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awkward-tension-art · 27 days

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Darkness on Umbara Chp.2 (Rex x Reader)

Chapter 1. Chapter 3.

Pong Krell

cw: Rex x Reader, Reader is a medic, incorrect military procedure, graphic descriptions of injuries, blood, swearing, death and battle, Spoilers for the Umbara Arc, Pong Krell is an asshole, reader insert, reader is gender neutral, no use of (Y/N), if i miss a tag LMK

Minors DNI, even if theres no smut

“Don’t worry about me, Doc.” A trooper, Watcher, stood. His arm had been broken and it would need a few rotations to fully heal even with the bacta.

“It’s my job to worry about you.” You smiled at him, “go on. You're all patched up.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Watcher saluted respectfully before stepping to the edge of the trench and following it to his position.

Kix sounded from where he finished up with another trooper, “You're too nice to these guys.”

“Well, I’ve found that my patients respond better to some kindness.” You snarked back, “Which is probably why everyone prefers me as their medic.”

“Maybe if you-”

Kix’s words were cut off by a howl of agony further down the trench. You heard the cries and calls of different soldiers.

“What is that!?” “Shoot it!”

Immediately chaos erupted. Someone, Jesse, tackled you to the ground. Just in time, because when you looked up, you noticed a dark, smoking burn on the trunk of a bioluminescent tree where your head had been in front of.

“Ambush!” Someone shouted out through more blaster shots.

Out of the corner of your eye there was a clone shaped burst of electric blue. His body collapsed and from it, a glowing six legged creature leapt to the ground and scuttled through the staging area. A couple of soldiers chased, shooting at the nimble thing.

Someone's down. Electricity. Heart could have stopped. Burns definitely.

You ran forward, skidding to a stop behind a large rock. Two shots nicked the stone, but you remained focused on the downed trooper. After a second you ran forward again, only to jerk back, narrowly avoiding a blaster bolt to the chest.

Two Umbarans burst from the foggy darkness and ran forward, blasters glowing through the shadows. You dove back behind the boulder, hand steady on your blaster pistol.

“Get back!” The ground shook slightly as an ARF-trooper slammed the metal foot of his AT-RT in front of your cover. He snarled, firing his laser cannons. The damn Umbarans didn’t stand a chance.

“Thank you!” you shouted up at him before sprinting to the downed trooper. His body was smoking from the heat of the electric bug. you swore, ripping off his plastoid chest piece and beginning compressions. You counted, hitting 30 before checking his pulse.

Nothing. He wasn’t moving. Brain must’ve been fried.

You tried compressions again to the same result.

Name. What was his name? Through the dark you saw a diamond tattoo next to his eye.

Vim. His name was Vim.

Another one of those fucking blue creatures scuttled over the side of the trench. The bioluminescent creature was focused on you. It screeched and leapt, sharp, crackling claws ready.

You were ready too, pistol aim steady. You pulled the trigger and scorched its tail. It missed your body and hit the ground where Anakin swiped down with his lightsaber.

“Nice shot.” He greeted you, kneeling down behind the cover of the trench. Rex was, thankfully, next to him.

“What the fuck are these things?!” you asked, keeping your head down. You technically weren’t supposed to be in the thick of battle. Plus, you couldn’t see if Kix managed to protect the medical speeder and its supplies. You had to get back to your original position.

The jedi stood, deflecting glowing blaster shots, “Dunno, but they’re definitely a pest.”

“Call in an airstrike on enemy positions.” The 501st nodded to the general when Anakin knelt again.

“Let's hope they’re not too busy helping Obi-wan!”

Rex, the ever strategic mind, continued, “There's an opening to our south,” He motioned in the proper direction, “I recommend we move all platoons off the ridge in case the airstrike over shoots.”

Get back to the speeder and get the supplies out of here.

You didn’t wait to hear more. General Skywalker usually followed Rex’s recommendation, so that's your cue to get back.

As you weaved through other soldiers, cover and the glowing plant-life, Anakin called out, just as predicted, “Everyone, move out! Now!”

Thankfully, the speeder was untouched. Nearby, an ARF trooper leaning over the edge of his AT-RT raised a shaky hand to you. He was alive.

You refused to leave him.

“Kix, where are you?” You spoke into your com as you started the speeder and moved closer to the downed transport. A blaster narrowly missed your cheek, but you didn't break your focus. At the moment, the pain was barely a sting.

“Heading south, where the fuck are you?”

“On my way.” Your hands were on the injured soldier and heaved onto the attached stretcher in a matter of seconds. Revving the medical vehicle, you sped over the edge of the trench and followed the troopers south.

The terrain was rough. You could barely tell what was on the ground as you drove. Leaning over, you put a stabilizing hand on the injured trooper, speeding over a pretty steep ridge. The transport lurched, but you managed to keep it steady.

Thankfully, the poor ARF trooper groaned when you got the speeder stable again.

If he had the energy to make noises, he had the energy to survive.

You noticed Anakin’s blue lightsaber in the distance. Next to him, Rex.

You slowed the speeder down, stopping behind the cover of dark, twisted claw-like plant life. Other soldiers had beat you there, and it seemed like most of the platoons would make it.

However, you didn’t have time to really process who was around you. Killing the engine of your vehicle, you slipped off to kneel at the injured trooper's side. Even in the lowlight, you assessed what you could.

Two blaster hits. One through the upper shoulder. Another through the thigh.

Your eyes roamed the troopers around you. Mentally, you checked off those that you knew. Jesse. Kix. Hardcase. Fives. Rex and Anakin, of course. Seemed you were right and a good majority of the platoons made it.

“Kix, I need you.” you called to him. Tag-teaming these wounds would be the best option.

Wordlessly, he lowered his blaster and got to your side.

As you worked, you heard the chatter, “All here, sir.” Rex breathed in relief.

“Stay covered, we have to hold the position!” Anakin barked, keeping his body close to the black trunk of the mangled umbaran tree.

It was quiet for a moment before Tup spoke, “Are you sure those bombers are coming?” The poor almost-shiny trooper sounded scared, but refused to show it. Jesse nudged him slightly.

There was more thick silence as you focused on treating the ARF trooper.

Blessedly, in the distance you could hear the approaching drone of the bombers. Briefly, you looked up, recognizing the distinct shape of Y-wings. And usually, wherever they went, precise explosions followed.

Just as you finished your thought, the world lit up with the burning fires of the bombs. The explosives went off, shaking the ground and illuminating everything around you. Immediately the soldiers cheered as the Umbaran forces were decimated by the air support.

