Mission #4: Ross Benedict [Completed]

[Behram Thuggee]

A small white clad boy was standing lonely on the beach. Next to him a small boat had been pulled up on the beach. Despite his innocent looks he was a bounty hunter, Or atleast an aspiring one. He held a bounty poster in his hand. His backpack matched the rest of his clothing, Behram had filled it with all he needed, Poisoned knifes, Needles and darts and some antidote he'd prepared beforehand. He didn't want to be poisoned by mistake and not have the antidote. He wasn't sure on how much he needed to bring down one pirate so he wanted to be on the safe side, He'd brought almost all of his throwing weapons wwith him.

For once the sky over Commi Island wasn't clear and sunny. Instead the sky was filled with ominous grey clouds. Behram hoped that it wouldn't begin to rain while he was still outside. His clothes would get muddy and then he'd to wash them again. Hopefully this would be over quickly. He looked at the poster, So this was the man he had to capture? The man on the picture was mean-looking and not the say the least scary. He had that look in his eyes but Behram wasn't afraid. Atleast that was what he told himself. The man had a narrow face, a scar running over his left eye. His black hair was slicked back but Behram guessed that he'd either grown it out or cut it short. It seemed logical to atleast change your haircut when you wanted to hide from the marines. If he had been a pirate he wouldn't want to look exactly like his bounty poster. Behram started to think over what could've changed in the man's appearance. Hmm, The scar would definitively be there and one's face structure was hard to reshape. So this would be a cakewalk. Atleast finding him, Behram knew that the Pirate wasn't going to give up without a fight, not after he'd went through the trouble as disguising himself as a civilian.

Behram took a deep breath, He knew that there was only on inhabited village on this Island. The other one had been destroyed by fishmen or something like that. He hadn't really studied East Blue's history that much and this seemed like a more recent event, yet to be recorded in a book. But he knew his way around, In his boat he'd brought an atlas with a complete collection of maps of all the Blues, minus The Grand Line. Since you had to basically sail on a set track in Grand Line it was hard to find any complete map, and to add to the difficulties most ships sunk, and with them any possible maps. He pulled his mind from maps and focused at the task at hand, Returning Ross Benedict to the custody of the marines.

He started to make his way towards the village. He was steadily getting nervouser. This was his first capture after all. He hoped that he could just hide in a bush and snipe him with a Paralyze Hornet but he doubted that it would be that easy and soon a more concerning matter popped up in his heas, how was he going to move the paralyzed body? Maybe if he showed the villagers the bounty poster they would help him transport the body to his boat, Behram innerly hoped so. What worried him the most that this man apparently was a skilled gunner, If he noticed that he was being attacked from a distance he would certainly shoot back, If he'd been a close range fighter Behram wouldn't have that kind of problem. He decided to leave his worries behind, all that mattered now was to apprehend the criminal.

Before he knew it he was inside the village, People was rushing around, not noticing the newcomer among them. Most adults just looked over his head and he was used to that. He started to look around, closely comparing people's face with the bounty poster he had in his hand, Maybe he shouldn't go waving it around in people's faces. Maybe he'd friends here who weren't just stand there and let him be catched, he had to be discreet about it. Suddenly he got an idea. The photo on the bounty poster the pirate he was after stood calm and collected. This could be an everyday photo if you just removed the whole "WANTED" bit. And that just what he did, he folded away the borders so only the photo was showing.

He looked around for a nice looking person and he spotted an old lady on the other side of the street. He walked up to her " Excuse me ma'am." He said and showed her the poster " Do you know where can find this man? He's my uncle and I'm supposed to live with him for the weekend" The lady took a closer look. "Ahh, That's Ben Smith.. He lives just up the street. His house is the green one"She said and pointed to the right of them. Behram thanked her and followed her directions, He could feel his nervousity growing. There was only one green house in sight so he guessed that's where the Pirate lived. He wasn't sure what to do.. Could he just go over there and ring on the doorbell? Or should he wait until the Pirate went outside? He bit his lip, Thinking over his options.

