Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2016 22:10:15 +0000
From: Douglas DD <thehakaanen@hotmail.com>
Subject: The Surivors (Revised)  Chapter 45

"EVERYBODY WALKED AWAY"
CHAPTER 45

by Douglas DD


This story contains sex between minor boys and teen-agers.  If such things
offend you, or you are not at least 18 years of age, then please don't read
on.  This story is not true, but who knows, maybe someday it will be.

Welcome back. Alex once again get to pilot a space shuttle. Will this
attempt be more successful than his first?

Please donate to the Nifty Archive and keep the stories flowing.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The day after the Joining Ceremony and festival everybody rested.  The
Joiners and spectators alike were exhausted, mentally, physically, and
sexually.

Matthew and Enghar returned to Enghar's home in Awanstor. That night, for
the first time, they slept together as Meshannas. And while they cuddled
lovingly together, there was no sex between them—they were both too
exhausted. The sex would come the next night.

After breakfast Enghar asked Matthew to take a walk with him. They ended up
walking to Mycroff's house. Mycroff answered the door.  He almost shut it
on them, but decided to see what Enghar wanted.  He couldn't understand
what Enghar saw in the smooth backed, round-eared boy he chose to be his
Meshanna, but he still loved Enghar, so he let them in to find out what
they had to say.

They went up to Mycroff's room.  Mycroff sat in his desk chair and Enghar
and Matthew sat on his bed.  Mycroff was naked, but Enghar and Matthew were
wearing shorts and shirts. Enghar did the talking. Matthew understood
Hakaanen well enough to follow most of it, and Enghar helped him when he
needed something explained.

"Mycroff, I know you're really disappointed about me making Mattoo my
Meshanna."

Mycroff lowered his head.  "Yeah," he said quietly.

"I love you, Mycroff.  I always will.  But Mattoo and I made a connection.
I knew we had something special between us the moment I met him. You know
about Meshannas, and how it is with them, how when you find him you just
know it."

"I know that.  It's how I felt about you.  I wanted you, and you know I
wanted you."

"Why?"

"Huh?  What do you mean?"

"Why did you want me?"

"Because I liked you a lot when I first talked to you."

"Let me tell you this Mycroff.  That wouldn't pass the interview.  It
wouldn't be enough.  I learned you gotta really get inside somebody, and
you and I never did that. I know things happened fast between me and
Mattoo, but we just kept connecting. With you and me, it was becoming
friends, but not something more."  Enghar got off the bed and walked over
to Mycroff.  He stood him up off the chair and hugged him. He could have
told Mycroff that even though he had become his friend, Mycroff did things
that annoyed him, and Meshannas didn't annoy each other. But what he did
tell Mycroff was the truth.  "I love you, Mycroff."

Mycroff's hug was stiff at first, then he hugged Enghar tightly and started
to cry.  "I...I....I wanted you to be my Meshanna so bad.  I thought you
were it. I don't know where to start now.  But I still love you, Enghar,
and I want to be your friend."  He looked over at Matthew.  "And Mattoo's,"
he sniffed.  Mycroff sat next to Matthew on the bed and hugged him. He was
surprised how natural that act felt even though the lack of a flowing mane
seemed a little unnatural.

"My Meshanna is out there," Mycroff said.  "I will find him."  Deep in his
heart, though, he still wished it was Enghar.

That night Enghar and Matthew had their first sex as Meshannas. It was sex
that was private, naked, and in their own bed. It was Enghar making love to
Matthew and Matthew making love to Enghar. It was both young boys having
two powerful orgasms apiece that shook them body and soul.  And most
importantly, it was two young boys of two different species lying wrapped
up in each other as they came down from their sexual high, knowing without
a doubt that their love was eternal—that they were meant to be
Meshannas.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

After the Ceremony of Life, the boys' life settled into a routine. Enghar
and Matthew returned to Awanstor to live with Enghar's parents. Matthew was
enrolled as a student at Awanstor School. He knew the language well enough
to attend regular classes, with Enghar acting as his tutor.

After numerous meetings, the rest of the Hakaanen adults decided that for
now the boys would remain in Orkyl. Scooter and Douglas remained with
Kallama and Gorgio. Mike and Alex continued living with Shopara, the owner
of the restaurant that had hosted some of the boys for a delicious
meal. Warren and Jeremy, the twins, and Travis and Ryan stayed in the same
households, while the rest of the boys were moved to new, permanent homes.

Douglas and Scooter spent their weekends in Awanstor at Mayor Andorn's
house so they could be with Bandar and Hajo. Travis and Ryan also went to
Awanstor, staying over with Laryar. The two Earth boys were becoming
friends with him and Perryska.

Douglas and Alex had met with Mayor Andorn and explained that they wanted
to look over the shuttles. The mayor told them he would look into getting
them access to the hangars, but it probably would take a while to make it
happen. For a number of reasons, it took him two months to arrange their
excursion. For one, he was busy campaigning for governor. He also wanted to
give the boys a chance to settle into a routine—something they hadn't
enjoyed since the day they'd been ejected from their starship. And, even
with his status in the government of the valley, he had to wade through the
bureaucracy, which could be just as stifling among the Hakaanen as it was
for Earthlings.

