Welcome back once again loyal readers. Sorry for the long delay in posing, but you have been warned. Ben and I are both busy, but Lady Lex is progressing. We actually have finished chapter 34, but revisions are needed. Chapters 27 and 28 are being finalized and should be posted soon. This chapter contains a lot of interplay between characters, both sexual and non-sexual. For those of you who don't like the sex, skip it and get to the other meaty stuff. The boys are solidifying relationships, both with their mentors and with each other. Ben and I hope you enjoy the chapter and come back for more
The Boys of the Lady Lex Chapter 26 "Relationships" Written By Douglas DD and Benjamin T. Collins
Ben woke up with a startle. Kiran! His brain yelled at him. He'd had another nightmare. They were constantly getting worse. He wondered why he felt so cramped, then realized it was because he and Douglas were squeezed into the same bed. He looked at the clock. Ten minutes until Revielle. Ben usually didn't beat Revielle. It was usually Douglas who was the early riser. Ben thought about all that had happened after their return to the Lady Lex.
The "Wonder Boy" had returned from the funeral just before dinner. The boys secured the shuttle in her docking bay and headed for the evening meal. Ben kissed Douglas as they entered the corridor, congratulating him on his first solo.
Douglas grinned proudly. "It was all of us," he said. "I am going to tell everybody that at dinner. We were prefect in the fly by formation. Did you notice the Ramses' had to adjust twice? David and Mark looked like they were having their problems. Ben, I don't want the Wonder Boy' to just be the best shuttle on the Lady Lex. I want her to be the best junior academy shuttle of all."
Ben couldn't argue with that. He wanted the same thing.
The boys ate dinner and returned to their cabin. It was their duty day, but the boys who had participated in the funeral ceremonies were dismissed from their evening classes or duties. Almost before the cabin door was shut Ben was all over Douglas, kissing him and fondling him, hugging him and kissing him again. Douglas returned the hugs, the kisses, the strokes, the gropes, the fondling. It didn't take long for both boys to have stripped themselves and each other and roll naked on Ben's bed. They were both incredibly horny, precum flowing out of their hard teen dicks and over each other and the bed.
Douglas kissed and licked Ben's neck, his hard nipples, his baby smooth chest and stomach. He continued his kisses down to Ben's small patch of light brown pubes, then he licked and kissed his way up Ben's thighs until he reached the treasure he'd been seeking. He sucked on Ben's smooth balls, rolling them invidually, before placing Ben's hard, leaking, 5.5" cock in his mouth, sucking on it eagerly. Ben moaned with pleasure and delight.
"Don't suck me,' Ben said.
"What do you mean don't suck you?"
"I want you in me."
"You want to suck me?"
"No, dummy, I want you IN me! I want you to fuck me!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, I'm sure."
Douglas moved up the bed some and gave Ben a long deep hard kiss, almost cumming from the pressure of his body against Ben's.
"We need something to help it slide in. Mike told me we need to be lubricated."
"You talked to Mike about this?" Ben asked, somewhat surprised.
"Just in passing. Not like, hey Mike I want to fuck Ben, what do I do? More like asking him what it was like."
Well, at least he didn't talk to Scooter about it, Ben thought. Then he pushed away the quick moment of jealousy and leaned back ready to enjoy the moment.
"But we don't have anything," Ben protested.
Douglas smiled, got off the bed, opened his nightstand drawer and pulled out a tube of cream. "Courtesy of dad's medical cabinet."
Douglas came back and rubbed the cream into Ben's crack, and fingered it into his hole. He then rubbed it over his own hard dick, trying hard not to stimulate himself too much. Oh man, Douglas thought, this is going to happen way to quick. Maybe I should jerk off first and then try it.
But the hormones were flowing too hard through his adolescent bloodstream. He wanted Ben now, and he knew Ben wanted him now. After getting them both slick and lubed, he kissed Ben again. He raised his lover's legs and eased himself up against Ben's waiting pucker. He pushed in, but met resistance. He pushed again, grunted and tried to thurst in, once again meeting with resitance.
"Mike says it can be real tight sometimes. And if the dick doesn't go in the bottom guy should push out and it helps relax the muscle. Try it."
"Sounds like you've been planning this day."
Douglas grinned and once again pushed against Ben's pucker. "Yep."
Ben pushed out as instructed. Suddenly the ring gave way, and Douglas slid into Ben's hot tight insides. Ben grunted and moaned. Douglas stopped, his dick about a quarter of the way in.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Yeah. I just have to get used to it. Don't stop. Keep going."
Douglas pushed in again. Deeper, deeper, slowly deeper, until he was all the way in. Once again Ben groaned. "Oh, Douglas that feels so good. Make love to me. Start fucking me."
Douglas started to slowly thrust, humping Ben with increasing speed, each thrust harder, and seemingly deeper. Douglas could feel himself sliding across Ben's sweet spot, each trip eliciting a squeal from Ben, high pitched and pleasure filled. Ben's head lay back as each thrust brought unimaginable pleasure. Douglas was right. The sex was going to be quick. What he didn't know was how intense it would be. Ben and Douglas both became lost in their feelings, moaning with each thrust, almost howling as the feelings built up. Ben's fingers dug into Douglas's back as Douglas rammed him deep and hard, his balls slamming on Ben's smooth ass. A hard final thrust and Douglas screamed out as wave after wave of pleasure flowed through is body, as his hard spurting dick felt like it was going to separate itself from his body. Ben's was still clutching Douglas as his dick swelled, jerked, and spurted, the no touch orgasm wracking his body with pleasureable feelings he didn't even know existed.