“Hell yea!”

“Good ol’ Oddball! Always on target!”

“Take that Umbaran scum!”

You couldn’t help but laugh slightly. It always brightened your mood whenever the clones celebrated. Finding even the smallest amount of happiness did wonders for morale.

There was another groan and the ARF trooper tried to sit up. He raised an armored hand to his helmet, as if trying to rub his eyes, “Thanks Kix, Thanks doc.”

“Lay down, you barely just came back to the land of the living.” You gently put a hand on his chest and push him back down, “Get some rest. You need a good rotation or two before you're fit for battle.”

Kix patted your shoulder and stood, shushing you softly.

You followed his line of sight, seeing General Skywalker and your lover speaking to another jedi. You missed the first part of their conversation, but quickly put the pieces together.

“Well, I can’t just leave my men!” Anakin practically shouted in frustration. He cared too deeply to leave the 501st to someone else.

The new arrival, Jedi Master Krell…

Your hackles were raised. You didn’t know the bastard, but you knew his casualty number. You’ve read reports. Too many troops died under his command. Too many good men. His tactics got results, but at the cost of his own soldiers.

You narrowed your eyes.

“I’ll be taking over in the interim.” Krell gave a slight bow.

“Don’t worry about a thing, sir,” Rex was facing Anakin, “We’ll have this city under Republic control by the time you’re back.”

The Jedi sighed and nodded, “Master Krell, this is Rex. My first in command." Even from where you were behind him, you knew he looked proud as he practically presented the captain to Krell, “You won’t find a finer and more loyal trooper anywhere.”

“Good to hear that.” The senior jedi patted the younger’s shoulder, “I wish you well, Skywalker.” The farewell was brief and the 501st general walked to the gunship transport. Two other soldiers were going to accompany Anakin, as it lifted to the air.

You shared a look with Kix and returned to the speeder. Something tells you that everyone will be moving out soon.

“Your reputation precedes you, General. It is an honor to be serving you.” Rex stepped up next to their new leadership. The clone captain was being respectful, as he always was. Since this isn't the first time the 501st was given a different command, everyone did their best to show respect. It established a good relationship right off the bat, and allowed for better communication for the future.

“I find it interesting, Captain, that you are able to recognize the value of honor,” Pong Krell’s tone became icy. He turned, keeping his 4 arms clasped behind his back, “For a clone.”

You paused, and immediately the mood shifted.

Oh fuck no. it's one of these assholes! You looked over at Fives, his face held the same befuddlement as yours probably did.

“Stand at attention when I address you.” The Besalisk snapped.

The men stiffened and you slipped off the speeder to do the same.

Krell began to stalk forward, eyes roaming over the battalion, “Your flattery is duly noted but it will not be rewarded.” His gaze was clearly critical as he took in his new force, “There’s a reason my command is so effective, and it's because I do things by the book.”

At the cost of good men. You nearly snarled.

“You,” The jedi master stood in front of you, “Are no clone. Name and rank, trooper.”

You introduced yourself, “I’m the field doctor of the 501st. I tend to the seriously wounded and maintain the medical supplies.”

His eyes narrowed on you, “And why, might I ask, would someone with your…skill set be slumming it with the clone troopers. There are other platoons with non-clones that could use you.”

Your hand twitches, readying to swing. However, you caught Rex shaking his head from behind the General. Instead, you swallowed your anger.

“Respectfully, General, I am not ‘slumming it.’ my fellow troopers are good, loyal and hardworking men.” you answered him honestly, “I see no difference between them and I.”

Pong Krell let out a condescending laugh, “Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter. As long as you can take orders.” He walked past you, but paused to glare down at the injured ARF trooper, “Have all platoons ready to move out immediately. That is all.” He sneered.

Your new General didn’t look back as the troops prepared to move. You got back on the medical speeder and cast a worried look at your lover.

Rex sighed and put his helmet on to join Krell at the front.

This…is going to be a long campaign.

#reader insert #star wars x reader #sw tcw #the clone wars x reader #tcw x reader #tcw x you #clone wars 501st #captain rex x reader #captain rex #clone trooper kix #pong krell #anakin skywalker #umbara arc #star wars the clone wars

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fanfic-obsessed · 5 months

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It's in the eyes

This one focuses on a character I generally don’t, Pong Krell.

Now this is going off the premise that Pong Krell was not always an unmitigated bastard. It also goes off the premise that to Krell, beings that he does not at least share one recognizable trait with are not quite real. It is not particularly noticeable because he is generally only around Jedi/Force Users (with whom he can identify because of the Force), other Besalisk (with whom he identifies because of species), or beings that Krell could identify with in some way.

This is, in part, why he so easily dismissed the sentience in the clones. He does not see anything he identifies with in them. Look, he has always been a little low on Empathy, as in the ability to understand beings that are entirely different from himself, but he was trying, OK. So for the first few months of the war it goes as you would expect, Krell starting to darken over time as he spends Clone lives far too easily.

Then he gets a new batch of shiny’s, and in them is a trooper that is visibly too young. Like Krell is bad at near human ages, but this was visibly a child (physically about 8 years old) in armor. Krell is not far gone enough to not care about a child being there. He orders the child to remove his helmet only to be confronted by Jango Fett’s young face with Besalisk Eyes (set too wide for human face, a heavier brow ridge that mimics the shapes of a Besalisk’s forehead, yellow iris), he is confronted by Jango Fett’s young face with Pong Krell’s eyes.

He gets the story in fits and spurts. The Clone, called CT-9659 (still too young to choose his own name), had a mutation caused by Jango Fett's varied gene pool (going off the personal headcanon that the Mandalorian tendency to interbreed with anything even remotely compatible had left Jango with interesting DNA and that he might have appeared near human, he really wasn’t even remotely) that caused his facial features. The mutations had only started to develop in the last 6 months (1 year of development), and his batch mates had made a near herculean effort to hide the changes, so they could keep him from being decommissioned. Which culminated in them hacking some paperwork to get the clone assigned to a battalion with a Jedi (They had been trying to get him assigned to the 212th, since Obi Wan Kenobi had already developed a reputation, the clones knew that if they got CT-9659 to General Kenobi, he would be safe).

Krell…Krell is still a good Jedi, still months away from the darkness that would eat him. Because of that he is able to push his outrage to the side at the thought that the Kaminoans would dare kill someone over being Besalisk-like. Over being non human (Which isn’t quite what they were doing, but close enough that the point is moot).

