#Depa Billabas battalion

[starwarskit]

Des of Depa Billabas clone battalion!

I thought if someone else can make a medic for a pre-existing battalion so can I! (And wasn’t finding out Helix is an oc WILD I really just take people around face values when it comes to named clones)

Bonus:

[questforgalas]

Random clone and padawan headcanons

I will die on the hill that every padawan was extremely connected to/close with their clone battalion

Certain clones have closer bonds, but every clone trooper saw anywhere from a child to barely teenager standing in front of them on their Venator and went “protective instincts initiated”

Ahsoka and the 501st are the closest only because Anakin encouraged they interact with the men as if they were troopers and not their commanding officers whenever not in a professional setting (think missions camps, off duty, in transit to missions). This helped Ahsoka acclimate because it reminded her of the crèche days and the bond she formed with her crèche mates

With that said, Rex was fondest of Ahsoka (big bro mode activated double time when he saw a child standing in front of him) but she and Fives together were his biggest headache

Cal was a babay when the war started so the 13th battalion, yes respected him as their commander, but their relationship was much more "little bro surrounded by 100s of big bros" (with how young Cal was, I firmly believe he rarely saw the field)

Cal loved to watch the clones train, and once and awhile they'd let him join in on their sparring. Due to the fact he was maybe 100lbs wet, they'd go easy on him, but it was the highlight of Cal's day

Caleb/Kanan wanted to be the cool commander so badly. Like so so so so badly. During down time, you'd find him in the mess hall with a group of clones around him while he told what he thought were his coolest stories or about all the cool things he's done on Coruscant (Depa Billaba would never admit it, but she enjoyed coming to the mess during these times and oh so casually correcting an over-embellishment of Caleb's like oh interesting she doesn't remember him pulling off a double flip she remembers him face planting in the temple fountains, but maybe that was another time. Caleb gives her the "mom stop embarrassing me in front of my friends" look and she laughs to herself as she walks away)

To help pass the time while Jaro was leading a campaign on the ground and Cal was on the Venator, Cal and the clones not involved in the battle would play a version of hide-and-seek. One time Jaro came back from the battle to a bunch of sheepish clones admitting they had no idea where his padawan was after they'd been seeking for him for over an hour. That's when they learned Cal can fit into spaces previously thought only a mouse could access

Ahsoka was a very curious teenager who loved to learn. Much to Rex's chagrin. After Christophsis, back on the Resolute on their way back to Coruscant which was a day or so journey, Ahsoka followed Rex around asking a million questions about life on Kamino, their training, what it was like growing up surrounded by the same face, who his favorite trooper was, who his favorite Jedi was, what his least favorite part of the ship was, etc.

[vulnonapix1234]

Caleb and his foundling

Or the worst emotional roller-coaster that Depa Billabas Battalion was ever on.

This is for my "Star Wars fix it au", where order 66 doesn't happen, but Padme and Anakin still die (Rip Padme, you deserved better)

The first hours after General Obi-wan had given them the message were the worst.

The men who were made for them, fought side by side, died for them where a gun pointed at their chests.

All of them had chips in their brains that would strip them of their humanity their personhood, and their identity.

It was no wonder that the camp was in panic, no matter how much General Depa tried to calm her men down.

They were scared. Scared of hurting her and her Padawan. Scared of losing themselves.

Some of them tried to run, to be as far away from them as possible when those horrible chips activated.

Others tried to take their own life as long as they still were themselves.

It was a horrible time.

Then Caleb disappeared because the force was calling him, which made the troops only more panicked.

They were torn between wanting to go with him and being glad that he wasn't around. Both reasons were because they were worried for their little commanders' safety.

Then, a few hours later, everything was over.

Or at least, it seemed that way for all the men who only knew war.

The chancellor was the sith and created this war. He was killed by Mace and his close supporters were imprisoned for betraying the republic.

Master Anakin Skywalker fell and betrayed them. He was killed by Master Obi-Wan after murdering Senator Amidala.

The technicians in the Jedi temple created a way to block the signal of the chips, saving them from mind control till they could get it taken out.

So effectively, the war was over, they won and the clones lost most of their usefulness.

Even if they still had their personhood, they still weren't safe. Not when most of the republic saw them as nothing more than meat droids.

It was at this time that Caleb returned with a newborn and no one knew where the little guy could have possibly come from.

They were in the middle of a battlefield and the padawan couldn't have walked so far in the few hours he was gone.

The teen himself didn't know how long he walked or where he went.

He had trusted the force and the force brought him to the little baby and the corpses of his parents, who appeared to be reporters of some kind.

Cue panicked clones who just went through the 5 stages of grief and are now fearing for the wellbeing of a little thing that was barely bigger than their hands.

They just pushed away the fear of their post-war existence because none of them were trained in child care.

To be fair, the only one who knows how to carry and feed a baby is Depa, who is glad that her padawan came back without any injury.

Even if the baby (a possible grand padawan?) was a suprise.

A nice surprise that brought her men out of their fear clouded minds, but a suprise nonetheless.

[canichangemyblogname]

Okay! So I have seem some people, understandably, critiquing the training exercise that Anakin assigns Ahsoka in Tales of the Jedi.

This? It's dangerous. It's irresponsible. It's a sure way to give someone a concussion. Over. And over. And over. It's exactly the kind of harebrained and reckless idea Anakin would have.

But the test was not designed to help her eventually survive O66. It was designed because Anakin didn't like the standard exercises every Jedi has to do. He thought the test wasn't tough enough, so designed a similar test that was "tougher."

And this standard test was likely designed for a couple reasons. The first and likely primary reason is that the simulation helps test a Jedi on their foot control and precision of saber movements. You can see that she doesn't have much area to jump or maneuver around. A secondary lesson might be that the practice could help prepare a Padawan in the event they're in the field and surrounded. The bots are designed to simulate battle droids, after all.

The exercise literally isn't designed with stamina and resourcefulness in mind.

Fortunately, TCW did illustrate, time and time again, that Ahsoka is resourceful in her fights. The Citadel Arc. The arc when she is kidnapped by Trandoshans. The arc in season 5 when pirates attack her and the younglings. And also the "Wrong Jedi" arc when Ahsoka must outrun and escape an entire Gar battalion. So, it was well established that she is able to hold her own and it was established that she had the ability to create the circumstances for her own survival in instances where the field was open and manipulatable and she had assistance. She had already learned how to create her own opportunity or means to escape a sticky situation and how to think in a way where once she had the means or opening to escape, she is able to do so effectively and smartly.

But did she have the stamina and blade skills to create said opening so she then had an opportunity to escape? Especially when surrounded or cornered and alone?

The point of O66 was to literally surround and corner the Jedi. As seen by these dialogue prompts in Jedi: Fallen Order.

Jedi who found themselves with the opportunity to escape (like Kanan, Cal, and Ahsoka, Obi Wan, and Yoda, to name a few) would escape. And at that point, many of them were as good as gone.

And it has been illustrated over and over that when Jedi are cornered and surrounded:

like with Minas Velti,

Ima-Gun Di,

Aayla Secura,

Depa Billaba,

and Jaro Tepal...

... that they can get far and that they have great saber movement and foot control and that they can use their skill to make time for others to get away or survive, but it also always marks the end. It's an impossible situation to get out of. And as much endurance and skill as they might have in many areas, this was never a situation they'd be prepared for or that they were trained to survive. And that was literally the point.

I'm going to hazard a guess that most Jedi did not have "practice" escaping being tracked and hunted (like in the "Wookie Hunt" arc), out running and out witting an entire GAR battalion (like in the "Wrong Jedi" arc), escaping high-security situations while surrounded by high levels of personnel (like in the Citadel arc), or to develop the physical endurance and agility to last long enough to create an out while literally surrounded or cornered (like with the reckless training exercise Anakin puts her through).

Anakin made the test about having no way out and being overwhelmed. He made a test likely about footwork into one about developing the endurance and skill to hold off until you can create the circumstances of your escape while being surrounded or cornered and alone.

Ahsoka said it herself that every Jedi had to take the standard test. And there are a lot of flaws with that it. It isn't designed with the idea of creating the means to escape being surrounded, but to just hold off and hold off until the end of the simulation. I have no doubt that primary purpose would be to practice foot work with blade movements. But in terms of the secondary lesson, it mostly trains them for a speedy defeat against battle droids while having no way out. But the fact that every Jedi has to take it goes to show that they were not really taught to get out of being surrounded outside a quick simulation. Because why would they need to be? Not like they knew O66 was coming.

I get that the reason Dave Felony wrote and produced this episode was just to parallel O66, but I do think that in terms of the test's secondary lesson (developing the skill and endurance and having the practice in the event you're surrounded with no immediate out), Anakin's was far more reckless yet likely more effective.

Because this:

...was always going to be a near impossible situation to escape from. Without the endurance, foot work, or blade skill to hold off until there was a means and opportunity to escape, Ahsoka would not have survived.

[greydepa]

Someone looking at this piece would think you were looking at Grey after killing Depa Billaba in the Bad Batch, but you would be wrong. In the Kanan comic they mention that Master Depa Billaba nearly died in a fight with General Grievous and lost 90% of her battalion and would spend 6 months in a bacta tank. Since Grey was one of the survivors I thought it would cool showing her unconscious and being rescued off the battlefield by Grey. A beautiful job by artist Michelle De Sousa.

I used the website artistry.io @mimistella

[hesthermay]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 (𝐏𝐓 𝟏)

PAIRING: sergeant hunter x fem!oc reader

SUMMARY: the assignment of miri rocksled to clone force 99 brought an even higher success rate than the two groups presented on their own; in the times of the clone wars a well working and formidable team was necessary for the republic, but little did it know that the decision would become the biggest thorn in the empires side. master rocksled had never been like other jedi, and the bad batch had never been like other clones, and as they navigate the end of everything they had known and the beginning of something dark those traits are put to the test. rules no longer exist, lines are blurred, and forbidden waters are tread as the bad batch fight the great fight for everything they deserve.

WORD COUNT: 3.1k

RATINGS + WARNINGS: general audiences, mature themes, angst. female oc, use of she/her, mentions of death and order 66. eventual series. follows the bad batch timeline.

NOTES: bada bing bada boom another one?! what?! im just fuckin good like that (im really not this has taken me a bit but im done and now im ready for you all to see it)

STAR WARS MASTERLIST THE GREAT FIGHT MASTERLIST

The scene that Clone Force 99 and their General walked into was familiar to them at this point. 

Chaos, in its entirety, had consumed Kaller as Republic forces fought off Separatist battle droids coming from every direction. The ground, covered with snow, was black with ash from the repeated firing of weapons; this battle had been long, and it was not over yet. 

Depa Billaba had requested backup, and though these were not the fighters she had wanted, they were all she was going to get. The Republic was stretched thin, it had seemed they had reached the climax of the Clone Wars and though it was only an inkling, it felt as if something was just over the hill. 

“Master Rocksled!” Someone called from the treeline. The young Caleb Dunne, sent to retrieve said backup, watched in awe as the stories he had heard came true right in front of him. 

Miri Rocksled was not like other Jedi, and in very fitting fashion, her troopers were not like other clones. Master Billaba had told him that was why she was assigned to them, and together they were the odd ones out of the GAR. 

Caleb’s words had been lost in the noise, but eventually the last droid had been smashed and all attention was on him. “Master Rocksled,” he repeated, breathing slightly heavy. 

“Commander Dunne, it looks like we’re your reinforcements,” she replied, grinning slightly as she walked closer towards him, the clones following suit. “What’s it looking like down there?” 

After a plan was devised, the padawan was sent back to his master with the promise that they were right behind him. There was doubt, and a lot of it, upon his return. It did not look promising, him showing up empty handed with talks of five clones and one Jedi, but he asked for trust anyways. And it was not in vain, as the giant boulder that had caught the attention of the droids came crashing into view, making for a grand entrance. 

Clone Force 99 made quick work of things with detonators, blasters, their very skilled sniper, brute force, strategic maneuvers, and one orange bladed lightsaber.

“I don’t believe it,” Captain Grey started, lowering the binocs as he watched. “That’s Clone Force 99.”

The two Jedi turn their heads to glance at him, and then one another. “And that’s Miri Rocksled,” Caleb whispered to his master, eyes blown wide. 

……..

“Master Billaba,” Miri greeted, sheathing her lightsaber and clipping it to her waist. For a split second she gave thought to the second saber she was set to receive soon and the excitement to have an addition to her signature handle.  

“If you’re done hiding down there, I suggest you launch a counterattack,” Hunter interjected, helmet under his arm. “Another droid battalion’s approaching.”  

Grey stepped forward, on attack mode in the presence of clones who regarded the protocol he was held to as merely a suggestion. It was even evident in the way they had just addressed a Jedi General, someone who outranked them all as an army. “The General is the one who gives the orders around here.”

Billaba held out her hand, an effort to ease the clone's frustrations as they were not needed, nor helpful.“He’s right, Captain. This is our chance,” she nodded her head slightly, sure of her words. “Launch the counterattack.” 

With that, the men were sent on their way and Master and Padawan came out into the open. “There you are little Jedi,” Wrecker stated, pushing his way to the front. “You missed all the fun.”

Caleb, who pulled his hood off, grinned. “Watching your team in action was all the fun.” Miri was reminded of being a padawan and being in awe of some of the Masters when she watched them spar, or went on assignments with them. 

Billaba stepped forward, placing a hand on the young boy's shoulder. “Care to introduce your new friends, Caleb?”

“Yes, Master. This is Wrecker,” he gestured to each one as he named them off. “Hunter, Echo, Tech, and Crosshair.” He turned back to her when there was only one left. “And, you know Master Rocksled, don’t you?” 

“Yes, I do,” she affirmed with a slight smile before turning her head back to the rest. “While I’m not sure ‘fun’ is the sentiment I would express, I agree with my Padawan. Your exploits were quite impressive. The Council was right when we assigned you to them,” she directed at Miri, who only shrugged one shoulder. 

“Exploits?” Wrecker questioned, confusion written all over him as he looked around. 

Behind him, Crosshair walked by with his rifle propped on his shoulder. “Don’t overthink it, Wrecker,” he commented, as snide as ever. Crosshair had been an acquired taste, but his attitude was tolerable with some time. 

“Thank you, General,” Echo stepped up, almost as straightlaced as ever. As a reg, Echo expressed different traits than that of the experimental unit when it came to working with others, but that was not a testament to his place within the Batch. Echo had found a home in Clone Force 99, one that he had not thought he would get a chance at after the Citadel. 

Master Billaba’s inquisitive eyes were once again on her fellow Jedi. “Would you care to explain where my actual reinforcement are, Master Rocksled?” 

Miri sighed ever so slightly, for her answer to that question was not a good one, nor a helpful one. “Rerouted to the capital. I’m afraid we’re all you’re getting, my friend,” she replied lowly. 

“Ha! We’re all you need,” Wrecker boasted, hands on his hips. And for almost the first time since this interaction had started, Tech looked up from his device. 

“Actually,” he held up a finger, a signature pose for the brainiac of the group. “If my intel is correct, the General will not need any of us. The Clone War may soon be over.” 

Intrigue trickled down from the crown of Miri’s head at his words. Her feeling, the one that had been nagging and nagging, that something was to come entered the forefront of her mind. She did not hear the responses to Tech’s statement, but she did hear him begin once again, more information to unload. “I am referring to the encrypted comm chatter. Clone intelligence is reporting that Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi has found and engaged General Grievous on Utapau.”

“No way,” Miri whispered. This had been something her, Obi-Wan, and Anakin had been trying to chase for ages now, and it would seem one of her friends had finally reached their goal. General Grievous was the answer to ending the droid army that upheld the Separatist’s defenses. 

“If he captures or kills Grievous, the Separatist command structure will collapse,” Echo affirmed her thoughts. 

“And most likely the droid armies along with them.”

“A fascinating theory,” Master Billaba cut in, “yet unfortunately not something we can control from here. I suggest we focus on the task at hand.” 

Hunter glanced at Miri before looking back at Billaba. With a shrug of his shoulders, he stepped forward. “Any orders? Or shall we do what we do?” Helmets were placed on heads, and Wrecker cheered, boisterous voice filling the space around them.  

“Let’s blow something up. Yeah!”

Caleb had watched them this entire time with a smile on his face, and it made Miri feel giddy. She always got a kick out of impressing the younglings and padawans. “Well, Caleb, shall we let them do what they do?” Master Billaba questioned, as if she had seen the same thing. It was nice, to see her Padawan smile in these trying times he was forced to grow up in; a welcome change when circumstances permitted. 

“Only if I can go with them,” he countered eagerly, looking up at his mentor. 

She glanced over at Miri, who only nodded before the woman grinned. “Very well,” she conceded. 

“Hey, kid, you ready for this? We move fast,” Hunter emphasized, deep voice coming out gravelly through the modulator.

“Good,” Caleb shot back with a quirked brow, “that’s the only way I know.” He earned a laugh from Wrecker before they started to dart off, but Miri remained where she was. It was Hunter who shot her a look over his shoulder, a silent question. 

“I’m going to speak with Master Billaba for a second,” Miri answered, playing off the heaviness on her shoulders. “Go on, Sergeant. I’ll catch up,” she smiled, hoping it would be enough to send him off. She was his general, and technically she had given him an order that he could not go against, but things were different in the Batch. 

Things were different between Miri and Hunter. 

As inappropriate and forbidden as it was, the pair had found themselves harboring something of a romance. It was not spoken of, it couldn’t be spoken of; but it did not need to be. Miri knew she was special to Hunter, and he knew he was special to her. It was as simple as that, for the Jedi Order would only let it be so. 

It had worked, however she knew she would be questioned later. The pause before he nodded told her he had picked up on whatever it was she was trying to keep at bay, and even though he ran off after one final salute she still felt his presence as she turned to her colleague. 

“What is it, Master Rocksled?” Billaba questioned, eyes still trained on her padawan in the distance. 

“Do—” she started, but had to rethink her wording once again. “Do you feel like something is about to happen?” She asked, sincerity written on her face because she was desperate to know why she had grown heavier by the minute. Billaba’s focus had now moved to her, squinted eyes watching the young woman as her question hung in the air. “Like…like we're at the top of the hill, but what’s on the other side isn’t what we’ve been expecting?”

“Miri…” She whispered, shaking her head ever so slightly as her mind registered and her thoughts raced. She never got to continue, however, as behind her Captain Grey received a message through the commlink in his helmet. As Miri’s eyes watched him turn away from them, she grew ominously cold. Dread poured over her body, and in her peripheral she saw Master Billaba cautiously look over her shoulder, as a hologram activated. 

A cloaked figure, hunched over with a voice almost familiar to them, spoke directly to the clones. “Execute Order 66.” 

Captain Grey did not respond verbally, but he did comply by putting the holo device back on his belt and staring at the Generals before him for a moment longer, before drawing his weapon and firing two shots off, both aimed at their heads. Lightsabers were drawn as the pair dodged the blaster fire, but more troopers were closing in. 

Depa Billaba and Miri Rocksled found the same weapons their soldiers used against their enemies aimed at them instead. In the back of her mind, Miri knew this was it. The crest of the hill they’d been climbing for three years, the cause of the sick and twisted feeling in her stomach, and the ultimate demise of the Jedi Order as a whole. 

In the distance, it would seem that the same feeling had reached Caleb; the dread had stretched through the air and clouded around him through the Force, and he slowed his pace until he was still. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he heard the sounds of saber blades deflecting blaster shots, and he slowly turned. 

Troopers, his troopers, drawing in on the two Masters, shots aimed to kill. His ears began to ring and he sprinted toward them, drawing his own saber. “Master!” He shouted, a desperation in his voice he knew would raise brows, but he didn’t care. Horror filled his body Billaba and Rocksled were separated, and the distance between the troopers and the Jedi was growing smaller and smaller. He stopped in his tracks as his master risked a look at him. 

“You must run!” She screamed, hand held out in a desperation she knew would be frowned upon, but she didn’t care. As his feet remained glued to the ground, her eyes remained on him. With her back exposed, a shot landed on her shoulder that rendered her arm almost useless as she tried to defend herself. “Run, Caleb!” She cried out, words echoing as her padawan turned and followed her orders. 

Miri had been pushed far enough away that the Bad Batch couldn't see her when they turned and watched the kid run towards the brutal scene, but she was close enough to still see the fall of Jedi Master Depa Billaba, and every emotion that she had been warned about filled her to the brim. Fear, horror, anger, grief, they washed over her until her limbs felt like they were made of stone. Sweat covered her face despite the snowy climate of Kaller, and she felt every burn from a grazed blaster shot, every bruise from trying to fight them off, and when the first successful shot landed on her left thigh, she fell to the scarlett stained snow. As they drew in closer, like predator hunting prey, one hand reached out on instinct. The Force, a power not to be trifled with yet one she was not even sure one would come to her, pushed them back but did little to stop them. 

One opportunity, that she was lucky enough to have given herself, to escape. To where, she did not know. With whom, well, she knew it would be nobody. She was on her own, and she deliberately pushed the existence of Clone Force 99 out of her mind. She could not afford to think of them participating in this betrayal, could not afford to feel the debilitating heartbreak of her boys turning on her. Instead, she grunted as she struggled to rise from the ground, the cold seeping through the gaps between the bits of armor she wore as she held a hand out towards where her friend lay. Depa’s lightsaber flew to her and smacked against her palm, and she grasped it with a tight fist as she retreated. Pain radiated from the wound on her leg, and her skin stung as it rubbed against the fabric of her clothes, but she used it to push her forward, to fuel her escape as she attempted to form a plan in her hazy mind. 

The treeline was the obvious choice, more things to hide behind, more things to block their view as they aimed at her. She skirted through the woods, not caring for the prints she left behind; she was too weak to hide in the treetops to avoid the snow so she did the best she could to make up for the trail leading them right to her. Trickery.

They would find her, and they would shoot at her, and to them they would succeed. Miri Rocksled would fall at the hands of the Cone Army, and it would be logged somewhere for someone to keep track of.

But this would not be so, as the drop off before her filled in the gaps of her plan. She would need to pull out some theatrics, rather unconventional for a Jedi but she never claimed to follow the grain, and perhaps she could pull off this scheme. 

And so, when the shots started firing in her direction once again, she did not dodge them. She ran towards the drop off, feeling the heat from the blaster fire as it got closer and closer, and once the edge was in sight she drew Depa’s saber, turning as if she was cornered and this was her last chance to fight. Convincing, as the troopers took her bait and opened fire directly on her, and she only put up as much of a fight as she needed before the real test began. Her focus drifted from the men before her, and the outside noise drowned itself out. The Force, as present as ever, was all around. It was one with her, and it was always with her. 

Her heart slowed in her chest, and it seemed as if things moved in slow motion as she let Captain Grey shoot her in the abdomen, the pain harsh but dulled with the rest of her senses as she used the Force to put her body in a state of comatose. She dropped the lightsaber, using the momentum from the shot to send herself over the edge. She let herself plummet towards the snowy abyss below, slowing herself slightly. When her body collided with the ground, clouds of powdery snow erupted around her, almost shrouding her as the clones looked over the edge. 

Her eyes weren’t quite shut, lashes touching as she lay with her head rolled to the side, arms splayed out. Her heart was barely beating, her body mimicking all signs of death in the very name of preservation. In her mind, she thought of her own clones as the ones above confirmed that they had taken out both Jedi Generals. They scooped up the lightsaber before retreating, the presumed dead woman left to freeze on Kaller only a small blip in their minds.

Memories of her squad replayed in her mind as time passed, the coast long since clear as she remained stuck in the icy hold of the world around her. Memories of Hunter, of how beautiful he really was to her, how much he wanted to protect her. 

If you don’t move, you’ll die. 

His voice, just a whisper of him, echoed in her ears when all noises had been blocked out by the ringing silence. 

You are going to freeze. You are bleeding out. 

Wake up, Miri. Wake up. 

It was with the last snap of his words that all her senses rushed back to her at once, jolting her from her stupor. She gasped, eyes wide as her body worked to resume its normal functions after such a pause. Pain seeped in as much as the cold, and she reminded herself that she was fighting the great fight; she did not have time to dwell on such things. Escape was imperative, and time was dwindling. She had been trained for this, her whole life had been learning how to survive against all odds with the gift she had been given, and this was not going to stop her. 

all works on this blog belong to hesthermay.tumblr.com: do not copy, repost onto other sites, or claim my content as your own.

[saggitary]

Order 69

I want a fic about the clone wars where everything is the same, except the Kaminoans had a small miscommunication and told Palpatine the Jedi kill order was Order 69 instead of Order 66. Instead of trying to kill their Jedi COs, the clone are now trying to seduce them and sleep with them. 

Fun little musings for a few legions if you would like 

212th

“The time has come Commander. Execute Order 69.”

