Date: Tue, 13 Jul 2004 03:37:06 +0000
From: Douglas DD DD <thehakaanen@hotmail.com>
Subject: The Boys of Lady Lex Chapter 15

Welcome back readers. Teachers have been important for all of us. Some have
been good. Some not so good. The Boys of Lady Lex are in need of good
mentors and role models. Ben and I would like to think we created a few good
examples here. -Ben and Douglas


The Boys of the Lady Lex
Chapter 15
"Mentors"
Written By Douglas DD and Benjamin TC


	Ben lay in his bed in sickbay. Sitting on his bed tray were some half eaten
green Jell-O and some kind of white mushy looking stuff. Ben had his math
book open. He was trying to do the homework Sister Agatha had given him. Ben
admitted openly that math was his worse subject. He was in honors English in
school back at home, but was in remedial math. Finally after getting
frustrated with the word problems that lay before him, he threw the book on
the floor and laid back and closed his eyes. This was his first day going to
class via the television monitor, but he had fallen asleep in more then one
of his classes.
	"You awake?" whispered a young boy standing at the door.
	Ben opened his eyes and saw Trevor standing there. "Hey, come on in." Ben
was glad to see his brother. He knew his parents would be leaving the next
day, but he was happy that some family would still be here.
	"How are you feeling?"
	"Tired. How are you doing?"	"OK."
	"Something wrong, Trev?"
	Trevor thought for a minute. He wanted to tell Ben about him stealing some
snacks tomorrow night for Johnny, but he thought he better not.
	"Nah, just wondering how you were doing. I better go, I have homework to
do." Before Ben could say anything else, Trevor was gone.

  *****

	Brian set his epee next to his saber. He just finished polishing his epee,
saber, foil and broad sword. He thought carefully all day what he was going
to do. He hated his life. It life was bad enough back on Earth, but now he
was on some ship with a group of youth criminals. He just wished his life
was back to normal, but after his accident his life would never be normal
again.
	He stood up and took his epee, saber and foil and wrapped them up carefully
in a black felt cloth. He propped the swords on his shoulder and grabbed his
cane. He hobbled down the passageway, using his cane as a crutch. His
shoulder was getting tired from carrying the swords but he knew he had to do
what he had to do.
	He finally found the room he was looking for. On the rust covered door was
a sign that read Incinerator Room. He opened the door and went into the
small room. On the bulkhead across the room were three doors about the size
of a poster board. Above the door were two lights. A red one and a green
one. Currently the green lights were all turned on and the red lights were
off.
	Brian pushed a button on one of the incinerators. The door slid open
exposing a dark small room. He slid his swords into the incinerator and shut
the door. He pushed another button and the green light above the door turned
off and the red light turned on. A faint humming was heard for a few
minutes, then the red light turned off and green light turned back on. Brian
opened the door once again and peered inside. The swords were gone. He
destroyed the swords for he didn't want anyone else using them after he was
gone.
	Brian went back to his room. He shut his bedroom door and locked it. He
took his broad sword, which was a duplicate of  the "Excalibur", and ran his
fingers along the freshly polished and sharpened blade. He placed the handle
to his sword on the floor and propped the tip of the sword on his belly
button.
	Tears started to run down his flush cheeks. He hated his life. He hated his
crippled sorry ass. He had enough and he was going to end it all. Images of
Major Zjan'Ren appeared in his mind. He wanted so much to start sword
fighting again, but how could he. Not like this. Not as a cripple.
	The tip of the blade started to press into his belly button. Tears were
flowing down his cheeks quite rapidly now. All he had to do now was just
drop. Just thrust himself upon his own sword. Ending his sorry pathetic
crippled life.
	"Balance!" ripped through Brian's mind like wild fire. The sword fell to
the floor with a thundering clank. Brian fell to his knees crying, his tears
falling onto his blade. Just as many times before, he couldn't go through
with it. But this was the closest he ever came to doing it.
	"Fuck it!!!" he said. He got up and picked up his sword. He slung it over
his shoulder, grabbed his cane and headed back to the incinerator room.
	He rounded the corner and standing in front of the door was Major Zjan'Ren.
He was standing tall and firm. His baklava was in his right hand with the
watery blade protruding from its bamboo handle.
	"I need to get in there," said Brian.
	"In order to get into this room Young McDowell, you must fight me."
	"Forget it. I'm not fighting you." Scott turned his back on the towering
Kriton and started to limp away. Major Zjan'Ren pressed his communication
watch and a force field appeared, blocking Brian's path. Brian turned
around. "Let me out."
	"Fight me Young McDowell."
	"I can't and I won't."
	"You will fight me!" ordered Zjan'Ren. He lifted his baklava over his head,
holding the bamboo handle with both of his hands.
	"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" yelled Zjan'Ren as he charged Brian. He swung down his
baklava with a deadly blow. There was a loud thundering clank as Brian took
his sword parried Zjan'Ren's attack. Brian then riposte into an attack of
his own, gripping his sword tightly with both hands. The swords clashed,
throwing sparks in every direction.  The human child and Kriton adult glam
down the corridor grunting, yelling, and thrusting themselves upon each
other.
	Brian spun in a circle and parried once more. Beads of sweat were retracing
the trail that the tears had laid before it not that long ago. Although the
duel was no more than five minutes long, it felt like a lifetime for Brian.
Then Brian saw his cane lying on the cold deck by itself. He lost his
balance and Zjan'Ren's baklava came up under Brian's sword where it was
ripped from his hands and thrown down the passageway.
	Brian fell hard to the deck on his bad leg. Zjan'Ren held the top of his
blade at Brian's heart. He had a stern face with his lips pierced together
and nostrils flaring.
	"DO IT!!! KILL ME!!! I CAN'T STAND LIVING LIKE THIS. FUCKEN KILL ME
ALREADY!!!! I AM JUST FUCKING HANDCAPPED KID WHO CAN'T DO SHIT. KILL ME!!!"
cried Brian. Tears were now flowing down his flushed cheeks.
	Zjan'Ren lowered his blade back into the bamboo handle and placed his
baklava onto his sash. Zjan'Ren popped out his glass eye and tossed it onto
the deck next to Brian.
"Your cane threw you off balance. That's why you plundered," said Zjan'Ren.
"I plundered because I am a cripple!!" cried Brian.
	"Young McDowell. We all have handicaps, but we place them in proper balance
with our lives to make us stronger, not weaker," said the Kriton I don't let
my blindness in one eye throw me off balance. Young McDowell, you need to
find your balance like I did. And your balance starts with your cane."
	Zjan'Ren looked at Young McDowell who was still lying on the floor tears
still running down his cheeks. He then went over and picked up Brian's sword
and cane. He put them both down along side of Brian.
	"You must decide which one of these you will seek your balance with."
Zjan'Ren then went to his quarters leaving Brian there alone with much to
think about.

