Welcome back loyal readers. Sorry for the long delay between chapters, but you were forewarned. Mid-terms and other things (like friends and family) keep getting in the way of writing. But here, finally, is the next chapter. Chapter 32 starts a bit of a change in our pattern. Usually Ben writes the odd chapters and Douglas writes the even. Chapter 32 starts a string of 3 straight chapters written by Douglas. It took a while to get through our competition with the "Orion". We hope you don't mind and we hope you enjoy the games.
The Boys of the Lady Lex Chapter 32 "Preliminary Madness" Written By Douglas DD and Benjamin T. Collins
SATURDAY, MAY 14th
Captain Hatcher sat in the lounge of the Beachside Hotel in Ocean Lakes. He was a little early for his meeting with the other two captains who would be involved in the preliminary games between the "Orion" and the "Lexington." He ordered an iced tea and looked out the picture window at the pool and at the ocean beyond. The Beachside wasn't yet open for business and housed only the cadets of the "Orion." He had already marveled at the luxury and amenities of the brand new hotel. He had also noticed the contrast between the accommodations the cadets of the two ships enjoyed. He had certainly stepped on some powerful toes when he started the Lady Lex project. And he was certain nobody had ever expected the Lady Lex to get this far. He was proud of his crew and of his cadets.
The first captain to show was Orrin Watson, the captain of the battle cruiser "Bon Homme Richard", which had entered orbit Wednesday afternoon. The crew of the "Bon Homme Richard" would be providing the referees and judges for the contest between the two academy ships. While at times there was talk of using professional officials for the contests, the command structure of the SFA liked keeping the entire administration of the contests in house. The crew members acting as judges and referees had all undergone training at some time at professional workshops and stayed up-to-date with videos and cyber simulations. They all took their roles seriously.
Hatcher greeted Watson as he entered the lounge. The two captains didn't know each other well, but had dealt with each other professionally when Hatcher was captain of the "Excalibur". Watson was a big black man with a rumbling bass voice and a loud, hearty laugh. He had been first in his class on his junior academy ship and second in his class at the Academy. He ran a good, tight ship and his crew was fiercely loyal to him. Hatcher had been pleased when he heard Watson's ship was going to be the supervising ship. As bad as things were going for them on Phosphorous Prime, at least he wouldn't have to worry about the refereeing or the judging. He knew it would be fair, impartial, and professionally done.
"Steven!" Watson bellowed in his loud, open manner. "Great seeing you again!" He shook Hatcher's hand firmly and took a seat at the table. The bartender silently appeared next to their table and Watson ordered a large mug of draft root beer.
"So, you've gone from commanding a ship-of-the-line to baby-sitting a juvenile detention center. So far the mighty have fallen. At least Hunter got himself the cream of the junior academy ships."
Hatcher felt his heart fall a little at Watson's comments. He had expected a more unbiased assessment. "It sounds like you don't approve, Orrin."
Hatcher laughed his loud laugh and said, "Oh my, I'm sorry I left you with that impression, Steve. Actually, I love what you're doing for two reasons."
"Oh?"
"First, I know you see it as paying back what was done to help you," Watson said seriously. Hatcher had never tried to hide his own background and it was common knowledge among the command staff. "Secondly, I just love how you've managed to tweak Whitaker. I don't think he ever expected you to get this far. Nobody in the fleet did. The money supporting your ship is coming out of his command account, and I know he's cursing every dime you've spent," Watson said, his big contagious laugh returning.
Or every dime we don't spend, Whitaker thought, but he laughed along with Watson. Watson's comment explained a lot. Hatcher had always thought Admiral Whitaker had found money in the general fund to pay for the Lady Lex. The fact that the money was coming from the admiral's command account helped explain the animosity Whitaker had for the Lady Lex. But it didn't explain all of it. After all, it wasn't the admiral's personal money, and wasn't the account set up for out of the ordinary expenses approved by the admiral?
Hatcher decided to change the subject, a decision he immediately regretted. "How's the family, Orrin?"
