by Saxon Andrew
“What are they?”
“If you refuse to participate in the duel, you will lose your ship, all the deposits you made and your crew will be executed. However, you will not lose your life. If you accept the duel, the winner will take possession of everything owned by the loser.” Blakely looked at the Argyans, “And who is chosen to be your champion?”
A strange looking creature stepped out from the middle of the Argyan crews and Embree whispered in Leonidas’ ear, “That’s a Dacon, Captain. You cut off a piece of it and it grows right back. Even a blaster won’t stop it.” Leo stared at the creature twitching in front of him and Embree leaned back in and whispered, “Did I mention they are reputed to be incredibly fast and their hides are as tough as steel?”
Leo shook his head, “No, you didn’t?”
“Well, they are.”
Leo stared at the smiling monster and shook his head and thought, Damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
Chapter Eighteen
The Councilor sitting to Blakely’s right stood up and yelled, “The Dacon does not meet the requirements!! It is not a Captain!”
The Beligeese replied, “I was demoted before this meeting and the Dacon was given command of my ship.”
“What reason were you given for being demoted!?” the Councilor demanded.
The Beligeese looked at the Argyan Fleet Commander and said, “It was felt I was offering bad advice, Councilor. I advised against doing this.”
Blakely looked at the Fleet Commander and said, “You might win this duel but afterwards you will punished for lying to the Council…”
The Argyan Fleet Commander interrupted, “I’m sorry, Lead Councilor, but the punishment for lying to the Council is banishment from Fellowship. You do not have the authority to use any other punishment according to the Charter.”
Leonidas turned to Blakely, “Are you telling me that every captain in this building can challenge me to a possession duel to take my ship and wealth?”
Blakely shook his head, “No, a Captain may only be challenged once. Quite honestly, I suspect there are many others that planned to do exactly what the Argyans are doing. You were blatantly obvious in depositing your wealth. However, the Council’s issue with them is their deliberate attempt to deceive us.”
The Argyan Fleet Commander laughed, “We will take his ship and credits and go out and buy a new place to live.”
The crews standing around the Fleet Commander had their heads lowered in shame. They could see the entire gathering glaring at them but they had no choice but to follow the Commander’s orders.
Blakely stared at the Fleet Commander and said, “You better buy a place that I can’t find. Once you’re out of the Fellowship, you will not be immune from the consequences of your actions. I will find you and extract vengeance for this fine crew and Captain you’ve wronged today.”
Leonidas stared at Blakely shaking his head and Blakely turned to him, “I promise you, Captain, I will make them pay for this.” Blakely shook his head and formally said, “Captain Alexander, do you choose to participate in the Possession Duel?”
“It really appears I have no choice but to agree. If my crew dies, I will die with them. I will participate.”
“Since you are the one being challenged, you have the choice of weapons.”
Leonidas glanced at the Dacon and saw it smiling. “I chose to use a sword.”
Blakely immediately started shaking his head and the entire assembly groaned at what was said. The Fleet Commander yelled, “He’s made the choice; he can’t change it now!!”
Blakely looked at the Commander of the Argyans, “I am going to enjoy cutting you into tiny pieces.” He turned to Leonidas and shook head, “The Dacon’s skin is too tough for a sword to damage. I was thinking you would select a blaster.”
Leo looked at Blakely and smiled, “What would be fun in that?” Blakely’s eyes went wide open as Leo asked, “Where do we do this?”
The Councilor at the left end of the table stood up and moved off the dais to stand between the two crews. He said, “There is a red circle on the floor. The duel will take place inside the circle.” He looked up and shouted, “Guards, take the crews outside the circle and cover them with blasters.” The Councilor looked at Leo, “Your crew deserves to be able to see you fight for them.”
Gold stepped forward and said, “Captain, perhaps it would be better if I took your place.”
The Dacon saw the Insectoid step out from the crew and it immediately stopped twitching. It did not want to fight an Insectoid. Blakely asked, “Does the insectoid command one of your ships?”
