15. The Ventrexian - Part 1

Not for the first time, General Viro was glad his face was incapable of showing emotion. It was a useful trait for moments like this when his competence and intelligence weren't just called into question, but dragged through the mud. Quite publicly, too, since this was being transmitted throughout his fleet. Otherwise, Viro would have been gaping in shock at the sight of the teal Ventrexian taking over their screens.

". . . don't bother trying to block me," Avocato said smoothly. "I've got sixteen additional codes that I implanted in the fleet's network before I left. You'd have to wipe the entire command control system clean to get rid of them. And me. This will be over before you can even get started."

Viro, who towered over almost everyone, Avocato included, suddenly felt very small and very out of his league. None of the Tera Con troops or officers on the bridge with him would meet his eye. General Avocato and all his many skills and accomplishments had always intimidated Viro, and that point was being driven home right now.

He never should have given up bounty hunting.

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Tribore took a moment to recline in his command chair and enjoy the show.

"Oh, he's gooooood! And he's wearing the t'Rakkidan dress uniform. That's a statement right there, boys. Cartridge pleats and flared hemline. Makes your mouth water."

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"Starboard battery, watch out for those fighters! Main guns, fire at will!"

"Captain Airgon, General Avocato is transmitting directly to the Tera Con Fleet! He's . . . ma'am, he's taunting them."

Quinn Airgon paused, astonished. She joined the comm officer at his station where he was picking up Avocato's transmission.

". . . do realize that if I'm your target, you're attacking the wrong ship?" Avocato's voice was conversational, amused, even. He paused to take a sip from a thermal cup. Every action, every word and expression was being weaponized. It was a brilliant performance.

"Is he nuts?" asked the young ensign softly.

Quinn's eyes grew wide, and she shook her head in recognition of what the general was doing. "No. He's a diversion." She smashed a button on the comm panel. "All ships! Here's our chance! Let them have it!"

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Cataloupe smiled behind his mustache, pride and admiration for his former student filling him. Avocato was inviting an attack or worse - provided Viro could find him. But if Avocato had anything in excess, it was nerve.

"Be careful, young man."

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Awash in an ocean of self-pity, Clarence sat within the cramped escape pod, sniffing and hiccuping as the universe taunted him with one final glimpse of the object of the greatest desire he had ever known. Avocato was wearing the black t'Rakkidan uniform coat, the perfectly tailored one that had the same braided silver trim as Clarence's favorite whip. It the very thing that had sparked Clarence's lust in the first place. Was it irony or karma? Or were they the same thing in this case?

"I know it would never occur to you or your boss that the heaviest armored ship is not necessarily the safest one in the fleet, Viro," Avocato was saying, and Clarence let that deep voice wash over him, buoy him. Avocato sat in the command chair of whatever ship he was on, cool and distant and practically oozing confidence.

Magnificent. Seductive. Incomparable. There were no other words for this Ventrexian warlord. In that instant, Clarence knew he would never get past this obsession. Avocato, sharp, handsome, skilled Avocato with that trim waist and long legs, hard eyes, and that gentle smile reserved for his son and his son alone, and - damn him! Probably that blasted primey, too - would forever occupy the position of unobtainable, untouchable ideal for Clarence Polkawitz.

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At the controls of his Tera Con fighter, Colonel Cato grinned in absolute delight, pumping a fist.

"Go, Dad!"

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Gary's jaw had dropped at the sight of Avocato projected on the battle deck from about twenty different screens, and he had yet to gather the focus needed to shut his mouth. The holos were of every size, from a few floor-to-ceiling images to smaller, personal comm mini-images, and surrounded the Lord Commander's throne from every angle. Teal abruptly became the dominant color in the room, and the general's calm, collected voice filled the space.

". . . knew you wouldn't be able to resist trying to get back at me, which is why I positioned the Zaydee front and center. I want to thank you for being completely predictable and falling for it."

From where he hid in the recessed doorway used by cleaners and servants, Gary could see three sources of light: Avocato's communication, the Lord Commander radiating a sickly magenta glow as he floated up to eye level with the largest image of his former general, and Mooncake towards the back of the room not far from Gary's hiding spot, suspended in some device like a generator that used him to create the blinding-bright beam and send it out a plasma window towards . . . whatever it was the Lord commander was after. Gary didn't care. He just wanted his friend back.