"Wonderful. Abbey is finishing her senior year at the academy. She's fourth in her class and has been assigned to the Ranger' after graduation. Quite an assignment for a new Ensign. Thom is a senior on the Gettysburg' and will be attending the academy next year, and Wally, our little vacation mistake, is in seventh grade at the Leonard Bernstein School of Junior Arts in New York. Wally is first in his class right now and a hell of pianist. He won't ever be a spaceman and he's madly in love with a boy cello player, so if he goes that route he won't be giving me and Adrienne any grand kids either, but we love him and are as proud of him as we are our space academy kids."
Hatcher blanched some as he listened to Watson describe his youngest child. "And how are your wife and kids. I hear you have some of them with you on the `Lexington'."
"Yeah. My wife is serving as our nurse, but Mark is actually here as a cadet on the `Orion'."
"Don't you have another son on the Lex....," but before he could finish his question he saw two cadets coming out a door and into the pool area. Both of them were wearing the orange speedos all of the "Orion" cadets were issued, but the distinctive thing about them was their bright purple skin creating a contrast of colors. Watson stared at the cadets, looked at Hatcher, looked back out at the two purple cadets who were being joined by two more purple-skinned cadets and roared out his biggest laugh of the morning.
"Kazon powder?" Watson asked Hatcher.
"Well, let's say a little rivalry has developed between our two ships," Hatcher answered.
"A little? It's beautiful. Why didn't we ever think of that when I was in the JA!. I hope you caught the perps and nailed their asses to the deck."
"We did. We dragged their asses out of bed this morning."
"And I hope you and your senior staff celebrated!"
"We did."
Watson laughed his big laugh again as Captain Chase Hunter entered the lounge. Watson got out of his chair and gave Hunter a hearty handshake.
"Chase!"
"Orrin!"
The two captains had once served together on two different ships. Under some circumstances Hatcher would have been concerned, but he also knew Watson's reputation. Their friendship would not be a factor on how Watson's crew handled its supervisory tasks.
Watson pointed out the window and said, "I love your new look, Orrin, though I don't know whether or not it's regulation."
Hunter laughed and sat at the table, ordering a soft drink. "There's a reason my senior staff and I stayed in the cabins by the beach rather than in the main hotel. Still. a few of my more junior officers will be battling the purple plague for a few days. We found our own pranksters, and they're being punished for their little foray. I put on the required act about the prank, but I was genuinely angered about the tone of the sign. That was dealt with separately." Hunter told Watson about the furniture on the ceiling. Watson laughed yet one more time commenting on how this assignment was getting more and more interesting every minute.
"You gentlemen almost make me want to semi-retire and become the captain of a JA ship."
"The `West Point' is due to be commissioned by the second semester of next school year."
Watson laughed again and said he still having too much fun doing what he was doing.
"By the way, I got the cleanup bill from hotel." Hunter pulled a piece of paper out of a pocket.
"I'll take it," Hatcher said, "though I have no idea where we'll get the money to pay it."
"Not to worry," Hunter said, "I negotiated to have the crew of the `Bon Homme Richard' stay here and had it all billed to the ship's account, figuring the extra income would take care of the bill."
"You did?" Watson said a bit wide-eyed.
"Gotcha, Orrin," Hunter said, and both men laughed again, Watson's echoing throughout the room. "Actually, I told them you would send a work detail here sometime this week to help with some of the grounds work, and I signed an agreement to make this a preliminary venue again next year. I hope you're in agreement with that, Steve."
"Works for me. The hotel will have kids from our ship between events all week."
"Under guard I hope," Hunter said, taking away some from the levity the two captains had been enjoying.
The captains ordered dinner and spent the next hour swapping stories and sometimes watching the purple skinned boys swimming and playing at the pool. Their visit ended with the arrival of the XOs from the three ships. Amanda Creevey (Lexington), Alan Reed (Orion), and Drake Marco (Bon Homme Richard) entered the room together, followed by the junior COs and XOs of the two academy ships.
The XOs had been spending the past few days working with the junior COs and XOs, along with various grade department heads planning the times and sites of the games and events. They all felt prepared for the opening of the games the next day.
Todd asked for permission to speak. His purple skin cast a strange glow in the dimmed lights of the lounge.
