A PALE HORSE

DARK ELF FIRE MAGE PYROBLAST! I WILL DEFEAT YOU, ARCHIMONDE! Peter was wrested from his battle with the sorcerer by a persistent poking in is side. He rolled over and promptly fell out of the cot that he had been laying on. He heard a laugh from above him and opened his eyes to see a grinning Abe smiling down at him.

“Have a nice trip?” Abe chuckled again at his own humor and offered a hand up to Peter who grumbled.

“Very funny Abe. Where is Sam? I’d hate for him to miss an opportunity to share in a laugh at my expense.”

“His boss called him just as we were landing the plane. It seems that he is on his way to the airport as we speak to pick up the stuff his father purchased,.” Abe explained. He motioned Peter back to the cot, and Peter stowed it and took his place in the jump seat. Abe gave him a serious look, conveying the gravity of what he was about to tell him. “Sam has been telling me about the men that are associated with his boss. These are not the type of dudes you want to get caught up with, Peter. These are some really bad guys. Sam wants me to make sure that you do not get in the way while he is talking with his boss, so you and I are going to get your paperwork in order and speak with the people in charge about moving your cargo to the Igromir Expo. Let’s go.” Abe motioned him towards the back of the plane where they were offloading cargo. As they were walking to the main building, Peter watched a procession of cars, and one big moving truck, flow through an open gate and wind their way to the cargo plane. Just before he and Abe disappeared into the building, Peter saw Sam come down the ramp at the back of the cargo section and greet the large man at the front. Then the large door closed. Sam could tell that this was not going to be easy when he saw the scowl on Max Avatov’s face. He looked over and found Boris watching him as well.

Ah, so that’s his play, he thought. This is going to be for the benefit of Lev’s nephew stooge. Sam expected a good dressing down in the presence of the driver, so he mentally prepared himself to take it. Max had such a look of intense displeasure that Sam knew it was being affected for Boris’ benefit. Max never lets too much get to him, and he would never have that look on his face naturally. I’ll play it up, he thought. This is always fun. He approached Max, hand out, and shook with the large man. “Max.”, he said gruffly. “What’s happening?”

“My father,” Max ground out with his teeth clenched, “has requested that I come find out how the cargo from his last shipment went missing and how he had not heard of this loss the day it happened. Why,” he continued, huffily, “in fact, he had to find out from the person to whom the goods were to be delivered.” Max’s piercing blue eyes bored into Sam. Sam lost the smile from his face.

Here we go… gotta make this good!, he thought. “I delivered your cargo just as you directed. I cannot help what happens to it after that. I didn’t know about it until just before I left and I thought it prudent to leave as soon as possible without causing a scene. I would have hated to have to welcome the authorities aboard my plane before we left Lakeside,” Sam said hotly. “I delivered that cargo just as I am about to deliver this stuff.” Max waited a moment before turning to Boris.

“Have the men retrieve the cargo, and, Boris...” he drilled Boris with a menacing look, “be careful. We want no further incidents.” Max turned away from Boris and Sam saw such a menacing look of complete hatred engulf Boris’ features that he was sure Max could feel it even if he didn’t see it. Boris turned and caught Sam looking at him. With a look of pure distaste and an evil grin, he turned on his heel and barked orders at the remaining men. Max and Sam watched them march to the back of the plane and disappear through the opening. Max turned to Sam with a grin. “Sorry about that. A job well done, Sam. I take it they all got away safely?” Sam was used to the charade the two of them put on for others by now and grinned back at him.

“It was epic! We had it all- action, fantasy, robots...” Sam told him. “It wasn’t easy and without help, would have been doomed to failure.”

Max raised an eyebrow and asked, “A robot? Care to explain?” Sam laughed.

“I will but not until they leave,” he said, bobbing his head towards the men exiting the plane. Four of them held a rather large crate with the final two sharing the load of the last, smaller crate. The six men continued to unload the rest of the smaller crates until only the largest remained, which needed to be removed by forklift.

Boris appeared shortly and said to his cousin, “It is done. Are you coming?” Max stood with an unreadable expression on his face.

“No, I need to … review with the pilot what happens when a shipment is lost and how, in the future, there will not be any more lost shipments.” Sam threw up his hands and looked at Max nervously, while Boris grinned at the possibility of violence.

“I told you I dropped off the package to that geezer! It‘s not my fault he lost it.”

Max feigned ignoring Sam irritatedly, and instead said to Boris, “Give me the keys. You can hitch a ride in the truck.”

“I think that I should remain with you, Maxim. In case,” Boris said.