The boys collapsed on each other, spent, Ben's cum almost cementing them together.
"Oh, god, I love you, Ben."
"I love you, Douglas. I love you so much."
The the sex, as well as their long day's journey in space, had sapped the strength from them. They fell asleep, cuddled on the small bed, until Andrew's rendition of taps woke them up.
"Shit!" Douglas said. "I thought that was supposed to put us to sleep, not wake us up."
"Better tell that to the Otter," Ben said, laughing.
The boys got up, peed, brushed their teeth and talked about having more sex., but their talk drifted into other avenues.
"We fight too much," Douglas venutred, with a bit of trepidation.
"I know. It's my fault," Ben said.
"It's nobody's fault. We just do. We need to stop. We've been fighting almost as much as we haven't. We can't keep doing this or one day we'll be too mad at each other to make up. I don't want what we have to end, and I don't want it to keep being like this."
"Like I said it's my fault. I get jealous. I keep thinking I won't keep you and somebody else is going to take you."
"Maybe Andrew and Nipper have it right. We just need to trust each other. Seems to work for them, and they're only little munchkins."
Ben thought for a moment, then said, "Maybe we just need to make some rules."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, like, you and Nipper used to mess around, right?"
"A couple of times. He's my brother. You're not going to be jealous of him too are you? We were doing stuff before you and I even met and ....,"
"Be quiet a minute and hear me out."
"Okay."
"So," Ben continued, "let's say anything we do with our brothers is cool. That mean you with Nipper and Andrew and Trev. And me with all three. We want to mess around with them, it's a family thing, okay?"
"Okay. But I want you right now, not them."
"I want you too," Ben said. "All's I'm saying is that it's okay."
"Okay. Fair enough."
"Then, if we ever want to do things with other guys together, that's cool too."
"Right. That's IF we ever want to do stuff together with them."
"And if maybe one of us wants to do something with another guy, like just the two of us, it's okay if we tell each other first. And we don't go falling in love with him."
"What are you saying, Ben? Do you have something going? Something I should know about?"
"No. This is all hypotherical."
"That's hypothetical, Ben."
"Whatever. I just want us to have rules. Then I won't be getting jealous everytime you talk to somebody. We have rules and we trust each other. Fair enough?"
"What about your cousin Tina? How does she fit in?"
"You go after her and I shoot you out of an airlock for being too dumb to live," Ben said laughing. "Now, do we have a deal?"
"We have a deal." Douglas wasn't sure if he liked or disliked Ben's ideas, but he was willing to go along with them, because he did not want them to continue with their petty squabbling. Not only was it bad for them, but he could see that it also hurt the "Wonder Boy".
"Can we have sex or not?" Douglas asked, as he played impatiently with his hardening cock.
Ben gave him a wide grin. Douglas could make it out in the dimly lighted room. He planted a kiss on Ben's smiling lips. This time Douglas's entry into Ben lasted much longer, with equally satisfying results.
Ben's thoughts of the night before were quickly interrupted by Andrew's Reveille, made all the worse by Andrew hitting a wrong note. Douglas jumped up with a start.
"Damn. I just got to sleep."
Ben planted a big kiss on him. "It just feels that way. I love you."
"I love you, Ben."
The boys pulled themselves out of the bed, ready to face a long Saturday of classes.
Nipper looked up at Andrew, letting his softening dick fall out of his mouth. "Sorry about that, Andy."
"I just knew I'd do that one time if you kept sucking me every time I played reveille."
"But making that bad note felt good, right?"
"Oh, yes," Andrew said, showing his sweet boyish grin.
The day went by slowly for many. Classes were classes, and duty stations were duty stations. Some of the cadets were excused from various classes and duty stations to help prepare for Monday's warp drive test. All of the cadets could sense the rise in tension as the regular crew worked on last minute details. Outside, the Lady Lex was uploading the last of her cargo. Her holds were almost full. She would soon have the supplies to be able to travel for weeks in space.
Trevor noticed Harrison Wolfe was somewhat in pain, even though he did his best to mask it. Nobody else in the class noticed, not even Ian or Andrew, but Trevor has becoming quite attuned to the moods and actions of his mentor. Trevor used the fifteen minute break between the end of morning classes and the start of lunch to pay his favorite teacher a visit.
"Good morning, Master Collins. To what do I owe this visit?"
"My name is Hawke. By day I am Trevor Collins. At night, when I'm on a mission, I am The Hawke."
"Very well, Master Hawke," Harrison Wolfe said with a bemused grin, "to what do I owe this visit?"
Trevor looked at his mentor with a satisfied look on his face. "I'm almost finished with `Treasure Island'."
"Excellent. You are becoming educated in spite of yourself."
"How did you get hurt?" Trev blurted out.
"What makes you think I'm hurt?"
"I can tell."
"The Hawke is not only a master of stealth but an astute observer of people as well, I gather."
