by James Martin
Nate licked his lips and clicked. “Your Majesty.”
“Shut it, Captain Nathan.”
Pilox stepped forward, but Nate went in front, tapping him on the shoulder. A discreet, ‘at ease, solider.’
Nate turned back to the first in-line princess of the chimans. “You rang. . .?”
It was an oddly decorated room, by chiman standards. Bookshelves in the back and weapons dangled from the branches that engulfed the ceiling. Nate could not make out what lied above the branches. He cringed thinking of all the ways she could kill him with those weapons, only accessible to her and other chimans. The right-hand side contained a training room—a room within a room.
The princess dropped down from a branch and gracefully touched down in front of him. She stood up, revealing herself, Princess Wooshuda.
“Prince Astraos is on the move.”
“Oh? He didn’t contact me.”
“As I suspected.” Wooshuda walked toward her desk, expecting everyone to follow. They did so.
“When isn’t Astraos on the move?”
“He’s finally going where he’s dreamed of for so long.”
Arriving at the desk, she handed Nate some papers.
“This will be your job.”
Reading it over, he said, “For him?”
“He’s the only one allowed a cargo ship to Earth and back.”
“I’m not that ship.”
She handed him an electronic pad the size of his hand. “When you activate it, it’ll identify you as that ship.”
“How am I getting paid?”
She said with sarcastic glee, “Rescuing your friend isn’t enough?”
“I don’t even know if he needs to be rescued.”
“He’s flying into katros space. I believe he’ll try to get a cloaking fighter. But what he doesn’t know is that the Family Klan does a monthly bio-scan of Earth, making sure that no species infiltrates with the intent to ruin their commodities.”
“And you didn’t inform him? The man playing with your toys?”
She looked at him trying to disguise the hurt in her eyes. “Informing him would have done nothing. He would put it off. . . maybe. I know he would’ve tried.”
Nathan scoffed. “Ah, the games.”
“This galaxy should be rid of the katros, or at least, have them be managed.”
“I like to keep things simple. You pay me, I’ll do it.”
“Where is your honor?”
“I check that at the door.”
“So you’d allow the Family Klan or any katros to wipe out a planet full of lives?”
“I don’t allow anything. That’s your game. I just want my payment and if I save a friend in the process. . . the better.”
Kat could no longer hold her tongue. “Nathan, we have to save Astraos.”
He whipped his head back, tilting his head ever-so-slightly and raising his eyebrows trying to say: What are you doing? We can get paid for this too. Of course, we’ll grab him. He hoped Wooshuda was not privy to the exchange. He turned his head back. “One thing.”
“Yes?”
“Your goals don’t necessarily need Astraos alive, so the fact that you—”
“Don’t reach, captain.”
“Just saying.”
“Prince Astraos may be one of the mightiest and adaptable cheshir ever to live.”
Pilox said in the back as a low growl, “He is the mightiest.”
Wooshuda nodded. “Why wouldn’t I exhaust my resources to keep him alive? He is worth more than fleets of battlecruisers. And that’s not taking into account his heritage.”
“Whatever you say, princess. So back to an earlier point, how are we getting paid?”
“Sell the oil to him.”
Nate laughed. “I’m going pretend to be one of his ships. I’m going to get oil and Astraos. I’m going to piss off the katros, which in turn will piss off him and void his contract with them. And. . . I’m going to sell that oil to him?”
“Problem?”
“He’s going to kill us.”
“I doubt that. I think you can persuade him to take a deal that benefits your purse and his life.”
“Hmph.” Nate looked around at his crew. Macellus shrugged. Kat slightly pouted. Pilox licked his lips envisioning a fight with much bloodshed.
“All right. But if I get out of there with only my skin, I’m going to come back with a number and you’re going agree to it.”
“If you meet with him and it doesn’t go well, I’ll settle your debts and pay you for the time.”
“And if it does go well?”
“I’ll pay you too.”
Nate, seeing the money and turning off his brain, questioned the logic no further. He saw a plush life he could lead with his crew flying around the galaxy. Plus. . . He had walked into the conversation telling himself that he would try to sell the oil to him.
“Done.”
“Good.”
“A pleasure as always, princess.”
She smiled, jumped up and grabbed onto a branch, her body swaying as she hung upside down. Nate and his crew walked out the door.
Princess Wooshuda said, “As I expected.”
Part Two
The Mid Game
August 9, 2015
Lauren stretched and yawned in her cot, sitting up and thinking, they may be aliens, but there are similarities—so many. Then that fascinating fool, Astraos, popped up in her mind, she was interested in him—there was no denying it.
She pressed the gray button to the left of her night stand, which opened the door that led to the bathroom. A small bathroom, by all respects, but slightly ample for a spaceship of this size. There was enough room to actually move between shower, sink and toilet. She saw herself in the mirror: a few cuts on her chin from all those times she fell down while fleeing Earth.
