The Chronicles of Benjamin Jamison: Call Sign Reaper (30 page)

“It’s okay,” he said. “No one had any serious injury.”

“Do you forgive me?”

“Of course I do,” he said.

“I asked for it,” she said. “I hurt all over. It’s a good reminder.”

“Everybody there is a lot tougher than what they showed today. If you’re done testing me, we can get on with solidifying this team.”

“I’m done,” she said.

The general and the admiral were on the large vid screen in the conference room again. Reaper sat in his black shirt and cargo pants. He had the major on one side and the captain the other. Emily sat next to the captain. He hoped this would go better than the last time. The major would do all the talking for the team.

“I see we now have a face to go with the reputation,” the admiral started things off. “Good, let’s get down to business.”

“There is a Trillond destroyer class ship that should be there today. I know it’s tough just sitting and waiting but it’s almost over. They will take all the civilians off your hands as well as the prisoner you have in the brig. They will depart for Trillond Prime, at which time you will depart on a hunting trip.”

General Grey took over. “We want you heading for Hyson, but at sub-light speed. Reports we have been getting from independents out along the border is that battle cruiser is still in our system with a small escort of Allith ships. They seem to be visiting planets with livable conditions and the Allith are leading them around like real estate brokers. We all know what this means. The Alliance is putting together a battle group and sending it your way, but it is probably a week out at best. We want you to find the battle cruiser and shadow it the best you can. We have sent the last known coordinates and as far as we know it could still be there. Captain, you can play cat and mouse, but get the hell out of there if gets to close.”

“If there are any communications from that ship,” the admiral added, “Emily needs to be our voice and you will contact Command as soon as it happens. So far it has made no aggressive actions leaving that to the Allith raiders. There will be supplies on the Trillond ship for you, Captain. We want you to be prepared for an extended stay in that quadrant of the galaxy. Review all the details you have on the battle cruiser and the images of the unknown species.”

“Captain, a Trillond destroyer dropped out of FTL,” the XO said. “They should arrive our location in about an hour.”

“Thank you, XO. Notify the watch in charge of the survivors to start getting them organized for transport.”

“It looks like you will be off hunting in a matter of hours. Captain,” the general said.

“Captain! We have a Battle Cruiser with group of smaller ships on our long range sensors,” the XO reported.

“Bring her around and put us on the other side of the planet, XO.”

“Yes sir,” he answered.

“Have the Trillond destroyer change course and meet us behind the planet. Maybe they haven’t picked us up on their sensors yet. The planet will hide us and buy us time,” she ordered. “General, Admiral, once the destroyer is gone we will stay and monitor their progress. XO! Battle stations until further notice.”

They could hear the alarms ringing throughout the ship and the sounds of people moving fast in the corridor.

“Lieutenant Chavez, do you copy?” the captain said into her com.

“Yes Captain, I copy.”

“The Trillond survivors should all be there. Get them loaded on the shuttle Reaper brought in and take them to the Trillond destroyer. It will be really cramped, but for a two minute hop it will be fine. Take the corporal with you. They have supplies for us; get them and get back here.”

She turned to Emily. “I want you on the bridge monitoring all communications. The captain may get busy, so you will be the link to Command. Right now there is a whole bucket full of unknowns.”

“Chavez, what’s your status?” she said into her com.

“We are disengaging from the airlock, Captain. We will get into position to dock immediately when they arrive.”

The Trillond destroyer opened its cargo bay doors and Lieutenant Chavez landed the shuttle. The survivors all left in an orderly manner. Several of them had messages written for Reaper and Lieutenant Aok. Lieutenant Chavez accepted and agreed to hand-deliver them. They loaded the supplies and were back on the Warhammer in less than 30 minutes.

“Captain, they have been delivered and we are back. We have the supplies and there are a number of crates marked to the attention of Reaper or Lieutenant Aok only.”

“Copy that. Have the crew set them aside for now.”

All eyes in the conference room were on Reaper.
E’Aria, where are you?
he thought.

I’m here, Ben.

We have some crates from the Trillond destroyer marked for us. Anything I should know?

Some new tech and weapons and some treats from home for me.
He could feel her excitement over the treats.

“What! It’s some things I ordered for the team,” he said.

“What sort of things?” the admiral asked.

He leaned over to the major this time. “I don’t know what’s in the crates. I told the lieutenant to find us different tech and weapons that would aid in our missions. She says it’s tech and weapons and some treats from her home world. Plus, I don’t think it’s any of her damn business.”

“General,” Andrea said, “if you look back at your notes you will find were we asked approval to source some specialized gear which you approved. You know what happened with the mission so we haven’t had a chance to even check on what was ordered.”

“Yes, I remember, Major,” General Grey said. “When we are done, check everything and get back with me.”

“Yes sir, I’ll see to it.”

E’Aria, go get our crates and put them in my room,
Ben thought.
We will be done in a few minutes.

On my way.