Trev wasn't entirely sure what Harrison Wolfe meant, but he nodded yes, figuring that was the correct answer. He knew he was a master of stealth, so as far as that went, his teacher was correct.
"Did you get hurt spying?"
"No, I did not, Master Hawke. But you are correct about my being a little sore. I bit too much, shall we say, exercise during my brief stay on Earth."
Trevor wasn't sure he totally believed Harrison Wolfe, but he wasn't sure enough of himself yet to push the subject further. "When do I get my next lesson on stealth and cunning?"
"When you can place my copy of `Treasure Island' with a report on how the book helped you learn about being stealthy, cunning, and being able to outwit an adversary on this desk," he tapped the metal standard issue desk.
"That's easy."
"Not if you do it between Taps and Reveille." Wolfe winced a bit with pain. "Now, I must bid you adieux, Master Hawke. You need your sustenance, and I need some time to rest my sore muscles. I shall you see you in class on Tuesday."
Trevor took the hint and left the teacher's cabin for lunch. He understood that Harrison Wolfe expected to return the book by placing it on his desk at night-when he was in the cabin himself. Well, he thought to himself, now I need to finish it, write my report, and become The Hawke. One morning soon, Harrison Wolfe would awaken with "Treasure Island" on his desk.
After lunch, Mike headed for the staff meeting that Commander Creevey had called. He,Johnny Cooper, and each of the grade department heads had been called to it. Mike knew the meeting would deal some with the upcoming warp test, but most of it would have to do with choosing teams. Meetings were boring, but if it meant missing some class time, Mike was all for it. The only class he didn't want to miss was his shuttle class, but the meeting was scheduled around it.
They met in the large meeting room situated directly under the bridge. He and Creevey were the first two to arrive. Must be an XO thing, Mike thought with a grin. Soon the table at the center of the room was filled. At one end was Creevey. Johnny Copper sat at the other end. The grade department heads were all present; RJ "Gerbil" Polaski, 5th grade, Trevor Collins, 6th grade, Tyler Young, 7th grade, Scottie Brothers 8th grade, Eric Larson, 9th grade, Toby Boswell, 10th grade, Jeff Smith, 11th grade, and Travis Tucker, 12th grade.
While the warp test and their roles was discussed, most of the meeting had to do with the forming of teams for the upcoming competition with the "Orion" next month. With all the work and time that had been needed to get the Lady Lex into shape they had fallen behind on picking teams, both academic, athletic, and operational. They knew no matter what they did, they would not be prepared for the upcoming competition.
Commander Creevey looked across the table at Cadet Cooper. "Cadet Cooper, the meeting is now yours."
"What if I don't want it?"
"Cadet Cooper, you and I discussed what your role would be now." Why on earth did the Captain pick him as the cadet CO. I know each of these boys have something good to find under the surface, but I'll be damned if I can see what Hatcher sees in this boy. On a ship screaming for positive leadership he picks the most negative boy on board. Except for the way he treats his son Jesse, I have nothing but respect for Steven Hatcher. I'm sure there is a reason he picked this loser as the cadet CO and I sure do wish he would tell me what it is.
"I forgot."
"Did you remember to tell the deparment heads to have their reports for the meeting today?"
"I went to Earth, remember? I can't be two places at once,"
"If you expect to be the cadet CO maybe you will need to figure out how to not only be two places at once, but how to DO a hundred things at once."
"Maybe I don't expect to be cadet CO. Maybe I just don't want this fucking job and I'm fucking tired of it. I can tell people what to do, but forget the fucking paperwork and all that bullshit. So fuck you all and fuck this fucking ship! I hope those academy assholes all kick your butts!" Johnny stood up quickly, knocking over his chair in the process, and stormed out of the room. Commander Creevey took a few breaths to keep her temper in check. That boy is impossible! she thought.
She turned to the XO. She tried to keep her voice from trembling as she fought down her anger. Nobody had ever gotten to her and pushed her buttons the way Johnny Cooper had. There was no doubt in her mind it was time to replace him. She told Mike to refer to the outline she had in front of her and had been placed in front of Johnny and Mike. "Mike, could you please assign what's on there to the department heads."
Mike knew what was on it, but referred to it quickly. "I need a list of boys from your classes for each of the teams listed. For the academic teams, the hockey, the sword fighting teams, the individual sports, the baseball teams, and for the operations teams. I need the list by this time Monday afternoon. We will meet here again, then."
"I'm afraid that won't work," Creevey broke in. Monday we do our warp test and many of uw will have other duties to do."
Mike now had the choice of giving them the easier way out and saying have it done by Tuesday, or by making them work over their day off and asking for it tomorrow evening. Knowing time was getting short he said, "You're right. I will need them by tomorrow at 1900 hours. We will meet here again at that time."
The boys groaned. Trevor thought about walking out like Johnny had and joining him. He was still part of Johnny's gang, and that was more important to him than some stupid list Mike could do himself. But he also had developed a sense of loyalty to the Lady Lex. In spite of his aloofness and his reputation as a loner, he loved his brothers. He had no friends, but he liked many of the boys, even if he didn't think they liked him. And he wanted to use what Harrison Wolfe was teaching him for good. He knew if he walked out now he could blow the good things he had going. So he stayed. He could meet with Johnny later. But he still had to get his say in.
