Survivors

 

 

 

CHAPTER 24

THE TREK

 

The sleds progressed slowly through the desert as they moved up and down sand hills and dunes. The boys stopped every hour to switch drivers and take a potty break. The headlights and searchlights on the sleds kept the desert illuminated.  Stevie and Brandon calculated it would take between three and five days to reach the mountains. Brandon had watched the night sky every night while they lived on the “Moonduster”. He found the North Star for Inferno and learned enough to do rudimentary navigation and at least keep them from getting off course in the night.

 

The sleds bounced along making it hard to sleep.  Scooter worried about Matthew being bounced and reinjured from the jarring of the shuttle.  Scooter had set some of the cushions from the shuttle's seats under Matthew to cushion the bumps, but the ride was still bouncy.  Sometimes Matthew groaned when a big bump was hit.

 

The sun finally started to rise behind them.  They knew it would start getting hot in a hurry.  Douglas ordered sleds stopped and had everybody put sunscreen on their faces, arms, and legs. They were all wearing their shorts and shirts.  They raised the convertible top to keep the driver and the boy in the second seat somewhat shaded. The sleds were started up again and they headed off over the sand.

 

Mike watched the rising sun and checked his watch.  He wasn't looking at the time, he was looking at the date. Today was his sixteenth birthday.  Like Brandon before him, he didn't bother to bring it up.  There would be time to celebrate when they knew they were going to survive.  And if they didn't make it, well, his birthday didn't mean that much anyway.

 

Around eight they stopped to eat.  Mike and Jeremy set the food out quickly.  It was cold food and not a lot of it, but it was enough to curb their hunger some. Water was all they had to drink.  After they ate and Scooter had fed Matthew, they started up again.  Matthew would wake up and moan and mumble, then he would fall back to sleep.  Scooter wished he knew what to do to help him.

 

As they headed in the direction of the mountains the heat kept building up. Douglas was glad they had enough room for everyone to sit.  He realized that if they had to walk they would have had to quit much earlier.  But he was able to push the group until noon when they all got too tired from the heat and from the long trek.

 

They found a flat area in the sandy desert.  Tired as they were they still needed the tents up for shelter.  They set up four of the four-man tents.  Robert Charles saw Douglas doing the same work as everybody else.  He knew from his dad only a weak leader did grunt work instead of supervising the work.  Robert Charles would have had a tent just for himself, and he would have made sure somebody else put it up for him.  He was also angry because he was asked to do the same work as the rest of them.  He knew he was better than any of them. After all, he’d been the group’s leader a lot longer than Douglas. He didn't like being told what to do one bit.  Well, he had some plans for little Dougie.  And if he could get rid of Alex and Mike, he figured there wasn't anybody who could stop him from taking over again and running things right.

 

When the four tents were up, Stevie set up his improvised cooling system.  He had taken fans from the climate control system, hooked them up to some motors, and had four cooling fans for the tents.  He had batteries in them which could be recharged while they were traveling. Without the fans they would have roasted inside of the tents.  Douglas loved Stevie.  He couldn't believe how he did all these things so fast.

 

Jordan, Scooter, and Matthew shared one tent. Matthew had become the center of Jordan’s life.  Since Matthew got hurt, Jordan was an almost different person as he started to think more about somebody else than he did about himself. Douglas wanted to be sure Jordan got time to be with Matthew.  Plus he didn't want Jordan to somehow get stuck with Robert Charles.

 

Alex, Stevie, and Mike shared a tent, as did Brandon, Warren, and Jeremy.  Douglas, Robert Charles, Ryan, and Travis were assigned the last tent.  The tents were hot, but Stevie's fans helped keep the temperature tolerable.  Nobody slept very well though.

 

They all woke up for dinner, which Mike heated up in the microwave. Since they’d skipped lunch everybody was ravenous. After eating the boys repacked the microwaves and straightened out the sleds. They chatted or just sat silently for a while before returning to their tents to attempt to get some more sleep.

 

It was dark when Douglas woke up to the alarm on his watch buzzing.  After it cooled off they had all actually slept some.  He looked at his watch and pushed the button on it.  The dial lit up, reading nine-thirty.  He wanted to be on the move by ten o’clock. Douglas and Robert Charles woke up the boys in the other two tents. He planned stopping by ten, giving them twelve hours travel time. He thought about traveling only at night, but even with all of their lights, he noted that the pace was slower in the dark.

 

Matthew woke up about a half-hour before Douglas.  All he saw was dark.  He was in pain and frightened.  He started reaching around in the dark and touched Scooter's face.