Douglas and Scooter soon learned to enjoy sex Hakaanen style with Bandar,
Hajo, and Prekar. In fact all of the older Earth boys had Hakaanen friends
they were intimate with.  The only boys who had not had sex were the twins,
but it wasn't for lack of trying by some of the younger Hakaanen boys or
the lack of encouragement from the twins' Earth friends. One thing that was
moving the twins in the right direction, however, was that they had become
intimate with each other and enjoyed sexual contact almost every night.
They were moving in the right direction, but still had to overcome their
innate shyness.

The day to tour the hangars had finally arrived. Bandar and Hajo led
Douglas's group to the airfield.  They walked to the two large hangars at
the south end of the field.  Scooter, Mike, Alex, Stevie, Travis, and
Brandon were with Douglas. Ryan had stayed behind to be with the twins
while Warren and Jeremy wanted to spend the day with their hosts.

Their hosts had an eleven-year-old boy named Yordier. The two Earth boys
and the young Hakaanen had become close friends. That friendship included
sex with the boy and his friends, but it was not the main reason they were
friends. Simply put, they liked one another. Bandar and Hajo were going to
get them into some of their sex groups.

The door to the hangar was unlocked, just like all the doors in the valley
were.  Bandar and Douglas pulled it open, turned on the lights, catching
their breath at what they saw.

The aircraft in the hangar was almost the same size as the "Moonduster" and
the "Sundancer", but was a bit narrower and a bit shorter.  Its wings
folded inward, like those on the shuttle, which kept the hangar from being
too crowded.  Even though it hadn't been used for twenty-five years, the
boys could see it was being cared for. The metal was shiny and polished and
the hangar was spotlessly clean.

"Who takes care of it?" Scooter asked.

"The same workers who did it when it actually flew," Bandar said.  " I
always thought they were just sitting in the hangar covered with dust and
cobwebs, but the workers have made taking care of the shuttle their
hobby. Everybody keeps hoping some time we will have the chance to return
to space.  They hope a ship will come once again from our home planet."

"And the other hangar has a shuttle in it, too?" Douglas asked.

"Yes, but it's missing a lot of parts," Bandar told him.  "We need parts
for our other machines and electronics.  It's a source for them. Some of
them have to be retooled, but we make it all work.  I think they're going
to have to use this one for parts soon.  Everything is wearing out."

"It's called cannibalization," Stevie told them.

Alex was already climbing up the stairs that led to the hatch behind the
cockpit.  He went inside the open door and looked around the inside of the
shuttle.  Although the air smelled stale, the inside was clean.  To his
right was a long row of seats and to his left was the door leading into the
cockpit.  He opened the cockpit door and went inside.  The other boys
started coming up the stairs and into the shuttle.

"This is cool," Scooter said.  "It looks in perfect shape, but will it
fly?"

Stevie joined Alex in the cockpit.  The rest of the boys walked along the
rows of seats.  Each row had four seats, two on each side of the aisle.

"Well?" Douglas said, repeating Scooter's question.  "Will it fly?"

"I don't know," Bandar said.  "It hasn't been out of this hangar in
twenty-five years.  That's longer then I've been around," the
fourteen-year-old boy said.

"Why didn't they ever fly back to the starship?" Brandon asked. "I mean
it's been up there in orbit the whole time."

"I guess from what I heard the starship had fuel to just go one way, from
Hakaan to here.  And besides, only one person knows anything about flying a
starship.  The Chief Engineer of the Building of Life worked on Engineering
on a starship, but decided to stay on Inferno after a trip.  And it takes a
lot of people to fly a starship."

"Yeah, but they flew that one here with nobody on it at all.  It came all
the way from Hakaan and got into orbit, all automatically.  So one person
should be able to go back on it.  I wonder if the program can be reversed,
so it could fly back to Hakaan.  As long as there is fuel, you just use
reverse coordinates."  Stevie was doing the thinking now.  He had just come
out from the cockpit.  "We should be able to do it easily."

"Two things," Alex asked.  "First, is there enough fuel, or did they really
fuel it for just a one way trip?  And second, do we really want to do it?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Later that day some of the boys were hanging around together at Kallama's
house, which was becoming a favorite gathering place.  They were trying to
figure out what the date was.

"Sometime in June from what I can figure," Travis said. "It's hard to say."

"No it's not," Stevie argued.  "I think the laser guns have an ongoing date
readout inside of their works.  Let's take a look."

The boys went up to the room Douglas and Scooter used and pulled a laser
gun out of its storage box.  Stevie took a cover off, then unscrewed
another cover.  He could see an LED readout.  He squinted to look at the
date on the readout.  It was June tenth.  He told the group what the date
was.

"Guess what guys," Stevie said with a bit of a wistful look on his
face. "My birthday was the sixth. That means I'm fourteen now.

"No shit?" Ryan said.  "So was mine. I'm fifteen."  Ryan could feel tears
starting up. The idea that he missed his birthday was making him incredibly
homesick. Stevie could feel the same emotions inside of himself.

"Happy Birthday guys," Douglas said.  How many more birthdays would be
forgotten?  he thought to himself.  Maybe not as many as had been, now that
they knew how to track the date.  Stevie always seemed to have a way of
coming up with some electronic answer to a problem. It was too bad they
hadn't come up with the idea earlier.

They soon learned that the twins were ten, Alex was sixteen, and Warren was
fourteen.

Ryan and Stevie, the birthday boys, didn't have to worry about being
forgotten that night.  They each had sex with their boyfriends and fell
asleep exhausted but fully satisfied.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


The next day the trial of Robert Charles and the Shkah men began. The local
police were still searching for the two Shkah boys who had escaped capture
the day of putting down the Shkah attack. Lots had been drawn to determine
that Robert Charles would be tried first. It was biggest news in the valley
since the Hakaanen first colonized the valley.  The courtroom was full.
The Earth boys were excused from school for the duration of RC's trial.

