The Chronicles of Benjamin Jamison: Call Sign Reaper

by Thomas Wright

  Ben saw E’Aria lean in and whisper to the major. Ben knew his old team had been a bunch of outcasts or misfits when he took charge of them years ago. They were not good with authority and didn’t care if you wore metal on your collar or stripes on your sleeves. They were very good at what they did, which was usually something that the brass denied happening probably before they even did it.

  Ben heard another set of footsteps from behind that stopped next to him. The captain was standing there.

  “Natalia, stand over here by Captain O’Shaughnessy.” She walked to the other side and was between Ben and the captain, who put her arm around her shoulders and pulled her in to a hug against her side.

  A tall marine walked up to the major while the other four lined up behind him. He brought his hand up in a sharp salute.

  “Sergeant McAllister and Jamison’s Misfits reporting as ordered.”

  The major saluted back. He held out a data chip with their orders on it. She took it and slid it in her pocket. She already knew what their orders were.

  “Sergeant, have your troops sound off rank and name and I will introduce everyone here.” Corporal Bernstein Genius, Private Kozlowski Mumbles, Private Beavens Hillbilly, and Corpsman Hernandez Ronnie were introduced one by one.

  “My call sign is Snake, ma’am,” Sergeant McAllister said.

  “So you’re called Jamison’s Misfits?” the major asked the sergeant.

  “Yes, ma’am, it’s probably the nicest thing we have been called, so it’s what stuck.” The team had been looking everyone over who stood facing them. It was an odd assortment of people.

  “Sergeant Major, please step forward and introduce everyone,” the major asked.

  “Hold on a second, Major Andersen,” McAllister said forcefully. Ben asked E’Aria to step back to her left Snake had taken a quick two steps forward and was in the major’s face.

  “Where is Ben Jamison?” he hissed in anger. “You know we are only—” is all he got out as a large black leather-and-tungsten-clad fist hooked around the major and hit the sergeant in the jaw, knocking him down.

  They froze. Ben stepped around the major and picked the sergeant up off the floor by his shirt. “Snake, I’m disappointed in you and the rest,” he said. “I leave you alone for a few months and you are back to threatening officers. I see some of you have less stripes than when I last saw you.”

  Mumbles and Hillbilly looked down at the floor, knowing he was talking about them.

  “Ronnie, you still have the smelling salts in your belt?” he asked. “Give him a whiff and wake him up.” Ronnie had an idea who was addressing her but kept her mouth shut. Ben grabbed Snake by the shoulders and turned him to face Ronnie, who put a vial under his nose for a second. Snake shook his head then came back to reality. Ben spun him around to face him again. “Now get in line with the Misfits and shut up.”

  Ben turned towards the sergeant major and subtly pointed to the Reaper on his chest. “Sergeant Major, please continue,” he instructed. He stepped up and did so.

  “Troops, attention! Captain, step forward please. This is Captain O’Shaughnessy and this is her warship Warhammer. It is also her brig you will spend time in if any of you fail to show proper respect again! You know Major Andersen. This is Ensign Aok. I am Sergeant Major Kim and this is Gunnery Sergeant Smith.” He paused for effect. “Finally, this is Reaper. He is a private contractor working with our team. He is second in command under the major. Is this all clear to you thick-skulled jarheads?” he said, smiling at them in a not-so-friendly way.

  “Yes, Sergeant Major,” they all chimed in unison.

  “At ease!” the captain said to everyone. “Sergeant Major, if you would get with XO Holmes he should have quarters ready for your team.”

  “Fall in behind me and let’s get you settled,” Kim continued. “There is a meeting at 1500. Everyone, fall out at 1450 and I will take you to the conference room.” Sergeant Major and Gunny led the team off to find their assigned quarters.

  The major turned to Ben once they were out of earshot. “Have you forgotten everything you learned in your past life?” she said angrily. “You do not strike anyone wearing the uniform. “ She stood looking up at him, anger written all over her face. Ben stood quietly. He was aware he had an audience of the captain, Ensign and Natalia.