 

Whoever it was he’d touched made him feel better.  He wasn't alone in the dark.  He touched the face again and again, which woke Scooter up.

 

"Matthew?  Are you okay?" Scooter whispered.

 

"Who you?"  Matthew croaked.

 

"Scooter.  How are you doing?"

 

"It hurts."  Matthew started crying.  Scooter wiped away the tears with the tail of his shirt and then got Matthew some water to drink, which he gulped down greedily.

 

Scooter wondered if he should ask Matthew about the green horsey.  He knew Matthew was weak and hurting, but it was important that they find out what Matthew had seen.

 

"Matthew…listen."

 

"It hurts, Scooter…everything hurts.  My leg...everything."

 

Scooter held Matthew's hand.  "It's all going to be okay, Matthew.  Trust me.”

 

Matthew groaned and squeezed Scooter's hand.

 

"Matthew, tell me about the green horsey."

 

"Green horsey?  Green horsey? I saw green, Scooter.  I'm thirsty."

 

Scooter gave Matthew more water and he gulped it down.  Scooter knew he was giving Matthew more than his ration, but it was his first big drink of water in a long time and nobody needed it more.

 

"Tell me about the horsey, Matthew."  Jordan woke up and listened, happy Mathew was awake.

 

"Horsey…horsey..," Matthew whispered.  "Big horsey standing up…horsey...saw green and horsey it was high horsey...horsey…"  Matthew was fading away.  "Big green horsey...."  Scooter felt his hand relax and he was out again.

 

Scooter didn't learn very much, except Matthew seemed to still believe in the green horsey.

 

 

Robert Charles slept closest to the door.  He unsnapped  the door flaps and helped Douglas wake up the other three tents. Then Douglas went to the single sled and tried to start it so they could turn on the lights to help them fold up the tents and pack up.  He pushed the start button.  Nothing happened.  He pushed it again.  Nothing again, not even a click.  That's weird, he thought.  I know we put the unused power chips in it.  He went to the other sled and pushed the starter button. Nothing happened there either.

 

Stevie came up.  "Something wrong, Douglas?"

 

"Yeah.  The sleds won't start…I’m getting nothing.”

 

"Hey, Dougie!" Robert Charles called out.  "Where are the lights?  We can't work in the dark."

 

"Don't say anything yet," Douglas told Stevie quietly.  "They will be right on, RC," Douglas yelled out.  He was stalling; he wanted to think before saying anything.  It was real suspicious that both sleds wouldn't start at the same time.

 

Stevie shined his flashlight along a side panel where the power chips were inserted.  He opened up the top of the panel, popped open the strap that held the chip in place and pulled out the chip.  He shined his light on the charge indicator. It showed red, which meant the chip was out of power.  He reinserted the chip, snapped the strap closed and put the top back on.  Then he went to the other sled, the one with the trailer.  Again, he opened up the panel, pulled out the chip and checked it out.  It was red too.  He was so focused on the chip that the fact that the strap was unhooked didn’t register with him. He replaced it and called Douglas over.

 

"Both of the chips aren't charged," Stevie told him.

 

"How can that be?" Douglas asked.  "You put brand new chips in to make sure we had full charges.  They were totally green.  They should last for days without needing a new charge, and that’s if we were only in the dark. The sleds were in the sun for half the day."

 

"I don't know," Stevie said.  "Maybe I put them in backwards or something. I don't know.  I put them in the way I always did, and they always worked before. Alex and Jordan both double checked them and thought they were right.  I don't know what to do now.  We can't start charging them until the sun comes up."

 

"We have spares, right?"

 

"Yeah.  I brought four spares.  They should be in the toolbox in the trailer sled.  I forgot to get them out to charge during the day though. I don't know how much they have left. Sorry I messed that up. The thing is, you can’t charge the chips at the same time you’re using them."

 

"Don't worry, Stevie.  You've done great."

 

Alex went to the sled and opened a side panel.  Robert Charles sauntered over and joined them.  Alex pulled out a tool box and opened it.

 

"That's weird.  It's empty.  I know I put four of them in here.  Maybe somebody took them out to charge."

 

"What do you need the spares for?"  Robert Charles asked.

 

Douglas figured he should know what happened. After all, everybody would know soon anyway.  "The ones powering the sleds lost their charge," he said.

 

"What do you mean there is no charge in the power chips?" Robert Charles asked incredulously.  "Didn't you think about checking them first to see if they were fully charged?"

 

"I checked them," Stevie said, “and they were double checked by Jordan and Alex. They not only were fully charged, they were brand new.  There's no way they should have run out."