"Captain Hatcher, and other members of the Lexington' crew," he said, referring to Creevey as well as Mike and Johnny. "I wish to offer the apologies of my crew for the unfortunate remarks our sign made regarding the cadets of the Lexington'. Those remarks do not reflect the attitude of the crew of the `Orion'. We all hope for a clean and hard fought competition between our two academy ships.'
Hatcher accepted the apology on behalf of his crew, noticing with that the apology did not include sticking the furniture to the ceiling. Todd's words had been carefully chosen. Mike and Johnny shook Todd and Rich's hands as acceptance of the apology, but they too detected the note of insincerity in them.
All of the planning had been done. Tomorrow the competition would begin.
SUNDAY, MAY 15th
THE BIG BOARD FOR SUNDAY:
Schedule of Events:
- Opening ceremonies 2. Uniform inspection 3. Basketball Game 1 4. Swimming preliminaries
The opening ceremonies started with the cadets of the two crews marching around the track of the new track and football stadium built for the new high school in Ocean Lakes. Of course the planners built it on a scale designed to some day attract the JA Olympics.
The cadets of the "Lexington" couldn't help but once again be angered at their treatment as they saw the facilities the "Orion" cadets had enjoyed all week. They also couldn't help but notice the difference between their hand-me-down uniforms and the crisp new dress uniforms worn by the "Orion" cadets. Uniform inspection certainly wasn't going to garner them any points based on uniforms alone. The Lady Lex cadets could only hope that having purple skin was against uniform regulations.
The cadets stood at attention as Captain Hatcher and Captain Hunter each made their opening statements, by statements from Johnny and Douglas of the Lady Lex and Todd and the main speaker of the "Orion", Christie Hammond, a senior. Douglas talked about how the spirit of competition made them all better cadets and Christie talked about the bond that could be created between the two newest ships as a result of the competition. The cadets of both ships knew the speeches were all bullshit and they pretty much tuned them out as they stood patiently at attention in the hot sun, thankful there were strict time limits on all the speeches.
The boys were then subjected to uniform inspection by officers of the "Bon Homme Richard". Following the inspection they marched off the field and to the camps set up for their respective ships.
Because of the light first day schedule many of the cadets planned on watching the first game of the basketball competition. The gym not only had a large group of cadets in the bleachers, but also some of the men and officers of both ships as well as the "Bon Homme Richard". Douglas and Ben were both surprised to see officers and men wearing the patch of the "Cape Intrepid" as well. They knew that it was not unusual for ships to need some kind of "repair" or "refueling" at a planet where preliminary games were being held so officers and men could cheer for their old JA ships for at least a day or two. Since the "Lexington" and the "Orion" had no alumni they were surprised another ship had stopped at Phosphorous Prime. They learned later that the "Cape Intrepid" was a supply ship and indeed had legitimate business restocking and refueling both the Lady Lex and the "Orion".
The boys of the Lady Lex were somewhat deflated when they saw the "Cape Intrepid's" crew taking seats on the "Orion" side of the gym. It was obvious to them their reputation had driven away any support from that crew.
The game ended up leaving little to cheer about. Both teams had put together basketball teams in a hurry and neither captain wanted to break up a team they had already been working with to man the basketball team. The "Orion" showed its depth, however. It simply had more boys and the boys had more athletic ability than those of the Lady Lex. The final score was 59-25. The JV squad lost 70-14. The Lady Lex didn't even score in the first quarter.
The only other competition that day was the swimming preliminaries held later that day in the natatorium across a courtyard from the gym.
The Lady Lex boys who had stayed to watch and participate were bussed back to Ghent. After dinner some of the boys played games in the games room that had been set up for them, some read, some did homework, and others chatted or napped.
Douglas and Ben had their room to the themselves. Like all of the boys, they missed their privacy. They knew each of the "Orion" cadets was sleeping in a luxurious bedroom with their regular roommate, with the junior CO, XO, and each grade department head having a private bedroom. The only boys from the Lady Lex having a private room were Johnny and Mike, with Mike asking for a second bed so Ryan could sleep with him. It was the first time since being arrested they were able to have true private room together.