She brushed her teeth and conserved toothpaste. No idea how long I’ll need this to last. The length of time it needed to last was proportional to her comfort level in alien utilities. She had experienced the food, which was actually not bad, although she only nibbled at the tentacle presented to her by Pilox. They all had a laugh, then brought her food that resembled bacon and eggs, but they were gigantic—the bacon strip being a foot long and the egg was as big as a bowl. And both were somehow better than eggs and bacon back home. She did not eat much of it, nervousness about alien cuisine and the crisis of the day waned on her. But there was one thing to reminisce on. . . She remembered the tender looks Astraos gave across the table. Mom. The thought interrupted her retrospection, made her choke slightly on the water she used to swish around her mouth. She had to commit to living—for her, for herself. And living today, meant enjoying the day.
Lauren put on her jeans, and the only thing she had packed, another oversized sweater, then went back to the mirror to wash her face and put on a dash of makeup she kept in her hiking bag. That’s right. She laughed to herself and shook her head. It was the silliest reason she had the makeup in her bag: She had this fantasy where she would meet another stargazer in one of her spots, her sanctuary. She would apply a bit of makeup to entice him. They would share some stories. He would talk about how he stumbled upon the location. He would also be a sweet hunk, something like Captain Awesome from Chuck. A lunge for the binoculars would provide a head collision and the perfect moment to be lost in his eyes and for him to take her. He would be romantic and hot as he caressed her. She would enjoy the foreplay and then passionate love making would ensue.
They would meet every weekend, then date, then meet each others parents, get married, have kids and so forth.
And now this. . . her insane, fantastical daydream had been thwarted and out done in one fell swoop. She was aboard a spaceship with a crew of aliens on a trip to meet another alien and go somewhere she could never imagine. What a ride.
Lauren puckered her lips to even the application, ran her hands down her body and was pleased that she had lost a few pounds from yesterday’s insanity.
She walked out of her cabin to be greeted by Nate and Astraos playing a game.
“Morning.”
Lauren replied, “Morning.”
Astraos looked up and smiled. “You look beautiful.”
A side of blush pierced her cheeks. “Thanks.” She looked down, anywhere to remove herself from his gaze.
That’s when she noticed the game, peculiar. “Chess?”
Nate nodded. “Close. This has an extra piece. They actually call it a major piece and the rook becomes a mid piece. Some argue this is the more complete chess while others prefer what was invented by humans.”
“What’s the piece?”
Nate looked to side, thinking. “It has various names. Best translation would be duke.”
“A duke?”
“It is below only the queen in value and much like the queen, there is only one.”
“What does it do?”
“Jumps.”
She raised her eyebrow. “Jumps?”
“Like checkers, the piece can jump any unconnected piece. Unlike checkers, it is not assigned a space. It can move one space, then it may jump to any unconnected piece on, per say, black squares; then move one space and do the same to pieces occupying white. The other restriction is that it can only jump onto the same color that it occupies.”
Lauren blurted out, “How cool.” This time turning redder than before, on the verge of supernova. She did not mean to come off so nerdy.
Astraos said, “I prefer human chess.”
Nate asked, “Why?”
“Because a winning position stays one in the mid to end game as long as mistakes are avoided.”
“Hmph.”
Lauren joined in. “Isn’t it too much? The extra piece.”
“It’s perfect.”
Astraos asked, “How can it be perfect?”
The words escaped Lauren’s mouth, “Go on.” She had to involve herself.
“You see, in chess the best strategist wins. You can feign moves and disguise your true intentions and all that fun stuff. But it’s lacking.”
“How can it be lacking? It’s a fantastic mental exercise.”
Lauren could not contain the look of bafflement in her eyes. Astraos? Really? Did he just say that?
“It’s still lacking.”
“Lacking what?”
“Life.”
Lauren and Astraos both said, “Huh?”
“You see life doesn’t always reward the perfect strategist, the perfect this, the perfect that. It comes out of nowhere. The absolutely unpredictable, the impossible flies in, creates chaos and laughs at your plans and strategy.”
Astraos guffawed and made a move.
Nate snorted and said, “Oh, and one more thing, Lauren, the duke may sacrifice his own pieces by jumping them.” He made his move jumping over one of his own pawns and a knight then subsequently jumped Astraos’s rook, pawn, and bishop into a. . .
“Checkmate.”
Anger exploded out of Astraos that he could not tame, he slapped the pieces off the board. “Nonsense.”
Nate glanced over to Lauren. “See.”
Astraos walked away, then turned back with overly expressive gestures. “There was no way to account for that.”
“Exactly.”
“And what good is that in a game?”
“It provides a lesson.”
“I’m going to take a shower.”
Lauren asked, “And the lesson?”
Astraos sighed. “I get enough of those.”
“You can never have enough lessons, life is filled with them. . . This one is easy: sometimes you can do everything right and still lose.”
“Right.”
Astraos walked into his cabin located next to Lauren’s. She thought of late night accidental forays. She also imagined she saw fumes exuding from his head as he passed by her with a look of anguish and annoyance.
“Poking a bit?”
“He’ll be fine. He hates being lectured.”
“And that’s your duty?”
A puzzled look crossed his face then went back to nonchalant. “It may save his life one day.”
