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o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
Ethan, Brandt and Jane would all agree that Benji was a great agent. If anyone ever doubted that, the trio would put them in their place. Not only was he good at working his technical magic during a mission, he also was excellent in the field.
Brandt could vouch for that on previous experience.
However, like most people, Benji had made a few mistakes. He had a bad habit of getting himself into trouble.
But that was just Benji.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
1.
Benji had received the call about the new mission at 11am.
He had packed the car by 11:30am.
It was 11:40am when everything went to hell.
Benji stepped out of his front door and before he knew it, he was shin-deep in water.
“What the f-” he began, however a noise to his right caused him to cut short and look up. The image before him left him wide eyed as the wall of water rushed down the street towards him. People were running in all directions with hopes of escaping it, however they were too slow and found themselves hunted down by the monstrous stampede. Benji wanted to move; he knew he should try to get back inside to safety, however he merely stood mesmerised by the flood. Shaking himself from the trance, he spun around and reached for the handle of his door, but he was too late. The icy water hit him and knocked him from his feet, sending him tumbling underneath the surface. He felt the current pulling him, dragging him under with such force that he felt his head connect with the wall of his own garden. His mind went fuzzy leaving him unable to tell which way was up. Grappling out, he searched for purchase on something – anything – that he could use to grab onto, however the water was moving at such speeds that it made it impossible.
Finally, Benji found the surface and the feeling of the air rushing into his lungs was almost painful. He gasped as he tried to regain his breath; the blood from his newly acquired gash ran thin with the water and was making it hard to open his eyes. Rubbing some of the red liquid aside, he looked around for anything to use as leverage to get to safety. Catching glimpse of a tree getting near, he tried with all of his might to reach it, throwing out his arms as it got closer and kicking at the water behind him. He felt his right hand grasp the branch and he gripped it tight. His body kept moving as the current tried to take him with it, causing him to feel the pull on his shoulder. His entire arm jolted and he felt the pain rush through his body like a fire as he tried to get a tighter hold on the branch. Pushing against the current, he managed to bring his other arm up and wrap it around the branch, feeling more secure once he had this new hold on it.
He could hear the distant sound of screams the disappeared amongst the sound of gushing water and he prayed that help was on the way. Coughing as some water jumped into his mouth, he tried to pull himself up a bit more in an attempt to get one leg over the branch however a noise made him stop.
“Help!” Benji looked up to see a woman being pulled towards him in the current. Throwing his plan out of the window, he lowered himself back into the water, leaving one are wrapped around the branch as he reached the other out.
“Grab on!” he yelled, his voice almost lost in the roaring of the water. The woman glanced across at him and without a second thought, she held out her hand and stretched it. Benji felt his hand connect with hers and he quickly clasped their fingers together, not wanting to let go. As her body moved with the current – much like his had done – he felt the tugging on his already injured arm and he let out a small yelp, however he did not let go. Using all of his strength, he pulled her towards him and wrapped his arm around her waist, bringing her in close so that she could also wrap her arms around the tree. “Are you ok?” he asked once she was secure.
“Mm-hmm…” she gasped between coughs. “Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.” Benji managed a reassuring smile. “I’m sure help is on the way, we just need to hold on until it gets here, ok?” The woman nodded and Benji felt relieved that she was managing to stay calm. It would be much more difficult to keep both her and himself above water if she were panicking.
The pair held on for what seemed like hours, struggling to keep their heads above the rapidly moving water. The icy cold water around them made their lower bodies go numb and they could feel their teeth chattering.
“Wait…” Benji suddenly paused and the duo listened carefully. Despite the loud noise of the water in their ears, they could hear the faint sound of moving rotors. Throwing his head back, Benji saw a wonderful sight; getting closer was indeed a helicopter. “What did I tell you?” he grinned and glanced back to the woman who returned his smile. They waited as the helicopter got lower – they were relieved that the pilot had seen them.
Suddenly, Benji felt a jolt as the branch they were holding gave way. The tech managed to keep hold of the remaining part of the tree, however the part which the woman had been grasping disappeared. Reaching out, he caught her hand in his own and held on with all of his might. The woman let out a scream, her fingernails digging into the skin of Benji’s hand as they held onto each other.
“Don’t let go!” she begged, noting the pain in Benji’s eyes as he tried to keep hold. He felt her hand beginning to slip and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, hoping that their rescuers would reach them in time.
But they were too late.
“No!” Benji felt the woman’s hand leave his own and screamed. As he watched her being pulled away from him by the current, he almost lost his own grasp. He could see her getting further and further away until she disappeared from sight completely. He stared, eyes and mouth wide in horror, at the vast space which no longer had the woman as a part of it. He was sure he felt tears escape his eyes, however he couldn’t be certain as the water splashed across his face. He hadn’t even noticed that one of the rescuers had been lowered from the helicopter until he felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Sir, please.” Benji glanced at him, realising that the man had been speaking to him for some time without him even realising. Benji nodded and let the man help him into the harness.
Once the helicopter was a safe distance away, the men helped Benji from the aircraft and he was led to the back of an ambulance. Despite desperate attempts from paramedics, the tech refused to be taken to the hospital, leaving them to merely tend to him as best they could. When asked if he wanted them to call anyone, only one name rolled off his tongue. He needed his best friend.
Brandt turned up twenty minutes later, having run numerous red lights to get to Benji. Receiving a phone call saying that your friend had been injured in a flooding and had almost drowned kind of made you think ‘screw road rules’.
