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 some day it will be.
CHAPTER 50
Starship
by Douglas DD
Endron glared at Thraller. He knew Thraller from when his father was an Ancient and Thraller was an assistant to them. He remembered he was a typical Shkah, a man with a little mean streak in him.
Thraller looked inside the vehicle. "Where did you get this fancy van? Last I heard motorized vehicles were illegal. Or is the son of an Ancient, even a dead Ancient, above the law?" Thraller said.
"I have permission to use this," Endron said.
"Oh? And why haven't I heard about this?"
"You can't hear everything, even if you think you can." Endron pulled out some papers. His father had them made in case he ever needed them. He handed them to Thraller.
Thraller looked them over and handed them back. "I probably should radio in to check these. Your father was a good person, even if his son didn't turn out like his old man. It was a sad day when he died." He looked into the van. "Who is this with you?"
"This is my Meshanna and the mother of my sons and her Meshanna. In the back are my two sons. We are testing this vehicle. Taking it to a mountain cabin we use seemed to be a way to mix business with pleasure," Endron said with a smile.
Thraller knew that Endron worked in the Technology Department. Their job was to make sure that the Ancients had working technology, just like his own job was to make sure nobody else did. So his story was plausible, plus he had the technology permit signed by his father, who had been a trusted Ancient.
Thraller decided to do some fishing. "Did you hear about the shuttle from the lost colonies?" he asked.
"Yes. I heard it crashed with no survivors. Amazing though, after all these years somebody should come to visit." Dralkan felt his heart pounding so hard he was sure that the man at the window could hear it, even with him sitting in the back seat. Why was he asking about the shuttle? Did he suspect something?
"The Ancients think we all should get vaccinated for the plague. Who knows what those fools brought with them. I heard that they were children. Things must be rough in the lost colonies if children are doing the piloting."
"Really? Interesting. Makes you wonder what has been going on at the colonies over the last twenty-five years. Well, we probably should be heading up to the cabin. We want to be there before dark."
"Of course. Whose cabin are you using?"
"My father's old cabin. It's in disrepair like most everything on Hakaan. But it is something different and the mountains will test this van."
"Of course." Thraller started walking back to his truck, then stopped and turned around. "You know, I thought you owned condo space at the old spaceport terminal."
"I do. This is just something different."
"And you didn't go check to make sure your condo was undamaged? You weren't curious about what crashed right at your vacation home?"
"I heard you were going to fly over. I figured if there was something I needed to know I would find out from our ever vilagent policeman. You know how the roads are, even for a vehicle like this."
"Indeed."
"And just exactly what brings you up here into the hills, Thraller? A vacation of your own? Oh, those are military trucks. What a foolish question."
"No, I happen to think that somebody survived that crash. I happen to think they just might be coming up the road to the mountains. Lots of places to hide in these mountain, but it helps to have transportation to get up there."
"True. Well, we'll keep our eyes open. If we see anybody strange we'll drive back and let you or somebody know."
"No radio? The Department of Technology doesn't have enough radios to give out?"
"I got in a hurry. I forgot to check one out."
"I see. Well, have a good trip Endron. We'll talk more when you return."
Thraller walked away and Endron started the van up, his heart pounding and sweat pouring down his body. Thraller watched the van drive away. One of the patrolmen came out of the bushes.
"What do you think, sir?"
"He's lying. He knows more than he is saying."
"Shouldn't we follow him?"
Thraller took a device out of his pocket, then pointed to the other side of the road. One of the patrolmen was standing there grinning.
"No need. We'll find them whenever we need to. Hallmore was busy on the other side of the van while we were talking. Give them a half hour head start, then we'll follow. I have a feeling there are going to be some interesting things for us to find up in those mountains. Endron may work in the Department of Technology. But he doesn't even begin to know about all the real technology we have. When we want him, he is ours!" ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Endron started the van up the switch backing road. The road turned up above the lower part. Endron stopped the van around a turn, hoping Thraller couldn't see it and he wouldn't have to wait long. He didn't. The six Earth boys and Trundall came climbing up the side of the hill, sweaty and out of breath. They climbed into the van and Endron started driving up the mountain again, hoping that Thraller wasn't following right on their ass.
