Reaper Inc.

by Thomas Wright

  XO Holmes said, "I will have an inventory to you at shift change tomorrow with alternatives attached to use for replenishment."

  "Any questions, gentlemen?"

  ****

  The Claymore landed in the private section of the space port reserved for dignitaries. Everyone had packed and was ready to go. They really hadn’t been in space that long but it was clear everyone was a little on edge. All of the new crew were uncomfortable around Ben regardless of how calm they tried to act. Binda was the most comfortable but she was career Trillond military and the oldest of the crew on loan.

  General Raza was irritated the Governor was not on hand at the space port to greet them. E'Aria got the feeling he would address it with the governor at some point. It was a reflection on the Emperor when one of his governors failed in their diplomatic duties. A Princess and Prime Minister of a friendly neighboring empire as well as the Senator from the Colonial Alliance and he himself were pretty damn important.

  Ben opted to stay on the Claymore. He convinced E'Aria to go and promised not to cause any trouble. If he decided to leave the ship he would contact her.

  They arrived at the villa which was a third or fourth home belonging to the governor. The governor himself was short for an Allond and chubby is the word E'Aria thought applied after seeing him. Governor Emzez Choz had chosen Lotham as his capital planet. It seemed to be a good choice. The climate was not oppressive, nor was it over populated. It was settled by the Allond but other races had come to call it home.

  The governor’s oldest son greeted everyone when they arrived. He was somewhat nervous but E'Aria thought he handled everything well, except for the General, who was determined to get to the heart of the matter.

  "My apologies, General Raza. My father meant no insult. There is a child missing and he is concentrating his energy and focus on its safe return."

  "Is your father out searching for the child?"

  "No sir, he is in his council room."

  "Then your excuse has no validity. He could have performed his duties instead of sitting on his fat ass. I know your father, young one, and I am sure one of his mistresses has misplaced their bastard child and she is pressuring him to make every effort to locate it.

  The governor’s son hung his head and the General knew he hit the nail on the head. "Don’t blame yourself. You have done nothing wrong. See to the comfort of your guests and I will have words with the governor."

  Two hours later, it was time for dinner and they had not seen or heard from the governor or the general. His son was handling it all like a trooper and mood was light. He ran the household as it was but never had his father acted this way. They had all heard what was said earlier and did their best to help him.

  The General joined them about ten minutes after the start of dinner.

  "He is stubborn and embarrassed so I doubt he will be joining us for dinner or the continuing to Allond with us. I believe he will be relieved of his post shortly."

  The governor’s son stared at the table fearing he would have to look at his guests. So many thoughts and dreams circling the drain in his head. When he did look up, he was angry. He asked to be excused and walked out of the dining room.

  "Princess, do you think your grieving friend would want to leave the ship and assist in the search for the child?"

  "General, there was a time when I could tell you to count on it but now I am not sure."

  Natalia said, "I will speak to him if you would make arrangements for a ride to the ship and have them wait for us."

  Alona looked at Natalia. "That is a very sound idea Natalia."

  Natalia replied. "Thank you, Madame Prime Minister." She stood and bowed from the waist. "I have been studying," a big smile on her face.

  Alona said, "The Princess could not have done it any better," taking a poke at E'Aria for fun.

  The General tapped his com and a soldier arrived a minute later.

  "Take Natalia to the Claymore and wait. She should be returning with Benjamin. If it turns into anything else, call us before you do anything.

  Chapter 16

  Ben lay on his bunk reading information about the planet Lotham. He saw a few things that might be worth leaving the ship for. There were a number of waterfalls and some active and dormant volcanoes. He laid the data pad down and stretched. Maybe Natalia or E'Aria or both would want to go do some sightseeing with him. He had some fences to mend, apologies to make. He looked at himself in the mirror and thought a shower and a hair brush were in order.

  The door chimed and he opened it. Natalia and General Raza's lieutenant were standing outside.

  "The governor’s son has been missing going on two days. I want you to get ready and go look for him."

  "Just like that, huh! No ‘hi dad, how are you?’ just go and save some kid. Why doesn’t the governor have his own damn people out looking? We are leaving tomorrow and we shouldn’t get sucked into staying any longer than that."

  The lieutenant was sensing that the young female's tone might not have been the best approach.

  The lieutenant said. "Sir, General Raza would consider it a personal favor if you could help in anyway. We will more than likely depart without the governor tomorrow because of some bad judgment on his part. But because we are here and there is a crisis, he thought we could help until we depart."

  "Has everyone been consulted on this Natalia? Do E'Aria and the rest all know? I am staying on the ship for a reason if you haven’t figured that out yet."

  "They all know," she answered.

  "Did they tell you to order me around like that?" Natalia began to squirm. "Don’t get too full of yourself and think to take advantage of my love for you. I will knock you on your ass if you talk to me like that again. Especially in front of a stranger." Ben paused staring them both down. "Am I allowed to bring any weapons to defend myself with?"

  "I am sorry sir, but no weapons. Once we are at the villa you can petition the General and see if he will change his mind."