Plans are made that after this battle he and his troops would escort the child back to The Temple, where Krell would register his displeasure at the culling of non-human troopers and see about getting it stopped (Krell is not yet far gone enough to convince himself that any Jedi are aware of what is going on).

As Krell and the officers begin to plan for the upcoming battle, Krell notices the projected casualty rate of the plan (somewhere around 65%, neither the highest nor the lowest that he had seen) and begins to feel uncomfortable. His mind goes back to the Besalisk eyed clone being distracted in the barracks, time and again. If one clone had Besalisk genetics, then they all did. Now instead of each life being a number in a spreadsheet, each had the potential to be one of Krell’s people.

To the astonishment of the clones, Krell adjusts the plan, dropping the projected loss to under 20% (In the entire GAR the average projected loss, depending on mission parameters, tends to be about 15%. However this figure is drastically lowered by Obi Wan Kenobi, who rejects-then re does- any plan for his mission where the projected loss is above 10%. He is an outlier and without him the average sits at about 22%). And Krell is an above average tactician, who is very good at planning that will accomplish his goals. Before this point minimizing the loss of Clones was not one of his priorities. Because they were numbers to him, not living beings. But now they were living beings, and as a Jedi he did prioritize lessening the loss of life.

They completed their mission, it took only a few hours longer than the plan that would see a 65% casualty rate. Krell almost bodily throws one of the nat born officers for a crude joke about the clones (a joke Krell himself would have made and thought hilarious not even a day before).

Upon returning to Coruscant and by sheer happenstance the entire high council is on the planet when Krell escorts CT-9659 into the chamber to see them. As Krell gently (he is actually very capable of being kind and gentle, with beings he sees as sentient) coaxed the boy’s story from him. There is something satisfying to Krell about the way every member of the High Council blanches at the child's words. At his fear of being murdered, if in other terms.

This is decidedly before Shaak Ti was assigned to Kamino. This is also early enough into the war that the High Council is not so bogged down with the larger picture of the war, that individual lives have not become blurred details (This is not a slight against the Jedi, I very much am a ‘respect the Jedi’ kind of writer, but the reality is they have been drafted into a war, and drafted at a high enough level that the High Generals have the illusion that they hold some choice, and thus culpability, for the lives lost. It is either let individual lives become blurred details to a certain extent or suffer a psychotic break).

It is decided, relatively quickly, that Shaak Ti would go to Kamino, bringing with her members of EduCorps and a few knights up for a teaching rotation, where she would take up the education of the Clones (at first). Knowing that the Kaminoans would become defensive at the implication that their process or product was in anyway deficient, instead would imply that the training the clones received was the problem (training had been the sole purview of Jango Fett and the trainers) and it was only the grace of the Kaminoans superior process that allowed the clones to be as successful as they were.

The decommissions would stop immediately (barring the truly non viable-thought it was less than half a percent, there were still clones that had mutations that would result in missing vital organs or lives that would be excruciating and measured in hours), with the argument that every clone had part to play in the war (it galled the Jedi to need to make that argument, but, while the ends do not always justify the means, the Jedi will use most means at their disposal to save lives). For instance the boy with the Besalisk eyes would be able to see in different spectrums than the standard, which could be valuable for specialized mission.

CT-9659 would be returning to Kamino with Shaak Ti (to the visible disappointment, but understanding of Pong Krell-A war zone was not safe for a child and while the creche may have been a viable short term solution, his double aging means that they do not have the facilities to care for him properly). In order to protect him while the changes were being made, Shaak would be insisting that he is her personal assistant. Pong says goodbye to the boy, but also insists that they exchange contact information, and request CT-9659 to make regular reports as to his progress.

I am not sure if it changes anything in the real long term (Vader, Order 66, or the Empire) but I know it would change things in the medium term (Krell does not fall so no Umbara).

#star wars the clone wars #fanfiction prompt #star wars au #pong krell #the clones deserved better #obi wan kenobi #shaak ti

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just-here-with-my-thoughts · 1 month

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Welcome To The Outpost: Part 2.5 - Betrayal

Fandom: The Bad Batch Characters: CT-9904 Crosshair, Clone Commander Mayday, Lieutenant Nolan Word Count: ~1640 Read Here on AO3

Synopsis: As Mayday’s life leaches out into the snow, Crosshair takes a stand.

Read Part 1.1 - Frozen Read Part 1.2 - Rise From The Ashes Read Part 1.3 - Lost Battle Read Part 1.4 - No Way Out Read Part 1.5 - Rock And A Hard Place Read Part 2.1 - Last Chance Read Part 2.2 - Broken Read Part 2.3 - Swept Away Read Part 2.4 - Grief

The hum of a shuttle soaring overhead was the first sign they were nearing the depot. Then the cargo transports came into view, flying in formation, scattering a nearby spiral of ice vultures which screeched in protest at having their serene airspace disturbed.

Crosshair kept his face upturned to the sky long after the shuttles had passed beyond the mountain ridge, tracking the sound of their engines. He heard the pitch of their engines change to a high whine, knew they must be landing.

Which meant they were almost back at the outpost.

Mayday had slumped so bonelessly against his side when he stopped, that he had a hard time jostling the man to movement again.

“Mayday… come on. We’re almost there.”

Mayday groaned as he staggered forwards two steps before stopping again, shaking his head.

“I can’t.” With a tremor that shook his whole body he crashed to his knees, sliding through Crosshair’s grasping arms before the sniper could catch him. For a moment he teetered, knelt up high, before slumping forwards into the snow.

Crosshair was at his side instantly, rolling him over, lifting his shoulders to cradle him against his chest. The commander’s body was leaden, barely able to take his own weight.

“Sorry to let you down, lad.” Mayday’s voice bubbled wetly through the vocoder, choked with remorse.

“You’re not letting me down.”

He wasn’t sure if it was a reassurance, or an instruction. From the way Mayday huffed a pained laugh, he guessed the commander had taken it as the latter.

Crosshair stroked his shaking fingers across Mayday’s helmet, dusting away snow until he could see clean plastoid. “Come on. Just a little bit further.”

This time he gave his rifle to Mayday, letting the man use it as a crutch. It wasn’t like it was needed for its real purpose right now.

A terrifying, yawning pit inside him wondered if he’d ever raise a rifle for the Empire again.

A cacophony of cries greeted their appearance as the two clones gained the edge of the hard-standing.

“Over there-”

“Look! It’s them!”

Crosshair’s gaze slid across the clean, white armour and blank black visors that stared back at him. Almost half the Imperial troopers had abandoned their tasks, gravitating towards the returning clones.

