Drakar entered the control room followed by the boys. He strapped them into a pod and told them that they were getting ready for the last jump. The boys looked at each other and smiled. As a rule, Drakar kept the boys informed as if they were adult crewmembers. It began that way because Drakar had no other adults to talk to, and it continued for their safety should anything happen to him. The daily schedule became time spent with the computer educator as well as with Drakar drilling them on the operation of the ship.
From the pilot seat, he opened the control panel to engage the concealing mode, glanced at the boys, and then pressed the keys that started the countdown to initiate the jump. He then climbed into his pod. Drakar opened his eyes and exited his pod. He helped each child out of their pods as one by one they opened their eyes. Then he took them to the ship’s view panel and saw for the first time the planet that was their destination.
He checked the control panel to confirm that the ship was still in concealing mode. He then placed and secured each child into a seat in preparation for landing. The coordinates for the landing site were displayed. Silently the ship entered the planet’s atmosphere, quietly dropping lower and lower, gliding down to the remote mountainous countryside. Gently the ship could be felt to hover at ground zero. Drakar used his mind link as he had been instructed to make contact with the T42 computer link. Visuals on the ship monitors indicated no movement within the target area. Drakar sent the code <arrival now>. The hangar doors, which were camouflaged at the base of the mountain, slid open. Drakar guided the ship into the hangar and brought it to a stop, turned off the concealing mode and sent <arrival completed>, and the hangar doors closed. He shut down the operating system and opened the ship’s exit door.
“Well, boys,” he said, “thanks to the Maker, we have arrived safely at our destination and new home.”
Collin, in his excitement, could not unbuckle himself and looked woefully at Drakar and sent <help>; Johan, on the other hand, the one who got things right more often than not, was out of his seat and triumphantly looking out the exit door. Drakar helped Collin and watched as the two brothers stood together at the door, looking and pointing. Drakar had, as forethought before the last jump, packed and placed near the door the things that they were to take with them.
“Give me a hand with these things. Put them on the lift. There should be a motorized vehicle, according to my instructions stored here for our use. Do you see it?”
“Yes, yes. It’s there!” said the boys in unison as they moved over to Drak to help put their things on the lift.
Obedience was not a problem. Racine’s ruling class’s offspring had amahs that provided early childhood nurturing, and obedience was a strong part of the nurturing. The children themselves became a point of focal interest to parents when they reached the age of ten and older. The females were then sent to the Isle of Lilt for training, and the males were fostered to other Keeps for educational follow-up and combat training. However, under the changed conditions that the twins were in, they had learned and respected over the last two years that Drak was in charge. They had some leeway under certain circumstances but not much, and at this time, they knew to follow Drak’s every word.
Drak looked across the hangar and saw the vehicle, an open flyer built to carry four. Drak, with the boys helping as much as they could since they were about to burst with excitement, finally had moved their things from the ship to the lift. Drak lowered the lift. It then took several trips to load everything into the flyer.
“Well,” said Drak, “finally, I guess that’s it. We are ready to go.” The boys let out a loud whoop and then began the pushing and shoving for the seat next to the driver. “Get into the seats behind me, both of you,” said Drak, resolving the problem without anyone’s feelings getting hurt.
He checked first to ensure no one was about. Using his mind link, Drak told the T42 computer to open and then close the hangar as they flew out. He then followed the directions to their new home. Drak in fact was as excited as the boys. This looked to be a fine M-class planet, he thought, and he was glad to be out of the confining space of the ship. As he flew, he could see that this area was definitely farming country. It was good to see the sky and breathe fresh air. He looked in the mirror at the boys, and they were wide-eyed, just staring. He guessed that he looked like them and laughed. It just felt good to be alive and here at last.
Their destination had been a planet located in the free space zone on the edge of the Nissarian system, Base II. It was classified as a farming settlement. It was one of the oldest human settlements established when man reached out into space. The farm was in the county of Haskin, known for its mountains and flowing river streams. Drak stopped the flyer at the sign that read Hawk’s Homestead. This was their destination. He could see a ranch-style house in the distance. Their farm consisted of fifty acres that had a river stream and a mountain range running through it.
Two months after settling in, Drak called to the twins to get ready. They were going into town. For this trip, they used the old pickup truck. They spent the better part of the day there. Drak had to get food supplies and more clothes for the boys. Then he treated them to dinner. Even he was not quite happy with his home-cooking skills, so this was a treat that they all enjoyed. Driving home that night, with the boys sound asleep, he suddenly had to swerve sharply to miss running over a woman stumbling down the road. As he passed, he saw the woman bring her fist to her mouth and stop. He stopped the truck, checked on the twins, and got out. It was obvious to him that the woman needed help. She was out in the night, stumbling down the road, and looking the worst for wear as if she had unsuccessfully fought off an attacker.
He walked over to her and asked what had happened. She was distraught and incoherent. She then screamed and cowered as he reached for her arm to keep her from falling. She must think he was her attacker. Drak used the mind link to calm her down, and then she was able to tell him her story. Tank Hanling, a guy she had been introduced to several weeks ago as a friend of her cousin’s family, saw her in town and offered her a lift home. Her cousin had told her to call when she needed to be picked up, but against her better judgment, she accepted the lift. She figured this would save her cousin a trip.
They had just passed the town limits when Tank pulled over onto the side of the road and attempted to rape her. She fought back and managed to get out of the truck and run down the road back toward town. He swore at her and started up the truck to come after her, but hearing another vehicle coming, he did another U-turn and took off down the road to make his getaway. Drak removed the hysteria and changed the memory to a less-aggressive assault. He looked around and knew that he could not leave her on the road, so he put her into his truck and drove off.
The boys were still asleep when they reached the farm. Drak carried both boys, one at a time from the truck and put them to bed. The woman had fallen asleep and also had to be carried into the house. She looked so peaceful. He did not have the heart to wake her up to find out where she lived. He put her on the couch and covered her with a blanket. He then carried his purchases into the house and gratefully found his bed.
The next morning, the woman awoke to find that she was in a strange but pleasant room. She vaguely remembered that some unpleasantness had happened to her the night before. Hearing the sound of children’s voices, she got up to see who the people of the house were and to thank them for assisting her. The boys had seen the woman on the couch and had questioned Drak about her presence in their house. Drak’s response had been as little information as possible. He told them it was late at night, the woman was in the road and needed a ride. She fell asleep before telling him where she lived. As she entered the kitchen, three smiling faces looked up at her from the breakfast table, and Anya Hogane was hooked.
Anya had always been straightforward in her dealings with people, “Hello, I am Anya Hogane. So are you then the new family that I have heard about who moved into the area two months ago? I seem to be a little fuzzy on what