Ben kissed Douglas, petting him with his hands, running them over his lover's back, front, stopping often to rub his pubic area. "I want you so bad, Douglas.'
"I want you, too. You know as soon as we start anything somebody will walk in."
"So? It's not like they don't know about us. And it's not like this room has been hiding things under the covers." Sharing the room with Ben and Douglas were Travis, Alan, Gary, Cody, and Eric, none of whom was adverse to a bit of show and tell jerking off or even the sharing of a BJ or two in the evening. Ryan had been the eighty boy, but his bed was now empty as he slept with Mike. The sex play had never gone past that, however, as the boys stayed away from kissing and fucking. Douglas and Ben were sure Eric and Cody wanted to go farther. Nobody was really sure where Travis, Alan, and Gary stood on the issue.
"You're always looking at the dark side of things, Douglas. Let's just do it,"
They turned the lights out and squeezed into Ben's small bed. In a lot of ways, Ben still hadn't come down from hearing the news that he and his brothers weren't responsible for the death of Kiran. He and Douglas didn't fully understand the science of the anomaly, or how Douglas had ended up in that moment in the past, but the theories they heard seemed to center around the connection of the anomaly and the strong emotions both boys had been feeling on their own. What he knew was ever since Douglas's return from the past he wanted to show Douglas is gratitude in the worst way.
"It's time," Ben said.
"Time? Time for what," Douglas said..
"Time for me to make love to you," Ben said.
"Here. In this dump? I thought we were just going to get naked and suck each other."
"I've been so connected to you I need the final connection. The physical one. I need it here. Tonight. I can't wait any longer."
"Then now it is," Douglas said, kissing Ben lightly on the lips.
Douglas grabbed Ben's head and upped the intensity. He kissed Ben hard and rolled his boyfriend on top of him. "I love you so much," Douglas whispered.
The two of them kissed and twisted on the small bed. The found places to lick, to nibble, to kiss. They let their hands explore freely, finding ways to send chills coursing through their partners. Ben's fingers found their way into Douglas's butt, loosening it up, massaging his secret sweet spot, making his lover groan with pleasure.
"I love you, Douglas. I love how you stayed with me when it got bad. I love how you brought me back."
"You brought yourself back. You were back when I returned."
"Whatever you say. Some of the officers think the anomaly amplified my emotions. It makes it sound like they weren't real, that I didn't really feel the way I did. Do you believe that? "
"No, I don't. I think everything you felt came from your heart. I think maybe Kiran was connecting with you through the anomaly, and that made you feel them more, but what you felt was real."
"I think you're right. Do you ever wonder what had happened if you'd been able to stop those guys from killing Kiran?"
"Yeah, a lot. But I didn't. I guess it's good enough to know I wanted to do it, even if I couldn't."
"You probably would have lost me, you know."
"I know. It wasn't easy being there having to decide what to do. I hope I never have to make a decision like that again."
Ben kissed Douglas. "Do you think they believe you? That me, Trev, and Andrew weren't responsible for Kiran's death?"
"I don't know. Right now they don't seem to be sure. Like my word isn't good enough because I'm your boyfriend. I wish we had more proof."
"I love you. I love you more than ever," Ben said quietly.
Douglas smiled. He and Ben both needed this coupling. They both needed to physically show their immense love for each other.
Ben found the lubrication they had been using and rubbed over Douglas's butt. He kissed his boyfriend again and the lubed his own boner. He raised Douglas's legs and pushed himself up against his rose. Douglas moaned in anticipation. Ben pushed against it, pushed into it, and then slid all the way inside. Douglas grunted with momentary pain, then got used the feel of Ben being inside him. It was like he was meant to be there.
Ben started some slow thrusts, then sped up, going a little deeper, a little faster, a little harder with each one. Douglas instinctively squeezed down in Ben's cock. Ben groaned from the feeling, stopped, gave Douglas a hard deep kiss, and continued his thrusting.
