Deep Space Endeavor 3 Death Match

by Ron Francis

  She stealthily exited his room not wanting to wake him and went to find Josiah. She was really worried about Jesse and wanted to see if Josiah shared her concerns. She found him talking with Collin, Reece and Kimi in the galley and decided to share her concerns with all of them. “Josiah,” she called out as she entered the room. “Jesse seems to be obsessing about this death match and I’m worried about him. I’ve never seen him obsess about anything before. He is training until he is literally too tired to move. He fell asleep while we were talking in his quarters; he’s never done that before, Jo. Have you noticed anything?”

  “I have noticed, Suzy, you have every right to be worried about Jesse, I think we all are. He’s never faced a situation like this before and remember, he is basically doing this for someone he doesn’t even like. For the first time in as long as I’ve known him, he actually thinks there’s a chance he could lose.”

  “What do we do about it, Josiah? He has been acting strangely ever since he found out about the death match. I really don’t think he wants to do it and I think that’s affecting him as well. The biggest thing I’ve noticed besides how much he’s been training is that he hasn’t told one stupid joke in almost two weeks. In all the time I’ve known him, that’s never happened. Not to mention that I honestly think he’s not yet fully recovered from his bout with death brush fever. He’s not quite as strong as he was and he doesn’t currently have the stamina I know he possesses. I don’t think he’s ready for this. Garrinoras is a monster and he’s never lost a fight. I just have a bad feeling.”

  “So what can we do about it? Should we make him drop out of the match and just take off back to Hyperia? What should we do?” Josiah asked in frustration.

  “I do not know what we can do,” Kimi added. “Jesse would never go back on his word, and he would never forgive himself if millions of people died in a war he could have prevented. We cannot make him leave. Not to mention that we have a ship full of guests that would not be happy with that decision. I think the best thing we can do for him is be supportive and remind him that he’s not doing this for Cassie, he’s doing this so he can rid the galaxy of a great evil.”

  Suzy looked around the room and said in a voice that was almost a whisper, “I don’t know if that’s going to be enough.”

  “He may not be at full strength, but he still has the benefit of all his training and a stronger will than anyone I’ve ever known. It was his will that kept him going on Pandara when his body was trying to shut down. This will not be a one-sided fight. Jesse will hold his own and I’m convinced he’s gonna win, I’m more worried about the cost of his victory. No matter what happens, when he comes back we reassure him he did the right thing.” Collin added with a passion they rarely saw from the big, quiet man.

  “I agree, Collin, Jesse will come through this and we need to be there for him when he does.” Josiah added. “I just hope we didn’t force him to fight a battle he can’t win.

  “I can’t lose him, Jo, he’s my only family.”

  “I’m not dead yet, Suzy,” Jesse laughed as he entered the galley. “And no one has forced me to do anything, Jo. I’m a big boy and I made my own decision. Garrinoras needs to go and I’m the best shot at making that happen. End of debate. Sure, I’m not happy about seeing Cassie again, but that’s beside the point.”

  “Jess, I’m sorry, we didn’t mean anything,” Collin started.

  “It’s alright, Collin, I know you guys are just worried about me. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about me, too. People think I’m really brave, but what most of them don’t realize is that I get scared, too, and I prefer not to be scared. It’s just hard for me to admit that sometimes.” He looked at his crew mulling over what he just said and began to make himself a sandwich. Reece started laughing as Jesse finished and waved as he left the galley, sandwich in hand.

  “I don’t think we really need to worry too much about him,” Reece concluded.

  ______

  As Jesse finished his snack, his mind flashed back to seventeen years earlier on the frozen planet he had finished his training on. That situation was the first time Jesse knew he would make a good leader. Others had seen it in him, but he was pretty laid back. He liked to go with the flow. On that mission, when push came to shove, it was he that had come up with the plan.

  [“I say we call Sergeant Kelly on the transmitter.” Manny insisted. He didn’t like their odds at all.

  “And what if this is part of the test? Are you willing to put your commission on the line? Because I’m not,” Collin replied.

  “Even if it’s not officially part of the test, it is now. Sergeant Kelly expects us to adapt and overcome, not call for him to come hold our hands because we’ve come across some hunters and villagers on an uninhabited world.” When Jesse had finished speaking, they all knew he was right.

  “So, what’s the plan then?” Josiah asked him.

  “What are you asking him for?” Thomas angrily replied. “He’s not in charge, no one is. What if I had a plan?”

  “Let’s hear it then,” Josiah challenged.

  Thomas put his head down. “That’s not the point; someone else could have had a plan.”

  “I bet Jesse already does.” Josiah replied.