“General, one more thing,” Andrea said. “The Colonial Military did not expend one credit for whatever is in those crates. Reaper spent his own credits to supply the team with some new hardware. I will report to you what we have purchased, but I don’t see that it is anyone else’s business other than maybe the captain here, as it is her ship.”

“You’re right, Major. Private shipments just need to be declared with the captain for safety reasons.”

“Thank you, General.”

“Captain,” the major asked, “before we are shit deep in aliens would you inspect our hardware please? We may need to use it in the very near future.”

“No problem, Major.”                            

Reaper leaned back and whispered to the captain. “There might just be something in there for you.” She elbowed him.

“All of you, except Emily, are dismissed,” the admiral said. The general looked at the admiral for an explanation. She ignored him.

They all left the conference room. Each person smiled at Emily on the way out.

“Emily, I need you to keep a eye on that whole ship. Especially everyone that was sitting here today,” the admiral said. “General, if she finds anything she is going to bring it to my attention. Then I will decide what to do with it.”

“Whatever you need to do, Admiral. Grey out.”

It was just the two of them now. “What do you think, Emily? Are they loose cannons?”

“No, ma’am,” Emily told the admiral. “I think the general has put a team together that will get results. They will probably be unorthodox and show a disregard for the rules. But as you know, the results will speak for itself.”

“What about this situation with the crates?”

“I believe they are telling the truth. I was running the heart rate monitor and temperature scan during the meeting. I only saw a spike once, and that is when he whispered to the captain. Her pulse and temp went up for a few seconds, but I think that was something totally different.”

“I just don’t think the general has a handle on that man, Emily. He is surrounded by distinguished officers and he calls the shots,” the admiral said.

“No ma’am, they respect him and his decisions. He also respects all of them. He bought things for his team with non-military funds to keep his commanders clear of any wrong-doing. I believe he has their back just as much as they have his. I have already been watching them all. It’s what you trained me to do. They are hiding nothing.”

“They are hiding him, Emily. His records are deleted and destroyed. The general has made himself a ghost soldier. Maybe you can find out who he is.”

“I will do my best.”

“Go get on the bridge, and let’s see what this new player is about.”

“Yes ma’am. Brous out.” The vid turned off.

That was a bit of information, Emily thought. Military Intel didn’t know who Ben was, or his past. She didn’t know it all, but she would find out. He would tell her.

“Brous to Reaper,” she said over her com.

“I’m in my quarters, Emily, come on in,” he said and cut the com.

The lieutenant punched in the codes she had been given by the seller to unlock the crates. The first one held pistols. Reaper recognized the design but had never seen them before. They were pistol-sized magnetic rail guns. There were cases of battery and ammo packs under them. She hadn’t bought one for everyone on the team. She had opted to buy a lot of battery and ammo packs instead. He pulled one out and gave it a quick once-over.

Emily arrived.

“Hurry up and shut the door,” he said.

“Are you always this bossy?” She walked in and nodded to the other women. “Nice pistol,” she said. No one commented.

E’Aria opened the next crate. There were combat knives made with a special alloy.

“This is not a known metal to your people and is rare to even those who know of it,” E’Aria said. “This will penetrate the hide of the Allith like butter and it stays sharp for a very long time.”

The next crate had food and candles. The captain picked up a candle and smelled. It was wonderful. “It’s the scent of a flower that grows high in the mountains of my homeland,” E’Aria said, “and for only one of your earth weeks.”

The next crate was long. She opened it and it had the rifle version of the pistol except the charger and ammo size was twice as large. “This has almost twice the range and destructive power as the current Colonial version and its lighter,” Aok explained. “If they are grouped up, it’s very possible to kill three or four Allith with one shot.”

There were some smaller boxes in the crate as well. They held top-of-the-line replacements for the helmet coms with night and thermal vision.

E’Aria opened a box that had small squares of some sort of food. She took one and put it in her mouth, closed her eyes and smiled. She put the box out and they each got one. They were all making some kind of noise of approval.

“E’Aria,” the captain said, using her name. “Can you get me some of this the next time you order toys for the team?”

“Yes Captain, I’ll let you know when I order again.”

“Captain! The battle cruiser is requesting a face-to-face com with you,” the XO said.

“We will be there in a minute, XO. Did the request come in English?”

“Yes, but it seems like it went through some kind of translator.”

“Emily, are you coming with me to the bridge?” the captain asked.

“Yes ma’am, I’ll be along in just a minute.”

“So what have you told your boss?” Reaper started getting to the point.

“Nothing yet,” Emily replied.

“What do you plan on telling her?”

“I don’t know, I don’t think I have to tell her anything.”

“I hope you don’t,” he said. “It will ruin everything we are trying to accomplish.”

“Not to be rude,” she replied, “but let’s talk about this later. I need to go evaluate our new friends.”

“Sounds good.” Reaper let it drop.

“Don’t worry about me, Benji. I can take care of myself,” she said, going out the door.