When the paramedic had led Brandt over to Benji, the sight almost broke the analyst’s heart. Benji sat in the back of the van, swamped by a blanket which left only his head visible and a large white patch sitting across his forehead. He looked exhausted and freezing however there was something else that the tech exhibited which left Brandt confused and worried.
“Benji?” He approached and saw the younger man look up. His blue eyes were pain stricken and his cheeks were stained with tears. “Hey, man. Are you ok?” Brandt sat down next to his friend and gently rubbed his hand on his back in a soothing manner. “What happened?”
“Is this how you felt?” The voice that responded was timid; far from what Brandt was used to hearing.
“What do you mean?”
“When Julia was killed? You said you felt guilty for not being able to stop them taking her.” Brandt suddenly realised what Benji meant. The paramedic had mentioned something about a woman that Benji had been trying to help. “I couldn’t save her.” The tech went on, lowering his gaze to the floor. “I couldn’t…”
“But you tried.” Brandt offered. “You did something, that’s what counts.” Benji nodded absentmindedly and Brandt felt a small amount of relief at the acknowledgement.
“I didn’t even know her name.”
“What?” Brandt queried.
“I never asked her name before…” Benji stared into the distance and Brandt felt his heart breaking; seeing his friend so sombre and saddened was killing him. He wanted to do something about it.
“Well…” he began, softly. “Why don’t you give her one?” Benji looked up at him and the analyst smiled at him.
“Uh…” Benji began to think; Brandt could virtually see his mind racing. “Bridget.”
“Bridget?” Brandt repeated, pondering the name. “That’s a nice name.”
Benji looked up at him. “It means ‘strength’.” Brandt smiled at his friend and put an arm around his shoulders.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
2.
“Shit! Guys get out!” Ethan’s voice came over the comms sounding terrified. “The building is gonna go up.” Benji and Brandt shared a glance before grabbing everything they could and running for the nearest door.
“We’re on our way out.” Brandt told Ethan as they ran. “Where’s Aphrodite?”
“Already outside.” Jane’s voice drifted into their ears as they made their way through corridor after corridor. The faint smell of burning tingled their noses as the got closer to the source and by the time they reached the door at the end of one hallway, they were already beginning to cough. The fumes entered their noses and mouths, Brandt felt it catch in his throat and coat the walls of his trachea. As they turned another corner, they finally saw the flames.
They rose high to the ceiling and waved about in front of them, taunting the agents. The duo looked around for a way out and after a few moments of frantic searching, a gap became visible.
Brandt turned to Benji. “You ready?” When Benji nodded, Brandt took in a deep breath and made his way across to the gap. Moving carefully yet swiftly, the pair edged closer, not wanting to disturb their already unsteady surroundings. Each step felt like it could be their last as the heat began to rise. Sweat dripped down Brandt’s brow as he moved. He turned briefly to make sure that Benji was still behind and could see that the tech was looking as exhausted and hot as he felt; the smoky smudges on the Brit’s cheeks illuminated by the light of the fire.
Suddenly, everything around them seemed to move and the ceiling began to fall. Flames moved closer and the pair knew that they had to get out as soon as possible. Brandt began to run and Benji tried to stay close behind, however the rapidly thickening smoke made it harder to see each other. A cracking noise sounded behind the tech and he didn’t even get the chance to turn around before everything went black.
Brandt stumbled through the doors into the fresh air and gasped for breath as he leant forward on his knees. Looking up he could see Ethan and Jane rushing to his aid, however the looks on their faces showed more concern than they should have considering that all four of them were safe.
But when he turned around, he saw that the fourth member of their group was not there.
“Benji?” Brandt spoke with a hoarse voice, coughing as speaking irritated his throat. “Benji!” Without a second thought, Brandt found himself running back into the building with Ethan and Jane staring on in horror.
“Brandt!” Ethan yelled, moving towards the door. “Stay here. No matter what, stay outside.” He ordered Jane before following his friend into the burning structure. Jane saw them both disappear and felt sick to the stomach, hoping that they would return soon with Benji.
Brandt made his way back into the flames, hearing Ethan shouting his name from behind. He ignored the team leader and continued his way through the fire, calling out for his friend. Waving his hand in front of his face, he coughed out the smoke from his lungs as he searched.
“Oh my god, Benji!” He finally saw the tech and rushed over. Benji lay, unmoving, blood painting the back of his head. The worst part was, the beam that had hit him was now sitting across his upper back, pinning him down. Brandt knelt next to his friend and checked for a pulse. Spinning his head around, he saw Ethan getting closer. “Ethan! Get this thing off him.”
The leader quickly sped across to Brandt and the pair grabbed at the beam. The wood was hot and was crumbling slightly under their fingers, but they ignored the burning sensation on their hands. The heavy weight of the beam tugged at their shoulders and caused them to yell out as they struggled to lift it off their friend. More debris collapsed around them, some landing on them eliciting small cries of pain however neither man gave up. Eventually, they managed to lift the wood enough so that they could move it away from Benji and they quickly moved to grab the Brit. With some help from Brandt, Ethan managed to get Benji over his shoulder and the pair ran quickly back to the exit.
Outside, Jane waited anxiously; she wanted to go and help them, however she knew that all that would achieve would be more issues. After what seemed like forever, she saw two figures appear out of the smoke.
It was Ethan and Brandt. Over Ethan’s shoulder was a motionless Benji. Gasping, she ran over to them.
“Benji!” she screamed, watching as Ethan placed the tech onto the ground and knelt next to him. Brandt walked around to her and placed his arm over her shoulders as Ethan gently tapped Benji’s cheek.