Leo slowly shook his head, “No, he does not.”
“Then he is not eligible to participate in the duel.” Blakely announced over the loudspeakers, “Clear the dueling area. The duel will start when the tone is sounded.”
Leo studied the Dacon and took inventory of what he was up against. The creature was shaped very much like a legendary centaur. Like a centaur, the torso rose out of the front of the main body but that’s where the similarity ended. Its dark mahogany hide looked like a reptile’s with a grainy pebbled surface. It had four short thick legs under its body that lifted it about eighteen inches off the floor. It had a thick tail about seven feet long that appeared to be used to help balance the body. A torso emerged from the front of the thick body that had a two heavily muscled limbs that ended in what looked very much like scorpion claws. The head was a foot or so above the arms and it had a pointed snout with two rows of jagged teeth in its mouth. The creature’s eyes were red with black pupils located in the center of the face above the snout. It started moving from side-to-side and its tail whipped around when it turned. It would slam its claws together each time it turned causing a loud noise like the crack of a whip that filled the arena. “Do you think that puny breast covering is going to help you!? I’m going to crush it with you inside it!” the Dacon sneered.
Leo continued to focus on the creature and got a feel for its speed. It was fast, no doubt about that, but it couldn’t change direction quickly. The tail was the main danger he had to avoid when it turned. The torso was not directly above the creature’s body but extended forward at an angle. The tail was needed to keep it balanced. Leonidas quickly asked, “What happens if my opponent leaves the red circle?”
Blakely removed his hand from the button that would sound the tone and said, “The fight will stop until it returns inside it. It will restart when another tone is sounded.”
The Dacon shouted loudly, “Don’t even think I’ll give you an opportunity to escape the circle! This is where you die!”
Leo’s focus was better than any time since his body was changed by Gem. He knew that Blakely was an honorable man and though he had killed numerous times in the past, so had he in fighting on planets that meant nothing to him. His vow to make the Aryans pay for their sins made an impact on him and he didn’t really care if his life ended today. He fought to save his crew, not himself. The fear he initially felt had evaporated. When you don’t fear dying, there is no place for fear to dwell. He walked into the middle of the floor and crossed his arms. The Dacon watched him and roared just as the tone sounded.
The Dacon rushed across the circle at an incredible speed and extended its two clawed arms wide to crush Leo between them. Leo waited with crossed arms and just before it slammed into him, he moved to the left at a speed that was impossible, pulled the sword out faster than could be seen, and slammed it down on the Dacon’s tail as it flashed past him. The Dacon managed to barley stop next to the edge of the red circle and was flailing its arms to avoid leaving the circle. It was front heavy from the loss of its tail and it struggled to keep its balance. Leo walked up behind it, put his foot on the stump that was quickly growing and shoved the Dacon forward. The monster fell forward and its arms and head slammed into the hard wooden floor.
Leo walked over to the still twitching tail he had cut off and stuck his sword into it. He calmly walked over to the edge of th
e circle away from the Dacon and tossed the tail out of the circle. In an instant, his sword was back in the scabbard and Leo walked to the center of the circle and crossed his arms.
Gold watched the fight and didn’t know who was shocked the most; the Dacon or all the thousands of pirates watching. The giant building was absolutely silent. The silence was broken when Blakely yelled, “Why didn’t you finish him?”
Leo shrugged, “What’s the fun in that?”
The Dacon stood outside the circle waiting for its tail to regrow and Blakely said, “Reenter the circle or forfeit the duel!”