 

"So now we're stuck here until the sun comes up and you can charge them. And you didn't bring any spares on top of everything else."  Robert Charles was saying this loudly enough for everybody to hear it.  "What kind of leadership is this, Douglas?  We're not even 24 hours from the "Moonduster" and we’re already in deep shit."

 

Douglas stood staring out into space.  He was thinking of himself standing in front of the spa with tears coming down his cheeks because Robert Charles had humiliated him, and that was nothing compared to this.  His friends had trusted him with their lives and he wasn't measuring up.

 

He had had complete confidence in Stevie having the sleds ready.  Douglas knew he couldn't look at everything, but he had been wrong about that.  He should have checked the power chips, especially since Stevie admitted he forgot to charge the spares during the day.  But then, where were the spares if they weren't in the tool chest?  Did Stevie forget to bring them?  Maybe Robert Charles was right.  Maybe he was too weak to lead them. He fought back tears, grateful that it was dark out.

 

"How long will it take to recharge the power chips we have?"  Robert Charles asked.

 

"About six hours to get a full charge to run everything.  Then they should keep their charge for at least a couple of weeks," Stevie said.  "That's why I can't figure out why those chips are dead.  They were brand new.  I know they were."

 

"I think you two just weren't prepared,” Robert Charles said. “And I think if we keep following you we're all going to die somewhere out here in the desert.  I think it's time for us all to say you made a nice try and head back to the 'Moonduster'.  Everybody sees that this trip isn’t a great idea.  Let's go back before it's too late."

 

Douglas stood there quietly fighting tears.  He was hoping Alex, or Stevie, or Mike, or somebody would stand up for him.  But their silence told him he was close to finished.  He thought he’d had everything planned out and here they were at midnight stuck in the desert because they never installed charged power chips. He felt himself shaking.  He didn't want the responsibility.  Let Robert Charles have it, he thought. At least he could make things happen, even if they were the wrong things.  Maybe you really had to be an asshole in order to lead, he mused.

 

Nobody was saying a word to him.  He felt totally alone, lost, ready to cry and to give up his leadership role.  One day away from the “Moonduster” and they were stalled. His friends were abandoning him and his first real shot at being a leader was turning to shit. He was seriously thinking of resigning and giving the responsibility back to Robert Charles.

 

Then, the inside of his head filled up with words.  ‘We're all behind you.  But this has to be all about you.  All of it.  I know Mike, Stevie, and Alex would be in your head saying the same things to you if they could.  We all love you, but we can't do it for you.  Be strong.’

 

When Scooter finished it was like a big fog had been pushed out of Douglas’s brain, clearing his whole mind.  He understood what was happening, what Scooter was telling him.  He understood why Alex, Stevie, and Mike were standing in the darkness saying nothing.  Because right now everyone was watching what he, Douglas, would do in the face of his first crisis.

 

They knew what Alex had done to Robert Charles and they knew what Mike had done to him.  They also knew that Robert Charles somehow kept bouncing back and taking charge.  And that as much as they hated Robert Charles, they wanted somebody who was strong enough to stand up for himself and for them, even if they despised him and didn't agree with his decisions.

 

Nobody was saying anything to help Douglas because it was all up to Douglas to be a strong leader and to stand up for himself. This was the real test of Douglas’s leadership.  If he backed down now, it would be like the spa fiasco all over again.  If he didn't show right here and right now that he could stand up to Robert Charles, then Robert Charles was their leader no matter how they voted.  He loved his friends too much for that to happen. They had put their full trust in him, and now it was time for him to earn it.

 

He took a deep breath. "When the chips get charged we will be heading for the mountains," he said.

 

"In the heat of the day?" Robert Charles asked.

 

"We have a limited amount of food and water. We can't afford to sit around waiting for darkness.  We head for the mountains.  We'll go until just before dark. Then we’ll start again early the next day.  Let's go back into our tents, we will need all the sleep we can."

 

Robert Charles turned to the others.  "We can leave after the chips charge and be back to the shuttle by sunrise the next day. The shuttle’s systems are still running, so it will be cool. We will have plenty of food and water. Things will be run the way they’re supposed to and you won't end up stuck in the desert again because somebody wasn’t prepared."

 

"We're behind Douglas.  Totally.  Without question.  No way do we go back," Alex said.  Alex was finally able to breathe again.  For a while he was afraid Douglas wouldn't do what he had to do and would break down like he had at the spa.  If that happened everything would be lost. Everything that happened the other night between him and Robert Charles outside the shuttle would mean nothing.  "So stick a sock in it, RC.  It's time for you to get out of the way."