  “Let’s just make it official,” Melendez began. “Everyone who wants Jesse to lead us, raise your hand.” Everyone raised their hand except Thomas, Manny and Jesse. Melendez looked at Jesse and asked, “What, you don’t want to be the leader, Jess.”

  “No, it’s not that. I just didn’t want anyone to think I was trying to make myself leader so I thought I should refrain from voting.”

  “Well, it’s official; you’re the leader, what’s the plan?” Josiah asked.

  “First things first, we need to get some of their weapons, maybe even one of their speeders.”

  “How do you propose we do that?” Manny asked, still not happy that they had chosen a leader on the spot like that. “It could be dangerous, going up against armed men while we have no weapons.”

  “No weapons?” Jesse repeated incredulously. “We’re Special Forces soldiers. We have our minds, our training and our knives. Three of us will infiltrate their camp tomorrow. We wait until the bulk of them are on the hunt and then we go in and see if they’ve left anything useful behind. If they haven’t, we try again tomorrow night. In the meantime, we take shifts watching the camp tonight. Two men each shift, for an hour and a half at a time. There’s a good chance they saw or heard our drop ship and will probably come looking for it at some point. We need to wake up bright and early and start looking for alternate campsites. As soon as they see the ship and the remains of this site, they’ll know they’re not alone. I’d like to have some of their weapons before they find out about us. I’m making Josiah my second-in-command.”

  “Why? Because he’s your pal?” Thomas mocked while Manny shook his head in agreement.

  “No, because I know him best out of everyone here and I know his skills and talents. Having that information will enable me to set multiple plans into motion with someone leading a group that I know what to expect from.”

  “It’s a good plan, guys,” Collin started. “No one’s saying you have to like Jesse or his plan, and when this week is over you probably won’t even be in the same unit, but the vote is in and for now, he’s our leader. We need everyone working together if we’re gonna help those people.” Everyone shook their heads and Thomas and Manny put up their hands as if in surrender. A short while later, the camp was quiet as eight of the men went to sleep while Josiah and Manny took the first watch.

  “First watch and last watch are best,” Manny explained. “Then you don’t have to wake up in the middle and then try and get back to sleep for a little while after you’re already awake.”

  “I agree, it’s a good call. Hey, Manny, what’s your problem with Jesse anyway? I know Thomas wanted to lead, even though no one else wants him to,
but you don’t seem to care about leading, so what’s the problem?”

  “I don’t really know to be honest with you.” He hesitated slightly before continuing. “I guess it’s just that Jesse seems to be the golden boy all the time. Course records for the obstacle course. Course records for marksmanship. Commendations for bravery, even those intricate designs he doodles as if he’s ever gonna invent something. I guess I just don’t always want to see him get the top spot.”

  “I can see how that might bother some people. At least he’s not a jerk about it.”

  “I guess you’re right about that,” Manny agreed.

  Early the next morning, Jesse was on his way with Simons and Melendez. Thomas, Josiah and Davis were the backup plan, while Collin, Manny, Finley and Rivera broke down the campsite and took whatever they thought would be needed with them. Jesse’s team made it into the hunter’s camp and noticed that they had left four men behind to guard the camp, along with the villagers that were forced to serve them. Jesse noticed that the villagers were kept in a cage, which instantly made him angry. While Melendez kept watch for anyone that might see them, Jesse and Simons found what they were looking for: a crate packed with brand new, standard issue military blasters. What are they doing with these? He wondered as he took ten of the sixteen blasters along with all of the other blaster’s power supplies and extra power supplies. They couldn’t carry all of the blasters with them, but the remaining blasters would be ineffective with no power. He knew they would be missed pretty quickly once the rest of the hunters returned, but hopefully by then they would have a campsite set up a lot further away from the hunters. They were about to leave the supply tent when Jesse noticed another military issue crate and opened it up to see dozens of grenades. He decided to take some of those as well. He filled a satchel to the top with thirty-one grenades and handed it to Simons. Simons was also carrying three blasters. Jesse carried seven and handed three to Melendez when they exited the tent. Melendez also took one from Simons so he could more easily carry the grenades. They left the campsite through the furthest tent from the fire as the hunters were returning from the hunt. They needed to double time it back to the rest of their group because their theft would likely be found out soon.

  They met up with Josiah’s group and took off for the new campsite. They were still outnumbered, but at least they would be armed should it come to a fight.]

  Jesse finished his snack and pushed the memories of the frozen planet out of his mind. He lay down on his bed for what might be the last time and he hoped for sleep. Suzy and the rest of the crew were right to be worried; he was, too. Oddly enough, he was more worried about how upset Suzy seemed than he was about himself. He made it a point to spend some time comforting Suzy before he left for the Stadium in the morning.

  ______

  Collin found Josiah later that night and approached him apprehensively. “Hey, Jo, can I talk to you for a minute?”