“It will be done my lord.” Cody slips his helmet off. “Hey General.”

Obi-Wan looks around in confusion as Careless Whisper begins to play from an unknown source

The rest of the battalion watch as Cody quite literally sweeps their Jedi General off his feet and carry him back into the base

None of them have seen Kenobi that red in the face

“Do we need to... do anything? About the order I mean?” A shiny asks

“I think the Commander has it covered.” Boil responds

327th

“Execute order 69″

“Kriffing finally” Bly responds before shutting off his com

Palpatine stares at the dark com device for a few moments. That was unexpected

The Separatists are cleaned out in record time on Felucia, almost entirely by Commander Bly himself 

Aayla didn’t think she had every seen her commander so driven by anything, it truly was impressive

No one sees Bly or their General for a long time when they finally get back to camp

104th

Plo Koon is not with the 104th when the order goes out

He is also in a star fighter and by the time he gets back to the ground the battalion he is with is panicking because Plo Koon isn’t their regular General and Wolffe would kill them

By the time Plo returns to his men the issue has been resolved

157th (Billaba’s Legion)

“Execute order 69″

Grey put away his com device before walking towards his general where she was currently talking to Caleb and Clone Force 99

“Well shall we let them do what they-oh!”

Grey wrapped an arm around Depa’s waist and dropped her into a dip before kissing her

Caleb and the whole of Clone Force 99 stared at the two making out infront of them with either horror or confusion

Echo clapped his hand over Caleb’s eyes

“I can still sense it”

“Sorry kid”

332nd

Ahsoka was very confused, one minute Rex was looking more panicked than she had ever seen him, now…

Now he had calmed down considerably and had begun... flirting with her?

She was very weirded out because it definitely sounded like flirting, why her brother was flirting with her was beyond her

Then Jesse, ever the womanizer, had strutted into the com bay and she had been truly disturbed

As soon as she could she escaped her weird brothers and went to look up the file Rex had said, one about Fives

She called both Rex and Jesse to her location and prompt whacked them both on the head before getting their chips out

Both were extremely horrified that they had tried to flirt with their sister and apologized a lot

Now that Ahsoka knew what was happening she found it really kriffing funny

They quickly spread the word about the chips to the rest of the GAR

501st

As soon as Anakin, freshly fallen to the dark side, marched into the hangar where his men were waiting he felt like something was different

He led his COs to the com table to go over their strategy to attack the temple and to cover all entrances 

Appo siddled close, leaning forward to trap Vader against the com table with both his arms

Vader’s mind short circuited and lets just say that the march on the jedi temple did not happen

Morning After

Cody wakes up with Obi-Wan sleeping on his chest and his com blinking at him from the side of the cot

What the kriff did Rex mean by control chips?

[rare-clone-fic-exchange]

Begin Again (Sergeant Soot x Reader)

Gifting to: Kassy aka @moonlightwarriorqueen <3

Summary: Reader is a youngling-care professional who cares very deeply about their little ones and isn’t afraid to protect them. Sgt. Soot makes a mistake, but he gets a chance to make it right.

Pairing: GN!reader x Sergeant Soot

Rating: G

Word Count: 1.7k

Warnings: n/a

Author’s Note: Sergeant Soot is a trooper stationed with Commander Grey’s Battalion, assigned to Jedi Generals Depa Billaba and Caleb Dume. He appears in the Kanan comic series! He has one or two lines, so I basically reverse-engineered him into an OC based on his sense of humour, matter-of-factness, and observational skills. Reader is based on a special friend who definitely shares some (protectiveness, fierceness, caring heart), but not all (lack of awareness about clone culture and lives) of the same qualities!

Read while listening to: Someone New by Hozier

~ Sergeant Soot's POV ~

A cacophony of sharp and squealing giggles pierced through the train as the doors slid open.

Through the HUD of his bucket, Soot — ever the alert sergeant — found himself assessing the source: four boisterous younglings of various species, with a humanoid chaperone in tow boarding the car.

“You’re a bantha bum!” taunted the Nautolan youngling to the humanoid youngling.

“Well, y-you’re a hairy bantha bum!” a small Twi’lek retorted.

“Oh yeah?! You’re all the hairiest bantha bums!” interjected the Rodian youngling.

“Shhh! Come, all of you, hush and sit!” Their chaperone insisted as they herded them into the car. They didn’t resemble the humanoid child, Soot thought. They also wore modest, but polished robes. Not their parent, but perhaps not a teacher either.

Breathless laughter and shrieks persisted as the group settled on seats across from where Soot and Big-Mouth stood. Both in full kit, fresh into their 48 hours of shore leave on Coruscant, Soot nudged a sharp elbow at his brother.

“Get a load of this,” Soot whispered.

Big-Mouth responded with an amused huff, “Aiwha-bait would never stand for it, eh?”

“Righto, vod.” The brothers chuckled softly amongst themselves.

Soot wondered at the tenacity of a person who could wrangle such a chaotic crew. He reminisced on exasperated trainers, watchful long-necks, and an “adolescence” (if you could call it that) as a very cautious cadet. As genetically-enhanced assets for the Republic, Soot knew there were different developmental expectations for him and his brothers, but it never seemed quite so clear until a moment like this.

The Nautolan whispered in the ear of the Rodian beside them, both giggling until their colourful cheeks flushed deeper with pigment. The two of them seemed to be conspiring, Soot estimated.

“Hey! Mister!” The Rodian hollered.

“Knapp…” The chaperone started.

“Where’s your blasters?!” The Nautolan piped up.

“Eysu!” The chaperone scolded, “Inside voice, please! And let’s all leave the soldiers alone.”

Soot chuckled, then rotated to expose the hip holster where his pistol rested. “You mean, this?”

“Wizard!” said Knapp and Eysu, simultaneously.

The chaperone’s worried brow deepened. “Sir, I would appreciate if you didn’t display weapons to my younglings. They are in my charge.”

Big-Mouth chimed in, “It’s a big and dangerous city. All the more reason to know how to protect yourself, I say.”

“I doubt my employers would agree with that sentiment.” The chaperone insisted.

“Sorry ’bout that,” Soot apologized. His remorse didn’t seem to appease them. The dull hum of the train only grew louder as the younglings quieted in response to the displeasure of their chaperone.

The chaperone dropped their glance, attending towards the younglings. Soot straightened up, turning the view of his helmet away. Undetectably, Soot continued to watch them from behind the tint of his visor.

Should I say something more?

“Alright everyone, this is where we get off.” The chaperone prepared the younglings to depart. With a curt nod to the two clones, they and the others exited the car.

Ah, kriff.

~ Reader's POV ~

“Come on, please!”

“Being around more clones is the last thing I need after the day I had.” you protested.

“Don’t be a scughole, they may look the same, but they do have different personalities y’know.”

After your unfortunate run-in earlier that day on the train, your younglings had continued to pester you with endless questions about soldiers, blasters, and what the second clone had meant by Coruscant being “dangerous.” It took every shred of your trained patience to maintain a pleasant demeanour until their parents or parents’ aides retrieved them. And now Ni’la was insistent on bringing you to the single most clone-populated establishment in the upper levels.

“I know that, Ni.” You rolled your eyes with disdain, “They’re different, sure, but I haven’t come across one yet who’s taken more interest in me than the size of their blaster or a retelling of their latest mission.”

“Maybeee you just haven’t met the right one yet!” Ni’la sassed. She was dressed in her best and had convinced you to get ready too — without telling you where she planned on heading tonight. Now, the two of you were a block away from the thumping, glaring, buzzy corner where 79’s lived.

“Oh, and you have?” you asked.

“No, but I’m ready to keep looking! C’mon, it’s looking so fun tonight!” She couldn’t contain her apparent excitement, as she sped ahead towards the entrance.

------

Ni’la had gotten her wish, a few times over, as you watched her enchant several clones on the dance floor. Her blue lekku move gracefully with the rest of her body as she swayed to the beat. Fatigued by the day, you had passed on her attempts to drag you with her, choosing instead to nurse your Pink Nebula in an adjacent booth.

You watched as a fourth clone approached Ni’la, evaluating for a second before he changed his trajectory and started heading towards you.

Oh great, you thought, here we go again.

Your trusted stone-faced “leave me the kriff alone” expression did little to deter the man. He was half-armoured like most of his brothers in the bar, but his dark hair was buzzed, short and much closer to the scalp than the typical cut many clones had.

With a beer in his hand, he strode up to the edge of your table.

Using his free hand to rub his buzzed head bashfully, he motioned with the beer towards Ni’la and his brothers on the dance floor. “Your friend’s got quite the fan club.”

“How’d you know she’s my friend?”

“You’re sitting alone, watching but not looking very interested in the pretty twi’lek or the guys she’s with, lookin’ less than interested in anyone and anything else here either.”

You gave a nod of approval for his skills of deduction.

“So why aren’t you up there with her?”

“Been a long day,” you started, taking another long sip.

“Care to enlighten me?” He motioned to the empty space in the booth beside you.

You did the math quickly: Ni’la would probably be occupied by one or more of his lucky brothers for the rest of the evening. Being alone was good and fine, but this was a rare occasion where your conversation partner seemed genuinely interested in you. So, why not?

“Just work. An extra… complicated day, I guess.”

He slid into the empty seat next to you. “What d’you do?”

You hesitated, considering that you didn’t need to revert to your usual level of discretion, seeing as he likely understood the value of informational sensitivity.

“I provide care for the younglings of Senate representatives.” You held your breath, never having revealed the true extent of your employment in such a casual setting before.

“Do you like it?” 

You continued, both impressed and appreciative of his genuine curiosity: “Parts of it. I love my little ones; I love getting to help them learn and play and become who they want to be.”

“But…?” He held your gaze with his warm and assuring brown eyes.

“But being employed by the Galactic Senate has its complications. I’m sure you can relate.”

He nodded, pausing for a moment. This was usually about the time when soldiers you had met started revelling in their tales of glory. That he hadn’t taken the invitation to start talking about himself made him seem different; he was giving thought to your words, your life.

“How do you deal with that?”

“It’s been hard, and I’ve had to take my time. But when the frustrating bits of politics or real life trickles in, I try to keep my focus on the younglings and draw from how joyful and resilient they are. You know how they can be.” You gestured vaguely.

His face scrunched a bit at that.

“Honestly… We clones have a pretty minor frame of reference.”

“Oh?”

“As soldiers, we have an… interesting upbringing, to put it lightly.”

You’d never given much consideration to the intricacies of clones’ lives before their service. 

“But you’ve never interacted with younglings in any capacity?” you asked.

“My battalion’s Jedi general is quite young, but he’s also probably not what you would consider a regular youngling,” he joked.

“No, I wouldn’t,” you huffed.

He smiled, pausing and fiddling with the bottle in his hand. 

“So, youngling expert… What would you say to a real clueless dolt who shows off weapons to younglings?” he looked at you expectantly. 

Your eyes widened as your brain processed the connection. Him. He was the same clone from the train. You gaped at him for just a moment more. 

“… I would say that you’re very lucky that the younglings had such a short train journey. Their chaperone can get pretty nasty when they’re in protective mode.”

“Guess I’m also lucky a certain twi’lek decided to bring their chaperone to the clone bar tonight so I can properly apologize.” He rubbed his head again, “I’m sorry for that.”

“I appreciate it,” you replied, finding it hard to resist a small smile.

“Really, I am. Didn’t realize what a headache it would be for you.”

“It’s over now.” You shrugged, hands toying with your now-empty glass. “And now I know you really didn’t know better.” 

“Well, alright then.” His brown eyes continued to hold contact with yours, his attention focused as if you were the single most important thing in the galaxy. You found yourself almost paralyzed by the tenderness promised by his gaze.

Ni’la’s musical giggles broke through the concentration of the moment. It had been a good night out for everyone, apparently. When she realized she had your attention again, she motioned to signal she’d be leaving with her chosen soldier. Her giggle climbed an octave, if possible, as the man swept her up bridal-style and headed out. 

The pair of you at the booth scoffed in unison, humoured by your lively friends.

“Are you hungry at all?” he asked. “Wanna get out of here and grab something to eat?”

“As long as you keep that blaster holstered.” You flashed him a sly smile.

He chuckled, “Oh, I’ve definitely learned my lesson.”

[notgonnaedit]

Healer's Heart

Aftermath

Summary: When Order 66 ushers in a new era, Althea and the Batch must find their place

Pairing: Bad Batch x Teen!OFC (clones being good brothers/dads)

Chapter summary: Order 66? Why are the regs acting so strange, and Crosshair too? Who is the young girl on Kamino, and why does she claim to know the Batch?

Warnings: Canon-typical violence, Order 66, death, inhibitor chips, long chapter, Crosshair being the worst, Althea being angry at him, Omega, yay! (If I miss a tag LMK)

Master list

Separatists pushed to the brink. Republic forces continue to mount victories on battlefronts across the galaxy. After the Jedi Knights thwarted an attempt to kill Chancellor Palpatine, the evil droid, General Grievous, retreated to the Outer Rim. With his legions of battle droids severely depleted, Grievous mounts a brutal counter attack across several star systems. We find Republic clone troopers locked in deadly combat on the besieged world of Kaller. Lead by Jedi Master Depa Billaba, they struggle to hold their position as they wait for reinforcements to arrive.

The clones fought tooth and nail as the droids closed in, three tanks with them. Depa Billaba ducked down into the crater she and the Captain awaited reinforcements from. "Not to be a pessimist," The Captain started. "But if the commander isn't back soon with those reinforcements..."

"My Padawan will be here." Depa insisted. 

"Master!" On cue, Caleb Dume slid down the tall hill lined with trees. Snow kicked up from his boots as he jumped into the crater. "Here. I'm here."

"Caleb, where are the reinforcements?" Depa asked.

"Don't worry." The boy said confidently. "They're right behind me."

Both Depa and the Captain glanced over. Nothing but the snow and trees. "Uh, where are they?" The Captain asked.

"Caleb." Depa's voice grew stern.

"Trust me." The Padawan said.

The Captain shifted. "Well, how many are there?"

"Six of them."

"Six?" The clone repeated. He shook his head in defeat. "We're done."

Caleb chuckled. "Yeah, that's what I thought but you gotta see these clones. They're different."

As he spoke the trees rumbled. The droids halted their advance to observe. They fired upon some attacker unseen by the Republic troops, but it was soon revealed to be a boulder that crushed a large chunk of the battalion. Out from the trees came five figures, their only goal being to destroy every droid in sight. "Make a hole!" The big one yelled as he smashed several droids. Another used a knife and blaster combo with a young girl. 

The Captain looked through his binocs in disbelief. "I don't believe it. That's Clone Force 99." Another clone used droid poppers on a large group, and the fifth used his scomp arm as a weapon.

Althea grinned under her cloth as she stabbed several droids and blasted them. Hunter had been teaching her some new moves. Speaking of the Sergeant, he contacted Crosshair who was sniping from the tree line. "Crosshair, let's get these tanks moving."

"Sir, yes, sir." In an instant the tanks were connected by a rope, attached by the one in the middle. Wrecker pushed the one nearest to the cliff, sending them over. The demo man managed to climb over the falling tanks, scrambling to safety. Tech tossed a droid popper to one. "Hey, clanker. Catch." 

It no time, all the droids were destroyed by a particularly large explosion caused by Tech. "Drop your weapons and surrender." One demanded before Wrecker ripped it's head off. Crosshair slid down from the hill, catching up to them as they approached the Jedi and took of their helmets.

"If you're done hiding down there, I suggest you laugh a counter attack." Hunter said. "Another droid battalion's approaching."

"The General is the one who gives the orders around here." The Captain said.

Depa held out her hand. "He's right, Captain. This is our chance. Launch the counter attack."

"Yes, General." The Captain turned to his troops. "All right, men. Let's go!"

As the regs moved to attack, the Jedi and Captain climbed out of their crater. Wrecker grinned at the sight of Caleb. "There you are, little Jedi. You missed all the fun."

"Watching your team in action was the fun." The Padawan said as he flipped back his hood.

Depa did the same. "Care to introduce your new friends, Caleb."

Caleb nodded. "Yes, Master. This is Wrecker, Hunter, Althea, Echo, Tech, and Crosshair."

Depa nodded. "While I'm not sure 'fun' is the sentiment I would express, I agree with my Padawan. Your exploits were quite impressive."

Wrecker furrowed his brow. "Exploits?"

"Don't overthink it, Wrecker." Crosshair said as he chewed his toothpick.

Echo, ever the reg, nodded to Depa. "Thank you, General."

"Now would one of you please explain where my actual reinforcements are?" She asked.

"Rerouted to the capital." Althea offered. "We're all your getting."

Wrecker laughed. "Ha! We're all you need."

"Actually," Tech said as he stared at his datapad. "If my intel is correct, the general will not need any of us. The Clone War may soon be over."

"Better tell that to the clankers headed our way." The Captain told him.

"I am referring to the encrypted comm chatter." Tech countered. "Clone intelligence is reporting Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi has found and engaged General Grievous on Utapau."

Echo hummed in thought. "If captures or kills Grievous, the Separatist command structure will collapses."

Althea nodded. "And the droid armies along with them." She had been fighting in the war for almost a year. The war that killed her family, and led her to a new one. It would be strange, no longer fighting droids.

"A fascinating theory, yet unfortunately not something we can control from here." Depa said sternly. "I suggest we focus on the task at hand."

"Any orders?" Hunter asked, a small smirk on his face. "Or shall we do what we do?"

"Let's blow something up. Yeah!" Wrecker added with a fist pump.

Depa looked down at her Padawan. "Well, Caleb, shall we let them do what they do?"

Caleb grinned. "Only if I can go with them."

Depa smiled. "Very well."

Althea smirked at the Padawan. "Hey, kid. You ready for this? We move fast." Caleb was probably the same age as her, but the young medic had picked up the habit of calling you get troops "kid" from the other Batchers.

Caleb smirked. "Good. That's the only way I know."

Wrecker laughed as he put on his helmet. "I like him." Hunter nodded to the General, giving her a quick salute before running off to the next battle. The snow crunched under their boots as they ran, but soon Hunter realized that only six pairs, not seven, were running. The sound of blaster fire reached his ears, along with the unmistakable sound of a lightsaber. He turned to see that Caleb was no longer with them, but rather running towards his Master, blade at the ready. 

The clones were firing upon General Billaba, gunning her down as she screamed for Caleb to run. The Bad Batch turned around and ran to the Padawan, confused as to what just happened.

Caleb had unshed tears in his eyes as he stood defensively. "Stay away from me!" He turned and ran into the forset.

"Kid, wait!" Hunter called after him, but he was gone.

"What... What just happened?" Althea asked.

"The comm channel is repeating one directive," Said Tech. "Execute Order 66."

"Yeah, I heard that too." Wrecker said. "What's Order 66?"

Tech furrowed his brow. "I am not certain."

Althea bit her lip under her mask. Did the regs seriously just kill General Billaba? 

"Echo, Tech. Talk to the reg Captain." Hunter ordered. "Find out what you can. Crosshair, Thea. We'll track down the kid and make sure nothing happens to him. Wrecker, stall anyone who tried to follow us."

With their objectives known, the squad split up. Hunter, Crosshair, and Althea made their way through the trees, placing their steps carefully as to not fall down the hill. Hunter scanned the ground for footprints and felt the brush for movement. "He's close."

Crosshair scanned the trees from atop his rock perch. "There." He nodded to a brown cloak in the trees, hiding the scared Padawan.

"Come on down, kid." Hunter said kindly. "We're here to help." Crosshair loaded a round and shot. "No!"

Caleb deflected the laser easily with his lightsaber. "Liar!" He jumped to another tree and out of their sight.

Althea turned to Crosshair. "What are going doing?"

"Following orders." The sniper responded.

Hunter shoved him lightly. "We don't even know what the order is. Stand down until we know what's going on." He turned to find the kid with Althea, but Crosshair stayed put for a moment.

"Good soldiers follow orders."

As the trio searched the woods, Wrecker's voice clicked on over the comms. "Hunter, you you've got regs inbound." He drawled out "regs" like it was an insult.

"Copy that." The Sergeant told him.

Tech's voice followed. "We have a situation."

"Tell me something I don't know, Tech." Hunter scoffed.

"It appears the regs have been ordered to execute the Jedi."

All three of them stopped in their tracks. "What?" Hunter asked. "Which Jedi?"

"All of them. They're saying the Jedi have committed treason."

"That would explain things." Crosshair said softly.

Althea turned to him, a mix of confusion and disgust clear on her face. "It's doesn't even begin to explain things!"

"I suggest you get back here." Tech advised.

Hunter shook his head. "Can't. Haven't found the kid yet."

Crosshair turned around and aimed his rifle to the trees. "Wrong." He fired, breaking the branch the Jedi was on.

Caleb let out a startled yelp as he fell to the ground. He stood, making no move as the snow settled around him. Then in an instant, he activated his lightsaber and attacked, blocking as Crosshair shot at him.

"Crosshair, stand down."

"Stop it, Crosshair!"

But Hunter and Althea's pleads fell on deaf ears, resulting in Caleb disarming the sniper and raising his own weapon. "Don't!" Hunter cried. But the Jedi didn't plan on killing Crosshair and instead kicked him into a tree. 

Crosshair's head lolled to the side, signaling he was unconscious. Althea ran to check on him as Hunter confronted Caleb. The Sergeant threw his blaster to the ground and held his arms out like he was calming a wild animal. "Take it easy, kid. Easy. I'm on your side."

Caleb ran away, and Hunter chased after him. The Sergeant followed until he found the Padawan standing at the edge of a cliff. Waterfalls narrated the scene as Hunter pulled off his helmet to talk to the kid.

"Stay back!" Caleb snarled.

Hunter kept his arms raised. "Just hear me out."

"No! You killed her!" Caleb's eyes were brimmed with tears.

Hunter felt the kid's pain and let out a sigh. "The others did. I'm just as confused as you are."

Doubt flickered across the Padawan's eyes as he inched away, sending pebbles tumbling into the chasm. "Stay back. Stay back!"

Hunter held out one hand. "I can help you. Come with me." Behind him, he could hear the regs footsteps nearing. Just a little longer. Caleb stared at the Sergeant, seemingly considering his words. But the regs sounded from the forest and a look of betrayal changed the Jedi's face before he jumped.

"No!" Hunter stepped forward, but the kid landed safely on the other side, stopping for only a moment before disappearing into the trees.

Crosshair and Althea reached Hunter. "Where's the Jedi?" The sniper asked.

Hunter set his jaw. "I stunned him when he jumped. He didn't make it." He walked away into the woods while Crosshair stayed behind for a minute. Althea followed Hunter, jogging slightly to catch up. He was lying, and she knew it.

"Hunter..." She said softly, knowing only he could hear over the crunch of the snow.

"I know, Thea." Was all he said. It was clear he was deep in thought and Althea was too. Both of them had questions that neither could answer.

                     •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

The Marauder dropped out of hyperspace, flying into the atmosphere of a familiar stormy planet. Tech and Wrecker sat in the front, with Crosshair and Hunter sitting behind them, the latter trying to sleep. Echo stood behind Tech's chair and Althea behind Wrecker, since their ship only had four main seats. "We're coming up on Kamino." Tech said.

Wrecker smiled and folded his arms. "It's good to be home. How long has it been?"

"180 rotations in a standard cycle," Tech said. "But galactic zone changes put the adjusted figure around 205."

Both Wrecker and Althea stared at him with blank expressions. "What?" The medic asked.

Echo sighed. "A long time."

Wrecker's smile returned. "You got that right."

Behind them, Hunter had his eyes closed. He wasn't sleeping, but he wanted to. It was hard to sleep, however, when he could feel Crosshair's helmeted gaze. "What?"

"You sure that Padawan died when he fell?" The sniper asked.

"Sure I'm sure. Why?" Hunter opened his eyes slightly, daring Crosshair to challenge him.

The sniper took that challenge. "Well, usually when someone falls you look down, not across."

"Well, some of us don't like to watch." Hunter stood, ending the exchange. He stood behind Althea, giving the medic a soft smile before looking to the storm that surrounded them. Two V-wings came up on either side of the Marauder. "Unidentified transport, transmit your clearance code."

"Clearance code?" Echo asked. "Don't they know who we are?"

Althea shrugged. "Must be a protocol drill."

Tech pressed a button as thunder shook the sky. "Transmitting clearance code."

"Authorization confirmed. Proceed to landing bay one-tac-one." 

Tech flew the Marauder into the hangar. As the team stepped out, the first thing Althea noticed was the amount of troopers present. Even some with red painted armor walked past. "Shock troopers?" Hunter asked. "What's the Coruscant Guard doing here?"

"Level five lockdown remains in effect." The P.A. sounded. "Security teams, report to the command center."

Tech tapped his datapad. "This isn't a drill."