  “Major, could we discuss this later in private?” Ben asked.

  “I’m kind of curious, Reaper” the captain said, “as to what you have to say for yourself.” Ben looked at the three officers and young girl all staring at him. The major looked at the captain but said nothing.

  “Okay, I’ll tell you,” he said, looking at the two senior officers. “First of all, you cannot strike another service member. I am under no such code of conduct. My contract is very vague when it comes to what forms of discipline I can exercise or how I carry it out. I cannot go into too much explanation without being in conflict of our orders, as you know, Major.” He turned to O’Shaughnessy.

  “Captain, let’s just say I have experience in handling troops like these. They tend to need an attitude adjustment from time to time. I don’t think that it will be necessary again, if that is any consolation to you.”

  Ben turned and knelt down on one knee in front of Natalia. “Little one,” he said, “I am sorry if striking that soldier frightened you in anyway.”

  Natalia put her hand on the side of his helmet as if it was his face. “It’s okay,” she said. “He was being mean to Andrea. I don’t think he will be mean to anyone anymore.”

  “Neither do I,” Ben said. He stood up and looked at the officers.

  He took Natalia by the hand and started walking away. All three women were shaking their heads in amusement now.

  “Do you think we should talk to the general?” the captain asked the major.

  “No, I doubt it would do any good,” she replied. “He sent us all the way to Anubis to get him, so I am sure he knows what he has there. Plus, he’s probably right. They will not cause any trouble from here on out. I will still have words with all of them in my meeting.”

  Ben could see and sense the crew around them as he and Natalia walked, holding hands. He was taking her to the officers’ mess to get some ice cream. There was some time before the meeting and he was going to spend it with her. He asked the sergeant to fill her a bowl of chocolate ice cream, which the sergeant did at a double time pace. He would only glace at Ben, but he looked at Natalia and gave her a big smile.

  “Thank you Sergeant,” Reaper said “I appreciate your speed and your kindness.”

  “Yes sir,” he said, still only glancing at Ben. They sat down at a table while she ate. One table behind them sat two lieutenants. Ben did not know their names but had seen both of them around on the ship. One was about 5 foot 6 but talked like he was 7 feet tall. The other was slightly taller and of medium build

  “They let any riffraff and street urchin use our mess,” he overheard the shorter one say. “We are officers and deserve to share our mealtime with people of our own class and breeding.”

  “So true, Oliver, so true,” the taller lieutenant said. The shorter one continued. “I don’t know if I can even eat another bite, James, the stench is over whelming.”

  Ben heard every word, as he was meant to, but he stayed seated. The sergeant heard it all too, so he got on the com with the officer of the deck who called the captain. The captain and the major were on their way in that direction already, so they stepped up the pace. Ben looked down at Natalia, who was just eating her ice cream and had no idea the idiots where talking about them.

  “Let’s go James,” Ben heard from behind. He heard the officers stand up and then there was some shuffling and liquid splashing off his armor, which got all over Natalia and her ice cream.

  “Sorry about that,” he heard them laughing as they walked away. Natalia just looked shocked, and she scooted away from the liquid. Ben was out of his chair and on their heels in about two seconds.

  “Hey! Ass
holes!” They turned to find him standing right behind them. His hands shot out and grabbed both of them by the collars and pulled them towards him.

  “How about we all meet in the gym later and settle this man to man. I’m good with two against one if you two are,” he growled. The captain and the major walked in the mess.

  “Gentlemen!” the captain said, loud enough that she knew she would be heard. Ben didn’t let them go. They were using both hands to try and get free and it wasn’t working. The captain watched her men struggling.

  “What is the hell is going on here?” she asked.

  “The lieutenants and I were just discussing meeting at their convenience in the gym to settle a matter of difference in their olfactory senses,” Ben told her. The major saw Natalia and walked over to check on her. They were having a discussion and the sergeant of the mess was there with towels, drying her and the table off.

