Deep Space Endeavor 3 Death Match

by Ron Francis

  Garrinoras tentatively approached Marcos’ position. He was in no hurry to engage in combat using his off hand, but he knew he needed to injure the human at least once to be able to continue. He began to look for an opening, but there wasn’t any. Marcos was too fast and too disciplined a warrior. How is it possible for a human to be so disciplined? There cannot possibly be any truth to the rumors that Marcos almost died of death brush fever just a couple months ago. There is no way he could have made it back to full strength so quickly, and given such an impressive showing to boot. I am really going to enjoy watching this human die, quite possibly more than I have ever enjoyed watching another being die, and I have killed many beings. Somehow, the anticipation of Jesse Marcos’ death was the sweetest thing he had ever tasted. It was only a matter of time before his army of drapad hunters got to Marcos and injured him just enough for a humiliating death at the hands of the superior being.

  ______

  Mayor Valinor was almost giddy. Jesse clearly won yesterday’s battles and he knew he would have been able to get in the recovery pod last night. That should give him a significant edge over the big pirate. He had not allowed Kiah to watch any of the battle. He did not want her to worry for her hero. He was so grateful to Jesse for giving them Kiah. She had completely changed their lives. She was so loving, and fun. She rarely complained. Jesse had even kept his distance to an extent, allowing them to get to know her. They were secure enough now where they would let him visit whenever he wanted. He had risked his life for their little girl and he would always be her favorite person. He thought it was adorable that she still considered Commando to be her best friend. Jesse had really come through for them. Now he was coming through for the whole sector. Those ships King Dominus sent to protect Jesse had saved them from losing the important opening battle, and just might keep the sector from descending into chaos. When he learned of their arrival, he screamed in triumph. It was as if a giant weight lifted and he knew everything was going to work out.

  He needed to stay in constant contact with the Chairman, Chief of State Enosal and Admirals Dyson and Togglasem. He would have a busy day, and he could allow himself no reprieve until Garrinoras was in the ground and Jesse was safe. He could not bear to think of what he would have to tell Kiah should anything happen to her hero.

  ______

  Jesse thought it strange that Garrinoras wasn’t as aggressive as usual. Maybe it was the injuries catching up with him, or the sword being in his left hand, but he knew he had to take advantage of Garrinoras’ ineffectiveness. He blocked another strike and quickly pivoted to his right. He brought his sword around in a tight arc and struck at Garrinoras’ side. The pirate was able to block his attack, but just barely. He countered with a right-handed punch that just missed Jesse’s face. He followed with a slash that would have connected had Jesse not rolled forward after the punch missed. He was now behind his opponent and he connected with a stab in the same area of the knee he had stabbed earlier with his staff. Garrinoras roared in pain as the pirate crowd rained their hatred down on Jesse with the most creative string of invectives he had ever heard. As the pirate brought his sword around, Jesse was able to slash at the hand holding the sword. He left a deep gash, causing Garrinoras to drop his weapon. He knew he had his enemy on the ropes, but then Garrinoras did something unexpected. Instead of trying to retrieve his weapon, he tackled Jesse. He began to rain down blows as the crowd went wild. Most of his shots were being blocked by Jesse, but a couple were getting through. He still wore the heavy glove on his right hand and he drove it into Jesse’s ribs three or four times before Jesse got his leg around Garrinoras’ head and knocked him off. Garrinoras had landed a couple hard shots to his face and had definitely damaged his ribs. He rolled away from the big pirate and came to his feet first. He charged his opponent as he was trying to stand and hit him in the face with a flying knee. Garrinoras went down again, but as he rolled, he came up with his sword and thrust it into Jesse’s shoulder. Somehow, it was sharp enough to go through the battle suit and almost three inches into his body. He cried out in pain as Garrinoras came around for another strike, but Jesse dodged and rolled as he found his own weapon and brought it to bear. With the shoulder wound he could no longer attempt a two handed overhand strike and he didn’t imagine he would be blocking anything that came in too hard. Luckily for him, Garrinoras’ burst of rage seemed to have drained him. The two battered fighters slowly circled each other as each crowd continued to cheer on their hero, while cursing their opponent.

  Jesse was in agony; his breathing was shallow and his shoulder as on fire. Blood was flowing freely down the front of his battle suit and his ribs stabbed him with pain every time he took a breath. He knew he was in trouble. He didn’t have any exo-skeletons that would allow him to move and fight with injured limbs. When he hurt something, it was out of the fight for the rest of the day. He watched as Garrinoras continued breathing heavily after his last attack. He had the smile of a man that knew he had just won. Jesse had to hand it to him, it was a good move to take him down like that, but he was in no way out of this fight. Garrinoras’ smile let Jesse know that he was still underestimating him and that thought was almost a comfort through the pain.

  Jesse gathered himself to go at his opponent again. Just then, Jesse heard growling from several directions. Garrinoras smiled as he imagined his drapad hunters overrunning the troublesome human. His smile faded as eight of the big Ginderian hunting cats burst through the trees with a frightening roar followed by the deep barking of two snow wolves coming from the other direction. A wild melee ensued as Jesse continued to circle his surprised enemy. “When you brought out more than five, my men went back to the ship and got the rest of ours,” he smiled as he answered the pirate’s unasked question.