Mayday’s heartache at being forced to strip his armour paint echoed in Crosshair’s mind. The clones had fought so hard for their individuality. And here were the Imperial soldiers, disparate men from disparate worlds, all lining up to be subsumed; to dress as one, act as one, to turn their free thought over to the will of the Empire.

Crosshair couldn’t remember now which part of him had wanted that so badly. Could barely remember why he had fought – pleaded – demanded that Hunter join him.

He’d had such high hopes when it all began. The Empire promised a bright future for those who proved their loyalty. He was one of the elite, and he was going to take advantage of everything the Empire had to offer.

Him and Wrecker, standing in the newly furnished armoury. Tears glazing his eyes at the promise of the greatness they would attain.

“Step aside, step aside!”

The piercing voice shattered his rumination. Raising his head wearily, Crosshair locked eyes with the blue-eyed glare of Lieutenant Nolan.

The man didn’t cross to meet them. He ordered the Imperial troopers away, then stood and watched every laboured step that Crosshair took – that Mayday took – to draw closer to him.

The rifle barrel skidded on the hard floor, sending the gun sliding out from its position as Mayday’s crutch. The commander sagged and Crosshair barely caught him, managing to hold him upright as he walked determinedly to face Nolan.

He felt lightheaded, his consciousness floating somewhere outside his body. It was like someone had hollowed out his bones and poured a sweet cushion of sedative in there instead. Vaguely, he was aware that it was fatigue and lack of food; but that small, logical voice was lost amongst the suffocating rise of anxiety that swelled in his gut at the Imperial’s cold stare.

Mayday’s feet dragged, then caught on a seam in the ground. He dropped to his knees, plastoid clacking and cracking against the hard surface. Crosshair eased him down until Mayday was on the floor, unable to do more than lay there and pant.

He stayed at his side, tilting his haggared face up to Nolan with eyes squinting against the sun-bright sky.

Nolan merely sniffed, pale nose pink with the cold.

“About time you two returned.”

Crosshair’s breath came unevenly, staccato gasps as his sides burned with acid buildup. He’d been walking so long that now he had stopped, he could no longer silence his muscles’ screaming protest.

Still, he managed to gasp out his plea.

“He needs a medic.”

As if to punctuate his remark, Mayday’s chest spasmed in a weak, sodden cough. For the first time since the avalanche Crosshair brought his hands to Mayday’s helmet, gently releasing the seals and lifting the protective gear from the commander’s head.

Mayday’s skin was ashen, eyes rolling to whites in his head. Blood rimmed the white of his teeth and flecked his lips as another spasm shuddered through him.

Nolan didn’t move. He kept his hands behind his back, toes neatly turned out as he surveyed the fallen clones.

“I see you didn’t retrieve the crates… which means you’ve failed your mission.”

Crosshair braced both hands against the floor, dropping his head briefly between his shoulders. Then he looked up again, pain etched into his features.

“Did you hear what I said? Help him!”

The lieutenant gave an irate sniff. “Certainly not. That would be a waste of the Empire’s resources.”

Now Crosshair dropped his gaze from the lieutenant, unable to stare into those cold, impatient eyes as he spoke. He took two breaths, trying to steady his voice.

It almost worked.

“He’ll… He’ll die.”

He hadn’t meant for the plaintive note to creep into his words, but now as Mayday choked on a bubble of blood in his throat Crosshair didn’t care what the lieutenant thought of them. He leaned down, placing one hand carefully on Mayday’s shoulder and tipping him onto his side until the trickle of blood drained from the corner of his mouth, dripping into his beard, onto the frozen floor.

Mayday’s eyelids fluttered, the faintest of smiles curling at the corner of his mouth.

“Glad I got… t’meet you… Crosshair.”

The Imperial was forgotten as Crosshair pressed his hands to Mayday’s cheeks, bending to rest their foreheads together. He scrunched his eyes shut, mouth crumpling with threatened tears.

“You can’t go.”

“Sorry, lad. These things happen.”

Crosshair bared his teeth in a grimace to bite back his howl, rage at the unfairness of it all burning through him.

The commander’s voice was so faint, Crosshair had to strain to hear the scratchy words.

“Don’t give up.”

Then his breath shuddered out, an exhale without end, and he was gone.

Crosshair clawed his fingertips against Mayday’s beard, choking on a sob. With infinite tenderness he laid the commander’s head against the hard floor of the depot, then turned his desolate gaze back to the lieutenant.

Nolan merely watched him with narrowed eyes.

“He served his purpose as a soldier of the Empire,” he intoned callously.

Wracked with grief, Crosshair shook his head. Words growled up from his chest in a voice he barely recognised.

“You… you could have saved him.”

Now Nolan stepped towards him, looming over the sniper where he sagged on his knees.

“Perhaps you didn’t hear me.” His voice was thin and threaded with disdain. “He is expendable… as are you.” His ice-blue eyes narrowed with such vehement hatred that Crosshair shrank back, positioning himself protectively in front of Mayday’s body. “And if you speak to me again with such disrespect…” His gaze flicked briefly to the dead commander, disgust curling his lip. “I’ll see to it you meet a similar fate, clone.”

Crosshair heaved in a breath, brown eyes wide with agony as his gaze riveted on the Imperial’s.

“Now leave him, and get back to work… whilst you’re still useful.”

And that was it. Nolan was turning away, grinding his heel into the ground, to walk straight-backed towards the cargo pallets once more. Leaving Crosshair alone with Mayday.

Mayday. After all his promises, Mayday still betrayed him. Still abandoned him for the embrace of death.

No. Mayday didn’t betray him. The Empire did.

The lieutenant could have acted. Could have ordered the medics to save Mayday’s life.

Despairing, Crosshair tilted his head back as far as his neck would crane, gazing up into the blank expanse of the sky.

How had he been so blind? With all his enhanced sight, he hadn’t seen what the Empire was about until it was too late. Too late to undo the damage.

Mayday didn’t choose to leave him. The Empire tore him away with their callous disregard of the clones’ lives.

A lone ice vulture wheeled across the sky, it’s harsh call echoing off the mountains.

Galvanising Crosshair to action.

If things couldn’t be mended, they could be avenged.

Briefly Crosshair dropped his chest to curl in on himself, glancing to the side from the cave of his arms to scan Mayday’s face, contorted with pain. No peace in death.

He grit his teeth together at the surge of fury that summoned, and with the last vestiges of his strength pulled to his feet.

“Lieutenant.”

The word was an insult. A demand. Look at me.