  “I am awaiting their answer, Captain,” he said to her. “Although I think they just don’t make navy officers like they used to. I guess the news will spread about the cowards on the Warhammer.” Ben turned from the three of them and walked away. The sergeant was bringing Natalia more ice cream, and some for the major also.

  Ben sat down at the dry table. “Both those guys are sorry, little one,” he told Natalia. “I think I’ll meet them later and give them lessons on how to walk so they don’t spill their drinks on anyone else.” He heard the lieutenants leave the mess like their pants were on fire. The captain joined them and gave Ben a cold stare.

  “The lieutenants will be in the gym at 1900 hours. I trust you won’t be late.”

  “No ma’am,” he answered, “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

  “You don’t mind if I attend, do you Reaper?” the captain said.

  “Please do,” Ben said. “After all, it’s the honor of your ship that is at stake.” He laughed. The captain got some color to her face, stood up and started walking.

  “Captain, hold on. Let me walk with you for a minute.” Ben caught up to her. He turned on his com recorder and it started playing what had just happened. She didn’t say anything, but Ben could tell her anger had shifted away from him. Ben looked her in the eyes.

  “Captain, I am going to beat them until they agree to apologize to Natalia. I don’t know how long that will take or if it will even happen, so you might want to find replacements for their duties just in case. Listen, you are my friend and if at some point you ask me to stop I will, but don’t make it too soon or I might develop a case of temporary deafness. I will wear gloves so they won’t get too broken. See you at 1900.” He turned and walked back to the table.

  Ben sat down and looked at Natalia, who was smiling and happy.

  “That was yummy,” she said.

  “Let’s go my Med bay and see Nurse Tanaka so I can schedule a session in the tank for later. Did you get moved yet to a room with anyone?” he asked her.

  “Yes I did.” She had a big smile. “It’s so nice.”

  “Is it with the captain?” he asked softly, like it was a secret.

  “Yes,” she giggled.

  Later, the major caught up with them on their way to Natalia’s room.

  “Reaper, I would like to talk to you before the meeting. Do you think we can meet in 10 minutes?”

  “Yes ma’am,” Ben said. “I will walk Natalia to her quarters and right back.” They arrived at the captain’s quarters. Natalia put her hand on the door panel and it opened right up. The captain was at her desk reading and looked up to see them at the door.

  “I will see you later, little one,” Ben said.

  She walked in like she belonged. Ben nodded to the captain and walked back to his quarters. He went in and took off his katana, pistol and knife. He removed his helmet and sat it on the table. Whatever they had spilled on his armor had just run off the water proof material. He was debating on changing when the door opened and the major walked in. He saw his hair was sticking up and he ran his fingers through it to try and tame it. She sat down and let out a long sigh.

  “You have had a busy day today,” she said. “You knocked out a marine sergeant, threatened two navy lieutenants, and will probably beat the hell out of them later.”

  “Probably?” he said as if there was any question. “No probably about it.”

  “You know you can’t go beating up everyone who doesn’t like Natalia,” Andrea said. “She will need to learn how to fight her own battles.”

  “Major, a week ago she was being raped, beaten and starved. I am going to give her what time I can to be a young girl who doesn’t have to be afraid or threatened. She will be taught how to defend herself by the strong men and women who surround her right now. I am hoping you will be one of the ones to help with her training.”

  Ben took off his boots and removed his armor. It was an hour and a half until the meeting.

  “Is this meeting an official meeting, or can I lay on the bed while we talk about all the things I am doing wrong?” He got a long sigh again from the major, which wasn’t an answer, so he laid down. He took his com and turned the recording on from the mess. He played audio and video for her. She heard the insults but could only see the table top that Ben had been staring at. She heard the shuffling and then saw the liquid as Ben looked at this shoulder and was looking at Natalia getting the brunt of it. Ben shut it off.