  *****

	Trevor shimmied through the air vents and he made it to his destination,
the galley. He climbed down and went over to the reefer where desserts were
being kept. He went to open it, but realized it was locked. He then went
over to a walk-in pantry and found some cookies, chips and other snacks. He
grabbed some, put in the snacks into a garbage bag and went back to the
vent. Trevor climbed back through the vents and made to the entrance where
he first entered the vents. He dropped to the floor and fell on his hands
and knees. His face was just mere inches from a pair of black boots.

  *****

	Zjan'Ren looked at his watch and saw it was almost midnight. He was in the
middle of his evening meditation before bedtime when there was a faint knock
on the door. Zjan'Ren stood up from his meditation pillow and threw on a
robe. He went to the door and opened it. No one was there. But lying on the
floor below him was a sword. Zjan'Ren left out a long sigh.

  *****

	Ben lay in his bed in sickbay. He had his eyes closed just resting thinking
about his time here on the "Lexington". He heard someone come into his room.
He opened his eyes and saw Douglas standing there. Ben opened his mouth to
say something, but Douglas put his finger to his lips signaling him to be
quiet.
	Douglas walked over to the bed and crawled in next to Ben. His head and
torso were hovering over Ben, as his legs pressed against Ben's leg on the
hospital bed. Douglas leaned down and planted his lips gently with a kiss.
Ben opened up his mouth slightly and Douglas's tongue started to explore the
inside of Ben's mouth.
	Ben's tongue greeted the welcomed stranger and began to lightly wrestle
with Douglas's tongue. Both boys letting out soft moans of pleasure.
Douglas's hands began explore Ben's pale chest as Ben's hands began
exploring Douglas's back. The two boys held each other tight as their kiss
became deeper, harder and more passionate.
	Douglas felt Ben's hard member press and rub against his hard member
through their clothes. Douglas slowly thrust his hips gently, rubbing the
two cocks together. A small wet spot was forming on the front of Ben's
hospital gown as the two boys held each other tightly.
	Ben slid his hands under Douglas's shirt and rubbed his finger tips over
Douglas's smooth skin. This sent shivers down Douglas's spine, causing him
to kiss Ben even harder. Douglas reached behind Ben's back and untied the
strings to his gown.
	Ben reached down and grabbed the bottom of Douglas's shirt. He then pulled
up towards him. Douglas lifted his arms above his head and broke the kiss
just long enough for his shirt to be pulled off.
	Once Douglas's shirt was off, Douglas worked on Ben's gown. The gown fell
to the cold, hard deck next to Douglas's shirt. The two boys were kissing
and groping and feeling each other up. Their bare chests rubbing tightly
against each other. Ben's hard, dripping cock leaving a trail of precum on
Douglas's pants.
	Ben began to work on Douglas's pants as Douglas began to nibble and kiss on
Ben's neck. Once Douglas's pants were undone, he quickly kicked his shoes
off and shed his pants. Ben pushed Douglas's white briefs down as far as he
could reach and Douglas picked where Ben left off and lowered his briefs
down pass his knees and ankles and on the way off, he snagged his socks and
took the three articles of clothing off. He got on top of Ben and rubbed his
hard dripping cock against Ben's dripping member, mixing their two precums
together.
	Douglas's tongue began to stroll around Ben's neck and started to nibble,
kiss and lick Ben's ear. Ben let out a moan as he felt Douglas's tongue
tickle his ear. Ben reached down and began to fondle his friend's cock.
	Douglas's tongue then strolled down to Ben's nipples. He began to kiss,
bite, pull gently and kiss the hardening nipples. Ben began to run his
fingers through Douglas's dark soft hair. Douglas continued to let his
tongue explore as he glided down Ben's chest and over his belly button. He