Suddenly his thought were interrupted by a rough voice behind him. "Can I help you, kid?" Behram couldn't help but let out a startled shriek. He turned around and saw the pirate he was looking for, Benedict Ross or as he called himself now, Ben Smith. He was very tall, From the twelve years old's perspective his head looked like it could touch the sky. Just as he'd suspected he'd changed his haircut, His head was now shaved to the point that it looked bald. His face had remained the same though and there was no doubt that this was Ross Benedict. In his arms he held a bag full of groceries. He stood silent for a second before he realized that he was staring. He quickly hid the poster behind his back, hoping that the pirate hadn't noticed what he held in his hand. "Ooh, I don't think so, Sir" He said and smiled nervously. I assume that this is your house?" The man nodded "Well, then I must have the wrong address, I'm sorry. Goodbye Behram said and walked away as fast as he could without looking too suspicious. His heart was racing, he was still a bit startled from the close encounter. He'd never expected that he would be that close to the target. He took a deep breath and looked back at the house, Benedict had probably gone inside since he was nowhere to be seen. He relaxed a bit, atleast now he knew where the pirate was located.

[Behram Thuggee]

After his meeting with the pirate he was a bit dumbfounded of what to do next. He had to admit that he was getting hungry. He hadn't eaten since this morning and he could really use a hot meal right now. He remembeed that he'd walked by a resturant. Maybe he could come up with some kind of plan while he was eating. He pulled out his wallet out of his pocket and counted the beli. He should have enough for a meal. He smiled, He was already looking forward to it. He completely forgot about the pirate, the thought of food completely wiped his mind clear of anything but dinner.

An hour later he walked out of the resturant completely full and with a smile on his face. The meal had been a bit more expensive than he'd excpeted but he'd had enough money to pay for the food. He took out his wallet and counted the remaining beli. There wasn't much left. He sighed and scratched his neck. He needed to get more money somehow, he tought to himself. Suddenly he remembered why he was here. How could he forget? Especially since he'd been so close to his target. He buried his face in his hand, Sometimeshe couldn't believe himself. His idea of coming up with a plan while eating had failed miserably. He'd completely forgot about it. Behram quickly decided that he had to come up with a plan right now, He ddn't want to drag this out more than neccessary, he had already wasted enough time.

He once again stod outside the green house. He'd seen a silhouette moving around so Ross was proabably home. There were still some people out, wandering the streets on their various errands. No one had the time to notice that the small boy had been standing outisde the same house for a good five minutes. He innerly hoped that the pirate was stupid, he did have a Paralyze Mantis hidden up his sleeve but dragging Ross' limp body through the town would attract unwanted attention. He hoped that he could trick the pirate to follow him down to the beach. He took a deep breath, Time to go.." He mumbled to himself as he walked towards the front door.

~Benedict Ross' Point of View~

The sound of a doorbell had disturbed Benedict's calm evening. He muttered something angry under his breath as he walked over to open the door. To his surprise no one was there, Thinking he'd been pranked by the neighbor's kids he muttered "Goddamn kids... He was just about to shout somehing angry at the bushes where he suspected they had hidden themleves he was interrupted by a slight tap at his leg, he looked down and much to his surprise there was a small boy with white clothes standing just under his nose. He jumped back several feet, thinking that the creepy boy was a ghost. "Excuse me Sir, I didnt mean to startle you.." The boy said, he was clearly nervous.

After a closer examination he realized that it was the same boy that had been standing outside his house earlier. I.. It's. YOU!" Ross stuttered, still a bit shaken up. Uum, Yeah.. the boy said shyly. But Im here to tell you something important. The boy took out a piece of paper from his pocket and held it out for him to take, It took awhile for Benedict to realize that it was a bounty poster. It seemed familiar, he took it from the boys hand and as soon as he got a closer look he realized that it was his own. "How did you get that?" The boy looked up at him, " That's not important, I just wanted you to know that the marines are aware of your position and there's no doubt they'll send people to arrest you.." The boy said. Benedict was baffeled by these news. He'd thought that he'd hidden himself well. If a kid could find him this easily there was some serious holes in his cover. He looked to the left and to the right, making sure nobody saw them. "Okay.. Get inside" he whispered to the kid and opened the door. Benedict led the boy into his kitchen " Have a seat" He muttered. The boy sat down on a chair, Benedict chose the one on the opposite side of the table. " How do you know this?" He asked, a bit tense from hearing the shocking news. Ah, You see my father works at a marine base and I heard him talk about it." He said and shrugged his shoulders. " But why'd yo .." Before he could finish the sentence he was interrupted by the boy " You see, I always have admired your umm.. Work. I want to be a pirate when I get older and I can't just stand by while my hero is goin to get sent to impel down.." The boy said. Benedict couldn't help but to feel flattered. He knew that his action as a pirate hadn't been the most inspiring ones but it somehow warmed his heart that he'd atleast inspired a little kid. " I have a boat down at the beach, We can use that to escape.." This little kid had even gotten through the trouble of getting a boat for them to escape on, He smiled. We'll leave as soon as it's dark outside, I just got to pack my stuff. Make yourself at home" He said while he made a sweeping gesture with his hand.