"Oh, man." Wrecker groaned. "What'd we miss now?"

"The end of the war." A passing shock trooper said.

"Say again, Trooper." Hunter said.

"General Grievous was defeated on Utapau." He said. "The Separatist leadership has collapsed. The war is over."

"Just like I said." Tech added.

Wrecker gasped. "It is just like you said."

Althea frowned when she saw troopers carrying a stretcher with a body. The cloth covering it made it hard to tell, but the medic was sure it belonged to General Shaak Ti. She had only met the Jedi once, but Althea didn't think she deserved whatever death she was faced with. Hunter eyed it as well, staring as a lightsaber hilt fell from beneath the cloth.

A trooper picked it up. "Is there a problem?" He asked.

"No problem." Said Hunter slowly. "We'll just head to our barracks then."

"Best hurry." The trooper said. "There's a mandatory general assembly at 1500."

Hunter had the feeling they needed to blend in, and that was going to be difficult.

Althea frowned as they walked through the stark white halls of Kamino. Clones marched in uniform in all directions, all different colors and custom armor. "It's not just the clones on Kaller. All the regs are acting strange." Hunter remarked.

"Let's test that theory." Tech broke away from their group to speak to a group of regs. "Excuse me, Trooper. What division are you from?"

The reg shoved Tech with his shoulder and continued on. "Step aside."

"Oh." Tech shrugged. "Well, they seem the same to me."

When they reached their barracks, Wrecker let out a breath of relief. "Ah! Good to be back."

"The smell's getting worse." Echo said.

Althea flashed him a smile. "You're still new. You'll get used to it."

"Speak for yourself." Crosshair said as he shoved himself between them. Althea rolled her yellow eyes as she sat down on her bunk, placing her bag and blaster on the mattress. Hunter, Echo, and Tech sat at the table in the center of the room while Crosshair set his pack down by his bunk.

"Well, I'll get the board." Wrecker said. He drew his knife and began carving more tally marks I the wall by the door. "Eleven more successful missions." He chuckled as moved to his bunk. "Like there was any doubt."

"Kaller wasn't a win." Echo said, his voice dark with seriousness.

"Says who?" Wrecker asked as he tossed his Lula from hand to hand. "We completed our objective."

"Not every objective." Crosshair sneered. "Hunter let that Jedi kid escape." He turned to their leader. "Or do you want to keep lying to us?"

Hunter stood and moved to the window. His brown eyes seemed grey in the dim light. "I don't like to think of executing our commanders as a mission objective."

"An order is an order." Crosshair argued.

Hunter turned, his eyes flashing with controlled anger. "Since when?"

"None of this makes sense." Althea said, earning the attention of the fighting brothers. "Those clones served alongside General Billaba for years. How could they turn on her like that?"

Tech tinkered with one of his gadgets. "Because of the regs programming."

Hunter looked to him, his glare remaining present. "What programming?"

"It's been well documented that the Kaminoans inhibited the cognitive functions of clones to engineer them to follow orders without question." Tech explained.

Wrecker threw his arm around Crosshair's shoulders. "Ha! We sure don't." He hit the sniper in the face with Lula, causing him to shove the demo man away.

"Obviously, we are different." Tech continued. "They manipulated preexisting aberrations in our DNA, resulting in your brute strength, Crosshair's sharpshooting skills, Hunter's enhanded senses, and my exceptional mind." He said he last part with a small smirk. "My guess is we are immune to the effects of the programming." His gaze flickered to Crosshair. "Though I can't be 100% certain of it."

"What about Echo?" Hunter asked. "He was a red before he joined us."

The former ARC nodded. "Yeah, if all regs were programmed, why didn't I react like the others?"

"The damage you sustained on Skako Minor most likely wiped out all of your preset behavioral modifications. You are more machine than man..." Tech gave him a sympathetic look. "Percentagewise, at least."

Echo sighed. "Lucky me."

Althea caught Lula as Wrecker tossed it to her. She hung upside down off her bunk, her long hair touching the floor. "I could do some crazy doctor stuff and attach human fingers to your scomp if you want." She tossed the Lula to him.

Echo rolled his eyes and caught the toy with his good hand. "I think I'm good."

"It's probably for the best." Althea agreed. "I doubt Wrecker will donate his fingers."

The demo man stammered. "Wh-why my fingers?"

Althea did her best to shrug upside down. " 'Cause Crosshair will bite me if I take his."

Before their conversation could get any stranger, the P.A. system clicked on again. "All personnel report to the staging area for a briefing on the state of the Republic." 

"This is one meeting I don't want to miss." Hunter said as he moved toward the door. Althea folded herself forward, doing a reverse somersault onto her feet.

"First time for everything." Tech remarked as they walked out.

                      •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

All clones stood in the staging area in perfect uniform. Althea stood between Wrecker and Echo, her shoulders back and her head held high. It was hard, being a teenager who spent most of her time with clones. The Bad Batch was nice, but it's wasn't often that regs were. Rex and Cody were firsts. She often had the need to prove herself, despite the other Batcher's affirmation of her worth.

"And the Jedi rebellion has been foiled." The Chancellor said on the hologram. "The remaining Jedi will be hunted down and defeated. The attempt on my life has left me scarred and deformed."

"You can say that again." Wrecker mumered to Althea, earning a smirk from the girl.

"But I assure you. My resolve has never been stronger! In order to ensure the security and continuing stability..."

Hunter lost focus of the Chancellor's words. He looked up to were Nala Se and the Prime Minister stood and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. But something there caught his attention. A young girl, it looked like, with short blonde hair pulled back with a head dress and stone like Nala Se's. She squinted down at them, then smiled with excitement.

"What is it?" Tech asked.

"...the Republic will be organized into the first...

Hunter opened his mouth to tell him, but when he looked back the girl was gone. "Nothing."

"Galactic Empire!"

Echo frowned. "Galactic Empire?"

"For a safe and secure society." All around, regs cheered, shouting their praise.

"Still don't think the regs are programmed?" Tech asked. Althea didn't like this at all. She glanced over to Echo, and he reflected her uneasy expression.

                         •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

"Galactic Empire?" Echo asked as they walked through the halls. "We're soldiers of the Republic."

"Republic, Empire... What's the difference?" Crosshair asked nonchalantly.

"The systematic termination of the Jedi is a big one for me." Tech answered.

Suddenly, Hunter held up his arm to halt them. "Lads, we've got company." They turned around to find a young girl with blonde hair and soft brown eyes.

"Hello." She said with a small wave.

Wrecker crouched down to get a better look at her. "What's that?"

Althea rolled her eyes. "It's a kid, obviously."

The girl smiled. "My name's Omega. I was wondering when you guys would come back."

Hunter stepped forward. "You know who we are?"

"Hunter, Echo, Tech, Wrecker, Althea, and Crosshair. You're Clone Force 99." She said with a grin.

Hunter bent down, resting his hands on his knees. "What are going doing on Kamino, kid?"

Omega opened her mouth to answer, but a voice that was not her own did instead. "Her job, of course."

Hunter stood as Nala Se approached. "She is my medical assistant, one with a curious mind that causes her to wander. Come, Omega. There is work to do." She led the girl away down another hall. Hunter folded his arms as Omega waved goodbye. "This day keeps getting weirder and weirder."

                    •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Hunter listened to the regs in front of him as he stood in line in the mess hall. "His shuttle arrived earlier today." Said one.

"I heard he's evaluating all the clones." Said the other.

"Good. It's about time some of the fat got trimmed around here." They walked off, leaving Hunter to wonder who the Imperial was.

Althea ate her food quietly, sitting next to Wrecker who stood. "Clones being programmed." He scoffed. "Nothing controls me."

"Wrecker, it is a logical conclusion that your affinity for destruction would stem from your conditioning." Tech told him.

The demo man pointed an accusatory finger at him. "You take that back!"

"I am merely stating a scientific hypothesis based on factual data." Tech countered.

"Well, I got a fact for you. I like to blow things up because I LIKE TO BLOW THINGS UP!!" Wrecker slammed his fist on the table, making everyone's food shake. "Got it?"

"Well, I'm convinced." Said Crosshair as he ate his soup.

Hunter walked over and sat down across from Althea. "An Imperial's been sent to evaluate the clones. Everybody's talking about it." Deep down, he worried that Althea would be forced to leave since she was still a kid. He would be damned before someone took her away.

"Hopefully not metal." Tech stated. "Clearly we'd never pass that." His words earned him looks of confusion from his squad, but those were nothing in comparison to the ones Omega earned when she sat down.

"Hello again." She said. Upon seeing their confused faces, she added. "Omega. From earlier? In the corridor?"

"Yeah, kid." Hunter said. "We remember. Don't you have someplace to be?"

"No. I'll stay."

Althea looked at the girl. "You want to sit with us? That's never happened before."

"Wow." Wrecker said softly.

Omega smiled and stirred her soup. "I like you. You don't fit in around here either."

Hunter furrowed his brow. Something was bothering him about her. "What are you really doing on Kamino, kid? Don't you have a family somewhere? Parents?"

Omega scrunched her nose. "Parents?"

Before anyone could say anything else, two shinies walked by. "Check it out. The defect squad's got themselves a new recruit." They chuckled. "Another member added to the Sad Batch." They walked away neither of them expecting (or the Bad Batch) to be hit with food. "What the–! Who threw that?"

Omega was standing on the table, another burrito ready in her hand. "I did. Now apologize to my friends."

Althea grinned at her, as did Wrecker. "I like this kid!" He said punching Echo.

The not-so-shiny reg's face twisted into a snarl. "What did you say to me?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back off." Hunter stood in front of Omega, his instincts taking over. "I suggest you keep moving." 

Wrecker stood behind Omega, ready to defend her.

The reg scoffed before turning away. "Know your place, lab scrabber." If only he knew how fatal his mistake was. Wrecker flung two full trag at him, sending the shiny to to the floor. "Oops." Wrecker said with more trays at the ready.

The reg there down his food. "That's it!"

Wrecker threw the trays. "Oh, yeah!"

Althea grinned as swung her fists in the fight. Echo facepalmed. "Oh, not again." But sure enough, he joined them in their party. Omega jumped on the regs, hitting them with all her tiny might. Hunter ducked and punched as Wrecker dog piled several regs at once. Tech tried to stay out of it, but he fought a little. Crosshair ignored the fight completely, that was until Wrecker threw a reg across the table and spilled the sniper's soup. Crosshair slammed his first on the table in anger before throwing his tray at a reg and finally joining the fight.

Echo fell onto the floor at one point, and his gaze was lifted to a familiar face. He scowled at it, becoming so focused he didn't hear Tech's warning.

"Echo, watch out!" Then the world went dark.

                     •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Althea leaned against the wall of the Kaminoan clinic, arms folding and lips in a scowl. Echo was in there unconscious, but they wouldn't let her in to help. Apparently on Kamino, it didn't matter if someone had healed countless wounds and injuries in the middle of heated battles. If one wasn't a "practiced doctor" then one couldn't help a friend.

"He'll be fine." Hunter must have noticed her displeased nature. "Some of the best doctors in the galaxy are here."

"But they don't know Echo." The young medic countered. "He hates being hooked up to machines. He'll probably have a panic attack when he sees them."

Hunter placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, squeezing it kindly. "Echo will be fine. He's one of the toughest regs I know." He smiled down at her warmly. Althea heaved a sigh. She knew Hunter was right, but it never sat well with her when one of her squad needed help and she couldn't do anything. It reminded her too much of Thao.

Hunter, noticing her mood shift, decided who cares? They never follow orders, why start now? He let go of Althea and walked into the med center. Echo was sitting upright with Omega and a droid by his side.

"Ha!" Wrecker laughed as they approached his bedside. "Told you he's alive! You owe me two credits." Crosshair rolled his eyes.

"CT-1409's condition is stable." The droid said. "As is Volunteer Trooper Aaun's. But I have some distressing news for the rest of you. According to your test results, you all appear to be genetically defective clones. I will leave you to process the shock of this revelation." He left, leaving the Bad Batch and Omega to themselves.

"We've got a problem." Said Echo.

"Not really." Tech said. "We're more deviant then we are defective."

Echo shook his head. "Not that. Admiral Tarkin's here. He's the one evaluating the clones."

Tech adjusted his goggles. "The same Tarkin from the Citadel rescue when you, uh... How shall I put this?"

"Blew up." Wrecker suggested.

"And turned into that." Crosshair added.

Echo sighed. "Yes. And he's not a big supporter of clones."

"We're about to find out." Althea said. "We've been summoned by the prime minister."

"Guess he didn't find that mess hall fight amusing." Wrecker said. "But I sure did."

"Come on." Hunter said gesturing to leave. "Let's get this over with."

Echo swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, walking out with the rest of them. But Omega stopped them. "Wait. The fight was my fault. I'm going too."

Hunter shook his head as everyone else moved on. "Not happening. We'll handle this."

"But I..."

Hunter turned to her, his expression stern. "Listen kid. Our squad's nothing but trouble. For your sake, keep your distance. Got it?" When she nodded, he walked away. He really wanted what was best for her, and their squad was anything but that. The Sergeant would never regret bringing along Althea, but sometimes he wished she hadn't seen the things she saw. War was hard enough, but medics saw the worst of the worst. The bloody, the wounded, the grief stricken. Hunter supposed it wasn't that long since Althea had been like that herself. Sometimes when he was still awake at night her could hear her, softly crying to herself. She wasn't loud, if anything she was almost silent. But the Sergeant's ears could catch the sound of a feather landing, so he knew her pain no matter how hard she tried to hide it.

They walked down the hall to see the prime minister, that was until a shock trooper captain stopped them. "Where do you think you're going? The training facility is that way."

"Training facility?" Hunter asked.

"For a battle simulation. Admiral Tarkin has requested to see more of your squad in action."

"So we're not being reprimanded?" Tech asked with curiosity.

The captain shook his head. "No, you're being tested. Now go gear up." He walked away, leaving the Batch.

"So, we're not in trouble, and they want us to fight more?" Althea asked with a smile.

Wrecker grinned. "Ha! Maybe this Empire thing's not so bad after all."

                      •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

The Bad Batch stood on the lift carrying them to the training facility. The room was just the same as Althea remembered. 

"The value of all clone troopers is being challenged by the Empire." Said Tarkin from the observation room. "To demonstrate your effectiveness, a combat-proficieny test is in order. Take your positions."

"We've done these a thousand times, boys. You know what to do." Hunter said as he slipped he helmet on. He glanced at Althea, who gave a small nod. She knew she could do this.

"A battle simulation?" Wrecker asked. "Give us a real challenge."

"You may begin."

The standard training droids arrived from a lift in the center of the room. The towers whirred to life as the squad ran to the barriers. Tech, Wrecker, and Althea on the right, and Echo, Hunter, and Crosshair on the left. It was pretty standard, blasting the droids. "Crosshair, take the towers."

At Hunter's words the sniper ran across the room, climbing up the towers by pushing off against the wall. He shot at the cannons, disabling them with his training rifle. Hunter motioned his hand forward. "Move in."

"Finally!" Wrecker shouted. He, Tech, and Althea advanced to the next barrier, shooting the droids and dodging their fire. But it seemed it wasn't exciting enough for the demo man. "This is taking way too long!" He ran into the fray, kicking at a droid before disabling the rest. When he was finished, he tuned to the observation room and laughed. "What else ya got? Gimme more!"

Only moments later, new droids rose from the lift. These ones looked more armored, but that didn't stop Wrecker from charging them. "New toys. Now we're talking. Yeah!" He rammed himself into the droid, but it didn't budge. He looked up in confusion. "Huh?"

Then without warning, the droid raised it arm arm and shot Wrecker, sending him to the ground. Althea ducked her head. "They're using live rounds!"

Hunter scanned the area, checking for an opening. He looked to Tech. "Get Wrecker. We'll cover you."

Tech nodded, moving to help his brother as the others shot cover fire. "Wrecker, are you all right?" He asked dragging the demo man to cover.

"I felt that one." Wrecker groaned as he sat up.

Althea gripped her blaster tightly. It would do nothing against those droids. Even Crosshair was forced to get out of his gunner's nest and was now hiding with Hunter and Echo. Althea bit her lip under her mask. Why did the Kaminoans even have live rounds for training?

A sharp whistle brought her attention to Hunter. He moved his arms, tapping them to each other in a sign. Wrecker flopped back against the barricade. "Oh! I hate hand signals."

"Perhaps if you memorized them." Tech suggested.

"Why don't you memorize them?"

"I have!" Tech rolled his eyes. "What we did on Felucia."

"Well, why didn't you just say that?" Wrecker gave Hunter a thumbs up before running out into he fray. He jumped on several droids, pinning them to the ground as Tech worked the wires. Echo used his scomp as a melee weapon, drilling into the droids' weak spots. Althea, Hunter, and Crosshair provided cover fire, the former of the three using their knives. Hunter flipped over a droid, slicing it's arm before landing and stabbing it's middle.

"Wrecker!" Althea shouted, holding out her hand. The demo man nodded and threw her his large blade. The medic caught it skillfully, using two knives as the perfect way to take down droids.

Meanwhile, Tech had managed to hack into a droid and was now sitting on it's shoulders, firing at the other droids. It wasn't long before the droids began to jerk around. "I can't sustain the connection!" Tech shouted. Just then, another droid shot Tech's to pieces, sending the Batchers to the ground.

"Tech!" Wrecker shouted.

Hunter turned to the sniper. "Crosshair, we need more cover fire."

Crosshair did as he said as the last droid overwhelmed them. "Tech! Hold tight, buddy." Wrecker shouted.

Tech layed on the ground unmoving. "I'm not going anywhere."

Althea ducked, clutching the two knives tightly. That's when she heard it. "Thea! Knife!" Crosshair's voice signaled her to throw Wrecker's knife to him. She did so, and the sniper shot the blade, sending it straight into the droids head. It would never cease to amaze the Batch, mainly Wrecker and Althea, how good Crosshair was with a blaster.

"Wow." Wrecker breathed. He moved to help Tech with Echo.

Hunter came over to Althea. "Nice work."

Althea beamed up at him, but a much darker thought halted her smile. Why had the Kaminoans used live rounds?

                    •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

"Live rounds?!" Wrecker said as he threw his helmet onto the table of their barracks. "They used live rounds! On us!" He slammed his fists on to the table.

"We were there, Wrecker. We know." Tech replied calmly.

"I tried to warn you about Tarkin." Echo added.

"Who's that Imperial snake think he is?" The demo man growled.

"Stow it, already." Crosshair said. "You got shot. It happens all the time."

Hunter stood quietly by the door, observing the interaction. He tapped his fingers against his knife blade, soft enough not to cut himself. Althea stood nearby, brows furrowed as she worked through the days events in get mind.

"There is a fundamental difference between taking fire in battle and being used for target practice." Tech said.

"Exactly!" Wrecker said, nearing Crosshair. "We're not dummy droids."

"That much we agree on."

A new voice turned the heads of the squad. They immediately stood at attention when they saw Tarkin at their door, Hunter sheathing his knife. "That was quite an impressive display." He walked into their barracks, seemingly not noticing the unwelcome feeling Althea felt.

"Didn't have much choice." Hunter replied. It was all he dare risk in talking back, but he liked risks.

Tarkin turned to him. "Our new Empire may have methods which seem a bit unorthodox, but so does this squadron." He glanced to Althea, a hint of distaste in his eyes. "Both certainly have their merits. Nala Se speaks quite highly of her five advanced clones and their volunteer medic. She claims you're more capable than an army."

"You have a mission for us, sir?" Hunter asked.

Tarkin nodded. "Indeed. We have a group of insurgents to the Onderon sector. They must be dealt with."

"What sort of insurgents?" Echo asked.

"Separatist forces intent of keeping the galaxy at war. If you neutralize this grave threat, you will be looked upon most favorably as I asses the needs of the Imperial Army." Tarkin left without another word, leaving the Batch little time to prepare for their next mission.

                   •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Tech walked down from the Marauder as they prepared to leave. "Find any more intel on the insurgents?" He asked Echo.

The Corporal shook his head as he looked up from his datapad. "Negative. Imperial filed are locked down tight."

Tech took the datapad from him. "Give me time. I'll crack them."

Althea walked over to them, her medical bag packed full with everything she needed. "I had to steal a few things from the clinic. The Empire needs to stock up on field treatments."

As she spoke Wrecker and Crosshair walked over, the former of the two pushing a cart with a large crate. "I'll say this for the Empire, they know firepower. You should see the new armory."

Crosshair folded his arms over his chest. "He actually cried."

Wrecker turned to him. "Hey, we both did."

Althea rolled her yellow eyes. "Well at least you found what you need. But I don't think there's room on board for that."

"Yeah? Well, I'll make room." Wrecker sighed as he lifted the crate over his shoulder. "A new mission and unlimited explosives. Things are back to normal."

Tech followed him as he boarded the Marauder. "That's not going anywhere near my rack. I refuse to sleep by a projectile again."

Hunter entered the hangar, eyes scanning like always. 

"Hunter."

The Sergeant resisted the urge to groan as he heard a familiar voice behind him. He turned around to see Omega, her eyes filled with worry. "I thought I told you to keep your distance."

She swallowed. "I know, but I need to talk to you."

Hunter got down to her level. "All right. What is it?"

Omega glanced around before speaking in a quiet voice. "That Imperial officer, I think he has it out for you. I overheard him talking to Lama Su. He doesn't like clones."

Hunter couldn't help but chuckle. It was almost cute how much she cared. "Ah, that's nothing new for us. But we get the job done."

Omega didn't look convinced. "I don't trust him."

"A mission's a mission. It's nothing to worry about."

"Then let me come with you."

Hunter didn't understand this girl at all. Why did she care so much? "Kid, you're not a soldier. It's dangerous."

"It's dangerous here too." Omega countered. "Things aren't like before. We need to leave Kamino."

"Hunter, let's go!" Wrecker shouted from behind them. 

Hunter needed to go. "Change takes getting used to." He stood up. "You'll see. Just give it time."

He was about to walk away when she spoke again. "Hunter." He turned to listen, but she stopped. "Um, n-never mind."

Hunter walked to the ship where Crosshair was waiting. He looked back at the girl. She was twisting her hands nervously. "Problem?" The sniper asked.

"Um, something about her I can't figure out." Hunter told him.

Crosshair's mouth turned up in a cooked smile. He placed a hand on the Sergeant's shoulder. "Well, I guess kids aren't your area of expertise." He walked into the ship, Hunter following soon after.

With everyone on board, they took off, jumping to hyperspace for Onderon.

                    •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Tech landed the Marauder in a dense jungle. The ground was solid under Althea's feet, but the air reeked of moisture. A creature roared in the distance, sending chills down everyone's spin. "What was that?" Echo asked.

"You don't want to know." Tech told him.

"At least it's not a swamp." Wrecker remarked.

"Close enough." Said Crosshair.

Hunter wasn't far ahead of them, feeling the ground. He touched his hands to the earth, feeling the vibrations even through his gloves. "The Separatist encampment's two klicks south. We'll continue on foot and do a full perimeter scan." Wrecker rushed forward, but the Sergeant held out his arm. "Covertly."

Wrecker groaned. "Oh, come on. It's been days since I've blown something up."

"Easy, Wrecker." Althea said as she walked past him. "Your programming's kicking in."

"Hey! Don't start with that!" He gave her a hard shove, which would've hurt most people. But Althea just sniggered, seeing that her armor protected her from the demo man's force.

As they walked through the jungle, the sound of animals filled their ears, along with the constant beeping of Tech's datapad. "How many droids are we talking about, Tech?" Hunter asked.

The beeping stopped, and Tech hit his scanner against his hand to try and get it to work. "I can't tell from this distance. Something's blocking my scan."

"Clankers always travel in packs." The Sergeant said to himself. "Let's get a closer look at what we're walking into." 

They continued on, stealthily (kind of) making their way through the dark jungle. They came to a ridge, where not far away was light from a campsite. "Tell me what you see, Tech." Said Hunter.

Tech looked through the binocs. "I'm clocking 25 heat signatures ahead but zero droids."

"Tarkin said insurgents, not droids." Crosshair reminded them as he looked through his scope.

"I'm not sure they're either." Said Echo. "There are children down there."

Hunter grabbed the binocs from him. "Children? O-out here? Something's not right."

"What are you waiting for?" Crosshair asked. "Give the order."

Hunter felt something inside twist. But he also felt something approaching. "Negative. Stand down."

"What?" Crosshair's voice held surprise and anger.

"You mean, we're not blasting any droids?" Wrecker asked.

"There aren't any droids, Wrecker." Tech told him.

Althea shifted her weight to her other leg. "Well, so what do we do?"

"We finish the mission." Crosshair insisted. "Make the call, Hunter."

The Sergeant looked around. "We're not alone. Stand down."