“Benji? Can you hear me? Ben-” Ethan was cut off as the building behind them erupted into a ball of fire. He instinctively flung himself over Benji to protect him as both Brandt and Jane were thrown from their feet. As the flames returned to their previous appearance, Ethan glanced down to Benji, whose eyes were beginning to open. “Benji, you ok?” he watched as the younger man took in a deep breath and nodded, pain evident in his half-lidded eyes. A quick glance at Brandt and Jane showed him that neither were hurt and he smiled at them before turning back to the tech. “You’re gonna be fine.”
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
3.
“Go on, Benji. It’s your turn to do something.” Brandt smiled childishly as he climbed into the back seat of the car. Benji looked desperately at Ethan who shrugged his shoulders from the driver’s seat.
“But…” he turned to Jane who sat next to Brandt. “I put the stuff in the car.”
“And I just filled up the tank.” Brandt spoke in the same whining voice the tech had just used. “Jane paid for lunch and Ethan is the driver. It. Is. Your. Turn.” The grin stayed on Brandt’s face as he spoke and he watched Benji sigh before getting out of the car.
“Fine…” came the English accent.
“Don’t be such a drama queen, Benj!” Brandt shouted after him. “You’re just paying for fifty bucks worth of petrol. What’s the worst that could happen?” he laughed as they watched Benji cross the courtyard and disappear into the petrol station. Jane and Ethan turned to Brandt and shook their heads, causing the analyst to shoot them an innocent look. Their temporary distraction also meant that they didn’t spot the van pulling up across the way or the four suspicious looking men getting out and entering the building.
Benji stood in the line waiting to pay, regarding his boots as he let out an exasperated sigh. There were only three people in front of him, however the man at the front of the queue was taking his sweet time. Benji heard the door open behind him and glanced around out of curiosity, however regretted it when he turned to find the butt of a rifle being brought towards his face. He felt his lip split painfully and blood poured from his mouth as the momentum made him fall to the ground. As his blood formed a small pool on the white tiles under his chin, Benji glanced up to see three men with guns pushing the other customers and the cashier into a corner. Before he could stop it, he felt a fourth man grab him by the scruff of his jacket and pull him roughly to his feet, half-dragging him across to join the other people. As two of the men approached the counter, the other two wrapped zip ties around each hostage’s wrists before aiming their guns at them. Clearly they weren’t meant to move.
Benji wondered if the others outside had seen what was going on? Or were they blissfully unaware of the predicament that the tech was currently in? Either way, Benji knew he was in trouble. What made it even worse was that he didn’t have his gun with him. They weren’t on a mission therefore he had no reason to carry it. He was supposed to be safe.
Outside, the trio continued to discuss what they would do once they reached their destination. They were letting Jane choose the restaurant for that night, as the following day was her birthday. In the distance, they heard the sound of sirens, wondering if there had been a crash.
“Benji’s taking his time.” Brandt spoke up. “I think he’s being deliberately slow just to piss me off.”
“Probably.” Ethan smiled and shrugged.
“Should I go in there and kick the crap out of him to speed him up?” the analyst joked and all three agents laughed as they waited, not knowing the danger their friend was in.
Back inside, Benji glanced across to the other hostages, noting the man from earlier, a young woman and an elderly man. He didn’t want to get them hurt but at the same time, he didn’t want to let these men get away. From outside, he heard the sound of sirens getting closer and, from the looks of things, the man nearest him had heard them too. The robber looked up and out of the window, leaving Benji with the opening he needed. Using his strength and training, he quickly got to his feet and kicked out at the man, knocking the gun from his hands in the process. The robber was startled by the movement, allowing Benji to lift his arms over the man’s head and wrap them around his neck. The zip ties created a locked circle and the man was left unable to escape. The three other robbers turned and aimed their guns at him; Benji pulled the man in closer, using him as a human shield.
“Stupid move, kid.” The first robber spoke in a condescending way as he stepped forward, not letting his aim drop. He then moved to the young woman, pressing the barrel of his rifle into her temple. “Do you want me to kill her? Let her die for your foolish mistake?” Benji’s eyes locked with the woman’s green orbs which displayed pure terror. A tear fell down her cheek and the tech knew he had to do something. Loosening his grip around the robber’s neck, Benji sighed. He felt the man he was holding grab his arms and before he knew it, he was flipped over the man’s head, landing on the floor with a painful thud. The wind rushed out of him and he gasped for breath as he looked up. The man who had spoken was now standing over him, exchanging weapons with another robber. He now held a smaller hand gun and aimed it at Benji, pulling the trigger without a second thought.
Outside, the sound of the gunshot made the three agents freeze.
“What the hell was that?” Jane asked, glancing between her teammates. Brandt looked across to the building of the petrol station and saw four men standing with masks over their faces standing inside.
“Shit!” he grabbed his gun from his bag and exited the vehicle, leaving Ethan and Jane confused. Both agents soon realised what he had seen and copied the analyst’s actions.
Benji writhed on the floor as blood poured from his side, leaving a much larger puddle of crimson than his lip had. Panting, he looked up through blurred vision at the robbers, who were discussing what to do. He couldn’t make out what was going on, but when he was pulled to his feet, he had a good idea. A strong arm wrapped underneath his arms and around his torso, allowing him to be dragged across the room. He tried to struggle against the vice-like grip, however he could feel himself becoming weaker by the second. As he was pulled through the back door of the building, he caught a quick glimpse of his teammates rushing towards the front. Things were not going good.
Ethan, Jane and Brandt burst through the door and found that only four people were left – with no sign of Benji. As they rushed to aid them, Brandt spoke up.
“Were there any other hostages?”
“Yes.” The elderly man spoke up. “There was a young blonde lad.”