As they headed up the road Dralkan looked at the map. "We have to turn off in about a five miles dad," he said.
"Okay," Endron said. "That was pretty smart thinking back there, Douglas. Since the road had tire tracks, but no unicorn prints. That meant whatever left the tracks had to be motorized."
"Well, you had the idea of checking the map to see if there were side roads to hide on. We got lucky and they were on the first one, or we would have to keep stopping and getting out. We got lucky all the way around", Douglas said. "We can't rely on luck forever."
"Dad?" Shamene asked.
"Yes, son?"
"What was that one guy doing on the other side of our car?"
"What guy?" Endron could feel his heart thumping hard again.
Shamene told him about seeing the patrolman sneak up to the car and get under it, then go away. Endron shook is head.
"I wonder what that could have been about? Maybe we better stop to check."
He stopped the van and they all got out. The Hakaanen didn't think much about it and gave a cursory glance over the van. The Earth boys were more suspicious. They'd watched enough action vids to know that patrolmen didn't crawl under cars for no reason. The Hakaan had had peaceful lives for so long they didn't understand things like the Earth boys did.
Scooter crawled under the van and saw something clean attached to the dirty frame. He pulled it off and showed it to everybody else.
"What is it?" Endron asked.
"A tracking device," Stevie said.
"A what? What does it do?"
Stevie explained to him what it was and what it did. Douglas was looking over Dralkan's shoulder at the map. He sent his thoughts to Scooter, who asked Dralkan a couple of questions. He relayed to Douglas what Dralkan answered. Douglas was coming up with a plan. He called everybody together and told it. Scooter translated the plan for Endron. Endron looked at the boys with new respect. He liked the plan. He liked it a lot.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thraller looked at the screen in the back of his truck. The van stopped a couple of times. He thought about going after it to see what was going on, but he knew he had to be patient. He wanted to see where it ended up. He figured wherever it ended up would he would find some kind of rebel treasure.
Maybe the Ancients didn't believe in the planet having technology any more, but they believed in having it themselves. This tracking device was one of the best they've come up with and this was the first time he was able to use it. And he knew Endron's office knew nothing about it. He made sure of that. Son of an Ancient or not, somehow he didn't trust Endron.
It looked like the arrival of the shuttle had brought Endron out into the open. If Endron was getting more willing to take risks, the other rebels will be too. It didn't surprise him that Endron was driving that van. He figured he and his rebels were hiding technology, and he was going to find out where. He was going to end any plans for a rebellion before it even started. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ It was dark by the time they got to the old mine. They got out of the van and entered the mine. Endron flicked on a switch and the mine passage lit up.
"Solar batteries run our power here," he said.
They kept going deeper and deeper into the mine. The boys could see a lot of side passages. None of the Hakaan children had been in the mine before and they were as amazed by it as the Earth boys were.
Endron took them into a side room full of tall shelves stacked with boxes. He took them down another passage and to another room. The only thing in the room was an empty box on the floor. They walked past the box and then stopped. Endron was still at the box. He turned and took four carefully paced steps. Then he bent down and lifted a part of the floor. There was a control panel under the rocks, hidden like the runway at the cargo port had been. Endron pushed a button and a panel of rocks slid open. They went through opening and into another room. It was dark and Endron had to flick another switch to get light.
That room had another single box in it, but this one was full. Inside was what looked like a radio.
"What's that?" Stevie asked.
"It's the ticket to your rescue. And maybe a way to get our Hakaan way of life back," Endron answered.
Then Endron told them what the mine was all about. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Hakaan had been ruled by a Service Council for hundreds of years. Members were elected for six year terms. They had a limit of two terms on the Council. The Council had allowed Hakaan to become a peaceful, prosperous planet. They encouraged growth and space exploration, while seeing that the ecology of the planet was protected. Hakaan was able to combine technological growth with care for the environment. Hakann was a beautiful planet. The fact that its inhabitants respected her showed, even in its cities. The Ancients named their group for the Ruling Council that brought peace to Hakaan after the great war. Even though the Service Council eventually became the Hakaan government, it was a stronger ruling council that had brought the Shkah under control. The Ancients felt the time for strong government had returned. When the Ancients started taking control, Endron's father knew how afraid they were. He knew how afraid everyone was. Going into space was blamed for the plague which was killing so many people. As the plague raged out of control, some groups started blaming all technology. The Ancients ran for positions on the Service Council, saying they would end space flight and control technology. After they won they brought an end to all space flight immediately. Endron's father got them to agree on two more space flights, the ones that went to the two colonies to tell them the news.