On the first day a jury was picked.  In Hakaanen culture, if someone had a
Meshanna they had the full right of citizenship. They could vote as well as
serve on juries, no matter what their age. They might not have jobs and
careers until they were out of school, but that was because jobs needed an
education.  Some Hakaanen became full citizens when they were twelve, and
others not until they were older, like the two eighteen-year old girls at
The Joining.  Enghar's mother didn't find her Meshanna until she was 24, a
lady she met at a new job. Enghar was already a year old at her Joining.

The jury had eleven members.  A Hakaanen jury only needed a majority vote,
not a unanimous vote.  The jury had seven males and four females.  The
males were all in their twenties except for a boy named Gregonni, who was
thirteen, and a boy named Nordio, who was fourteen The females were
fourteen, seventeen, thirty-eight, and fifty.

Douglas couldn't believe "young ones'" were being trusted to be on a jury,
especially when he thought of the governor's attitude towards young
people. Ironically, a large number of young people between twelve and
sixteen had the right of full citizenship, even though their parents
remained their legal guardians until they turned sixteen.

Robert Charles made it a point to ignore the presence of his former
shipmates. He emanated an air of arrogance that said, "You got me now, but
I'm not done with you yet."  But it was an arrogance he didn't feel—deep
down the fifteen-year-old was a frightened little boy.

After court was adjourned for the day, the Earth boys met in the community
room of the courthouse.

"Sure is different from an Earth trial.  At least the ones on the vids,"
Jeremy observed.

"I like it," Scooter said.  "I like seeing kids on the jury."

"Tomorrow Matthew meets with a judge," Douglas reminded them.

"Yep. He gets to find out if he will be the first Earthling to become a
Hakaanen citizen," Travis mused.

"Enghar is his Meshanna," Scooter told them, "but he isn't Hakaanen.  So,
Doctor Lokor, Enghar's dad, is wondering if he has the right to vote in the
upcoming election and has asked for a judge's ruling.  It could be
interesting."

Alex told them that sometime after the trial was over he, Mike, Douglas,
and Scooter were going to visit the guy who took care of the shuttle .
They would report on what they found when they returned.

After that, they all went back to the homes where they were staying.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


After the lunch break of Robert Charles's trial, Matthew, Enghar, and
Doctor Lokor went to a downstairs courtroom to meet with Judge
Orsen. Enghar was able to vote, because he now had a Meshanna, but the
question was whether Matthew could. Because they never had contact with
alien beings, they'd never had to face this question.

Nobody was surprised that Governor Rebosh was opposed to Matthew being
given citizenship. A lawyer from the Valley State Government represented
the Governor.

After listening to the arguments from both sides, the judge took only a few
minutes to make his ruling. He ruled that the only requirement for voting
and the rights of citizenship was one must have experienced the Joining
with their Meshanna.  Because Matthew met this requirement, he was entitled
to the full rights of citizenship, including the right to vote.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The trial was over before lunch of the third day.  The judge told the jury
that it was time to decide on whether Robert Charles was guilty or innocent
of inciting rebellion, assault, attempted murder, and murder. The eleven
jurors retired to the jury room. Each juror had five minutes to say how
they felt, although no one was required to speak.  The deliberation was
short and the ballots were cast. Robert Charles was found guilty by a
unanimous vote.

When the judge read the verdict Robert Charles didn't flinch or say
anything.  The judge said he would pronounce his sentence after the trial
of the two Shkah raiders was over.

The boys left the courtroom thinking about how far downhill Robert Charles
had slipped.  On the "Starkeeper" he had everything. He had a lot of what
it took to be a good leader, but pride and arrogance had brought him down.
Now he had nothing.

Robert Charles knew was he wasn't going to die, since the Hakaanen didn't
have the death penalty.  He also knew that his life was ruined. He was
never going to have the power and leadership he had so desired.

Matthew, for one, didn't care what happened to Robert Charles.  He
remembered the forced sex on the "Starkeeper".  He remembered the tent pole
being yanked out in the wind storm.  He remembered the fears Logan had to
battle after RC threatened him with a knife.  As far as Matthew was
concerned, whatever RC got, he deserved.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A couple of days after the trial ended, Douglas, Scooter, Mike, and Alex
went to the airfield after school and entered the big hangar.  A man was
waiting for them inside.  He introduced himself to the boys, telling them
his name was Petras.  Douglas thought he was probably in his late thirties
or early forties, but it was hard to tell with the Hakaanen because they
often looked younger than they actually were.  Douglas knew that he was the
manager of the airfield as well as the caretaker of the shuttles.

Petras took the boys up the stairs and on board the shuttle.  He told them
how he kept the shuttle in perfect flying condition, but that it hadn't
been out of the hangar in twenty-five years.

"Is there enough fuel for it?" Alex asked.

"Yes. There is enough for probably in an underground tank for ten trips
into space and back."

"Why hasn't anybody flown it in all of these years?"

"No reason to.  What is there to fly up to?  The two moons?"

"The starship," Mike pointed out.

"No reason to do that either.  We got a broadcast from the starship—an
automatic signal.  It reported the epidemic on Hakaan.  It said no other
ships would come until a cure was found, and we should never try boarding
the ship or we could get the disease and spread it on our own planet.  So
we never have gone to it."