Brandt turned to Ethan, who spoke next. “What happened to him?”
“He tried to fight but one of them… one of them had a gun on me so he stopped.” The young woman answered, tears in her eyes. “One of them shot him and then they took him.” All three agents felt their hearts drop.
“Where did they go?” Jane asked, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Brandt and Ethan stood up, waiting for a direction. When the woman pointed to the back door, they were running across to it in a heartbeat.
Benji felt himself being dragged across the asphalt, blood dripping onto the floor as he was pulled towards a van. Through the glass he could see his friends rushing to the aid of the other hostages before noting both Ethan and Brandt making their way to the back exit. He tried to call for help.
“Brandt! Ethan!” he cried, knowing it was stupid. Even if they killed him for it, at least his friends might be able to stop the men from escaping. Behind him, one of the men spoke up.
“Put this on him. Shut him up.” Benji looked to see him holding out a scarf. Whipping his head back round, he tried to call out again, however his voice became muffled by the gag as it was forced into his mouth. As the scarf was secured, he noticed his friends appearing through the door and felt some relief.
“Fuck! They’ve got guns!” one of the robbers yelled, lifting his weapon to fire as the group climbed into the van. Brandt and Ethan tried to shoot back but were afraid of risking hitting the tech. They watched in despair as their friend was bundled into the van and the doors shut. As the vehicle sped off, they ran back around to their own car, shouting at Jane in the process. Once she had joined them outside, they jumped into the car and sped off in pursuit of the kidnappers.
Inside the van, Benji lay on the floor. His arms were still bound and the gag had already made his mouth dry. The pain from his side radiated throughout his entire body and he could feel consciousness slowly slipping away. Part of him wanted to fight it due to the fear of what would happen after he closed his eyes, however the rest of him figured that whatever they had planned for him, he would not want to be awake for. Letting the latter idea take over, he gave in to the enticing allure of unconsciousness and closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, he found himself in the hospital, surrounded by his team. How he got there was a mystery, however he later learned of his rescue and why his friends displayed visible signs of a fight.
The team’s car had caught up with the van and clipped the corner, causing the leading vehicle to spin out. By the time the dust had settled, the three were already at the van, throwing open the doors and instigating a fight. All four men had been relatively easy to take down, however each agent suffered minor injuries. Brandt had a shining bruise around his right eye and his cheek was busted, Ethan needed some stitches on his forehead and Jane had a small gash on her eyebrow along with a cut lip.
When they had found Benji in the back of the van, his appearance had almost broken their hearts but they kept it together until their friend was in the safe hands of the surgeons at the hospital. The bullet had caused damage to Benji’s spleen, resulting in some internal bleeding, however the doctors had been able to stop it and save the Brit’s life.
As Benji listened to his team explain this, he felt nothing but gratitude for his friends.
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4.
“So, Mr Young. I take it you like my product.” The woman, Ms Yvonne Thatcher, spoke in a seductive manner that virtually gave Benji chills as she circled him. Her black dress cut off at the knee, clinging to her figure like nothing he had seen before. Her stilettos clicked on the marble floor of the room as she walked gracefully around it. Her long red locks fell in curls around her shoulders and her eyes were icy blue. Benji felt almost hypnotised by her presence; however he had work to do. He was undercover as Timothy Young, there to purchase her new biological weapon so that they could bring her down. When he had first found out that it was this beautiful, petite woman who was threatening the safety of millions of people, he had scoffed. In all honesty, Benji thought she appeared to be too lovely to be willing to hurt anyone. But he had been proven wrong since entering that room. Once again, he had been rather disappointed that he wasn’t wearing a mask, but they hadn’t had the need for one.
Brandt stood outside with Yvonne’s bodyguard posing as Benji’s right-hand man, listening in to the conversation his friend was having. He couldn’t hear Yvonne, however just hearing her voice during the initial meeting made Brandt worry that the tech would fall for her seduction and that the mission would be compromised. But he had faith that Benji was competent enough to complete their work.
Inside, Benji gave Yvonne a side glance, letting the corner of his lips turn up slightly. “I most certainly do.” Turning his body to face her, he leant back onto the desk. “We remain agreed on our price, I assume.”
“But of course.” Yvonne approached him with two glasses. Wine for her and scotch for him. “Five million for me and you get the most dangerous, fascinating weapon around. I have to say, I’ll drink to that.” Benji smiled and let his glass click with hers before taking a tiny sip of his drink. It was good scotch; however he didn’t exactly wish to become inebriated on a mission. That could wait until it was complete. Benji placed the glass on the desk behind him and paced the room.
“Tell me, Mr Young, are you familiar with the substance Atropine?” Yvonne spoke across the room at him, the seductive tone remaining strong.
“Can’t say I am, Ms. Thatcher.” Benji responded, stopping in front of a mirror as he straightened his tie. He wasn’t sure of the relevance and quite frankly, he didn’t care. He needed to keep her sweet or that would be it. “Care to enlighten me?”
“It would be my pleasure.” She smiled before continuing. “It is a rather dangerous substance, Mr Young, one that manifests itself in numerous symptoms once ingested.” Benji was confused as to what she meant, but it became clear to him once she continued. “First, the pupils become dilated.” Benji caught a glimpse of his eyes in the mirror and noticed that, sure enough, his pupils were enlarged. “Now one would assume that would be nothing to worry about; it’s normal for the pupils to do that. But soon, the heart rate begins to rise.” Benji could feel his heart pounding against his chest rapidly, unsure whether it was just fear causing it to do that. “Oh the heart beats so fast and heavy that you begin to feel dizzy. Lightheaded. Disorientated.” She paused for a second before pulling out her phone and dialling her bodyguard outside. “Kill him.”