Endron's father also saw that the ruling council wanted to do more than just control technology, they wanted to get rid of it, except when it helped them keep power. With their emergency powers they got a real taste for power and the members started behaving like Shkah. The way of Hakaan government was to do as little as possible. Hakaanen weren't interested in power. Members of the council were there to serve the people not to rule them. But with the election of The Ancients that philosphy was changed. When the council started going to Shkah villages to recruit members to be in their police force, Endron's father knew the Hakaan way of life was being threatened by more than just the plague. He went along with what the council did, but he started his own secret program. When the Ancients got themselves elected council members for life to "protect the Hakaanen way of life", Endron's father saw that every important piece of Hakaan technology was stored in a secret mine location and every book and article on technology, plus the history of the Hakaanen, their government and their way of life, was downloaded into a super computer and then backed up five times. Many books were stolen from libraries or donated to the cause. All of the book were hermitically sealed and put into the mine. Only a few people knew about the project. Endron was one of them. Most of the people helping thought it was a project of the whole Council of the Ancients, but a small number knew this was the only chance to bring back the real Hakaanen way of life later.
When the plague was defeated most people thought the council would return things to normal; however, the Ancients were in love with their power. Things would never be normal again until The Ancients' rule was brought to an end. Unfortunately, Endron's father died before he could do that. Now it was up to Endron to find a way. And with the arrival of the round eared boys it looked like he had found that way. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thraller was furious. He had watched the blip stop late in the afternoon, not moving from its location. In the morning the blip was in the same place. He had heard rumors about some kind of rebel hiding place for a long time, and now he knew where it was. He was sure it was where Endron's father had had his old vacation cabin. The shuttle's arrival had brought the rebel leader out into the open. He wasn't at all surprised it was Endron. He had never really trusted his father, Ancient or not. He now wished he had trusted his instincts about him. Someone in high office had obviously been helping the rebels. The fact that Endron was obviously one of the rebels said it all. Maybe it was a good thing the old man died. Thraller drove up the road up to where it ended at a narrow trail. There was nothing there except trees and the old abandoned cabin.
He found the homing device stuck to a tree with a note. The note said, "Have a nice day." He took the device, threw it to the ground, and smashed it with his foot, forgetting it was the only one in existence.
How had they found the device? Nobody even knew it existed? How did they know what it was? Did Endron have a spy in his office? They had come this far, but where did they go? It had to be back down the road. Endron had obviously followed his own tire tracks back. But back to where? There were a lot of roads coming off of this one, and he never noticed tire tracks going off on one of them. Which meant they wiped out the tracks, and he would have to investigate every road and trail wide enough for the van. They probably only wiped them a little way, but how far would that little way be?
Thraller stomped into his vehicle. He could wait at the bottom of the road until they came back, but that wasn't what he wanted. He wanted to know the location of their hideout. He wanted to confiscate or smash everything they had. All he knew now was it was someplace in the mountains. And the mountains, even the part served by roads, covered a lot of territory. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Douglas woke up just before Scooter, who was cuddled up with Dralkan. He got off his cot and kissed his lover. Douglas and Shamene had their cots pushed together. Some rooms of the mine had been built and furnished for long term stays if needed. Douglas had ended up next to Shamene and Mike next to Trundall. They had all done their best to help interplanetary relations. Travis and Alex jerked each other off while Jeremy jerked himself off. Travis and Jeremy weren't on the best of terms. Alex was happy to jerk himself off, but he ended up with Travis climbing into his cot with him.
Douglas thought about their escape. They had traveled up the road to the abandoned cabin that used to belong to Endron's father.
Douglas told Endron the plan for leaving the tracking device behind somewhere and then covering their tracks. Endron loved the plan and picked his father's old cabin as the place to leave it. The fact that it was left at the cabin of a former Ancient would anger Thraller, plus it wasn't really that far from the mine. There were plenty of side roads to throw Thraller's search off if they did a good job of covering their tracks.