"Not even to fly up and look at it from the outside?"

"No."  Petras thought a bit and then said, "You should have seen this place
twenty-five years ago.  A freighter would come from Hakaan and land its
shuttles for two or three straight days bringing in freight.  Sometimes two
would arrive at almost the same time, and there would be constant landings
and takeoffs.

"When a passenger starship arrived we would use the ship's shuttles as well
as our four shuttles to bring new colonists down to the Valley, plus some
visitors and even tourists.  Sometimes we would get a couple hundred new
colonists.  New farms would be started.  The freighters would carry food
back to Hakaan.  We were starting our own industries.  We even had plans to
start a new colony in a valley across the great desert.

"Now that's all over," Petras went on. "Now, we just survive and use the
parts of machines we don't need to fix the machines we do need.  Life is
going backwards."

Everybody stood looking out of the windows after Petras finished his
speech. Alex thought about the fact that there had been four shuttles
belonging to the Big Valley, which meant that two of them had been totally
cannibalized.  Finally Alex said quietly but firmly, "It looks like
somebody needs to go back to Hakaan then."

"How?  The starship is out of fuel and nobody knows how to pilot it."

"Somebody here must know something about flying the shuttle and the
starship."

"Well," Petras said, "Roobine used to fly this shuttle.  He owns a supply
store in the west valley now.  And Quan, the Chief Engineer of the Building
of Life, was a Chief Engineer on a star freighter.  He decided he wanted to
settle down and live on our growing and thriving planet instead of
traveling through space.  He knows starships, but I don't think he could
fly one.  But he would know how to get the orbiting starship started if it
had fuel."

Alex got Petras to agree to arrange a meeting with Roobine and Quan
soon. "I want to learn how to operate that big sucker," Alex said dreamily.

"So, you plan to fly this shuttle back into space and board the
starship. You boys are serious, aren't you?"

"Hell yes, we are," Alex said.

"But what do you have planned once you get into space?"

This time it was Douglas's turn to answer.  "I guess we'll find out when we
get up there."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

All of the boys met at Kallama's house that night.  Enghar and Bandar were
also there.  Douglas told them this may be their only chance to go home.

"We need to find out for ourselves if that starship is operational rather
than just take somebody's word for it. They've never actually boarded the
ship, so they really don't know what the fuel situation is."

The boys continued to exchange ideas about the shuttle and the
starship. They talked about who would be doing what, even though they
didn't really know when the shuttle would fly, if ever.

Finally, Douglas asked the question that was in the minds of each one of
them. "Before we do anything, we have to decide if we really want to do
this."

"I guess we take a vote," ever practical Mike said.

Which is what they did. The boys took a vote about whether to continue with
the quest or to acknowledge that Inferno was going to be their home for the
rest of their lives. The vote ended up being unanimous to continue.

Enghar felt a sudden sadness when Matthew's hand went up with the yes
voters. His Meshanna was thinking of home. He couldn't help but wonder if
he had made a mistake in picking his Meshanna.  He tried to shake that
thought out of his head. After all it was impossible to make a mistake
picking a Meshanna; he'd been taught that his whole life, but nobody had
ever thought about an alien becoming a Meshanna.  Maybe in that case it was
possible to make a mistake.

It was decided that Alex would be in charge of the project, and they would
start the next day.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The next day, Alex, Stevie, Mike, Douglas, Scooter, and Brandon went to the
hangar where they met with Petras.

"My, you boys are not only serious, but eager as well," Petras
laughed. "Giving me a phone call would have saved you a lot of effort. I
was going to contact Dooglass after school would be out." He gave the boys
a big grin. "Of course I assumed you would be in school."

Douglas apologized for the group. "We are pretty eager to get started. We
want to see if everything works."

"And if it doesn't?" Petras asked.

"Then I guess we become Hakaanen through and through."

"What I was going to tell you is that Roobine said he would meet with you
the next time he had a day off on the same day school was off."

"And when would that be?" Scooter asked.

"In two weeks." Petras could read the disappointment on the faces of the
boys. "That will give you some time to slow yourselves down and prepare to
accomplish things slowly and properly. It is the only way of thinking that
works as far as space travel is concerned."

"Now, you boys all go back to school tomorrow. Call me in ten days and we
will set up a meeting time."

That night Enghar finally worked up the courage to talk to Matthew about
his vote. "Do you really want to leave here, Mattoo?" he asked as the two
boys lay together in bed after enjoying a round of oral sex together.

"I am from Earth," Matthew answered quietly. "My best friends are from
Earth. It is my home."

"But your Meshanna is from here," Enghar said plaintively.

"I know." Matthew's voice was barely audible. "I love you," he croaked.

"But you still wish to leave." Enghar's tone was somewhat accusatory.

"You knew I could end up leaving."

"But I thought it would happen because you got found by your people, not
because you decided to go. I never thought it could happen."

"I didn't either," Matthew confessed. He wrapped himself around the naked
body of his lover and Meshanna. "I want to go home, but...but..." Matthew
started fighting back sobs.

"But what?" Enghar asked.

"But, I don't want to leave you." That opened up the flood gates and his
tears flowed down his cheeks and onto Enghar's bare chest. Enghar held the
shaking Earth boy and stroked his smooth, bare back.

++++++++++++++++++++

Alex contacted Petras on the agreed upon day. Scooter was on an extension
ready to translate if need be. Petras told them that Roobine would be at
the hangar at eleven in the morning on their open day.

