Jaden looked down upon his sleeping child, wishing that for one moment he could allow himself to stop being strict and cold, and hold his son close.  He knew that he had to be the tough disciplinary in this ordeal, but whenever he saw Zander’s hurt expression, it broke his heart. Sighing, he calmed himself, and lowered a hand to shake Zander awake.
 
  Zander groaned and turned onto his other side, ignoring his father’s nudges. Finally, he was forced to look up at Jaden, “What?” he asked in irritation.

  Jaden eyebrows rose at his son’s tone. Crossing his arms, he looked upon him sternly. Zander paid no attention to this, and his father was forced to simply tell him. There was no point to try to make him say something he wasn’t going to.  “We’ve landed on Ithor, Zander. Your grandfather, uncle, and cousin are waiting for you to come off of the ship.”

Zander buried his face in his pillow, “It’s too early,” he complained.

“It’s the middle of the afternoon, son,” Jaden replied, staring down at him.

  Zander muttered under his breath, couldn’t he ever get a decent amount of sleep? He turned away from his father once again, fighting to stay in bed for at least a few minutes.

  Becoming annoyed by this, Jaden forcefully lifted him from his bed, and moved him to a small pile of clothing in the corner of the room. “I’ll dress you myself if I have to,” he said giving him a semi-threatening look.

“All right, all right, I’m up,” Zander responded, moving out of his father’s reach.

  He glared at the back of his father’s head as Jaden made it out of the room.  It was bad enough to wake him up, but then he had to levitate him into the corner and treat him like a toddler. With bitter resentment, he pulled on a pair of pants and fastened them tightly.

He swept the dust and threads from the legs, and admired the smooth black color.

  Looking around him, he searched for a shirt through the pile of clothes he had packed.
Smirking, he pulled out a green shirt that showed black enter-twining chains, and in the middle were words that reminded him of his friends’ humors. In bold, silver letters formed this sentence: Ladies and Gentlemen… introducing the nightmare of society. A sentence of endearment, he was sure.  They made quite a spectacle of him on his last birthday, when he had turned twelve.  He smiled at the memories that flew through him.

  A nagging voice interrupted his flashbacks: “Zander,” Jaden called from the hall, “Hurry up.”
 

  Zander rolled his eyes and sighed. Even happy memories had to be disrupted, bringing him once again back to the cold hard world.

With that thought, he pushed memories into the back of his mind, and threw the shirt on.

  Finally, he ventured toward the door, a frown replacing his grin. He knew and understood that once he went, he would never have more memories with the people he knew and loved, but if he stayed he believed that the only memories he would have of them would be of arguments, and that wouldn’t be worth remembering.

  Opening the door, Zander moved past his father, to the ramp.  Sunlight poured in at him from the west jungle lands of Ithor. He squinted, trying to make out everything in front of him.  As his eyes adjusted, he could make out the forms of Shawn Skywalker, his grandfather, Gavren, his uncle, and Kaster, his seven-year-old cousin.

  Kaster ran to him and hugged fiercely, needless to say he was the only one showing true excitement.  Kaster rarely ever saw anyone except for his grandfather and father.  His mother, Stephanie Skywalker was in the middle of a ferocious battle with the new
de-fractionated empire and he hadn’t seen her since he was born.

Smiling a little, Zander hugged him back, at least someone appreciated him.

  Zander stepped back, grinning at his little cousin, “So, how have you been?” he asked looking down at him fondly. He liked being the older one for once; young children didn’t judge him.

  Kaster looked up with his teal-colored eyes and smiled just as fondly.  “Dad and I caught a bunch of fish from the creek, we’re going to cook them for dinner tonight.”

  Zander smiled as he saw the youthful magic within his cousin’s eyes, and found himself wishing to be seven again. “Tyte,” he answered, giving him a half-grin.

  Kaster grinned back at his older cousin, leading him past the adults to the house. Once in the kitchen he stopped and turned around to look at him. “Why is everyone else so uptight?” he asked, “What’s wrong?”

  Zander sighed; Kaster was never actually as naïve as he would have you believe.  “I did something that they didn’t approve of,” he answered, hanging his head a bit.

“What did you do?” he asked in a surprised tone.

“I’d rather not talk about it Kas. Please, let’s talk about something else.”

  The small boy cocked his head at the request, but hesitatingly decided to abide by Zander’s wishes.

  The sunlight poured through the windows, hitting wind chimes and crystals, which in turn created streams of color that bounced rhythmically on the walls.

  Zander breathed in the air, although much more humid that the climate of Gaia, the air did seem to have a purer quality to it.  The people who colonized Gaia were very environmental, fearing any possibility of blowing to bits like Earth. Despite the strong environmental efforts of the people and government, the jungles of Ithor were still healthlier; they were hardly even populated, and that made quite a difference.