reached a thin forest of light blondish brown pubic hairs. He blew a sweet,
soft wind across them, causing them to dance in his whispery kiss.
	Douglas stuck out his tongue and let it climb slowly up Ben's throbbing
cock. He reached his mushroom head and ran the tip of his tongue through the
pee slit, licking up the sweet tasting precum that was dripping out of it.
	Douglas ran his tongue back down the shaft and up over the smooth soft skin
that contained Ben's seed makers. Douglas ever so gently ran his tongue up
underneath to that sweet sensitive spot up behind Ben's balls. Ben cooed as
Douglas hit that spot.
	Douglas twisted himself around and dangled his cock just above Ben's mouth.
Ben opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue. It just barely reached his
pee slit where he licked out the precum and let it dribble down his tongue
to the back of his throat.
	As Douglas opened his mouth wide and lowered his head down upon Ben's cock,
he lowered his own cock into Ben's waiting mouth. Both boys closed their
mouth gently around each other's cocks and began to suck slowly at first.
They began to hump each other's mouths and both of them were moaning as
their heads bobbed up and down in sync with the thrusts.
	They both began to suck harder and faster, enjoying the taste and smell of
each other. Douglas then let Ben's dick flop out of his mouth and he pulled
his own dick out of Ben's mouth. He moved himself down between Ben's legs.
Ben spread his legs as if it was the answer Douglas was waiting for. Douglas
ran his tongue across the freckles on Ben's butt as if he was connecting the
dots. He then slipped his tongue in Ben's crack and let it glide gently over
Ben's awaiting rosebud.
	Ben shivered and shuttered as he felt the warmth of Douglas's tongue on his
bud. He pushed his butt towards Douglas, telling him through his actions
that he wanted more. Douglas slid his tongue into the dark cavity and licked
the inside of Ben's walls. Ben groaned at the pleasure it brought. Douglas
began to lick, kiss, and suck at Ben's hole, sending pleasures into Ben that
he never felt before.
	Ben spread his legs even wider, inviting Douglas to go farther then any of
them have ever gone before. Douglas got into position and ran his hard,
throbbing cock down Ben's crack, leaving a trail of precum behind. Douglas
pressed the tip of his dick against Ben's rosebud. He pushed a little harder
and soon his mushroom head was inside Ben. Ben moaned as he felt Douglas
penetrate him. He pulled Douglas towards him and began kissing him
frantically.
	Douglas pushed harder, inching his way into Ben. As Douglas rubbed against
Ben's sweet spot, Ben yelled out "I LOVE YOU DOUGLAS" and clawed his
fingernails into Douglas's back.
	Once Douglas was in, he pulled back out almost to the point where he was
completely out and then pushed back in. He repeated this over and over again
and again rubbing against Ben's sweet spot. Both boys telling each other
that they love each other dearly.
	"HARDER!!!" yelled Ben.
	Douglas fucked Ben harder and harder as he felt Ben's fingernails scratch
down his back. Ben felt Douglas's cock swell within him. He squeezed his ass
muscles tight around Douglas's cock.
	Both boys yelled in ecstasy as Ben shot his seed all over his chest, some
drops landing on his face. Douglas shot his seed deep inside Ben's bowels.
	Ben opened up his eyesand looked around the darkened room. He was alone. He
reached down to his cock and found a puddle of boy seed around the base of
his cock and over his belly. Ben closed his eyes. He couldn't believe he
just had a wet dream about a boy who he barely knew.
	Ben wondered to himself. How could he be falling in love with a boy who he
hardly knew? After all, he only spent one night with him and most of the
time Douglas spent with him, he was asleep. And the few times he was awake
were short periods and they only talked a little. What made Ben's heart ache
for Douglas? How could this be?