"Roobine and I will provide lunch. After all, we have found out that food
is what fuels teenage Earth boys as much as it does Hakaanen boys," Petras
chuckled. "It is hard to conduct business over the noise of rumbling
stomachs."

Alex, Douglas, Stevie, Scooter, Mike, and Brandon, the same boys as before,
rode bicycles to the airfield. It seemed like every day their hosts were
presenting them with items they needed to live the lives of ordinary
Hakaanen boys.

Petras greeted them at the hangar door and told them Roobine would arrive
soon. The boys climbed up into the shuttle.  Alex sat in the pilot's seat
and looked at the instrument panel.  He felt excited, he was ready to fly
again, ready to take his friends back home.

They heard somebody enter the shuttle.  It was a man who looked around
fifty. He introduced himself as Roobine. He told them he used to be a
shuttle pilot, with a heavy emphasis on the words "used to be." Petras had
told the boys Roobine would answer questions and help, but that he didn't
want to fly any more.

Right away Alex started hitting him up with questions about the shuttle's
controls and operation. Alex, Stevie, and Scooter sat in the cockpit
learning about the instruments and about the shuttle.  Alex posted English
notes on the instrument panel since everything was in Hakaanen letters and
numerals.  He took exhaustive notes.  They stopped for lunch and then
continued the intense session.

When they were finished, Alex asked Roobine, "Do you want to fly it?"  He
wanted to hear the answer from Roobine himself.

"No.  I'm too old and slow now."

"But you have the experience.  You have flown this and you know how it
behaves."  Alex wanted to fly, but even more he wanted to be sure everybody
got into space safely.  He remembered his landing, which was a lot like
landing an airplane, if it was done correctly.  But a shuttle took off much
differently than an airplane. The one time he'd been on a shuttle that took
off from the ground he had been just another passenger.

"No.  It's been twenty-five years.  And I don't want to go back into
space." Roobine looked directly at Alex. "I have heard the story of how you
flew your space shuttle to the Fire Planet and landed it here. That was an
amazing job of flying from one so inexperienced. And now I am impressed by
the intelligence of your questions and your knowledge of flight. You don't
need me along."

"You could at least ride with us the first time we fly.  Sit in the cockpit
and help us."

Roobine shook his head no.  He had promised himself he would never return
to space. He no longer had a reason to assume the risks. "I cannot do it.
I am very sorry."

"Please," Alex pleaded.  "We need to take a test trip into space before we
try to dock on the starship.  Just go with us on the first trip.  I won't
ask again, I promise."

Roobine looked at Alex and the other boys.  He knew what the round ears had
done for the Big Valley. They were heroes, not only because they defeated
the Shkah, but because they had somehow survived their ordeal in the
desert—both landing their spacecraft and trekking into the mountains. He
sensed how badly they wanted to get back home to their own kind. He also
knew that stubborn promises were made to be broken.  He took a deep breath.

"Okay, but just the first trip.  But I won't fly it."

"Yessssssss," Alex said.  "Thank you.  Thank you very much!  When do we
go?"

"Roobine and I must do a thorough test of the shuttle to make sure it is
flyable, That will take time because of Roobine's work schedule," Petras
said.

"We can use the volunteers as well," Roobine pointed out. "Most of them
know the workings of this craft as well as Petras and I do. That should
help speed things up." Once again he looked directly at Alex. "We will
contact you when we are ready for the final tests. As the pilot, you will
need to be there. I can get you excused from school."

Alex's face lit up at being given real pilot's responsibility. "Stevie is
going to be my co- pilot...can he be there, too?" This time Stevie's face
lit up.

"Absolutely," Roobine answered. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

All of the boys smiled.  They were at least going to have a chance to see
if they could go home.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The first day of the next week was Election Day, which was a school
holiday. Matthew and Enghar went to the Awanstor polling place at the
school. Matthew was very nervous—after all, here he was, just eleven
years old, and he was about to vote like he was an adult. But, he thought,
to the Hakaanen, I am almost an adult. He suddenly felt very grown up and
very important.

Matthew and Enghar both voted for Mayor Andorn for governor. Enghar and
Matthew's teachers had helped him with the other races and issues on the
ballot, including voting for the successor to Mayor Andorn, who could only
run for one office. That vote was easy, since Enghar's mother was one of
the candidates.

Enghar had studied all the issues and was pleased with how hard Matthew had
studied the issues. But, he wondered, with fear in his heart, if there
would be a next election for Matthew.  What if the round-ears were able to
find a way to get back to their own planet?  What would happen to his
Mattoo then?

At the end of the day the election results were broadcast. The campaign for
governor had been one of the most contested elections in recent memory.

The incumbent governor had made a point of saying that the big problems
with the Shkah were mostly the fault of the round-ears, not the Shkah.  The
alien boys were too reckless to be trusted, yet Mayor Andorn had trusted
them and aided them against the wishes of the government.  He thanked the
round-ears for helping to bring an end to the Shkah rebellion, but he also
said without them there never would have been a rebellion.  Governor Rebosh
said he could have found a responsible solution with nobody getting killed
if Mayor Andorn had stayed out of affairs that didn't concern him. He
accused the mayor of allowing the flier to be stolen and flown against his
wishes.

Mayor Andorn said that lives had been at stake.  The kidnapping of the two
round-eared boys and the attack on Scooter and Douglas showed that the
Shkah were stepping things up on their own.  When strong decisions needed
to be made, Governor Rebosh waffled and showed his incompetence to
lead. Instead, a group of boys who had just arrived in their community
revealed their leadership and got things done.  Mayor Andorn said he just
helped to make sure that two young boys would be rescued instead of being
left to what might have been their death.