~Behram's Point of view~

It felt like Behram was going to throw up, He'd been so nervous. Ever since he knocked on the door to when he had been seated at the kitchen table. He was still nervous but now he had the pirate in his trap. He felt a bit more confident now. There was still a chance that he would screw up but considering that he only had to wait, lead him to the boat, paralyze him and then sail away the chance was minimal. But Behram knew that he wasn't followed by good luck at all times so he shouldn't say he had this in the sack yet. It was hard to believe that this pirate was so gullible. He sighed and decided to take his offer. He needed to calm his nerves a bit. He went towards what he thought was he living room hoping to find a good book to read. There was still a few hours until nightfall.

He sat down on the couch, he'd found a few interesting books. Most of them were about East Blue. Since there hadn't been much books about this ocean back at home so he might as well read up on it while he had the chance. He knew that he wouldn't be able to read all of the books so while benedict were upstairs packing he snatched some of the books from the bookshelf into his backpack. Behram doubted that the pirate would return to his old house and he that he'd even read these books so these wouldn't be missed. He was careful to not take too many, he didn't want to be caught.

After a few hours of reading Benedict came downstairs. With him he'd a big bag. He could hear his footsteps, he was walking around on the ground floor. " Over here! " Behram said, he could hear the pirate coming. He looked up, the pirate was standing in the doorway. " Ready to go, kid? ". Behram looked up, His self-esteem immideatly dropped. The man had 2 guns in his belt and another one in his hand. Behram guessed they were already loaded. Now that the pirate was armed he could feel how his plan was going worse and worse. It wsan't like he could run way now. He'd promised the man to help him escape and if he just took off running the man would either run after him and he would probably catch up pretty quickly too, Behram wasn't a fast runner... Or he could just shoot him, just the thought made him shiver but he tried to hide his feelings as good as he could Why are you looking so surprised? If they already know that I'm a pirate so why not arm myself as one? Who knows we might run into them out there. " The man said and smiled. Behram didn't answer, still a bit startled by the guns. " Umm.. Do you mind if I bring this with me? Just for the trip. " He said and held up the book, he wanted to switch subject as soon as possible. The man looked at him with a dumbfounded look on his face. Suddenly he bursted out in a loud roaring laughter, Behram's heart almost stopped at the sudden noise. " Fine, Take it.." He said, still chuckling. He soon regained his composure, " Heh, I might not seem like the guy to do it but I read a lot and the book that ou're holding there is one of my favorites." Behram felt a bit worse now that he knew that him and the pirate had some common ground. " You see, the last person that touched that book is dead. I won't allow anyone touching them.." The Pirate added and any compassion Behram still had for the pirate was gone. " Don't worry, kiddo. You're on the safe list " This didn't matter to Behram, all he wanted now was to get this over with. " Shall we get going? He asked coldly, luckily the pirate didn't catch on. He led the way out the door. The book was still tucked under his arm though right now all he wanted was to throw it away.

[Behram Thuggee]

Behram looked around, no one was around. Benedict was quite a smart, he'd no idea what time it was but it didn't seem like anyone was awake. All the lights were out in the houses and it seemed like everyone was asleep. He sighed, relieved that he didn't have to worry about attracting peoples attention. " So, Where's your boat? " Benedict asked. Behram was still a bit disgusted by the Pirates behaviors so he took his time anwsering the question. " It's over there. " he said and pointed towards the east beach. Only a small black dot was visible on the beach so it wasn't weird Benedict hadn't noticed the boat, he wasn't entirely sure if it really was the boat, It could just be a piece of wood that had been washed ashore.