As soon as the words left his mouth, several people dressed in blue appeared out of the trees. They out numbered the Bad Batch, and they had their blasters raised. "You heard him. Stand down." One ordered.

Hunter holstered his blaster and raised his hands in surrender. "Let's hear them out. Trust me."

The rest of the Batch did as he said, even Crosshair. But the sniper let out a groan as he set his rifle down.

The "insurgents" led them to the camp. Something felt off about the whole thing. "These aren't Separatists." Said Echo. "They're Republic fighters."

"Why would Tarkin send us to attack our own forced." Althea asked.

A man stepped forward. He had dark skin with a scar raked across his face, dark wild hair, and green eyes, daring anybody to fight him. "Because we refuse to fight for an Empire."

"You're Saw Gerrera." Tech said. "Trained by Captain Rex and General Skywalker to fight for the Republic."

Saw looked them over. One of the fighters took Hunter's blaster and handed it to their leader. Saw took it in his hands. "So, the newly declared empire sent you to wipe us out?"

Hunter looked around in confusion. "Well, we're here to neutralize a group of insurgents."

Saw chuckled bitterly. "Well...here we are." He gestured to the people behind him. Children hiding behind their mothers. "What are you gonna do? Strike us down like you did the Jedi?"

"Is that a request?" Asked Crosshair.

"Enough." Hunter ordered. "We expected to find battle droids, not..."

"Civilians?" Saw asked. "Times change, targets change. Why don't you take a look at the insurgents you were sent to destroy. Makes you wonder what else they're lying about." He turned to his group. "Let's mobilize. Pack up the camp." He walked over to the kids, probably telling them what was going to happen.

Hunter walked forward, questions begging to be answered. "Who are these people?"

Saw stood. "Villagers, croppers, former Republic fighters, all now displaced refugees since Palpatine unjustly appointed himself as Emperor."

"According to reports," Said Tech. "The Jedi made an attempt on the Supreme Chancellor's life. His actions were a defensive measure."

Saw scoffed. "And I figured you for the smart one. With the Jedi decimated and the clone army under his command, Palpatine will have control over the entire galaxy. Unless we stop him."

"The war is over." Althea said, desperately hoping she was right. But Saw's words made her feel that more was coming.

"If we give up now, everything we fought for..." Saw hesitated. "Everyone we lost, will have been for nothing. I won't let that happen. The Clone War may have ended, but a civil war is about to begin."

"With a handful of fighters and limited firepower?" Hunter asked. "You don't stand a chance."

"Not alone we don't."

A fighter approached Saw. "We should leave if we're gonna make the rendevouz. What do we do with them?"

Saw looked at the squad. "The clones once helped us free Onderon, so we'll give them a choice. The old ways are done." He aimed Hunter's blaster at it's owner. "You can either adapt and survive," He flipped the blaster, now offering it to Hunter. "Or die with the past. The decision is yours."

Hunter took the blaster, watching as Saw turned off the light and left them in the dark. They stayed until Saw's form disappeared into the dark of the jungle, but Hunter stopped just as they turned to leave. He thought he heard something, but it was probably just a jungle creature.

As they neared the Marauder, Tech spoke up. "At least with the Republic we knew where we stood. Tarkin and this Empire are a whole different story."

"Why are we debating this? We need to complete the mission." Said Crosshair.

"Wake up, Crosshair." Echo said. "They sent us to eliminate innocent civilians."

"Who said they're innocent?"

That was the last straw. Althea turned to him, leaning up to try and reach his eye level. "Are you kidding me? They're civilians, Crosshair. That's me if you guys didn't take me in. I would be one of those people you're so eager to kill. Doesn't that matter to you?"

Crosshair just narrowed his eyes, giving her all the answer she needed. "It doesn't." She scoffed. "It really doesn't matter to you at all."

"Good soldiers follow orders." Was all the sniper said.

Hunter turned around. "What's wrong with you?"

"Me?" Crosshair asked. "I'm following orders."

Hunter narrowed his eyes. "Exactly."

"Those insurgents are plotting against the Emperor. If you don't have the stomach to do what needs to be done, then you're not fit to lead this squad." Crosshair chewed his toothpick, daring Hunter to argue.

Instead, the Sergeant drew his blaster at the sound of a twig snapping, shooting behind Crosshair at an unseen target. "We're being followed."

They approached the target and found a black droid. "That is a probe droid." Tech confirmed.

"Tarkin's spying on us now?" Wrecker asked.

"The Jedi never did that." Said Echo.

"Not that you know of." Crosshair remarked.

Hunter looked down at the probe, a sudden memory surfacing. "Omega."

"What about her?" Althea asked as they walked back to the ship.

"She warned me about the mission. And Tarkin." Hunter told them. "She said not to to return to Kamino, that it's not safe for us anymore."

"Maybe she's right." Wrecker grunted.

"We're taking the word of a child now?" Crosshair asked with a sneer.

Tech stood in the doorway of the Marauder, tapping his datapad. "I would not discount Omega's insight. A state of heightened awareness is no unusual for an enhanced clone such as herself."

Wrecker let out a laugh as he sat on the steps. "Good one, Tech. You almost had me."

"When Nala Se spoke of five clones, Tarkin assumed that meant us, but Echo's a reg." Tech explained. "The fifth is Omega. I confirmed my suspicions after analyzing her DNA while we were in the infirmary."

"And you waited until now to mention it?" Echo asked.

"Well, I thought it was obvious."

"How is it obvious?" Althea asked.

"We're going back for her." Hunter decided.

"Disobeying orders over a kid again? Bad play, Hunter." Crosshair glanced at Althea as he spoke, making the young medic unsure if he really meant it, or if he was just trying to push her buttons. Either way it was angering.

Hunter moved to the ship, near Althea. "She's one of us." Whether he was talking about Althea or Omega was up for debate, but he meant it either way. "We're not leaving her there." He boarded the ship with the rest of them, Crosshair following shortly after.

                   •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Omega stood in doorway of the Bad Batch's barracks with AZI. She walked inside, fascinated by the stuff on the table. "Wow. What is all this stuff, AZI?"

"My scanners are indicating an assortment of armament, curios, and detritus of little to no value." The droid responded.

Omega grinned. "I like it." She continued to roam around the barracks taking note of the personality in it.

"We should not be here, Omega." AZI worried. "Nala Se instructed us to stay in the medical wing."

"Don't worry." Omega said. "We're on... a research assignment."

"A research assignment?" The droid asked excitedly. "Those are my favorite! What is it we are searching for?"

Omega ignored him as he droned on about what they were looking for. The girl really just wanted to see her brothers' barracks. A tooka doll caught her eye, but something beyond that was more interesting. A bunk with a skull drawn on the wall and had a few medals. Hunter's bunk. Omega found an open container under it and pulled out a picture. She closed the container and used it as a seat to look at the image.

It flickered a bit, but it wasn't from too long ago. Wrecker stood with a wide grin on his face, Crosshair next to him with a scowl. He probably didn't want to take the picture. Echo stood on the other side, smiling a bit shyly. It must've been right after he joined the squad. Tech was kneeling on the ground, probably so they could all fit in the picture, and had a slight smile on his face. Hunter seemed to be laughing, his teeth bared in a joyful smile. Next to him was Althea, her own face contorted with laughter. She must have said something funny, since it seems both her and the Sergeant were smiling that way.

Omega smiled at the picture. She wished that Hunter would have let her come. Maybe she could've been in one of these pictures.

A sudden yell from AZI brought the girl out of her thoughts. "Shh! People will hear us." She scolded.

"I have concluded this space unfit for habitation." AZI declared.

Muffled chatter was heard on the other side of the door. Omega grabbed AZI's hand and rushed towards it. "Someone is coming. Time to go." She opened the door, but ran into a shock trooper.

"You're not authorized to be in here." He said.

"I...got lost." Omega lied. "Sorry. It won't happen again."

The trooper turned to his men. "Pack up their gear and ake it to the hangar. You," He turned to Omega. "You're coming with me."

"We will not." AZI said. "We are official Kaminoan medical pesonnel–" He grabbed the trooper.

"Don't touch me, droid." Thanks trooper shot him with stun, disabling the droid.

"AZI!" Omega cried as the trooper grabbed her and took her away.

                    •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

"I'm getting no response from com-scan." Tech said as he brought their ship in for a landing. "This is unusual."

"Bring us in." Hunter said. "We'll find out what's going on."

Tech landed the Marauder by the hangar. The bay doors were closed. "Stick to the plan." Hunter said as they stood outside. "Split up, find Omega, meet back here at the ship." He pressed the button to open the doors and the squad entered.

The hangar was eerily quiet. It was empty, a sharp contrast to how busy it was earlier. Hunter raised his arm to signal a halt, and only a few seconds later several clones appeared from behind crates. "Freeze!"

Everyone dropped their helmets and reached for their weapons. "As expected." Crosshair remarked. Hunter's hand gripping his knife, ready to pull it out in an instant. Tarkin  walked forward, flanked by two guards.

"The Empire does not tolerate failure, Sergeant"

"There were complications." Hunter said.

"Yes," Said Tarkin. "The probe droid's report was quite detailed. Conspiring with Saw Gerrera. I assume you know the punishment for treason?"

"Treason?" Hunter scoffed.

"Throw them in the brig." Tarkin ordered. The regs pushed their blasters into the squad's backs, roughly taking them to the brig.

                   •°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Stripped down to their blacks, the Bad Batch were shoved into the brig. The guards raised the blue ray shield, preventing any ideas of escape. Wrecker sniffed the air. "Smells weird."

"Because it's clean." Echo told him.

Tech looked around. "Well, the plan wasn't a total failure." 

Everyone looked to where he was gesturing. There sat Omega in the floor, giving a nervous smile and a shy wave.

"Goody." Crosshair sneered.

Hunter moved toward her, squatting to reach her level. "I told you not to come back." Omega said.

"Had to. We were looking for you." Hunter gave her a soft smile.

The girl pointed to herself. "Me?"

"What do you say, kid? You wanna come with us or did we get captured for nothing?"

"You came back for me?" Omega asked again.

"That's right." Hunter told her. "Or you can stay on Kamino if–"

"No!" Omega stood. "It's like I said before. I want to go with you."

Hunter smiled at the girl. Or that was until Crosshair spoke up. "How touching."

Hunter stood, glaring at the sniper. Althea, feeling the fight about to start, coughed. "Uh, Hunter, how are we breaking outta here?"

"I'm working on it." The Sergeant replied, keeping his eyes on Crosshair.

"You know what you should work on?" The sniper asked. "Explaining when you went soft."

"Stow it, Crosshair." Echo said.

"Don't you see we're locked up in here because of him? He had us disobey orders."

"I never thought you disobeying orders was a problem." Tech remarked.

"Yeah. We do it all the time." Wrecker added.

"Good soldiers follow orders." Crosshair insisted. He turned back to Hunter. "Every choice you made since Kaller has been wrong. First the Padawan, the Gerrera. Your becoming a liability."

Hunter stared him down. Every fiber in his being begged to punch Crosshair in the throat, but he pushed those feelings aside. "We can debate my choices later. For now, let's focus on getting outta here."

Althea breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't uncommon for Crosshair and Hunter to butt heads, but this was a whole new level of arguing. 

Suddenly, the ray shield lowered and a shock trooper stepped forward. "CT-9904, you're coming with us."

Hunter moved towards him. "Oh, no, no, no. We stay together."

"Stand down!" The trooper jabbed him in the stomach with the butt end of his blaster. Hunter clutched his middle, dropping to his knees. Crosshair stood and went with the guards, leaving the squad to figure out how to escape. 

Hunter sat at the end of the bench, one arm behind him as he leaned against the wall. Omega did the same sitting next to him. Tired of that position, the Sergeant leaned forward, arm rested on his knee. Omega did the same.

Althea, sitting next to Omega, quickly realized what she was doing and joined in. With both girl copying Hunter, the Sergeant couldn't help but fidget to see what they would copy. Althea sniggered quietly to herself, earning a raised eyebrow from Hunter, but she just mimicked his expression.

Tech sat with his chin in his hand, bouncing his knee. "I've got it." He said out of nowhere. "Why didn't I think of I before?" He moved to sit between Echo and Althea. "This is not a prison."

"Yeah, well, I beg to differ." Echo said.

"This is a Kaminoan facility." Tech explained. "It was built prior to the Clone Wars. There were no barracks or prisons when it was constructed."

"Well, how does that help us?" Althea asked.

"Because while these cells were retrofited to hold normal individuals, they could not possibly account for someone like Wrecker."

Wrecker stood from his seat on the floor. "Oh! You mean I could punch our way out?"

"Shh!" Hunter was quick to quiet him, followed by Omega and Althea.

Wrecker looked behind him at the guards, quieting his voice. "Oh. Right. You mean I could punch our way out?"

"If you punch the correct spot." Tech said.

Wrecker nodded. "Right show me where."

"If this is gonna work," Hunter said. "We'll need some cover. Form a wall." Everyone stood except Tech and Wrecker, forming a walk to block them from the guards view.

Tech slid his fingers down the wall, stopped when he found the weak point. "Hit this here."

Wrecker nodded, ready to swing. "Right. Tell me when."

The guards were turned away. "Now." Hunter said.

Wrecker punched the wall, but not even a dent was made. "Nothing happened." He grumbled. "Are you sure this is gonna work?"

"Try it again." Tech insisted. "A little harder."

"You're all clear. Make it count." Hunter said.

Wrecker punched the wall again, this time denting it. "Oh, it still didn't work."

Tech moved down by him. "Oh, yes, it did." He gripped the bent metal, pulling it back to reveal a small passage into the vents. "Look."

"I'll never fit through that." Wrecker said.

"Astute as always, Wrecker." Tech said. "But I was actually going to suggest–"

"I'll do it." Omega said.

Hunter glanced down at her from the corner of his eye. "You sure, kid?"

She nodded. "I'm sure."

"Okay. Get to the console and hit the lever to lower the ray shield."

Omega climbed into the tunnel, Wrecker sitting against the peeled metal to hide it. Althea saw the troopers walking over. "Incoming."

They looked at the squad. "Wait, where's the girl?"

Althea waved. "Right here."

"You know what I mean."

The medic raised an eyebrow. "Do I?"

"Where is the girl?"

"You tell us." Hunter replied smoothly.

"Harm her and you're a dead man." Echo said harshly.

The trooper pressed his fingers to his helmet. "Operations, we need a status report on prisoner 0219." There was a sudden clank noise, probably Omega, that caused the troopers to look up. "What was that?"

"Sorry." Wrecker said. "These floors don't hold me so well on account of them not being designed for abnormal individuals such as myself."

Hunter rolled his eyes and Tech facepalmed. The trooper moved forward. "What's behind you?"

"Nothing." Wrecker said as he leaned his hands behind his head.

The trooper gripped his blaster. "Move away from the wall. Now."

"Why don't you come here and make me?!"

The trooper's comm beeped. "Copy that. The girl's still registered in lockdown. Tell us where she is." As soon as he spoke, the ceiling came crashing down. Omega scrambled to turn off the ray shield, barely grabbing the lever before a trooper grabbed her.

"Hey, Red." Wrecker punched the trooper in the head as the rest of the squad grabbed the blasters and stunned the regs. Wrecker placed his hand on Omega's shoulder. "Ha! Not bad."

The girl beamed up at him, like he just said the world to get. Hunter walked to the door. "We need to find out where they took Crosshair. Let's move."

The Bad Batch moved stealthily through the halls of Kamino, Omega and Althea still copying Hunter when they got the chance. Tech let out a sigh. "We're not going to get very far without our gear."

"They stated moving all your things to the hangar." Omega said. "Your gear might be there too."

Hunter nodded. "This way."

                         •°•°•°•°•°•°•

The hanagr was empty, just as before. The squad began to rifle through their things, getting their armor and weapons ready. "Alright, boys, suit up." Hunter said. "Let's make this quick."

Wrecker rummaged through his stuff. "Right. No. No! Where is it? Where is it? It's gotta be here somewhere."

"Tech, power up the ship." Hunter ordered. "The rest of us will go after Crosshair."

Omega picked up the took doll, but her attention was brought to the door. "I don't think we'll have to go far." As soon as the words left her mouth, the door opened. The squad ducked behind the crates as the shock troopers walked in. But leading them was a slender man in black armor holding a sniper rifle.

Althea mouth went dry. "Is that Crosshair?"

Hunter stood, facing his brother. The sniper chewed his toothpick. "Best stand down, Sergeant. Make it easy on yourself."

"Have you lost your mind?" Hunter asked.

"We should've killed that Jedi. You disobeyed orders."

"I did what I thought was right." Hunter wasn't about to back down, but neither was Crosshair.

"You never could see the bigger picture." Crosshair said. "Now surrender."

Hunter risked a glance behind him. Echo and Wrecker readied their blasters as Tech prepped the ship. Althea sat by Omega, readying her DC-17 by the girl. He needed to protect his squad. "Is that an order?"

Crosshair smirked. "Heh. I guess it is."

"Well, I guess I'm disobeying that one too." 

Crosshair spit out have toothpick. Hunter's trigger finger iched. Thunder clapped outside, and the Bad Batch was ready to fight.

Crosshair shot first, causing Hunter to duck. "Tech, we gotta move. Now!" He said once he put his helmet on.

On of the regs through a smoke grenade, blinding everyone. "Wrecker, clear the smoke on three." Hunter ordered.

The demo man grabbed two crate lids. "You got it boss."

Althea turned to the blonde girl in front of her. "Omega, stay low." She nodded, her eyes wide with fear.

"One...two.." Hunter counted. "Three!" Wrecker used the lids as fans, hitting them together to make a blast of wind. He threw them once the smoke cleared, but was shot in the chest by Crosshair.

Omega ran to help him, but Althea pulled her back. "Omega, don't! He's using Wrecker as bait."

"But he needs help." The girl pleaded. 

Tech was almost done with the ship. Crosshair tried to close the bay doors, but they jammed. Hunter turned to the girls. "When I say 'go', you head for that ramp and don't stop. Got it? Althea, make sure she gets there. Echo, we go for Wrecker."

The medic nodded, taking Omega's hand. Crosshair sneered from the other side. "Only one way out, Hunter. Your move."

"Go!" The Sergeant said.

Althea ran with Omega, providing cover fire as she made her break. But the girl stopped, and suddenly, a sixth blaster shot out. All eyes turned to Omega as the girl shot Crosshair's rifle out of his hands. The sniper recovered quickly, drawing his pistol and firing. But Omega shot wildly, sending the sniper to look for cover.

With Wrecker recovered, Echo and Hunter boaded the ship, and the team made their escape.

                        •°•°•°•°•°•

"Ouch!" Wrecker groaned as Althea gave him a shot, jabbing the needle in his shoulder. "Hey! Hey, hey, hey. What's that gonna do?"

Althea reached into her bag for another shot. "You'll be okay. Just hold still."

Omega walked up to him. "Is this what you were looking for?" She held out the tooka doll.

Wrecker gasped. "You found my Lula!" While he was distracted, Althea jabbed another shot into his arm. "Ow!"

Omega giggled as Tech walked in from the cockpit. "Let me see here. Hold still." He scanned Wrecker with his datapad, earning a scowl from the demo man.

"Don't examine me." He said clutching Lula. "I'm not a computer."

Omega saw the door to the cockpit was open and wandered in. Hunter noticed, and followed her. "Your first time in space?" He asked.

"First time anywhere." The girl said.

"Impressive shot back there." The Sergeant remarked. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

Omega shrugged. "I don't know. I've never fired a blaster before. I guess I got lucky."

"She's not the only one." Tech said as the rest of them walked in.

"I'm fine." Wrecker said as he leaned on Echo. "It'll take more than a blaster shot to take me down."

"You were down." Echo deadpanned.

"Yeah, well, not for long." Wrecker laughed then immediately groaned.

Althea turned to the Sergeant. "What's the plan, Hunter?"

"I thought we could go off in our own. Lay low." The leader said. "But with Crosshair gunning for us, I'm not so sure."

"What about your friends?" Omega asked. "Could any of them help us?"

Tech sat in the pilot's seat. "That would be a shirt list."

Althea's yellow eyes lit up. "I can think of one." She smiled up at Hunter, who looked at her knowingly.

"Plot a course for J-19."

"J-19?" Echo asked.s

"We know a guy." Althea said with a smirk.

Wrecker grinned. "Yeah!"

Texh prepped the ship for hyperspace, and Hunter turned to Omega. "Strap in, kid. You're not gonna wanna miss this view."

She sat down in the co-pilot's seat, watching with interest as Tech readied the ship. Hunter rested his hand on the back of the seat. He was brought back to old memories at the sight of Omega seeing hyperspace. Her eyes sparkling of at the idea of a new adventure. It reminded him of himself at her age, always ready for what's next. But now, the Sergeant didn't know what was best for them, and that idea scared him.

Hope y'all enjoyed this 11,390 word chapter! It took me a few days.

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The Bad Batch: Specter

Episode 1: Aftermath

Here begins the first season of the Bad Batch with my OC Specter! Hope you stick around! Edited by @ryleeeeeenn *osi'kyr: strong exclamation of surprise or dismay *kark: strong expletive (Star Wars version of fuck, I guess) *adla’vod: roughly translates to “twin”, directly translates to “same brother/sister” *di'kut: idiot warnings: canonical Star Wars violence

The conflict had left the Republic’s forces on Kaller severely depleted. The troopers desperately attempted to hold their position, awaiting the arrival of promised reinforcements. Right now, it looked like they’d never arrive, and if they did, there might just be nothing to reinforce.

“Not to be a pessimist, but if the commander isn’t back soon with those reinforcements…” Captain Grey trailed off.

“My Padawan will be here,” Jedi General Depa Billaba insisted before Grey could finish his thought. She continued to dodge the barrage of blaster fire as she searched for her apprentice.

“Master! Here,” he shouted, appearing as if just on cue, sliding down the snowy hill. “I’m here!” 

“Caleb, where are the reinforcements?” The boy seemed too distracted to answer his Master, watching the battlefield in what could only be described as anticipation.  

“Don’t worry. They’re right behind me,” the boy insisted. The captain and general glanced at each other, confused, then back in the direction Caleb had come from. 

“Uh, where are they?” Captain Grey asked.

“Caleb,” Billaba pressed. 

“Trust me,” he affirmed.

“Well, how many are there?” said the clone.

“Six of them.”

“Six?” he repeated incredulously. “We’re done,” he shook his head. 

“Yeah, that’s what I thought, but you gotta see these clones. They’re… different,” the boy said just as a rumbling from the overlooking mountain caught the attention of the droids. The army came to a halt. A giant boulder rolled out and smashed a large number of battle droids in its path. Tech, Echo, Specter, Hunter, and Wrecker charged out of the woods, blasting at the droids in their path. Crosshair sat high above, using his vantage point to snipe away. Wrecker practically barrelled through the droids while Hunter skillfully used his blaster and knife to destroy them. Tech wove through the platoon and planted EMPs, activating them once he was out of harm’s way; Echo used his blaster, and Crosshair provided Specter with cover fire while she took a knee and blasted droids with her shotgun. A few droids got close, so she simply used her blaster to swing and dismantle them before reconfiguring her weapon into its rifle form.

“Crosshair, let’s get these tanks moving,” Hunter ordered. 

“Sir, yes, sir,” Crosshair hissed before shooting canisters containing grappling lines to connect the tanks. Once they were connected, Wrecker went to the farthest one and started pushing it off the cliff; Tech went up to the tank in the middle and called out to the command droid.

“Hey, clanker! Catch,” he said before tossing it an EMP. The droids inside the tank sparked out, losing control of the vehicle and falling over the cliff with the rest of the tanks. With the odds evened out, they were able to easily pick off the rest of the droids. 

“Hey, Cross, what’s your count?” Specter asked the sniper as he joined the group, heading towards the Jedi General and Commander.

“More than you, adla’vod,” he sneered, elbowing her side. She shoved him back before straightening up before the regs. Hunter sheathed his knife and took off his helmet

“If you’re done hiding down there, I suggest you launch a counterattack. Another droid battalion’s approaching,” he said.

“The General is the one who gives the orders around here,” the clone captain spoke up. Depa Billaba gestured with a gentle, calming hand.

“He’s right, Captain. This is our chance. Launch the counterattack,” she ordered.

“Yes, General,” he saluted. “All right, men. Let’s go!” Captain Grey and his men ran out of the trench and went to advance. 

“There you are, little Jedi,” Wrecker said with a smile, “you missed all the fun.” Caleb smiled and stepped forward.

“Watching your team in action was the fun.”

“Care to introduce your new friends, Caleb?” Billaba asked. 

“Yes, Master. This is Wrecker, Hunter, Specter, Echo, Tech, and Crosshair.” Billaba smiled and nodded at each of them.