  "I was just reading about this planet lieutenant. There are a number of large predators living here. What am I supposed to do, rip your arm off and beat them with it?"

  "So are you going to help?" Natalia asked.

  "Yes, I will get dressed. Wait for me outside." Five minutes later he was on his way but not before he had sent E'Aria a com to get all information together and have it ready. He found them waiting in a courtyard; General Raza, E'Aria, some of the household servants, a young Allond male and a dozen military personnel.

  "What do we know?" Ben asked, getting right down to business.

  The General answered, "The child went out to play yesterday and no one has seen him since. One of the servants saw some children playing in the field about a hundred yards from the villa. He didn’t see any of them later so he thought they had all gone to their homes."

  "I take it no children live here at the villa."

  The young Allond male answered. "No sir."

  Ben continued. "Are there any other children missing? Did the child have friends? They may know something."

  "The constable has been interviewing children but has not learned anything."

  "Ok, show me where they were playing." They walked out of the back of the villa and down a path that lead to a clearing. The forest had been cut back and nothing taller than about a foot was growing. Nothing very large was going to sneak up on anyone without being seen. There was evidence of activity everywhere probably from the search parties. The children's activities were trampled over so no clue there. He would have to get into the woods.

  He walked away from the wood line about fifty steps then turned to study it. There were a number of places that looked to have in and out activity and the search party wouldn’t have made them. It could be game trails or if the kids played there a lot, they were probably running in and out of the woods. Ben picked the one farthest from the villa; it had less sign of being trampled.

  E'Aria handed him a com. "There are about five hours of dayl
ight left today. I will com you in two and a half."

  "I am going alone? What the hell is going on?"

  "The constable called off their search so his people could rest and eat. The rest of us have diplomatic reasons for not getting involved."

  "Ok. I'm wasting my time. I'll just go commune with nature for a few hours then I’ll be back." Ben walked towards the trail he chose, mumbling and cussing all the way until he got into the woods. He had no armor or weapons. He checked the wind but wasn’t sure it mattered; he didn’t know the woods or which direction a predator would come from. He didn’t know shit; that’s what it amounted too.

  There may be five hours of daylight but not when you are in forest with thousands of years of life cycles and a thick forest canopy. He thought he may have four hours if he was lucky. He was lucky in his choice of trails. There were small footprints and signs of recent activity. Ben just eased slowly through the woods listening, watching and trying to smell for anything that said something died here.

  He was still angry at the situation but thought if the child was alive, he needed to do his best to bring it home. There was something they didn’t tell him but he would figure it out. He kept expecting the trail to turn and head back towards the field, but it didn’t. That wasn’t good. The kids probably didn’t make this one. He walked for an hour and only heard the sound of calm forest. He had not really walked that far. He guessed no more than half a mile. His speed was a slow stalk, just like approaching an enemy camp. Speed was not the object. He looked at the com; it was still early for his call. He put it back in his pocket and continued on. Twenty yards later, he heard something new.

  There were two, maybe three distinct sounds involved in the chase he heard. The first was making whimpering noises as it ran clearly frightened and not running on the game trail. The second and third were also making noise but it was a snorting mixed with heavy breathing. Ben decided if he stood still, they would cross his path in just about twenty seconds and he would know if he had to do anything or not. He wouldn’t interfere with anything natural.

  He saw the small Allond child running for its life and he didn’t wait to see what followed. He would see it soon enough. Ben ran an intercept course. He was hoping to catch the child and keep running then he saw the six legged killer not far behind. Body like a komodo dragon with extra legs and a head like a vulture minus the skinny neck. It was fast but so was he. Ben was running all out one bad step and he wouldn’t recover in time.

  The child heard the sound of what he thought was another hoard of the monsters; he dare not slow enough to look back. He could hear it getting closer and closer and then something grabbed him and lifted him off the ground. It spoke to him and he understood.

  Ben could hear the beast getting closer. It was in its stride. He finally saw what he was looking for and in three long running steps, he threw the child up into the tree and turned to face the ugly beast. The tactic must have been something new because six legs were digging in trying to stop which it finally did but not very gracefully. Ben kept his back to the tree not even sparing a look to check on the child. Slowly he pulled his pant leg up and removed a knife from inside his boot. He would never be good at following the rules. He saw a large round stone partially buried in the soil. He kicked it with his boot to loosen it up and now he felt a little better. Something sharp in one hand and something hard in the other.

  Big and ugly circled him, pausing to look up at the child then back to him. Ben guessed it had never smelled anything like him before but it sure knew what was up in the tree. Ben looked around the tree and saw a number of smaller rocks.

  "Hey kid, if I toss some rocks up to you, can you throw them at that ugly bastard and not fall out of the tree please? He spared a glance and received a nod. The first was golf ball-sized. He tossed it up underhanded and a second later, he saw and heard the thump as it bounced off the beast’s chest. Rock number two was larger. It made a nice thump, followed by a squeal and a jump backwards. They continued the process which thoroughly confused the beast. The child had a good arm and eye; he only missed once. Ben picked up a baseball-sized rock and let it fly. At twenty feet away, he was pretty sure that one would really hurt. He missed the head but the angle put the rock in the middle of its back. It was a mighty thump and the squealing that followed said something might have cracked. It decided it had enough and moved off looking back every so often, then it was gone.

