Chapter 23

Jack stepped into the rec room and saw a good portion of the crew enjoying their downtime inside. He saw Andor and Delilah at one of several small tables, engaging in a shallow conversation as they both focused on the VR vidgame between Rusu and Zakia. Nyka and Kazlaena sat on the big sofa, the former watching with reserved interest while the latter was excitedly cheering both players simultaneously. Charm and Spurius sat on the smaller loveseat. As Jack approached to watch the game, both Nyka and Kazlaena gave him a wave and Charm looked at him.

“Hey, Jack-boy. When we gonna get that chess rematch done? Gots a score to settle.”

“Tell you what, you get the board, I’ll get the beer, then we’ll get this on,” Jack said.

“Right on,” Charm stood up and headed over to the shelving units on the left side of the room to retrieve the chess set.

Jack headed out of the rec room and went down the hall to the drinks lounge. He grabbed a couple of beers from the fridge and returned to see Charm at a table with the chess set ready to go.

“We must be well on the hunt now huh?” Charm asked. “Playin our own game of cat and mouse, huntin for these drones.?”

“Just have to hope the radar catches them when they’re out and about.” Jack nodded. “Playing figurative chess while we play actual chess.”

“Ha! Well, it’s on you, boyo,” Charm took the bottle he was offering and popped the cap off.

“Is there a disadvantage to playing white?” Jack looked over his pieces.

“Ya move first is all,” Charm grinned.

“Yeah, seeing that grin ... not sure you’re being straight with me,” Jack eyed her up.

“Ah, bein straight as an arrow, bucko,” she said.

“Arrows wobble in flight,” He countered, and she laughed.

Jack thought long and hard about his strategy. Charm was good at reading an opponent’s plan and Jack often predicted the move she would make just before she made it. He was never able to turn this to his advantage though and relied on entrapment to isolate her pieces and remove them.

“Alright, no more suspense.” Jack said to himself. “Game time.”

Jack moved his first pawn and Charm immediately mimicked his move. He thought for a moment, having developed a plan of several movements since his last game with her, designed to get his rook into her field as soon as possible. He moved another pawn and she followed with a move of her own, though this time it was not a mirror of his. Jack noticed a peculiar look on her face as she caught sight of a possible move available to her. But she seemed almost disappointed, and it threw his line of thought momentarily. He finally settled on making a move with a pawn.

“For real Jack?” Charm frowned.

“Uh...” Jack saw her take hold of her bishop and give him a look of disbelief. “What...”

He saw her strategy, completely taken aback by how foolish his moves were. To drop his own stellar plan, he was playing erratic to mask his intent. It backfired as her bishop moved to the side of the board, directly in line of sight of his king and no way to stop it.

“Did ya do this on purpose?” Charm interrogated with a slight smile.

“I can’t believe I did that...” Jack looked at the board in disbelief. “I had this grand plan all laid out. I can’t believe you just burned it to ash.”

“Better get yer strat book out for round two here, buster. I’ll give ya that one as a pass. This next rounds for real.” Charm drew her pieces back as Jack did the same.

The match started out slow as Jack built up a line of defense, ensuring any piece he lost would be countered in kind. Before long, an audience grew around this battle of wits as Jack and Charm traded losses anytime an aggressive move was made. Jack had managed to get his rook into a spot to cut down four of her pieces, but her bishops went on a surgical warpath when he focused too hard on exposing her king. Within eight moves he had lost most of his remaining pawns and half of his remaining pieces, leaving him with six chessmen total, she had nine, only two of which were pawns.

“Jack!” Kazlaena wrapped her arms around him. “You are getting sa butt kicked.”

“Sa butt is getting pretty kicked,” he said back as he focused on his next move.

“Yeah, you’re supposed to be a soldier boy. How you gonna let this doc kick your ass,” Andor said with a bit of a forced laugh.

“These pawns don’t have air support, or guns. They come from a different world, like some of us inadvertently live in... “ Jack replied and some of the crew laughed.

“Ok, ok, fair enough,” Andor eyed Nyka and her pure focus on the game. “Is a pretty intense game, right Nyka?” He asked.

“Er, no sure,” Nyka scratched her chin. “No, no, ach, k’now ... no, know how play.”

“Is a grand battle of the wits,” Andor stated. “Or at least people who think they have wits, haha.” A couple others laughed lightly.

“It sharpens the wit, Andor,” Jack said. “Makes you think ahead and with precision. Reading your opponent’s moves with suspicion. Hoping your own plans fall to their prediction...”