"Will Johnny be here tomorrow?" he asked.
Mike looked at Creevey for the answer.
"I doubt that very much," Commander Creevey said.
"That sucks!"
Creevey glared at Trev, but said nothing. She had heard rumors of how close he and Cooper had become. At least the boy didn't walk out, she thought.
"Then let's go get dinner," Mike said. "And I'll see you all here tomorrow."
"It figures Mike decided to adjourn the meeting to eat," Scottie said. That brought the first and only laugh of the meeting. It was no secret how much Donkey Mike liked to eat.
Mike watched as Trevor headed quickly out of the room and to one of the elevators. Mike decided to take the stairs down. He had wanted a few moments to think. Besides, he had a pretty good idea where Trev was heading, and was sure he would see him at the same destination.
Johnny sat on his bed, fuming. Who does that bitch think she is? Why was he on the fucking ship? Almost everybody here thought they were smarter than him. They could do shit and he couldn't do anything. He came straight from jail, and they were in some juvie school country club. The only thing is, they weren't as smart as they thought they were. He was better than any of them. Better and smarter. Fuck them all. He lit up a cigarette. Fuck the crewman who gave him his cigarettes. Johnny knew what he wanted and he wasn't going to get it. Trying to be friendly and give him shit, then suddenly he says, "You have a nice ass Johnny." Yeah, whatever. I been on that road before. I don't go that way any more. I take his fucking fags and all he gets is being able to jerk off thinking about getting my ass someday. Fuck him. And fuck Hatcher for making him the fucking CO. I bet Hatcher does it with his sons, and now he wants me, too. I don't trust him. I don't trust the teachers. I don't trust any of the crew. All I trust is me. I am done being the fucking CO. What are they going to do, send me to jail? Johnny took a big drag on his cigarette and laughed. His angry thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door.
"Who the fuck is it?"
"Hawke."
He wanted to tell the little pest to go away, but he smashed his cigarette, got up and opened the door. Trevor walked in, smelling the cigarette smoke, even though Johnny had the climate control system on full.
"Can I have a cigarette?" Trevor asked.
In spite of centuries of anti-tobacco campaigning, tobacco still existed, was still smoked, and, even with the gains of modern medicine, could still be deadly. Cancers were being conquered, the changing, mutating, becoming something else. Lung transplants, lung regeneration, all of the miracles of modern medicne could help many of the afflictions caused by tobacco, but nothing could conquer the evils it placed upon the human body and mind. It was illegal on many planets, but the black market trade kept it from being stomped out. Earth and Lucifer had the largest tobacco farms in the known galaxy. Even with anti-nicotine drugs available, many of those who got hooked to the stronger and stronger tobaccos in existence refused to take them in order to quit.
"They're bad for you, kid. They'll stunt your growth. Make you a min-Hawke." He laughed at his joke, but Trevor just glared at him.
"I got better stuff for you to smoke." Johnny said.
"What?"
"Oh, something I picked up on Earth. But that's not for now." He pulled two cigaretters out of a drawer and handed one to Trevor. "Light up, dude. What the hell, die young or die old, it's all dying right? I mean who wants to live forever? I don't want to turn into some old fuck like the assholes who run this ship."
Trevor lit up his cigarette and took a drag, coughing hard. He actually hated the things, but he wanted to be cool around Johnny.
"Are you going to quit?" Trevor asked.
"What? Quit smoking? No way. I don't care what they say or do. I like it."
"I might. Before I get hooked on them."
"Wuss."
Trevor blanched at that and said nothing. Nobody called him a wuss. He took another drag. "I meant are you going to quit as the CO?"
"I don't think I have to. I think I up and got myself fired today. And I love it. I hated that fucking job anyway. I only kept it so I could do shit to work behind Hatcher's back. Now I can do it even better, because I can give everything I got to the new Mustang Gang."
"Cool. Then I'm quitting as 6th grade department head. Who needs it?"
"Right. Who needs it."
"What's the other stuff you got to smoke?" Trevor asked.
Johnny went to his closet, climbed up the same kind of ventilator shaft Trevor used for his sneaking around the ship, but without the same stealthy quietness. He opened up the ceiling hatch and brought down a box. Inside it were packs of cigarettes he had received from the crewman, and some clear bags of green herb.
"Is that marijuana?" Trevor asked, somewhat awe struck by the sight.
"That is is. Prime shit off the best government farms. Got it on Earth on our little trip."
"You gonna teach me how to smoke it?"
"Soon kid. I'll teach you to smoke it soon.
Their chat was interrupted by another knock on Johnny's door. Johnny quickly stashed the box on the closet floor.
"Who the fuck is it?"
"It's Mike."
Johnny opened the door, this time making no attempt hide the fact he was smoking.
"Go away. I don't need you. Go graze in some pasture."
Mike pushed open the door. He and Johnny were the same height, but Mike had the weight advantage by far. He was a solidly built boy, while Johnny had always been scrawny. Johnny was older, but Mike was bigger and stronger.
"Nice smelling room, Johnny. Are you using a new kind of air freshener?"
"Shut up!"
He noticed Trevor with the cigarette in his hand. "Oh and look. You're teaching our planet's youth the finer side of life."