 

Mike, Scooter, and Stevie all said about the same thing as Alex had.  Then they started getting everyone back into the tents.  Douglas and his "cabinet" stayed outside and Robert Charles hung with them.

 

"This doesn't concern you, RC," Douglas said.

 

"As former leader, I say it does."

 

"As the leader right now, I say it doesn't."

 

"What are you going to do if I don't go?  You look a bit too small to make me."

 

Douglas said nothing.  But this time saying nothing meant something way different than before.  Alex and Mike moved toward Robert Charles.  He saw them come out of the dark. Douglas was learning a lesson in leadership—a leader had to be positive and assertive, but it didn’t hurt to have some muscle backing him up.

 

"You know, Dougie, your time will come.  This won't be your show forever." Robert Charles turned and went back into his tent.

 

"Thanks guys."

 

"Anything for you, Douglas," Mike said.  "I'm always here for you."

 

"I was worried for a moment, but I understand what was happening. Thanks for the thoughts, Scooter—they saved me."

 

"I worked so hard to send them.  I was so nervous.  I could feel what you were thinking," Scooter said.  "I knew you needed a nudge and then you would be fine."

 

"Douglas," Alex said.  "Standing there saying nothing was one of the hardest things I ever did.  I'm so sorry.  I was shaking I was so nervous. I needed…no, WE needed you to be strong right then."

 

"I understand now, Alex.  I thought for a while I lost you guys.  But you and Mike had stood up to him and I hadn’t.  Hell, Alex had even pissed on him. But he is like a monster you can't keep down; he keeps bouncing up. This time it had to be me standing up to him there.  Nobody else could do it for me. Lead, follow, or get out of the way.  You guys got out of the way so I could lead.  I didn't understand until Scooter nudged me.  Now I understand totally.  And I understand that I love you guys.  We won this round, but RC isn't finished yet.  We had some guys wavering tonight and I think he saw it too."

 

"We did," Mike said.  "But you won them back.  That's what they needed to see, you telling RC what was going to happen."

 

"Well, let's get some sleep," Douglas said.

 

"Wait!" Stevie said.

 

"What?"

 

"I've been thinking.  When I opened up the holder for the chip on the second sled, the strap wasn't fastened."

 

"So?  It probably came loose during the rough ride."

 

"No, they have a pretty good locking system on them, and I remember fastening it.  It gave me trouble, so I replaced it with the strap from the sled we're using as a trailer and it snapped shut perfectly. You have to work hard to pop one of those open.  Plus, I am totally positive that I put the spares in that tool chest."

 

"What are you saying, Stevie?" Scooter asked.

 

"What I'm saying is, somebody tried sabotaging the sleds.  I think somebody switched the uncharged spares for the charged ones."

 

"And that somebody is named Robert Charles," Alex said.  "Let's go kick the shit out of him now!"

 

"No, not yet," Douglas said.  "Let's find some evidence first.  In the morning we're going to ask to see his back pack.  Let's see what he says."

 

The five boys headed for their tents.  Douglas lay on his back staring up in the dark.  He couldn't sleep.  One more time he hoped he wouldn't let his friends down.

 

 

After the sun rose the temperature started rising quickly.  The chips were placed into chargers as soon as the sun rose.  Now they would have to sit back and wait for the charging process to complete.

 

Douglas, Alex, and Mike called Robert Charles over.  "We'd like to see what's in your backpack," Douglas said.

 

"Why?"

 

"Just get it and open it up. Oh, and we want to see your sleeping bag, too."

 

"Why, so you can perve on my cum stains?"

 

"Because we would like to see what's in it.  We seem to be missing some power chips."

 

"Sure you are, because your precious helper never brought them."

 

"Mike, take Robert Charles to get his pack and his sleeping bag.  I want to see what's in them."  Mike led Robert Charles away.

 

"How do you know he didn't just throw them into a sand dune?" Alex asked.

 

"I don't.  But as crazy as he is, I don't think he's ready to commit suicide.  And throwing away our spare chips is pretty close to that."

 

Mike and Robert Charles came back carrying the two items Douglas had requested.  "Why pick on me?"  Robert Charles asked. “Is it just because you don't like me?  Because you think you're so fucking tough?  You won't find anything.  Why don't you check the big guy?  I seem to remember him sucker punching a couple of guys not so long ago."

 

"Come on, RC," Douglas said.  "That's over.  We all know who was doing the hitting."

 

"Are you accusing me of something?  Because if you are, you better have proof."

 

"I'm just saying what we all know.  Now let's look in your pack."