  Ben put his knife away after waiting another thirty seconds, listening for the beast to see if it was doubling back. He held up his arms.

  "Jump, I’ll catch you." The child didn’t hesitate. He jogged part of the way back then slowed to a walk.

  Ben said gently, not to upset the child, "You have had everyone worried. You are lucky to be alive." He didn’t get an answer but he did get a hug and whimper or two. The kid held it together. Ben took out his com.

  "I am coming in. I’ll be there in about ten minutes. I have one tired and probably starving child. He seems in good shape, you should get food and water ready. We had a run in with some ugly beastie but managed to discourage it."

  E'Aria answered, "That is good news. We will have something ready for him."

  Ben said to the child, "Your father will be happy to have you home safe. I hear he has been very worried."

  "No sir, my father can’t be happy or sad or anything. He has been dead since I was a hatchling."

  "Isn’t the governor your father?"

  "No sir, he is the father of my friend. He is not going to be happy his son is dead. I also do not understand why he said there was treasure in the den of the Varzan. We found their den and waited till they left and went inside but there was no treasure and they came back. I climbed high up the stone wall where they couldn’t get to me. They have been eating him.

  "Ok. Try not to think about it. We will be safe in a few minutes and you can get some food. You do have family, don’t you?"

  "Yes. I have my mother and I think she will be happy until she is not, then I think I will be in trouble."

  "I will talk to her for you. When she knows the truth, she won’t be angry at you. Someone lied to you and that is not your fault."

  "He screamed a lot and called my name. I was too scared to climb down."

  "You can’t blame yourself. You both would be dead if you had climbed down. You said there were two of those beasts. You could not have done anything to save him against two of them. You are no coward; you are brave. Your strong arm and good eyes along with some rocks and determination saved me and you."

  They came out closer to the villa because of the direction the chase took them. They walked out of the woods to a group of people. There were a few he didn’t know. The child buried its face in his shoulder, not looking at any of them.

  It looked to all be good for a second. An Allond female began to wail and a short, chubby well-dressed Allond male spoke to her trying to console her. E'Aria, General Raza, Natalia and the lieutenant were standing watching. Natalia was smiling and the others looked curious.

  Ben knew the child did not belong to the female who was wailing her lungs out so he headed towards E'Aria and the others. He was five steps away when he saw their faces and felt the push from behind.

  "You fool, you imbecile you brought back the wrong child. You fool." The verbal berating continued.

  Ben whispered to the child, "I am going to hand you to my friend while I deal with this idiot like we dealt with the Varzan."

  "Hold out your arms, Princess" Ben handed the child to her.

  "Benjamin, do not do anything stupid." Ben spun on his heel, backhanding the governor with a closed fist. He was going to hit him no matter what anyone said. He had sized him up as he walked past a few seconds ago. The general held his hand up in a signal that must have meant ‘nobody move.’

  "You piece of shit. You sent those children there." His fist landed hard against the governor’s chest. Nice target when your opponent is eight inches taller. Ben jumped and landed his next
punch to the side of his head. With a leg sweep, the governor was down. Ben knelt next to him and slid the boot knife out. He stuck it to his throat.

  "You are about to die, asshole. You wanna come clean before you meet your maker?" Ben felt as well as heard General Raza move within a few feet of him but he didn’t try and stop him.

  "Did I hear you say that he sent the children out into the forest?"

  "Yes, he told the children that the Varzan had treasure in their dens. You will have to ask the child but I believe he may have told them where the den was located. I don’t think they had been playing that far in the woods. They managed to sneak in but got caught. His son didn’t climb fast enough and they caught him and have been eating on him since yesterday. I am guessing with full bellies the Varzan decided to find a nice place to rest and he made a run for freedom. One of them chased the child, but I got to him first. We fought it off and here we are. Any last words, asshole?"

  Ben pushed the knife hard enough it drew blood. The governor could feel his blood running down his neck.

  General Raza said. "I believe the governor wanted to get rid of his bastard child."

  "Looks like it to me."

  "We will handle it from here. Thank you for your help."

  "Right, whatever you say." Ben wiped his knife off and put it away. The governor lay on the ground, a little bruised and hurting but alive. Ben knew he wanted to just kill him and not even waste time with a beating. It probably would not have gone over well. He said nothing to anyone as he walked past and headed back to the Claymore. Good deed accomplished, bad guy still alive, no wildlife killed, time for a shower and call it a day.

  "E'Aria!, I am all out of favors and good will. You diplomats figure out how to handle shit from here on out and don’t ever ask me to risk my life and tell me I can’t have a weapon to defend myself. The kid and I owe our lives to his dead friend, two full bellies and a good supply of rocks. When the Cjittan decide to go on a feeding frenzy from planet to planet, you and General go throw fucking rocks at them, am I clear."