"Fuck you!"
"I see you're also impressing him with your big vocabulary."
Johnny took a big drag on his cigarette and blew a cloud of smoke into Mike's face. Trevor was about to do the same when Mike hit the young boy's arm, knocking the cigarette to the floor.
"Hey!" Trevor yelled angrily.
"Johnny and I need to talk," Mike said. "Alone."
"I can stay if I want!"
"I bet your brother will be very happy to find you like to hang out in Johnny's cabin smoking cigarettes.'
"I don't care what he thinks. I'm staying!"
"I'll talk to you later, Hawke. I think me and the big Donkey here have a few things to settle."
Trev reached over to pick up his cigarette, then changed his mind. He glared at both of the older boys and walked out of the cabin. "Nobody messes with the Hawke!" He slammed the door behind him.
"Nice picture of a CO you make, Mustang," Mike said.
"Who asked you, faggot?"
"That didn't bother you three years ago."
"Times change. Now get out of my room!" Johnny lunged at Mike, but Mike put out his arm, grabbed him, and pushed him onto the bed.
"I seem to be bigger than you now, Johnny," Mike said with a grin.
"Fuck you!"
"What you need is a good Donkey hoofing. Might knock some sense into your hard head." Mike took a couple of sniffs and walked towards the closet. Johnny did nothing to stop him. He saw the box tossed to the side and sniffed again. "Looks like you want to get Ben's brother smoking more than just cigarettes."
"How did you know it was there?"
"Donkeys not only have big sensitive ears, they have big noses giving them a good sense of smell."
"So what? You gonna go tell Stone or Murdock or somebody. Like I said, what are they gonna do, arrest me? I'm already in jail."
"There are some people who have a lot of faith in you, Johnny."
"They're all idiots. I don't trust any of them. I don't need any of them! I don't need you! I don't need nobody!"
Suddenly, Mike's voice softened. "What happened, Johnny?"
"Huh?"
"I looked up to you. The Mustang Gang was good. And it always tried to do good. It tried to make up for what happened to your brother. You were good. What happened?"
"I hate this place! I hate them! I hate you!"
"You sure got quite the wood the day you commanded this old ship to move out of the graveyard."
"How would you know that?"
"Donkeys have good eyesight, too."
Johnny sat silently, looking at his old buddy, his old gang member. Mike was the best, maybe because he was into it all for the fun and thrill of it, not for the actual acts of theft. Maybe because he, more than anybody else, believed in what they were doing. Johnny wondered how much he did with the Mustang gang was for him and how much was for was for his dead brother, Craig. He remembered the thrill of power he had on the bridge the day of the shakedown, how just a word from him got thousands of tons of metal, machinery, and people moving. He remembered his anger when the Lady Lex had been violated by the junior academy raiders. They were emotions more real to him than anything he had ever felt. So real, they were frightening, more frightening than the man who had betrayed his trust. His gaze shifted from Mike to the opposite wall. He continued to say nothing.
"You like being CO, don't you? You just don't want to admit you like something somebody else gave you. Something adults in charge gave you. And admit it, it was given to you. You sure didn't earn it. But you know what? The Johnny Cooper who ran the Mustang Gang would be the perfect pick. I think Captain Hatcher caught a glimpse of him. The Johnny Cooper I looked up to."
"You're so full of bullshit, Mike.You've always been full of bullshit. Even as a little kid."
"One thing about Donkeys is that they're full of..."
"...Donkeyshit," Johnny concluded. The two boys smiled. The tension started to ease some.
"So, what happened? Find kids tougher than you?"
"Some asshole faggots thought they could have their way with me. They were wrong. I was tougher. Tougher than everybody but...but...," Johnny trailed off. Mike could see out of character tears start to form on the older boy's face. He said nothing, just standing and watching his one time leader.
"Fuck you, Mike. You won't make me say it."
"Say what?"
"I trusted him. I trusted him because he helped me. I trusted him because I told him about my first months in jail. I trusted him because he was big, and muscular and smart." Johnny took a deep breath. "He raped me, Mike! Don't you understand, he held me down and he FUCKING RAPED ME! I trusted him and he raped me! Fucking faggot. I hate all you fucking faggots!"
"Did you report him?"
Johnny fought tears, determined that Mike wouldn't see him cry. "Yeah, like somebody would believe me over one of their precious counselors. I just refused to see him again."
Mike fought back feelings of guilt and remorse. He was the reason Johnny got caught. Johnny had taken the fall for the entire gang, and the prosecutors knew it. It was a reason his sentence had been extra harsh.
"Do you hate me, Johnny?"
Johnny fought back a sob and said quietly, "No."
Mike sat on the bed next to Johnny. "Do you trust me, Johnny?"
"Yes."
"Don't take it out on the people here for what happened there. Captain Hatcher believes in you. Now you need to believe in him and in yourself."
"I don't want to," Johnny said stubbornly, looking down at the floor.
"Tomorrow morning, you apologize to Commander Creevey. Tell her you want to stay on as CO. Tell her you want one more chance."
"What if I don't want another chance?"
"You know you do."
