I grew up in the federal system of Beta Hydri, on Homeland: one of the first-colonized planets and one of the most densely populated. The elite lived in glamorous skyscrapers, while the rest lived in mass slums and underground. I was part of the latter. I never saw the stars until my mother got enough money to buy me a one-way ticket out of Homeland to Wakea. The commando who was smuggling us out of federal space did it as part of an illegal slave trade, but it was one where the slaves were willing to go and even paid to get out of Homeland. Most would see him as lowly scum, but I see him as a hero. Life as an imperial slave was far better than as a mucker for the Federation.