They made it through the town easily. A few drunkern shouts could be heard from the bar but the drunks was far too busy with enjoying themselves that they didn't notice Behram and Bendict passing by. Otherwise the town was quiet and peaceful. Behram didn't bother trying to strike up a conversation, Instead he ws going through differnt plans in his head. He was walking in front of the pirate with his back facing him, not the most ideal place to attack him from. If Behram turned around and tried to throw anything at him the pirate coukld easily shoot him first, It all depended on how fast reflexes he had. He already had the gun in his hand while Behram had all of his weapons in his backpack. He did have a Paralyze Mantis in his sleeve, it was amazing that benedict hadn't noticed that Behram was constantly holding the end of the sleeve together. He could feel it bouncing around as he walked and he wondered if it was noiceable but he knew that if he let it slide out into his hand Benedict would certainly notice. He needed to get closer to him somehow.

He looked back and saw that Benedict was smiling, totally oblivious that Behram was leading him into sa trap. Well.. it were going to be a trap as soon as Behram could come up with some kind of strategy. Benedict were happy to be rescued, not at all sad that he had to leave the village behind. Maybe he didn't have any friends there? Well If he was that overprotective over his stuff, no wonder. How long had he stayed in the village? Behram had noticed that his house was scarce of furniture. He guessed he'd been on the move quite a lot. " Hey, kid. I just realized I haven't asked foryour name.. Care to enlighten me?" The pirate said, still in a good mood. " I'm Behram. " Behram said and forced himself to smile at the Pirate, He needed to make sure that the Pirate wouldn't suspect him of being anything but a helpful little child wanting to help his hero. He wanted to get him as close to the boat as possible before he attacked. If he poisoned him now he'd to drag him down to the beach, a hard task for a little boy. Considering that Benedict is probably weighing 3 times more than Behram does. " So Behram, I've decided that I'll raise you as my own son.." Behram stopped with a look of shock on his face, the pirate caught up to him and wrapped his arm around him as he continued talking, not noticing the expression on Behram's face. " You obviously doesn't think much of your family, otherwise you wouldn't have abandoned them to save me, a pirate.." This statement made Behram somewhat angry. He hadn't left his family behind, he was here to help them. Ofcourse the pirate wouldn't know that but he still took that statement as an insult.

" You're a smart kid. When I was at your age my only concern was to play around while you go and steal a boat. I like your dedication." Well, It was true that the boat was stolen but he was well-known on Toroan Island, No one in their right mind would give a him a boat when his father was working double-shift and his mother was sick. So he had to steal. He doubted that he'd ever return to Toroan Island with the boat in one piece. He knew that the seas were rough, Pirates were armed to the teeth with swords, guns and most importantly cannons. His boat could easily be destroyed by a cannonball. If he became famous enough as a bounty hunter most pirates wouldn't be happy to see his boat floating on the ocean. He needed a bigger boat, but wth a bigger boat you needed accomplishes. He doubted that anyone could ever look up to him as the captain of a ship so he guessed that he'd have to buy new boats regularly. Benedict kept on blabbering and Behram realized that he hadn't listened to him at all but he guessed he'd just been missing more flatter. " .. Hell, You could if you want, maybe become the pirate king. You're really smart. I can tell. "

That sentence stood out. He'd no intentions of becoming a pirate, He was a law abiding citizen after all but knowing that someone thought he had that potential made him, to say the least, flattered. But then he reminded himself how stupid this guy really was, He'd been tricked by a twelve year old and the lie hadn't even been a good one. This guy wasn't even a successful pirate, having to go into hiding. Behram had compared his bounty to other's and this man was quite mediocre. Not to mention this man had killed for something as simple as touching his belongings. Behram took a deep breath, calming himself. He was going to capture this man, no matter what. " Im sorry for being nosy but why are you wearing white all the time? It just seem a little weird." Behram looked up at Benedict. He could as well tell him the truth, he wouldn't have any use of the information in Impel Down. " Well, My dad's a doctor and he always wore white clothes. I guess I got it from him. " Benedict simply nodded and they continued walking.