The man turned, face already twisting in a scowl.

Crosshair’s left arm raised. A pistol was in his hand, the rarely-used sidearm levelled at the lieutenant’s chest.

Nolan’s eyes widened. Realisation flickered in the panicked dilation of his pupils.

It only lasted a moment before Crosshair shot.

Read Part 3.0 - Epilogue (Return To The Outpost)

Aaaaand we're done! (Well not quite... we all know Crosshair eventually returns to the Outpost, so stick around for the epilogue which will be posted in the coming days)

But we're done with my contribution to the #littlekyberthoughts Angstpril writing challenge! 10 prompts across the month of April, 1 angsty multi-chapter fic... I hope you have enjoyed reading!

As ever big shout out to writing buddies @the-little-moment and @kybercrystals94, Kyber will be providing the final fic of Angstpril tomorrow and then Little-Moment will follow up with a roundup of all our posts.

But the hugest thank you for this fic goes to my awesome teenager! When I was invited to do this challenge I didn't have a clue what to write, and had no idea how I was going to fill even one prompt, let alone all ten. Then my kiddo said, "Can you write a story about Mayday and his squad for the Frozen prompt?" and the rest fell into place! (Sorry kiddo for making you cry with Part 2.4, please forgive me...)

Have you enjoyed reading? Had a favourite chapter? Have you been with Mayday since the beginning, or did you join the story with Crosshair in Part 2? Drop me a comment to let me know your favourite part, I've had so much fun writing this fic and I'd love to know what you thought :)

#angstpril2024 #thebadbatch #fanfic #day29 #betrayal #the bad batch #the bad batch fanfic #tbb fanfic #clone commander mayday #commander mayday #barton iv #the outpost #crosshair #tbb crosshair #ct 9904 #lieutenant nolan #crosshair and mayday #crosshair & mayday #littlekyberthoughts

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ahsoka-its-all-of-us · 1 year

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Incomprehensible guide of Clone/Stormtrooper armour, ranked on sexiness

Standard clone armour, phase 1

7/10 Nice basic armour, looks sturdy enough and I like the rugged matte texture that comes with usage. The knees look a bit awkward to me, as do the ankle straps that vaguely remind me of Crocs rip. Love the helmet and the midriff piece though!

Standard clone armour, phase 2

7,5/10 Improvement over gen 1; better integrated knee pads and a funky helmet shape, although I prefer the gen 1 visor.

Standard Stormtrooper armour

1/10 was this armour designed as a toy soldier before an actual soldier or smth? It looks so clunky and awkward, especially the helmet, not to mention too smooth and shiny for a soldier with any experience in the battlefield at all, and I hate the asymmetrical knee pads. Love the implication that all Stormtroopers wear gogo boots under their armour though lmao

ARC trooper armour

8,5/10 Another improvement on clone armour. Love the heavier armoury on the forearms and shins, and the kamas and cross-body straps really seal the deal here. I’m not that fond of the pauldrons; because of how short and stiff they are they seem a little awkward to me.

Death trooper armour

7,5/10 SO MUCH BETTER THAN STORMTROOPER ARMOUR the black really works for it, and the helmet design is threatening in just the right way. LOVE the ridged texture of the undersuit. There is too much going on at the waist, though, too much equipment which makes it very bulky. I’m not a fan of the cloth pauldron.

Scout trooper armour

9/10 Definitely the sexiest armour the Empire has come up with, and also the only type I’ve found with actual wear marks on it which immediately makes it hotter. Love the contrast and combination of black and white, and the sturdy texture of the black undersuit. The shoes feel awkward to me.

Snow clone trooper armour

4/10 Lmaooo have they molten or smth? I do like that they’re all wearing kamas though.

Snowtrooper armour

2/10 A step back from clone snowtrooper armour. I like the boots, but the helmet is laughable and the fuzzy beige makes them look more like cuddly toys than fierce soldiers.

First Order stormtrooper armour

5/10 Definite improvement on Stormtrooper armour, looking less like a toy. Still too shiny and ironed out, though.

Captain Rex’s armour

10/10 Absolute perfection!!! Perfectly combines all the good elements from gen 1, gen 2 and ARC clone trooper armour, the colouring is beautiful, and it carries proof of countless won battles. Also it’s worn by Rex, which obviously makes it an automatic win

#Star Wars #the clone wars #star wars original trilogy #Star Wars prequel trilogy #star wars sequel trilogy #captain rex

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valkeakuulas · 2 years

Photo

I commissioned the lovely @anstarwar for a pic of my two OC clone troopers!

Meet CT-7362 AKA Purl and CT-7989 AKA Pocketmonster of Vehmas Squad, Green Company, 41st Elite Corps.

Purl

Purl is a knitter. He knits to keep his hands busy, to keep himself calm and to mess up with his squadmates. The number of knitting needles reveals how calm the situation is (five needles = all is good, two needles = shit about to get real). He also know how to crochet, which mean sometimes his squad mates get some extra palpitations when they see Purl with only one “needle” before they realise he’s just crocheting.

He’s relatively calm trooper if a bit grumpy, and belongs to Generation One clones. He’s got a facial tattoo that says ‘stitch ‘n bitch’. Him, Pocketmonster and Manta are the last original members of the Vehmas squad, hence the dual lines on the right side of their armors.

Purl’s bucket has tally marks that show how many times he has had to use a needle to stab a droid. If and when that happens, the second part of his tattoo becomes very accurate. He is known to rant loudly and LONG when having lost a needle during a battle, which usually makes him a bit more vindictive when it comes to shooting some clankers. (Pocketmonster will claim that Purl has stabbed Geonosian with a needle during the second Geonosis attack, although that’s a lie. He stabbed two.)

Purl usually carries with himself two different sets of knitting needles, one crocheting hook and two normal needles.

Pocketmonster

If Purl is a buir of the squad, Pocketmonster is the laidback ba’vod. Pocketmonster has seen much and he's an unlucky lucky vod.

The blue weird blob peeking behind him is the reason for his name.

As a cadet, he found this cute and jiggly blob during a relatively calm weather at Kamino and decided to take it as a pet. Unfortunately, he wasn’t aware this cute blob of a pet was in fact an alien nudibranch of DEATH and gave 85% Kamino’s clone medics gray hair when they found the thing in his pocket.

This was his first brush with death and his second one happened during his first campaign; Pocketmonster got flown away after a shockwave from a blast and was unlucky enough to have his bucket smashed/torn off badly, thus scarring the left side of his face.