Benji spun round to look at her, suddenly terrified for both himself and Brandt. He blinked a few times, finding his vision blurry and the room beginning to move. The floor seemed to tilt at a forty-five degree angle and Benji had to grab onto the cabinet behind him to stay steady. Closing his eyes for a second, he hoped to settle the dizziness that was taking him over all too quickly. When he found the courage to look up again, he saw Yvonne approaching him; the main problem was, due to his stupefaction, he could see three of her. He grasped out for something to defend himself with, however he was unable to find something in time. He felt his knees buckling and he began to fall, dragging the contents of the cabinet with him. He landed on his side but forced his unsteady body to roll over onto his back. She stood over him with maliciousness portrayed through her beauty. He watched her crouch down near him, unable to move his weak limbs as she brought her face to his.
“It was a pleasure doing business with you.” She bent down and placed a soft yet passionate kiss onto his lips. Lifting her head, she smiled at him. “Now, sleep.” He watched, through half-lidded eyes, as she stood and grabbed both the weapon and the money before walking to the door.
Brandt had heard Benji’s breathing become laboured however barely had time to react as he sensed the movement in the other man. He acted quickly, dodging the first swing before rolling across the room. He noticed the man pulling out a blade so climbed to his feet and rushed the man, being careful to not get in the path of the knife. Pushing the man backwards, he slammed him into the wall, knocking the wind out of his lungs. Using the time in which the bodyguard was trying to get his breath back, Brandt kicked out at his hand, sending the blade tumbling onto the ground. The analyst reached to the back of his jeans instinctively, however when his hand grasped at thin air, he remembered his gun being taken from him upon entry. He lifted his head back up just in time to see the man’s leg swinging at him as a roundhouse kick to the face left his mind swimming. A second kick to the stomach sent him flying backwards. He landed on the ground with a painful thud and in the time it took him to register what had happened, the man was already on him, blade in hand. As the weapon was lifted, he quickly rolled to the left, dodging as the knife plunged towards his chest. Brandt kept rolling along the floor, letting him get as far away from his assailant before clambering to his feet. The man ran at him and Brandt threw a strong punch at his face, but the man recovered quicker than the analyst anticipated. As Brandt spun on his heel to put more distance between them, the man swung the knife again; the agent felt the sharp pain as it sliced through the back of his suit and through his skin.
Letting out a cry he began to fall forward from the shock, but using it to his advantage, turned his fall into a forward-roll. He was on his feet in a millisecond and the tables began to turn. Brandt used all of his remaining energy to lay into the man, throwing punch after punch, hitting out with multiple kicks; the bodyguard didn’t even have the time to think between attacks. When the knife flew out of the man’s hand and skidded across the floor, Brandt dived for it, grasping it between his fingers. He jumped back up, ignoring the dizziness due to the combination of the speed he used to move and his throbbing head, and ran at the man, plunging the knife into his stomach. As he did, the bodyguard gave one last attempt at domination by reaching out and grasping Brandt’s neck between his hands. The analyst choked a little, however felt the grip slacken as the life left the man’s body. Out of the corner of his eye, Brandt saw someone exiting the room and he wondered if it was Benji; however the sound of heels clicking on the floor changed his mind. Once he was sure that his ‘friend’ was dead, he turned and saw that the woman was gone.
“Cancer, Sagittarius…” he panted into his mic as he crossed the room to the double doors. “Thatcher is exiting the building. Apprehend her if possible.”
“Copy that. Where’s Aquarius?” Ethan’s voice drifted back.
“I’m going to check on him now.” Brandt wiped the blood from his face and rushed into the hotel room, feeling sick to the stomach with what he saw. Benji lay on the floor gasping for breath and writhing as he grabbed out at thin air. “Benji!” he cried out his friends name and collapsed to his knees next to the Brit’s shaking form. Benji was flailing his arms around and Brandt grabbed one of them to stop him, however Benji shook his head and motioned his hand like a pen. Brandt understood and frantically patted down the breast pocket of his jacket; there were some things about being an analyst that remained with him and this now fell under the things he would never stop doing. Handing the biro to Benji, he watched as the tech’s shaking right hand wrote on the palm of his left.
ATROPINE
The ‘e’ trailed off and the pen fell to the floor as Benji’s hand went limp. Brandt shook Benji in an attempt to rouse him, but the tech remained unresponsive. Calming his breathing, Brandt maneuvered himself so that he could lift his friend into his arms before making his way to the exit.
Brandt couldn’t remember how he got to the hospital. He remembered stepping out into the fresh air with Benji in his arms. He could recall Ethan rushing over to him while Jane kept hold of Thatcher, who was cuffed and forced up against the car. He remembered watching Ethan take Benji from him and place him in the back of the van. He vaguely remembered his knees wobbling slightly as he approached the vehicle. After that, everything went blurry. Ethan had explained that after getting into the van, the analyst had grasped Benji’s hand and not let go; he had fallen into a virtually catatonic state as he refused to leave his friend’s side. Even when they had arrived at the emergency room, they had to pry the tech’s hand from his. It had taken a few minutes for Ethan to pull Brandt from his trance just to let the doctors look at his wounds. Usually something like this wouldn’t bother Brandt, but the look in Benji’s eyes as he lay there dying was embossed into the back of his mind and he feared it would never fade away.
When they had finished tending to Benji, the doctors came to tell them that their friend had been extremely lucky, however it would take him some time to regain consciousness.