  “It is still no matter, you will die and all of your people and beasts with you.”

  “When are you going to learn to stop underestimating me?” Jesse mocked as he realized there were still more of the pirate’s beasts than his, even though his beasts were tearing through them, so he began to slowly back away from his enemy and towards the contestant tunnel. Garrinoras slowly approached, careful to stay out of striking distance. He taunted as he moved. “The great Colonel Marcos retreating from battle,” he theatrically yelled to the pleasure of the pirate crowd. “I always knew you were a coward.” I just need one of my pets to take him down hard again and this battle will be over. He mused as he tiredly continued circling his opponent.

  “I’m not retreating,” Jesse yelled back, mocking the theatrical style Garrinoras had just used. “I’m just making sure all of your beasts are in front of me, oh not-so-mighty Garrinoras.” He knew his taunt would enflame both his enemy and the crowd. “Why would anyone call you mighty? The only thing you seem to be good at is getting beat up by me.” I hope I can anger him into making a mistake like Jaketh did on Pandara. With his anger management issues, it shouldn’t be too difficult.

  Garrinoras thought he would explode. This human scum was openly mocking him in front of the galaxy, in his own death match. “Stop calling me that, you, insignificant human worm,” he screamed. “I shall kill you and everyone aboard your precious ship. Then I shall make your woman my slave and burn your doctor friend alive. I know she is like a sister to you, and you shall lose her like you lost your precious Rebecca, all those years ago. You weren’t man enough to protect your women then, and you’re not man enough to protect your women now.” He laughed as his supporters cheered wildly at the thought of the human’s pain.

  He’s threatening Suzy and openly mocking Rebecca’s death. At this point, I don’t think I’ll have any reservations killing him this afternoon, conscious or not. It was now Jesse’s turn for anger, but instead of words or unfocused rage, he concentrated as he took two quick steps forward and swung at Garrinoras, head. He swung just a little high to set up his next move. As Garrinoras ducked to avoid the high strike, Jesse’s knee came up into his face. Then, the handle of hi
s sword came down hard on the back of his head. Before he hit the ground, a front kick did some more damage to his face. Jesse began moving towards him and there was murder in his eyes. The crowd had gone silent as he replied in carefully measured tones. “This afternoon, there will be no horn to save you. You will die and no one will mourn you. Most importantly, the alliance you have tried so hard to destroy will prosper.” He knocked the pirate’s sword away and brought his own sword down on his opponent’s knee. The Hyperian battle sword was one of the sharpest weapons in the galaxy and he knew it was only a matter of time before he ruined that exo-skeleton for good. He finally heard the satisfying sound of metal breaking followed by a deep throaty cry of agony.

  There was no longer any way for his opponent to stand, but he was far from finished. He wanted to end any chance Garrinoras would have in the final session right now. He swung his sword to try and amputate his enemy’s arm. Each hack brought a new cry from his opponent, and somehow his pain was music to Jesse’s ears. He continued to swing even though each swing was painful for him as well. I would already have his arm if I could swing with two hands. He was almost halfway through the exo-skeleton when predictably, the horn sounded early again. He slowly backed away from his enemy as the Zinnebailans once again loaded their fallen leader onto the cart to give him a ride back to his tunnel. Jesse dropped all pretenses of the fake limp and began walking back to his tunnel. His ribs and shoulder were in excruciating pain. His pets slowly followed behind him, on the alert for any more of Garrinoras’ beasts.

  He made it to the tunnel, where a concerned Kimi sat him down on the back of their hover cart. She tenderly began taking off his battle suit jacket, and then began to lift his shirt to tend his wounds. Jesse began smiling through his pain. Kimi blushed a little as she asked, “What are you smiling about, Jesse?” She continued removing his shirt, hoping she knew as she awaited his reply.

  “I don’t know, I guess I just always thought this moment would be a little bit more romantic.” He smiled again as she blushed some more. She playfully hit his arm as she thought about the conversation she had earlier with Suzy.

  “If you live through this afternoon, we can talk about that,” she playfully responded, slightly embarrassed at how flustered she felt and very surprised that she didn’t really mind. She could not wait to be with him. For six years, he had been the only one she had ever thought about and now that she was over the hurt of seeing him with someone else, he was all she thought about once again. Only this time, she knew he felt the same way.

  “Hey, do you two need a minute?” Josiah joked to the amusement of the entire entourage. By now, even the Ginderian soldiers knew of the saga Jesse and Kimi’s relationship, or lack thereof, had become. Jesse just laughed as Kimi gently rubbed the medicated cream over his ribs and bandaged them up before moving on to his shoulder. She bandaged them tight and added an extra layer for added protection. She cleaned his shoulder wound and put some medicine on it as well. She bandaged that up, but not as much, because she knew he would prefer ease of movement to less pain for the last session. When she was done, she slowly put a new shirt on him. He was still smiling at her and once again, she felt herself feeling flustered. He took a long drink from the energy supplement in his canteen and then lay down on the cart. Kimi dutifully stood guard over her injured leader, upset that he still had to go through this one more time. Josiah squeezed her shoulder for reassurance and she was thankful for his understanding. She promised herself Jesse would know exactly where she stood when this death match was over if he didn’t already.