  *****

	Douglas lay in his rack alone. He reached down and felt the warm sliminess
of his boy cum. He couldn't believe he just had a wet dream about fucking
Ben. It was the best dream he had ever had. How he longed to kiss Ben again
and to hold him in his arms. Sure he wanted more, but holding him and
cuddling with him seemed more important to him then sex. Douglas wondered
how he was falling in love with a boy he knew hardly anything about. But
from the moment he first saw Ben lying in sickbay unconscious a few days ago
when Ben returned from Lucifer, Douglas knew there was something special
about him. Something about that boy called to Douglas. But Douglas couldn't
figure how or why the boy was calling to him. Douglas closed his eyes; he
didn't bother cleaning up the mess and drifted off back to sleep.

  *****

	Trevor's eyes moved up the feet  before him and followed the legs up until
he was looking at his English teach, Mr. Wolfe. Harrison Wolfe stood there
with his arms crossed and looking firm at him.
	"Sloppy. Very sloppy," said Harrison in a cold tone.
	"Huh?"
	"You were loud in your movements. You didn't plan well, otherwise you would
have known that the reefer was locked, and you left a trail behind you that
a blind man could follow. If you plan on becoming a thief, you better learns
the ways of stealth and thievery. Otherwise I suggest you give it up."
	Harrison turned and started to walk away. Trevor quickly got up and
followed behind his teacher. "How did you know I was in the galley and that
I would pop out where I did?" asked Trevor.
	"Like I said, you were loud, you didn't plan things out and you left a
trail behind you."
	"I didn't leave no trail."
	Harrison Wolfe stopped. He looked at the young boy. "First of you didn't
leave any trail. Your use of the English language is pathetic. I do not want
to hear any more double negatives. Secondly, come boy follow me and we will
take a look at that trail you didn't leave behind." Harrison led Trevor into
the galley. He looked around and found some flour. He took some out of its
container and sprinkled it lightly on the door handle to the reefer. He
gently blew it away leaving a small imprint of a finger print.
	"Look there!! Your fingerprints are all over this place."
	"Yeah so? A lot of people fingers prints are in here."
	"But if you would have planned, A) you would have known the reefer was
locked and B) you would have known the Cook always wipes everything down
leaving no traces of dust, dirt, grease and finger prints before she leaves
for the night."
	"How do you know all this? Were you a thief?"
	"No. I am an English teacher and you better get to bed before someone finds
you up. I am sure Master Sergeant Flint would love to give you KP or
something for being up past curfew." Harrison turned and walked out of the
galley and headed down the quiet passageway with Trevor still on his heels.
	"I want you teach me," begged Trevor who wasn't giving up.
	"I will teach you."
	"Really?"
	"Yes, every other day you will come to my classroom and I will teach you
the rules of English grammar, literature, and other related items. I will
even teach you about avoiding the use of ear piercing double negatives."
	"That's not what I mean Mr. Wolfe. I want you to teach me the ways of
stealth and thievery."
	Harrison stopped and looked at Trevor. "I am an English teacher Mr.
Collins, not a teacher on criminal acts. Now off to bed with you."
	"But how do you know the ways of stealth and thievery? How did you know I
was stealing food? Tell me," persisted Trevor.
	"I read. I learn from books. Now to bed before I personally deliver you to
Master Sergeant Flint."
	"No! I am not going to bed until you tell me that you will teach me what
you know about the ways of stealth and thievery."
	"And what makes you so sure I know them? Because I sprinkled flour on your
finger prints? I told you, I read. I read that in a murder mystery once. Now
to bed!!!"
	Trevor tried to get Harrison Wolfe to admit that he knew the ways of
stealth and to teach him them, but after much argument, Trevor finally gave
up. For the time being anyway."

  *****

	Commander Creevey looked at her watch. She couldn't believe it was two in
the morning already. But she knew when she took the role as executive
officer that sleep would be more of a privilege then a right. She walked
into sickbay to see how some of the tests were coming along. Since she was a
biochemist before getting into command positions, she was working closely
with Dr. Daniels on that blood agent that almost killed Ben.
	She examined the tests and made a few notes. She fiddled with the
experiments for about 30 minutes and then she left the laboratory and exited
into the sickbay main room. She saw that the light was still on in Dr.
Daniels office. She went over to let him know what she had just finished
doing. She peaked in the half opened door and saw Dr. Daniels leaning back
in his chair with his feet propped up on his desk. He was letting out a soft
snore.
	Still lightly gripped in his hand and resting upon his lap was a highball
glass with a couple of sips of bourbon and water in it. His other hand was
dangling from the chair. Below his hand on the cold deck was a picture of a
woman.
	Amanda Creevey walked over and took the glass from his hand and placed it
on the desk. She took a blanket that was folded up on a filing cabinet and
spread across him. She stared at him for a few minutes as he laid there
sleeping. She then exited his office and went back out into the sickbay main
room. She heard something in one of the patient's rooms, so she went to see
if everything was okay. She walked in and saw Ben climbing into his rack.
	"Are you okay?" she asked.
	Ben was startled because he didn't know she was there. His first thoughts
were her seeing the wet stains on his gown that was caused by his wet dream
he had only moments before. "Uh, yeah. I had to go to the bathroom. I'm
okay."
	"Do you need anything?"
	"No, I'm fine Ma'am. I am going back to bed."
	"Okay. Dr. Daniels is in his office if you need him."
	"Thank you."
	"Good night Ben."
	Amanda Creevey left sickbay and decided to try to get a couple hours of
sleep before her daily routine started all over again.