  Looking up, Zander watched his Uncle and Grandfather enter the house. He gave them a half-hearted smile, not expecting a warm welcome.

  Shawn looked at him sympathetically; he could sense the emotional distress within him.
Sighing a little, he walked towards his grandson and embraced him. Patting Zander on the back, he smiled encouragingly and stepped back.

  Gavren followed the same suit, though not as happily. He always seemed like the Uncle you have to prove yourself to. Most of Zander’s uncles were like that.

  While Zander was very surprised at the gestures, but he managed to hug them back thankfully.  The dark mood was temporarily lifted off of Zander’s shoulders, and for once he breathed a sigh of relief: perhaps this wouldn’t be as unbearable as he thought it would.

  Zander looked out the window for a moment, seeking a glimpse of nature.  He spied his father coming up the walk, and reality once again struck him. The hopeful feelings left him, and were replaced by the same awkward emotions he had felt before.

   Jaden entered the house with many bags: some carried in his arms, some levitating behind him.  He made quick eye contact with Zander, who immediately understood, and snatched some of the bags in his father’s arms.

  Zander walked behind him steadily, saying nothing.  It seemed strange to him that his Uncle Gavren should now be a warmer person than his father.  Gavren was usually a semi hot-tempered man, who was very hard to get close to.  Jaden, however, was usually very pacifistic and loving.   Zander sighed heavily; he’d ruined everything.

  He set the bags down, then turned toward the kitchen, were everyone else was gathered, once again seeking release from his dark and dreary thoughts.

  Jaden glanced over at him for a moment, only to see the back of him as he exited the room. With a grim expression on his face, he breathed out slowly, and unpacked all of the contents that were brought.
 
 

  When he was finished, he took a moment to calm himself. A little dread had overcome him, not necessarily for the month of lecture, rather more for that evening. His father had but one guestroom and he could tell from Zander’s mood that it was going to be a long night.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

  Everyone sat at the table quietly; the fish that Kater and Gavren had caught were almost ready to eat.

  From his seat at the end, Zander could smell the spices and lemon juice coming from the small house grill. His grandfather had never been big on technology, which contributed to his father’s views and ways of stressing the importance of nature. (That and Jaden had been partially raised on Gaia.)  Seeing his family had somewhat lifted his spirits, but still lingering in of his mind were the mixture of emotions from the turn of events: anger, depression, remorse, stress.  He found himself actually craving for things to go back to the way they were last week- lectures and all. Any kind of torment was better than this uncomfortable life of mood-swings and rejections.

  Jaden couldn’t help but stare at his son as he felt the emotions and thoughts sweeping
through him.  Sighing, he tried to reassure himself that someday Zander would understand; though it offered little help.

  Zander looked up to meet his father’s gaze, and then quickly looked away, realizing that Jaden had been reading his thoughts. Not sure of whether to feel embarrassed or angry, he tried to dismiss his feelings, and stared into the corner of the room.

 As he stared, he felt an uncomfortable emptiness consume him. He could almost feel his father’s gaze penetrating him.  Suddenly, he didn’t feel so hungry; he now craved only to be out of the room.

  Forcing himself to relax, he found comfort in Kaster, who gave him a cheerful smile and passed the food.  Zander took his share gratefully and passed it on. He had, after all, been on an empty stomach since yesterday’s mid-day meal. He ate quietly, glancing up at his elder relatives from time to time.

   They all seemed to stare at him a bit, and when he looked up they looked only at each other and started talking again.  Sighing, he slumped down in his seat and looked from person to person. They were just different versions of Zeana and his mother: trying to treat him by any means necessary, as if he had some sort of disease. They’d forgotten that he was a human being and not a specimen.

  Ignoring them to the best of his abilities, he finished his dinner and excused himself.   He had grown tired of the awkwardness, but decided against saying anything.
 

  He didn’t want them to remember him as the rebellious, argumentative child that they all seemed to think he was.

  Entering the guestroom, he sat on the edge of the bed, pondering over his thoughts.  Why couldn’t they see him as a person?  He wasn’t just some screw-up acting on every reckless impulse! Sure he had done stupid things in the past, but everyone messes up every now and then. It was human to do so, wasn’t it?

  Zander hung his head, and sighed. He knew he wasn’t the greatest son, but he wasn’t the worst person in the world either.  Yes, he went places he wasn’t suppose to, and yes, he entered in the T-80 races, but could you really blame a person for craving a little excitement?

  Shaking his head, he forced the thoughts out of his mind; even he knew the true answers to those questions.  He was only seeking excuses. The truth was that he didn’t like himself any more than his family did right now, in fact, he hated himself much more.

  There was a side to him that many didn’t see, but it was his shell that blocked it from being seen.  Not even Zander knew himself anymore; he hadn’t for the past two years.  He had become someone else: a person that he hated to the fullest extent of the word, for this new person that he had become did nothing but harm.