His thoughts ended when Scooter woke up and came over to him. They kissed deeply.
"How was Shamene, my love?"
"He is eleven years old and knows sex like you can't believe. I love the Hakaan way of life. How was Dralkan? He has a crush on you, you know."
Scooter laughed and gave Douglas a quick kiss and hug. "I love you, Douglas."
"I love you, Scooter."
It was time to wake everybody else up so they could put their next plan into action.
They met everybody for breakfast and then after they ate they moved everything they needed outside.
Outside the mine were four vehicles that looked like ATVs. They each could seat the driver and the rider. Dralkan, Trundall, Mike, and Scooter were the four drivers. They all had experience driving those or similar vehicles; Mike and Scooter with their own ATVs on Earth, and Trundall and Dralkan getting to drive when their dads brought them to the mountains. Those joyrides were now going to come in handy.
Shamene was the passenger on Scooter's ATV. He had his arms wrapped tightly behind Scooter. Travis was wrapped around Mike, Stevie around Trundall, and Corrina's Meshanna around Dralkan. They were part one of the plan.
The boys started their engines and soon the ATVs were bouncing through the woods heading to a meadow about five miles away. Even using the trail it would take at least twenty minutes one way carrying a passenger.
When they got to the meadow, the four drivers dropped off their passengers then raced back to the mine. Even though it was uphill, they made good time since they didn't have any passengers and knew the trail a little better.
This time Endron got into a driver's seat and tied a large package to the seat behind him. It was the item they had found in the secret store room. Dralkan had his mother on his ATV. Mike had Dralkan's little sister. Scooter had Douglas. That left Trundall and Jeremy behind. The four ATVs took off down the trail.
Trundall and Jeremy watched it leave. Jeremy couldn't speak Hakaan and Trundall couldn't speak English, but they both could speak the language of sex. They both understood they had forty minutes to wait. They both knew what the other boy's boner meant. Trundall hadn't touched one of the uncircumsized Earth boys yet. He couldn't wait to see how Jeremy's strange cock felt inside his mouth. The air was kind of cool. They found a place in the grass, lay down a blanket, and took care of keeping each other warm.
When Scooter and Mike got back they saw the two boys hugging tightly on the blanket and smiled. Trundall and Jeremy had heard them coming and just lay there in their after sex glow. Trundall was Hakaan and wasn't embarrassed by sex and Jeremy never had been.
They made it to the meadow in fifteen minutes. Scooter and Mike were on their third trip and had the trail figured out. When they got to the meadow, Endron got on his radio. A half hour later the flyer showed up and they boarded it. It could hold a dozen people, and with the pilot they filled it. He headed the way he came, which was from the opposite direction of the old space port. He wasn't going back there, yet. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thraller walked a tenth of a mile up the side road. It was the fourth road he'd tried. The dirt on the road looked like something had happened to it recently, and a short walk up the road confirmed his suspicions. Tire tracks were visible. He waved to his truck. It was time to follow the tracks to their destination. He was ready to close in on the rebel hideout. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The flyer finally landed on a farm in a large valley. Endron knew how the farmers felt about the policies of the ancients. He had watched them plow their fields behind large oxen-like animals. The older ones had used modern equipment before the plague and knew how much better things had been. They wanted their tractors back. They wanted the rich farms they used to have. They hated the Ancients, like so many on Hakaan did now. Most of Hakaan now realized The Ancients had used the fear of the plague to acquire their power, and now they used fear and intimidation not only to retain power, but to increase it. The farmers wanted the same life for their children and grandchildren that they had had. Endron saw the coming of the round ears as their best chance to get their way of life back.
The flyer was hidden in a large barn. The owner of the barn, Kraekan, welcomed everybody into his large farm house. It was here that the final plans were set up. It was time to go to the next phase. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thraller followed the narrow road until its end. He saw the van parked in a clearing. He was there! He had them! There was an old mine in this area. He bet they were there, and the mine was where the rebels hid their illegal technology.