  “I could have beaten them right then and there,” Ben told her, “but instead I took the high road and demanded satisfaction for their insults. So what? Do you think I should have just let them walk out? Let them go?”

  “No, I don’t think so?” Andrea said.

  “Good!”

  “But do you think you can try and not get into any situations for the next three days?” We will be carrying out our mission and will hopefully too busy to be punching out our own people.”

  Ben laughed. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

  He got up off his bed and walked over to Andrea. He took her hands in his and pulled her up. He started unbuttoning her uniform.

  “Do you mind if I ask you what you are doing?” she said.

  “I’m removing your uniform to hang it up, so it doesn’t get wrinkled.” He pulled her shirt up out from her pants and finished unbuttoning it. He hung it on the back of the chair. He sat her down and untied her boots, pulling them off. He sat them neatly off to the side. He stood and took her hands again and pulled her up. He unbuckled her belt and her pants and pushed them down past her hips. They fell to the floor and she stepped out of them. He picked them up, lined up the creases and folded them over the other chair. She had a very nice black lace bra that unhooked in the front. He laid it over her shirt. She had perfect breasts. He took her hand and walked her over to his bed.

  “Lay down on your stomach,” he told her as he stepped aside. She looked at him and he leaned in and kissed her. “Lay down, like I asked you.” She did and was looking back and up at him.

  “You know we can’t have sex every time I come into your quarters,” she said.

  “My room, my rules. Now just stop talking.”

  Ben put his knee into the mattress and straddled Andrea sitting down on the back of her thighs. He reached in between the mattress and the wall and pulled out a bottle. It was massage oil. He squeezed some of it on his hands and rubbed them together to warm it up. He started rubbing her shoulders. He could feel the knots in the muscles as he applied pressure to his finger tips.

  “You are just full of surprises,” she said softly in between him kneading the knots away. He worked on her neck as well, pulling his finger tips down from the base of her skull to her shoulders. He worked the arc of her shoulder blades, following her spine to the small of her back. He massaged just above her hips and continued down. He worked his fingers into the top of her hips, pushing and pulling his fingers down. He had been at it for about 30 minutes when he heard the soft snoring. She was deep in sleep. He set an alarm and laid next to her, pulling a blanket over both of them. It was
n’t long before he was asleep also.

  Chapter 13: Three Down

  The alarm went off after 45 minutes. Ben shut it off. He climbed over Andrea and took a quick shower to wake up. He put on a clean thermal set and socks, along with a pair of black cargo pants and his boots. He looked over to see a pair of beautiful blue eyes staring at him. She stretched, sat up and smiled. He thought if he scratched her she would start purring.

  “Did you have a nice nap?”

  “Yes,” she said, stretching again. “That was wonderful.”

  “You should get dressed while I make us a coffee to go.” He handed her bra and shirt to her.

  On the walk to the conference room, the major was informed that everyone was there and accounted for. She told Kim not to call the room to attention when they arrived. They walked through the door and conversations halted.

  “Please take a seat, everyone,” the major said, taking the seat at the head of the table. Ben nodded for the two senior NCOs to sit on either side of the major. He stood behind and to the left of her. This was the first time his old team had had a chance to take a look at him. They were not sure what to make of it. They looked at each other as if searching for an answer. The major gave them a second.

  “Okay,” she said, allowing a small smile to open up her face for a moment, “let’s get to the matter of the big ape standing behind me.” They all smiled.

  “Simply put, you need to forget his name and your prior association with him. He is a ghost. Forget about sitting around drinking beer and talking about old times. That’s not going to happen, unless you want a one way ticket to jail. One person outside of this room knows his real identity, and trust me, you don’t want to piss him off.” She paused. “I hope by using easy speak you all understand. As a reminder, you all signed confidentiality documents stating you would comply before you ever left your last post to join us here. Now that is out of the way, we have to talk about your team name. You will need to come up with another one and I hope I don’t have to explain the reason why. From this point on, do not breathe it.” She waited for all of that to sink in.