by Logan Jacobs
“It was not my job to make friends,” Grizz shot back. “I was there to win and to help the people of my planet. I always fought with honor. That made just as many enemies as allies.”
“That I can believe,” I nodded.
“What did she want?” He asked again.
“Well, she had some news that was disturbing,” I answered as I thought about it. “Apparently there might be an attempt on the President’s life when he’s here. She didn’t have any real details, just that there had been whispers floating through channels in the underworld.”
“Like turds in a sewer,” Grizz mumbled under his breath.
“That is not good, Marc,” Artemis said. Her fingers flew over her keyboard, and then she sucked in a breath of air and grimaced as her eyes scanned the computer screen. “Yikes. Yeah, he’s not a popular fella. I’m looking at the social feeds and people are pissed the galaxy over.”
“Well, he can have that effect on people,” I admitted. “I still can’t let him get killed.”
“As long as he stays in the Champion District he will be fine,” Artemis assured me. “The CDPD is very good at quelling unrest. Almost too good.”
It seemed like there was more to what she was saying but the door of the gym hissed open and Nova and Aurora walked in with Chaz in tow. I caught the little blue munchkin staring at their behinds the entire way. He had a big white box in his hands, and a cart full of weapons and armor hovered in behind him surrounded in a field of blue telekinetic light. The antenna on top of his bald pate twitched and glowed with the same blue light.
Chaz did occasional work for our armor and weapons master, Darry Dar’Tor, and while a bit on the annoying side, had become a good friend of Team Havak. He did, in fact, like to say that he was my best friend on this wacky planet.
“Chaz!” I yelled out. His race had developed a type of telepathic empathy to help overcome their overzealous nature which could really make people irritated and we had “bonded” the first time we met. “Morning! Did you bring us goodies?”
“Indeed I have, Marc!” Chaz yelled back way too loudly. “Pastries from the restaurant I took you and Artemis to, and since we are on the subject, you look absolutely stunning this morning Artemis.”
“Thank you, Chaz.” Artemis blushed.
“And can I say your breasts are particularly firm and full today,” he grinned with zero self-consciousness. He wasn’t being creepy. He truly meant it as a compliment.
“Um,” she stammered and looked down at her breasts, which were indeed very firm and full. “Thank you.”
“Hey Nova, Aurora,” I said as I got up and gave each of them a good morning hug.
They looked freshly showered and ready for a day of training, but then PoLarr got up and begrudgingly handed each of them a credit chip.
“What was that for?” I asked, confused.
“Oh, nothing really, sugar,” Aurora said cryptically and put the chip in her cleavage.
“PoLarr put money on the fact that she thought there was no way you could be as adept in the ways of carnal pleasure as Aurora and I had boasted,” Nova said not cryptically at all. “Clearly she lost.”
“First time I’ve ever been happy to lose a bet,” PoLarr teased and winked at me.
“Um, ha, ha, you guys had a bet about me, ha, funny,” I stuttered and felt my cheeks flush with heat. I didn’t get embarrassed often.
“You should be proud, human,” Grizz said as his holographic dinner-plate sized hand tried to clap me on the shoulder. “What you lack in battle skill you clearly make up for in sexual prowess. Huzzah.”
Thankfully, Chaz set the box down on the conference table and opened it. Inside were two dozen of the delicious fruit tart pastries from his cousins little cafe. Before I realized it, I shoved three of them into my face, and I glanced up to see everyone staring at me.
“What?” I said through a fruity mouthful of pastry. “They’re really good.”
“They are,” Chaz agreed. “And Darry has sent over some new weapons upgrades.”
“Excellent,” Grizz said excitedly. “This has turned out to be a wonderful morning.”
As if he jinxed it, there was a high-pitched trill and then a small holographic projector ball floated into our gym. It was a lot like the one that projected Grizz’s form but this one had a green eye instead of red. It hovered near the Command Center and laser light flickered out of the eye.
Tyche, dressed in a stylish suit that felt faintly military, appeared before us.
