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clapped him on the back. “You did real good, kid. Robert said you were made of good stuff.”
    “He did?” Delmar asked, still visibly shaken. “I thought I was going to wet myself.”
    Everyone in the room broke out into loud laughter then surrounded the boy, each one shaking his hand and introducing himself. Every man was at least fifty years old, so Delmar assumed these were friends of Mr. Hassel’s from many years gone by.
    “Delmar,” Mr. Hassel finally said, “these are the boys from the old 653 rd . My old unit. And these fellas have faced the enemy first-hand. Listen to what they have to say, just don’t take any wooden coins from any of ‘em.”
    The rest of the day went by without incident. From the 653 rd , Delmar and Mr. Hassel visited a memorial museum on the base, and then they toured the spaceport. Mr. Hassel seemed to know everyone, and everyone seemed to know him. He was on first name basis with many people.
    The only disappointment Delmar had was that they weren’t able to go up in a spaceship. However, he understood this was a military installation not a recreational facility. But they did get to tour one of the large cruisers that was on station. Mr. Hassel knew the cargo master so they were able to go onboard for a brief visit. While onboard, Mr. Hassel showed Delmar how to operate the communications console, and explained to him how the subspace transmitters, emergency beacon, and the ship’s identity transponders worked.
    All too soon, it was time to catch the shuttle back to the flitter parking area. Delmar was fascinated by everything he’d seen and wanted to learn more.
    Before returning to the flitter, Mr. Hassel and Delmar stopped at the flight line café for lunch. “Did you enjoy yourself today, son?” the old farmer asked.
    “Sure did,” Delmar answered around a mouthful of hamburger. “All except for that Red-tail trick you played on me. I thought I was a goner for sure.”
    Mr. Hassel laughed aloud. “You should’a seen the expression on your face when the lights came back on!” he said, tears welling up in his eyes. His laughter caused Delmar to start laughing, then before long both he and Robert Hassel were enjoying each other’s company more like father and son than teacher and pupil.
    The flitter ride back gave Robert a chance to test his theory. “So what do you think of troopers now?”
    “They just seem like regular guys.”
    “Not the blindly-loyal boot heel of the empress, eh?” Robert jibed. Delmar blinked and looked at the older man. Robert thought he saw the beginning of comprehension on the boy’s face.
    “No, not really,” Delmar finally admitted. “And I was surprised to find out that not only you but your wife was a trooper too.”
    “Not were,” Robert corrected. “Although retired, we’re still troopers at heart and spirit. Once you join the Troopers, you’re a member of a life-long brotherhood. You never lose your rank or status, even if you retire or resign from the service. You saw that most of the men in the 653 rd were well past active service age but they still serve in a reserve status on local missions to nearby planets and systems.”
    “And Mrs. Hassel? Is she a reservist trooper too?”
    “Agnes is a Lady of the Fleet. She was a flight officer on one of the big cruisers and is qualified in every way to pilot almost any ship in the fleet. She actually piloted a ship with the Empress aboard once, but that was long ago, and was the mother of our current empress.”
    “So you’re still loyal to the empress?” Delmar asked.
    “Not so much to the person as to the ideal,” Robert explained. “We are part of a three way trust between whoever occupies the throne and the citizens of the Axia.”
    “But I was taught that the Axia is spreading tyranny,” Delmar admitted. “That’s why Erdinata is independent.”
    “And who told you this?”
    “As far back as I can remember, it was part of school,” Delmar answered. “That’s