  “Yeah sure, Collin, what’s up?”

  “I know this might not be the best time to be thinking about this, with the death match and all, but I gotta talk to someone about it.”

  “What’s on your mind; is everything ok?”

  “What? Yeah, it’s fine. In fact, it’s great. I’m thinking about asking Bessa to marry me, what do you think, Jo? Be honest, even bring up stuff I might not have thought about.”

  “First off, that’s great, we all love Bessa and you guys are great together. I’m happy for you.”

  “But?”

  “There is no but, only a couple things to think about.” Collin nodded for him to continue, so he did. “If you marry her, and we go back to Earth, she’ll be the only non-human on Earth, and given our recent history, aliens are not really welcome right now.”

  “But surely they’ll be able to tell the difference, right?”

  “Some will, but a lot won’t. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it, it’s just something to think about.”

  “You said a couple; what else?”

  “Have you thought about how your family will react? If you come home from this mission married, to a non-human, do you know how they’ll react? I know we’ve all told Bessa that our friends and family will love her when they meet her, and I believe that to be the case. Anyone that takes five minutes to get to know Bessa will find it impossible not to like her, but it becomes a different story when you are now telling them she’s part of the family.”

  “I hadn’t thought about that,” Collin admitted.

  “Again, Collin, it’s not a reason not to go through with it, it’s just something to think about. They might have a hard time with it at first, but once they see how truly happy you are and how much you love each other, they’ll get over it. It will still be awkward for a little while, though.”

  “That’s true, but I still have no desire to see her experience any of that discomfort, especially from my family. I’ll have to give that some more thought.”

  “Collin, it all comes down to which means more to you. A lifetime with the woman you love, even if it starts out a little awkward, or the approval of your parents. It seems to me, this is the type of thing you do without asking and then wait for them to get over it. Because if you ask them and they say no, it will be much harder for them to get over it if you do it anyway.”

  “That’s a good point, too. I’m glad I brought this to you. Could you do me another favor?”

  “Of course, I won’t mention it to anyone.”

  “Thanks, man.” He gave him a quick embrace and went on his way to weigh his options. He knew Josiah was right. He wanted to be with Bessa more than anything. He would ask her, and marry her in this galaxy if she says yes.

  Chapter two

  ______

  ……… Back on Telos, Captain Ariel Marcos was beyond frightened; she was so terrified she could barely move. How is this possible? She had just closed her eyes after returning from a long journey to secretly see her cousin on Polisia. The lights were out and there was someone else in the room with her. This room was supposed to be secure. I have two trusted bodyguards outside, how could someone have gotten in my room? All of these thoughts were racing through her mind as her body tensed for the unknown. Her thoughts took her right to the worst possible place and she lay there frozen in terror. She thought about crying out, but could barely muster a sound. When the mystery voice spoke again, it was no less eerie the second time.

  “Do not bother screaming, the walls of these rooms are virtually sound proof, and the two men you had stationed outside your room have been…relieved of duty. I must admit, I was surprised to find an empty room being guarded by two men, so I decided to wait for you to return. I was even more surprised when you entered the room, not through the doorway as one would expect, but through a wall. I am as well traveled as anyone in the galaxy, and I never knew this resort featured rooms with secret passageways. That information will prove most useful next time I stay here.”

  Ariel stealthily reached the lights while the mystery man was still speaking and turned them on to see an Asian man reclining in the chair across the room from her bed.

  “Who are you and what do you want?” Ariel asked as she stood in a defensive position.

  “I am someone that has been sent with a message for Sea Side Enterprises. Would you like to hear it?”

  “There are easier ways to reach me than tracking me down while I’m on vacation. Now, who are you?” She didn’t expect an answer. She had pushed the panic button in her bracelet and was stalling, hoping her rescue would arrive in time. She may not know who this man was, but she knew who he worked for and she knew what his message was. She just had no idea that she was on the Enclave’s hit list yet.

  The assassin had no doubt guessed her intention as the lights went out and darkness once again filled the room. She stood perfectly still, listening for even the slightest hint of movement. She may have been terrified, but she was no easy target. She had been
training with Earth’s best Special Forces units since she was thirteen years old. She would not go down easy. She was happy she was able to slip her shoes on and she didn’t think her assassin had noticed either. She was about to turn on her portable lighting unit when she heard it. The ever so slight metallic ring of a dagger being drawn from its sheath. It had come from her left, so she took a gamble and kicked out hard to her right. She connected and she heard a grunt. She was able to turn on the portable, but a kick to the hand sent it flying onto the bed. Just enough light was emanating from the portable to throw the room into shadows. Her attacker took a step back, and Ariel thought she saw him smile.