 

"Mike's too," Robert Charles said.  "I know what's going on here.  I make some hard decisions and I piss you off, so now you think you can walk over me.  But you don't realize how tough I am.  Meanwhile, Mike sweet talks you into how nice and perfect he is.  Well, I know better.  He's been fooling you since we left Earth.  If he's so great and honest he won't mind opening up his stuff too."

 

"Okay, I will," Mike said.

 

"You don't have to," Douglas said.

 

"I know.  But I have nothing to hide, so why not?"

 

Robert Charles opened up his pack and emptied it out.  It had his three water bottles and the energy bars he was given along with the jacket he got from the supplies.  His sleeping bag had nothing hidden in it.

 

Mike emptied out his pack next.  Three water bottles.  Energy bars.  Then the jacket fell out with a clunk.  Stevie opened it up.  Inside it were four power chips.  He looked at the bottoms—two of them were green and the other two were red.

 

"Well, well, looks like I owe you guys an apology," Robert Charles said. "I see you really were prepared and really did bring all of the chips.  And it looks like somebody is being just as sneaky as he was on the 'Starkeeper'."

 

"Guys, I swear I don't know how those got in there.  It couldn't be me. You know what I'm like around machines." He didn’t need to add “except for microwaves” since everybody knew that.

 

"Don't worry about it, Mike," Douglas assured his friend. "We know what's going on."  He walked up to Robert Charles and stared right into his eyes.

 

"I'm telling you, Dougie.  He's a sneak.  He's been fooling you guys since....."

 

"Robert Charles!  SHUT UP!!!!  The only sneak is you.  You'd fuck over all of us just so you can make me look bad and get your way and take us back to die on the 'Moonduster'.  Just because you had power there."

 

"I swear I didn't..."

 

Douglas pushed Robert Charles and knocked him into the sand.  He stood over him and looked down.  Every boy but Matthew was watching.  "RC, I don't understand you.  Not one bit..."  Robert Charles grabbed Douglas’s leg and pulled him to the ground.  He got on top of Douglas, raised his fist, and sent it flying for Douglas's nose.  Mike grabbed it before it could do any damage. He and Alex pulled him off of Douglas.

 

"Yeah, it takes the two of you to save his ass, doesn't it?  His fucking goon squad."

 

While Alex and Mike held him, Douglas stood up close to him.  In his quiet, but assertive voice he said, "Robert Charles, I can't prove it, but I know, you know, and everybody knows what you did.  You fucked with us big time.  I just want you to understand, that if I ever do get proof you switched those chips, or if you fuck with us or anybody in this group, I'll kick your fucking ass into the desert.  You got that?"

 

Robert Charles glared back.  "I never switched them.  Watch your back, Douglas.  Watch out who you trust."  He spit on the ground.  "You can let me go now.  I'm not going to hurt your precious leader.  He's my leader, too, even when he is wrong and fucked up."

 

They let him go and he walked away.

 

“You were way too nice to him,” Alex said. “You should have sent him packing.”

 

“Doing that would kill him and I’m not ready to do that...I probably never will be ready to do that.”

 

“I could do that any time and not even flinch,” Alex pronounced.

 

Douglas quickly steered the conversation in a different direction. "Okay, guys, we have two charged power chips.  As soon as Stevie gets them installed we leave.  So let's get the tents down and packed up.  It's time to continue our journey."  The group let out a sudden cheer.  He looked at them grinning at him.  He grinned back.  For the first time since they left the "Moonduster" he was feeling like maybe he could do this, that maybe he could get them all to safety.

 

 

The sleds rode slowly across the desert in the terrible heat. Each boy was lost in his own thoughts. They were very thirsty. They had water in their packs, but knew they couldn't drink it all right away, as tempting as it sounded. What they had in their packs was their allotment for the day.  Most of them waited for Douglas to take a drink from his bottle and then followed his lead.

 

All of the boys but one let Douglas set the pace. Only Robert Charles took any extra drinks, and they figured he would pay for it later. Douglas had told them all how important it was to not use water too fast.

 

Each boy had his own thoughts.  Warren was worried about getting sick without his meds even though he’d gone for days without that happening. He was happy he didn't have to walk. But the heat and dust were awful. So far he could breathe okay, but how long would it last? He kept feeling so weak, so useless. Everybody had helped with the work since they ended up on the "Moonduster" except him. He was just a burden to everybody.  He put his head between his legs. He was so hot and so thirsty. He wanted his dad so badly.