Charm laughed at that. “Coralane’s droppin a bit of rhyme here.”

“Sa game seems, confusing.” Kazlaena said. “‘ow you know to move wat pieces? and ‘ow many spots?”

“Practice, Kaz.” Jack rubbed her shoulder a few times. “Once you learn the rules and play a few times, it becomes committed to the mind.”

“Um, is sat a lot?”

“For some it might be,” Jack replied.

“You, may, might teach sometime?” Nyka poked his shoulder.

“If you want to, sure,” Jack nodded. “Be happy to.”

“Better wait and see if he wins first, Nyk-nyk.” Andor said.

Nyka gave him a confused look and all he could do was offer an awkward smile in return.

“Trust Jack to, tees, teach well.” Nyka replied and pulled over a chair to sit down beside Jack.

It became a losing battle for Jack to try to isolate and remove Charms pieces as he was outnumbered and on the defensive. He was able to take out a couple of her heavy hitters but in the end, he became trapped and was defeated. Only his king stood defiant to be slain by a knight with the other pieces ready to pounce in the carnage.

“Damn,” Jack grinned. “That was a good match.”

“Aye, it was,” Charm agreed. “First round notwithstanding.”

“Ha, yeah,” Jack grinned. “Just pretend that didn’t happen ya?”

“Tells ya what, teach the young miss Nyka well, and we’ll wipe that from memory.”

“That’s a deal.” Jack smiled as Charm slipped out of her seat and Nyka took over.

Jack started by telling Nyka what all the pieces were called.

“A, rock?” Nyka inquired.

“Rook,” Jack replied.

“Ah, Pavesta ko’veya altvas ker-kraw,” Nyka tilted her head to one side, then the other as she watched Jack set up both sides of the board.

“These little pawns go in front, then the pieces go behind, like so,” Jack showed her. “The pawns can move one or two spaces ahead or remove an opponent’s piece diagonally.” As he went over the movement patterns of the pieces, Nyka nodded her understanding.

It didn’t take long for Nyka to figure out what she was doing. They played a practice game first, then went into a real match. Jack took a bit of time to decide his movements, but Nyka was making moves with very little time to consider.

“Slow down there Nyk-Nyk,” Andor smirked. “You’re facing a champ here.”

“Take time or not, move still same,” Nyka replied.

“Ah, alright,” Andor shrugged.

Before long, Andor abandoned hanging around the chess game and went off to make small talk with Charm about her last game. Jack had started easy on his strategy but when he saw he was up against a different kind of mind than he was used to, he had to step up to maximum. Nyka’s analytical mind almost seemed to anticipate his movements, like a predator hunting an elusive prey. She quickly became effective at cornering his pieces, hunting down specific targets and removing them without sacrifice. He had a moment where he may have taken victory, until she calculated a blocking maneuver that overstretched his foresight. Jack caught a hint of a grin on her face when he moved a bishop to take out her queen. That’s when he saw the opening that left his king exposed...

“Shit,” Jack muttered.

“Chech, man,” Nyka said with glee, though she kept a reserved manner about her as she made her last move.

“Check mate indeed,” Jack looked foolishly at the board and how many pieces he still had that should have been useful, now sitting leaderless.

Jack reached over and shook her hand, “Well played, huntress,” he said with a smile.

He wasn’t sure if she accepted the nick name, but she did stand up. He rose too, knowing her intent. She brushed his cheek with hers, first one side, then the other, followed by stepping back with a bit of a reserved posture.

“Perha, prap, err, maybe we play again, some another time,” Nyka smiled. “Give chance, you, take down hunter, tress.”

“You’re on,” Jack grinned.

Delilah offered Nyka a game and she readily accepted.

Jack gave them both a nod and took a seat in one of the recliners, watching Kazlaena and Rusu go at it on the VR game. He saw Andor leave eventually, having to get back to work. Jack closed his eyes for a few moments and felt a sudden weight fall in beside him. He opened his eyes to see Kazlaena shifting to get comfortable at his side, despite the lack of room.

“I don’t feel so good,” She looked up at him a little weakly.

“Too much VR?” He grinned.

“Gets stuttery, jumpy,” She took in a few breaths “Sa laggy.”

Jack saw Rusu pull off his headset and rub at his temples.

“Ah, uh, dizzy,” He put the headset away and paused for a few moments, trying to steady his vision.