  Tears fell slowly from his eyes, making the tips of his bangs cling to his cheekbones with their moisture. A dark cloud engulfed him as his remaining self-esteem came tumbling to the ground.  He was now sure that running away would be the right thing to do in order to protect everyone from pain; now certain that pain was the only thing he could give. He decided that he would leave that night, while everyone slept.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

   Jaden entered the room quietly, expecting Zander to be fast asleep. As he turned away from the door, he found his son wide-awake and fully dressed, sitting cross-legged on the bed.  He looked at him in astonishment, “What are you doing up?” he asked, folding his arms over his chest.  He had stayed up with Shawn talking to give Zander some time to fall asleep, hoping to avoid another argument; the mixture of emotions he had felt within his son earlier had convinced him that Zander needed to be left alone for a while.

   Zander looked up at him calmly; “I couldn’t sleep, so I stayed up,” he answered.
He was determined to keep his composure this night, before he left, just so that he’d have the comfort of knowing that it ended on relatively good terms; so that they would have a decent last memory of each other.
 
 
 
 

  Jaden eyed him for a while, feeling suddenly uneasy. Was he up to something? He shook his head; he was being paranoid and unfair. It wasn’t strange to experience insomnia in times like these, yet he seemed far too calm.  His composure was bizarre; by the feelings that Jaden had sensed earlier, Zander should still be angry or depressed, yet
he didn’t sense any of that within his son.  He sighed slightly, and sat alongside Zander with a worried expression on his face.

  Looking into Zander’s eyes, Jaden put aside the writing pad that Zander had been using, and asked a long awaited question; “Son, are you all right?”

  Zander’s shoulders dropped as he considered what he should tell him.  He couldn’t tell the truth, and didn’t have any other option but to lie to his father’s face, for Jaden’s feelings at the least.  He nodded slowly, doing his best to cover what he truly felt, and to not reveal his plan.

  Jaden could easily sense that Zander wasn’t telling him the truth, but also knew there wasn’t really to much that he could do, not if Zander wasn’t willing. He let his muscles
relax for a second, staring into nothingness, then did the only thing he thought he could
at that moment; embrace him.

  Zander hugged him back tightly; he was really going to miss him, but for everyone’s sake it had to happen.

  He pretended to sleep until Jaden was completely in slumber, then slid out of the bed. Quickly, he finished his writing, and left it on the pillow next to Jaden.  Making his way out of the guestroom and to the front door, Zander found Kaster staring at him from the kitchen.

“What are you doing up so late?” he asked.

Kaster shrugged, “I got thirsty. Where are you going?”

Zander sighed, and came towards him, “I just wanted to get a glass of water,” he lied.

  Kaster was young, but too wise to fall for that. “You were going in the wrong direction,” he replied, crossing his arms.

Zander shrugged, “It’s dark.”

“You’re running away aren’t you?” Kaster asked, more a statement than a question.

  He sighed heavily, “Are you going to tell everyone now?”  Zander’s intense, light brown eyes gazed into Kaster’s teal hued eyes; showing his hardened emotions.
 
 

  Kaster sighed, torn between morals and his coz.  He broke away from Zander’s gaze, pondering his thoughts, “Where will you go?” he asked.

  Zander shrugged, “Anywhere I can support myself.”  He looked his little cousin over, and sighed gravely.  He hugged Kaster close, “I’ll miss you,” he said quietly.

  Before Kaster could say anything more, his cousin took leave in a cool manner, not seeing nor understanding the full impact of his departure.

He sighed silently, a grim expression on his face. What was he to do?

  Then determination shined in his eyes, he didn’t have to let this happen! He grabbed a piece of paper, and wrote a short note to the family.  After this, he fastened his wrist communicator, and walked quickly and quietly in the darkness, trying with all of his might to catch up without being detected.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

  When Zander finally stopped walking, Kaster was just about to pass out.  His eyes widened when he discovered where they were; it was an industrious part of Ithor, they were very far from the jungles.  These were the people who were now trying to make colonies on the planet.  These were the people that irritated the native beings who lived in the forest. His grandfather had told him of the hostilities between these people; he had felt them growing every day, and though Kaster was too young and not advanced enough to sense these changes, he had seen some of the rivalries between the native beings and a few Abissens.

  Zander slowly sat down, and gingerly rubbed his sore muscles, deciding that he would rest here, against the corner of the white building.  Hugging his knees to his chest, he laid himself down and fell fast asleep.

  Kaster came out of the shadows just a bit to take a look around, the city was still dark, but sunlight was going to come soon.  He sighed, and did his best to cloak Zander from anyone’s vision.  After covering Zander, he watched over him from another corner, shadowed in darkness.

He hoped that they would see his note soon; he had a bad feeling about this.