Mayor Andorn beat the Governor Rebosh in a landslide, garnering 65% of the
vote.  It was obvious what the citizens of the Big Valley thought about how
the Shkah rebellion had been handled.

The next week, Alex and Stevie played at a club in the center of Orkyl.
The club was packed with Hakaanen both young and old eager to hear the kind
of music they had played at the Joining Ceremony. For most, it was a new
experience and all of them kept cheering for more.

The Hakaanen loved the new beats and sounds the round-ears played.  The
club had been sold out almost from the day the concert had been
announced. Alex and Stevie were at their best, playing and singing and
entertaining. Their Hakaanen was fluent enough that they could do their own
intros and present a bit of a spiel to the audience. Of course, all of
their "Starkeeper" shipmates were there. While the Hakaanen didn't
understand the words to the songs, they didn't care—they loved the
music.

It was late when Alex and Stevie got home. They cuddled up in bed
together—the brothers wanted a night alone for some brotherly love. Yes,
they loved their boyfriends, but since they'd been much younger, their
sexual relationship had been something special, and there were times they
needed each other's company and touch. This was one of those times.

After sex with Stevie, the younger brother fell quickly to sleep. Alex
smiled, thinking of the success of the evening. He had been back to doing
what he loved most. But, he was also thinking of his second
love—flying. He would soon be getting the chance to fly again—he
couldn't wait.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The next morning the first news the boys heard was that the two Shkah boys
who had been with Robert Charles and had run from the shooting had been
found.  They were locked up at the jail in Orkyl and awaiting charges while
the Hakaanen tried to figure out what to do with them. They were placed in
a cell next to Robert Charles. The adult Shkah, who had been found guilty
of their crimes, had been moved to the only other prison in the Big Valley
to keep them separated from Robert Charles.

The day after that, Alex and Stevie were at school when they received a
call from Petras to report to the shuttle hangar the next day. They were
excited about the news—it meant their test flight into space was just a
few days away.

The day arrived quickly. All of the boys went to the airport, but only
Scooter, Alex and Stevie were going to fly.  Stevie was Alex's copilot, but
for this flight he would ride in the jump seat behind Alex and Roobine.
Scooter was on board in case he needed to translate something between the
pilots and Roobine.  Douglas wanted to go, but knew he was needed more on
the planet. This was only a test trip, and it would be his job to
coordinate things down here.  He was going to miss Scooter terribly, even
for the short trip.  He was also worried about the flight.  Even with an
experienced pilot with them, the shuttle hadn't flown for twenty-five years
and Alex had never flown one like it. He was thankful that Roobine agreed
to go on the flight.

From a distance the boys could see the great tail of the shuttle towering
up above the old terminal building.  They hadn't realized how large the
spacecraft was in comparison to the building—its size had been masked by
the immensity of the hanger. They turned the corner of the terminal and saw
the great wings were unfolded, making the shuttle look even larger.

Alex and Stevie saw Roobine waiting for them.  They started toward the
steps leading up to the shuttle's door.  Mike grabbed Alex and stopped him.

"You aren't going without me, love," he said with a smile.

"Mike, we've been through this.  You can't do a thing to help and it's
going to be dangerous."

"I don't care.  I can sit in a passenger seat.  I want to be with you when
you make the galaxy's smoothest landing."

Alex smiled at his friend and his love.  "Well, be sure your seat belt is
buckled."

Mike smiled and followed the crew up the stairs.  Brandon came running up
after them.

"If you are going to stowaway, I better do it, too.  No use you sitting
alone in the passenger cabin."

Douglas understood why the two extra boys wanted to ride along—he wished
he could do the same. When Travis and Ryan made noises about boarding the
shuttle as well, Douglas told them it wasn't going to happen.

"I don't notice a boyfriend of yours being on board," he told them
matter-of-factly.

"Yours is on board," Ryan pointed out.

"Yes he is, and I am here."

Ryan and Travis couldn't dispute that.

Mike sat by a window and Brandon sat at a window seat across the aisle from
him. Alex, Stevie, Scooter, and Roobine were in the cockpit.  Petras was
also on board to help with any technical problems that might come up. The
shuttle had been towed to the terminal, but Petras knew the rocket engines
worked because he started them once a month and taxied the shuttle up and
down the runway. Over the last two weeks, those engines had undergone
extensive testing.  He had kept the ship in excellent condition. For what
he wasn't quite sure, since he knew some day it would have to be
cannibalized just like the other three shuttles had been.

Alex started the engines, and for the first time in twenty-five years, the
shuttle was going to take off into space.  He was in the pilot's seat,
Stevie was in the copilot's seat, and Roobine and Scooter were sitting in
the jump seats behind them.  The engines purred smoothly.  Alex released
the brakes and the shuttle jerked forward.

"Watch the throttle.  Ease up," Roobine said.

Alex eased up some, getting a feel for them. He had taxied the shuttle
during the tests and had handled the spacecraft smoothly the last two days
of testing. But, this was the real thing and he was more nervous than he'd
thought.  When he got to the end of the taxiway, he carefully turned the
shuttle on to the runway until it was facing south.

Alex went over the takeoff checklist with Stevie and Roobine.  That took
them almost fifteen minutes, even though they'd been through the routine
more than once during testing.  Alex wished the simulator was still working
so they could have practiced takeoff and landing in it, but the machine had
been dismantled for parts years ago.