  *****

	Ben woke up with Dr. Daniels taking his vitals. Dr. Daniels smiled.
	"Well Ben, I think you are healing just fine. How about you grab a shower,
get dressed and just relax for the rest of the day. I think tomorrow you can
move back into your room and then the next day start attending your classes
in person instead of watching them on TV."
	"Really?" Ben was excited. He was getting tired being cooped up in a room
lying in bed all day. He wanted to get up and do some things, although he
still got winded easily.
	"Yes, but still take it easy. You are still excused of doing physical
exercise for the next two weeks. Your body's been through a lot."
	"I will." Ben got down and entered the shower room. He couldn't wait to
walk around the ship and stretch his legs.
	Dr. Daniels left Ben's room. When he entered sickbay's main room he saw
Douglas come walking in.
	"Good morning, son."
	"Good morning, dad. Is Ben awake?"
	"Yes he is. But he's getting a shower. Give him a few minutes."
	"How's he doing this morning?"
	"He is recovering just fine. He will be moving in back with you tomorrow."
	"YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!" thought Douglas to himself.
	"I have the morning meeting I need to get to. I will see you later. Okay?"
	"Okay, dad."
	Dr. Daniels passed Tina Hatcher as he was exiting sickbay. Tina was coming
into sickbay to see how her cousin was doing, but she was even happier when
she saw Douglas standing there.
	"Hi, Douglas!"
	Douglas's eyes widened when he saw Tina come in the sickbay. He had done a
pretty good job at avoiding her since they kissed, but his luck just ran
out.
	"Uh...hi Tina."
	"Have you been avoiding me?"
	"Uhhhh...ummmmm...no. I am a cadet now and my free time is very limited."
	"I heard you became a cadet like my brother did. I think that is so sexy of
you."
	During their small talk, Tina kept creeping up towards Douglas, as Douglas
kept backing up. He didn't want to be around her. But he was beginning to
feel like a trapped rat. Finally he was pinned up against the wall.
	"I really missed talking to you," she said. She then leaned forward and
planted another kiss on him. She forced his lips open and let her tongue
slide in and dance with his tongue. Douglas wanted to break the kiss in the
worse way, but his body wasn't doing what his brain was telling it to do.
	The kiss was finally broken off when they heard the door to sickbay open
and close. Douglas looked around and saw no one standing there. Tina tried
to kiss him again, but this time he was able to repel her.
	"Not now Tina." Douglas went over to Ben's room and saw that his room and
bathroom were both empty. Ben must have been the one to leave sickbay.
Douglas had a horrible thought. If Ben saw him kissing Tina, what would Ben
think? He had to go find him and let him know that there was nothing between
him and Tina. That he was an innocent victim of seduction.
	Douglas came out of the room and saw Tina standing there topless, flashing
her large tits. She smiled at him. "See anything you want, Dougie?" Douglas
cringed. Not only did he hate being called Dougie, but Tina had gotten Ben
angry at him, too.
	"What I want just left." Douglas was so concerned and upset over Ben that
he didn't even notice Tina calling him the name he hated. He stormed out of
the sickbay in hope to find Ben and explain everything.
  *****

	Ben walked down the passageway. He was trying to hide the tears that were
forming in his eyes. He couldn't believe he was falling for a boy. It was
obvious that Douglas and Tina had something going on. How could he be so
stupid? He touched his lips remembering when Douglas had kissed him and
thought it was just a pity kiss for him for being hurt. There was no meaning
behind it. He grabbed his lips as if he was removing the kiss that Douglas
planted on him and he threw it harshly to the deck.
	Douglas ran out in the hall and looked up and down it, but Ben was gone. He
was out of sight. Douglas could feel his own tears build up. He could just
imagine what must be going through Ben's mind. He needed to find Ben and
explain to him that he was innocent. He ran down the opposite direction Ben
had in order to find him.