"A-vo-ca-to," growled the Lord Commander, his small hands balled into fists. He clenched his teeth, frighteningly furious, hate written in every line of his body as he stared up at his former general. He was all the more terrifying for his deplorable condition. He looked far, far worse than the last time Gary had seen him on Tera Con Prime. The Lord Commander was like a walking wound, with sagging, broken skin the color of a bruise. Raw, bloody patches covered his head and hands, oozing and dripping, and his eyes were a ghastly yellow. Spatters of blackish phlegm dotted the floor. He was too far gone to bother trying to hide his condition any more.

"Still no answer?" wondered Avocato. He shrugged. "That doesn't surprise me. Actually, the only surprising thing to me is the fact that the Tera Con Empire lasted this long."

Gary's terror grew at each searing, provoking word. Avocato was pushing and pushing hard and any moment now, the Lord Commander was going to erupt. He could only hope the strain would trigger a heart attack and the nasty glob of evil straight-up keeled over and then splatted on the floor like some rotten fruit. Let the Tera Con Empire die with a janitorial call on the battle deck.

There was a pause as Avocato took another sip from his cup, so over-the-top and deliberately insolent that Gary wanted to laugh - quietly. Very quietly. The general was good, there was no denying that, and he knew precisely how to incite and manipulate his former leader. The Lord Commander had to know he was being baited, but clearly he didn't care. Revenge was his only concern.

"Find him!" screeched the Lord Commander, sparks flying wide. "Find him! Find him! I want Avocato's head! Find him!"

"Sir, we're not able to pinpoint which ship it's coming from," came Viro's voice over the comms. "But the bridge configuration is a beamer corvette. There are nine in Avocato's fleet."

"My fleet!" screamed the Lord Commander, blackish spittle flying from his mouth. "My fleet that Avocato stole! Find him! Now!"

"My officers prefer liberated over stole," said Avocato, sounding insufferably reasonable. "Oh, by the way, the comm line's open. You might want to check that next time." He smirked ever-so-slightly, the very image of smug superiority.

Gary flinched. That was it. That was the Lord Commander's breaking point. Gary could literally feel the tension building in the air like a static charge. I've got this, Avocato had said? Holy Etruscan snoods, the Lord Commander was spiraling towards a nuclear meltdown that would take the whole Tarb system out in one shot.

And then, the last, little nudge.

"What's wrong, Lord Commander? I thought you liked games."

Oh.

My.

Crap.

He went there. He actually went there. Avocato was either insane or the ballsiest son of a bitch in existence.

Gary slapped his hands over his ears at the loudest, most piercing scream he had ever heard tore from the Lord Commander's mouth. It was like a shock wave. Sparks flew and energy crackled through the room as the comm units were destroyed. The lights likewise were overwhelmed and blew up, plunging the battle deck into an eerie, neon glow. Lowering his hands, Gary focused, and his left arm converted to a vibro-blade. As he watched, the Lord Commander threw a tantrum close by the windows, screaming all the while:

"Find him! Find him! I want Avocato brought here! Find him!"

The little imp's back was to Mooncake, and Gary darted forward, keeping the siphon between himself and the Lord Commander. He squinted at the cool, penetrating light. It was a complex unit, but the gravity bind was still what was holding Mooncake. Easy enough. Destroy it, free Mooncake. Except . . . the gravity bind was housed inside the base of the unit and Mooncake seemed frozen, locked into position as his power was stolen and concentrated to make that phenomenal beam of energy.

Crap.

"Lord Commander, we're not able to pinpoint which ship Avocato is on," Viro said. Every word was a flirtation with death with the Lord Commander so pissed. "He relayed the signal through the whole fleet, making it look as if every ship is the origin."

"Then capture all the beamer corvettes!" he snapped.

"We can only account for six of them, sir. He may not even be here at Tarb!"

"Oh, Avocato's here," swore the Lord Commander, his anger increasing at having his wishes denied. "He would never send his little army into action without him. He's too noble."

Gary had no real plan outside of a very general outline. Get Mooncake, get off the ship. Good plan, but lacking specifics, like how.

Double crap.