“While I’m not sure ‘fun’ is the sentiment I would express, I agree with my Padawan. Your exploits were quite impressive.”

“Exploits?” Wrecker muttered, confused.

“Don’t overthink it, Wrecker,” Crosshair said, passing by and sticking a toothpick in between his teeth. 

“Thank you, General,” Echo said, circling back to the point. 

“Now, would one of you please explain where my actual reinforcements are?” the General said. 

“Rerouted to the capital. We’re all you’re getting,” Hunter reported. 

“Ha! We’re all you need,” Wrecker exclaimed, hoisting up his blaster. 

“Actually, if my intel is correct, the general will not need any of us. The Clone War may soon be over,” Tech chimed in. 

“You hear that, clankers?” Specter shouted over her shoulder to the distant droids, “the war is almost over!” Crosshair snickered.

“I am referring to the encrypted comm chatter,” Tech said, unamused. “Clone intelligence is reporting Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi has found and engaged General Grievous on Utapau.”

“If he captures or kills Grievous, the Separatist command structure will collapse; and most likely the droid armies along with them,” Echo theorized.

“A fascinating theory, yet unfortunately not something we can control from here. I suggest we focus on the task at hand,” the Jedi Master continued. 

“Any orders? Or shall we do what we do?” Hunter asked with a smirk before replacing his helmet; the rest of the group followed suit.

“Let’s blow something up! Yeah!” Wrecker cheered. The General looked at the Commander.

“Well, Caleb, shall we let them do what they do?” she asked, coyly.

“Only if I can go with them.”

“Very well,” she nodded.

“You ready for this?” Hunter asked. 

“We move fast,” Specter chimed in. 

“Good. That’s the only way I know,” the kid said with a mischievous smile before dashing off past the Batch.

“I like him,” Wrecker said with a laugh, chasing after him. 

The group hardly noticed the sudden increase in blaster fire until Caleb slowed to a stop and turned to watch his master deflecting blasts from the same clones she’d commanded only moments ago. 

“Master!” he shouted, running back to his master with his lightsaber ignited. The Bad Batch stopped and turned at the commotion. The regs had surrounded General Billaba and opened fire on her, she did her best to redirect the shots while shouting for her Padawan to run. 

One lucky shot brought her down, the ones that followed only sealed her fate.

What the hell? Specter thought to herself as they retraced their steps to meet the Padawan as he ran away from the danger of the other clones. Hunter held up his pistol, signaling the group to halt. “Stay away from me!” Caleb shouted, holding up his saber in a defensive position against them. Specter watched in confusion as he ran off toward the woods, a bitter taste filled her mouth.

“Kid, wait!” Hunter shouted after him. Caleb had already disappeared when she caught up with the team. “What… what just happened?” 

“The comm channel is repeating one directive, ‘Execute Order 66’,” Tech reported.

“Yeah, I heard that too. What’s Order 66?” Wrecker asked. 

“I am not certain,” Tech admitted. Specter was surprised; her heart was racing for reasons she couldn’t explain, but something in the air had changed. Hunter began to give commands.

“Echo. Tech. Talk to the reg Captain. Find out what you can.” The two nodded and went off to find Captain Grey. “Crosshair, you and I will track down the kid and make sure nothing happens to him. Wrecker, Specter, stall anyone who tries to follow us.” Wrecker nodded but Specter went to grab Hunter’s wrist.

“Wait, Sergeant. I should come with you,” she said, “I can catch up with him if need be.”

“No, I need you to stay with Wrecker,” he denied her request. 

“We’ll be fine. Quit fussing,” Crosshair sneered, already marching off after the Jedi.

When he was out of earshot, Hunter leaned in and murmured “something is very wrong here, and I’d rather none of us be singled out.” Specter huffed but stepped back, allowing him to catch up with Crosshair. 

“You okay?” Wrecker carefully asked.

“Yeah, just a little uneasy,” she replied simply. Though she could have verily easily dumped all her inner thoughts and troubles out onto him, she refrained, knowing it would do little good for either of them.

“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” he said, rolling his shoulders, though he didn’t sound so convinced.

Time seemed to drag on as the pair kept watch in tense silence. Mere moments had passed when a group of regs, shiny ones at that, crested over the hill towards them. 

“Where’s the Padawan?” the leader asked.

“Being taken care of. We have a team working on it,” Specter answered, instinctively deepening her voice and adding distortion to her modulator.

“Yeah, don’t worry. Hunter’s handling it,” Wrecker chimed in.

“We have orders from the Supreme Chancellor himself,” the reg pushed, almost robotically. 

“That’s great, but like I said, Hunter’s handling it,” Wrecker insisted.

“Step aside, Trooper,” the reg ordered, getting in Wrecker’s face before running off with his group.

“Sure thing, boss,” Wrecker mocked them. Specter sighed.

“Hunter, you’ve got regs inbound,” she reported.

“Copy that,” Hunter replied.

“We have a situation,” Tech chimed in on the comm. Specter and Wrecker looked and nodded at each other, confirming they could hear him. “It appears the regs have been ordered to execute the Jedi.”

“What? Which Jedi?” Hunter asked incredulously. 

“All of them.” A chill made its way down Specter’s spine. “They’re saying the Jedi have committed treason.”

“Against who? The Chancellor?” she asked. She wracked her brain to formulate some sort of logical explanation. Even if the Jedi had committed treason, their mass execution without a fair trial made no sense. At the very least, General Billaba made no direct offense to the Chancellor. 

“I’m not sure. I suggest you all get back here.” Wrecker and Specter shrugged at each other before starting the trek back toward the Marauder.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reuniting with her team did little to ease her anxious spirit. Whatever had happened between Hunter and Crosshair had them in a tense and peculiar mood. Neither of them spoke, and they seemed to be avoiding each other for the entire journey. Specter stood behind Wrecker in his seat, watching as their home planet slowly grew closer.

“We’re coming up on Kamino,” Tech reported.

“It’s good to be home. How long has it been?” Wrecker said.

“One hundred and eighty rotations in a standard cycle, but galactic zone changes but the adjusted figure at around two hundred and five,” Tech, of course answered. A moment of silence passed, Specter tried to hide her smile, knowing that Wrecker was still trying to calculate.

“What?” he finally asked. Echo sighed and shook his head.

“A long time.”

“You got that right!” Wrecker laughed. Hunter came up behind them as they flew through the stormy clouds. Out of the corner of her eye, Specter watched her twin turn away from the Sergeant, helmet still on, shoulders stiff. Curious. 

[What’s wrong?] she signed.

[Nothing.] 

[Don’t give me that. I’m your twin and I can tell something else is bothering you.] He didn’t reply, crossing his arms and hiding his hands. She sighed in annoyance and turned back to the viewport.

“Unidentified transport, transmit your clearance code,” a voice over the intercom said. Specter looked up in confusion.

“Clearance code? Did they suddenly forget who we are?” she scoffed.

“Must be a protocol drill,” Tech said, shaking his head. “Transmitting clearance code.”

“Authorization confirmed. Proceed to landing bay one-tac-one.” Tech directed the ship towards Tipoca City, guiding it to land. It was then Specter pulled Hunter and Crosshair aside; the two knew they were in trouble or least in for a scolding.

“Look,” she said, “whatever happened between you two on Kaller, whatever that animosity is, I want it to stop.” The boys looked at each other, scowling. “See? That! Leave whatever that is on the ship because I do not want to have to deal with that on top of whatever else we’re going to have to deal with once we step off this ship. Got it?” she pointed at both of them.

“Yes, ma’am,” they both grumbled. She nodded and exited the ship, cautiously looking around the hangar and waiting to follow Hunter. Troopers with red painted armor walked by, Specter bit her tongue to keep her expression neutral.

“Shock troopers? What’s the Coruscant guard doing here?” Hunter questioned. 

“As cool as it is to see them, I’m not liking the circumstances,” Specter commented.

“Level five lockdown remains in effect. Security teams, rapport to the command center,” the voice of the PA announced. 

“This isn’t a drill,” Tech said, surprised.

“Oh, man! What did we miss now?” Wrecker cried.

“The end of the war,” a passing shock trooper answered. Hunter turned toward him.

“Say again, Trooper?”

“General Grievous was defeated on Utapau. The Separatist leadership has collapsed. The war is over.”

“Just like I said,” Tech mumbled. 

“It is just like you said,” Wrecker gasped, nudging him. Heading their way, a few troopers were carrying a body, covered by a sheet; a lightsaber fell out from under it, but the shock trooper picked it up casually. Specter felt the chill in her spine again. 

“Is there a problem?” he asked.

“No problem,” Hunter slowly answered. “We’ll just head to our barracks then.” He nodded for the Batch to start following him to their room.

“Best hurry. There’s a mandatory general assembly at 1500,” the clone called after them. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Specter’s unease only increased as the group walked through the corridors, passing units of clones marching in mechanical formation. Everything down to the air they were breathing seemed different, and Specter was itching to know why. Clone Force 99 rarely went unnoticed in the halls, though it was hardly ever positive chatter. Specter certainly didn’t miss the stares and comments from other troops, but the silence made the knot in her stomach twist tighter. 

“It’s not just the clones on Kaller. All the regs are acting strange,” Hunter noted aloud. 

“Yeah… something’s really wrong, I don't like this” Specter mused. 

“Let’s test that theory,” Tech said, stepping out of line towards an oncoming soldier. “Excuse me, Trooper. What division are you from?” 

“Step aside,” the reg elbowed him out of the way.

“Oh. Well they seem the same to me.” Tech shrugged and walked with the rest of the group.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When they finally made it to their room, Wrecker stood a few feet from the doorway and stretched.

“Ah! Good to be back,” he said.

“The smell’s getting worse,” Echo commented as he entered the room, wrinkling his nose. 

“You’re still new. You’ll get used to it,” Hunter patted his shoulder as he passed by into the room. Specter was right behind him, already undoing her hair while Crosshair held her helmet.

“Yeah, because if you don’t, you will die,” she jeered. 

“Speak for yourself,” Crosshair mumbled, pushing them out of the way. Specter rolled her eyes, finally letting her hair down and massaging her scalp, combing through any tangles with her fingers. She flopped onto Hunter’s bunk rather than her own.

“Eleven more successful missions,” Wrecker cheered, adding eleven more tallies to their board. “Like there was any doubt.”

“Kaller wasn’t a win,” Echo shook his head. 

“Says who? We completed our objective,” Wrecker argued, grabbing his stuffed Tooka when he finished. 

“Not every objective,” Crosshair hissed. They all turned to look at him. Specter felt her stomach drop, sensing where her twin was going with this, “Hunter let that Jedi kid escape. Or do you want to keep lying to us?” 

Hunter abruptly got up from the table and went to the window; Specter huffed, knowing her request from earlier was going to be ignored. 

“I don’t like to think of executing our commanders as a mission objective,” he replied, gruffly. 

“An order is an order,” Crosshair insisted, taking a few steps.

“Crosshair, when have we ever–”

“Since when?” Hunter narrowed his eyes, interrupting Specter as the sniper shifted his toothpick.

“None of this makes sense!” Echo interjected. “Those clones served alongside General Billaba for years. How could they turn on her like that?” he asked incredulously. 

“Even if the Jedi did commit treason it still doesn’t make sense!” Specter added to his point. 

“Easy, its because of the regs programming,” Tech answered nonchalantly. 

“What programming?” Hunter growled.

“It’s been well documented that the Kaminoans inhibited the cognitive functions of clones to engineer them to follow orders without question.”

“Ha! We sure don’t.” Wrecker came around and punched the back of Crosshair’s shoulder before bringing him close, Lula still in hand. 

“Obviously, we are different,” Tech tilted his head in self agreement. “They manipulated preexisting aberrations in our DNA, resulting in your brute strength, Crosshair’s sharp shooting skills,” the sniper pushed Wrecker off of him, but not before he caught a few hits from the brute’s stuffed tooka, “Hunter’s enhanced senses, my exceptional mind, and Specter.”

“Wow, really feeling the love, Tech,” Specter deadpanned.

“Fine then, I’ll rephrase. My exceptional mind and your accelerated mental and physical capabilities,” Tech rolled his eyes as Specter smiled smugly to herself. “My guess is we are immune to the effects of the programming. Though I can’t be 100% certain of it.” “What about Echo? He was a reg before he joined us,” Hunter brought up. 

“Yeah, if all regs were programmed, why didn’t I react like the others?” Echo asked.

“The damage you sustained on Skako Minor most likely wiped out all of your preset behavioral modifications. You are more machine than man… percentage wise at least,” Tech explained.

“Either that or you’ve hung around us for too long,” Specter chuckled, bringing a leg up to her chest and resting her head on her knee. 

“Lucky me,” Echo sighed. A voice over the PA system spoke again. 

“All personnel report to the staging area for a briefing on the state of the Republic.”

“This is one meeting I don’t want to miss,” Hunter said, heading for the door.

“First time for everything,” Tech shrugged. Specter threw her head back and groaned.

“I just undid my hair,” she complained, already gathering it once again into a tight ponytail as she followed her squad. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Specter knew that what the Supreme Chancellor— Emperor— had said was important, but it all just made her tired and unfocussed, and the discontentment in her team did not help.

“Galactic Empire?” Echo questioned once more, “We’re soldiers of the Republic.”

“Republic, Empire… what’s the difference?” Crosshair drawled. Specter noticed Hunter tilt his head and slow his pace: he was sensing something.

“The systematic termination of the Jedi is a big one for me,” Tech said. Hunter suddenly held up his hand, stopping the group.

“Lads, we’ve got company.” They turned around and found a young, blond-haired girl behind them, smiling and waving.

“Hello,” she said sweetly. Wrecker peered at her.

“What’s that?” he asked aloud. Specter flicked the back of his head.

“Di'kut, you don’t just call someone a ‘that’,” she scolded.

“Adolescent human female,” Tech analyzed. Specter put a hand to her face. “Origins… uncertain.”

“My name’s Omega,” the girl introduced. “I was wondering when you guys would come back.”

“You know who we are?” Hunter asked, stepping forward. She looked at each of them.

“Hunter, Specter, Echo, Tech, Wrecker, and Crosshair. You’re Clone Force 99,” she said with a smile.

“What are you doing on Kamino, hun?” Specter gently asked, bending down a little.

“Her job, of course,” a voice answered before the girl could do so herself. Specter stood back up in the presence of Nala Se, the primary clone engineer. “She is my medical assistant, one with a curious mind that causes her to wander,” the Kaminoan chided. She gave a curious glance at Specter—who squirmed under the uncanny gaze—before putting her long hand on Omega’s shoulder. “Come, Omega. There is work to do.” The girl slowly followed her away, giving one last wave to the Bad Batch before she disappeared.

“This day keeps getting weirder and weirder,” Hunter muttered, shaking his head.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Specter quietly ate her food, listening to the chatter around her and to the conversation at the Batch’s lonely table. She sat across from Crosshair, her feet under her on the bench as she mindlessly balanced a spoon on her finger. Wrecker once again brought up Tech’s programming theory. 

“Clones being programmed. Nothing controls me,” he insisted, standing up from his seat with his hands on the table, jutting a thumb at himself. 

“Wrecker, it is a logical conclusion that your affinity for destruction stems from your conditioning,” Tech argued.

“You take that back,” Wrecker growled, pointing.

“I am merely stating a scientific hypothesis based on factual data.”

“Well, I got a fact for you. I like to blow things up because I like to blow things up!” Wrecker yelled, slamming his fists on the table and silencing the room for a moment. Specter shot him a glare as the spoon fell off her finger. “Got it?”

“Well, I’m convinced,” Crosshair teased as the chatter continued. Specter snickered. Hunter sat down with his food tray next to Tech. 

“An Imperial’s been sent to evaluate the clones. Everybody’s talking about it,” he reported.

“What kind of evaluation?” Echo asked.

“Hopefully not mental. Clearly we’d never pass that,” Tech commented. Specter gave him a glare as well, until a familiar face, for some reason, appeared next to Hunter with their food tray.

“Hello again,” she waved; the girl was met with silent, curious looks. “Omega. From earlier?” They all glanced at each other, Specter’s mouth pressed into a line. “In the corridor?” Omega tried again.

“Uh, yeah, kid. We remember. Don’t you have someplace to be?” Hunter asked.

“No. I’ll stay.” She had already started picking at the food on her tray.

“You want to sit with us?” Tech asked. Omega nodded. “That’s never happened before.”

“Wow,” Wrecker gasped. Specter was just as surprised as he was.

“I like you. You don’t fit in around here either,” Omega said. 

“We don’t fit in? Cross, why didn’t you tell me?” Specter teased, feigning surprise and poking at Crosshair who couldn’t hide a smirk. 

“What are you really doing here on Kamino, kid?” Hunter questioned, “Don’t you have a family somewhere? Parents?” 

“Parents?” the girl repeated.

“Check it out,” a passing reg said from his group, “the defect squad’s got themselves a new recruit.” He chuckled with his friends.

“Another member added to the Sad Batch,” another teased. Specter ignored the comment; any encounter with regs led to more trouble than it was worth. 

The regs’ laughter was immediately stopped when a piece of their rations hit the closest one in the back of the head. Specter swiveled her head to see which of her squad had been foolish enough to instigate the fight.

“What the… who threw that?” he shouted.

“I did.” Omega was standing on the table, tossing another piece in her hand. Specter smiled, admiring her adorable tenacity. “Now apologize to my friends,” she insisted, pointing to the others at the table.

“I like this kid!” Wrecker cheered, elbowing Echo next to him. 

“What did you say to me?” The clone angrily approached Omega, but Hunter stopped him. 

“Woah, woah, woah. Back off. I suggest you keep moving,” he warned. Wrecker stood up behind Omega, ready for a fight. The clone scoffed.

“Know your place, lab scrapper,” he said before walking away. Specter and Crosshair shared a look, knowing a fight was coming, especially when Wrecker threw a whole tray at the reg.

“Oops,” he said with a grin and more trays in hand.

“That’s it!” the reg shouted.

“Oh, yeah!” Wrecker cheered, throwing the other trays. Chaos erupted as Hunter punched a nearby reg and dodged another.

“Oh, not again,” Echo groaned, a hand running down his face. Crosshair and Specter tried to ignore them all and continue eating. Wrecker landed atop a group, Echo kicked, Omega threw, Echo punched but got kicked back onto the table, knocking over Crosshair’s tray; the sniper angrily joined the fight too, throwing his tray and hitting multiple regs. A few made their way over to Specter, looking for a fight.

“Really, boys?” she glared at them, daring one of them to make the first move. Instead they scurried off like a tooka with its tail between its legs. She smirked to herself. 

“Echo, watch out!” she heard Tech call out. Specter turned just in time to see Echo get knocked out. 

“Told you he’s alive!” Wrecker cheered as they entered the room, where Echo was indeed sitting up.

“No, I told you he was alive because I really doubt that you can kill someone with a lunch tray,” Specter recalled as they came around to his bed. 

“You owe me two credits,” Wrecker pointed at Crosshair, who only shook his head. 

“CT-1409’s condition is stable,” the little medical droid reported. “But I have some distressing news for the rest of you. According to your test results, you all appear to be genetically defective clones,” it whispered, as though it were some secret. Specter merely raised her eyebrow. “I will leave you to process the shock of this revelation.” The little droid hovered out of the room.

“We’ve got a problem,” Echo said once the droid left.

“We all have problems; take Cross for example,” Specter teased, jutting into the sniper with her elbow, who nudged her back.

“Not that,” Echo said, “a different problem.”

“We’re more deviant than we are defective,” Tech chimed in.

“Admiral Tarkin’s here,” Echo cut to the point. “He’s the one evaluating the clones.”

“The same Tarkin from the Citadel rescue when you, uh,” Tech searched for the right words, “how shall I put this?”

“Blew up?” Wrecker finished for him.

“And turned into that?” Crosshair added with a smile. 

“See, now there was an appropriate setting of calling someone a ‘that’,” Specter said. Echo rolled his eyes.

“Yes. And he’s not a big supporter of clones.”

“We’ll soon find out,” Hunter said. “We’ve been summoned by the prime minister.”

“Guess he didn’t find that mess hall fight amusing. But I sure did,” Wrecker laughed. 

“Come on. Let’s get this over with,” Hunter nodded his head toward the door. Echo hopped off the bed and followed the rest of his grip towards the exit. However, Omega ran out in front to stop them.

“Wait. The fight was my fault. I’m going too,” she insisted.

“Not happening,” Hunter said, brushing past her.

“We’ll handle this,” Specter assured, walking by as well.

“But I…” Omega tried, but Hunter turned around to face her. 

“Listen, kid. Our squad’s nothing but trouble. For your sake, keep your distance,” the Sergeant warned. “Got it?” He left the room with the rest of his group before she could even answer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It turned out to be that the Bad Batch was not about to be reprimanded, but rather tested on their skills. Admiral Tarkin was apparently impressed with their “performance” in the mess hall and wanted to see more of the squad in action.

The team rose up for the floor into the training room, fully geared up and ready to go; Specter had resorted to keeping her ponytail under her helmet. Tarkin and Prime Minister Lama Su were in the observation deck.

“The value of all clone troopers is being challenged by the Empire. To demonstrate your effectiveness, a combat-proficiency test is in order. Take your positions,” the Admiral announced. 

“We’ve done these a thousand times, boys,” Hunter said to his team. “You know what to do.”

“A battle simulation? Give us a real challenge,” Wrecker said, banging his fists together before moving to take cover with the team. The training droids and towers activated and began to fire. 

“Crosshair, take the towers,” Hunter ordered. The sniper nodded and snuck around the side, climbing up to the tower and disabling all of them. “Move in,” he said next. Wrecker and Tech advanced first.

“I’ll cover you,” Echo assured Hunter. 

“And I’ll cover you,” Specter replied. They each made their way towards cover, trying to shoot down more droids as they went. 

“This is taking way too long,” Wrecker groaned.

“Hey, if you’re gonna go barrelling out there, at least give me a boost,” Specter called out. Wrecker laughed and nodded before they both leapt out from their cover; she ran at him, stepping into his intertwined hands and letting him launch her across the training area, shooting at the droids as she flew over them. When Specter landed, she disabled the rest of the droids in her proximity while Wrecker fired relentlessly at the ones near him, finishing the battle. 

“What else ya got? Give me more!” he yelled excitedly, shaking his fist up at Tarkin and the Prime Minister. Specter shook her head at his antics and went back to regroup, crouching by Tech. However, Wrecker got his wish when two large droids were brought into the facility. “New toys. Now we’re talking,” he cheered, running and firing at them; yet when he attempted to punch one of them, the droid didn’t budge. Instead, it pushed him off and shot at him, and Wrecker fell to the floor.

“Live rounds,” Specter shouted into the arena to Crosshair, firing at the droids even though her stun bolts would be ineffective. 

“Get Wrecker,” Hunter said to Tech, “we’ll cover you.” He and Echo joined Specter in shooting the droids while Tech made his way over to where Wrecker had crawled out of the way. 

“I’m starting to think Tarkin just wanted to give us a glorious death,” Specter said, taking cover next to Hunter. She glanced over at Crosshair, who had made a shot at the droids but was now climbing down from the tower to avoid their fire, as well as dodging the other droids that appeared. He took cover with her, Hunter, and Echo.

“This is going well,” he drawled.

“Shut up, will you?” Specter hissed, firing again.

“These training blasters are useless on them,” Echo complained.

“Then we improvise,” Hunter said, “If Tarkin wants to test us, let’s not disappoint him.” He lifted his helmet and whistled, getting Tech and Wrecker’s attention, before signaling with his hands. Wrecker eventually gave a thumbs up before moving to execute the plan. Specter, Hunter, and Crosshair acted as a diversion and provided cover for Echo as he ran to support Tech and Wrecker. The brute wrestled down one of the droids while Echo used his scomp to disable another, allowing for Tech to reprogram and control the downed droid. Up on its shoulders, Tech used the droid to fire at the others, distracting them enough for the batch to deliver finishing blows. 

“Spec, heads up!” Hunter shouted; his knife cut through the arms of a droid, flying by her head and landing on the ground near her. She attached it to the end of her rifle and used it to stab and swing.

“I cannot sustain the connection,” Tech announced before the droid threw him off. He lay on the ground, groaning and unmoving. 

“Tech!” Specter shouted after him before throwing the knife at the wayward droid. The blade stuck into its arm, but was ineffective. “Kark,” she hissed, ducking for cover as the droid turned to fire at her. 

“Crosshair, we need more coverfire,” Hunter shouted. 

“Tech, hang in there, buddy!” Wrecker called out.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he grunted in reply. Crosshair continued to assess the situation, looking for a solution, until he caught sight of Wrecker in the droid’s firing line. 

