Star Ship on Saddle Mountain by Richard Ackley

civilization.
But to Charlie, even as the great star ship flashed
toward that blue brilliant cobalt sun directly ahead of them now,
it could never be so. Earth was the greatest star of all, and it
would always be, for Earth was home.
Still, it was good to talk to Dondee. It helped to
make him forget that he might never go home again. It was like
remembering the fishing trips up river with Uncle John, and he
tried hard not to think of home, not to remember. He was a captive,
no matter how friendly Dondee was. He was a prisoner on board an
alien star ship heading for a far-away world. His own world was now
behind.
Having explored most of the middle tiers of the
great ship with Dondee, Charlie at last found himself only a couple
of decks below the top control dome.
"The Commanding Navigator is probably still up
there," Charlie said, as they hesitated at the airlift. "Maybe we
can go through the lower control dome again, Dondee?"
"No, Charles. I still want to show you the top tier
and controls," came the alien boy's determined impulse. "I promised
you I would, and besides, we can always go through the lower dome
any time."
"Well, I sure would like to see it—that's if you're
sure it'll be all right to go in there, Dondee?"
"We will go through it, Charles. I promised
you."
Just then they came out from the inner recesses of
what amounted to the galley of the discus flagship, where a certain
amount of food was being prepared, in spite of the fact that most
of the meals were already packeted and ready-to-eat when originally
brought aboard on Dondee's world. And it was just then, as the
alien boy stepped out from behind him into the brighter light of
the main promenade of the tier, that Charlie noticed something. He
stopped short as he glanced back. Then putting a hand to Dondee's
shoulder, he turned him further to the bright wall lighting and
looked
    r
closely at the alien boy's left eye. As Dondee
waited, not quite understanding Charlie's action, Charlie began to
laugh.
"Why—what are you laughing for?" came the puzzled
impulse from Dondee. "I don't understand—"
Holding back his laughter, Charlie pulled Dondee
over to one of the bright mirror-like strips of metal that were on
every tier.
"Look, Dondee—look in there at yourself!" Charlie
pointed, and he was laughing again. "That's the biggest and best
shiner I ever saw! Even back in school!"
Dondee looked closely into the mirrowed panel,
tenderly feeling all around the perfectly blacked eye.
"The green in your eyes, Dondee, sure is a pretty
color in that big black circle!"
The alien boy looked dimly at Charlie's grinning
image in the panel. Then he laughed too.
"Charles—you called the coagulation a—a 'shiner.'
Why, Charles? My eye doesn't shine."
Finding it hard to hold back further laughing at
Dondee's serious face with its black eye, Charlie explained.
"It's the way folks talk in Arizona. That's what
our people call a black eye. It's from when we had the fight,
Dondee, that's how—"
"Oh, I know what it's from. Only, I never knew it
was called a shiner. 'Shiner,' that's a fine name for it! Only it
doesn't shine, Charles."
They both laughed again as they looked into another
panel they passed.
"It's funny," Charlie said, "it must be a full day
almost, since we had that fight. And only now your eye gets
black."
"You mean, on your world the coags—I mean, the
shiners come faster?"
"They sure do. Just as soon as the fight's over, a
little while after you get hit in the eye."
Walking toward the airlift, they both glanced at
another panel, and the beautiful little barrier that circled the
green of Dondee's eye.
"My eye does look a little bit like my home world,
Charles. I got that impulse that just passed through your mind
about the dark rings around Saturn!"
    Just as Dondee was about to push
the button at the transparent cylinder to bring the airlift to
their tier, he withdrew his hand. The bright clear crystal cage
compartment was already coming down. Charlie nodded to the