"I don't even know what to do to be a CO. A gang leader, yes? I was good. You know I was good. I could get you guys to do anything. I'm still good, but all the CO paperwork is bullshit. Doing reports, making committees and saying who is on what team. I can't do that. I can get people to do what I want, but I can't do all this bullshit, Mike. That's why I want a gang back."
"I've got your back. I'm your XO. Trust me just like you said you do. I'll pull the strings for you until you can to it yourself." Mike took a deep breath. He was having a tough enough time getting his shuttle crew together. But he remembered the focused determined Johnny he knew in the Mustang Gang. What's a little lie if it helped bring him back?
"Do you think she'll let me back?"
"I don't know. I just know this is probably your last chance. You can't fuck up again. Ride this Donkey and I guarantee you won't." I should have had my fingers crossed on that one, Mike thought.
Johnny took a deep breath. "I'll do it." At that point the old Mustang Gang was completely finished. At that point, Johnny had turned the mantle of leadership over to Mike. But Mike knew, in his heart, that he would willingly turn it back over to Johnny. All Johnny needed was proof he deserved to wear it.
Mike got up. "You're seeing her tomorrow morning, right?"
"Yeah." Johnny was confused and and full of conflicting emotions.
Mike picked up the pack of cigarettes. "I remember when you cursed the assholes who helped destroy your brother. I remember when you swore never to pollute your body. I remember when we sat in an empty warehouse, everybody drinking a stolen beer or two but you. I remember how you promised us you would be better than your brother. I remember you telling us how, when you grew up, you would make him proud of you." He crushed the pack and its contents and threw it on the floor. "Think about it."
Mike left Johnny sitting on the bed, hating Mike, hating Captain Hatcher, hating the Lady Lex, hating the world, hating himself.
Trevor had caught a glimpse of Chandler, the Falcon. He was now ready to pounce on him from behind. But Chandler turned before he could move.
"How did you know I was here?"
"Jeez, Hawke. All that cigarette smoke clinging to you. I could smell you a kilometer away. You really do need to stay away from that, you know, if you want to catch your prey."
The comment gave Trev a moment's pause. Smell was a part of stealth. He took the cigarette in his pocket and crushed it, throwing it into a trash can.
After dinner and evening classes, as taps approached, other relationships were taking slight turns. With Stan on first watch, Mike got to have sex with his long time boyfriend Ryan for the first time in a couple of weeks. The sex was passionate and loving. The pillow talk had to do with Mike's confrontation with Johnny Cooper.
In an other cabin Jesse and Scottie were jerking of furiously in their own beds. They did this often, not in the least embarrassed by it. But tonight, the pattern was going to change. Scottie asked Jesse if he could jerk him off.
"Are you serious?" Jesse asked.
"Who are we fooling? We keep doing this almost every night, so let's step it up some. It's gotta feel good, so why not?"
"Then come on over, Scottie. Unless you want me to go there."
Before getting an answer, Jesse hopped out of his bed and into Scottie's. This was a moment they both had been waiting for but almost afraid to express. Jesse wrapped his hand around Scottie's sizeable member. Scottie's hand quickly got to work on Jesse's smaller one. It didn't take long for both of them to cover themselves in cum.
Jesse had to fight back an incredible urge to kiss Scottie. He did turn and drape his arm around him and asked if he could sleep with Scottie. Scottie readily agreed, then surprised Jesse with a quick peck on his lips.
"Scottie, I like you a lot."
"I like you a lot too, Jesse. A whole lot."
Both boys wanted to say more, but they weren't sure what the next step meant, and in their shyness about their feelings, they didn't move farther. But a wall that was between them had come down. Jesse and Scottie both felt there was going to be more to come. Even though they didn't admit it, and weren't even sure they felt it, they had fallen in love with each other.
In Scooter's cabin, Jeff and Scooter were taking advantage of TJ being on watch. It was no coincidence Scooter had given TJ early watch on a Saturday night. The two boys were cuddled up after an hour of wild sex. The bed was a mess and they were both hot and sweaty.
"You miss Jim, don't you," Jeff said.
"Yeah. I love him still. He writes me all the time."
"And I think you have a crush on somebody else here, too."
"I do? Who?"
"We don't need to say. I can just tell by the way you look at him."
"Then maybe I do. But I love you too, Jeff."
"I love you too, Scooter. But I also know that when you leave the Lady Lex I won't be part of your life. That I am your boyfriend here only."
"That's not true. I will always remember and love you."
"Scooter, I'm not gonna worry about it. I love you. I have from the minute we became roomates at the Augustine School. But I know some day I will lose you."
Scooter could see the sadness on Jeff's face, but he wasn't sure how to respond to it. By instinct he picked the perfect response, kissing Jeff with a light open mouthed kiss, allowing their tongues to play. It was time for the two of them to have round two before TJ was due to return. Jeff had watch next and could be in the corridor after lights out. Scooter had scheduled it all perfectly. Sometimes he could do things right.
Once again Amanda Creevey placed a blanket over the sleeping form of Doctor Daniels. The picture of his wife was on his lap. Some night I am going to have to wake him up and give him the two words he needs to know. Move on.
A few decks away the doctor's younger son was snuggled up to his boyfriend. Their evening hadn't been one of sex as much as one of best friends. Nipper had played his violin, playing the songs his mother loved, and the one he played the night she died. Nipper's return to Earth, even if it was only in orbit, had reawakened the memories of his mother.