  *****

	"Young McDowell," said Zjan'Ren as he saw Brian walk down the passageway
with his cane in hand.
	"Why can't you just leave me alone?"
	"You want me to leave you alone?"
	"Yes I do. I don't want to sword fight anymore. Why can't you understand
that?"
	"Young McDowell. I will leave you alone, but first you need to look
directly in my eye and tell me that your heart doesn't yearn to sword play
again and that a part of you didn't feel like you were alive again when we
were dueling yesterday. You do that and I will not approach you again."
	Brian looked directly into the Kriton's good eye. "I don't want to sword
play again." He started to walk away after saying that.
	"That wasn't the deal Young McDowell. Your heart longs for it. I can tell."
	Brian stopped but didn't face the Kriton. Tears were building up in his
eyes. Damn he thought, why couldn't that Kriton bastard just leave him
alone? Finally he turned around and started crying hard.
	"If you must know, my heart does want to sword fight again. But I can't."
	"Why can't you? And don't say because you are handicapped, because I won't
buy that. Why don't you want to sword fight again? And be honest with your
answer, not to me, but to yourself"
	"Because I am scared. All right? I am scared shitless to pick up a sword
again. I can't see out of my right eye, my arm and leg are weak and I am
scared of losing and making a fool of myself because I am a god damn
cripple."
	"Being scared is good. It shows respect to your opponent. But this is where
balance comes into play. You need to balance that fear, harness it and use
it to your advantage and not let fear control you and use you to its
advantage. It's all about balance. I can show you how to gain balance, but
in order for me to show you, you need to want balance in your life. Because
if you don't want balance there is nothing I can do as your mentor, your
teacher, your Kalair to help you gain balance. The first step to gaining
balance is to want balance. Once you want balance, then I can show you how
to gain balance. Young McDowell, do you want balance?"
	"But I am scared," cried Brian.
	"Once again you answered a question I didn't asked. I said do you want
balance?"
	"Yes," said Brian who was crying hard.
	"Do you want me to show you how to achieve that balance?"
	"Yes."
	Zjan'Ren pulled his baklava from his sash. The water blade rose out from
the bamboo handle. Zjan'Ren knelt down and placed the tip of his blade on
the floor.
	"I Zjan'Ren of the third family of Kriton vow to be your Kalair to teach
you balance."
	This was the second of three times that a Kriton would kneel to a human.

  *****

	"Morning Chaplain," smiled Andrew as he and Nipper came walking into the
music room. Chaplain Kyle looked down and saw the two young boys were
holding hands, but he didn't say anything. He being a man of the cloth and a
Bible fearing man did not believe in gay relationships. However, the one
thing that God did teach him was to love one another and he could tell these
two young boys loved one another and that he will not hold that against
them.
	"Good morning boys," said Chaplain Kyle with a smile. "Had a little problem
with keeping your tune today?"
	Andrew and Nipper giggled. "Uh yeah, I'm sorry." Little did Chaplain Kyle
know Nipper was sucking Andrew's dick at the time and Andrew had a dry
orgasm at the point of playing his morning reveille. Nipper did this to get
even with the early morning wake up and hearing the blaring of the trumpet
first hand.
	"Let's see if you can do a better job tomorrow. Now, since both of you are
musicians have you either of you ever start whistling or humming a tune or
even playing a tune in your head over and over that you never heard before?"
	"You mean something like we made up?" asked Nipper.
	"Yes, something you made up."
	"Yeah, I guess," replied Nipper.
	"Sometimes I do," said Andrew.
	"Good, because I'll tell you what we are going to do. I found out that when
it comes time for the Olympics, we will need an alma mater."
	"What's that?" asked Andrew.
	"That is your school's theme song, right?" suggested Nipper.
	"Exactly. So the three of us will work together over the next few weeks and
come up with our theme song."
	"I never wrote a song before. Where do we begin?" asked Andrew.
	"Well, some people like to write the music first and add in lyrics later,
other musicians like to do the complete opposite. They come up with the
words and add music to it. Myself, well there are times I come up with a
tune first and add words later and then there are times when I come up with
the lyrics and add music last. It all depends on my inspiration at the time.
Am I inspired by music first or by lyrics first?"
	"So how do we start?" asked Nipper. "Do we do music first or the lyrics?"
	"Both of you said that you hum and whistle music that you made up yourself.
Let's hear those tunes and go from there."
	"Chaplain Kyle?"
	"Yes, Andrew."
	"I think I have a title for our alma mater."
	"Let's hear it?"
	"I saw on the commissioning plaque on the bridge that the SFA Lexington's
motto is `Let courage lead the way'. Maybe that can be our motto and the
title to our song."
	"I like that a lot Andy," chirped in Nipper.
	"That is an excellent suggestion Andrew. Now let's see what music you have
flowing in your heads."
	Chaplain Kyle, Andrew and Nipper spend the rest of the day humming,
whistling, singing, pounding on the piano and playing other instruments to
come up with their academy's alma mater. Surprisingly what Chaplain Kyle
thought would take them a couple of weeks to complete, ended only taking a
day. Of course there was some fine tuning to do, but by the end of the day
their alma mater would be complete.

