Chapter Ten: The Battle of Medbay
Gary didn't just see stars as his head was smacked against the metal floor panels time and again; he saw entire constellations. Smack! Make that stellar clusters! Smack! Whole galaxies! Smack! How many times did this make it? The back of his skull must be flat by now. The Scoti's grip on Gary's throat was unrelenting, and it was only because he'd managed to work the tips of his robotic fingers beneath the edge of Bodek's hand that his windpipe wasn't crushed. The Scoti's right arm might be mangled, but his left one was just fine and the leverage was all Bodek's. They both knew it. Unless Gary got help soon, it was just a matter of time before his efforts failed.
He was twisting, arching his back and trying to wriggle free from the relentless hold when he spotted something so completely unexpected that Gary actually paused in his struggle to escape.
Avocato.
That pointy-eared silhouette was unmistakable as he moved silently forward. High on the list of the best things Gary had ever seen, he looked like Hell had chewed him up and spit him out. Repeatedly. He not only looked like death, but it was clear he was brining it, too. That he was upright was nothing short of a miracle. That he understood the situation was evident. That Bodek was about to be made into shredded wheat was a foregone conclusion. There was a savage look in those yellow eyes that actually sent a chill down Gary's spine and he caught a glimpse of teeth and freaking talons.
Why had no one told him Avocato had freaking talons? Why hadn't Avocato told him? Sure, it made perfect sense for the cat-man to have claws, but every time he and Avocato had been in a fight, he'd only ever seen the Ventrexian use a blaster, maybe his fist, not freaking talons.
Several things happened almost simultaneously. Just as Bodek gave a bark of triumph, Avocato pounced. Gary could see the instant Avocato's claws made contact and victory turned to shock and horrifying new definitions of pain and back scratchers. Green blood splashed as Bodek screamed and threw Gary aside. He landed a few feet away, stopped by the base of the recovery pod. Alarms suddenly sounded on the ship as AVA regained control, and she cried,
"Warning! Warning! Prisoner has escaped! All hands report to medical immediately! Use extreme caution!"
Gasping and furious, Bodek whirled to face his attacker and was staggered to find himself squared off against the very person he meant to kill. It was easy to see which of the fighters was a professional. Even wounded and favoring broken limbs, Avocato was poised and fearless, balanced and ready for battle. He was every inch the warrior. Bodek, by comparison, was just a pretender whose confidence extended only as far as his advantage.
Bodek hesitated, but Avocato didn't. The Scoti made to lunge and the Ventrexian lashed out, protecting himself with his broken left arm. Avocato brought his left elbow down hard on Bodek's extended arm and then cracked him in the jaw with the same weapon. Bodek staggered at the double impact, then wildly swung with his other fist at Avocato's head. A feral rowr! sounded through the medbay as Avocato evaded the blow and an instant later, the Ventrexian spat out green blood. Bodek gaped at his lacerated forearm, fighting to recover from the sight of razor-sharp teeth covered with his own blood. Taking advantage of the Scoti's shock, Avocato swept upwards with his right arm, dragging his claws all the way up Bodek's chest to under his chin before swiping horizontally across his torso. A deep, ferocious growl filled the room, faintly echoed by gasps of pain and rage. Avocato stepped back, breathing heavily and exhausted after a mere handful of blows but holding his ground. Backing down from this conflict was not an option.
It was never an option.
Gary scrambled to his knees the moment he was free, casting about for anything to use as a weapon. His head ached, his vision was blurry and spotted with flashes of light, and his throat was on fire, but if Avocato was up and fighting when he should have been in a coma, the captain could do no less. He saw something red and seized it – his helmet. Heavy layers of metal and plastic. Little Cato's was right next it. Snatching both up, he went on the attack.
