Leashing The Wolf [James]

[wolf]

Wolf was annoyed. The captain wanted to see him for some reason. Probably to moan about his methods, that were unorthodox and brutal, yet always effective. Just what he needed, some lecture on how he handled things. But he wasn't going to give up so easy. His ways had worked for him so far, and he'd be damned if he was going to risk getting killed if he changed them.

Besides, it was because of men like Clark that Wolf turned into the monster he was. He had asked so many times during the war to transfer to Barrow's batallion, yet his request always remained unanswered, forcing him to stay under Clark's command, and in Garret's squad.

It was hard fighting a war where he had to watch both the enemy in front of him, and his back to make sure one of his squadmates wouldn't put a bullet in him. They hated Wolf just because he was an outsider to them, and eventually started to fear him as well because he was much more of a soldier than they were, making them want to put him down even more.

They tried, but they failed. He survived, and was on a mission to kill every single one of them. And he'd be damned if he was going to let Clark come in between that, captain or not.

He arrived at Clark's bunk and opened the access hatch to it. He climbed down and then stood in the room.

"Y'wanted to see me Skipper?" Wolf asked, with a suspicion on what to expect.

[James Clark]

James' room was slightly bigger than those who served under his command. It consisted of a small lounge area and the sleeping area. James was situated in the lounge area comfortably listening in to some soul music. He turned the music off as he heard someone climbing down into his bunk, they could have knocked. James loved his privacy but he guessed who it was before he even turned his head. Loose cannon Walter Baynes. James would have no choice but to ask him to leave Trinity if his behaviour continued after Whitefall. "Yes I did" James stated simply "Your attitude has got to change if you wanna' remain on my boat" he told him, he couldn't have Wolf disrupting the crew harmony.

[wolf]

Of course. His attitude was the problem. Wolf could've guessed it. He was hired to keep the crew in check and to keep them alive. Did it really matter how he did it? Sure, he was ruthless but only to those who deserved it. Mostly. And he did have a bit of a personal agenda, although it seemed like that was going to get solved real soon.

Garret was dead, left at the mercy of the townsfolk of Arlem, who burned him at the stake and he had the information he was looking for after ten years of searching: Thalisa's whereabouts. She was on Jiangyin, apparently living a normal life. Wolf had every intention on finding her and making her pay for leaving him to die on Hera. And no one was going to get in his way. Once she'd be dead, Wolf would finally have peace, maybe even calm down.

But at the moment he thought that Clark was overreacting. All of a sudden he had become a self-righteous bastard instead of the Colonel that ordered families to be killed during the war. Although it was never really confirmed the orders actually came from him.

For now however, Clark was Wolf's boss, and bringing him to Whitefall to deal with Garret had earned Clark a great deal of Wolf's respect. If he'd bring him to Jiangyin to let him deal with Thalisa, he'd stand beside him forever, just out of gratitude, regardless of whether or not Clark liked him.

But Wolf wasn't one to back down either. In his eyes, everything he did was just, and he could care less whether or not people liked his methods, he got the job done and that was important, not how. And he had just about had it with Clark's hypocrisy too.

"My attitude?" Wolf asked. "Y'mean the one where I choose not to live in the past, pretendin' I'm still fightin' a war that was lost a decade ago? Ya hired me to keep you and yer crew alive, does it really matter how I do it? So what if a few more people die, as long as it ain't us, right?"

[James Clark]

James quickly drew his pistol and calmly responded "Enough" he had enough of Wolf's bullshit. "Your attitude? So I am wrong to believe that you do not continuously keep undermining me infront of the crew" James was referring to Wolf telling the crew that James ordered them to kill families, which was of course untrue. Nothing justified the killing of innocent bystanders. The thing that Wolf forgot was that James was a man of principle first and an errand boy second. That was all he was dishing out the orders served to him by the Independent High Command. "We have got to come to some sort of understanding, Baynes. I scratched your back now you scratch mine" James had no intention of shooting Wolf, right now atleast.

[wolf]

Wolf kept his cool as Clark pulled a gun on him. It stopped bothering him years ago. Many had tried to kill him, but none had succeeded and neither would James Clark. Wolf wore a ballistic vest underneath his garments at all times, a good yet paranoid habit he picked up during the war. Only place he was vulnerable was the head, but he'd attack Clark head on should he even think about raising the gun. Normally, if he did that the bullet should go right into the ballistic vest, or in the legs, but that was a pain Wolf could endure without problem.

"Put that thing away 'fore ya hurt yerself." Wolf said. "I came here to talk, and things could get awfully messy if we started shootin' eachother in this small space."

Wolf thought for a moment about undermining Clark. He looked at some of the memorabilia from the war Clark kept in his quarters. Maybe now would be the best time to ask about something he had been wondering for almost ten years.

"I ain't underminin' you as a captain." Wolf continued. "I guess I'm underminin' you as the Colonel you were back in the war, for doin' what you did."

Wolf figured Clark would know all too well what he was talking about. After all, he gave the order. He put the events in motion that made Wolf kill an entire family against his own will. Wolf was all too curious on how Clark would react.