  *****

	Ben walked into the shuttle bay. He had been wandering around aimlessly for
about an hour. He finally ended up here. He saw that a shuttle was actually
in the bay for some minor repairs. It was the shuttle that he would be
assigned to with Douglas as his CO. He thought maybe he could switch with
someone. He didn't want to be in the same crew as Douglas anymore. Not after
seeing him kiss his cousin. He didn't even want to move back into his own
room anymore. He wanted a different room. He would even settle being
roommates with Johnny Cooper again, as long as he wasn't roommates with
Douglas.
	Ben glided his fingers along the skin of the shuttle. He liked the feel of
the cold metal at his finger tips. He could feel some small nicks and dents
in certain areas of the skin. He felt strange because it was like he was
connecting with the old shuttle.
	"She's a bit old, but once I finish tweaking her, she'll fly better then
any shuttle in the Olympics."
	Ben turned and saw Kalon standing behind him. "Ummm, Dr. Daniels said I
need to walk around a bit. I have permission to be out of class and stuff."
	"Relax Ben. This is Kalon Masters you're talking to. I am just glad you are
feeling better. You gave us quite a scare, you know."
	"I know, but Dr. Daniels said I will be okay now."
	"Glad to here it. You ready to start flying?"
	"Yeah, I can't wait. I never did anything like that before."
	"It's going to be some intense training, but I am sure you can do it."
	"Can I go on board?"
	"Sure, it's your shuttle. Go ahead."
	Ben climbed onboard and walked up to the pilot's seat. He sat down and ran
his fingers over the control panel. Unlike some of the new shuttles, this
one still had a stick handle to pilot her by. He gently grabbed the `square
steering wheel' and closed his eyes. He was imagining flying through the
stars.
	"You wanna practice?" asked Kalon who sat in the navigator's seat.
	"You mean fly it?"
	"Simulated flight," said Kalon as he punched a few buttons and programmed a
simulated flight. "Now, the image you see on your screen is the simulated
image, like a movie projector. I will program the shuttle to be in hover
mode, so you can feel the yawing, pitching, and the rolling of the shuttle.
But don't worry, there is no way for you to hit a button that would take her
off hover mode and send us through the bulkhead. I am the only one who has
that power."
	"This is gonna be cool." Ben was a little nervous. He wiped the palm of his
hands on his pants. Then he gripped the handle a second time.
	"Are you ready to fly Ben?"
	"Can I watch?"
	Ben quickly jerked his head to look behind him and he saw Douglas standing
in the hatch. Why did he have to show up? Ben thought to himself. But before
Ben could say anything, Kalon answered for him.
	"Of course you can. You're the CO, so have a seat in your chair right
there. This will be good practice for the both of you."
	Ben crinkled his nose at the thought of Douglas being there. Douglas said
hi to Ben, but he ignored the salutations and diverted his attention back to
the control panels. Kalon carefully and slowly went over the steps on the
launching procedures and what safety checks to perform. After about an hour,
Kalon hit his special button and the shuttle began to hover.
	"Okay Ben. Even though we are hovering, the simulation still thinks we are
sitting on the deck. The image you see on the screen is not the real image,
but the simulated image. Are you ready to fly?" asked Kalon.
	"Yeah, I think so."
	"Cadet Daniels, when you feel everything is ready to go, give the order to
launch."
	Douglas pulled out a cheat sheet that had the check list on it. Douglas
started running down the list. Ben would perform the check and always
answered Douglas coldly and sharply. He did not hide the fact that he didn't
want Douglas there. This hurt Douglas dearly, but he wasn't about to leave.
He had to stay. Because if he didn't fight this, he was afraid he would lose
someone who means so much to him. And he wasn't about to let that happen.
	An hour went by with Ben trying to launch the shuttle. And once again, he
crashed it. He had not yet had a decent take off. He was getting very
frustrated with himself. He blamed Douglas because Douglas was starting to
cop and an attitude on his pilot skills, or lack thereof.
	"Come on Ben, you can do this," encouraged Douglas.
	"Will you shut up and quit telling me what I can or cannot do?" snapped
Ben.
	"I'm just trying to help."
	"Well stop it. I don't want your help."
	"Settle down you two. Let's try something different." Kalon reprogrammed
the computer and the view screen changed. It was no longer the image of the
shuttle bay. It was now the image of the cold vacuum of space. "Let's see
how well you can fly this once you already launched."
	Once again Ben tried and tried, but kept stalling out the engines, or
putting too much stress on them, or losing control of the shuttle which
would put them in a flat spin or a roll. Once he even crashed into the Lady
Lex.
	"I had enough. I can't fly this peace of shit."
	"Relax dude, it was your first day. This is going to take time." Kalon once
again reprogrammed the computer and the familiar image of the shuttle bay
appeared again.
	Kalon looked at his watch. It was close to lunch time. "Look, let's try
this one more time before we break for lunch. But I have an idea. Ben just