“Wrecker, knife!” he shouted. Wrecker threw his knife at the sniper, who shot it mid-air, sending it into the droid’s head and shutting it down. Specter couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“Nice work, adla’vod,” she said as they all emerged from their cover, clapping her hand tightly with his. Wrecker and Echo went to check on Tech and helped him to his feet. Specter sighed, the test had been simple enough, but she was more than glad it was over. She only hoped the Admiral had seen what he needed to. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tarkin peered at the embryo floating in the tube, still mulling over what he had seen in the training room.

“Extraordinary, aren’t they?” Nala Se’s soothing, yet monotone, voice spoke a few steps behind the governor. 

“That remains to be seen,” he replied curtly. “Tell me about Clone Force 99.”

“They are medically defective clones whose cellular mutations enhanced traits desirable in a soldier,” the Kaminoan answered. Tarkin gazed at the young girl by her side, analyzing her.

“How many of these clones do you possess?”

“Six are all that remain.”

“This includes the female, yes?” Tarkin inquired. Nala Se hesitated, but nodded nonetheless. “Tell me about her.”

“CT-9905, as she has been redesignated, is the only clone that was produced from Project Valkyrie before it was terminated due to a corruption of the DNA sample,” Lama Su answered this time. “She possesses increased reactivity in both her physical and mental attributes, and charts higher in endurance and speed tests than the average specimen.”

“It’s unfortunate the project was scrapped. She would have been a lucrative asset to the Empire,” Tarkin mused.

“And she still can be, with Clone Force 99,” Lama Su said. 

“Yet reports indicate they exhibit a concerning level of disobedience and disregard for orders,” added Tarkin. 

“A side effect of their mutation. Yet one that has never hindered the completion of their missions,” Nala Se gently reminded.

“Then they executed Order 66?”

“Since both the Jedi General and Padawan on Kaller were eliminated, one would assume,” Lama Su argued.

“Assume nothing,” Tarkin snapped, “Only the general’s death is confirmed. A counter-report, filed by one of their own, says the Padawan escaped.” The Kaminoans glanced at each other, surprised. “Let us see where the loyalty of these clones truly lies.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Live rounds? They used live rounds on us?” Wrecker said, incredulously, throwing his helmet off as they entered their room. 

“We were there, Wrecker. We know,” Tech replied.

“I tried to warn you about Tarkin,” Echo reminded. 

“Who’s that Imperial snake think he is?” Wrecker pounded his fist on the table. 

“Stow it, already. You got shot. It happens all the time,” Crosshair hissed.

“There’s a fundamental difference between taking fire in battle and being used for target practice,” Tech added. 

“Exactly! We’re not dummy droids,” Wrecker said. 

Specter walked in after them all, holding herself and looking deflated and disappointed. Hunter wordlessly pulled her aside.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, quietly. 

“If I’d just thrown that knife straight, I would’ve hit that droid. I’m better than that,” she said, not meeting his eyes and tightening her arms, “Someone could’ve gotten hurt. Well… even more so.” 

“Hey, you did fine. We did what we could given the circumstances. I’m sure we can work on your knife skills some more,” he assured, putting his hand on her shoulder. A shadow eclipsed the light in the doorway. It was Tarkin, with two guards standing behind him. The man stood, observing each of them. Specter shifted under his scrutinous gaze but stood at attention next to Crosshair.

“That was quite an impressive display,” he said, walking into the group. 

“Didn’t have much choice,” Hunter replied. 

“Our new empire may have methods which seem a bit unorthodox, but so does this squadron. Both certainly have their merits.” The Governor eyed Wrecker, who towered over him. “Nala Se speaks quite highly of her six enhanced clones. She claims you’re more capable than an army.”

“You have a mission for us, sir?” Hunter asked, side-eyeing him but quickly sharing a look with Specter. 

“Indeed,” he affirmed, turning back toward the Sergeant. “We have tracked a group of insurgents to the Onderon sector. They must be dealt with.”

“What sort of insurgents?” Echo went to clarify.

“Separatist forces intent on keeping the galaxy at war. If you neutralize this grave threat, you will be looked upon most favorably as I assess the needs of the Imperial Army,” Tarkin explained before leaving the room. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I’ll say this for the Empire,” Wrecker announced to Tech as he, Crosshair, and Specter returned from the armory, “they know their firepower. You should see the new armory!” Specter sat on the crate of weapons Wrecker pushed toward the ship, her hair once again weaved back into a braided coronet. 

“He actually cried,” Crosshair remarked.

“Hey, we both did,” Wrecker reminded. “And Specter is still crying.” 

“Tech… I’m in love,” Specter sighed dreamily as she hopped off the crate, seemingly dazed in a weapon-fueled fantasy. 

“There’s no room on board for that,” Tech warned. 

“For love or the crate?”

“Both.”

“Yeah? Well I’ll make room.” Wrecker grunted as he lifted up the crate and headed towards the ship. “A new mission and unlimited explosives. Things are back to normal.”

“That is not going near my rack. I refuse to sleep by a projectile again,” Tech rambled, following the brute inside. Specter went to follow Crosshair up the stairs, but he suddenly stopped in front of her, causing her to bump into him and slip on the step.

“Hey! What-”

“It’s the kid again,” Crosshair interrupted, nodding toward Hunter kneeling by Omega. Specter couldn’t hear what she was saying, but the little girl looked very concerned as she talked to their leader.

“How is it looking?” she asked, knowing her brother’s sight would benefit.

“I don’t know,” he drawled, shifting his toothpick. Specter thought back to the food fight. Sure, Omega looked innocent and sweet, and of course she was a child. But in times like this, even a child could be untrustworthy. Working so close to Nala Se, Specter couldn’t help but wonder what types of secrets the girl had to hide. She shook her head—the anxiety would do no good for this new mission.

“Well, I’d rather get this mission over with. Hunt! Let’s go!” she shouted. The Sergeant turned to acknowledge her, standing up to leave. Crosshair shoved past Specter to the bottom of the steps, waiting for their leader to come return. 

“Problem?” Crosshair asked as he came close, putting a hand on his hip.

“Uh, something about her I can’t figure out,” Hunter explained.

“Well, I guess kids aren’t your area of expertise,” Crosshair said, patting his shoulder.

“Or maybe it’s just that girls aren’t,” Specter teased, already stepping into the Marauder.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She held her blaster tightly as the group exited the ship to the dark night of Onderon.  Ambience of the forest filled her ears, she flinched at the sound of a roar in the distance.

“What was that?” Echo wondered apprehensively.

“You don’t want to know,” Tech answered.

“Well, at least it’s not a swamp,” Wrecker replied. 

“Close enough,” Crosshair said.

“I think I would have preferred mud in my boots than critters in my face,” Specter shivered at the thought.

“The Separatist encampment’s two klicks south. We’ll continue on foot and do a full perimeter scan,” Hunter said, kneeling towards a path before stopping an eager Wrecker, “covertly.”

“Oh, come on! It’s been days since I’ve blown something up,” he whined while the team passed by him.

“Easy, Wrecker. Your programming’s kicking in,” Tech teased. Specter couldn’t help but laugh aloud as they made their way into the jungle. 

While Tech led the group with his scanner, Specter kept an eye on the rear, walking backward and letting Crosshair guide her.

“How many droids are we talking about, Tech?” Hunter asked.

“I can’t tell from this distance. Something’s blocking my scan,” Tech reported, smacking his device a few times and stopping the group. “Anything back there?” he shouted towards Specter. She flipped down the antennae on her helmet, switching to a thermal readout and finding-

“Nothing.”

“Clankers always travel in packs. Let’s get a closer look at what we’re walking into,” Hunter advised leading them forward. They kept walking until they made it to a rocky outcropping that overlooked the dimly lit encampment. Crosshair and Tech lay on their stomachs while Echo and Specter kneeled beside them; Crosshair and Specter peered through their rifle sights while Tech and Echo looked through their binocs. “Tell me what you see, Tech,” Hunter said. 

“I’m clocking heat signatures ahead but zero droids,” he replied.

“Tarkin said insurgents, not droids,” Crosshair recalled.

“I’m not sure they’re either,” Echo said. Specter swept through the area again, just to make sure she was seeing clearly.

“Sarge, there are children down there,” she reported, quickly and urgently. 

“Children? Out here?” he wondered, taking Echo’s binocs. 

“Children. Elderly. Medical supplies, personal items… they look more like refugees.”

“Something’s not right,” the Sergeant mumbled.

“What are you waiting for? Give the order,” Crosshair said, keeping his weapon ready, and although she was apprehensive, so did Specter. 

“Negative. Stand down” Hunter ordered instead. 

“What?” Crosshair and Specter cried at the same time, pulling away from their scopes.

“You mean, we’re not blasting any droids?” asked Wrecker disappointedly.

“There aren’t any droids, Wrecker,” Tech reminded him.

“Well, so what do we do?”

“We finish the mission,” Crosshair answered Wrecker’s question. “Make the call, Hunter.”

“Cross,” Specter said slowly in warning, having already lowered her rifle.  

“We’re not alone. Now stand down,” Hunter ordered again. A rustling was heard seconds before the “insurgents” appeared, surrounding them with their blasters ready. The Batch reflexively raised their weapons too.

“You heard him. Stand down,” one of them said. Hunter slowly stood up and put a hand on Wrecker’s gun.

“Let’s hear them out,” he advised, putting his hands up in surrender, “trust me.” One by one the squad holstered their weapons and did the same, including Crosshair who groaned in frustration. 

Echo observed as the soldiers led them down to the camp.

“These aren’t Separatists. They’re Republic fighters,” he said.

“Why would Tarkin send us to attack our own forces?” Tech wondered. Specter caught the gaze of a few of the children. She tried to give them a reassuring smile but they only hid themselves away. 

“Because we refuse to fight for an Empire,” a voice answered. A man stepped forward, Specter recognized him.

“You’re Saw Gerrera. Trained by Captain Rex and General Skywalker to fight for the Republic,” Tech said, also recognizing him. 

“I based some of my combat tactics off of you,” Specter rambled excitedly. The man only scoffed, looking over the group.

“So, the newly declared empire sent you to wipe us out?” he accused, taking one of Hunter’s pistols and examining it. 

“Well, we’re here to neutralize a group of insurgents,” Hunter explained. Gerrera chuckled grimly.

“Well… here we are.” He held his arms out, indicating the group of people around him. “What are you gonna do? Strike us down like you did the Jedi?”

“Is that a request?” Crosshair hissed. 

“Quit it,” Specter scolded, kicking his leg a little. 

“We expected to find battle droids, not…” Hunter tried to find the words.

“Civilians?” Gerrera finished for him. “Times change, targets change. Why don’t you take a look at the insurgents you were sent to destroy. Makes you wonder what else they’re lying about.” The Batch looked guiltily at the gathered group of refugees. “Let’s mobilize. Pack up the camp,” he ordered, walking toward the children to check on them while the other fighters prepared to move out. Hunter and Echo stepped forward.

“What’s going on here? Who are these people?” Hunter asked, almost desperately.

“Villagers, croppers, former Republic fighters, all now displaced refugees since Palpatine unjustly appointed himself Emperor.”

“According to reports, the Jedi made an attempt on the Supreme Chancellor’s life. His actions were a defensive measure,” Tech spoke up. Gerrera scoffed again, smiling woefully. 

“And I figured you for the smart one.” Tech flinched at the remark. “With the Jedi decimated and the clone army under his command, Palpatine will have control over the entire galaxy. Unless we stop him,” he said, determined.

“The war is over,” Crosshair said. Specter didn’t stop him this time. 

“If we give up now, everything we fought for… everyone we lost, will have been for nothing. I won’t let that happen. The Clone War may have ended, but a civil war is about to begin.”

“With a handful of fighters and limited firepower? You may have lost a lot but there’s still so much to lose. You don’t stand a chance,” Specter spoke up against their tenacity.

“Not alone we don’t,” argued Gerrera. 

“We should leave if we’re gonna make the rendezvous,” one of the fighters came up to him. “What do we do with them?” he nodded towards the clones. Saw Gerrera thought for a moment, eyeing them.

“The clones once helped us free Onderon, so we’ll give them a choice. The old ways are done. You can either adapt and survive, or die with the past. The choice is yours.” He handed Hunter his pistol back and powered down the camp’s light source, following the refugees and fighters into the forest, leaving the Bad Batch among themselves. Wrecker handed everyone’s helmets back before they went to leave. Hunter went to follow but turned back once again, scanning their surroundings. 

“At least with the Republic we knew where we stood,” Tech mentioned. The hike back to the Marauder was tense enough. “Tarkin and this Empire are a whole different story.” Crosshair suddenly shove Tech.

“Why are we debating this? We need to complete the mission,” he argued.

“Wake up, Crosshair,” Echo intervened, “they sent us to eliminate innocent civilians.”

“Who said they’re innocent?” Crosshair sneered. Hunter responded before Specter could.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Me? I’m following orders,” the sniper defended.

“Exactly!”

“Those insurgents are plotting against the Emperor. If you don’t have the stomach to do what needs to be done, then you’re not fit to lead this squad.” The silence rang loud as their eyes bore into each other’s. A branch snapped and in a split second, Hunter’s gaze shifted to a probe droid over Crosshair’s shoulder. He shot it down easily. 

“We’re being followed,” was all Hunter said. Specter shot the sniper a glare before following the Sergeant to investigate.

“It’s a probe droid,” Tech identified, surprised.

“Tarkin’s spying on us now?” Wrecker asked. “The Jedi never did that.”

“Not that you know of,” Crosshair mumbled, walking up to the group. They all glared at him, Hunter seemed to be thinking as he looked over the droid once more. 

“Omega,” he suddenly remembered, turning back towards the ship.

“What about her?” Specter wondered. 

“She warned me about the mission. And Tarkin. She said not to return to Kamino, that it’s not safe for us anymore,” he explained.

“Maybe she’s right,” Wrecker grunted.

“We’re taking the word of a child now?” Crosshair grumbled.

“We take your words, don’t we?” Specter teased, passing him by and stepping up into the ship’s entryway next to Tech.

“I would not discount Omega’s insight,” Tech interjected, “a state of heightened awareness is not unusual for an enhanced clone such as herself.” Wrecker laughed and pointed.

“Good one, Tech. You almost had me.” He sat himself down on the steps of the ship.

“When Nala Se spoke of six clones, Tarkin assumed that meant us, but Echo’s a reg. The sixth is Omega. I confirmed my suspicions after analyzing her DNA while we were in the infirmary,” he explained, casually adjusting his goggles. 

“I like how you just decided to analyze her DNA without prompt,” Specter couldn’t help but chuckle, despite the tension. 

“You waited until now to mention it?” chided Echo.

“Well, I thought it was obvious,” Tech shrugged.

“How is it obvious?” yelled Wrecker, standing up and turning around. 

“We’re going back for her,” Hunter decided. Crosshair scowled and stood in front of him, blocking him from stepping into the ship. 

“Disobeying orders again over a kid? Bad play, Hunter,” he warned, poking the Sergeant’s chest. Hunter shoved his hand away. 

“She’s one of us.” He started to walk up the ramp before turning around to face the sniper again. “We’re not leaving her there.” They boarded the ship; Specter gave one last pained look at Crosshair before she boarded, and as much as she loved her brother, she couldn’t force herself to be on his side this time. He reluctantly followed behind her. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I’m getting no response from com-scan. This is unusual,” Tech cautiously reported as they flew through the clouds of Kamino. 

“Bring us in. We’ll find out what’s going on,” Hunter assured. Specter still hadn’t released the tension she held from Onderon; she was aware it would do her teeth no good to keep her jaw so tight, but she couldn’t help but feel that everything was wrong… and that things were about to get worse. She was itching to ask Crosshair what he truly thought, what he felt, what he had planned. She’d finally caved and approached her brother just as Tech touched down on the landing dock. The squad exited the ship and led themselves through the empty dock to the closed bay doors. 

“Stick to the plan. Split up, find Omega, meet back here at the ship,” Hunter said before allowing Tech to open the door. They cautiously walked through the dark hangar, only making it several meters before Hunter sensed something and held up his hand, stopping them. A second later, the Coruscant Guard appeared and had them surrounded, blasters raised. Specter crouched in a defensive position but didn’t bother reaching for her gun.

“As expected,” Crosshair hissed. Governor Tarkin came forward.

“The Empire does not tolerate failure, Sergeant.”

“There were complications,” tried Hunter, completely sheathing his blade.

“Yes, the probe droid’s report was quite detailed. Conspiring with Saw Gerrera.” The Bad Batch stood up straight, shocked at the accusation. “I assume you know the punishment for treason,” the Governor drawled, almost gloating.

“Treason?” Hunter scoffed, shocked. 

“Throw them in the brig,” Tarkin ordered. The Batch complied, not wanting to worsen their situation. They were shoved towards the brig with the ends of blasters and unsympathetic clones surrounding them.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stripped of their armor down to their blacks, the squad was roughly shoved into the cell. Specter grunted and stumbled inside, nearly falling before her twin helped her to right herself. 

“Smells weird,” Wrecker commented, snoozing the air.

“Because it’s clean,” Echo said. 

“Well, the plan wasn’t a total failure,” Tech observed, finding Omega sitting in the corner of the cell, waving sheepishly.

“Convenient,” Specter deadpanned.

“Goody,” Crosshair rolled his eyes, earning a light smack from Specter. Hunter made his way through, kneeling in front of the girl.

“I warned you not to come back,” scolded Omega.

“Had to. We were looking for you,” Hunter explained with a smile.

“Me?” she asked, almost in disbelief.

“What do you say, kid? You wanna come with us, or did we get captured for nothing?”

“You came back for me?” she asked again, even more excited.

“That’s right,” Hunter nodded. Specter stepped forward to chime in.

“Or you can stay on Kamino if-”

“No, it’s like I said before. I want to go with you,” Omega stood up, interrupting Specter’s sarcastic remark.

“How touching,” Crosshair sneered from the other side of the cell. Hunter clenched his jaw, but Wrecker cleared his throat, stopping anything else from happening. 

“Uh Hunter, how are we breaking outta here?” he asked.

“I’m working on it,” Hunter practically growled, maintaining eye contact with Crosshair. 

“You know what you should work on? Explaining when you went soft,” Crosshair accused, pointing at Hunter. 

“Here we go,” Specter grumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Stow it, Crosshair,” Echo held back the sniper.

“Don’t you see we’re locked up in here because of him? He had us disobey orders,” he argued. 

“Since when has disobeying orders become such a problem for you? We do it all the time, Cross! “ Specter fought back, getting into his face. 

“Good soldiers follow orders. Every choice he’s made since Kaller has been wrong. First the Padawan, then Gerrera. He’s becoming a liability.” The eyes burned into each other as he pointed at Hunter over her shoulder.

“Since when have you ever cared about being a ‘good soldier’?” Specter scoffed, “You know what they call ‘good soldiers’? Regs. You’ve never been worried about going off the book before! But, oh no, sparing children and innocent civilians is where we draw the line? C’mon, adla’vod.”  The rest of the Batch watched as Specter went off on her brother. “What if that Jedi was General Skywalker? What if it was Cody or Rex, instead of Gerrera? What happened to your humanity?” she pushed. Crosshair’s nostrils flared and teeth bared.

“Don’t you dare question me.”

“What, like how you question Hunter? I’ll dare if I want to!”

“We can debate this later,” Hunter pushed them apart. “For now, let’s focus on getting out of here.” The two separated and went to opposite sides of the room. Specter crossed her arms and turned away from Crosshair, watching as Tech examined the walls.

“CT-9904, you’re coming with us,” she heard a voice say. The shield was open and one of the guards walked toward Crosshair. Hunter stood in between.

“Oh, no, no, no. We stay together,” he protested. The guard rammed his blaster into Hunter’s stomach; Specter gasped and rushed to his side as he keeled over. Without any other fuss, Crosshair stood up and followed the guard out of the cell while the rest of the Batch watched him go. 

Time passed excruciatingly slowly; the Bad Batch sat, waiting for something to happen or for a plan to formulate. Specter eyed Omega from her corner of the cell until the girl eventually decided to sit beside her. The two sat in silence as the young one rested her head against Specter’s arm. Though unexpected, the comforting gesture was not unwelcome.

“I’ve got it. Why didn’t I think of it before?” Tech startled Specter out of her thoughts. He went to sit more in the center of the group. “This is not a prison.” 

“Yeah, well, I beg to differ,” Echo grumbled.

“This is a Kaminoan facility,” Tech continued. “It was built prior to the Clone Wars. there were no barracks or prisons when it was constructed.”

“Well, how does that help us?” Hunter asked, leaning in.

“Because while these cells were retrofitted to hold normal individuals, they could not possibly account for someone like Wrecker,” he explained. 

“Oh! You mean I could punch our way out?” Wrecker exclaimed, standing up. Hunter and Omega simultaneously shushed him. He winced and whispered instead. “You mean I could punch our way out?”

“If you punch the correct spot,” Tech nodded.

“Right. Show me where,” Wrecker said, cracking his knuckles. 

“If this is gonna work, we’ll need some cover. Form a wall,” Hunter instructed. He, Omega, Echo, and Specter stood up, forming a barrier to hide Tech. 

“Hit this. Here,” Tech whispered to Wrecker, indicating towards a spot in the wall.

“Right. Tell me when,” he said to the others. Hunter waited a moment, watching for when all the guards would be distracted, engrossed in their conversation.

“Now.” Wrecker punched the wall and quickly sat on the bench. They hadn’t been spotted. Wrecker inspected the spot on the wall; it had sustained no damage.

“Nothing happened,” he reported.

“Are you sure this is gonna work?” Hunter questioned.

“Try it again. A little harder,” Tech said, determined. 

“You’re all clear. Make it count,” Specter said over her shoulder. Wrecker nodded and drew his fist back, striking the wall with more force. Specter flinched at the noise, noticing Wrecker once again take a seat on the bench. They waited until the guards turned their gazes away before glancing at the wall. 

“Oh, it still didn’t work,” Wrecker grumbled. Tech went to look. 

“Oh, yes it did. Look,” he said, pulling away the now damaged sheet of metal to reveal a hole in the wall. 

“I’ll never fit through that,” Wrecker complained. Specter glanced too.

“I could try but the guards would notice my absence.”

“I’ll do it,” volunteered Omega.

“Are you sure, kid?” Hunter asked.

“I’m sure,” she nodded, looking up at him.

“Okay. Get to the console and hit the lever to lower the ray shield,” he instructed. Omega squeezed into the crevice, Wrecker and Tech replaced the sheet of metal behind her.

“Incoming,” Echo announced as the guards made their way over.

“Wait, where’s the girl?” the leader asked.

“Hey, fellas,” Specter said, resting a hand on her hip and winking.

“Not you. The child.”

“You tell us,” Hunter shrugged.

“Harm her and you’re a dead man,” Echo threatened. 

“Operations, we need a status report on prisoner 0219,” one of the guards relayed into his comm. A creak sounded above them. “What was that?”

“Sorry,” Wrecker spoke up, covering for Omega, and leaning up against the wall, “these floors don’t hold me so well on account of them not being designed for abnormal individuals such as myself.” Hunter and Tech shook their heads at the absurdity. 

“What’s behind you?” the guard asked, peering closer, causing the other guards to ready their blasters.

“Nothing,” Wrecker said, bringing up his hands behind his head in defiance.

“Move away from the wall. Now.”

“Why don’t you come here and make me?” the brute challenged. One of the guard’s comm beeped.

“Copy that. The girl’s still registered in lockdown,” he reported before aiming his blaster at Wrecker. “Tell us where she is,” he ordered. 

As if on cue, Omega fell down from the ceiling on top of the ventilation panel.

“Hit the switch, Omega!” Hunter said. She scrambled to pull the switch before one of the guards went to grab her. She struggled in his grasp.

“Get off!” she cried, swinging her legs and arms.

“Hey, Red,” a voice said behind him. He turned, just as Wrecker punched him across the room. Another guard tried to get up, but Tech simply stunned him with his own blaster, grabbing it for himself. 

“Not bad,” Wrecker complimented the girl.

“We need to find out where they took Cross,” Specter said, stepping over the downed troopers. A pang of worry shot through her. With the entirety of Kamino against them, there was a chance they wouldn’t find him, or if they did, they wouldn’t escape unscathed. Hunter tossed her a blaster, bringing her back to herself. 

“Let’s go,” he said, leading the group out of the room. The squad carefully made their way through the facility.

“We’re not going to get very far without our gear,” Tech said once they had moved to a quiet area in the pristine halls.

“They started moving all your things to the hangar. Your gear might be there too,” Omega said. Hunter nodded.

“This way.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They had made it to the hangar without being detected; Omega was right, the Marauder and their gear were there. 

“Alright, boys, suit up. Let’s make this quick,” Hunter said. Specter found her things and quickly dressed in her armor before gathering her weapons and other belongings she deemed important: which, given their lifestyle, wasn’t much. She wasn’t as attached to items as some of the others were. She overheard Wrecker rustling through his things, no doubt looking for Lula. 