He and his troops searched the area. One of them went around a rock and yelled to the other ones. The patrolmen ran to where he was. What they saw was an avalanche of rocks along the whole cliff side. If there had been a mine there it was covered now. And if anybody was in it, they weren't going to get out soon. They looked for signs of footprints. There were none. They didn't notice where leaves and dirt had been kicked up, thinking it was done by the wind or by animals.
Most of the Earth boys had played baseball. Mike remembered the metal drags that were put behind a small tractor to drag the infield. It was no problem to find something to put behind the ATV on their last trip from the mine.
Thraller was frustrated. He didn't know Endron and his group were trapped in the mountain, or if they left. He still didn't know why the shuttle went to the old spaceport to crash. He didn't know a lot of things he wanted to know, but it was time for him to go there to find out some answers. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ "I'm sure Thraller will visit the spaceport. As soon as we get word he's inspected it and left we will take the flyer there. We've delayed him some, but we won't fool him forever. He is very smart. He is big reason why the Ancients are able to maintain their power," Endron said.
Endron started telling the boys about the radio they had loaded into the flyer. They remembered Endron's trip down the hill. It took him twice as long as anybody else. It wasn't that he wasn't able to keep up with the kids. it was that he couldn't take a chance at damaging the only radio like it on Hakaan, maybe in the entire galaxy.
"Do you understand what to do when you get back to your starship?"
Douglas nodded his head. "Ryan said we have enough warp fuel for four days travel. So we warp out on half the fuel, and then come back. The whole time we use the radio."
"I'm just amazed," Alex said. "A radio that is faster than warp. We never did figure out how to make one."
"We completed our just as the plague broke out. It's never really been tested. We can only guess that it works. It should work, but we still don't know for sure. It only works from one ship in warp to another ship in warp."
"And the other ship doesn't need a special radio?"
"We don't know. We don't think so. We think that the warp radio will send and receive to and from any radio in space. But it's never been tested. We just don't know. The big problem for you is, the radio on the other end has to be turned on to have any chance of receiving the signal, and from what you tell me your starships turn them off because they don't need them when they're in warp."
"What we said is, we think they have them off, not we knew they have them off. You guys had yours off. We figured we did the same thing," Alex told him. Scooter was glad he was translating. It took a little of the edge off of Alex's words.
"Even if we get hold of a starship, who's to say they will help your rebellion," Douglas said. "We can't guarantee that. But I know we will be telling them what we think. But we're just kids. Who says they will listen to us. They might just elect to stay out of your politics."
Endron wondered about a society that didn't listen to kids. But he kept quiet. If the radio didn't work, or they couldn't find a radio on a starship that was turned on, then it didn't make any difference what they did.
"Dad?" Dralkan asked.
"Yes, son?"
"Do you think Trundall and I can go with them? Into space I mean?"
"Me too," Shamene cried out.
Endron was stunned by the question. He immediately answered with a resounding no. He said the round eaedr boys didn't need the distraction of people who couldn't help. The boys and Endron argued back and forth for a while. Finally, Dralkan said, "We can help. Douglas keeps saying how they needed more help on the watches. We are two more boys who can help. We can read things on the ship without needing translations taped to it. And besides, we may never get a chance again," he smiled
Endron was willing to concede that his son had some viable arguments. "Son, you may never make it back."
"Dad, it's only four days. They aren't going far. And we may never get a chance again," he said again.
Endron thought about it. And he remembered what he had just thought about the a society that didn't listen to their children. The round ears had been through a lot worse than a trip two days away from Hakaan. After all, they had piloted a starship between two solar systems. What they were about to do was child's play compared to what they did before. Dralkan should have a chance to go, and so should Trundall. But not Shamene. He was still too young. Shamene might not think so, but there was a big difference between eleven and thirteen. He wasn't risking both sons even if it did seem fairly safe. So he approved of Dralkan and Trundall going, but not Shamene.
Dralkan hugged his dad, but Shamene went off to sulk.
Later Travis found Shamene all curled up on a bed, crying. He sat down next to him.
"If we succeed you will have lots of chances for going into space. And I bet we will succeed. I bet you will be one of the first ones up into space after we get back, because you will help us a lot down here."
"You think so?"