The pace kept picking up, and soon Ben's trusting was wild, frenzied, almost out of control. The sounds of sex echoed throughout the room, from the squeaks of the bed, to the slap of Ben's balls on his lover's butt, to the grunts and moans and curses and I love yous of the two teen boys. As much as they didn't want the love making to end, the feelings were too much for the young teens to overcome. Ben's thrusts rattled Douglas to the core. Douglas squeezed, moaned, howled, and started spewing his cum over himself, his first shot hitting his forehead, the covering his chest and belly. Ben slammed Douglas with one, incredible, deep driving thrust and pumped his teen cum into Douglas's insides. Wave after wave of pleasure washed over both boys, and when they finally came down from their incredible orgasms, Ben fell on Douglas, trying to catch his breath.
The two boys turned side to side, feeling each other's laboring breath.
"Was it as good as you expected?" Ben asked.
"No. It was a hundred times better. Thanks for doing it tonight."
"Anything for the one I love," Ben replied. "Anything."
As if the love making was meant to be, their roommates didn't walk in until a half hour later, long after they had broken their embrace and returned to their own beds.
"Anybody here horny tonight?" Cody asked.
"No, I'm tired," Ben replied. "Big day tomorrow. Game one of baseball."
"Wuss," Cody said good naturedly. But nobody argued. They were all tired. Cody satisfied himself alone in the dark.
MONDAY, MAY 16th
THE BIG BOARD FOR MONDAY
Scoring:
Uniform Inspection (100 points) ORION: 85 LEXINGTON 15
Basketball (30 points) ORION: 30 LEXINGTON: 0
JV Basketball (15 points) ORION: 15 LEXINGTON: 0
Swimming preliminaries (24 points) ORION: 19 LEXINGTON: 5
SUNDAY SCORES:
ORION: 149 LEXINGTON: 20
Schedule of Events:
1 Academics: Round 1 2. Wrestling Preliminaries 3. Baseball: Game 1 4. Calisthenics Preliminaries
The Lady Lex boys were stunned by the first day scores. A lot of their budding confidence disappeared. The first day had been a disaster.
The second day would prove to be a little bit better. In the academic competition only Scooter seemed to be able to answer a string of questions, but twice he got hung up on spelling words before he could complete a string. Howard Marsh, the freshman representative of the Orion took advantage of every spelling error. Scooter, however, was able to take advantage of a couple of Howard's math mistakes to keep competitive. The other grades didn't fare nearly as well, however, and the Orion won all the points in the first round.
They fared better in wrestling. The Lady Lex boys were tough, and once they learned the rules of wrestling they proved themselves fierce competitors. Emmett had the easiest win, while Duncan was happy to find out that the best wrestler on the "Orion", Tim Whitaker, was changed from the wrestling team to the sword fighting team by Todd, the cadet XO.
Calisthenics were just that. Sit-ups, push-ups, jumping jacks, and more difficult and sophisticated exercises. The competition was even here as well. Colonel Stone and his marines had done a good job of getting the Lady Lex boys into shape, and here that hard work paid off. The Lady Lex boys actually managed to outscore the "Orion".
The JV game started at nine in the morning. It wasn't a pretty affair. Lousy practice conditions, a lack of talent and experience, nerves, plus missing Trevor all worked against the team as they lost 14-1 in a game that went only five innings thanks to the ten run mercy rule.
Eric was the starting pitcher for the varsity, and he managed to hold the "Orion" players in check for the first three innings as the Lady Lex scratched out a 2-0 lead. But talented as he was, he was still a freshman going against bigger, more experienced upper classmen. The Lady Lex was the home team on the scoreboard. The top of the fourth took care of the lead as Rich Zimmer hit a two run homer to tie the score. Rich hot dogged it all the way around the bases, making sure Eric saw each gesture. The "Orion" scored two more runs, and as the runs came across they made a pointed effort of celebrating.
In the bottom of the fourth the first two batters struck out. Douglas was at the plate with a 2-2 count when Curtis, the "Orion" pitcher rared back and fired his best fastball, leaving Douglas swinging at air. Curtis did a little dance as he came off the field. The Lady Lex boys all figured they'd been much too kind in their revenge on the "Orion" cadets.
But the boorish behavior brought about three reactions that the boys of Lady Lex didn't forget. The first was the umpire stopping Curtis and whispering something in his ear. The second was Captain Hunter calling his team together and obviously chewing them out. The third, and the one that impacted them the most, was a dozen crewmen from the "Cape Intrepid" getting up from the bleachers on the "Orion" side of the field and going to the Lady Lex bleachers.