“Tech, power up the ship. The rest of us will go after Crosshair,” Hunter instructed. Specter readied her interchangeable rifle, uneasy about retrieving Crosshair. So much was going wrong already, and she couldn’t predict if he would come willingly.

“I don’t think we’ll have to go far,” Omega said, however. The bay doors opened and the Batch ducked down, peeking over the crates at the troops that entered, blasters raised. Specter gasped.

“Is that Crosshair?” asked Wrecker. Hunter looked over at Specter, who watched with a broken heart as her brother appeared from the squad, dawning new Imperial armor. Her grip on her rifle faltered and her hands trembled. Hunter took a breath and went to stand in the center of the room, facing him. 

“Best stand down, Sergeant. Make it easy on yourself,” Crosshair said.

“Have you lost your mind?” Hunter asked angrily.

“We should’ve killed that Jedi. You disobeyed orders.”

“I did what I thought was right.” 

“You never could see the bigger picture. Now surrender.” Hunter glanced at the others; Wrecker had put his helmet on and Echo took aim with his pistols, although Specter was still in shock. 

“Is that an order?” asked Hunter. Crosshair smirked a little.

“Heh. I guess it is.”

“Well. I guess I’m disobeying that one too.” Thunder clapped and rumbled as the two stared each other down, Crosshair spat out his toothpick. 

His gaze flickered to Specter, who flinched; she was screaming in her head to get a grip and take aim, only to be contradicted by pleas to surrender and stay with her brother. Tears pricked in the corners of her eyes. Too much was happening and too fast. She watched her brother’s finger itch over the trigger of his rifle, and knew there would be no easy way out. Even if she gave herself up, what was the likelihood Hunter or even Omega would get caught in the crossfire that would certainly follow? Specter steadied her breathing and regained the strength in her hands to grip her blaster. 

The first shot was fired by Crosshair, who let his rifle fall onto his arm as a mount. Hunter ducked in time and took cover next to Omega as the other troops began to fire. The Batch fired back, Specter opting for her sniper-rifle configuration to try and disable the soldiers. One of Crosshair’s soldiers threw a smoke bomb, filling the room and disrupting everyone’s line of fire; Specter switched to thermals, knowing her brother would too. She unleashed rapid fire through her rifle but knew it would have little to no effect.

“Hunt, they outnumber us. Even if we fired blindly into the smoke, it’s no guarantee,” she reported into a private channel, one without Crosshair. She heard him growl and swear under his breath. 

“Tech, we gotta move. Now,” Hunter said into the comm. 

“I’m working on it,” he replied.

“Wrecker, clear the smoke on three,” Hunter ordered. 

“You got it, boss.” Wrecker lowered his blaster and grabbed two crate lids, ready to clear the smoke.

“Omega, stay low,” Hunter instructed the girl before slowly counting down. When he got to three, Wrecker emerged from his cover and slammed the crate lids together, blowing the smoke away; he even threw one of the lids, knocking down most of the troops. He threw the other at Crosshair, who rolled out of the way and shot Wrecker in the shoulder, knocking him out.

“Osi’kyr!” Specter swore, angrily firing.

“Echo, we go for Wrecker,” she heard Hunter instruct. “Spec, Plan 4: Star Shower.” Specter nodded, shoving her helmet on and quietly reconfiguring her blaster to its shotgun form in the silence of the ceasefire.

“Only one way out, Hunter. Your move,” Crosshair drawled. 

“Go!” Hunter shouted. Specter emerged and fired her rounds at the other clones and the ceiling. Miniature explosions peppered them and fell with debris from above, no doubt confusing Crosshair’s thermals. Echo and Hunter struggled to get Wrecker towards the Marauder by the time her cover had dissipated.

“I’m out,” she announced, grabbing for her pistol as Crosshair took aim again. But another shot rang out, knocking the rifle out of his hand. It was Omega, doing her best to hold a blaster that was most likely too heavy for her. A beat of surprised stillness passed before Crosshair made a move for his pistol— this time, Specter was ready. The two fired furiously at each other, some of their shots even collided and ricocheted off each other. Even when Wrecker and Omega had made it on the ship, Specter didn’t stop firing; she was angry—beyond angry— at Crosshair and everything that tore them apart. 

“Specter, recall!” Hunter shouted from the ship’s entryway over the noise. She growled, running to hop on board just as they took off. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Ouch!” Wrecker cried as Specter injected the needle into his arm. She had put herself to work on taking care of him, distracting herself.

“Quit whining,” she teased, ruffling through the med-pack until she found the syringe she was looking for. 

“What’s that gonna do?” he cried as she held it up.

“You’ll be okay. Just hold still.”

“Is this what you were looking for?” Omega said, holding up the stuffed Tooka. Wrecker gasped and grabbed it.

“You found my Lula! Ow!” he cried again. Specter had injected him while he was distracted. Omega giggled as Tech came in with his scanner.

“Let’s see here,” he said before kneeling in front of him, “hold still.

“Don’t examine me. I’m not a computer,” Wrecker shied away, holding onto Lula. 

“Would you rather get shot again?” Specter mused. Wrecker whimpered in response.

“This will take just a second.” Tech held the scanner closer to Wrecker's arm, who grunted at the contact. Specter laughed but watched as Hunter slowly followed Omega, who had wandered into the cockpit. 

Specter stepped back from Wrecker, glancing toward the cockpit where Omega stood, awestruck at the view before her. Her mind wandered back to her own first time in space. She’d refused to admit her fear as the old ship took off. Crosshair had known better, and hadn’t let go of her hand the whole ascension. 

She missed her brother now, as reality struck her with a sickening pang. Had he chosen to stay with them, she could imagine his sarcastic hiss teasing Wrecker for being clumsy and her for becoming a ‘nurse.’ Never in a thousand star-systems had she even imagined her brother, her twin, would betray them like this. It hurt far too much to think about.

“Spec, you alright?” asked Echo, bringing her back. She nodded and stepped back as he helped Wrecker into the cockpit, following them. 

“It’ll take more than a blaster shot to take me down,” Wrecker announced as he entered.

“You were down,” Echo argued.

“Yeah, well, not for long,” he cheered, squeezing Echo, but groaning in pain again. Specter squeezed in between them, pushing Wrecker to sit down.

“You are out of commission until further notice, big guy,” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder before going to sit in the co-pilot’s seat next to Tech.

“What’s the plan, Hunter?” he asked. 

“I thought we could go off on our own. Lay low. But with Crosshair gunning for us, I’m not so sure,” Hunter explained.

“What about your friends? Could any of them help us?” Omega asked. 

“That would be a short list,” said Tech.

“Yeah, we could count them on one hand,” Specter followed. 

“I can think of one. Plot a course for J-19,” Hunter said. Specter smiled and plotted the course while Tech brought the system online.

“J-19?” Echo questioned.

“We know a guy,” was all Hunter explained.

“Hold tight, hun. You’re not gonna wanna miss this view,” Specter said to Omega. She could see the stars glimmering in the girl’s wide eyes; she looked up at Hunter and smirked, who winked in response. Omega held tightly onto the arm rest but smiled wide as they shot into hyperspace to their new destination, and hopefully, a safe one.

[sorya-lee]

What will happen to us ?

Character : Hunter x reader

Genre : 18+ story with fluff, little bit of angst (order 66 blah blah)

Words : 4K

Warnings : self-doubting, fear of treason, fear to fail

Author note : English is not my primary language but the one I am the most comfy with (notice me for any mistakes!) And here for all my thirsty Hunter girlies.

The Clone War drags on. It seems like it will never end. People are getting tired and starts to take side against the Republic and I, as a Jedi, am lost in the fog.

Things seems to be clouded, a strange atmosphere starts to reign but the only thing that seems to cheer me up is the fact that I always have my squad by my side.

I am in the Temple since I am a child, I am about the same age as Obi-Wan who's a good friend of mine. We trained together and gone through multiples difficulties together. My fighting style is a bit unique combining different forms, even the 7th. And I also have tendencies to do what I am told even if my instinct told me otherwise.

We are both masters in the Jedi Council but it seems I am the only one who's questionning the Jedi's doing in this war currently... Maybe that's why I have not a squad of my own. I have been assigned to multiple battalion during the war never without being involved with one. Even if I clearly had most missions with Obi-Wan and Anakin.

Then one day, Kamino asked the Jedi Council for a special detachment, they wanted someone special to lead the new "special" squad that they just created. I wasn't in the mood at this time, we just lost a battle and a lot of clones died. I am very fond of them, I always intend to make them feel unique, because that's what they are in my eyes: special. If only I knew at this time what would happen next, I wouldn't believe it a second.

I was on my way to Kamino, landing in Tipoca City, then led by the Prime Minister when I came across a little girl following an other Kaminoan. She was blonde and got the features of the other clones, but I didn't ask questions. Our eyes just met in this hallway and nothing else happened. Then we entered a room which was giving on a training room. There was a squad fighting.

They were very skilled and coordinated. They were simply fascinating. The Kaminoans explained to me that they were special clones with enhanced capacities. There was Tech, the brain of the group who possess an high intellect and he's a master of technology. Then was Crosshair who got an exceptional eyesight and marksmanship skills, he acts as a sniper and a long-range combatant. Then there was Wrecker who was much larger and stronger than the average clone trooper. He loves blowing things up, and serves as the muscle and demolitions expert for this squad. And talking about squad, there was the leader, Hunter. Hunter have heightened senses which allow him to track any subject and a lot of other things. And I was the one who was going to be their General.

The Kaminoans explained everything to me and used their numbers to designate them. I don't do that kind of stuff. We learned to know each other, I learned to not being an obstacle in their way. After all, they were special clones, why would I come across their abilities and make them less efficient?

Missions after missions, everything seemed to be going well. We weren't travelling in a classic Battalion Venator but in a ship they nicknamed "The Marauder". They came up with multiple plans named after multiple situations encountered during missions and they took a liking to disobey my orders but... Everything was fine at the end of the missions so I never hold it against them...

Then one day. No. That day. Everything was going fine on Kaller. We came to help taking back the planet from the Separatists, victory was ours. I was standing beside my squad as Caleb, the young Padawan of master Depa Billaba, was presenting the squad to his master.

Tech was rambling about something as I was observing the perimeter then master Billaba starts talking to me.

"It's a very effective squad you got there my friend."

"It is indeed. It's the best squad." I smiled proudly.

"I hope you don't cause too much damages."

"Oh don't worry they only like to use their strenght on the battle droids." I joke back.

"Are you planning to go back on Coruscant?" She asked.

"Maybe." I answered. "After the war will end. What will happen once it will be over?"

"What do you mean?"

"We will have to rebuilt an entire galaxy, to unite the systems again... I don't know if the actual Chancelor will be able to do that... But I am more worried about them." I said looking at my squad who was talking. And I know Hunter was listenning, not only because of his amazing hearing but because he took a glance at me before catching my eyes and turning away. "What will happen to them?"

She sighs and put a hand on my shoulder. "Attachments are forbidden to us, you shouldn't worried to much about them."

I looked at her intensely not understanding.

"But you know, they will be fine." She finally smiled.

I nodded. How can I not be attached to them? They saved my life more than once and Hunter... He seemed to understand me more than anybody in this galaxy. As leaders, alone, in a war they were fighting for something they didn't understand anymore. My heart was beating fast as the boys were talking with Caleb about going for another battle.

"Hey kid, you're ready? We move fast." Said Hunter in a cocky tone which makes me blush and smile.

"Good that's the only way I know." Answered Caleb.

"I think he got you there Hunter." I provocatively said to my Sergeant.

He looked at me through his helmet and I know that his look was full of kind annoyance.

"Ohoh I like this kid!" Said Wrecker.

Hunter looked at me and launch me a soft and confident "General." right before I answered "Sergeant" with a nod as he saluted me. It was our little thing everytime we came across each other or leaving one another. A little exchange of titles which was making us laughing more than anything.

As me and Depa were watching them leave, I was the first one to feel something in the Force. A great disturbance, I felt the pain of my friends. What was going on? That's when we heard it from one of the clone trooper who was from Depa's battalion : "Execute Order 66."

Then the trooper point a gun at us and Depa push me with the Force against a tree. She activated her lightsaber.

"Depa!" I screamed.

"Run!" She answered to me. Then I look to my squad, which at this moment was too far away for my liking, and to Caleb, who was young and alone. What was going on!?

Caleb stopped and looked at his master who was fighting against all the shots of blasters. I immediatly get up and ignite my own saber. The (s/c) color of my saber reflecting against me in the snow as I look at Caleb and called for Hunter.

"Hunter! Help us!"

"Master!" Was screaming Caleb.

What was I doing? This are clones attacking us I can't ask for clones to help us. What am I thinking now about my squad betraying me? I can't think straight. It was all the things that were going through my head at this moment.

I tried to defend myself against all the troopers shooting at us, tried to save Depa but she pushed me away with the Force to save me instead. Again.

"You must run!" She was screaming at us and Caleb. That's when a blaster shot hit her. I ran to Caleb and took him by the shoulders as I was trying to take him with me. "Run Caleb!" was the last thing we heard, I turned around because the troopers were coming to us next and Caleb security was a priority so I did like Depa. I stand between the danger and Caleb as I instructed him to ran away.

He ran into my squad, Hunter and the others had no weapons in hand, which was a good sign. I sensed no hostility but Caleb thought like I did first : Clone troopers means danger. So he ran away from my squad and I was deflecting blasters shots as I ran into Caleb direction.

"Caleb!" I shout. We had to run. Hunter is a very good tracker he could... What was I thinking again?!

I saw Caleb climbing a tree, I was hiding behind another one as I saw Hunter and Crosshair looking around.

"Come on down kid. We're here to help!" Said Hunter. "No!" He added when Crosshair shot with his riffle.

I couldn't believe it. I was paralysed. By fear? But what was I fearing? To die? Or to see my own squad trying to kill me?

"Liar!" Screamed Caleb. I ran away trying to be as discreet as I could.

The track continue as I saw Caleb on another tree. My com was still open and I heard the voice of Tech: "It appears the Regs have been ordered to execute the Jedi."

Oh no. I sigh with fear as my eyes widened. I didn't understand anything and I was running away from my own friends... But this?

"What? Which Jedi?" Asked Hunter. "All of them. They're saying the Jedis have commited treason." Answered Tech.

"That would explain things." Said Crosshair. How could it?! I didn't do anything. That's what I wanted to scream to them.

"It doesn't begin to explain things!" Retort Hunter. Was he sincere or... Was this a trap... I can't even sense it in the Force as everything is clouded. Even my own judgement is clouded.

"I suggest you get back here." Suggest Tech.

"Can't the General is missing and we haven't found the kid yet."

"Wrong." Said Crosshair as he shot toward Caleb. He defends himself and knock Crosshair out. I was too paralysed. I didn't wanted to hurt my friends but I had to save Caleb! Hunter threw his gun away.

"Easy, I am on your side." He said trying to appears as harmless as he could be. Caleb ran and Hunter followed him. My legs started to move on their own as I followed them.

Caleb stopped as he reached waterfalls, Hunter behind.

"Stay back." Screamed Caleb.

He took off his helmet. "Just hear me out."

"No. You killed her." He instinctively step back, my eyes not leaving Hunter.

"The others did. I am just as confused as you." He raised his hands. I wanted to trust him but it was too dangerous for Caleb and Depa's sacrifice will not be in vain.

Hunter held out his hand to Caleb then I saw the other troopers coming and I ran toward Caleb passing Hunter and I jumped. Caleb followed me as Hunter shout "No."

Caleb ran as I stood there, looking at Hunter. A look of guilt, betrayal and sadness in my eyes as I was looking at him for what I thought was the last time.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Clone Force 99? Isn't it a bit too much?" I asked my fellow Sergeant as we were returning back from our first mission. "I mean, I love 99, he was indeed special in his own way but really now?"

"What?" Said Hunter, smiling a bit. "We're not enough special to you?"

"You know, every and each clones are special to me." I smiled to him knowingly.

"I will prove to you that we're even more special. I am even more special." He said, his body close to me. His presence was insuffocating.

"Hum, by any means we're more special than Regs. We're genetically programmed to be more efficient, smarter and-"

"Yeah yeah thank you Tech." Said Hunter annoyed by his brother who interrupted us. And I laugh.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

The present day. I wake up from another memory from a time that is no more. Groggy and sad from my dream, in my all too quiet ship.

After the Jedi Purge, we received a message asking us to go back to Coruscant, that was a trap but Caleb wanted to go anyway so I let him. I have not the force to fight anymore. I am just wondering now holding the message of Obi-Wan close to my heart but still haunted by it. "Both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen."

I didn't sold my saber, I find another way to buy a ship. Who thought that I was going to end as a smuggler... I was doing a job for another trandoshan -and believe me when I say never trust a trandoshan but times are hard for everybody- when something happened. Thieves board my ship.

I run in every part of the ship, trying to protect my cargo and when I had no other choice because everything was dark, I take out my lightsaber and ignite it. It was the only light in here but thanks to the Force I was able to tackle my opponent. He was groaning from pain and I didn't recognize the voice at first. That's when I threatened him with my saber, with the only light in the room, that I saw the unique helmet design.

"Hunter?!" I say surprised.

More groaning come from the man under me. And no, it's not what you're thinking, I just hit him pretty hard and his head, even with the helmet, hit the wall behind us. He take it off and look at me confused.

"General?!" We stood there still and silent then he activate the com and said: "Tech. Call back the others and put back the electricity on. We call off this job."

I still didn't back off. I still have my lightsaber near him. Did he came for me?

"Who send you?" I say menacingly.

"General..." He tries.

"I am not in the mood for patience."

"You never were." He joke. I let him a bit too easily getting up. I am between the happiness to meet him again, my confusion to seeing him here and the fear of the last time we met.

"What are you doing here? I will not repeat myself." I say trying to avoid the shambling in my voice.

He raises his hands, exactly like last time.

"General. If you'd let me explain to you... W-we don't want to hurt you. We're not here for you, it's a mistake."

"Y-yes, it is."

"Hunter, what is it?" Another voice ask.

"Stay back!" Says Hunter glancing towards his companions. I raise my saber a bit and see the helmets of Wrecker, Echo and Tech. As I look up, I don't see the little person coming between me and Hunter.

"Hello." she simply says.

"A child?" I glance toward Hunter.

He clears his throat. "Omega. What are you doing?"

"She doesn't seems to be menacing only frightens." She says calmly. I look at her and recognize the girl from Kamino but before I could ask :

"And there it is." Says Tech, the lights coming back on.

"Thanks for cleaning up the mess you made." I says sarcastically turning off my lightsaber. "Now leave."

"Wait!" Hunter catch me by my shoulder. "We should talk."

"About what?" I say, knowing perfectly what he wanted to talk about.

"About what happened back there. That day." He continue.

I glance at the other, not seeing Crosshair. "Where's Crosshair?" I ask worried. A bit of pain crosses Hunter's eyes.

"We should head back to Ord Mantell." Says Echo.

----

"So this is the place..." I say looking around the famous parlor.

"Yeah!" Says Wrecker. Of what I could see, they didn't change... Or maybe it's just a face...

"Technically we don't stay around here too much, this place is a dump and the owner is very unpleasant." Says Tech. Yeah, no, they didn't change.

"But it's a good place to hide." Says Hunter as he sit on a seat near the bar.

"And you trust this owner?" I ask.

"They don't have much choice." Says a new voice. Then I see a Trandoshan coming to us. Remember what I say about Trandoshan? Yeah me too.

"Hello." I say.

Hunter clears his throat again. "Come with me, we have to talk."

I raise an eyebrow to him and he makes me understand with a look that he don't want to talk about it in front of the Trandoshan nor the kid.

We go in town, just us. It's been a very very long time since Hunter and I have been alone like this. My behavior is kind of unfamiliar, I am nervous and I stay away from him. We walk in an awkward silence until we reach the Marauder.

Once inside, nobody sat and we just stay there.

"So..." I break the silence. "Do you want to start to explain what happened or do you want to ask something else?" I sigh.

"I am going to tell you everything. Sit down, it's going to take a while."

And with that he explained to me everything. The Order 66, Crosshair's departure, The Empire, Kamino, Omega and the inhibitor chips.

"Maker... How could we have been so blind?"

"We were at war..."

"No I mean. The Order... That's a lot of informations. And this girl... She is a clone that you saved from Kamino... What do they want from her...?"

"We don't know. But we have to protect her." He says looking away with determination. I smile.

"Always so kind with children." He looks at me in the eyes with kindness. "I am sorry for everything that happened Hunter."

He gets up and come closer to me. "You shouldn't be sorry. It's us who should be sorry. You lost everything, you were alone and we weren't there to help you."

"It's nothing."

"No it isn't." He says firmly. "I could never erase the memory of this look of fear you had that day. When you were looking to me." He says shivering. I've never seen Hunter like this.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Still playing with this blade ?" I said.

He stopped. "I never told you to stop." I laugh.

He scoff. "What can I do for you General." He says in a low tone. The mission has been pretty difficult and we nearly lost Wrecker on this one. As a leader, Hunter was pretty worried but never told his fears out loud, as we went back in the ship, the silence was loud. I kneel before him, trying to meet his eyes and squeezing his kneel with my left hand. Not it wasn't an appropriate behavior for a General toward his Sergeant. But he needed me.

"Talk to me." I simply said.

"I am scared." I look at him, encouraging him to go on as he let go a long sigh. "I am scared to fail them."

"Hunter." I answered putting an hand on his chin to force him to look at me. Red creeping my cheeks as our eyes meet. "Don't put everything on your shoulder, I am here to help you." I smile softly to him.

His eyes got lost in mine, it seems like we're floating in the moment. Hunter was scruting me intensely as if I was the only thing valid in his space.

Then we hear someone clearing his throat, not in awkwardness but to make us aware of his presence. It was Crosshair. "Sorry to interrupt but we're arriving." I get up quickly on my feet and pass by Crosshair, red of embarassment.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I wasn't scared of you that day. I was confused. I mean... I am not going to lie to you I was scared at the start of everything but because... I didn't want to find that my most trusted men were betraying me and tried to kill me... I was scared to lose you that day... And I don't know what would have been worse... Loosing you, betraying me. Or loosing you... Because I would be forced to harm you..."

Silence. A silence was what follow my declaration. I took a weight off my shoulders. This silence wasn't awkward, it was like all the voices that were haunting me since that day just shut up all suddenly.

"Say something..." I ask Hunter, no, pleading him.

"General." He come closer to me and take my hand, his other come to my cheek. My head back off a bit in surprise at the affection, my cheeks redden at our sudden proximity.

He sighs a bit then smile softly. His smile, so endearing, so contagious that I smile myself.

"They could try to put any chips in my head, they could try to control my mind by anyway, torture me, break me or treat me like a toy, like cannon fodder, like just another clone in this galaxy... I would never ever harm you. I couldn't. I simply couldn't, because what I feel for you is far from what they believe they could do to change me."

His forehead is touching mine now, my eyes are in his, lost in his own words. My smile widden.

"What do you mean?" I say soflty, scared to break this moment. He puts both of his hands on my cheeks, raising my head slightly.

"I love you General. I've always loved you (Y/N). And being far away from you since that day was worst than fighting any battle. It's like I was half of me since that day."

I stay silent, looking at him with wide eyes, not knowing how to respond to that confession.

"Hunter." I smile. "You don't know how happy it makes me to hear you saying that." I say soflty, tears in my eyes.

He smiles back. "Does it mean..." He trails of, looking away and blushing. "That you like me too?"

I nod. "I am the happiest person alive when you're by my side. I am whole when you're with me." I grab his hands and caress them with my thumbs.

"With you by my side... Maybe things will be easier then... Maybe it will be like before again, when you and I were instoppable and always finding a way to everything."

"Hunter. You don't need me for that, you're still too harsh on yourself., you don't see how capable you are and you're blinded by the fear of failing them." I say growing closer to him who's watching me with wide eyes. "You're a good leader Hunter." I say closing the gap between our lips. Our kiss end his possibility to answer back to my affirmation. Our lips melt in a tender kiss and transform in a more feverish one when he puts his hands on my hips, getting me impossibly closer to his own body. We put every untold feelings and regrets into that kiss. One of his hand come on my neck then on my cheek, caressing it. My own hands in his wild hair, taking a full fist of it. Then, when we needed air, we pulled away but not getting away from our position, still entangled in a tight hug.

"It was my first kiss." Says Hunter.

"Mine too." I blush. "It's not a common practice among the Jedi." I joke and he laugh.

"I hope it will be the first of a long list." He says soflty, his raspy voice sending a shiver to my body.

"You can count on it. Why not getting on it right now?"