Alex finished calling out the checklist and looked back at Roobine.
"Thanks for being with us.  You know we couldn't do it without you.  Why
did you change your mind?"

"For the reason you stated.  Because you could not do it without me.  But
after this flight, you will be without me and you will do just fine.  I
think you will find nothing up there worth exploring, but I think you need
to find that out for yourselves or you will never be happy on our planet.
We want you to be totally happy with your home.  You never will be if you
never were allowed to make your best effort to return to your own home."

"So you did this for us?  Not just because you wanted to back into space at
all?"

Roobine said nothing.  He looked straight ahead through the windshield, his
face impassive. But Scooter thought he could see the slight twitch of a
smile on the usually stoic face of the former pilot.

Then Roobine told them again what was going to happen on takeoff.  It was
going to be fast, and while Alex had lots of room flying south, he needed
to gain altitude fast to get over the hills at the south end of the valley.
Alex could feel his heart starting to beat hard, sweat dripping down his
face.  Up to this point he had felt really confident. Now the runway was
looking too short and the hills and mountains to the south were too close
and too tall.  His hands started sweating—he wished he was back in the
club playing music.

"Well, are you going to move, or are you going to just stare out of the
window?" Stevie asked.

"Sorry," Alex said.  Leave it to Stevie to wake me up, he thought.  I
couldn't have a better brother.  The control tower had been closed for
years, but the volunteers had restarted some of the electronics—mainly
the radar and the radio.  Since there were only three fliers in the valley
and they were all on the ground, the air was clear.  Alex could go whenever
he was ready.

He listened as Roobine gave him instructions one more time.  He pushed the
throttle forward and the shuttle started down the runway as the purr of the
engines built up to a loud roar.  Roobine had told him to push the
throttles all the way forward hard, which was what he did.  The shuttle
picked up speed in a hurry. The throttle was all of the way forward and
they were pushed against their seats.  The runway went flying by underneath
them. The engines roared, the spacecraft shook, and for the first time in
twenty-five years the shuttle left the ground. The shuttle climbed quickly
and cleared the mountains with plenty of room to spare.

Douglas felt his heart pounding as he watched the shuttle start down the
runway with a loud roar.  The boys cheered as the wheels left the
ground. They watched as the impressive spacecraft climbed over the
mountains; climbing high into the bright blue sky.  Even Enghar found
himself yelling.

Alex was working hard keeping the shuttle flying straight and level.  The
sweat was pouring down his face. His entire body was damp with sweat.

"You're doing great," Roobine said.  "Keep your climb steady.  We're
getting close to the launch point."

Mike and Brandon were both looking out their windows watching the ground
drop away fast.  They knew if this shuttle flew like the Earth shuttles it
would soon be pointing straight up and the main rockets would kick in,
shooting it up into space.

Alex's face was soaked with sweat. His flight path was not very far from
the path the "Moonduster" had taken. He was concentrating hard, looking at
the instruments, making sure they were at the proper altitude and watching
for the launch point time.  He knew that Stevie and Roobine were keeping a
close watch, as well.

He kept fighting off memories of the "Moonduster."  Memories of a damaged
ship flying around mountains, barely missing the higher peaks, almost out
of control, and then falling with a crash into the desert.  He felt fear as
he wondered if he was really a good enough pilot to fly a ship like
this. How can a sixteen-year-old boy expect to fly and safely land a
machine like this?  He shook the ideas out of his head, and wiped the sweat
off his face.

"Watch the second gauge.  When the arrow hits the green mark it's time,"
Roobine reminded him.  Alex knew that and wished Roobine didn't tell him
everything.  But he knew it was better than missing things because of his
inexperience.

The arrow hit the green mark.  "LAUNCH TIME!" Stevie and Roobine yelled
together.  Roobine said it in English.  Scooter had taught him the words
before they got on board.

Alex pushed the throttle all the way forward again and pulled back on the
yoke, while Stevie hit the switch igniting the main rockets.  For having
only talked about it and dummied it, their timing was pretty good.
Everybody was thrust back in their seats by the massive acceleration of the
shuttle.

The shuttle was pointing straight up in the air.  It hovered for a moment,
and then the rockets roared sending the vibrating ship shooting up into the
outer atmosphere.  Alex had been amazed the Hakaanen had come up with
almost the same launch system the Earth shuttles had.  The first shuttles
had needed booster rockets, but more efficient fuel and engines now allowed
a shuttle to launch itself into space and still have fuel to land.

This was the scariest part of the operation. Roobine said that the launch
moment held the biggest danger, and that would be magnified by the fact
they could not test the rockets on the ground.

"If the rockets should fail, you've had experience at landing a crippled
ship. The jets will still be functioning, so it should be easier than what
you had to do with your doomed craft," Roobine had told Alex during the
tests.

Smoke and flame poured out of the back as the shuttle kept climbing.  Even
though it was a long way from them, the boys on the ground could see the
trail of smoke rising up into the air and hear the crackling roar of the
rockets.  Soon the shuttle was completely out of their sight, and all they
could do was wait for it to return.

Mike and Brandon saw the sky darkening outside their windows, and then they
saw the stars shining brighter than in any sky.  They were in space.

In the cockpit Alex finally relaxed.  He cut the main rockets while Roobine
helped him put the shuttle into an orbit.  They worked to locate the
starship.  Stevie did some calculating, with Scooter double checking
him. They had received the figures from the observatory on a mountain at
the North end of the valley.  Stevie put the figures into the computer and
soon Alex had the shuttle moving in the right direction.