Despite being relatively easygoing, the only times Pockemonster gets iffy is when Purl is being silly and decides to knit while "the kriffing Seppies are just on the other side of that ridge, Purl, if you lose another needle, I will not help you make a new one, you hear me?!"

Which is a lie, he will definitely help Purl. And Pocketmonster will offer his helmet as a yarn holder. They are good friends.

#Purl (clone OC)#Pocketmonster (clone OC)#Star Wars: The Clone Wars #fanart #MY BOYS #MY LOVELY BOYS #Clone Baby of Mine

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spacemagicandlaserswords · 11 months

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The Clone Wars 4.07 ‘Darkness on Umbara’ Reaction Take 2

I’m doing this post and the rest of these second watch reaction posts to the Umbara arc in the more live-blogging style reaction posts I’ve done for other episodes like 1x5 ‘Rookies’, 2x10 ‘The Deserter’ and 4x5 'Mercy Mission'. So much happens in these episodes and I feel like I missed a lot of it in my first reaction posts because I was going through all the emotions.

“Just like old times, Rex” WHY AM I SAD ALREADY

That is some very cool looking nose cone art on the 501st LAAT/i behind Fives. Can’t quite tell what it is but it certainly looks cool.

More Anakin and Obi Wan snark. Excellent. Business as usual then.

Well that’s not ominous at all

Naw, Rex checking in on Tup. I read somewhere that Tup was a shiny on Umbara but I can’t remember if this is canon or fanon.

The clone piloting the LAAT/i is named Hawk! Or at least he is according to the captions. Hey Hawk! More named clones! :D

“Time to lock and load” CACKLING

The walkers just leap backwards out the back of the low flying LAAT/i’s? How is this a good idea?

BOING. Yeet the walker.

I think this is the first time we actually hear what the clones are saying on a battlefield. Usually it’s just dialogue between the main characters but now there’s so many of them shouting and cheering and screaming and dying.

Rip the poor clone that jumped out of the LAAT/i and didn’t even make it onto the ground before being shot.

“The enemy could have the whole place rigged with traps.” Dammit Anakin you jinxed it.

“I can’t even see the enemy” Oh that’s going to come back and bite everyone in the arse really badly.

“It’s just a vine” Oh dear.

It’s the Umbaran sarlacc!

Fives being a badass and taking out the monster like it’s nothing. That was quite clever thinking in terrifying circumstances for him to keep his head and figure out he needs to get the monster to eat the explosive.

That shot of the trenches definitely reminds me of WWI and II. They’ve even got the troopers leaning against the sides with their blasters poking above the top.

“Maybe… back in the day” Dayum Rex, there a lot of feeling in that one.

Surely an ambush and skittering assassin bugs would be something that Anakin would sense in the Force?

Lmao @ Hardcase trying to take out the bug with the blaster equivalent of a rotary canon. That’s like taking a flamethrower to a spider.

Fives have you been gargling gravel or something?

Well at least Anakin got rid of the assassin bug. Again.

That shot of the bombers and Odd Ball bombing the ridge and the ensuing explosion definitely felt like a reference to the Vietnam war.

Ah great, fuck face has arrived. Fuck off Krell.

Lol the ominous music at Krell’s arrival was definitely not foreboding at aaaaaaaaall.

“You won’t find a finer or more loyal trooper anywhere.” DAMN STRAIGHT

How dare you impune Rex’s honour. How dare.

Cackling at Fives look at Rex immediately after Krell buggered off. He is so unimpressed.

Something about Fives’ voice is very… husky.

“The men don’t need rest” ah fuck off

Oh you did not just address Rex by his fucking number

Is this where Rex got his dramatic flair for disappearing into the fog like he did in ‘Battle Scars’ in The Bad Batch?

I just had a heartbreaking thought. Is Fives here because Echo is gone and he doesn’t have an ARC partner (and twin) anymore? So Rex is doubling as his ARC partner for now until Jesse ends up as the other ARC in Torrent and the 501st? Do ARCs have partners and come in pairs? More angst for this already angst riddled arc (in more ways than one). Yay.

Is this Phase 2 clone armour? I think it is.

Poor Rex is trying to be diplomatic and balance dealing with Krell while also showing his men that he understands their concerns as well. I do like Fives’ view on this. He’s very ‘wear your heart on your sleeve’. I also loved that little exchange, you can really tell all of their different personalities just from that conversation. Hardcase is so gung ho, bless him.

“It’s too quiet out there.” Tup you precious anxious little bean

Rip Oz and Ringo

“You wanna piece of this” Hardcase living his best ‘blast everything’ life

“I think Hardcase made ‘em mad.” CACKLING

Damn, Tup just taking out that Umbaran with a flip and a point blank blaster rifle shot to the face

“Make ‘em eat heat!” Hardcase is definitely in same vein as an 80s action hero

Rex just casually dual wielding with a horizontal grip like it’s nothing. Sir, you are showing off.

I would let Fives flip me over his shoulder and pound me into the ground. And then thank him for it. I have watched that part multiple times and it does not stop being hot. And the way he just casually stands up all cool and deadly and puts multiple blaster shots into the Umbaran. Sir, please contain your badassery. @nobie also has a fantastic gifset of this moment

Rex’s little flippy roll straight after this made me realise that he and Fives are fighting together. Oh Echo.

It’s almost jarring how noticeable it is that there isn’t a Jedi fighting alongside the clones. I couldn’t quite pick what felt off the first time until someone (Fives, I think?) mentions it later but it’s so obvious now.

“Ha, ha, ha! Where ya goin’?” Hardcase is having the time of his life atm

Did Krell just shoulder check Fives?!

You can't jab Captain Rex in the shoulder like that!

Fives saying what everyone is thinking there. Also, what kind of Jedi threatens a clone with a lightsaber? Oh that’s right, a Sith.

Rex being an absolute badass

“I think he almost complimented you.” CACKLING

Fives and Rex just casually snarking while in the middle of a battlefield

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triscribeaucollection · 5 months

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@foxstronaut: #YEAH SO I DID IN FACT WANT TO SEE IT#this is so good……this au just keeps getting better……….tysm for the link to this post!!#the wider context of the time travel……the fallout of bens betrayal…..#positively eating this up#also if i can ask- what is the ‘shereshoy’ mentioned in ur tag? :0

Shereshoy is the capstone of my Vod'e An Star Wars series, which is ALL about time travel, but I keep copy-pasting the intro scene into different AUs because it is. Definitely one of my favorite bits of writing to date.