Sam could tell that Max was seething inwardly at the implication from his cousin that he needed to be checked up on, and with a voice of frozen steel, Max said, “You will go with the men and deliver these things to the lab for testing. Report back to my father. Never call me Maxim, only my father uses that name.” Boris didn’t try to hide the dislike on his face for the reprimand or the order. Sam could tell he was seriously pissed. Without another word to Max, Boris reached into his pocket and pulled out the keys to the Mercedes parked a few feet away, and when Max reached out for them, his cousin dropped them on the ground at Max’s feet. He then turned and walked to the Range Rover and, pulling the driver out of the front seat, took his place. The driver hurried to the truck and jumped in just as the Range Rover peeled away from the plane.

Sam turned to Max, “You sure know how to piss him off. He hates you, you know that?” Max grinned at him.

“Boris is bark only, and a foolish dog at that. I have had many years to practice on him, my friend. Come!”, Max said, slapping the pilot on the back and smiling, “Tell me of the adventure that you have had this time. What about this robot?” Sam grinned and pointed over Max’s shoulder at the two men walking out of the terminal building.

Max turned and spotted the men as Sam said, “I will explain it all and introduce you to the two men who helped me relieve our greasy friend of his cargo.” Sam waited with Max until the two men reached them and said, “Max, I would like to introduce my good friend, Abe Sims- ex-Army, all around great pilot, and pain in my ass.” The two men shook hands, and Sam motioned to the younger man coming up behind Abe. “... and this is my new friend, and the maker of some of the best robotics I have ever seen, Peter. Guys, this is Max Avatov. He is the one who gave me permission to liberate the girls after I had delivered them.” Max studied the two men.

So unalike, but likable, he thought. Abe, the older man, smiled when he shook his hand but the other just stood there looking at him.

“I know you…” he finally said. Max looked at him, confused. “You may not remember me, though I am sure you remember Momma Rose- she just about maimed you with her broom when you broke her favorite tea pot!” Peter laughed. “You were with that pretty redhead, right? Maggie? How are her feet?” Peter asked him, grinning Max scowled, he didn’t remember much about that night. Tequila was never his friend. He did remember the little French woman that grabbed his ear when he tripped over his own feet and smashed her teapot. Maggie had laughed at him, and there was a man that laughed along with her and got the old banshee to let him go. This must be his savior, since Maggie was laughing too hard to help him.

“Ah, I believe I owe you my life,” Max said with a grin. “I do not remember too many things from that night, but I remember the she-devil! She held me in a deathgrip by the ear until you told her to let me go. Peter intervened in what was surely a battle I could not win.” Max told the others with a sheepish grin pulling gently on his right earlobe. “Maggie made me pay her what was in my wallet as restitution. She did not realize that it was over a thousand dollars.” Peter was stunned! Momma Rose had not said how much she had received from Max but come to think of it, she did have a big smile on her face the next day.

“If I know her, and I do,” Peter said, “she still has every penny of your money stashed away in a spice jar in her kitchen. I can get it back to you anytime. I take care of everything she needs, anyway.”

“Nonsense, tovarisch!” Max said, laughing. “We are both men of means, obviously, and that encounter with that charming woman was delightful at any price!” Max smiled, shook Peter’s hand, and turned back to Sam while also including the others. “Anyway, I am dying to hear the story of your adventure!” Max said.

Sam gestured to the cargo hold and said, “I suggest that we move this party somewhere a little more private.” The four men walked into the now almost empty hold. The rest of the cargo with the exception of the three large crates holding Peter’s tech suits had been offloaded. Sam went and unfastened two folding chairs from where they were stowed on the wall and folded down a cot similar to the one Peter had slept on during the flight over. They all sat facing each other, and Sam started in, sharing details about their liberation operation. When he got to the part about Peter’s tech suits, Max’s curiosity got the better of him and he derailed the recitation with question after question. Peter and Max agreed to revisit the creations, after which the story went on to the grunch.

“As I said before, Max, Olivier was the oddball in this mess. I think he is a vampire and the grunch are under his control,” he finished.

Abe and Peter agreed with quiet nods of support, and Peter added, “These were not normal men. They moved faster than I have ever seen! And those grunch things…” Peter paused to contemplate his next words, “they are pure evil. Red-eyed, quick, darting out of the shadows… they didn’t verbalize that I could hear. They seem to communicate with each other telepathically. If one of them was hurt the others knew it and reacted. I’ve only ever read about such things in sci-fi books.” Max wasn’t sure about what the others were telling him. He found it very hard to believe in the supernatural, but with the relics that his father had collected over the years, the strange and obscure things in his private collection, and some of his nocturnal associates, he shouldn’t be surprised by the account of what happened that night.