The galactic hissy fit carried on, and out of sheer desperation, Gary just rammed the vibro-blade on his arm through the base of the siphon. The energy sword easily sliced through the kluged-together siphon, sending a few sparks wide but otherwise giving way easily and silently. Mooncake let out a tiny trill of relief as he was released, going limp. Gary caught him with his right hand, turning his left arm back to a hand to support the little guy.

"I got you. I got you, buddy," cooed Gary, keeping his voice a whisper. "Shh. Shh. No noise, pal. We gotta get outta-"

An intensifying howl of pure rage escaped the Lord Commander. The glow enveloping him grew brighter as he floated high into the air by the windows, too preoccupied with revenge to notice the beam was gone. Teeth clenched, he gestured with both arms, the strain written on his ravaged face as –

The battle stopped. Froze. All the ships. Lasers. Explosions. Everything. It just stopped, like a film pausing. What kind of power did it take to halt a fleet action? Gary stared in horror, panic gripping him even as he clutched Mooncake to his chest. He had Mooncake. He needed to run. Get out, get off this ship. Get away.

Anything.

He couldn't move.

Like everything else in the system, he was locked in place.

Was everyone on those ships aware, like he was, of what was happening?

A sound like pain escaped the Lord Commander as he scanned the battlefield, muttering, "Where are you?" He was too preoccupied with finding Avocato to notice anything less. Most of the ships were just bright points of light in the distance, but a few were close enough to pick out details. An entire formation of Infinity Guard cruisers and Tera Con fighters were sweeping by the Mynn, but the Lord Commander ignored them. His attention darted from ship to ship, being to being, searching for the familiar and swiftly touching each mind until –

"There you are!"

He thrust both hands forward, grunting with effort. Then he opened his hands as if holding a ball at arm's length, his claws sinking into –

"I've got you now, Avocato."

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Really? How the hell much more distraction did Goodspeed need to grab one planet killer and get the hell out of there? Avocato fought the desire to make anxious faces before close on half a million beings in order to tell one of them to get a move on. He was doing everything he knew would set the Lord Commander off: controlling the situation, the smug amusement, pointing out Viro's failings and the Lord Commander's complete inability to push the correct button on the comm unit. And considering how many times Avocato had heard him claim to love games while tormenting some unfortunate that had managed to cross him, one would think he'd be able to handle having his own words thrown back at him.

But this was the Lord Commander, who held himself accountable to no one. And he had the temerity to call Little Cato a brat? Even at his most childish, at least Little Cato had been held responsible for words and deeds. And at least Little Cato, a child, had been acting his age. Unlike the Lord Commander.

The effort of conducting the battle while simultaneously provoking the Lord Commander and hiding his growing anxiety for his son and that ridiculously appealing human left Avocato exhausted. Despite the warmth of the bridge and his heaviest uniform, he was shivering cold. Add on to that a headache and an almost overwhelming desire to lay down on the deck and go to sleep, and Avocato was spent. Damn the Lord Commander and damn his Mirror Mage assassin.

The sonic screech that signaled the Lord Commander had finally cracked made everyone on the Imbara's bridge flinch. A moment later, the comms cut out. Shaking his head in disgust at such a juvenile display, Avocato returned to the 3-D display of the battle and directing the larger ships when suddenly, that searing, green-white beam vanished. Avocato started, surging to his feet.

He did it, thought Avocato, a thrill coursing through him. Get out, get out, get out, his heart seemed to shout. He could not stop the instinctive gesture to reach towards Gary, desperate to help. Run, Gary, run!

Then he felt it. A stabbing pain behind his eyes. That cold, familiar sensation of something unnatural and cruel, trying to penetrate both body and soul. Fear seized him as the Lord Commander let him know what was coming a heartbeat before it happened.

"Clear the bridge!" screamed Avocato, knowing it was too late. The crew would never have time to respond.

And then he froze, suspended, held fast by the Lord Commander's power. The bridge crew was likewise held, immobile and hideously aware at their stations. Avocato felt the energy encase him, an ice cold shield that was crushing tight, as all around him, the Imbara's bridge was torn apart, cracked open and scattered like a child discarding a broken toy. The entire top of the bridge was sheared off the corvette, leaving nothing between them and the vacuum of space. Avocato couldn't move, but he could see chaos around him as equipment and debris and his crew were sucked away with the atmosphere. Only Avocato remained, trapped and defenseless.

I love games, echoed that hated voice from inside his own mind. Why don't we play?