An Unexpected Encounter

Disclaimer: I will officially put this in now…I do not wish to say that the OLS characters are my own.  Although I will use its characters in my story, it is only fanfic and not intended for any illegal purposes.  Onto, the story now…

Note: I fixed my last chap…it should've had italics in the first place (for characters' thoughts), but it didn't so now they should….This chapter also has italics so look out for them. J  Also, there is some profanity here so the rating has changed.

Chapter 3 – Jim's Dreams

            "Hey, Gene!  Would you get up already?!"

            "Ugh…"  Gene rolled his half-naked, scarred body to the other side of bed and ignored Jim.

            "Gene, come on.  It's about time we get out there and look for another job.  We're running low on cash and soon we won't have anything to eat!"

            "I'll get up in ten minutes.  I promise, Jim."

            Jim's face turned as red as a tomato and he lost his temper.  "Ah!  Damn it, Gene!"  He pulled Gene's covers off of his curled human frame.  "It's almost one in the afternoon and you're still sleeping!  If you want to be a man, act like it for once.  I do the repairs here, get the info you need, make sure everything's ready to go, and all you do is lie around 'til it's almost dark out again!"

            Gene sat up and just stared blankly at Jim.  "Alright, alright.  I'll get up…but only if you shut the hell up!"

            Jim turned red in the face again, but controlled his temper this time.  He lowered his tone and said, "Ya know, Gene.  I'm not a little kid anymore.  I'm fifteen."

            "Ya, sew," Gene asked as he brushed his teeth.

"We've been partners for years…and well, aside from that, you've meant a lot more to me than just a partner.  You've been like a big brother and all."

Gene wiped his mouth with a towel and smiled.  "Jim, we're family, you know that.  We found each other for a reason."

Jim had a thought-filled expression on his face.  "Yeah, I guess…"

Huh?  Somethin's bothering the little guy.  "What's eating at ya, Jim?  You know, you can tell me.  You started this conversation for a reason, right?"

Jim thought for a second.  "Well…I've been having these dreams, Gene.  It's really weird."

Gene walked over to his closet and pulled out his usual set of clothes.  Just about everything in his closet was black and he wasn't about to change his routine.  "What kinda dreams?"

"About my family…"

Hmmmm… "Hmmm, what about them, Jim?  Didn't you say that they all died when you were taken to Ulea?"

"Well…My parents were killed in front of me by a band of pirates when I was only nine, but my sister was sent to another planet."

"Do you remember where she was sent to?"

"No, but I have a feeling that she's still alive wherever she is.  I've been having these dreams in which she calls out to me, begging me to save her from an overpowering freak."

Gene continued to dress and said, "Well, little brother…sounds like an adventure…Maybe your sis is alive, out there somewhere, but I don't think you should worry about it…Maybe she found someone nice, just like you did."

"How could you say that, Gene?!  We were ambushed by pirates and if I was taken to Ulea to be auctioned off, I could only imagine what she went through…She was my age when we were separated."

Gene's eyes narrowed and he put a frown on his face, sitting on his bed to put his boots on.  "I'm sorry, Jim.  It's just that I don't know what to suggest."

"I know…I just thought that maybe we could do something about it," Jim said, sounding a bit unenthusiastic.

"There is a possibility.  We just don't know where to start…If we can find a way to look for her, I promise that that'll be our new adventure."

 Jim's face lit up, bright with innocence and contentment.  "Really?"

"Yeah!  Of course I mean it, kid…But first, we gotta go look for some work."  Gene reached out to put a hand on Jim's head, but he realized that he was already, almost as tall as he was.  He really has grown…and it's only been a few years.

Jim pouted, the familiar Hawking pout.  "Damn it, Gene!  I'm not a kid, okay?"

Gene only chuckled at Jim's remark.  Of course you're not.  "Well I'm up now, so what do ya wanna do?"

"I think we should land on a space port, refuel, and get some food…then maybe we could make a few connections and look for work."

"Alright then, that's what we'll do."