“Gentlemen, I have not seen what you have seen, but I will tell you that there have been many strange items added to the Avatov collection in recent years. The more obscure or unbelievable, the more Lev wants it, usually by any means necessary.” Max looked at Peter, “May I see one of your creations?” Peter beamed and together they all stood and opened one of the crates still on board. Max caught his breath as the gleaming blue, mechanized armor suit appeared. It looked very much like he imagined. He had made a point to be present when his father spoke with Mr. Olivier, causing him to hear the retelling and description of the contraption. The metal was polished and sleek and, inside the crate, there was a sword as tall as the suit. The blade was etched and filled with a blue resin-type material. Peter explained that he designed the sword so that at a command from the device’s interior the sword would light up. The other item in the crate was smaller, but that did not diminish its menace. Max whistled and grabbed what he assumed was the gun that Peter used during the heist. It was smaller than the sword but had to measure around five feet long, it was solid black metal and looked to contain a rifled barrel and what looked to be a grenade launcher. Max assumed that the style was taken from the A1 grenade launcher that the US military uses, although this one had not one launcher, but three of varying sizes. “This gun is not practical.” Max said to Peter, “It is too big. I think that the suit could not handle both the sword and the gun at one time. It is impractical to have to put one away in order to use the other. Would there be a way to incorporate the blade and gun into one wieldable weapon? Also, I think that the color is not right for things that the mech would be utilized for. Black or carbon fibre would make much more sense, and cloaking is very practical, if”, he paused, looking at Peter meaningfully, “someone wished to make use of them for their intended purpose.” Remembering how he almost fumbled getting his gun put away and his sword out in the grunch attack left Peter wondering the same thing.

“A hard-learned lesson involving the weaponry makes me agree with you, but since these will be going to die-hard fans and private collectors, I don’t think they will mind,” he told Max.

“So you have them all sold, then?” Max asked him, and Peter could see his wheels turning. He considered the practical application of having a fully weaponized and optimized piece of armor that they could keep at their disposal for any other liberation missions that pop up.

“All except this one. This one will be on display this weekend and hopefully sold before the end of the expo.” Peter considered the weaponry and the other suggestions that Max had put forth.

“What do you call them?” Max asked.

Peter shrugged and said, “Well, I’ve been calling them BMS’s.”

“BMS’s?” Abe questioned.

“Uh… Big Metal Suits.”

The other three groaned and Sam said, “With all those brains, the only thing you could come up with is Big Metal Suits?”

Peter looked sheepish and said, “Hey! Isn’t it enough that I conceive and build them? I shouldn’t have to name them! I have people for that.”

“I think it might be time to upgrade the people,” Sam chuckled. “Why don’t you call them SAM’s?” he told him. “Stealth Armed Mobility Suits.”

Peter smiled, “Ooh, that is so much better. Can I use that?” he asked Sam, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Max grinned at the display as Sam said “Sure, kid. Just pay me my thirty-five percent.” The four of them closed the crate and Max sobered a little as he thought of the sensation these suits would bring here in St. Petersburg, which means, thought Max,

my father will find out. “Is there any way I could persuade you not to show your remaining suit at this expo, Peter?” Max asked him.

“Why would I want to do that?” Peter asked.

“Lev knows that his cargo was stolen by a very large robot. What do you think he will do if he finds out that there is a man who lives in New Orleans that is here in St Petersburg showing off his very large metal, armed, suits that happen to fit Olivier’s description?” Max looked at each of them and finally made his way back to Peter. “If I know my father, he would want to make an example of someone. These types of slights are not to be taken lightly, but crushed viciously and swiftly.”

Peter swallowed and said, “Well, two of the suits will leave from here, so they don’t have to leave the airport. The third one I was hoping to sell at the expo. I have a lot of capital tied up in these, and I need that money to get a jump on further orders,” Peter told him. “I’m sorry, Max, but I have to sell this last suit.”

“What if I bought it from you?” Max asked.

“If you bought it there would be no need to go to the expo at all,” Peter said to Max.

“Fine, then,” Max said, “I will buy the suit and Sam will take it back to Florida for storage away from St. Petersburg. You can attend the expo as a visitor instead of a vendor and Lev will not need to know,” Max finished. He turned and started for the exit to the cargo hold.

“No can do, Max. I appreciate the assist, but my booth and my team are already there. I’ll tell you what I will do, though,” Peter said, scratching his whiskery chin. How long has it been since I shaved? “I have other products that I can feature, and the promo materials featuring the armor didn’t make the trip, anyway. Your dad will never know anything about those mechs.”

Max thought for a moment, then relented, “That is agreeable. I will wire you the funds... just give your information to Sam.”

“No need,” Peter said, handing him his business card. “But, Max,” he said, “I didn’t even tell you how much they are.”

“Whatever it is...I am good for it,” Max said with a backwards wave to Peter and Abe. “It was a pleasure meeting you both.” With those final words he and Sam disappeared from the cargo hold.

“Well, that was interesting!” Abe said to Peter.

“Tell me about it!” said Peter, “I don’t even have to get off the plane if I don’t want to!”

“Are you gonna tell me you are not going to go to the expo at all?” Abe asked him.

“Not a chance. I’m the CEO and I can’t miss this opportunity.” Peter said with a grin, “Wanna come with?”