The starship came into view.  It was large, bulky piece of machinery, not
as big as the "Starkeeper", but still pretty big. It was completely dark, a
big black form orbiting Inferno.  In a few more months it would become a
fiery ball streaking through Inferno's atmosphere and after that their last
hope of returning home would be gone. Brandon and Mike were both sitting on
the same side of the shuttle.  They saw the ship, then looked down at the
planet trying to find the big valley.  As big as it was, it was hard to see
from space.

Alex slowed the shuttle down as they looked over the huge dark ship.

"Well, we found it," Alex said.  "Let's dock this time while we have
Roobine with us.  We just won't go in." They knew they would need space
suits to go into the starship.

Even though a docking hadn't been in the plan, the mechanics of the
maneuver had been discussed. Since the shuttle still had plenty of fuel for
a landing, Roobine agreed to the attempted docking.

Down on the ground, Douglas was seated in the control tower plugged into
the radio as Scooter described finding the starship and told them they
planned to do a practice docking. He felt a rush of happiness knowing that
the starship appeared to be undamaged and whole.

Roobine reminded Alex on how to dock with the starship. When the former
pilot finished, Alex maneuvered the shuttle close to the starship.  He
folded the great wings, tucking them under the belly of the shuttle.  Alex
moved the shuttle to the side of the starship, aligned it with the docking
target, and eased it in closer and closer to the huge form moving beside
him.

"Not too fast now," Roobine said calmly.  "Ease it in gently.  You don't
want to damage either ship.  Nice and easy.  Nice and easy."

Alex hit the side rockets and slowed the shuttle even more.  Mike and
Brandon watched as the starship filled the windows.  Alex was within a few
feet of it when Roobine told him to stop.  Alex did.  He then gave two
light taps to the side rockets, there was a gentle bump, and they were
docked.

"Excellent," Roobine said.  "Excellent work Alex.  I flew shuttles for ten
years and couldn't have done it better."

They stayed docked for an hour while they all used the bathroom, ate lunch,
and rested.  Roobine showed the boys how to set the docking clamps to keep
the shuttle connected to the starship.  After the hour they released the
clamps and drifted away from the starship.  Next time they would go inside,
but they wouldn't have Roobine with them, although he promised to be on the
radio ready to help.

Alex started the shuttle back towards the atmosphere of Inferno.  He
remembered starting the "Moonduster" in the same direction, not knowing
what angle to take.  That time he had been the inexperienced pilot of a
crippled ship, fighting to help his friends survive.  He was flying into
the unknown and was frightened more than he would ever admit.  He knew that
he had to be within four degrees of the proper entry angle; too steep, and
they would incinerate in the atmosphere; too shallow, and they would skip
helplessly off into space.

This time he had an expert pilot with him, he didn't have Robert Charles in
the copilot's seat, he didn't have a shipload of unhappy, lost, lonely
boys, and he had a shuttle in perfect condition. Plus, he had done this
once before—he felt completely confident in his ability to land the
shuttle.

The coordinates of the airstrip were put into the computer and the shuttle
glided through the upper atmosphere.  The craft shook some, but Roobine
told Alex his angle was perfect. Soon Alex caught the homing signal and
followed it as it led him towards the big valley. How he would have loved
to have had a signal like that when he'd landed the "Moonduster."

 Stevie was reading the landing checklist.  Alex could see the valley
ahead.  Their descent brought them over the mountains, the small valley,
the north hills, then over the Big Valley. Alex lowered the wheels as they
approached the airfield.  The wings dipped suddenly when a gust of wind hit
them, but Alex quickly leveled the shuttle. Roobine looked at his
protégé proudly.

 Alex remembered the wild crash-landing of the "Moonduster" He never
realized how much that landing had affected him and how much he wanted a
perfect landing this time.  They glided over the tree tops, over a field,
and over the end of the runway, the wheels touching and holding to the
concrete as Alex hit the brakes and the reverse thrusters.  The shuttle
quickly slowed down, and Alex taxied it to the terminal, stopped it, and
shut down the engines.

Douglas watched the shuttle come over the mountains with a grin. Alex was
coming into a perfect landing. As he listened to the sound of the
spacecraft's jets as it flew into the valley, he wondered why the Hakaanen
had never heard the noise of the "Moonduster" as it flew over the mountains
not far from the valley.

Alex taxied his craft to the terminal. The stairs were rolled up to the
shuttle as Alex shut down the engines.  Mike, Brandon, and Scooter got off
first.  Next came Petras, followed by Stevie and Roobine.  Alex was last.
As he stepped through the hatch and started down the stairs all of the boys
applauded and yelled and cheered for him.  When Alex got to the bottom of
the steps, Matthew met him.  He had a wreath of flowers, which he put over
Alex's head and around his neck.  Alex leaned down and kissed Matthew, the
boy who had gotten so badly hurt in the crash of the "Moonduster"; the
sweet boy whom they all loved so very much.

Suddenly Alex felt as though a thousand pound weight had been lifted off of
him.  His last landing had been more of a crash than a landing, but this
one had been perfect. Now he was ready to fly all of them to the farthest
corner of the galaxy and he had no doubt he could to it.

Mike walked up to him.  "Nice landing, love."

"Must have been," Alex said with a smile.  "Everybody walked away."

Next: The "Jordan M. Paxton"

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