 

Jeremy was worried about his little lover, Warren. He hadn't said two words since they started on their trek. He looked skinnier and paler than ever. Jeremy hoped Warren wouldn't get sick without his meds. He wanted to protect his friend and make him well. Jeremy also thought about Mike. Every time he started trusting him something weird happened. He kept wanting to believe Mike was innocent because he was so nice and helpful, but the business with the chips was the third time Mike had been accused of doing something wrong. Jeremy found it impossible to believe the big teen.

 

Brandon and Stevie were sitting next to each other. They were thankful that Douglas had stood up to Robert Charles. They knew how close the whole group was to breaking up this morning when Robert Charles looked more prepared to lead the group than Douglas had. They both agreed that they believed in Mike. They'd seen Mike try to help fix things and that left no doubt that he would have no idea of how to handle the power chips. Besides, as big and tough as Mike looked, he was one of the nicest boys in the group. They were certain that Robert Charles had set him up by stashing the chips in his backpack.

 

Scooter was riding next to Douglas who was driving the lead sled. He was proud of Douglas. As much as he sometimes didn't want to, Douglas was leading them like nobody else could. What happened this morning could only help them all.

 

Douglas had his hands on the rudder as he steered the sled over and around the dunes.  Pretty soon it would be Travis's turn to drive. Douglas was thinking how something would have to be done with Robert Charles soon. He just didn't know what he wanted done. But he did know that Robert Charles had become mean and desperate enough to threaten their whole survival for his own power. He was like the monsters in the movies he watched. They would get bombed and poisoned and atom bombed and after you thought they were dead they would rise back up and destroy another city. Robert Charles was just like that.

 

Mike was driving the other sled, the one with the trailer. The trailer made the going slow, but it beat walking. He looked over at Alex, who was sitting next to him, and asked his friend why Robert Charles kept using him for his stupid mind games.

 

“That is very simple,” Alex told him. “You’re the biggest and the oldest and Robert Charles has to make you look bad so he looks bigger. That was the biggest reason for the attacks on Ryan and Matthew. This time he just needed everybody to suspect somebody else, and you are the one he’d already been blaming for things. The thing is, he’s too mean and too stupid to realize that nobody was going to believe it.”

 

Plus, yesterday had been Mike’s birthday; he had turned sixteen. He hadn’t told anybody, not even Alex. Right now, birthdays just didn't seem like that big a deal. But still, it made him sad to have his birthday go by unnoticed. It was his first one ever without a cake.

 

Travis and Ryan both wanted to believe in Mike. Robert Charles had been knocked down too many times for them to follow him. And yet, maybe this time Robert Charles was right. Mike and Alex were tight, and it was Alex who took out Robert Charles outside the shuttle. And it was Mike who jumped Robert Charles for stating his opinion. Also, nobody ever proved that he had cheated on the election. Or that he was the one who attacked Ryan and Matthew. But Ryan kept remembering how sincere Mike always seemed. Could he be a bigger liar than Robert Charles, but easier to believe because he was so nice to everybody while Robert Charles seemed like an asshole? Travis and Ryan became too thirsty and hot and tired to talk. They decided they were still behind Mike, but maybe Robert Charles was being looked at unfairly.

 

Robert Charles knew exactly what was needed for himself, and that was for Douglas, Alex, and Mike to be eliminated.  Nobody else could or would stand up to him. All he needed to do was to prove they were idiots.  He knew what Alex had  done to him had hurt him his position badly.  The fight with Mike wasn't so bad, it was just a fight. Alex dominating him and pissing and spitting on him had hurt his self-image, but Robert Charles had the resilience that assholes seemed to possess. The business with the chips was a good start at bringing down his rival. Pissing on Alex, or better yet on Douglas, either literally or figuratively, was what he needed to do. It might be too late to return to the "Moonduster," but it wasn't too late for him to retake his leadership position.

 

Jordan was angry because he was being ignored by everybody. He was trying hard to do things right, but everybody kept treating him like he was a nobody. At least on the "Starkeeper' he had been somebody important.

 

 Until Matthew got hurt he didn't realize how much he liked him. Now all he could think of was Matthew getting well. He did everything he could to help him and it was like nobody noticed. Stevie got noticed for fixing things, but nobody noticed how he helped keep Matthew fed and cleaned. The great Douglas sure never said anything. It was like suddenly he was the lowest person in the group. He looked over at Warren.  Well, almost, he thought. Maybe it was time for him to push somebody else around. Somehow, Jordan had conveniently forgotten Scooter thanking him for helping with Matthew, or Douglas asking him to help with repairing and maintaining the systems on the “Moonduster”.

 

The heat was unreal when they stopped around four o'clock to eat. Nobody had an appetite, especially for hot food. What they all wanted was more water. Douglas told them all he could let them have was their four bottles.  Scooter decided to give Matthew some water. He found that two of Matthew’s three bottles were empty. He decided Matthew must have woken up and Jordan had given him a little too much water too fast. He would have to talk to Jordan about that later.