"We thought we'd sit on the classy side of the field," one of them said loudly. Class was not something one had ever associated with most of the boys of the Lady Lex. Doc Daniels, the coach, smiled inwardly. A moment of pride hit the members of the baseball team. One of the things that had been drilled into them all week was the issue of class. Of not playing the games the "Orion" was going to play. Of not taking their bait and falling into the trap of name calling and taunting that the rich, spoiled boys of the "Orion" would try to draw them into. So far the Lady Lex boys had been doing their best, which had not been easy for a group of hardened street kids used to having their way. This was the first time their attitude had been recognized and it meant a lot to them. What they didn't know was the crew of the "Cape Intrepid" not only respected them for keeping their mouths closed on the field, but also for leaving having the cajones to leave their calling card after they had been truly insulted. Every purple skinned boy was a reminder that the boys of the Lady Lex could only be pushed so far, and after that somebody was going to be very sorry.
The fifth inning was a disaster for the Lady Lex. They were young and thin on pitching. The "Orion" scored eight runs, taking ten run lead. If the Lady Lex didn't score in the bottom of the inning they would be ten-runned just like the JV had been. With two outs in the inning and nobody on, Derek, the new pitcher, left a fastball out over the plate to Ben, and he sent it sailing over the left field fence. The Lady Lex boys cheered like they had just won the game. They would be playing one more inning.
Dusty came in as the new pitcher. He bore down hard and got the side out in order. Now, no matter what happened, they would play a full seven innings. The Lady Lex boys saw that as a triumph. They eked out one more run in the sixth, and gave up two in the seventh to lose 14-4. The "Orion" might have defeated them by ten runs, but it took them a full seven innings to do it.
At dinner there were a couple of encouraging speeches, but the boys were somewhat down. There were five days of competition left, but they could already tell they didn't stand a chance of beating the Orion. For a group of boys who had always looked for instant gratification, telling them that all this was building for the future didn't have much effect. They wanted to see results now.
One thing that did raise their spirits some, whoever, was a message from the captain of the "Cape Intrepid" telling how impressed he was with their attitudes and hard work. Nobody realized it at the time, but getting that recognition from an outside path was one of the major things that kept the Lady Lex boys from deteriorating from a crew into a rabble. Because other than that message written to them, they saw very little to be encouraged about or to fight for.
TUESDAY, MAY 17th
THE BIG BOARD FOR TUESDAY
Scoring:
Academics Round 1 (30 points) ORION: 22 LADY LEX: 8
Wrestling Prelims (30 points) ORION: 15 LADY LEX: 15
Calisthenics Prelims (30 points) ORION: 10 LADY LEX: 20
JV Baseball (15 points) ORION: 15 LADY LEX: 0
Varsity Baseball (30 points) ORION: 30 LADY LEX: 0
MONDAY SCORING: ORION: 92 LADY LEX: 43
TOTAL SCORING:
ORION 241 LADY LEX 63
Schedule for Tuesday
- Basketball Game 2 2. Hockey Game 1 4. Sword fighting Prelims 5. Track prelims 6. Swimming finals 7. Rowing prelims
Tuesday was another long day for the Lady Lex. In basketball they didn't stand a chance and they knew it. The second game scores were as ugly as the first, with the "Orion" JV winning 66-21 and the varsity winning 59-33.
Hockey started out even worse, because both the crew and the cadets thought they might be decent in hockey. The varsity got ripped 10-0 and the JV fared almost as badly, losing 7-1. The Gerbil scored the only goal in two games for the Lady Lex.
Sword fighting was just as bad. The Lady Lex lost every match in the preliminary rounds.
The only bright spot was in track and cross country. Amanda Creevey's training program had been a tough one, but effective. The Lady Lex boys either won or placed in each event of the preliminary round.
Swimming and rowing were equal disasters. As good at Alan was in swimming, Todd was better. Todd had used the preliminaries to judge the competition, but in the finals he knew exactly what he needed to do, and he did it. As for rowing, many of the "Orion" boys had grown up around boats of some kind. The Lady Lex boys were still trying to find their rhythm, and their opponent left them in their wake with their precision.