rest your hands on the stick. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath and
connect with your shuttle. Let her get to know you, trust you, respect you.
At the same time you do the same to her."
	Ben let out a deep breath and did what Kalon asked of him. He tried
clearing his mind of everything. It was hard, but he was succeeding. He was
becoming one with the shuttle. Kalon saw that Ben was becoming more and more
relaxed.
	"Now put these on." Kalon gave Ben his mirror sunglasses. Ben shot him an
inquisitive look. "Trust me." Ben placed the sunglasses on. Douglas didn't
say a word. He just sat in his chair and watched. He kept thinking to
himself as if he was trying to relay his thoughts to Ben that he trusted Ben
and he knew that Ben could do this.
	Kalon pushed another button and music started to blare out of the speakers.
Kalon's love for 21 century music was evident. A song performed by Stevie
Brock start to echoed throughout the shuttle. The song was entitled
`Flying".
	"Now Ben, feel the rhythm. Feel the beat. And when you are ready. FLY!!!"
	Ben checked his instruments and everything read okay. He put the shuttle
into gear and he launched her. He made it out of the loading hatch and into
space. He zoomed all around the Lady Lex. Ben was cheering and yelling with
excitement and Douglas was too. They were having a blast. As soon as one
fast pace energetic song ended, another one began. For the next 30 minutes
Ben was in his own little world flying and enjoying this tremendously. Kalon
was coaching him all the way through, but Ben was not crashing or rolling,
or stalling the engines.
	"We better land her. It's time for lunch."
	Ben sat back and waited for Kalon to end the simulation and to see the real
image of the shuttle bay appear on his view screen. Kalon turned down the
music.
	"Okay, when you dock her, just do it gently. It is easier then you think."
	"Do we have time for me to practice docking?" asked Ben.
	"Yeah, my stomach is growling," chimed in Douglas. This was the first time
he spoke since Ben succeeded in launching.
	"If boys want lunch, then we have to dock."
	"But isn't that a simulation?" asked Douglas.
	"I turned the simulator off right before I turned on the music."
	"You mean I...I was actually flying?" asked Ben stunned.
	"You sure were."
	"But he could have crashed us."
	"He could of, but I had the emergency control and I wouldn't have let that
happened."
	"You mean we are in space? I was actually flying?" Ben couldn't believe it.
	"Yes Ben. We are in space. The Lady Lex in your view screen is the real
Lady Lex and not the simulated one that you crashed into earlier."
	"But why did you turn the simulator off?" asked Douglas.
	"I had a hunch and I went with it. And as always, my hunch was right. Now
let's dock so we can go eat. I am hungry."
	Ben was a little nervous now. Especially since he knew this wasn't a
simulation any more. But with Kalon's coaching and Douglas's support, Ben
docked the shuttle to the docking hatch outside the shuttle bay. It wasn't a
pretty docking, but he docked it.
	Once the shuttle was docked, Kalon, Ben and Douglas exited the shuttle
craft. Ben still amazed at what he did. Ben went to give Kalon back his
sunglasses, but Kalon wouldn't take them back.
	"You earned them Kid. You're like me when I first began. I couldn't fly to
save my life. But then Jake Masters, the man who taught me, told me I had to
connect to my ship and the one way to do that is by music. And from that
point on, I have been the best shuttle craft pilot in SFA."
	Ben smiled and thanked Kalon for his help.
	"Now Ben, don't get all cocky or anything, because this was only your first
lesson. There is a lot more to learn to become a pilot. But for what I just
saw out there today, you will be just fine. I will teach you everything I
know, so you can out do any other shuttle pilot at the regular academies."
	"Thanks, Kalon."
	"You're welcome, kiddo. Now you two better get off to lunch, before the
galley closes." Kalon then nodded and smiled at both boys and went on his
marry way.
	"You were great Ben," smiled Douglas.
	"I'm not talking to you," said Ben as he turned his back on Douglas and
left. Douglas stood there in the shuttle bay alone and hurt.

  *****

	The remainder of the day and that night were uneventful. The boys who had
academics went to their classes. The boys who had duty did their assigned
tasks. Nipper, Chaplain Kyle and Andrew worked on their alma mater. Ben
avoided Douglas at all costs. Douglas got to the point that he didn't even
bother looking for Ben anymore. Johnny Cooper, Mike the Donkey, and the
senior officers met and discussed the candidates for the command positions
and the department head positions. Ely and Chief Anderson worked hard on
replacing the failing gravity generator before it expired for good. They
figured within a week, the new generator would be in place and fully
functional. That night, Commander Creevey stopped by sickbay again. This was
Ben's last night in sickbay. She walked saw the light on in Dr. Daniels
office. She walked in, and like the night before. She took the highball
glass out of his hand and put on the desk, picked the picture up off the
floor and placed that on the desk and covered him up in a blanket. She then
went about her business after watching him sleep for a few minutes. Another
day had ended on the Lady Lex.


To be continued....