Without even realizing how close they were until now, Behram noticed that they were almost at the beach. He looked up at Benedict, he still had his arm wrapped around Behram's shoulders. He realized that he now was close enough to attack. He let the small knife in his sleeve slide down, he grabbed it, luckikly his sleeve still covered most of the blade. Just a little bit of the tip was showing. All he needed was to give the man a small cut and then he was done. Just one small cut. Behram couldn't help it but he started shivering, It felt like his heart was going to pound out of his chest. " Somthing wrong, Behram? " Benedict asked. " Ummm, No. I'm just so excited. Behram lied. He could feel the throwing knife shiaking in his hand. He flexed his muscles ready to strike but suddenly he was pushed down onto the ground. He looked up and much to his surprise he was looking into the barrel of the gun. " Im sorry, kid but Im not that stupid.. " Benedict said while pointing the gun straight at Behram's face. " First you say your dad's a marine and now a doctor, Sorry but that shit doesn't fly with me. And you didn't think I would notice the books missing? I have no idea what you want with me but I sure as hell ain't gonna let it happen.." Benedict said coldly. Behram froze. He doubted that he was going to make it out of here alive, It didn't seem ike this man had any problem with shooting a child.

[Behram Thuggee]

Behram was petrified with fear, Judging from Benedict's devilish smirk he found nothing wrong with shooting Behram right now. His knife had slipped out of his hand when he fell. So there he was, on his knees and completely unarmed with a gun pointed at his face. His hand were desperately clutching the sand. This had certainly not gone according to the plan. He knew that he was going to die any seconds if he didn't do something.

Suddenly an idea formed in his head. He acted instantly, He threw the sand in his hand in Benedict's face and hoped that some had gotten into his eyes. He didn't have time to look if his maneuver had been successful, he grabbed his backpack and ran. Judging by the pirate's enraged roar the sand has temporarily blinded the pirate. It was a dirty trick, Behram knew that. But his choices were limited, it was either that or a certain death. He knew that he couldn't run too far, the pirate would spot him and shoot him down before he even was halfway to the village. He slipped down behind a rock, it was barely big enough to hide him but he thanked his lucky star that he had some kind of cover. He was on his own right now, Everyone in the village was asleep and he wouldn't be able to run and get help. The pirate was now firing his gun blindly, so he was still blinded. Behram took this chance to calm himself. He was still shaking but his fear was slowly replaced with determination.

Suddenly the gunshots stopped, Behram resisted the urge to stick his head out and see what was happening. " Heh, That wasn't very nice, kiddo.." Benedict said calmly, His voice had an almost psychopathic undertone. He had probably gotten all the dust out of his eyes by now." So.. You thought this was a suitable weapon for attacking me?" Behram knew that he probably had picked up the throwing knife. He knew that his knives didn't look dangerous, Since they were designed to be thrown the were both smaller and lighter than normal knifes. Benedict probably thought that the Behram intended to cut him with it and just by looking at it you could tell that it weren't going to be very effective. Behram's knives weren't made for creating any deep wounds, only to distribute the poison in the bloodstream. As soon as Benedict had regained his composure Behram's confidence sunk again, he'd thought he would've gotten some more time to calm himself. " So we're playing hide and seek now? Well, I know how to play that game.. Benedict begun firing his gun again, this time every shot was aimed at a plausible hiding spot. Behram cowered behind his rock, hoping that Benedict wouldn't start to move around.

~Benedict Ross' Point of View~

When the initial rage of falling for such a cheap trick had diminished and he'd rubbed the sand out of his eyes he was calm. He was still angry and he was still going to kill the kid but now he was going to take his time and try to enjoy this as much as possible. The pirate sighed, He didn't find any reason to hurry.The kid couldn't have ran too far, Benedict would've spotted him. To his right was only the sea, The little kid's boat was a bit further down the beach but there was no way he could've ran that far without Benedict noticing. In all the other directions was only some trees and rocks scattered around. He had probably hidden himself behind one of them. So he began shooting at every rock and tree that were, " Y'know, That little trick of yours just secured you a slow and painful death.." he said while shooting. " It seems that the little white rabbit is harder to flush out than I thought.." Benedict noted and put away the guns. " Don't worry, Little bunny. Just keep hiding, I'll find you in no time.." Benedict said and started walking. He holstered his gun, It was out of ammo anyways.