The boys went to bed knowing they had been humiliated for yet another day.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 18th
The big board told it all. TUESDAY'S SCORES: ORION: 181 LADY LEX: 18. TOTAL SCORES: ORION: 429 LADY LEX: 81.
Wednesday's schedule consisted of the second baseball games, the weapons competition prelims, the academic finals, the second hockey games, the tennis prelims, and the calisthenics finals.
The JV baseball team, after being blown out in the first game, surprised the "Orion" and themselves by battling back in the second game. They fell behind by four runs early, but a single by Nipper in the fourth was followed by a two run homer by Andrew, cutting the deficit to two. The JV team played on a smaller field than the varsity, with the fences closer in, and Andrew's shot was a line drive that shot out of the ballpark. Nipper made two diving stops at second to take away base hits, with Andrew making a great scoop of one of Nipper's throws as it hit the dirt in front of him. Heath and Chandler pitched well, but the "Orion" hung on for a 5-3 win. Still, the Lady Lex boys saw what they could do when they worked hard and quit feeling sorry for themselves.
Douglas was the starting pitcher for the varsity. He had hoped to be matched against David, but it wasn't to be. David was slated by Captain Hunter to start the third game. While David had twice beat out Douglas as the number one pitcher on their school team, they played on different teams during the summer. Between 5th and 9th grades they had faced each other six times, with David winning all six matches. Each game had been close with some little mistake by him or a teammate always seeming to do him in. After losing 2-1 in a game the summer after 8th grade David told Douglas he was never going to beat him.
"You want to put money on it?" Douglas asked.
"Sure. Fifty bucks says I beat you next game," David said.
"You're on."
Both boys dug deep into their savings and had an agreed upon friend hold the money. Three weeks later they were slated to face each other again. Just before the game, the friend returned Douglas's money to him.
"David decided not to," he said. "He said it's wrong to bet on your own games." David then proceeded to pitch a two hit 3-0 shutout. As usual, Douglas pitched well, but not well enough. After the game Douglas confronted David.
"You wussed out."
"No. I decided it was wrong. I knew I would beat you. And I did, didn't I? Got into your head didn't I?. I can see your thinking. David wusses out because he's afraid of me and he's going to pitch like crap this game. Didn't happen did it? You will never beat me, Douglas. At anything. Ever."
That was the last time the two of them faced each other as pitchers. Their next scheduled confrontation, the school election meant little, because David was accepted as a cadet on the "Orion". And now, he had lost two more times to David, not to mention being behind in the full competition. When the boys shook hands after the game, David said nothing. He just gave Douglas a look that said, "You're scum Douglas. You always were scum, and you always will be scum."
The weapons competition ended up being another one the Lady Lex boys were good at. In fact they ended up winning most of the rounds and gaining some points. They also continued to pile up points in the calisthenics finals. Harrison Wolfe preached concentration to his academic team as they competed with much more confidence in the finals than they did in the preliminaries. Tennis, however, was another rich boy sport that they had little affinity for, and the "Orion" stomped on them.
In hockey, the Lady Lex boys also showed their mettle. They might be overmatched in some areas, but they weren't going to lie down and let the "Orion" walk over them. In many areas they weren't as bad as they had looked at the start. The JV team battled in more ways than one.
RJ "Gerbil" Polaski slammed into the glass on the rink as two players from the "Orion" crashed into him. The puck was intercepted and taken down the rink and the puck flew past the Lexington's goalie, Santos. The Orion's JV team scored yet another goal. Gerbil wasn't pleased when he looked at the score board. It read Orion 5 Lexington 0. And there were only two minutes left to the game. What really irritated Gerbil is that Orion's JV star player, France Bestir, achieved a hat trick.
Carson took the Puck and ran with it. An Orion player came out of nowhere and collided with Carson just as he took the shot. Carson ran hard into Gerbil who was right there. The puck skittered across the ice. The Orion goalie tried to block it, but he missed it. The Lexington had scored thus preventing a shut out.