"Whatever the General like." He says kissing me again, this time more soflty, more tender, as an endorsement of reality.

After, he looks at me with an unknowing adoration in the eye and a spark of hope in the eyes, his hands cupping my face as I smile.

"What will happen to us?" I ask softly.

"I don't know. But with you. I am ready to take on the world."

The End.

[fanfic-obsessed]

Do you dream?

This is an offshoot of  Perchance to dream. While I highly recommend reading it, because I think it is neat (as the writer), I will summarize it here. The gist is that what we know as canon, starting roughly when council goes to confront Darth Sidious (though the timeline does not match exactly to reality) is a shared hallucination of the Jedi council, caused by a chemical weapon created by the separatists (which has been calibrated, using the Jedi councils’ DNA, to only affect the Jedi council).  In this Palpatine is not a Sith, rather he is exactly what he portrays himself in canon. 

In this variation the creators of the weapon make mistakes in how it was formulated. The first mistake is that it does not drag the victim quite as deep into the hallucination, in that they can interact with the real world, however they will disbelieve or not perceive anything that contradicts the world in the hallucination. The more important and far reaching mistake is that they did not restrict who was affected quite like they thought. The Jedi council was affected, to be sure, but so was roughly 80% of the galaxy and not all groups were affected equally.  There did not seem to be any rhyme nor reason to who was affected or not.  

90% of the senate was affected by the weapon, it should be noted that both Sheev Palpatine and Padme Amidala were not.  The GAR was affected at 75% of the clones not stationed on Coruscant, though only 3% of the Coruscant Guard were affected (Most of this is more horror than funny but I just want you to picture this: Random Separatist Leader: You created a chemical weapon that only affects people based on their genetic code. Scientist: …Yes. Random Separatist Leader: And it is affecting roughly 70-75% of a group of genetically identical clones. Scientist, slumping: Yes. Random Separatist Leader:How? Scientist, wailing: we don’t know!!!), every battalion has clones affected. Of the Jedi, something like 97% is affected (Because the original intent was specifically for Jedi ), including all of the council (Anakin is not affected, though Ahsoka is). The highest ranked Jedi, by experience and title, unaffected were Jocasta Nu, Depa Billaba, Bant Eerin, Aayla Secura, and Anakin Skywalker. Most of the rest of the unaffected were padawans, initiates, and younglings. 

It will only be looking back that anyone will be able to pinpoint the first indication that something is wrong. It is a simple thing, the Rodian senator mentions the ‘New Emperor’ to several of his fellows. Most of the room nods or responds, knowing what he was talking about. A few look at each other, confused but ignored. 

Before we fully look at the horror, consider this. Here Sheev Palpatine does not want to be an Emperor.  He was actually looking forward to retiring, to becoming a consultant where he could have all the influence and none of the responsibilities. Now 90% of the senate is sure he is an emperor (a human centric, misogynistic, bigot at that) and ignoring anything and anyone who tries to protest otherwise. He is being forced, largely against his will, to be an all powerful emperor who can’t actually do anything that is not based in pure evil because the afflicted will ignore it. 

There is much confusion.  We will get back to the effects of that confusion in just a moment. 

Within the hallucination Order 66 goes out. Though there are signs that something was wrong earlier they are not nearly as wide spread. This, then becomes the most defining moment of the new era. 75% of the clones, not stationed on Coruscant, fall under the control of a chip that does not actually exist. To the utter horror of the unaffected clones, the afflicted clones open fire on any Jedi present (no matter who they might have been firing at in canon). Countless Jedi survived because they fell comatose at the same time, killed within the hallucination. Handfuls of clones that otherwise would have survived died at the hands of their brothers, who were trying to protect the vulnerable Jedi. 

The 501st never marched on the temple, their battalion fell below the average with only 47% affected and without Vader to lead them, they are able to subdue the affected before it happens. However, the comatose Jedi cover every surface of the temple and for a bit it is believed that some sort of sleeping sickness afflicted the Jedi while most of  the rest of the galaxy went insane. 

The separatists are not excluded. They match the 80% affliction rate of the rest of the galaxy. Most of the leadership that is afflicted also fall comatose (read die in the hallucination). Even amongst the scientists who created the weapon (roughly 100-200 beings depending on when in development we are talking about) about 20% fell to the effects.  The remaining scientists try for 6 months on their own to reverse the effects without success.

All the while the galaxy has largely turned itself into an oppressive empire, built a rebellion (that is being secretly supported by the Emperor himself), and is both tearing itself apart and gluing itself together at the same time.  Various non affected beings, who would have died in the first few months of the empire, watch as the people they love mourn them.  More than one unaffected Senators, up to and including Palpatine, see the way a number of so called respectable beings in power act when they are given free reign (case in point, Tarkin) and are horrified.  And for those first six months no one can figure out what was going on. It is called an illness, a madness.  

Roughly 80% of the galaxy believe themselves to be part of an empire and are unable to perceive anything that would break the illusion (Anakin becomes largely reclusive, as they react as if he is Vader and he can’t take the pulse of fear when anyone afflicted sees him).  A new government has to be built, staffed by the non afflicted and weaved around the hallucination. They are building blind as within the hallucination the human rights violations start to appear and grow exponentially.   

14 months in, Jocasta Nu finds a way to access the hallucination, an old mind based force technique.  It works in that she is able to convey what had happened, what was happening within the hallucination. It failed in that she, having been dead in the hallucination, fell comatose. No one was willing to risk anyone else. In particular Anakin, as the non afflicted were afraid that Anakin would fall to Vader. They could not risk it. 

Cody, who had been afflicted, woke from the hallucination after 2 years. It was only a coincidence that he was in the temple at the time. Anakin had requested to speak with him (hoping that they could find out more about what the ‘chipped’ clones thought was going on). He would be one of 400 throughout the galaxy. It was discovered that non force sensitives with particularly strong minds could break through the hallucinations, eventually being able to see the contradictions. Anakin without a suit was one of those contradictions. Cody, upon waking, had what could conservatively be called a panic attack, and what could rightly be called a series of panic attacks so severe that it drew the attention of empaths from 6 levels away. His attack on his general, his Obi Wan (they had built a relationship during the war and had plans to marry after it was done), had been entirely real. Obi Wan and Yoda could not be accounted for, no one knew if they had survived or not. 

Between the Separatists, who rejoined the Republic 8 months after the weapon was deployed, Scientists and the Republic they were able to study enough of the reawakened, like Cody (Volunteer only), that they could start building a device to reverse the effects. 

The device is activated 10 years to the day of the original weapon.  It stimulates the brain waves matching the frequency of the awakened in anyone who was afflicted. The non afflicted gather together across the galaxy in little clumps, clutching at each other. The previous decade has changed the face of the galaxy in a way that cannot be properly articulated. The non afflicted have watch the reactions to a genocide, have seen the people they love embrace the very worst evils (or watched them rise above to fight back).  Even those who would have supported the Empire are horrified by the depths that the hallucination dipped into (Over those 10 years they have been able to get other, scant looks into the hallucination).  And this was a decade long tragedy in which everyone who was unafflicted experienced, to some extent. Tragedy is a great equalizer. 

First the comatose began to wake, family and friends or very variety sitting with them. Even those who had no one unafflicted had someone celebrating their waking in the packed rooms. Then the afflicted started focusing fully on the people around them, fully for the first time in a decade.  Spouses who had ‘buried’ their loved ones blinked to see them hale and hearty. Children that had effectively been orphaned, both as afflicted and non, found that there was suddenly a decade missing. 

On Tatooine a Jedi Master turned butcher froze. He, like all the other afflicted, had gone to work that day, never noticing as the non afflicted among them were more anxious. The oppressive darkness vanished so abruptly he could feel it, even through the shielding.  Not far away he could see a Togruta woman clutching one of his coworkers to her, who was bewildered.

An announcement went out to a broadcast system that had been built specifically for this (and Obi Wan realized he had never seen that broadcast tower before) an hour after the afflicted woke up.  It took two days to reach the Outer Rim (but to be fair, so did the ripple that woke the afflicted). It gave a brief explanation about what happened and a location that any of the former afflicted could go to register themselves, in case they had changed planets under the affliction and wanted to find their loved ones again. It was recommended that the former afflicted remain where they were, as long as they were not in danger, to keep from clogging up the hyperlanes. 

Obi Wan collected his lightsaber from the desert, and found that there was only one when he thought he had buried two. Driven by the force, he reported to the registration locations. Once his information was in the system it lit up from here to the Core. Cody was the one sent to collect him, as Anakin was helping to settle Ahsoka (who did not react well to being a decade older and having been killed by Vader). 

Cody and Obi Wan maintained skin contact for the entire trip back from Tatooine, after a decade of thinking the other lost they could not bear to be parted.

Palpatine was finally able to step down, playing the emperor had been a horrific experience for him.  He retired entirely, unable to bear the thought of power. Even if he had been interested, people still flinched when they looked at him.  

Everything that happened next was to a galaxy irrevocably changed.

[questforgalas]

Tags/Warnings: none

Words: 1.5k

Masterlist

For those who prefer Ao3

The objective was supposed to be simple: cut off the Separatist army's advance to the capital of Kaller by engaging them in a bottleneck at the mountain pass on the main road. Intel was solid, the Separatists were outnumbered, and the troopers of Jedi General Depa Billaba’s battalion could smell the victory before the LAATis landed.

Only one thing they couldn’t plan for: the desperation of the Separatist leadership. Cocky excitement soon gave way to frayed nerves as a never ending number of droid battalions marched through the mountain pass, unbothered by the bottleneck the Grand Army of the Republic forced them into, wiping out the front line before one full battalion was lost. Commander Gray assessed the field, relayed the new orders, and the lines were reformed, the clone troopers hanging onto their last tethers of hope as they volleyed back at the droids. Still,  the droids’ rhythmic, savage march pushed them back.

Bravery is a powerful tool. Desperation is its master.

The call for reinforcements went out in the night, and the troopers dug to the deepest parts of their training, the deepest roots of their honor, to hold on against the onslaught. The dark hours turned light, and like the sun rising in the sky, the hope of every trooper emerged when the transmission came in that the reinforcements arrived and were en route to rendezvous. That almost an hour ago, and while the troopers dug in their trenches, popping fire, taking down any droid in their vision, more and more took the fallen droids places.

The clones were created for war and engineered for victory. Casualties were expected. Losses weren’t. However, facing down the metallic wall steadily marching towards them, Commander Gray offered up a small Mandoan prayer and prepared to raise his rifle until it couldn’t be picked up again.

Now, like most clone commanders, Gray was a practical man. He knew the Jedi believed in the force - believed that it worked and guided the universe in ways he didn’t bother to try and understand - and he knew that desperate words muttered under helmets did more for the mind than it did for the course of their fate, but as he watched a boulder fly down the mountainside perfectly in line with the first two rows of droids, he wondered for a moment if the force really could understand him.

The boulder crashed through the droids, leaving destroyed parts and dust in its wake before flying off the edge, and a laugh erupted from the trees, following the boulder’s path. A figure the size of an adolescent gundark bulldozed its way through the next line, moving at an impossible speed for its size. The figure grabbed a droid by the throat and swung it as if it weighed nothing more than a doll, taking out three more droids with it. The figure’s laugh could be heard above the commotion, shoulders shaking with the force of it, and then it was darting off to its next target.  

This is Wrecker - A clone who never met an explosive he can’t hotwire and quivers at the idea of a stealth mission. A warrior brute whose most prized possession is the stuffed tooka doll his brother made when they were younglings. A demolition expert with a heart as gentle as a loth cat. 

As Wrecker muscled his way through the next line, another figure followed from the shadows, ducking to the side in pursuit of a cluster of droids. Moving with graceful ease across muddied snow, they wove between enemy groupings without detection. At each cluster they pass, a single shock grenade is placed on the back of the central droid. All targets acquired, they stop and turn, thumb pressing down on a datapad resting comfortably in their hand. Two balls of sparks erupted, and at once, eight droids dropped. Content with their work, the trooper scanned the field, calculating his next attack. 

This is Tech - a genius engineered for combat who prefers the solitude of tinkering on his ship. A skilled marksman who’d rather let his modified datapad be the one to shine in combat. A talented pilot whose skills can only be matched by the legendary Anakin Skywalker himself.

Mere seconds have passed since the boulder came through, and confusion takes hold of the enemy. The front line is in disarray from the holes Tech and Wrecker created, and the lesser standing B-1 battle droids begin to fall out of formation. Their heads are spinning, trying to recalculate as they wait for the next order.

 Two shadows emerge from the tree line, taking advantage of the confusion, one dashing right and the other left, focusing on the droids now lost on the battlefield. 

One prowls on the edge of the chaos like a predator picking prey. A vibroknife sitting in their hand with a familiarity that only thousands of hours of training can grant. Honed in on the separated droids, the shadow makes quick work of their remaining targets, droids meeting their fate before they can say “Roger, roger”. 

This is Hunter - An enhanced tracker with the protective instinct of a Loth Wolf. He has no match in hand-to-hand combat, but he’ll find every angle to avoid a fight. The sergeant of his squad, he carries his brothers’ fates on his shoulders on every mission. Every decision. The weight a constant companion.

Where Hunter acts with stealth, his counterpart acts with force. Light on their cybernetic feet, there is nothing subtle about how they takes out the remainder of the front wave. Using their momentum, they put all their force behind their right arm, shoving a cybernetic scomp into a droid’s central system before spinning and shooting another two droids. Sparks fly as the droid short circuits and falls into the frozen mud, but the trooper is already onto the next, systematically eliminating.

This is Echo - A devastating special ops ARC who’d rather spend his time with his nose buried in a book. A trooper with a second chance at life who’s the first to put himself on the line. A brutal strategist carrying a bleeding heart. 

The four troopers eliminate the front wave and pause to survey the damage around them, though it’s short lived. Four heads turn as more lines of droids emerge from the dust cloud. One droid raises its blaster, ready to fire, but before Hunter can issue the next order, a blaster bolt from the trees lands directly in the droid’s head. Instantly, another hits, and then another. 

Seizing the opportunity, the squad sprints into the gap, but Hunter takes a moment to look up at the cliff overlooking the field. A figure crouches on the rock, protecting the squad’s backs so fiercely that they never bother to look over their shoulders. The sergeant gives a two fingered salute, smiling when he spots the gesture returned with a dramatic flare.

This is Crosshair - Not just any sniper. The sniper. An unbeatable marksman with no equal in all the galaxy. A trooper of few words, but when he does speak, his words are deadlier than his shot. A brother whose thorny exterior lies atop unending loyalty. The destructive combination of severe and unyielding.

Together, this is Clone Force 99. The Bad Batch. The greatest squad in the Grand Army of the Republic. Possibly of any army. Five unstoppable enhanced clones who never knew a mission they couldn’t complete. Stealth or demolition, retrieval or execution, there is no one even close. Five defects who stared into fate’s eyes and said, “Not today”. Five brothers with a bond forged through trials of rejection and experimentation. They only had each other, but that was all they needed. All the galaxy needed.

But unbeknownst to them, the galaxy was changing. On Coruscant, in the heart of the Republic, a hero falls, and a darkness wakes from a century of slumber. 

Scattered across the galaxy, the commanders of the GAR receive a transmission. A cloaked figure utters three words. 

In a blink, the Jedi order is gone, and an empire rises in place of the Republic. 

The age of heroes has ended, and the Batch are thrown into a galaxy they do not understand. Forces out of their control cause a fissure between them, and they are helpless as they watch Crosshair fall into the grasp of the Empire. A year passes. Companions are gained. Standoffs pass. Offers are made. Four brothers mourn another still alive. 

Crosshair is consumed by the darkness. Fear his master. 

After a year of looking over their shoulders, the remaining Batch find their footing. One a liberator. The others civilians. The Empire’s claws far from reach. Until one day an encrypted file cracks open sealed fissures, and a brother tries to crawl from the abyss.

[jedi-lothwolf]

Day 4: Les Misérables (Survivors Guilt)

Fandom: Star Wars (Post Order 66)

Summary: Obi-wan Kenobi deals with his guilt.

    It had been years since the end of the Clone War. Obi-wan still thought about it often. He wondered how he survived or why he kept persevering.

    When he was 25 he survived a battle with a sith. As a padawan he should have been the one laying in the ground. But instead Qui-gon, his only father figure, died.

    During the war he watched his friends slowly die off until he was the only survivor of his friend group from his earlier years. It didn't seem fair. He still stood even as his men fell beside him.

    Maul killed innocent people to get his attention. He killed Satine just to get to him. Her death had been his fault yet he walked away.

    The Jedi purge had killed most every Jedi. The clones, their most trusted ally had killed their Jedi generals and commanders. The younglings in the temple had been slaughtered like cattle. They were defenseless.

    Most of the council had fallen yet he was alive. Instead of fighting, Obi-wan walked away. He hid Luke from his father; a monster he had taken part in creating. Even if by accident, there had to be something he could have done for Anakin.

    Everyone around the man died. Their ghost haunted every corner of his cave. They whispered in his ears, asking him why he survived.

    Maybe he needed to go outside. So the man walked out of the cave. He let the hot sun touch his skin. Every part of his old life tormented him. The memories plagued his life. They destroyed him in the same way he domed the people around him.

    The sun only made him hotter. He had hoped that maybe it would melt some of the guilt that had frozen him, but it didn't. Luke was around five now.

    The man had fallen into a routine. Yet nothing he tried made him feel any better. Obi-wan didn't want to spend the rest of his life miserable, he didn't want to be consumed by the tormenting memories and guilt that he had been swallowed whole by.

    Maybe a walk could help?

    Walking around, Obi-wan couldn't escape his own mind. Padme should be raising her children. But Obi-wan had let Anakin kill her. He couldn't save her, maybe no one could.

    Dealing with others survivor guilt had been easy. Obi-wan knew how to comfort Cody when his brothers died, he could help with the feeling that he should have done more or that he should have been there or that it should have been him. The jedi could explain that nothing could have been done and that his brothers wouldn't want him to feel so guilty over something he couldn't control.

    The same has gone for Anakin and the rest of his men. Obi-wan had talked to Kit Fisto when he started to feel that way and he had helped to calm Depa Billaba with the death of her first battalion. He had helped to guide Anakin in helping Rex with the guilt of Umbara.

    It wasn't so easy to get rid of the guilt yourself. Nothing helped. Obi-wan started to run. Like running would do anything. You can't outrun yourself, it's impossible. Getting away from the cave, from where his lightsaber rested, seemed like a good idea. Maybe he just needed to get away from that faster?

    It was hard to run in the sand. Stopping, Obi-wan sat in the scorching hot sand. What was doing? This was where his life was supposed to go. He was supposed to be living happily with the people he'd lost.

    There was nothing left to do. So he walked home. Tears fell from his eyes as he walked. The guilt worsened with every step.

    Being the survivor was hard. It might have been one of the hardest things Obi-wan had ever done. But there was no way to change that. The fact was he wasn't god, he wasn't even close. All the people who died were going to die and there was nothing he could do about it. Obi-wan Kenobi was just a man. No man on his own can prevent death. No matter how hard they try they can only put it off.

    The entrance of the cave Obi-wan sighed. Facing himself, he walked in and sat down on his bed. Laying down, he let every feeling drag him down until he was lying there sobbing. Sometimes you have to let yourself feel it.

    Hours went by and he finally calmed down. The feelings would live with him forever. The memories would haunt him forever. There was nothing he could change and now he had to live with it. Why he survived, Obi-wan still didn't know, but there had to be a reason. There had to be. The Jedi just wished he knew what it was.

[thecleverqueer]

Random thoughts during Star Wars Rebels “Fire Across the Galaxy”:

-Sabine flipping around dropping bombs and spray painting everything in the first scene of this episode is just great. She’s the master of leaving a mark.

-I love that Sabine, Ezra and Zeb kept that tie fighter against Hera’s orders. I also love that Sabine tagged the shit out of it even more than them just keeping it.

-F*^% the Grand Inquisitor for bringing up Depa Billaba’s death during order 66. That’s a cruel piece of shit move right there. What was little Caleb supposed to do against a battalion of clones other than run? He didn’t really have another choice. It didn’t make him cowardice, and it wasn’t really abandonment. He was a baby.

-Ghost crew is getting in over their heads, but it’s brave... and I love the level of commitment to saving one of the family.

-Ugh. I hate Tarkin… on so many levels. He’s the worst.

-Bridger is always going up into the ventilation shafts. It was such a reoccurring theme in Rebels. I wonder if he’ll continue crawling around in them in live action. It wouldn’t feel like Ezra otherwise.

-I chuckle when Chopper panics and calls Fulcrum… mainly because she specifically said to sacrifice Kanan for the greater cause and they just couldn’t (as if she could just let go of her own attachments). I can imagine the conversation:

Ahsoka: *guzzling caf, planning to blow up garrisons and studying imperial movements when she gets the call* This is Fulcrum. Who is this?

Chopper: We f*^%ed up. We’re in over our heads!

Ahsoka: I’m sorry, what? Who is this?

Chopper: Ghost crew. We’re attached to the side of the Executrix surrounded by multiple star destroyers. We’re trying to rescue Kanan.

Ahsoka: Wait. Tarkin’s ship? What!? I thought I told you guys to…

Chopper: We’re going to need backup!

Ahsoka: Goddammit. *puts down her cup of caf, grabs space keys out of her desk* Stupid f*^%ing kids. Alright. ALRIGHT! *Sigh*

-Love that Kanan lets go of his fear and really digs into the force against the Grand Inquisitor. Rocking a duel wield.

-Grand Inquisitor gives Ezra a gnarly scar.

-Grand Inquisitor is shit-your-pants scared of Vader, I guess… so much so that he jumps into that burning hyperdrive.

-Tarkin is such an arrogant piece of shit.

-Sabine’s tie fighter is bad ass AF. Seriously. I honestly love Sabine and her cool graffiti.

-Chopper always shows up right in the Knick of time.

-Ezra, “We’re a cell? Wait. Did you know we were a cell?” Yes. A terrorist cell… enemies of the state. It’s pretty badass move if you’re trying to usurp a fascist dictatorship.

-Speaking of enemies of the state… I don’t know why, but this was the moment that I completely fell in love with Ahsoka. Like, holy f*^%… not only is she a force god, but she’s fighting fascists AND she’s super hot as an adult. I’m surprised she decided against chiding the Ghost Crew for their recklessness, but whatever.

-Also l find it interesting that Kanan doesn’t completely flip out about Ahsoka descending down those steps, while totally fangirling out (as I did). He acts so nonchalant about it.

-God, I love Ahsoka.

-Kallus really is insufferable… Even if he does ultimately turn coat against the empire in favor of becoming a total bottom for his Lasat boyfriend in the end. Just. Ugh. Fascists.

-Vader. Hmm. I could really get into some Anakin bashing, but I’m not going to for now.

-Overall, this is a great episode. Rebels is surprisingly good. It’s not as gritty as The Clone Wars, but the story telling is fantastic.

[greydepa]

Why Depa Billaba & Captain Grey are my ship?

To me the most underrated Jedi Master is Depa Billaba. It's because she wasn't in the battle scene at Geonosis in AOTC, wasn't in ROTS and only had a cameo in Season 7 of the The Clones Wars. It wasn't until the Kanan comic book and the 1st episode of The Bad Batch that we learn of her death when her clones (including Captain Grey) turned on her and her Padawan Caleb Dume (Kanan Jarrus). It is one of the best Order 66 death scenes and saddest. You see her blasted by the clones a couple of times as she screams to Caleb to run. You never see her death, just Caleb running and hearing her screams and this makes this the saddest for me.

In the Kanan comic book her death is shown more as Grey shoots her in the back.

Now everyone has a favorite Jedi besides the main characters like Obi-Wan and Anakin. Mine happens to be Depa Billaba. Like Obi-Wan who treats Anakin as a brother, she treats her padawan, Caleb almost as a son but she still comes over as a badass.

Everyone has a clone ship, like Rex & Ahsoka, Bly & Aayla, etc. Mine is Depa Billaba & Captain Grey. Your going to ask why, after he just gunned her down in the back. Well many love the Bly Aayla ship even though he gunned Aayla down in the back too. Many feel Bly kept firing on Aayla to give her a quick death. For me it's different with Depa and Grey. They had been together from the beginning of the Clone Wars and he was one of the only survivors of a battle with General Grievous but had stuck with her when after she healed from her battle with Grievous and helped create a new Battalion with her. But it is in the Kanan comics, when the clones are hunting Caleb and Grey shows his real regret for what he has done and blasts the Imperial ship's control panel to save Depa's padawan Caleb.

So this is my reason, saving Caleb, it's almost like a mother and father saving their child. It also makes me feel that because Grey saved Caleb there might have been more between Depa & Grey and that's why they are my ship. They would also have made a great couple Post Order 66 AU ship.