"I know so. And I know we will succeed. I feel it." Travis hugged Shamene, who hugged him back. They both decided to check out the barn and see if the flyer was still there. It was. They celebrated as Travis let the little Hakaan boy make love to him. Like all Hakaanen, the eleven year old was a skillful lover, even if he wasn't very big yet. He had learned his sexual lessons from older boys, men, and from his brother. When it was over Shamene felt better. He thanked Travis and said one day he would meet him in space. Travis kissed him and they returned to the farmhouse. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thraller got to the spaceport just before sunset. He and his patrol set up camp. They would inspect the place in the morning. The three people in the terminal had detected their arrival and they were prepared.
When morning came Thraller and his men drove to the crash site. The entire shuttle was burned out. Parts were strewn along the runway. There was no way of knowing anybody survived. The runway was torn up.
Thraller went to the terminal. Endron's Meshanna and two other men were there. They said they had no idea why the shuttle decided to try to land there. They were just happy it hadn't crashed into the terminal. They had searched for survivors, but there were none. The entire incident had surprised, frightened, and saddened them. Endron had come by to check the place out, they told Thraller, but they thought he had left for the mountains with his children and their mother. That was about all they knew.
Thraller knew they were lying, but he figured that was all he was going to find out for now, so he looked around a little more and then left.
After a couple of hours had passed they radioed Endron. Endron and the pilot pulled the flyer out of the barn and the boys boarded it. The pilot flew it across the fields and forest until they went over a wide river and toward the clearing where the old spaceport was. He landed it next to the terminal.
Everyone agreed they had to get the shuttle into the air as fast as possible. They also would need to evacuate the cargo port. Endron had a feeling that Thraller hadn't gone too far away, and he knew that the launching of the shuttle would give away all of their secrets.
The door to the hidden hanger was opened. Thraller had gone right past it and hadn't even noticed it. The shuttle was backed out using a small tractor. Then Endron and the other three men fueled it up while the Earth boys got into the shuttle.
Dralkan hugged his little brother. "Next time, we'll go together. If it was up to me it would be this time. I love you, little brother."
"I love you. I'm gonna be with you next time."
Dralkan wiped a tear off Shamene's cheek. Trundall gave Shamene a hug. They both hugged Endron, then climbed up the steps onto the shuttle.
Dralkan was amazed by the shuttle. He sat down in a seat and Douglas showed him and Trundall how to buckle in. A couple of days ago, on the flyer, he had flown in the air for the first time. Now he was going into space. It had all happened so quickly it was almost overwhelming.
Endron and Corrinna hit the switch that started the runway cover moving. Dralkan had seen it before, when he and Trundall were old enough to understand that could never tell anybody outside of dad's group about it. It was just being tested then. This was the real thing.
Endron watched as the runway was uncovered. He and Corrinna went out on the balcony that wrapped around the control tower. The runway was uncovered. Endron knew the engines on the shuttle would start up any time. He wondered if he would ever see Dralkan and Trundall again. There was no way to hide the shuttle's takeoff, which meant landing again could be close to impossible. Once the shuttle took off, Thraller and his men would be at the spaceport in a flyer within minutes. They would take it over, because it would no longer be a secret, but when they got there Endron and his followers he would be long gone in his own flyer, heading for one of their hideouts.
When the shuttle takes off a lot of lives will change, Endron thought. The whole planet will change. The round eared boys carried the future of the Hakaan way of life on their shuttle. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The runway was clear. Alex started the shuttle's engines. He started taxiing to the end of the runway. Endron watched the shuttle as it taxied slowly. He remembered when he was a boy and used to watch the space shuttles take off from here and from the main airport at Kana. Now the Kana airport was weeds and broken concrete. The forest spaceport was the way it was because of a lot of hard work by his small group and because they were able to keep it secret.
The arrival of the shuttle had exposed that secret. Thraller and the Ancients were suspicious. They had been able to fool them for a couple of days, but as soon as the shuttle took off, the secret was over. It was time to act now while they could. If they didn't take advantage of this chance the Hakaan way of life might disappear forever. Right now they had Hakaan technology and knowledge saved, and people who knew how to make and use things were still alive, but in a few days that all could change. He was sure the shuttle was directed to them by the God Jeswa.