Here's the series summary:

Have you ever seen a time traveler dropped into the middle of someone else's butterfly effect? How about several dozen someones? AKA I nabbed all my fave clone troopers and sprinkled them into a much happier galaxy, with a touch of violence on top. As a treat.

Aaand just for laughs, here's the intro scene in question:

---

The Force screamed in the middle of the night, and Ahsoka lurched awake with one overriding thought: not again.

Both lightsabers immediately flew to her hands as she rolled out of bed - boots and outer robes left behind in her sprint for the door. For the first time since constructing her own hab at Luke’s school, Ahsoka regretted putting herself on a neighboring ridge instead of down in the valley among the students.

Even as she ran, the Force flickered with another youngling’s death.

Beams of red light in the darkness, matched to knots of Dark power, drew her forward at even greater speed. Bounding off rocks and trees, the togruta remained nearly silent with every leap; she instinctively shielded herself with the Force to mask her approach, until the moment she burst out over the heads of three Sith acolytes, and let her own power flare.

Their helmeted heads snapped upwards. In the span of two heartbeats, her white sabers slashed, and those same heads fell to the ground, their bodies following after a brief pause.

Ahsoka landed in a battle-ready crouch, positioned defensively over a boy collapsed on the ground. When no further Sith revealed themselves, she deactivated and tucked away one lightsaber, freed hand reaching for the teenager at her feet. “Jacen?”

“I’m okay,” he rasped, heart pounding hard enough her lekku could feel the vibrations. “What- what’s happening?”

“Another Purge,” Ahsoka said, fighting hard to keep her voice level. “Can you feel Ezra?” After a moment’s pause, his face scrunched with desperate concentration, Jacen nodded. “Then let’s go. I’ll watch your back.”

The boy staggered upright, and led her around to the far side of the school buildings: student sleeping huts, a kitchen and meal hall, storage and laundry and library. Most of them bore scorch marks and other damage, while further up the valley, the actual temple where Luke handled meditation and combat training burned.

Storm clouds rumbled overhead, an echo of the fury roaring in Ahsoka’s mind. Twice, cracks of lightning revealed fallen bodies as she and Jacen ran past.

Another set of Sith attempted an ambush, only to falter when they registered her white lightsabers. Ahsoka didn’t hesitate to leap forward and deal with them swiftly, before any attention could be turned to the padawan beside her. Jacen, thankfully, didn’t attempt to join her, nor did he comment afterward - but his Force-presence shivered and pulled in even tighter on itself.

The next enemies they came across were a squad of stormtroopers, concentrating fire on a solitary figure, who deflected incoming plasma bolts and shot back his own with the same weapon. Ahsoka could sense two more younglings hidden behind Ezra’s billowed cloak, and increased her speed.

One trooper spotted her mid-charge. He and his neighbor turned to shoot at the new target, but their bolts went wild, too far off the mark to even require deflection. Ridiculous, Ahsoka could hear in her mind, as she spun and slashed, No brother would have gotten off Kamino with aim like that; do they even bother training these shinies, or just hand ‘em armor and a blaster and a new set of orders?

Faster than droids, but not nearly as fast or coordinated as clones, which meant Ahsoka carved through the stormtroopers within moments. As the last blaster fell in pieces to the ground, she saw Jacen dash past to crash against his favorite teacher with a desperate hug. Ezra wrapped an arm around the boy’s shoulders, the other still holding his lightsaber. “Ahsoka?”

“Get to my ship,” she ordered, as another peal of thunder rang above their heads, and the first few raindrops began to fall. “Don’t wait for anyone else, just take off and get to safety.”

Expression grim, Ezra nodded, and turned to drop into a crouch. He helped Alora get to her feet, the girl holding Grogu against her chest. “Pypey?”

The teenager shook her head, headscarf gone, face covered in tears. Ezra didn’t waste any more time before hustling her and Jacen off, towards the hidden landing pad where they kept hyper-capable craft. Ahsoka barely waited before hurrying onward again.

She passed more bodies; some students, some stormtroopers, the occasional Sith in black and red armor. The rain began coming down harder, turning the ground slick with mud, dragging visibility down to mere feet and severely impacting how much Ahsoka could sense with her hollow montrals.

But the Force didn’t falter. Every leap took her from one mostly-stable spot to another, following further death knells and surges of power, all the way up to the front steps of the old Jedi temple set into the mountainside. All the way to Luke.

Despite his much smaller stature, he moved like Anakin, and she could feel the intense emotions racing through him. One trooper after another fell, Luke refusing to let any of them put so much as a single foot on the steps into his school, his Academy. More bodies sprawled across the stones behind him; only one still flickered faintly with life.

Ahsoka took over the fight.

She landed ahead and just to one side of Luke, better positioned to defend the one student still gasping for breath. “Go! Take her and go!” Her fellow Jedi hesitated, clearly torn between multiple directions. “She’s dying, Luke, take Jaina and go, NOW!”

His Force-presence flared, then settled, decision made. Ahsoka felt the man lunge, scoop up his wounded student, and bolt into the Temple. She knew he’d follow a secret route out to the far side of the mountain, where an overhang sheltered his old X-Wing. With any luck, Artoo would be waiting, engines already fired up and ready to take off.

Even without luck, Ahsoka would buy them enough time to escape. Raindrops sizzled off her lightsabers as she swept them through the air, evaporating into steam that trailed after her every movement.

And Ahsoka moved.

#star wars #vod'e an series #ahsoka tano #time travel fixit #shereshoy #which was SUPPOSED to be the final installment #but then haat ijaa haa'it happened #and who knows when that will be finished #but that's just individual snippet chapters #the full plot of the series is Done and Dusted

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jadegretz · 4 months

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The Resilient Padawan by Jade Gretz

Ahsoka Tano surveyed the desolate battlefield with a frown etched on her face. Skrell Sector, once abuzz with the clash of droid armies and the stoic resolve of the 332nd, was now eerily silent. The air, thick with the metallic tang of burnt metal and the cloying sweetness of decay, hung heavy on her shoulders. Gone were the standard-issue blasters and charred droid husks she expected; instead, the ground was littered with shattered visors and mangled armor, eerily devoid of the bodies they once housed.

A shiver skittered down her spine. Her training had taught her of the horrors war inflicted, but this felt different. It was an absence, a chilling void where life and camaraderie should have pulsed.

A flicker of movement caught her eye. A lone trooper, his blue armor cracked and blackened, lumbered from behind a shattered turret. His posture was stiff, unnatural, his movements jerky and devoid of the grace she associated with clones. As he drew closer, the horror solidified. His vacant eyes, milky white orbs within the scarred helmet, stared ahead without seeing. His skin, visible through the cracks in his armor, was a sickly pale, stretched taut over sharpened cheekbones.

