Boarding Party

A greenship captain detours into a restricted system for one practical reason: to save his failing cargo before it withers beyond recovery. He expects superstition, distance, and darkness to shield him from notice. What he does not expect is a child bold enough to climb into the sky. When a single stowaway slips aboard and vanishes with valuable company property, the captain gives chase without hesitation. The pursuit turns dangerous fast. High above a quiet village, technology meant for nourishment becomes a lifeline, then a weapon. The captain must weigh pride against prudence as wind, gravity, and fury close in. By the time he reaches orbit again, he understands something uncomfortable about the people below—and about himself. Robert F. Young brought a distinctive warmth and irony to science fiction throughout the 1950s and 1960s. His work appeared regularly in magazines such as Galaxy, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, and Startling Stories. Young is best known for stories like “The Dandelion Girl” and “Little Dog Gone,” tales that blend speculative ideas with human-scale emotion and gentle humor. In Boarding Party, that same tonal balance is on full display: a formal interstellar report slowly gives way to embarrassment, alarm, and reluctant admiration as a confident captain meets an opponent he never expected.