Leo was surprised by how quickly the tail was growing. The Dacon moved to its feet and it was five feet long as it entered the circle. It was back to its full length by the time Blakely sounded the tone again. It moved forward cautiously and didn’t rush headlong at Leo. Leo watched it moving toward him and he saw the left arm move slightly. However, he could see the muscles under the skin in the right arm tensing. The Dacon moved from side-to-side with its arms spread wide preventing Leonidas from moving around it. Then it moved in and moved the left arm slightly as it whipped its right arm with the huge claw at Leo’s head. Leo ducked under the arm and lifted the sword out of the scabbard and held it over his head. The arm flashed over him and was severed at the shoulder joint as it hit the sword’s blade. Leo came up out of his crouch and cut off the two front legs as he stepped behind the advancing adversary. The Dacon was now rear heavy and it fell backward on its tail.
The Dacon tried to get its body down as Leo arrived behind the Dacon and cut off its tail again but this time took a huge slice of its body with it. The Dacon’s torso slammed down to the floor. Leo walked across the floor and sat down with his legs crossed close to the struggling Dacon. No one saw him put the sword back in the scabbard but it was there with the handle showing just over his left shoulder.
The Dacon couldn’t move. It now knew it was up against some sort of demon and that the human could have killed it twice if it chose. It looked up at Leo and heard him quietly say, “I really don’t want to kill you. Are you willing to call this off?”
The Dacon closed its eyes and shook its head, “I can’t for the same reason you have to fight. I’m fighting for the lives of my fellow crews and have no other choice.” They spoke quietly and the gathered thousands could not hear what was being said. The Dacon was regenerating fast and Leo thought about what was going to happen. He knew the Argyan Crews were ashamed of what was happening and this creature was put into a situation that it had no idea of what it was going to face nor did he did not want to be there. Once his parts regenerated, the Dacon charged again and this time it hit the floor with all four legs, both arms, and its tail left lying on the floor.
Leo stared at the wounded creature and walked over to the edge of the circle and stepped out. Blakey roared, “Finish it. It’s not right to make it suffer like this!!”
“Before I go back into the circle, I have a question.”
The five Councilors looked at Leo like he was insane; stopping a duel to ask a question was unheard of. Blakely looked at the Dacon quickly regenerating its body parts and said, “What is your question?”
“You say that the winner of this duel takes possession of all the holdings of the loser, is that correct?”
The Dacon looked up from the floor and listened to what was going on. Blakely nodded, “That’s correct. The crews will be executed and you will take possession of their ships and monetary holdings.”
“Aren’t the crews part of their possessions?”
Blakely’s stood up and he looked at the other Councilors. They all stared at him and it was clear they didn’t know how to answer the question. Blakely turned to Leo and said, “I honestly don’t know. No one has ever asked that question before.”
Leo looked at the Argyan Crews as he said, “It appears to me that the crews are part of the ships that make them operate just like a reactor, engines, or any other piece that is essential for the ship to function. The ships won’t operate without a crew.”
Blakely looked at the other Councilors again and the Councilor sitting to Blakely’s right broke the silence, “I suppose he is correct about that. If he wants the crews to man the ships, he should be given that option.”
Blakely turned back to Leo, “The crews are part of the Argyan possessions. It would be wise for you to have them executed; you will not be able to trust them.”
Leo stepped back into the circle and walked over to the Dacon, “I will not harm your crews. I will use them to operate the ships. Now you do have another option and I do hope you use it. You are back to your full strength now and if you choose to continue this, I will end it. Are you willing to call this off?”
The Dacon stared at Leo and flexed its arms and tail. It looked over at the Argyan Fleet Commander who was screaming at him to attack. He turned and walked over to the edge of the circle directly in front of the Council, looked up at Blakely, and said, “I choose to not participate in this Duel.”
The entire building erupted in a giant roar as the thousands of pirates stood up and cheered. Blakely shook his head and allowed it to continue for a few minutes and then he sounded the tone. The room became instantly silent and he looked at Leonidas “Captain you now own all six Argyan Ships as your personal property. Are there any other ships that you currently own other than the Thermopylae?”
Leo quickly said, “I also command a ship we use as a decoy. It appears to be a pleasure yacht but it is armed. The ship’s name is the Play Toy.”