Brandt sat by Benji’s bedside for close to a week before the tech opened his eyes. And he didn’t regret a second of it.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
5.
“How you guys going?”
“Oh, just peachy…” Brandt’s irritated response elicited a smirk from Benji as the tech pictured his teammate hanging from the side of the building. “How about you?”
Benji could tell from the tone in Brandt’s voice that it was a rhetorical question, however decided to go with it just for the response. “I’m going very well, thank you Brandt. It’s quite cosy in the server room. How’s the weather treating you out there?” The sharp intake of breath could just be heard over the sound of the analyst’s teeth chattering. Brandt often wondered how Benji managed to get him to do these crazy things. Maybe he remembered that time when he had thrown the ‘little boy lost’ look and Brandt had melted. He put it down to that. Resistance would have to be built up once they were out of this situation. Benji grinned again as he stood, quite content, in the server room which was located on the second story of the building. On one wall, there was a window which overlooked another room below, amidst its darkness lay machines of all kinds.
“Guys, cut the chatter. We’re almost out.” Ethan’s voice interrupted their banter and Benji smiled.
“That’s great. How much longer?”
“Give us five.” Jane was the one to answer. “We’ve got the documents and we’re heading for the exit. Meet you outside.”
“So this means we can go? I can get down from this stupid harness with-”
“Yes!” Ethan interrupted Brandt’s rant before they were subjected to it again. Once, at the start of the night, was enough. “Now get moving.”
“Roger.” Brandt wasn’t sure why Benji insisted on using that word but made a mental note to ask him later as he began to make his way down from his spot. Inside, Benji gathered his items and made sure he left no trace behind before taking the short walk to the door. When he reached it, something caught him in the stomach, sending him tumbling backwards and causing his things to scatter across the room. As his back hit the floor, he glanced up to see a rather large man enter the room, holding what appeared to be a screwdriver in his hand as he stomped over to him in merely two steps. Lifting up on the palms of his hands, Benji shuffled backwards in an attempt to escape, but his attacker was too fast. He grabbed the scruff of the tech’s shirt and dragged him to his feet, throwing him at the wall with unfathomable force. Wincing at the pain in his back as it hit the hard plaster, Benji quickly refocused his eyes and ducked to avoid the screwdriver that was flying in his direction. Remaining near the floor, he rolled forwards and eyed his bag a few feet away.
His gun was in there.
If he could just get across…
Suddenly, his plan was ruined when rough hands grabbed the back of his shirt and he felt himself lifted off the ground. As he tried to struggle against the tight grip, he realised what the man was planning, noting the window that he was rapidly approaching. He was unable to stop himself as he crashed through the glass and fell several meters before landing on the hard concrete below. Agony tore through his body as he rolled onto his back, spotting the man standing in the room above. After a few seconds, his attacker stepped backwards into the room and disappeared from sight, leaving Benji with some time to check himself over. His ankle was aching and his head throbbed from its collision with the floor. His face stung from the small abrasions and shards of glass however nothing hurt more than his left arm. Glancing down, as his eyes adjusted to the dim light he saw a rather large piece of glass protruding from his bicep. The wound seemed to be about three inches long and felt uncomfortably deep. Reaching his right arm across his body, he gripped the glass and, after taking in a breath, he yanked it out. Trying to supress the grunt of pain that threatened to escape his lips, he covered the open wound with his right hand and looked around the room. Suddenly, a voice in his ear made him jump.
“Benji? What the hell is going on?” It was Ethan.
“Ethan…” Benji managed a whisper, not wanting to alert anyone of his presence. “Some guy ambushed me. I’m in the room below the server room.”
“How the hell did you get down there?” Brandt’s voice interrupted, but Ethan could be heard shushing him.
“I think I’m alone but I think he’ll be back.”
“Ok, stay there, we’re coming.” The voices disappeared and Benji let out a breath. He just had to hope that his friends reached him before his attacker did. He remained on his back, not removing the pressure on his wound as he caught his breath. Closing his eyes for a few seconds, he let the silence take over, the only sounds in the room being his own breathing. The stillness lasted merely a few minutes before the sound of a door opening echoed around him. Benji listened, hearing someone enter and he was prepared to shout to his friends. Just before he made a sound, however, he paused and listened closer.
There was only one set of footsteps. And they were far too loud and heavy to be any of his teammates. Looking across the room, he spotted the man again. Fortunately for Benji, he had been in the dark room for longer and therefore was able to see better, allowing him to silently get to his feet and move. He tried to jog as quietly as he could, reaching one of the machines to hide behind. Crouching down against the metal, he squeezed his lips together to breathe only through his nose. It only took a few seconds for the footsteps to get too close for comfort and the tech moved again, running across the room to hide behind another piece of equipment. As he slid down to a crouch again, he spotted a door on a nearby wall causing his heart rate to increase. He wasn’t sure what to do. Stay hiding and hope that his attacker wouldn’t find him or take a chance and pray that whatever was behind that door would provide him safety. Glancing between the door and the sounds behind him, he decided to roll the dice and moved, creeping across to the door. Staying low, he reached for the handle and was relieved to find that it was unlocked. Turning it as subtly as he could, Benji pulled the door towards him, practically holding his breath for fear that the man may hear. Once it was open, he slid inside and pulled the door to. Just as he was about to pull it closed, an unexpected drop behind him caused him to stumble and his heart almost stopped when the sound of the door slamming thundered through the room.