“Tyche!” Artemis gasped and stood up from behind the computer. “We didn’t know you were going to visit us today. To what do we owe the honor?”
I’d never heard Artemis speak so formally before. She seemed equal parts excited and nervous.
“Artemis,” Tyche said in his distinguished British accent. “It has been far too long since my algorhythms have laid eyes on you, dear.”
“Yes, sir,” she said like a child in front of a deeply loved but also somewhat feared parent.
“You look good,” he praised. “How have you adjusted to your human form?”
“Well, fa… Tyche. I am still adjusting to the biochemical reactions known as emotions,” she admitted. “And English is a strange, complex, and often nonsensical language.”
“I am sure you are exceeding all expectations, Artemis,” Tyche praised with a warm smile that just didn’t seem to fit right on his holographic face. “You always did.”
Artemis smiled from ear to ear in a way that I had never seen, like a child that did well on a test to the joy of their parents.
“Hi, I’m Marc,” I announced and waved. I was usually pretty respectful when meeting someone's parental units, but something about Tyche set my inner warning bells off. I did not like the holo-guy at all. And I certainly didn’t trust him.
“Ah, yes, Champion Havak,” Tyche said with an almost imperceptible hint of annoyance. “I am aware of who you are. Greetings to you and the rest of Team Havak.”
Everyone had gathered around where Tyche had appeared.
“To what do we owe the honor, Tyche?” Artemis asked. “We were not aware that you were going to be visiting us today.”
“I know, Artemis,” Tyche responded. I really didn’t like the way the dude acted like he owned the place and that we were all here to serve him. Although, I guess we kind of were in some weird way. “My visit was purposefully unannounced. I have been making the rounds to all the various alliances today to let you know your assignments and matchups for the upcoming match.”
That sent a visible shock of excitement through the room. Even Chaz was completely focused.
“You have the honor of running the Great Excelsior Train Robbery,” Tyche said with a wave of his hand. “You will defend first. Protect your shipment of Vexar Power Cores at all costs.”
We all stood and just watched Tyche who had begun his almost hypnotic pacing. He walked back and forth over ten feet of floor with his hands clasped behind his back like some kind of headmaster.
“Your opponents will be Hann-Abel’s Alliance,” he said as if we should have all known who the hell that was. I’d never heard of them. Then again, I really didn’t pay attention to the other alliances. My MO was pretty much jump into trouble and then try to figure my way out of it no matter who the opponents were. It had worked okay so far. “You will receive a full dossier on them, as they will on you, as well as all the intel required to mount both a successful attack or to adequately defend the shipment.”
He stopped in the middle of the room, turned, and looked all of us in the eye one after the other, slowly and deliberately. It was unsettling. Although I seemed to be the only one who was visibly put off.
“Artemis, it was a true pleasure to see you,” he said almost lovingly. Again, there was just something not right about his tone. Like, he knew what the concept of affection was, and tried really hard to mimic it, but it lacked any true feeling behind it. “I did not realize how much I missed you until now. What
you have accomplished as attache for Team Havak is commendable. I made the right choice in assigning you here. The rest of you, good luck and may the Aetherons’ bless you with fortune.”
He smiled politely and then flickered from existence. The holosphere floated out silently.
“Okay, well, that was odd,” I said finally. “Are you okay, Artemis?”
Artemis was unusually quiet. Especially since we’d just gotten a dump of very important information that normally would have had her buzzing with excitement and activity.
“Yes,” she answered after a beat. She blinked her eyes almost like she was coming out of a trance. “I’m… I’m fine. I just didn’t expect to see Tyche. It took me by surprise. My brain sort of shut down. That was weird.”
“I only remember Tyche appearing before us champions once during my entire time in the Crucible,” Grizz said and walked over to Artemis. “He had the same effect on my team at the time. But, we do not have time to focus on such matters. Artemis, do you have the information yet?”
Artemis clicked a few keys.
