Under-Promotion
Not authorized, not for profit. Characters are the property of Henson Inc. et.al.
Overheard within the Leviathan Moya:
"You realize, of course, that they won't be very happy when they notice that the door to this cell is open."
"I don't think they have much of any cause to complain, do you? You saved Aeryn Sun from the Living Death, you saved Moya from the Peacekeeper attack and that space-borne plant, and still they treat you like a monster. Some people have no concept of gratitude."
"Well, one must make allowances for past experiences. Your castle is exposed."
"I beg your pardon - oh, you mean the rook? I'm aware of that. Pawn to king five."
"Impressive. You seem to have learned the value of the indirect attack."
"Well, the pawns up forward are nearly powerless. They only serve to block attacks or create traffic in the center of the board."
"It may seem that way at first, but a pawn can be a very powerful piece. ... I think we risk discovery soon, Sikozu. Shall we repair to a compartment where we can continue the game ... uninterrupted?"
"Of course. The treblin-side loading dock should do nicely."
"Let us proceed with caution. We do not want to disturb the board as we carry it."
"They're going to find us, you know."
"Eventually, yes. But tell me, Scorpius ... isn't it worth it to be able to spend a little time free? Not constantly cooped up in that cell of yours?"
"I spent the first cycles of my life in conditions far, far worse, Sikozu. I will tolerate my treatment here ... but it is nice to be out of confinement, even if only for a little while. No, the only question is ... whether they will find us before our game is completed."
"Hm ... not likely. I will have won in two more moves, I believe."
"Really?"
"My pawn on the king's side will take your pawn, clearing the way for my rook to advance to your end of the board and threatening your king. You cannot block me in time, and you cannot divert me by threatening my king in time. ... Surrender would be advisable."
"Perhaps. So your move is pawn takes pawn?"
"Yes."
"Very well. Pawn to bishop eight."
"And promotion to queen. Not that it will help you."
"No, my move is obvious: I will promote the pawn to a knight-"
"Scorpius! Hands in the air."
"Ka D'Argo. I don't suppose I could persuade you, before you return me to my cell, to give us one hundred microts? To bring this game to its resolution?"
"Heh. You're developing a sense of humor. Come on, frellnik. If you're out of that cell when Crichton comes back, I'm not going to stop him from blasting your brains out."
"You are the captain, D'Argo. That makes you responsible for keeping the promise that I not be harmed."
"Pray that I never forget that, Scorpius. Because I'm not about to forget what you did to Jothee. Or Aeryn. Or Crichton."
"Ah well. Sikozu, I thank you for ... a very ... entertaining game."
"D tells me you guys were playing with my chess set when he found you."
"I was just trying to bring a semblance of normality to his life. Something you certainly don't seem to be very concerned with, Crichton."
"Did he tell you how he knows how to play the game?"
"The topic didn't come up."
"Probably because he found the rules of the game in with about a million other things he tortured out of my head using his Aurora Chair. Either that, or he found the game in the neural chip he stuck in my head and then carved out a year later."
"Your experiences with him couldn't have been that bad, Crichton."
"Oh really? And what makes you so sure of that, Sikozu?"
"If they'd been as bad as you describe ... you would be dead. Nobody could survive that much."
"You weren't there, Sputnik. You don't know how close I came to ... ah, what's the use? ... Lemme guess. You were playing black?"
"Yes. I was about to make a winning move, too."
"Hm. Looks to me like you were about to get your ass kicked."
"He had just created a queen from his pawn there on the bishop's column. My next move is to bring my rook to the number eight row, creating a threat he can neither block nor escape, which I believe means my victory."
"No, Red. Scorpy was about to make it a knight."
"That's not possible!"
"Why not?"
"Well, the queen is the most powerful piece on the board-"
"But like you said, making a queen is worthless. No, he was going to under-promote. He was going to make a knight - and that, kid, puts you in check."
"But I had him-"
"And then your only move is to bring the king out into the open, there, breaking the check - but then he can move his queen over there - zang - and guess what, Sputnik? Checkmate."
"I didn't realize you could do that with a pawn."
"Lesson number one, kid. Scorpy always knows more than he's letting on. He always has an objective in mind, and he will do whatever he has to in order to accomplish what he sets out to do. If he's keeping you alive, it's because he thinks you might be useful. If you become more trouble than you're worth to him, then you'd better pray your insurance is paid up."
"I thought we were talking about the game, Crichton."
"Pawns get sacrificed."
"They also can become powerful. You just showed me that."
"Only when it suits the guy's interest, Sikozu. You do not want to be Scorpy's pawn."
"I think it's fairly clear who on board Moya is the pawn. And who is the player. Goodnight, Crichton..."
fin