Bodek was gasping, wasting a moment to look at the parallel lines gouged into his chest and seeping green blood. Then he let out a roar of fury, throwing himself forward. His charge would have worked, for Avocato had little strength left, but the Scoti had forgotten the general was not alone. At the same time Bodek moved to tackle Avocato, Gary surged to his feet directly behind the Scoti. It was Avocato's turn to see his rescue coming and so he leaned in toward Bodek and let out a hideous, ear-splitting yeowl that was a Ventrexian battle-cry. The Scoti started at the unexpected sound and display of canines, drawing back in astonishment. Seizing his chance, Gary swung both helmets together to catch Bodek's head between his improvised weapons. There was a crack of bone and shattering glass as twin blows landed. Gary stumbled back as Bodek dropped like a rock, out cold. Swaying, he pointed at the Scoti with Little Cato's helmet and shouted over the alarms:
"And that's why he's the only one who gets to call me humanoid trash!"
Gary sagged, wearily hucking the helmets one at a time at Bodek's head with a muttered, "Amateur," before staggering a few feet and plopping down to the floor at Avocato's feet, completely bushed. Panting, dripping blood, he turned and looked with surprise and appreciation at his equally spent best friend. The Ventrexian was barely upright and unwilling to move for fear of messing up his broken leg even more. Gary smiled at the sight of that pink nose, now so pale as to be almost white, then braced himself when Avocato gripped his shoulder as he struggled to stay upright. Gary reached up to cover Avocato's hand with his own, expecting the soft fur he was used to and instead getting covered with nasty green blood. Blech. Oh, well. There were worse things, and he gave those fingers a grateful little squeeze. There was no sign of the formidable claws now, just that familiar paw. Both of them were shaking and Gary knew standing up was not an option right now. Puking maybe, but no standing.
"Hey. Avocato," he said, smiling faintly. "Thanks, man. Good to see you."
Avocato stared at him speechlessly before he finally managed to ask, "Who the hell are you?"
That had to be one of the top questions ever thrown at him, especially since it came from his best friend. Gary was just starting to laugh when the door burst open. They looked up as Little Cato and KVN, each toting half their weight in guns, came rushing in full tilt. A thoroughly wound-up Mooncake zoomed in behind them. Little Cato let out a shout of fright at the sight of bodies and blood and then –
"Dad? Dad! DAD!" Fear turned to delight as he zeroed in on Avocato. "You're up!" He looked at Gary. "Aaaand you're down."
Mooncake took in the scene in a glance. Already in defensive mode from the alarms, he saw the blood on Gary's face and began glowing bright green as he turned on Bodek with a furious cry of "Chooookity!"
"Crap, crap, double crap - Mooncake, don't!" cried Gary, trying to reach the alien face hugger before he powered up fully. He couldn't move far for fear of dumping Avocato to the floor, which he knew would compound the general's injuries. If the little planet killer unleashed here, he would blow a hole right through the ship and possibly incinerate the lot of them. "Mooncake! Don't! Don't pal! We're okay. I'm okay. See? Right here. Hey. C'mere, buddy."
Luckily, Mooncake listened, turning to Gary with a happy chirp and losing the neon glow. With his free hand Gary gave his friend a quick snuggle of reassurance, trying not to get blood on the alien and closing his eyes for a moment as a headache and nausea slammed down upon him.
"KVN wants some of that!" cried the robot, swooping low. Gary released Mooncake long enough to shove KVN away.
"Go die somewhere, KVN." He looked back to Mooncake, who nuzzled him fondly. "Thanks, pal."
"Chook, chook!"
"Dad?"
"Hmm?" He responded automatically, looking up only to realize he wasn't the dad being addressed. "Oh, wrong dad. That dad."
Little Cato could not stop smiling or look away from his father. It was clear he wanted badly to pounce, but knew now was not the time for roughhousing. Avocato gaped at being confronted by this version of his son ten years older than he should have been, but still bright and healthy and beautiful. For a long moment, they could only stare at one another, thrilled on one side and on the other, hopelessly confused. At last Avocato found his voice, on the verge of passing out as he breathed,
"Little . . . Cato?" He blinked in disbelief, slack-jawed and with his energy levels visibly draining. Gary felt him waver, and the hand gripping his shoulder was trembling. Shock was setting in, fast. "Is that . . .?"
The ginger Ventrexian grinned, beyond happy. He took a step forward. "Yeah, Dad. It's really me."
For a moment, Avocato rallied, drawing himself upright as he desperately asked, "How the hell long have I been unconscious?"