He sat down on the bed and started taking his boots off. He was going to suit up in his armor. “What did you get from her just then?” he asked E’Aria.

“It was all honest,” Aok answered. “Her thoughts were the same as what she was telling you. Even though she didn’t say this, she thinks the admiral has made this personal. It is another reason why she will probably not say anything. She thinks the admiral is wrong.”

“Major, you have anything to add?” Reaper asked.

“No, Benji,” Andrea said with a wicked smile. “We can talk to her later.”

“Geez, Andrea! Don’t call me that. Emily knows I hate it.”

“Sure, Benji, whatever you say.”

He finished getting suited up. He wanted to be ready if everything went south.

“Are you going to have everyone ready? We are at battle stations,” he reminded the major.

“For your information, I already sent out a message. I have been doing this a lot longer than you, hot shot,” she replied.

He grabbed the major by the arm and pulled her into a hug, then kissed her. E’Aria just stood and watched. “That is in case we get busy and I don’t get to later.” He explained.

“Major! I need you and Reaper to report to the bridge right now please,” the captain said over the com.

“On our way, Captain,” she replied.

E’Aria had changed into her armor while they had continued talking. They walked to the bridge.

“It seems we have the prime minister of our unknown race on the com. He would like to have the warrior in the black armor present during our conversation,” the captain explained as they walked up.

“E’Aria, stand next to Emily with your helmet on. Let’s see what they want. I am going to stand out of view,” Reaper said. “Captain, open up the com and vid.”

“I’m sorry for keeping you waiting, Prime Minister. Please continue.” Lieutenant Aok stood next to the captain. The prime minister was standing next to the captain of the battle cruiser. He studied the lieutenant and everyone else in his view. The captain turned and said something to the prime minister, who nodded his agreement.

“Captain, I believe this is the warrior we would like to speak to.” He made a motion with his hand and the screen changed. They all watched as Reaper made his way towards the prisoners, firing his rifle and killing Allith. The closer he got to the prisoners, the clearer the picture became. Bodies were being chewed up and spit out by his rail gun. Even when they hid, he fired through walls, killing them. After about four minutes, it stopped and the prime minister and captain were back.

“Why do you wish to speak with this warrior, Prime Minister?” O’Shaughnessy asked. “Surely you understand that conversations like these should take place between individuals like ourselves.”

“Yes, I would agree, Captain,” the prime minister answered, “but he has impressed us and his views may prove to be insightful.”

Emily decided it was her turn to talk. “Prime Minister, you do need to understand that his views are not the views of our leaders and will only be his he is sharing with you. His actions on Hyson that you witnessed were not under any direct order from our military or leaders.”

“So your ships that were at Hyson helping with an evacuation of the populace were not under any orders from your government?” the prime minister asked.

“Correct,” the captain said. “We were providing aid to the Trillond government and made no acts of aggression.”

“So was this warrior left as a spy? He is not a very good one, if that is the case.”

“No, he was left behind while trying to retrieve an injured team member.”

“Did he retrieve the injured team member?”

“He did.”

“So you abandoned him on a planet full of his enemies with a wounded team member, who he not only saves but takes a ship load of refugees along with him. We wish to speak with this warrior.”

Reaper stepped into view, tired of the conversation.

The prime minister and his captain both stared at Reaper. After a few seconds they felt they had who they wanted to talk to. “The captain and I are both impressed with your actions and escape from Hyson,” the prime minister said. “We would like to invite you dine with us on our ship. We have things to discuss and messages you will want to pass on to your government. Will you do us the honor?”

“You can call me Reaper sir. Will you allow some of the others to join us?”

“Yes, you may bring four others along with you.”

“Thank you, Prime Minister—”

“Jinwasys, I represent Emperor Xamand, III Light of the Universe and God King of the Allond Empire. This is Captain Dakkon. We will send a shuttle for you at the appointed time.”

“Thank you, Prime Minister. We will be ready.”

The Allond cut the vid. They all left the bridge and were sitting in the conference room a few minutes later.

“I take it you have a plan, the way you are ordering your commanding officers and team members to report,” the major said to Ben.

“I have a team in mind,” he answered. “As far as a plan, I am not sure there is much to plan other than getting out safely. I will take the lieutenant and sergeant major from our team. Emily and Commander Holmes will represent Military Intelligence and this ship. I believe that each of these people will be able to advise me in answering any questions they may have or not answering whatever the case may be.”

“I agree, Reaper, at least as far as my ship is concerned,” the captain said. “Your commander may have a different opinion.”

“She usually does, and they are most always correct,” Reaper said, looking at the major.

“He is right this time,” the major said. “I will stay with the team.”

“Now that that is settled,” Ben said, “it may not be diplomatic but I want the team armed. They have asked to dine with a warrior, so having weapons will hopefully be no surprise.”

“I don’t know,” Emily said. “They may take offense or feel it’s a show of aggression.”

“We can always surrender them once we know what we are up against,” Ben replied.