As the final seconds of the game were played out, Gerbil and Carson had to sit in the penalty box for fighting with the Orion player who knocked Carson off his feet and into Gerbil. Gerbil and Carson watched the final second tick away and then the final score being 5-1.The Lady Lex may have lost the game, but the Lady Lex boys showed they were willing to battle anybody.
The varsity had a closer game, losing 4-2, with two goals by Mark Hatcher being the difference. Steven Hatcher couldn't help but have mixed emotions as he watched his older son beat the team he was coaching. Why couldn't I have him and they have Jesse? he thought. With Mark on our side we could take the Olympics.
Some of the more active boys sat in the makeshift lounge after dinner discussing the day's events.
"Too bad you couldn't convince your dad to let you pitch against David. I know how badly you wanted to," Ben said to Douglas.
"He said we have to leave our personal battles behind and concentrate on the team. But, Dammit, Ben, I wanted it bad."
"You'll get your chance in the Olympics," Mike said.
"Not if dad has his way," Douglas replied dejectedly.
"You know, we didn't do badly today," Mike said. "We made our games closer. We won some things. We be getting out butts kicked, but we're all learning things. And I think we're getting their respect. Hell," he added with a smile, "Gerbil and Carson even got into a fight in hockey."
At the same time in Ocean Lakes some of the "Orion" cadets were strutting proudly.
"They can color our skin any color they want," Parker Runningbear said. "But they're still a bunch of losers. We are kicking their ass."
"And will continue to do so," David said. "This week and in the Olympics. Todd might have apologized for our sign, but it was right. They're losers and they don't belong."
"Don't be so sure," Tim Whitaker said. "We had a lot tougher time with them the second games than in the first. They sure as hell aren't laying down and dying like some of us expected."
"We got a little overconfident," Brandon Ditamin said. "The third games will nail their coffins shut. They won't even want to show up for the Olympics."
"Not if we can help it," David said with a sneer.
The next day would be a much different day. Thursday was the say of the war games.
THURSDAY, MAY 19TH.
The Lady Lex boys looked at the big board and frowned. They once again thought, why bother, we can't win. And like they had every morning they took a deep breath, and like the street kids they were, vowed to battle yet one more time, if for no other reason than to earn the respect of their opponents. They were all saddened to learn the "Cape Intrepid" would be leaving that afternoon. Their crew members, almost to a man, had adopted the cadets of the Lady Lex. They admired their spunk and bulldog attitude. After starting by cheering for the "Orion" they soon realized the boys of the fleet's elite academy ship were too rich, too spoiled, too cocky. The Lady Lex boys fit the down in the mud attitude of the "Cape Intrepid" crew much better.
The captain of the "Cape Intrepid" let the boys know they were scheduled to re-supply some of the ships on watch at the Olympics and they'd be there cheering them on. For the first time, the Lady Lex had friends in the fleet.
Yet, the big board didn't lie. WEDNESDAY SCORES: ORION: 152 LADY LEX: 52. TOTAL SCORES: ORION: 581 LEXINGTON 133.
The schedule for Thursday was simple. The entire day was war games. War games was something the street kids of the Lady Lex felt they could compete in. A lot of points were at stake. Not enough to make a difference as to whom the final winner would be, but enough to fight for. But it was not only points they would be fighting for, but pride as well. The boys had worked hard in this phase of their training. Even with their lack of experience, they felt as if they could compete.
The "Orion" had left a sign on a wall of their quarters that had read "GO HOME LOSERS!!! WE DON'T WANT YOUR KIND HERE!!! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO BE HERE!!!" So far the Lady Lex cadets had been able to pick themselves up after each humiliation, brush themselves off, and keep competing. The senior officers of the Lady Lex and the "Orion", the crew of the "Bon Homme Richard", the crew of the "Cape Intrepid", and begrudgingly, the cadets of the "Orion" had been impressed with the resiliency of the Lady Lex cadets. But the war games were big, and nobody knew how the Lady Lex boys would react to being humiliated. Even the fighters could only take so much losing. Already a lot of boys were thinking the "Orion" was right. They didn't belong. They didn't deserve to be competing.
To be continued....