Where They Came From
The Earth the colonists left behind was a crowded and highly technical society with parts of it recovering still from the Nathi Wars. There was a shaky peace at this time, though the Federated Sentient Planets were still highly militant. Generally people were either the ones that were allowed to live a normal life planetside and enjoy the freedom of protection, while the others were part of the organizations that worked to create this comfort. There is an extensive network of space stations in the Milky Way Galaxy that serves to house and train the military society of the FSP. As much as possible they are kept separate, removing the fighting forces from Earth itself. Besides reducing the population planetside, this also served to show a sense of comfort and peace to the Terrans, many who had suffered greatly during the Wars.
The majority of the colonists chosen for Pern came from Earth itself, with as few military personnel as possible, though there were many retired veterans of the War as well as surviving dependants of those killed. They were focused on building an agrarian society, folk skilled in agriculture and animal husbandry valued far greater than fighters. Rather than being focused on producing resources for the FSP, Pern was one of the few luxuries afforded to settlers: a place to make a simpler, low-tech home without the pressure of industry looming over it. It was also a place for the people of Earth that were starting to struggle to fit into society, such as the nomadic groups.
The Military Life
Unless they actively chose to leave and settle on Earth, it’s very possible for anyone born into a military family to never have stepped foot on the planet. Generally children of these families are enrolled into the Military Academy for their basic education until they are ten, where they can chose to work towards a specialization or pursue a civilian life planetside (or their parents can decide for them as if often the case). Throughout the course of training, cadets are given opportunities to visit Earth, but these infrequent. Every year the Academy will take a limited number of planetside applicants and it’s considered an honour to be accepted without having been born into the life.
As a smaller ship, the Captain of The Amherst has the luxury of handpicking his crew and only those with top marks are considered. Captain Sander is not prone to accepting bribes, but he does tend to prefer choosing from proven military bloodlines when possible. He will never accept a person who isn’t soundly qualified, but may be convinced to take on someone who shows strong potential and give them the opportunity to be trained onboard.
As a smaller ship, the Captain of The Amherst has the luxury of handpicking his crew and only those with top marks are considered. Captain Sander is not prone to accepting bribes, but he does tend to prefer choosing from proven military bloodlines when possible. He will never accept a person who isn’t soundly qualified, but may be convinced to take on someone who shows strong potential and give them the opportunity to be trained onboard.