 

The boys sat on the shady side of the sleds, but even there it was hot. None of them wanted to move. They could stay in that spot all night as far as they were concerned. They were out of gas. But after an hour, Douglas said it was time to keep going for at least another three hours.

 

"Come on, Dougie. Give everybody a break," Robert Charles said. "It's been a long day. You need to ease up. What difference does it make how fast we get to a place that doesn’t even exist? Everybody is dead tired."

 

"Let's get going," Douglas said. "We need to make up for the time we lost. Three more hours in the evening will help."

 

While Robert Charles and Douglas were bickering, Warren stood up and accidentally stepped on Jordan's foot. Jordan jumped up, turned on Warren, and punched him hard in the stomach. Right away Jeremy was on top of Jordan, knocking him to the ground and pounding on him. Mike rushed over and pulled Jeremy off of Jordan. Jordan was ready to kick Warren and pound on Jeremy. Mike held on to Jordan and kept him from continuing his attack on Warren.

 

When everything settled down Douglas walked over to them. He and his cabinet had already agreed that if some muscle was needed it would be Mike. Mike or Alex would have to do his dirty work for him.

 

"We can't have this. We need all our energy to survive.  All of it—every minute of the day."

 

"He sucker punched Warren," Jeremy said. "Nobody is gonna do that."

 

Douglas looked at Jeremy. "Well, for right how it's gotta be over. I need that promise from you.  We can't have fights and crap going on. Surviving has to be our only goal."

 

"I promise that for now I won't do anything." Jeremy looked at Jordan. "But I'm not gonna forget this either."

 

Douglas then looked at Jordan. "Jordan. The same with you. It's over for now."

 

Jordan looked down at the ground and mumbled.

 

"What did you say?"

 

"I said it's over. For now."

 

Jeremy was kneeling next to Warren who was crying. Warren was hurt and scared and feeling sick.

 

"I just want to lie down," Warren muttered. A space was made for him next to Matthew.  Warren closed his eyes, hoping he could just fall asleep until the entire journey was over.

 

At eight o'clock they stopped for the night. The wind had started kicking up about a half hour before. It wasn't blowing hard, but it started blowing sand at times. The boys quickly got out the tents and set them up. Douglas was hoping this would only be a light wind. He remembered the sand storm a couple of days ago. They had the "Moonduster" for shelter then; now all they had were tents that were barely fastened into the loose ground.

 

The tent assignments were Matthew, Warren, Scooter, and Douglas; Jeremy, Robert Charles, Ryan, and Travis; Alex, Stevie, and Brandon; and Jordan and Mike. Mike was playing baby-sitter for a night, making sure Jordan was calmed down.

 

Douglas planned on getting everybody up around three o'clock so they could do a few hours while it was still cool out. He was staring up towards the ceiling of the tent, unable to sleep.  He could hear the wind pick up. The tent walls started flapping. His biggest fear was starting to come true – a sand storm.

 

The wind kept getting stronger and the tent flapped harder. Suddenly, a corner stake pulled from the tent and the side flapped like a flag on a pole. Douglas could hear the sand blowing against the tent.

 

He felt for his flashlight, turned it on, and opened the tent door and flap. The wind and sand hit him hard, the sand stinging his face, and he ducked back inside. He grabbed his jacket and wrapped it around his face. He tried crawling out again when another corner stake pulled out. Scooter saw what Douglas was trying to do. He crawled over Matthew to help. Like Douglas he had to cover his face.

 

Scooter and Douglas crawled out of the tent into the violent wind. Even with the flashlight on, they could barely see through the blowing sand. Douglas had tied all the stakes to the tents so they wouldn't get lost. Once he located a corner, he didn't have to find the stake, he just had to pound it back in. But the ground was so soft and sandy he doubted that it would hold in the wind.

 

He shined the flashlight on the other three tents, but could barely make them out. He crawled over to them to inspect them. Two of the tents had loose stakes. Douglas and Scooter were soon joined by Travis, Jeremy, Mike, and Jordan as they all tried to stake the tents down. The wind was blowing harder and the sand was rubbing across them like sandpaper. The ground was too soft from the blowing sand to hold the stakes. It was hard to hear and see.

 

Travis suggested starting up one of the sleds and parking it so that a couple of tents could be tied between them with the sleds acting as shelters against the wind. Mike worked to move the sled while the two closest tents were taken down. Warren had crawled out of Douglas's tent and hid under the parked sled. 