Alex turned the shuttle around and looked down the long runway. The had fueled it from a tank hidden under the hanger. It had enough fuel to reach the starship and come back. He knew that coming back might be impossible. Once they took off this secret runway was no longer going to be secret. The fake crash bought them the time they needed, but now the secret would be gone.
He went through the checklist with Travis. Scooter was in the cabin. He wasn't going to be needed since they weren't going to be using the radio. They finished the checklist and Alex revved up the engines, let go of the brake, and let the shuttle surged forward. He watched the trees race by, and then the terminal. He got the shuttle to lift off speed, pulled back, and let the huge space craft lift into the sky.
Dralkan looked out of his window hoping to see his mom or dad or little brother. He thought he saw somebody waving, but he wasn't sure. They were racing by too fast. The feeling was exhilarating as the thrust of the shuttle pushed him against his seat.
He felt the "Survivor" leave the ground and looked out and saw the trees get smaller below them. He could soon see the mountains underneath them. Trundall had his own window seat on the other side of the aisle and he was as enthralled as Dralkan was.
Alex hit the super thrusters, pulled back until the shuttle pointed almost straight up, and gave it full thrust. The "Survivor" blasted straight up into space, leaving a trail of white smoke behind it. Dralkan was now being compressed against the seat, almost feeling crushed by the Gs forcing against him, as the shuttle headed out of the atmosphere of Hakaan and into the blackness of space.
Thraller was half way back to Kana. He was on a rise in the road. He heard a low roaring in the distance, then a louder sound. He saw a small spot rise into the sky, then saw a streak of white shoot out behind it and rise straight up behind the dot. He had no doubt what it was he was looking at. He had been fooled, but he knew who had fooled him, and he would go back to find him. If that shuttle ever returned, there would not be a rebel waiting to meet it. He would be there to meet it.
Endron also had his thoughts as he watched the shuttle roar up into space. For Endron, all the hopes of Hakaan were rising on that trail of smoke. He watched it disappear, then gathered everybody together to get them into the flyer. There was no need to cover the runway now. The secret was over. One way or another, Thraller would know the runway was there. If he wanted to destroy the runway, there was nothing to stop him, and he was sure that Thraller would do just that.
Endron knew that the Earth shuttles wouldn't need a runway. That they could land vertically, just like the flyer. Endron knew that if the round ears didn't get hold of an Earth starship he would probably never see his son again. He left the space port wondering what the future held for his beloved home planet. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The "Paxton" rippled into warp space. Dralkan sat in an observation lounge watching the bright colors go by. He thought about what he had seen in the past few hours. He thought about how beautiful Hakaan had looked from space. The greens and browns of the land, the blues of the oceans and seas, and the whites of the clouds. He and Trundall both cried. Their home was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen. Dralkan couldn't take his eyes off it as it retreated from view, until it was a bluish speck and then vanished as the starship blasted into warp space.
The feeling of going into warp, of seeing the colors of warp space, were sensational. No matter what happened from here, Dralkan and Trundall were both glad that they had asked to come along.
Before they even left orbit, Stevie and Ryan got the warp radio hooked up, but there was no way to test it. The receiving radio had to be in warp space as well. All the lights were green, so all the right wires were hooked up. The only question was, would it work? There was no way to know unless they got an answer to their message from somewhere.
When the "Survivor" docked with the "Paxton" there were some excited reunions. Some of the boys had wondered if they would see each other again or how long it would be before they did. That night was going to be a night of reunion fun.
Trundall and Dralkan were welcomed by everybody. All the boys could speak enough Hakaan that they could all communicate. They were asked after dinner if they wanted to be with anybody for whatever sexual fun there was to be had. They said not that night. They both knew the round ears wanted to be with their partners. They sensed in the way Hakaanen can sense things that this night was one for the joining of partners. They were given their own cabin. Six cabins of boys had the sounds of hard hot boy sex, and up on the bridge Jim and Stevie had the watch, since they were the one pair to stay on board.
The radio was set on auto-repeat. The message was, "This is the starship 'Jordan M. Paxton'. We carry survivors of the 'U.S.S. Starkeeper'. Please reply on this frequency."
