Chapter 2

Freedome

. . .

The sand rose up from the ground when the rumbling machine flew across it. Though the screws that held the fire spitting engine attached to the rest of the machine, seemed to be only poorly screwed on, not a single one of them were placed randomly.

The sparkling, crystal blue eyes were directed straight forward and never once lost sight of where they were going.

His feet were secured to the board underneath him, though he didn't really feel like needing the safety straps. They were more of a just-in-case thing. He didn't want to lose connection with his board at the height of 2000 feet. That would be one heck of a disaster. How was he supposed to explain that to his mother, if it ever happened?

He would rather be on the safe side and wear his gear. At least so his mother could relax a little more when he was out.

Jim hadn't been that excited to use it in the first place, but after a couple of times in action, he had become pretty good friends with it. Now he nearly never left the house without it, unless he was in a really big hurry.

The elbow and knee protectors were necessary, but those he came along with just fine. The fingerless leather gloves had saved him from a lot of trouble too, for despite his controlled skills, it happened that he crashed once in awhile. Mostly when the winds and the canyons decided to pick a fight with him. That didn't stop him from keeping on trying, though. After all, this was what he lived for; excitement.

The young man skillfully kept his balance on top of the flying metal board that was marked by homemade handwork. His arms hung almost too relaxed at his sides, while he steered the rumbling machine under him with his feet and legs, not really using that much effort to make the moves he did.

He swiftly turned from side to side with smooth movements, flying in a zigzag pattern in and out between the stalactite-looking rocks, that impaled the dry ground from underneath. The canyon walls towered meters above him on each side, and challenged him to the maximum when they unpredictably narrowed and expanded. In other words, this was the perfect obstacle course.

Whenever he managed to escape the killing heat in the kitchen of the good old Benbow Inn, he felt like a child in a toy store. However, this beat every other feeling of freedome, every time!

Jim let a confident smirk spread across his lips as he quickly sneaked around the obstacles nature had given him, with ease. The sharp stalactites that now were the last remains of a thousand-year-old cave, (that had lost its top due to the ravages of time) were all dangerously close to each other. It was almost impossible to figure out where the next one would be. However, the young man knew exactly where he should fly, as if he had the entire canyon scanned into his brain.

He elegantly flew his board in between the narrow spaces, turning the rumbling, homemade machine in every possible direction, to find the position that would fit to each of the holes. He pulled his knees up to his chest, grabbing the bottom of the board so he could jump through the narrow spaces between the canyon walls, that were only inches from crushing him in the try to get through. "Wooh!" He yelled out in excitement as he let go of his board again, his voice echoing through the canyons. His laughter resounded between the stone walls when he hit the gas once again, letting the smoking engine bring him further and further up and out of the canyons shadow.

The cold air trailed through the fabric of his clothes and made his skin tremble, but that was exactly what he wanted. The feeling of fresh air was the feeling of freedom! He continued to fly further up until he reached the gloomy clouds that always hung above the planet's surface, like a threatening storm that never came. With ease, he broke through the thick surface without hesitation. The thick clouds enclosing him like a large woolen blankets, only to release their grip on him, when he finally reached the other side.

With a laugh escaping his throat, that was stinging from breathing in the cold air, he turned off the engine, letting the board fly a few more meters up by itself. With permission from gravity to hang in the air for just a few seconds, the young man reached his hand out towards the sun, that until now had been covered by the thick clouds. He stretched out his fingers, letting the warm light escape between them as the shadow of his own hand fell on his face. It almost felt like he could catch the sun in his hand.

Obviously that wasn't possible and the young man let out a quiet sigh when gravity grabbed hold of him once again. "And down we go again," he said before leaning back, letting himself fall freely back down towards the clouds underneath him. He made a few somersaults in the air, before he turned his board straight, turned the engine back on and flipped up the glowing red solar sail, letting the bottom of his board brush the surface of the soft clouds.

The sun's warm waves hit his eyes, causing him to narrow them and hold a hand up in front of his face. The warmth of the now visible sun brought back the life in his pale skin and let his body heat raise slowly, along with bringing new energy to the engine through the solar sail.

Jim couldn't help but smile as he looked over the floor of light red and orange clouds that stretched underneath him, as far as he could see. With a gentle motion, he held the sail with one hand and stretched his arm out to the side, letting his fingers trail through a cloud so he could feel the soft mist float between his fingers. He felt so free up there. He could stay above the clouds forever, just staring at the horizon and the sky, if the world allowed him to. The air was so much fresher up there, the sunlight warmer and the amount of space infinite. That was freedom to the maximum, and it was all his.

The boy with the crystal blue eyes sighed softly of the thought, knowing it wasn't a possibility to stay above the clouds for all eternity.

However he wasn't ready to get down just yet.

