virtual hands. In his opinion, the Dream VR oversells academics. To tame a new world they need the skilled trades. At least Gabe's virtual deaths are painless, his body safe in stasis. This job killed the real men and women who crafted the vast colony ship he rides on. Soon the expedition reaches turnover. For 18 months, they've accelerated away from Earth. Now they warp, and begin to decelerate into Rayas, their new planet. Gabe insists on visiting his body at this halfway point. The probes now rendezvous and deliver detailed survey data on planet Rayas. The news is awful. But what he learns from his body is worse. Gabe's goal was leadership. Time to deliver.