Shit. Benji thought to himself as he tumbled backwards down the small staircase. He stood quickly and looked around. Everything was pitch black. Thinking quickly, he pulled his phone from his pocket and lit up the torch. As it shone across the area, Benji was horrified to see that the darkness seemed to be never-ending. Aiming the light in all directions, he could see nothing further than a few meters ahead of him. Making a spontaneous decision, he chose a path and began to move. It wouldn’t be long before the man found the door and followed him. Holding the phone in his left hand, he kept his right on the wound as he moved, hoping that the man didn’t have a light of his own as he imagined he would have left a nice trail of blood for him to follow. Could he have made it any easier for him?
Stumbling across the uneven ground, he kept going as fast as he could. He knew that this would distance himself from his team but he needed that distance to stay away from his attacker. He just hoped that his friends would get there in time. He wasn’t sure how far he had gone when he heard the door opening behind him but the sound seemed too close. Switching off the light, he found himself blind; reaching out at the air around him for anything to help him move. A gap in the wall made him trip slightly and he threw his hand out, feeling that the gap was big enough for him to fit in. Sliding in sideways, he tucked himself into the smallest ball he could and waited. Footsteps reverberated off the walls as they grew louder, causing Benji’s already racing heart to pound against his chest faster. His breathing became more rapid and shallow, forcing him to cover his own mouth with his hand as he waited.
“Benji?” That voice was familiar. “Benji? Are you in here?”
“Jane…” His voice was nothing more than a hoarse whisper as he tried to slide out of the gap. Turning, he saw the light of a torch and sure enough, his friend became visible seconds later.
“Are you alright?” Shining her torch onto him, she spotted the blood on his arm and clothes. The light reflected off the small pieces of glass in his face and she winced at the small trails of blood that dripped from each one. Benji managed a nod before his eyes widened.
“What about the-”
“He’s dead. Ethan got him as he was opening the door. You’re safe now, ok?”
“Yeah…” the tech breathed, offering a grateful smile to his teammate. “Thanks…”
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
+1.
“Pluto, are you inside the server room?”
“Yep, all good to go, Jupiter.” Benji dumped his things on the floor as he surveyed the monitors, waiting for his friends to appear. After a few seconds, he spotted them on the bottom left-hand screen and nodded. Crossing the room, he grabbed a chair and dragged it so that he could sit as he watched. He figured he would be there for a while so he was determined to be comfortable at least. The only thing that was missing was the popcorn. Glancing back to the screens once he was settled, he noticed that his friends had disappeared from sight – he figured there would be some blind spots where there were no cameras. No biggie.
Outside, Ethan, Brandt and Jane made their way around the buildings exterior with their guns at the ready. They were on the final leg of this mission so it was even more vital that it went without any hiccups. Creeping along the wall, Brandt could have imagined Benji making a comment about it looking like a scene from an action film as they clung to the brick like glue. Ethan led the way, approaching a corner at a minute speed. When they reached it, the leader adjusted his grip on his weapon before taking a deep breath and peering around it. As he did, only one thought went through his mind.
Shit.
Benji sat in the server room waiting for some sign of life to spring onto the monitors, but nothing did. Leaning forward, he placed his elbows on the desk in front of him, resting his chin on his hands as he watched the screens intently.
“Come on guys…” he whispered, starting to feel a slight feeling in the pit of his stomach. He couldn’t quite put his finger on what the feeling was, but he didn’t like it. Where were they? Suddenly, he saw something move on one of the monitors. Glancing up, he felt a flicker of hope that it was his friends, however he soon realised that the movement wasn’t on the screen, more reflecting in it. His stomach flipped as he spun his head around, only to be met with a punch to the temple, making his mind swim. Blinking away the black spots as he tumbled off the chair onto the cold floor, he looked up at the man who had hit him. Fortunately for the tech, he didn’t appear to have a weapon but he knew that didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous. He was well over six foot tall and muscular; his shaved head only made the intimidation he portrayed increase tenfold. Benji scrambled to his feet and felt himself almost bouncing on the spot as his attacker approached him again. As Lurch – as Benji labelled him – threw another punch at him, the tech ducked; his smaller, slimmer form possessing more agility. The only problem with that was that for what Lurch lacked in quickness, he made up for in brute strength, displaying this with another punch that snapped Benji’s head to the side.
Bending forward, he rushed the taller man, wrapping his arms around his waist in an attempt to push him backwards. The only thing this did was allow Lurch to openly knee the tech’s stomach, resulting in his grip loosening. Benji felt himself spun around and thrown forwards, hitting the monitors with a crash and as he fell to his knees he felt the man’s rough hand tangle in his short blonde hair, yanking his head back roughly.
“Don’t worry.” he growled in the tech’s ear, causing Benji to shudder as the hot breath drifted across his skin. “I’m not gonna kill you yet. Not while you’re still useful.” It didn’t take Benji long to put two and two together and realise that both he and his friends were in deep trouble. This comprehension caused a surge of energy to possess him and without a second thought, he threw his head back, feeling the back of it connect very painfully with the man’s nose. The grip on his hair slackened as the man stumbled backwards and Benji used the opportunity to get to his feet. He spun on his heel, the speed of his movements causing the blood to rush to his head, and he kicked out his leg, catching his assailant in the stomach. Continuing his attack, he ran at the man’s unsteady figure, pushing him to the ground in one swift move. He would not let this man gain the upper hand; not when his friends’ lives might be at risk. Throwing punch after punch, he slowly felt the man’s movements become slower until the body beneath him fell limp. He was relieved but knew that he wouldn’t have long before the man woke up again. Running to his bag, he grabbed his gun and shoved it into the back of his jeans before making his way to the door. A noise behind him, however, stopped him.