With his arm still hanging limply at his side, Jim sighed softly. "What do you say Morph? Should we take a chance and test the wings?" He asked, not daring to move his crystal gaze away from the horizon. He didn't turn his head before a little pink blob of floating substance, poked its head out from one of the small bags in his belt. The little creature with large eyes let out a few concerned chatters, not sounding quite sure about the boy's sudden suggestion.

"Arh, come on bud. I'm 100% sure it will go much better this time," Jim assured, only receiving a skeptical look from the little creature in response. "Okay, okay, 95% then," He said and flipped down the solar sail as it laid back down smoothly against the side of the board.

The little blob gave a nervous expression while the young man checked up on the belts and buckles, he had hanging in a cross across his chest.

Jim turned his head when a deep growling sound resounded from underneath the clouds, like moaning whales in the sea. The sound was so deep, that he could feel the vibrations in his eardrums and chest. "Right on time," he said and kneeled down on his board, to untangle his feet from the safety straps that kept him in place.

The little shapeshifter in his bag watched him a little concerned, as he attached the buckles across his chest to the ones on the board. He then reached down to pull a lever on the side of the board, causing two roughly sowed on wings to unfold on each side. A satisfied smile spread across the young man's lips when the sun reflected in the solar sails, allowing more power to run to the engine in the back.

"Ready?" He asked and smiled down at the little blob in his pocket. The shapeshifter returned his smiling eyes with a skeptical expression, as he creeped further into the bag, only causing the young man to laugh a little. "Come on, there's nothing to be afraid of," he assured and laid down flat on his stomach, grabbing hold of two levers underneath the machine, so he could pull them up and use them for steering.

When another deep growling made his chest vibrate, his smile grew wider. "There's our signal," he said. "Brace yourself ladies and gentlemen, 'cause we're about to dive!" He yelled with a smile before he leaned to the side, causing the board to fly sideways through the clouds, as they came down in between two layers.

The boy just reached to straighten up before a giant devilfish-looking creature, broke through the cloud surface. The young man chuckled when the creature spread it's huge wings above his head, blocking the sun in the process. The deep growling voice vibrated through his chest, like a resounding bass.

Jim laughed even more when the giant devilfish dived through the clouds again, sending a wave of air up from its wings, causing the board he laid on to raise in the air. "Woohoo!" The young man yelled out in excitement as he steered from side to side when more of the giant, flying devilfishes broke through the surface of the clouds like dolphins at the sea. Their purple backs were filled with patterns and their wings moved slowly in the wind, making the upper layer of the clouds turn into a thin mist around them. Their eyes were small and placed on each side of their enormous, wide and flat heads, and their thin tails stretched five meters behind them.

The young man couldn't help but laugh as he steered from side to side, while the devilfishes broke and dived through the surface of the clouds. He let the wind from their giant wings lift up his board, as he flew over one of the creatures. He reached his hand down, gently stroking the smooth body of the growling devilfish before it dived down through the clouds again, causing his board to float up by the wind it left behind.

He chuckled as he grabbed the levers more, leaning to the side as he spun around himself a couple of times. He flew underneath another devilfish when it broke through the pink cloud surface, feeling the sound of its powerful voice vibrate through his bones.

"And down we go," He said with a playful voice when all the giant creatures suddenly dove, causing the clouds to dissolve when they flapped their wings with powerful motions. As they broke through the cloud surface all at the same time, the young man pulled the levers to the side and spun around himself, falling through the clouds with his head upside down. He continued to fall while he spun around himself on his way down as he folded the levers back underneath the board.

Still spinning, he unclasped himself and got back up on his feet, moving his foot back into the strap before he pulled the lever in the back, folding in the wings. He quickly straightened his board and hit the gas right before he would have crashed against the ground. "Yeah! Finally!" He yelled out in joy as he threw his fists into the air, flying over the edge of the canyon, leaving an open crack a few meters down underneath him. "There you see Morph, I told you there was nothing to worry about," He said with a confident smirk as he patted the little blob on the top of its head. The little creature looked back up at him, still a little skeptical about it all.

However, his big eyes widened even more when he turned his head forward, letting out a high-pitched scream when his gaze fell on a stonewall, threateningly close to them. Jim's eyes widened as well when he turned his head, realizing how close they were to flying directly into the stonewall. "Woah!" He let out a surprised yell as he quickly turned his board around to avoid colliding with the wall. However, he was way too close to complete the turn.

Sparks shot out from the machine when the metal side scratched against the rocks with a sharp creaking sound, that could make one's hair raise in the neck. The boy automatically took off with his hands on the wall, causing the skin to get ribbed up on his fingers when they trailed harshly along the sharp stones. He tried his best to keep control of the shaking board, but it just kept crashing against the rocks. The wings that were screwed onto the side of the machine, were ripped completely off when the solar surfer crashed against the wall.