[James Clark]

Wolf was right, James was being silly drawing his sidearm. Holstering his revolver. James was still not sure whether he wanted Baynes on his crew, he had survived with Art and Sakura watching his back for a long time. He could do it again. That said there was no one out there better than Baynes. "What are you talking about, Baynes?" James asked, what had he done that Baynes held against him so much. James had said and done a lot of things during the war but what Baynes didn't understand was that not every order came went directly to him. He had three deputies Major Kilburn Jackson, Major Camden Samson and Major Barnet Johnson. Those three had as much power as him, give or take. It was likely Jackson whom oversaw Wolf's squad. So Wolf's answeres might be with him.

[wolf]

Wolf let out an annoyed grunt when Clark asked him what he was talking about. The memory, it was not something he shared easily, nor did he care much to. But at least now he could finally confront his former batallion commander with what had happened on Melbourne all those years ago.

He leaned down on a nearby desk and scraped his throat. Better to just get it out he figured.

"Melbourne, June 20th, 2509." Wolf started. "My squad and I were on our way to arrest a supposed Alliance collaborator. What they didn't tell was that it was actually a family of ten, with eight children; five girls and three boys varyin' from ten to eighteen years old. When we got there, all of a sudden the order had changed: they were all to be executed immediately, without so much as a trial."

Wolf paused for a moment. He could still see the children clearly in his mind.

"Garret and the rest of my squad... had their way with the girls." Wolf continued. "I tried to make'em stop but one of my squadmates knocked me unconscious. When I came to, they had already lined up the entire family fer execution."

Wolf stopped again. Part of him didn't want to tell what happened next. He usually didn't care what people thought of him, but this was different. Clark had help him bring Garret to justice, the least he could do was tell him what for.

"Turns out they all had the guts to humiliate and rape the women, but none of'em had the stomach to kill'em afterwards." Wolf continued telling. "But Garret found a solution to that. He pulled me off the ground and told me to kill the family. When I refused, he put a gun to my head and told me I was in direct violation of martial law; disregardin' a direct order and that I was to be executed immediately, unless I would pull the trigger on the family and kill'em."

Wolf had to swallow for a moment. This was really hard to tell. He hadn't spoken about this with anyone except Thalisa, and that was ten years ago.

"The oldest of the girls... she..." Wolf continued. "She... looked at me and said that it was okay. I could see in her eyes that she forgave me for what I was about to do so I... pulled the trigger on all of them. It musta taken 'bout eight seconds to kill everyone but it seemed like an eternity."

Wolf stopped and looked at his wrist. A tattoo with 6-20-2509 was clearly visible. He had it tattooed on him to never forget, and to remind him to make those who were responsible for making him kill that family pay.

"I know that most men woulda rather died themselves." Wolf continued. "But had I died right then and there, who would be there to let the truth come out? To make those responsible pay? Garret threatened to have me court-martialed if I ever talked but from that day on, I kept looking for an opening, a moment to kill him, but he was always surrounded by those loyal to him. I finally had the chance on Hera, but I was betrayed by someone very dear to me before I could take any action, and left for dead."

Wolf stood up from the desk again and faced Clark. He needed to know whether or not his captain had anything to do with it.

"Now you look me in the eye and tell me you didn't have anything to do with that." Wolf said, with his hand dangerously close to his right revolver. Should Clark lie, he had no problem ending his life then and there.

[James Clark]

James stood there and watched as the normally ruthless man whom nothing fazed told the story that he had long kept to himself. The actions that were spoken of were totally against the ethics and morals that the Captain had. He was a brother and a son first and a solider second. He had seven sisters, there was no way he could have ever brought himself to give such an order. Standing there in silence he listened, it made him feel sick. The story reached its conclusion, what he had been told was something he would never of done. But it sounded very much like Major Kilburn Jackson whom had often suggested things similar to this as the preferred method. James drew breath "I remember every order I ever gave..." James paused his eyes showing nothing but disgust ...and that was not one of them" he told Wolf. Baynes had been honest with him and told him perhaps the most harrowing story of his life "Do you remember Major Kilburn Jackson?" James asked. Kilburn was Garret's squads direct supervisor. A ruthless rather chubby looking man with a bushy moustache.

[wolf]

Strangely enough, Wolf believed Clark when he told him the order didn't come from him. He always seemed the honorable kind, for what that was worth.

A slight grin came across Wolf's face. He knew Major Kilburn alright. Or rather, the late Major Kilburn. Wolf had taken much pleasure in helping that fat bastard to hell a couple years back.

"Sure do." Wolf answered Clark. "Or rather: did. Killed him a couple o' years back on the Higgin's Moon. Fed the fat motherhumper mud 'til he choked from it. Quite the effort lemme tell ya. Took me months to get all the mud outta my clothes."

Wolf had never forgotten how Kilburn kept ignoring his complaints about Garret's hard-handedness and how he kept denying his requests to transfer to Barrow's batallion, even with a formal request from Colonel Barrow himself.

"Anyway, he's been taken care of." Wolf continued. "I jus' need to deal with Thalisa now. Once that's over I'll focus on the ship and the crew, ya have my word."