Chapter 2

Nevil Danton was a very subdued young man when I first met him. The transfer had gone off without a hitch. He understood I would be taking him the rest of the way, and promised to be no problem.

Right... and pigs fly.

He took to his new surroundings like a duck to water. He tried to run a line of credit, but had none. I refused to advance him anything beyond that which came with his accommodations.

He somehow got hold of a fifty credit piece, and had entered a game of poker (which is always going on, aboard any ship). This is where I came into the scenario. He had been winning; but, as happens with poker, his luck changed. He started loosing. He lost more than he had, which meant a complaint from his fellow players.

I walked into the security station on deck 2, and saw Nevil sitting off to the side. He looked at me when I entered, and then looked away. I saw a slender young man of 22 with brown hair, blue eyes, and a weak chin. He obviously had a weak personality to go with that chin.

"Mr. Connor? You are the guardian of record for this man. A complaint of theft has been lodged by a fellow passenger. Restitution must be made. Witnesses at the game he was in, all agree he was light some 145 credits, at the end of the hand," a no nonsense security officer told me.

I frowned. I could pay it easily, but to what end?

"May I speak with Mr. Danton a moment?" I asked the officer.

He nodded and motioned for me to go into another room through a hatchway to the left side of the main reception room I was standing in. I entered and Nevil followed close behind.

"Where did you get the money for this game?" was my first question.

"Borrowed it from another player. Don't worry, I paid him back already from my winnings, earlier in the game. That was the mistake I made, paying that fifty back. I should have waited 'till the game ended to pay back," Nevil said sulkily.

Well, one worry out of the way. Now I had to figure out what to do with him for the remaining 8 days until breakout, and we both entered my ship to make the final leg of the trip to his home planet.

"Nevil, you're not a paying passenger on a pleasure cruise. You told me you understood what was going to happen. Just when I think I can trust you, you pull something like this. What do you have to say for yourself?" I asked him slowly.

"Don't worry. My family will make it right, they always do," was his reply.

I shook my head. He had learned nothing. I sighed. I left him in there with a terse command to wait.

"Officer? I will make good on his debt. However, I was wondering if I could prevail upon you to do me a favor?" I asked.

"What's that, Mr. Connor?" the security officer asked me.

"Would you do me the favor of locking up my charge for about 24 hours? Just long enough for him to realize his actions have consequences," I asked, and explained at the same time.

The security man grinned.

"I think something along those lines can be arranged, Mr. Connor. The boy is spoiled beyond belief, and maybe a night in the brig will shake him up a bit. Consider it done," he said, still grinning.

I nodded, and made arrangements to pay the debt. As I walked out, I heard Nevil raising his voice in shock at what the security people had just informed him. Well, tomorrow was another day. Perhaps he will have learned something, but I somehow doubted it.

When I was in the marines, we had had people like him. Men and woman who had been spoiled, or who just didn't seem to make the connection to the real world. The marines quickly adjusted those peoples' way of thinking.

Despite my having let Nevil spend a night in the brig, he still seemed to find ways to create problems for me. I think the crew of Engine/Ship 211 were happy to see the last of us, when we left.

I had sighed as Nevil had been met at the orbital station at New Walden, and led away by relatives. The way he was treated, you'd have thought he was a returning hero of some sort; instead of someone in disgrace, who had been expelled from Earth.

I also delivered my cargo of medical supplies, which was much appreciated. This left me free to pursue my new vocation, that of explorer!

I asked for and was directed to the galactic cartography section on board station. I wanted to know what had been explored from this position and reported, so as not to duplicate the efforts of others.

The GCI transcended national boundaries. What I mean is, they did not owe allegiance to the Terran Federation, or any of the star kingdoms, corporations, or political entities, anywhere. It was a group that was dedicated to exploring the galaxy, and mapping it for all. Of course, some governments contributed to this organization, which meant that the said governments received updated charts from GCI survey ships, as soon as they were made.

They would also know if any ships had explored beyond this system, and if so, in which directions. Of course, while the Terran Federation was a paying member, it seemed that individual members of said federation were not authorized anything more than general information, which said government released to its citizens.

I had already checked my data base, which had been updated prior to my departure from Earth. I read with interest that two ships were currently exploring out in this area, but had no further information on them.

I found the two rooms containing what I sought. I asked the station agent, who also was employed by the Galactic Cartography Institute, about explored space in this sector.

The agent was eager to get an agreement from me, to release any and all data to the GCI, upon my return from any of my expeditions past this point. I politely pointed out that his organization was reluctant to release any information to me. I was as reluctant to do the same.

This led to a mutual benefit agreement. If I would contract to release all information I acquired during my explorations, the GCI would be glad to be more forthcoming with what it knew. It was an agreement the institute entered into with all survey services and explorers, anywhere and everywhere that they could.

Or, as I found out, I could pay a yearly fee for information that the GCI routinely gave to my government. I decided to go ahead and pay for the information. I did not want any organization having a claim on anything I found out there, not even the charts I would be creating!

So that was another 250 credits. I sighed. Between these people, docking fees, and the loss of the 145 credits via Nevil's loss at poker (which still had not been reimbursed), money was flowing from me rather quickly. I needed to get busy with my exploring, and get away from the civilized sector of the galaxy!