Galaxy of Heroes

Genie unstrapped herself from her chair.

“I can be reached on the com while I am out on the cruiser hull,” she said.

She stepped into the decompression chamber and then pulled herself outside into the darkness of space.

Spade watched her over his shoulder with his good eye as she sealed the outer hatch behind her.

“Losing that cyborg to you was one of my biggest mistakes,” Spade said.

“What about losing your eye?” Grimes asked. “Last time we met you had two.”

“Grimes, it was the damnedest thing,” Spade said. “After you took Genie from me, I missed her so much I went out and purchased a replacement model from the Tetraillani out at Outpost Rockville. I got one of their new upgraded versions with all the latest cyborg companion technology. Well, we were out on the Craaldan perimeter and I dozed off while we were skirting the 13th Fleet’s blockade. Then, when I woke up, the cyborg was gone, and my darned eyeball was cut out. The cyborg had used my retina to deactivate her bonding program.”

Spade lifted his eye patch and tapped on the black sensor inside his eye socket. “I don’t care what they say about Tetraillani craftsmanship. When you pay that kind of money for something, you don’t expect it to cut out your eyeball and run off. Genie may be one in a million, but I swear, those Tetraillani insects get no more business from me.”

Out on the surface of the cruiser hull, Genie busily worked on the starboard engine. But she soon assessed that without replacement parts, it was impossible to get the engine functioning again. The port engine was nearly as bad.

Gallos was now far behind them—its star barely brighter than the billions of stars in galaxy. Genie stood on the hull of the cruiser in the blackness of space, gazing out into infinity. The starlight of the universe encircled her.

It was going to be a long voyage across the void to the Largos red giant and to a space station that may no longer exist.

She sighed. These two human males would only make a lengthy voyage feel lengthier.

The crew quickly settled in to the routines of space flight. With an overabundance of time, a boundless monotony set in. Genie, Spade and Grimes attempted to busy themselves by making repairs to their damaged ship as it drifted through the black emptiness of space.

Actually, Genie did most of the repair work while Grimes and Spade sat at a table on the recreation deck playing cards. Grimes and Spade sat at a Craaldan officers’ war-gaming table in oversized chairs built for the Craaldan’s larger physique. In one card game after the next, Grimes refused to consider any bets made by Spade for possession of Genie.

In one instance of acute boredom, Spade and Grimes climbed out on the hull of the cruiser and painted shark teeth under the ship’s nose. Spade painted a portrait of Genie firing a CX-649 assault weapon from the hip, while under the mural Grimes painted a name for the ship: “Genie’s Juggernaut.”

The Largos red giant slowly came into focus as they neared it—the glowing red disk growing larger against an endless backdrop of stars. During their card games, Spade and Grimes often sat silently and gazed out at the red star through the recreation deck’s large observation window. The cruiser was gradually closing the distance.

Genie completed all the repair work that was possible, and retreated to the living quarters of a Craaldan captain. She isolated herself from the two men. Joe periodically came to her, and they would lock themselves away for long durations. But, then, his visits became less frequent as he spent longer and longer stretches with Spade. Then, the visits ceased.

Genie fought the urge to seek him out, shutting herself down and lying alone motionless. But eventually, her programming got the best of her. She gave in and climbed down the transport shaft to the recreation deck.

She emerged from the shaft to find Spade sitting across a table from Grimes.

“Genie, sweetheart, come play a round of poker with the boys,” Spade said.

“Playing poker with humans does not stimulate,” Genie said.

She could not think of anything more tedious than sitting with two human males, listening to their war stories while waiting for their relatively slower brains to process the significance of the cards in their hands.

Genie had played the Craaldan cruiser’s computer in several games. The ship’s computer was more advanced than any human creation. And Craaldan games were far more complicated than the simplistic ones that humans had been playing for tens of thousands of years. At first the Craaldan computer was challenging, but then, Genie mastered its logic and could defeat it in whatever game it wished to play.

“Joe,” Genie said. “Considerable time has elapsed since you have sought my companionship. Is something the matter?”

Grimes concentrated on the cards in his hand.

“Joe?”

“I’m fine, babe,” he said. “Just playing cards. Nothing to worry about.”

“I will be outside if you need me,” she said.

Genie left the recreation deck. She entered the cruiser’s main decompression chamber and then pulled herself out onto the hull.

Grimes continued to stare intently at the cards in his hand.

Spade shook his head. “After all this time, that cyborg still stimulates me,” he said.

“Forget about it,” Grimes said.

“This hand, Grimes,” Spade said. “I know you’ve got it in you.”

“Drop it,” Grimes said.

“A million g-notes for Genie. Show me that an old Heliac Ranger still has guts.”

“You don’t have a million g-notes,” Grimes said.

“If I lose, you’ll get your million when we get back to Portogallos,” Spade said.

“I may be just a dumb sergeant, but I’m not stupid,” Grimes said.

“Five million,” Spade said.

“Come on, now,” Grimes said, still studying his cards.

“I’m going to let you in on something, Grimes,” Spade said. “I happen to have a fortune in the cargo hold of the Red Wrath. It could all be yours, Grimes. Now take the bet. Five million g-notes for Genie. This hand.”

“You got nanogel on those cards?” Grimes asked.

“Negative.”

Grimes studied his cards. “Five million?”

“Let’s do this,” Spade said.

Grimes placed his cards face down on the table. “I’m not falling for your tricks.”

“I know a Heliac Ranger doesn’t back down when he is challenged,” Spade said. “No tricks.”

“I’m not backing down,” Grimes said. “I’m just not betting Genie.”

“Sounds like you’re backing down to me,” Spade said.

“I’ll show you a back down,” Grimes said. He slugged Spade hard in the chest from across the table.

Spade winced as he absorbed the blow. He rubbed his chest in pain. He looked up and then shot a fist back, popping Grimes in the nose.

Droplets of red blood floated up in the zero gravity from Grimes’ nose. “You son of Vomis nematode,” Grimes said.

“Hey,” Spade said. “What do you know about Vomis nematodes?”

Grimes wiped the blood from his nose on the back of his sleeve. “You really are a no-good worm,” he said.

“That’s bordering on insubordination, Sergeant,” Spade said.

“I’ll show you insubordination,” Grimes said.

Grimes scrambled over the table and clinched Spade. The two men floated up in the weightlessness of space. Grimes moved quickly and placed Spade in a rear-naked choke.

Spade elbowed Grimes hard in the ribs and attempted to spin around and gain the dominant position, but Grimes was too skillful and put him a scissor choke with his legs.

Grimes sunk in his hooks and arched his back.

“Okay, Grimes!” Spade gasped as they floated across the recreation deck, bouncing against the walls of the ship. “You got me,” he wheezed.

Grimes tightened his choke. Spade struggled until his face turned blue. Then he blacked out and his body went limp.

Grimes released the choke, and Spade gasped back into consciousness. Grimes pushed Spade away, letting the taller man spin slowly around across the open room.

“I’m not giving up Genie,” Grimes said. “Not now or ever.”

“I got the point,” Spade said.

“Point number two,” Grimes said. “No frontier colony pilot should try to out grapple a Heliac Ranger.”

Spade sat down in his chair. When he regained his breath, he pulled a cigar from his flight suit, stuck it in his mouth and lit it. “Stand down, Sergeant. Every dog has his day.”

Grimes sat back down at the table and the two played another hand.

Outside the observation window, the massive red giant of Largos loomed ominously as the cruiser neared their destination.