  Chapter seven

  ______

  Ariel was finally starting to feel a little bit like her old self. She had energy, a healthier outlook, even a little bit of a bounce in her step. She still had nearly a month before she could return to duty and she was beginning to go stir crazy. The surgeon had done a fantastic job repairing her face from the damage the Dragon had caused. She could barely see the tiny scar just below her ear. It was a tiny imperfection on her beautiful face, but she almost found it endearing. It reminded her that her people had helped her survive the worst the galaxy had to throw at her. Nina was still vowing vengeance and had come in several times to make absolutely certain that Ladyhawk was correct on the identities of the eleven known members of the Enclave. She wasn’t sure she liked where Nina was headed with that information. There wasn’t much she wouldn’t do to protect her family, especially now that a new secret family member had come to them. Nina, Serge, Manny and she were the only people in the galaxy that knew Lana Evans’ true family lineage. Terri had died almost four weeks ago, and Lana had been devastated. Even though she had known it was coming, it hadn’t been any easier for the girl. She had just lost the only parent she had ever known. Having Nina, Serge and herself available had helped Lana, but she would be given as much time as she needed to mourn.

  Ariel contemplated Lana as her thoughts turned to her new niece. Lana is so much like Jesse in so many ways. She loves to play football, and she is fantastic at it, too. She is always unleashing many of the juggling tricks Jesse frequently does, catching the ball on her foot, going from knee to knee. There isn’t much she can’t do with a soccer ball. Jesse is gonna love her so much. The thought of seeing Jesse interact with his daughter made her smile. Lana is picking up martial arts very quickly through her training with Jason. It’s nice that he’s also training Raina and Serge’s nephew Dmitri with her, they’re all about the same age and she needs the friends. Poor girl, all her friends are on Earth. Jesse is gonna be excited to see how smart she is, too. She already knows how to speak six languages. Science isn’t really a strong suit, but the Marcos family intelligence is definitely there. People are gonna start figuring out who she is soon because the kid looks so much like Nina and because she spends so much time with us. We have to get her some more stuff to do if we want people to really think she’s one of the other interns. Maybe giving her more to do will help her get her mind off her mom. Ariel thought about that for a while and then her thoughts returned to how Jesse would react when he found out about her.

  As much as she knew he would love her, Ariel also knew how upset Jesse would be when he finally found out. She knew her cousin as well as anyone. She knew that Lana would remind him of what he was never able to have with Rebecca, and that would hurt. What would hurt him even more, however, was that he had missed her whole life. He would definitely feel like it was his fault, even though there was no way he could have ever known. He would have that deep regret, but she had no doubt her cousin would love her from the moment he realized she was his. Once he got past the hurt, she couldn’t wait to see how Jesse interacted with his daughter. While she was thinking about her cousin and her niece, Lana approached her. Her eyes were still sad and she had a question.

  “Captain Marcos,” she began sadly.

  “Miss Evans, please follow me to the conference room where we can speak more privately.” She hated to be so formal with Jesse’s daughter, but she had to continue the ruse for as long as possible, hopefully until Jesse returned in six months. When they were alone, Ariel flashed her niece a big smile and said, “Sorry about that, Lana, I’m sorry about this whole charade.” As she gave her niece a gentle hug, her side still hurt when she moved her arm too quickly or extended it too far.

  “It’s all right, Aunt Ariel,” Lana replied and they both smiled. Both of them knew that they were second cousins, but Jesse would insist that Ariel was Lana’s aunt because he had always treated Ariel like his little sister. Manny, Serge and Nina had already started calling her Aunt Ariel.

  “What can I do for you, sweetie?”

  “I’m terribly bored. Is there any way I can get off the ship, at least for a little while. Aunt Nina always says it’s too dangerous, but no one knows that my father is Jesse Marcos, so how is it dangerous?”

  “You’ve got a point there, kiddo. Aunt Nina can be overprotective sometimes.” She sent her a sympathetic look as she though
t about the necessity of it.

  “Raina says that the defensive improvements to her house and everyone else’s houses will be done in a couple days, and then I won’t even be able to train with her and Dmitri anymore. Is there anything you can do?”

  Ariel knew all of the people close to them were getting ready to go back to their lives. They couldn’t stay on the Vanguard forever. She also knew Nina had spared no expense to make them as safe as possible; home defense systems, shielded vehicles and discreet personal protection. Once that was all in place, their guests would be gone. She knew that the ship would become even lonelier for Lana when that happened. “I’ll see what I can do. I would love to take you to my favorite restaurant, but the assassins blew it up when they first tried to kill your Aunt Nina and me. Maybe we can get Jason to take you and Raina somewhere fun.” Lana lit up with excitement and hugged Ariel. “Hey, kiddo, I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try. How are you doing with everything else?”