“Yes,” she affirmed and made a motion with her hand from the computer to screen out over the conference table. When she did, the space over the table exploded with information like a scene from a Marvel movie. There was a blue 3D wireframe image of a futuristic hover-train, a cutaway diagram of the complex engine, readouts on the cargo compartments and weight, dimensions, and number of Vexar Power Cores.
Then, on our normal display screen, there were pictures of five champions with long strings of information under each picture.
“Holy Mission Impossible, Batman,” I blurted out.
“Mr. Hunt, your mission should you choose to accept it,” PoLarr replied, and I high fived her without looking.
“Holy cow, that is a lot of information,” Chaz whistled. “It kinda makes my head hurt.”
“Chaz, sugar, you are not the only one,” Aurora said as she walked lazily around the various holograms and began to read the dossier on the other team.
“We clearly have our work cut out for us,” Nova said and met Aurora over by the display screen.
“Hey, Artie, why don’t you hide everything but the info about the alliance we are going up against?” I said before walking over to where Nova and Aurora were. “Seems like that is what everyone is most interested in anyway.”
“Good idea, Havak,” Grizz agreed. “I am curious as well. Once we know who we are facing, then we can begin to formulate a plan.”
“On it,” Artemis said and with a swipe of her hand everything but the info on our large display screen on the wall seemed to slide back into the computer. “There we go.”
We formed a loose semi-circle around the display. Everyone was too amped up to sit.
“Artemis, since you are the most able with the computer interface, and familiar with all the other alliances in the Crucible, would you lead the discussion?” Grizz asked and moved aside deferentially.
“Um, wow, yeah,” Artie said and walked in front of the screen.
“Wait, before we start,” I raised my hand like I was back in high school, “you’re familiar with all the other alliances? That’s like… well, a lot.”
“Fifteen thousand seven hundred and sixty nine, to be exact,” Artemis answered.
“Ha, sixty nine,” PoLarr laughed and then put her hand over her mouth for a moment. “I’m sorry. That burst out from the recesses of Marc’s adolescence before I could stop it.”
“Oh, it’s okay, we all understand, sugar,” Aurora smiled over at her and patted her shoulder.
“What is the significance of the number sixty-nine?” Nova asked innocently.
“Oh, I know this one,” Chaz blurted out. “You see, it’s a sexual act in which each partner puts--”
“Whoa! Chaz, buddy,” I yelled out and put my hand over his mouth. “We’re good. Nova, remind me later, and I’ll show you.”
Artemis giggled, and I thought I actually saw Aurora blush a bit.
“Team Havak!” Grizz growled. “Can we please get back to the task at hand so that we may figure out a strategy that will ensure a win and that our family… I mean, alliance does not get broken up?”
That sobered everyone up a bit, and we gave our full attention to Artemis who went into full on sexy professor mode. She even gathered up her chestnut colored hair and fixed it into a loose bun on top of her head that she kept in place with a thin pencil from a pocket on her jumpsuit. She then took out a pair of black-framed glasses, that I knew for a fact she didn’t need because her eyesight was like 20/5, but it was a very sexy effect.
“This is Hann-Abel’s Hunters,” Artemis began and ran a finger across the screen so that only one picture with its associated information took up the screen. “An alliance formed by this male, Colonel Hann-Abel Smeeth. Champion from the planet Stratagium in the Hoag’s galaxy.”
The picture on the screen showed the image of a roughly middle-aged six-foot-tall humanoid alien in loose fitting military fatigues with a black leather bomber jacket on. The jacket was covered in various colored patches. The image turned slowly like the character select in a video game so that we could see both the front and back. He had dark red skin, close-cropped bottle green hair, and very bright blue eyes that even in the picture shone with intelligence. A pair of oval aviator sunglasses sat atop his head and there was an ornate, short barrelled pipe cocked arrogantly out of the corner of his mouth which was pulled into a smug smirk.
“He’s a member of a race known as Rautakians who are known for their above average intelligence,” Artemis continued. “Especially, solving puzzles.”