"I miss her Andy. And then sometimes it was like I didn't. And when we got there and I saw Earth again I missed her and was mad because some days I don't think about her."
Andrew was too young to know what to say. He was too young to know that Nipper was moving on with his life. Not as much forgetting his mother as being able to live without her, and to cherish the memories of her when he had them. Andrew gave Nipper the only response his 12 year old self could think of; he made wild, mad, passionate love to him.
Trevor was busily jerking off on top of his bed. Ian knew what was going on in the darkness. He couldn't stand it. He busily jerked himself off too, but under the covers.
"Eagle, can you jerk me off," Trevor said.
"You serious? You want me to jerk you off?"
"Yeah. I want you to jerk me off. That's why I asked."
Ian ignored Trev's rebuke and came over to the bed, laying next to Trev's naked form, his little 3 inch dick standing proudly up, just a half inch short of Trevor's. Even with Trevor's invitation he was hesitant to touch him, finally reaching and lightly stroking Trevor's steel hard boner.
"Harder. Do it harder."
Ian, ecstatic that Trevor was allowing him to do this, increased the pressure and of his strokes, until Trevor moaned and shook himself to a dry cum.
"That was good. Thanks, Eagle, you can go back to your bed now."
Ian was stunned. Isn't he going to return the favor? he thought. He got up, making sure Trevor could see his hard dick, but Trevor ignored it. He had come down from his sexual high and wasn't at all interested in Ian.
Ian got up, mumbling on the way back to his bed, "You stink like cigarettes. It's gross."
He climbed under the covers, his face to the wall, his dick deflating along with his ego.
Trevor felt like sayin, "I just quit, dork," but instead he fell asleep, his youthful sexual needs satisfied.
It was Sunday morning. Breakfast and inspections were finished. Except for a few watches, some meetings, and the work required by some of the cadets involved with the test of the warp drive, the boys had a free day. For a lot of them that meant catching up on homework. For one of them it meant the most humbling moment of his young life.
"I'm sorry for the way I acted yesterday, Commander Creevey."
The ship's XO looked at Johnny Cooper with a distrustful eye. "Apology accepted, cadet. But that changes nothing. I am relieving you from your postion as cadet XO."
Johnny took a deep breath. He fought every instinct in him to blow up and tell the bitch in front of him what he tought. "I would like another chance."
"You've had enough chances, cadet. Yesterday was outright insubordination in front of every grade department head on the ship and the cadet XO."
"I apologized to him." Which is close enough for me to say I did, he thought.
"The time for apologies has passed."
"Captain Hatcher made me CO. Isn't he the only one who can fire me?"
"He will listen to my recommendation. He always has. Insubordination on this ship will not be tolerated."
Well, Mike figured it would come to this, Johnny thought. Now I have to decide if I really want this gig, if I really want to be the cadet CO. He latched onto the day he set the Lady Lex into motion. He latched on to his anger at the intruders violating his home. Yes, his home. Not his jail, but his home. He spoke the words Mike had instructed him to speak this morning.
"I wish to appeal to Captain Hatcher. It is my right."
"Appeal granted. I will call him right now so we can get this over with."
She called Hatcher on the comm. He complained of being busy working on the warp test checklist, but after hearing what the situation was, he agreed to meet them in his ready room. Creevey had told Hatcher of Johnny's actions of the day before, but hadn't decided until this morning to relieve Johnny of his duty. She knew she should have consulted the captain, but as XO, she was within her right to relieve a cadet of command status. She was sure the captain would back her, but if he didn't, it was a decision she could live with. It wouldn't be the first time she and Hatcher had played the game of good cop-bad cop.
They entered Hatcher's ready room. The captain was at his desk.
"Cadet Cooper, I must say I've been very disappointed in your actions," Hatcher said.
" I apologized, sir."
Cooper is being remarkably civil, Hatcher thought to himself.
"I understand cadet. I gave you the postion you have because I thought I saw things in you that you didn't see in yourself. I was obviously wrong."
"Yes, sir. You were."
"You agree with me?"
"Yes, sir. But you won't be wrong from here on." At least you won't as long as Mike backs me up.
"Commander Creevey has relieved you of your command. I most likely will back her on that decision. So tell me why I shouldn't. Why this sudden change of heart?"
Because Craig would want me to be better than he was, he thought. Because Mike was right. I did promise to be better than him. I promised it on his grave. I let the assholes in jail change that. I let that counselor change it. I don't know if I can do this job Craig, but I will do what I need to do to make you proud of me. This was what went through his mind, but he wasn't ready to trust Captain Hatcher with those thoughts. Maybe someday. Maybe soon. But not here and not now.
"I think I can do the job. I want one more chance."
"You had your last chance already," Creevey said. Hatcher ignored her.
"And I want to know why you should get one? You've had plenty of chances, and you really haven't taken advantage of them. I was wrong, Cadet Cooper. I admit it. I thought giving you the job would help you and help the Lady Lex. I was wrong. It hasn't helped either one of you. So once again, why should I give you one more chance?"