“He seems pretty capable.”
Nate started gathering up the pieces that were strewn about. “He sure is. And so have many people who are dead. We will be docking at his ship soon. You got a few hours to see the wares.” He gestured with his hand, holding the duke.
“Why do you all keep saying him or his or he? What’s his name?”
“I’ll explain before we get off. Stay strong.”
“Eh?”
He tapped his temple and walked away.
How idiosyncratic. . .
Lauren found Kat in the hallway going towards the mess hall.
“Hi.”
“Hey there.”
“Do you mind showing me around?”
Kat bobbed her head back-and-forth a few times, indecisive about what needs to get done, the time she has to do it and her wish to show Lauren around. “Su—Sure. Let’s start at the heart of the ship and we’ll go from there. I need a tool I have in my cabin to finish some repairs.”
“Sounds good.”
They walked back into the mess hall. Nate almost bumped into Kat as he came out of his cabin. “Oh. . . sorry.”
“No worries, Nathan.” She brushed past as they made their way to her cabin.
“Hey. . . Got a second?”
Lauren turned around and realized that she should excuse herself, somewhere, anywhere. “Let me go grab something I left in my cabin,” she announced. They both gave appreciating looks.
Once Lauren was inside her cabin, Nate said, “I’m sorry.”
Kat tilted her head. “For what?”
“For being an ass, I don’t want you going anywhere.”
“And?”
“And you’re the best engineer in the galaxy.”
“Good. I’d like a dinner.”
“A dinner?”
“Yes, a dinner. I want you to show your appreciation. So you better prep. You can do it after we deal with him.”
“You think its dumb?”
“Of course its dumb. You know that. She is relying on you to do this.” Kat was referring to Princess Wooshuda. She stressed the ‘she’ so that Nate wouldn’t slip up—because Astraos could be within earshot.
“I know.” He scratched the comings of a beard. “I want to know what she’s up to. And we could use the extra scratch.”
Kat looked up, daydreaming. “We could have this ship looking vintage.”
“Vintage?”
“Nate, face it. It’s been long out of date.”
“Ships don’t fly like this anymore.”
She ignored the comment—nothing would pry Nate from this ship besides cold hands, long dead. “What happens when you know the game?”
“We play or we don’t. She’s never been on the wrong side.”
“We’ve only played for one.”
“Yeah. . . but it feels right.”
Kat asked, “So we’re playing?”
“Yeah, probably”—Nate chuckled, scratching at his scalp—“what else can we do?”
“We can pack up.”
He smirked. “Too much skin in the game.”
“I know. I want that dinner, though.”
“You got it.”
Kat walked away, grabbed the tool in her cabin and knocked on Lauren’s cabin door.
“Ready?”
“Absolutely.”
They went down to the ship’s belly. A tube about fifteen-feet high housed a yellow object.
“Wow.”
In the fiery purple glow inside the belly of the beast, Kat appeared even more striking and beautiful than Lauren had realized. She had pouty lips and big oval hazel eyes with long eyelashes and a sculpted neckline, the scales that appeared intermittently throughout her face and neck only highlighted her model-esque features. Her body was delicate but clearly powerful, she looked like she was the wet dream of
every man she encountered.
She caught Lauren staring. “You’re pretty enticing yourself.”
“Uh. . .” Lauren stammered on, “I didn’t—”
She dismissed Lauren with a wave her hand. “Have you seen how Astraos looks at you?”
“I—”
Kat roared with laughter. “You two are hopeless.”
Lauren’s auto response to being questioned in a way that seems like an attack, was to be very defensive, and at times, spit venom back. “What about you and Nate?”
Kat hit a button and smacked something, a device twirled in the air and she caught it, placing it into her pocket. “Caught that, didn’t you?” She stared at Lauren with eyes that made her feel small, inconsequential.
“I’ve seen it before. Force of wills either makes a great couple or a terrible one.” Lauren shrugged. “Everybody’s different.”
Kat strutted over to Lauren, making her quake in her shoes. She took a deep breath. Everything’s okay. You just pissed off a badass alien woman with a tool in her hand and a few inches on you. All good.
Kat came up close to Lauren and made a motion with her left arm that held the tool, causing Lauren to flinch. Kat laughed and put her arm around Lauren’s shoulder. “Well said.” She tapped Lauren with the tool on her stomach. “Don’t be so worried. You can assert yourself. You should assert yourself.”
Lauren shook her head vehemently. “I feel like a third wheel out here.”
“Huh?”
“It’s an expression. I mean, uh, I’m just mixed up.”
“Look, Lauren, you are valuable. You have thoughts and ideas. When they come up, don’t be afraid to speak. Don’t be scared to tell us to fuck off and storm into your cabin.” She tapped Lauren on the chest with the tool. “Don’t change who you are. You’re a part of this until you decide not to be. No one’s holding you prisoner here.”
“Can I go home?”
“Do you want to?”
Lauren turned this over for a moment. The truth was, she really didn’t. She wanted to see where this adventure would go. The nagging in her head that her mom could still be alive made the thought feel disgusting. “I don’t.”