“Mick?” Spinning on the spot, he approached the source of the noise and found it to be coming from the man’s jacket pocket. Gently reaching in, he pulled out a walkie-talkie and heard it come alive once more. “Mick, are you there?” Taking in a deep breath, Benji thought back on the times when he would imitate Brandt’s accent to piss him off and began to speak with his best feigned ‘American voice’.
“Yeah?” He kept it short, not wanting to risk being found out.
“Do you have the agent incapacitated?”
“Yeah.” He replied again.
“Good, we have the other three out here. Stay there and wait for further orders.” The voice ended and Benji froze. They had the others. Dropping the radio to the floor, he made to stand up, but jumped out of his skin when the man’s hand grabbed his right wrist and twisted. Clearly he wasn’t quite as unconscious as the tech thought. Benji let out a cry of pain and reached his free arm around to grab his gun. It was awkward using his left hand, however once the bullet was embedded in the man’s skull, his body lost some of its tension. Rushing to his feet again, the Brit made his way out of the room and through the corridors. Twisting and turning, he soon found himself on a balcony overlooking a group of people. He could hear voices coming from below and listened in.
“Come now, just hand over your weapons.”
“Not a chance.” That was Ethan. “We do that, you’ll kill us straight away.”
“Oh, we aren’t going to kill you. Well, not just yet anyway.” The voice was menacing and Benji could picture that he had a face to match. “Besides, you may like to know that we have your little friend inside. Disobey our orders and he dies. Simple as that.”
So that was what Mick had meant. They were trying to get Benji so that the others would comply with whatever demands these guys had. Crouching down, he crept to the wall of the balcony and peered over just in time to see his friends handing over their weapons. He wanted nothing more than to shout to them and let them know that he was alright. That they didn’t have to surrender. But Benji knew that the second he alerted them to his presence, they would all be dead. Watching closely, he saw Ethan step forward protectively in front of Jane and Brandt. There were four men surrounding his friends, each had a gun trained on the three agents.
“So what is it you want with us?” Ethan asked, not breaking eye contact with the leader. A startled cry from Jane caused Ethan to spin around and Benji’s heart to race. He watched as she was pulled back by the hair, away from her teammates and thrown to the floor. She landed painfully on her arm and cradled it as a gun was aimed at her head.
“Hey!” Brandt shouted, running at the man who had hurt her with such speed that he ran straight into the fist of another man. The breath left his lungs immediately and he collapsed to the floor in a heap. As he rolled onto his back, the analyst saw a boot heading in the direction of his face and felt it connect with his forehead, the skin at his eyebrow splitting immediately. Benji watched as his friend received the blow and his teeth clenched together. He then heard Ethan shout.
“Leave them alone, please. Look, do whatever you want to me, just don’t hurt them.” His voice was straining as he begged the man, but all their attacker did was smile.
“Sorry, but that’s just the way it’s gotta be.” Benji saw Brandt receive another kick, this time to the stomach, before he was pulled to his knees and a gun was pushed into the back of his skull. Benji noticed Ethan’s despairing look as he saw the other man grab Jane and drag her to her feet. Holding her by the hair, he shoved the gun into her side as the leader approached Ethan. The team leader stood his ground, not letting the man intimidate him, however stumbled backwards when a fist collided with his jaw. As Ethan rose back to his full height, he saw the man lift a radio to his mouth. “What say we let your friend in on the action, shall we? Mick, have some fun with him. Then bring him down when you’re done.” Benji saw the man smirk as all three of his friends’ looked horrified at the thought of the tech being hurt. As the thought distracted them, the man behind Brandt forced his gun into the back of his head, sending the unprepared analyst falling forward. Blood began to weep from the fresh cut amidst the light brown hair and it was then that Benji decided he had seen enough.
Aiming his gun through the gap in the balcony wall, he fired a shot which, to his relief, hit its target as the man who had hit Brandt collapsed in a lifeless heap. A second shot took out Jane’s assailant. Benji watched as the leader looked around in horror and used that moment to make his next move. Grabbing one of the ceramic pots from the balcony, he carefully positioned himself over the third goon and dropped it. He had to wince slightly as it smashed on the man’s head and there was a thud as his limp form hit the ground. Taking a chance, Benji stepped onto the wall of the balcony and, eying some bushes a few feet away, made a jump. He heard gunshots ringing out, bullets barely missing him as the man fired mercilessly in his direction. Benji landed amongst the shrubbery with an agonising thump; his knees and arms screamed at him and he felt the branches clawing at his face, but he did not falter. Rising to his feet, he aimed his gun at the man firmly, relieved to see that – despite their harmed and drained appearances – his teammates had retrieved their own weapons and had followed suit. With a frustrated glance, the man dropped his gun to the floor and fell to his knees in surrender.
Later that evening, after their injuries had been tended to, the team gathered at Ethan’s home for a drink. As they stood in the kitchen, the team leader looked around at his friends. Brandt’s eyebrow had been stitched up and he had a black eye forming while Jane’s arm was in a sling having sprained it during her fall. Then his eyes fell on Benji. The tech’s cheek was cut and his lip was split, along with numerous tiny scratches adorning the skin surrounding his features. He gave the Brit a smile before lifting his beer.
“To Benji.” He saw the blonde agent’s cheeks fill with colour as both Brandt and Jane copied Ethan’s actions.
“Thanks Benj.” Brandt said as he lifted his bottle. Jane offered him a smile and the tech found himself smiling back. The gratitude was overwhelming. He didn’t feel that it was necessary.
But the others felt the need. Because despite Benji managing to constantly get himself into trouble, he was a competent field agent and at that moment, they owed him their lives.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o