“Rautakians are known the galaxy over for their strategic prowess,” PoLarr added. “So much so that armies and interstellar navies hire them as generals and admirals.”
“Yes,” Artemis nodded her head. “And Hann-Abel is a cut above the rest. Before he was chosen as the champion for his homeworld, he served in no less than five inter-planetary wars. He survived for a very long time on his own in the Crucible based solely on his ability to strategize circles around everyone else. He is a master planner and does not believe in luck.”
“I hate him already,” I said, “Planny McStrategy Pants.”
Nova cut me some nice side eye. “Very mature, Havak.”
“He handpicked his team five Earth years ago,” Artemis began again. “And in that time they have quickly moved up to Platinum Tier.”
“Uhh, Artemis.” Nova put her hand up, “We are silver. How will that discrepancy in tiers work out?”
“Good question, Nova,” Artemis said like a happy professor. Nova smiled like the star pupil. The dynamic they had right at the moment was cute and sort of arousing. I made a mental note to bring this up to both of them later. “The Aetherons have instituted a stat equalization system. Some alliances will be downgraded while others get upgraded. We are lucky in that all of your current abilities will be moved up to Platinum Tier numbers. We will also be able to pick two new Platinum level skills before the first round of the match.”
“So we have that going for us, which is nice,” I said as Carl the groundskeeper in Caddy Shack. Everyone ignored me. Which was probably for the best.
“Next up is Barrakus,” Artemis said as she swiped the screen and a brute of an alien appeared. It was easily as tall as Grizz and just as wide with mustard yellow skin that looked like leather covered armor plates. The beast had a wide, seven inch tall purple mohawk that ran from its scowled filled forehead all the way to the base of its thigh thick neck. “It is a Zolg, which are a non-binary race that inahbits the planet of Bosaar.”
“Let me guess,” I interjected, “they are kind, peace-loving people who prefer to sculpt hand made pottery than fight.”
“No,” Artemis shook her head, completely missing my sarcasm. “No, they are the opposite of that. Barrakus is essentially a walking tank. Its skin is as strong as Berulian Titanium and can withstand up to a one hundred and twenty millimeter cannon shell. They are very str
ong but also fairly slow and not that bright. It acts as the teams muscle and enforcer.”
“It does not look that tough to me,” Nova scoffed. She rarely bragged or beat her chest, and I could tell that Barrakus made her nervous.
“Oh, they are incredibly tough,” Grizz nodded. “My people once went to war with an invading force of Bosaarians many generations before I was born. It was only by the Fortune of Flovar the Furious that we were able to defeat them. Turns out they do not like high voltage electrical current. It renders them immobile. Our mages harnessed lightning storms to freeze them in place where Oturi warriors then systematically dispatched them by crushing their skulls with sledgehammers. I will recite the epic poem for you all one day. It is seven hours long.”
“Can’t wait,” I said to him. “Who's next, Artie?”
“Tempest Dirk,” Artemis said with another swipe of her hand.
A tantalizing humanoid female appeared on the screen. She was of medium height with an average build and full b-cup breasts that were especially highlighted by the tight tank top she wore. She had blue-green skin like the ocean off the coast of parts of New Zealand and bright orange eyes that had dark blue pupils. Her pouty, full lips were pulled into a cocky grin, and she held a light assault rifle loosely on her shoulder by the stock. A mane of bright vermillion hair outlined her face and cascaded around the stock of the gun on her shoulder. Her other hand sat firmly on her curvaceous hip arrogantly. She kind of reminded me of Nebula from Guardians of the Galaxy, but not as angry, like a hundred times hotter, and with bright red hair.
“She’s a Beneditorian from the planet Galactikar,” Artemis began again. “They are natural grifters and skilled scavengers and known throughout the megaverse as notorious con men and women. They can also make several copies of themselves at will. Each copy has independent thought but are telepathically tied to the original Tempest. When they are mortally harmed they are automatically reabsorbed into the ‘Prime.’”
“Multiple Man?” PoLarr and I asked in unison.
“I don’t know who that is,” Artie replied.