"You were in jail! You went to juvie school!" Johnny's emotions were starting to grab him. "Didn't you ever ask for one more chance? One last chance because you thought maybe you were ready to show somebody something? That's what I want. I want one last chance to show you that you were right. I want you to see the the leader of the Mustang Gang is still in me. If you give me one more chance then you give yourself one more chance too, right? If I screw up I will never ask for another chance. But I won't screw up. At least not on purpose I won't. I will make you proud of me." And I will make Craig proud of me. Johnny took a deep breath, fearful that his outburst had sealed his fate.
In fact it had the opposite effect. Johnny's coolness had convinced Captain Hatcher that Johnny wasn't serious about wanting another chance, that he was just going through the motions. But his emotionally charged outburst showed the Captain that maybe he was serious about being ready to take advantage of one more chance. Besides, Johnny was right. As a youth he had asked for that one more chance. And he had made the person giving it to him proud he had done it.
"Very well, Cadet Cooper. You will maintain your position. At the meeting of department heads this afternoon, you will apologize to Commander Creevey, to each of them, and to Cadet Mike Wakeman. And I warn you, if any senior officer on this ship gives me any reason to think you've screwed up you're done. And you will be very unhappy you ever put me into the postion of relieving you. You will set an example to the entire crew of the Lady Lex for behavior and leadership. I've led you by the hand long enough. It is sink or swim time now Cadet Cooper. Is that fully understood?"
"Yes, sir, it is. I will succeed, sir."
"It's going to take a lot for us to believe that, cadet," Creevey said. Once again Hatcher ignored her.
"I believed in you, Cadet Cooper. I still do. Now it's time for you to believe in yourself. You are dimissed, cadet."
Johnny left the room, the captain's last words ringing in his ears. Believe in myself? That's been my whole problem. I know I'm really not good enough. Mike, you said you have my back. I hope you were telling me the truth.
In the ready room, Creevey looked at Hatcher and said, "Nice job, Captain."
"You're not angry I didn't back you?"
"I know the routine, Steve. I've served with you long enough. Good cop, bad cop. Besides, I doubt he lasts the week."
"I'm afraid I agree with you there, Amanda. Within the next week Mike Wakeman will be the new CO."
Matt looked across the desert wasteland. He wondered where Jake Masters had gone. Their last night in space had been a tumultuous one. Jake had told him he would be leaving for awhile and he would be dropped off at a small outpost planet. What he didn't tell him was that it was an outpost for smugglers and other lowlifes. Matt begged him not to go, or to at least take him with him. He missed his family. He missed Earth. He knew Jake Masters was the persons who had kidnapped him, though he didn't know why. He hated Jake Masters for doing that to him. He loved Jake Masters for how he made him feel. He and Jake made love, they argued, and they made love again.
But now Jake was gone, and had been for over a week. The men watching over him were nice enough. He was getting good food, the use of a pool, lots of vids. What he didn't know was Jake Masters had left word he would kill anybody who touched the boy inappropriately. As a result he was treated with defernce and respect even by the lowest of the low lifes who inhabited the isolated planet. But even if he had known, Matt wouldn't have cared. He wanted Jake back. Or his dad. Or Tim. Of just somebody to touch and hold him and say they loved him.
Light years away, the interim Ambassador to Kriton opened was reading his e-mail. He had skipped Ambassador Talon's funeral, with the blessing of the Secretary of Interplanetary relations. There was too much to be done here. He was quite certain he would soon be named the new Ambassador to Kriton. After all, he probably had had more to do with formulatint policy than Ambassador Talon had. He was about to delete an e-mail that had a jumble of an address when the word "Matt" caught his eye.
He opened the mail. Since his son had mysteriously disappeared after leaving Admiral Whitakers's house after a visitl to the Admiral's son, his job had become even harder. His wife and Matt were about to join him on Kriton, then Matt was gone. His wife still hadn't recovered.
He read the mail twice, then blinked. This was far worse than he suspected. "We have your son, Matt. He is in good health and will remain so as long as relations with Kriton follow the path we dictate to you. Please do not try to find us or report us to any authority. We have friends in very high places, and Matt would suffer as a result. After you acknowledge receiving this e-mail you will get instructions. Just type received and send the reply. You will then receive your first instructions. Remember, your son's life depends on your actions."
The interim Ambassador typed, "recieved. i wish to verify my son is still alive". He hit send and waited for a response, his hearth thumping, full of fear for his son.
Johnny Cooper apologized to Commander Creevey and to Mike in front of the departmental council. He then apologized to each member. There was an air of insincerity about it, but it was an apology. The meeting then began. Each grade head had his report, even Trevor. Johnny handed it to Mike.
"The XO will take your reports and pick two of you to be on a committee along with the coaches." He turned to Mike. Okay, Mike, he thought, you said you have my back. Now take it.
"I will set up a meeting with the coaches. I want Trevor, Scottie, and Travis to be the committee. I will give you the meeting time when I have it. We will then report back to the CO the day after the meeting with the coaches with a list of the teams. Time is running out."
"Thank you, Cadet Wakeman." Hey this is easy, he thought. I talk, Mike works. I can do this.
Johnny adjourned the meeting, and he and Mike headed for the bridge. They now had a meeting with the bridge crew about tomorrow's test. Tomorrow was Monday, and Monday was the day the grand old Lady Lex was scheduled to enter warp space and once again become a true starship.
To be continued.