 

The force of the wind increased and controlling the flapping tents became increasingly difficult.  Sand was blowing everywhere, getting inside the tents and inside the beds of the sleds. Travis, Mike, and Douglas took the ropes and tied two tents tightly to the sleds. A dune had formed against one of the sleds and against the two tents.

 

After an hour of struggling against the wind and sand, they had their new shelter erected. Robert Charles was so tired he didn't even mention that maybe Douglas could have made the shelter like this to start with. The fact that he did little to help would have made his words sound hollow, if he had opened his mouth.

 

Finally they were all packed into the two tents. Douglas hoped they wouldn't lose the other two tents, but they did have two spares, so they should be okay.

 

"Careful of Matthew's leg," Scooter warned.

 

"Who brought Matthew in?" Douglas asked. Nobody said anything. All he could hear was the wind howling and the sand hitting everything. The sand was leaking through the door flap of their tent and spreading across the floor.

 

"Where is Matthew?" he yelled over the wind. He got no answer.  Scooter had left Warren in the tent with Matthew. Scooter thought Warren had gone for help to get Matthew moved. Warren wasn’t in their tent, so he and Matthew must be in the other one, Douglas thought.

 

Scooter and Douglas crawled through the blowing sand, their shirts tied around their faces to keep the sand out of their eyes and mouths. They opened the flap to the tent. Even with the flap on the leeward side they brought in what seemed like an endless stream of sand.

 

It was dark and Douglas couldn’t see who was in the tent. He pulled his flashlight out of his pocket and swept it around the tent. He saw Warren whimpering in a corner, but didn’t see a sign of Matthew.

 

“Warren, where’s Matthew?” Scooter yelled.

 

“I left him in the tent,” Warren said in a voice that was barely audible.

 

"Shit! Come on. We gotta get to that tent!"  Douglas screamed. He, Alex, Mike, Jordan, Scooter, and Travis crawled out of the crowded tent. The wind whipped at them, their flashlights showed nothing but blowing sand. The sand had created a white out and they were all but blind.

 

Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Douglas thought. How could this happen? How could we leave Matthew in that tent? What was I thinking? I just didn't want to move him until we were ready.  I thought Warren was with him. I thought he was getting help to move Matthew. I'm the fucking leader and I can't even keep track of who I have. Oh shit, I hope we get him out of that tent. Douglas had all of them hold hands and told them not to let go. He wasn't going to lose anybody else.

 

They shined the flashlights all around where the other two tents should have been, but they saw nothing but sand. The boys walked all around the area, shirts covering their faces, the sand rubbing their exposed skin raw. They tried unsuccessfully to keep the wind from blowing them down.

 

They found nothing. No tent. No Matthew. Just sand, sand, and more sand. The sand was blowing so hard they could barely breathe. Their visibility was zero. Douglas realized they were so exhausted that if they didn't get back into one of sheltered tents they might not make it.

 

He led them back to the first tent they could find, and they crawled in exhausted. Robert Charles could tell they had failed. He could tell that was the beginning of the end for Douglas the leader. He took a long swig of water. He would be was fresh and ready when the time came for him to take over. One thing Douglas did do before they ran completely out of gas was take roll to make sure they weren’t missing somebody else.

 

The boys were awake at first light. The wind had died down. The exhausted boys crawled out of the sand-covered tents.  The sleds were half buried and the sky was brown with blowing dust.

 

The visibility was better and they continued their search.  There was no sign of the two loose tents. All of them, even Robert Charles, plodded through the new sand dunes looking for some sign of a tent. They found nothing.

 

Suddenly Brandon saw something in the other direction. "Look!” he shouted.

 

They turned and off in the distance they could see the mountains rising through the settling dust.  They could see the twin peaks they had been aiming for. Scooter and Brandon had navigated perfectly. They were almost out of the desert.

 

Douglas turned and looked back in the other direction, seeing nothing but sand. There was no sign of even part of a tent. Mike stood next to Douglas.

 

"He's gone, isn't he?" Mike asked.

 

Douglas fought back tears and said quietly, "I'm afraid so."

 

Mike didn't bother fighting his tears.  They rolled down his dirty, dusty cheeks. "I love you little brother," he whispered.

 

Douglas couldn't stop his tears any longer. They dripped down his face, making a dusty track on his cheeks. Mike grabbed Douglas, held him tightly against him, and they both had their cry. He knew Douglas needed to get the tears out before he told the group that they had one less member, that little brave Matthew, the little boy most of them had just barely gotten to know, was buried under the sands of Inferno forever.

 

Next: Mountains of the Sun.