The boy gasped when the nose of the board hit the edge of a ledge, throwing him forward imminently. His foot was twisted out of the strap when he landed onto his shoulder, rolling around himself along the ground. The board spun around itself as small pieces of metal where thrown into the air, before it scratched against the ground, laying still with smoke rising from the broken engine. The rider, himself, didn't stop rolling before he reached a bush of dry grass, practically getting swallowed by the dead leaves of the plants. "Ugh!"

Morph, who had been thrown out of the bag in the boy's belt, shook his head as he swayed a little in the air, feeling slightly dizzy from rolling around that much. However, he quickly got back to himself when he realized his friend wasn't there. He looked around with concern in his huge eyes, before he finally spotted the boy in the withered bush.

The little blob quickly flew through the air when the boy sat up in the dry grass. "Ow…" Jim groaned and rubbed his now sore neck. His fingers were scraped and he was a little dazed, but otherwise he didn't seem to be hurt by the fall. Now he was glad he had decided to wear his full suit that day.

The little shapeshifter, Morph, flew up to him and looked concernedly over at him. He rubbed his little, slimy body against the skin of Jim's neck, causing him to lift his shoulder up to his ear. "Woah. Hey, Morph!" Jim chuckled when the little creature trailed along his jawline, rubbing his body against the boy like a cat. "I'm fine okay? It was no big deal," He assured, moving the blobby creature away from his neck, by pushing him with his hand. He got back up on his feet and dusted himself off a little, but he couldn't deny that he was a little sore here and there.

Morph stayed in the air when he pushed him away, glancing back at the smoking board with the now missing wings. Turning back to face the boy, he let out a few reproachful chatters as he turned into the shape of the broken board, just to be sure that the boy understood how mad he was.

"Easy now. I'll fix it later." The boy assured with lots of surplus in his voice and he began to untangle the elbow and knee protectors from his arms and knees. Morph wasn't quite satisfied with that answer, but he decided to trust his owner and let the smoking solar surfer lay on the ground.

The soon to be sixteen year old Jim Hawkins gently trailed his fingers through his brown undercut hair to make it fall back in place. He smiled when the sun hit his pale face, holding his hair back with his hand as he breathed in the fresh air. Slowly he stepped closer to the edge of the ledge he stood on, letting go of his hair as it fell back onto his forehead.

The Mining Planet Montressor wasn't quite known for its sunny days, but it still came up with a few moments of light once in a while. This was one of those moments. Jim treasured them just as much as he treasured flying above the clouds. He held his hands on his hips as he looked down at the city in front of him. A few precious beams of sun broke through the gloomy cloud surface, reflecting in the metal of the houses beneath him. It made it look like the entire city was glowing.

Jim sighed with a small smile and closed his eyes when the harsh, cool wind trailed across his skin. Opening his eyes again, he picked up a compass from one of the bags in his belt, looking over it with a thoughtful expression. He turned the ring around on the top of the steampunk-looking compass, watching the little dart move around underneath the scratched glass. Looking back up at the city, he laid the compass back into his belt before he kneeled down at the ledge.

Morph was watching his every move in curiosity from across his shoulder, when he began to mess around in one of the other bags.

Gently, Jim pulled out a rolled map from his belt and folded it out on the ground, with both his hands on each end of the old paper. When he was sure it laid secured, he pressed down a little button in the corner, causing a green 3D hologram of the mountains and canyons to appear. He sat back down on his knees, looking over the map with a thoughtful expression. He moved his fingers in between the holograms, tapping one of the mountains as it zoom in, showing the mountain in a bigger scale. Reaching down in the bag in his belt again, he pulled out his worn notebook and placed it in his lap. He found a tiny pencil in his pocket and wrote down a few coordinates in the notebook. He sketched the mountain in the hologram on it as well, agreeing with himself, that it might be the mountain with the ledge he sat on.

Ever since he had traveled halfway through the galaxy on the R.L.S Legacy, he had begun to take notes and write down coordinates for everything he discovered back on Montressor. Though the planet was a huge mining treasure because it held so many useful minerals, only 15% of it was used effectively. Despite the fact that most of the citizens would doubt in his allegations, Jim was sure that the planet held more to it than what was seen on the surface.

When he was done writing the things down, he closed the book between his hands and tossed it back down into his belt. "So what do you say Morph? Should we take another round through the canyons?" He asked, without moving his eyes from the landscape and the far horizon. The little floating blob frowned up at him from his place by his shoulder. He definitely didn't want to take another nerve-racking flights on that deathtrap of a machine. How Jim had managed to persuade him for the first flight was yet a mystery.

The young man couldn't help but chuckle quietly at the little creature's expression. "Okay, okay you're right. We better take a look at that solar surfer so we can head home," He said and folded the worn map once again, standing back up so he could toss it back into his belt. "They shouldn't realize we have been gone..."

. . .