Benedict noted how quiet it were now, only the sounds of the waves hitting the shore broke the silence. Maybe the kid was long gone? He could've been a fast runner after all. He didn't seem like one after all, he had really short legs. However it was only common sense to stay quiet if you wanted to hide. " Heh, What was I thinking?" Benedict mumbled to himself. Sometimes he just didn't think properly. He calmly wandered around the beach, systematically looking behind every tree and stone. He felt pretty confident, he already had the wimpy knife the kid had planned to attack him with. He was probably unarmed right now, the only thing he was good for now was throwing sand.

~Behram's Point of View~

Benedict seemed to take his time which only gave Behram more time to prepare. He pulled out a handful of poisoned needles, neatly bound together by a strip of cloth.The needles couldn't penetrate anything thicker than leather, but they were harder to avoid and to stop. The pirate wasn't wearing any kind of armor so these were perfect. He could hear the footsteps going farther and farther away from him. He carefully peeked over the rock. Benedict had his back turned towards him. This was his chance. He untied the knot and carefully placed about 20 in his hand, making sure not to prick himself. He had an antidote but using it just because he pricked his finger was quite a waste.

Suddenly he stood up, Completely calm. All of his worries was washed away, He knew that if he missed Benedict now the pirate would kill him but strangely he felt no fear. It wasn't even like the chance of him missing existed. It was very reassuring. He took a deep breath. " Hey, Benedict! " He was now standing up, not even bothering to conceal himself. " Paralyze Mosquito "The pirate had barely had the time to turn around before his entire torso was covered in needles. A sudden pained scream echoed over the beach but just as suddenly everything was quiet again. Behram slowly made his way towards the paralyzed body. " Your body should be completely numb by now." Behram said as he walked towards the paralyzed pirate. " Be thankful, Those needles are lodged in pretty deeply. " Behram mumbled. Now that the pirate wasn't a problem he needed to figure out how to move the body, the boat was still quite far away. It in sight though. It was probably easier to move the boat than drag Benedict to the boat. " Yeah.. It isn't like your going anywhere.."[/beige] Behram said. The comment was directed to himself as much as it was directed to Benedict. Benedict could only muster a low grunt at this point, The poison hadn't taken full effect yet but soon the poison would paralyze him completely.

A while later Behram pulled up his boat for a second time today. Now Benedict only laid about 20 feet away. He dumped his backpack on the boat. He walked up to the paralyzed body. " I guess your completely paralyzed now.." No reaction from Benedict. " Yup.." He mumbled and slowly started to drag the heavy body towards the boat. It took a few minutes but he finally managed to haul the limp body aboard. The effects of the poison wouldn't wear of for a couple of days so he had plenty of time to get to the closest marine base. He sat down, he was exhausted and all he wanted right now was to go to sleep. He glanced over at Benedict.. " Oh right.. The needles. Sorry. " he mumbled " I guess I should take care of that. Hold on for a sec " He said and walked into the little cabin. Why was he even talking with Benedict? It wasn't like he could answer. He grabbed his medical kit and walked outside again.

" Normally this would sting quite much but since your body is completely numb right now you won't feel a thing.." Behram said as he carefully began removing the needles. The needles were all lodged in the man muscles. As soon as a needle came loose he wiped the wound clean with a disinfectant fluid. He knew that the pirate probably wouldn't be very thankful that Behram took care of his wounds but this was his duty as a doctor. He felt compelled to treat anyone in need of his services, It didn' matter if they wanted them or not. He sighed and looked at Benedict's face, It was frozen in a tense grimace. " Goodnight, Benedict.. He said as he walked down to the cabin again. He would set off tomorrow. Right now he was too tired to sail. As he changed int his pajama he noted how dirt his clothes were, Crawling around in the sand perhaps wasn't the best way of Trying to keep your clothes clean. " I'll wash them tomorrow. " he muttered to himself as he threw the clothes into a pile on the floor and crawled into his bed.

[Sean]

Mission Complete.
Reward:
- 7,000,000 beli worth of bounty, toward your rank.
- 7000 beli.
+500 for capturing a bounty alive.