The loudspeaker was set to high volume, so any reply would be heard. Stevie had also hooked up an alarm, so any signal back would set the alarm off. If a reply came, they shouldn't miss it. If they heard nothing it would be either because radio didn't work or that nobody had a radio on to receive the message, or no radio was within range of the warp radio. The problem was, nobody knew what its range was.
That morning Mike made up a huge pancake breakfast. Big pancakes, cooked on a large griddle, stacked three deep and covered with thick helpings of butter and buried deep in syrup, were not something that was a Hakaan recipe. Dralkan and Trundall fell in love with them, and Mike had to make them each another stack. They stuffed themselves with pancakes until they couldn't move. Douglas sat at the table staring at his stack of pancakes. He thought about all the Saturday mornings on Earth when his mom had served up her wonderful pancakes to Douglas and his friends after his sleepovers. Scooter saw the faraway look on his lover's face. Scooter touched Douglas with a thought, 'Where are you, my love?' I'm frightened, my love. For all of us. If this doesn't work, if we're not rescued, we will have to return to Hakaan and we will spend the rest of our lives there. The Shkah police will see us land, they will come to arrest us, and we will probably end up in prison. We've come so far, and now here we are relying on a radio that nobody has ever tested, on the off chance that an Earth exploration ship is somewhere within it's range, IF it happens to work. After all we've gone through, it could all end up being for nothing.' Not nothing, my love. We're alive, and as long as we're alive there is hope. You've kept us alive and you are still going to lead us home. I feel it in my soul.' Douglas kissed the cute little blonde boy he loved so much and said aloud, "I'm so happy I have you here with me. You give me my strength. I love you." The other boys smiled as they watched Douglas walk out of the dining hall. They could tell Douglas was full of confidence, and it made them feel confident too. It was a good thing they weren't aware of Douglas's fear and insecurity. Like any good leader, he had learned to hide those well. The day ended up being long and a little boring. They were going to go two days out and then return. The ship was running itself. The boys were sitting around waiting for a reply to their message.
Mike put together a dinner of beef stew. Then they watched a Hakaan vid. It helped having Dralkan and Trundall to help explain it.
That night Mike and Alex took the bridge watch. Dralkan asked if he could be with Scooter and Douglas. Trundall was invited by Brett and Jeremy. Brett hadn't had a lot experience with Hakaan boys. When Trundall sucked him, it was as good as any blow job he'd ever had, and when Trundall entered his ass awhile Jeremy watched, Brett almost fainted from the feeling. Hakaan boys knew their stuff when it came to sex.
Scooter got the same feeling. Douglas told him it was okay to have Dralkan make love to him, While Douglas made love to him in totally incredible ways, Dralkan gave Scooter feelings he'd never had before. After he finished with Scooter. Dralkan did Douglas, and Douglas knew he would need some lessons from the Hakaan boy.
Mike and Alex had a sweet time making love. They did it on the darkened bridge. The only light was from the instruments. Alex feel asleep with his still cock inside of Mike, and it was still there when the alarm started blaring. Both boys sat up in the sleeping bag. It was the radio alarm.
The alarm stopped and a voice came over the bridge speaker, a voice speaking in English.
"This is the 'U.S.S. Starfinder' replying to the 'Jordan M.Paxton'."
NEXT CHAPTER 51 U.S.S Starfinder
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The boys are almost home. But they're return will, unfortunately, be delayed a bit. I will be leaving on a trip, and won't be back until the beginning of March. I wanted all my loyal readers to know so you wouldn't be wondering why the story wasn't being posted. I had hoped to have everything posted before I left. Obviously, I didn't succeed. Yes, the boys are on the homestretch, but the road will not be smooth. The question to ponder is, Will Douglas be able to stand up to the authority of the Captain of an exploration starship- a man who is a member of an elite group of Captains who wield more power than anyone in space?
I have sent the next 3 chapters to my proofreaders to be ready on my return. Please note that I will not be answering e-mails during that time as well, but will do so as quickly as possible upon my return. I apologize for the delay and will try to post the last chapters as soon as I can. I will be dreaming of Hakaan boys as I bask in the tropical son.
Douglas
Constructive comments are welcomed. E-mail me, Douglas DD, at TheHakaanen@Hotmail.com