Blakely looked at the Tortugan Official, “Please add these ships to Captain Alexander’s registry.” The Official nodded and began speaking into a tablet it was holding.
Blakely turned back to Leo, “What’s to prevent the Argyan ships from leaving and not coming back?”
Leo looked at the Argyans and said where they could hear, “First things first.” He turned to Blakely, “I do not consider that Fleet Commander as a possession.”
Blakely smiled broadly and said, “Guards, remove the Fleet Commander and carry out his execution.” The Fleet Commander was grabbed forcibly and pulled toward the entrance; he screamed all the way out of the building. Leo turned back to the Argyan Crews and pointed at the Beligeese, “You, what is your name?”
“You couldn’t pronounce it, Captain. Everyone calls me Black Hat.”
Leo smiled. He was wearing a large black hat that came down over his ears. “You are now in overall command of the Argyan Ships. You’ve shown that you will follow orders and tell the truth even when it’s dangerous to do so. You will take the six ships and continue to operate as you have in the past but you will pay me twenty percent of all your takings. You will continue to do that for five years and at the end of that time, you will be given your freedom and stop having to make payments.”
The Argyans stared at Leo stunned by the offer. Blakely smiled and said, “That will prevent them from fleeing with their ships. It would cost them a lot more than twenty percent to have to go to another place to live.”
Leo nodded, “All of you plan to meet with me at my quarters tonight after this meeting is concluded.” Leo turned to the Tortugan Representative, “Would it be possible for you to be there as well so we can sort out how these payments will be made?”
The Tortugan licked his face, “Absolutely.”
Blakely looked around the giant arena, picked up a thick book from his console, and said over the PA system, “I would like to officially welcome the Thermopylae and its crew to Fellowship as its newest residents. Captain Alexander, I’m presenting you with this book that covers all the regulations and laws that govern how the Ship Commanders function in our society. It will tell you your responsibilities and benefits while living here. Welcome to our brotherhood.”
The entire gathering rose and cheered the newest ship and shouted out ‘Thermopylae’ at the top of their voices. Blakely looked down from the dais at Leo and said, “Why did you really choose to not kill the crews?”
&
nbsp; Leo looked up at him and smiled, “It would be bad for business.”
Blakely smiled and then his eyes narrowed as he stared at Leo. After a moment, his eyes widened, “I KNOW YOU!”
Leo smiled, “Indeed you do, Lead Councilor.” That was the last thing said between them as Leo’s crew lifted him up on their shoulders and carried him toward the entrance. Blakely was left behind staring at Leonidas as he disappeared out of the building.
They arrived back at their quarters and Leo said to Carl, “Get the meeting room set up for the Argyans. I want everyone present so you may have to move some chairs out of your personal quarters.” Carl nodded and began issuing orders.
“Sir, I must confess that I was worried about you.”
“So was I, Barney.”
“It’s a good thing you had Embree in command. I was prepared to order the crew in and fight our way out.”
“Did he point out why that would be a mistake?”
Barney sighed, “Yes; I didn’t see the blasters in the ceiling above the dueling area.” Barney paused, “Sir, I really think that the ship would be better served if you made Embree your second-in-command.” Leo started shaking his head and Barney quickly said, “I’ll be glad to command any ground attacks but I can see Embree sees things I miss and that could prove to be fatal. You need look no further than what happened tonight.”
Leo paused and said, “Are you sure about this, Barney?”
Barney smiled and shrugged, “There’s no place for an ego in doing the right thing, Captain. Besides, our former ranks don’t apply in this new world we find ourselves in.”
Leo put his hand on Barney’s shoulder, “I know you weren’t in my unit but I see you as one of my own. This proves to me that I was right in choosing you to be on this mission.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
• • •
The Tortugan Official arrived a moment later with a crew that began moving chairs out of a hauler into the meeting room. Leo looked at him in wonder and the Tortugan said, “I…Uhhh…looked at the…inventory of your…quarters and saw that…there are not enough…chairs to hold…your meeting.”