He stopped before her, the silence broken only by the rasping sound of his labored breaths. His gaunt hand twitched, brushing against the blaster at his side. Ahsoka reached out, her palm outstretched in a gesture of peace.

"Soldier," she called out, her voice echoing ominously in the deserted landscape. "Identify yourself."

The trooper remained motionless, his vacant eyes staring through her as if she were a phantom. Then, with a mechanical click, he raised his blaster and aimed it at her chest.

Adrenaline spiked. Ahsoka, her lightsaber already humming to life, deflected the shot with ease. The blaster bolt ripped through the air, carving a glowing furrow in the sky before detonating harmlessly against the distant ridge.

The trooper remained unfazed, his aim relentless. Ahsoka danced through a hail of blaster fire, each shot painting the air with streaks of emerald green. The air crackled with the c …(see the rest of the story at deviantart.com/jadegretzAI). For more supergirl, chun li, batgirl, tifa, lara croft, wonder woman, rogue and much more, please visit my page at www.deviantart.com/jadegretzai - Thanks for your support :)

#ai #aiart #digitalart #jadegretz #fantasyart #fanart #beautifulgirl #aiartwork #aiartcommunity #ahsoka #ahsokatano #jedi #starwars #starwarsart

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saltyladynightmare · 2 years

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Jiliu AU 8.1

Beginning, Previous, Next, Masterlist

A/N:

Long time, no read, my dear audience. I could give you many, many excuses, but I won't. I'll spare you the salt. I hope this chapter, long though it might be, makes up for some of the wait. I have missed writing. More is to follow.

Warnings:

Anakin, Rex and Jesse all think they know things but they don't, even though they can now technically read each other's minds. My typical grammar, spelling and punctuation mistakes, medical inaccuracies, my attempts at writing panic attacks (or the left overs of panic attacks? Was that last chapter? IDK, there is so much here. It might be anxiety????), the clones' situation in general. Mention of starvation, over working, sleep dep, and all the other fun times the Guard go through. Evil Rats.

Also. I cannot write Hardcase to save my life. I love him, but I don't understand him. It is Becoming a Problem. It is incredibly upsetting. If anyone has any character study recs for him, I would be very happy to read them.

~~~~~~

The General handed one of the many, many datapads scattered across the table to Ridge, gesturing expressively with his hands, mouth moving a click a second.

Rex sipped at the water that was so important to his jetii, watching his men and their General interact thoughtfully.

They were reviewing Skywalker's ideas for shielding. The General had vetoed his earlier 'solar system' idea himself for reasons that weren't entirely clear to Rex—something about closed circuits?— but had quickly moved on to explaining a technique he was describing as layered mirrors. While he talked, he swiped through no less than fourteen different datapads scattered across the table top, leaving them open to various documents from the Jedi Archives that apparently supported his idea. As if any of them cared about what the holobooks said.

For his part, Rex had taken a step back.

He had never seen General Skywalker like this outside of the heat of battle, when he shed the cloak of Adviser and Force Sensitive Wild Card he had wrapped himself in so tightly since—Rex really, really hoped—well before he had been assigned to Torrent.

Oh, sure, Rex had seen brief flashes of it in campaign planning in the three weeks he had known him, but it rarely became more than an interesting fact about the local culture that revealed where the heaviest defenses would be, or pointing out what the air currents must be with the land scape being what it was, and even a warning to avoid a then-unknown droid infested valley once.

Anakin Skywalker, newly Knighted Jedi General, adamantly left the planning to Rex and his Lieutenants.

If he was honest with himself, and Rex tried to be, the only reason Rex knew Skywalker was holding himself back was because of what happened when Rex's plans failed.

Every time, without fail, General Skywalker stepped up, and started barking orders. When they needed a miracle, he pulled one out of thin air, or possibly even the Force. As a suicide company, they often needed miracles. Somehow, someway, it worked out better than Rex could have ever hoped...even if the General's plans were more than a little fish-brained. This last mission was just the latest in a string of bad missions.

Bottom line was that it worked. Every. Single. Time. Rex didn't understand it, but he was well past the point of caring now.

He just wished...he could have a genuine conversation with the mind that could spit out fully formed strategies between one moment and the next. Except the General had stepped onto the Resolute with walls sealed water tight around his center.

Then-Rex hadn't cared. Here was just one more being for him to work around. Here was an obstacle that could and likely would order his vod'e to their deaths if given half a reason, or even no reason at all.

Then-Rex was wrong.

Rex had asked himself more than a few times on various missions if his attitude been the thing that well and truly cut him off from the General. Was it something Rex had done? Or was it a learned behavior from well before Rex had ever known Anakin Skywalker existed?

Rex knew which he hoped it wasn't, even if the alternative was worse in regards to the General's life before Torrent, which was already looking pretty bleak to begin with. Lonely.

Kix's exhausted voice draws Rex out of his thoughts. "It all sounds feasible to me, General," he said. "How should we begin?"

The General nods. He was...nervous, Rex realized with surprise. Anxious, almost.

"We can try the shielding in a little while, then, when you've all settled a little more," the General says, no hint of his nerves in his voice. Kix didn't look at Rex, but he could still feel the glare. Rex narrows his eyes at the medic. What was he supposed to do—convince the telepath that they could handle an experiment not even half an hour after he'd sliced into their heads? Right. "In the mean time, we have a few decisions to make. There are choices. We need supplies, and from what I can tell, we aren't getting them, and we won't be." Ghost Blue eyes, only a few shades off from Torrent Blue if their paint looked like it glowed, flick from Vod to Vod.

They nod in agreement, because denying it would do them and their vod'e no favors.

"Our first choice is this: we can either make do with what we get..." The General trails off, near buzzing with the nervousness he wasn't showing. When they don't say anything, simply waiting, he continues. "Or...we get those supplies outside of...official channels."

Rex's spine snapped straight. What?

Jesse cleared his throat. "That's...not a bad idea..." he said quietly.

Ridge crossed his arms, frowning. "Maybe not, but how do you propose we do that?"

The General shrugged almost helplessly. He probably hadn't expected them to take him seriously. It was a trend Rex might've actually hated. Admittedly, if they had been any other group of Vod'e, he likely would have had his work cut out for him convincing them to take this course, but they were Torrent. They had been on their own for long enough to seize any chance to add any amount of padding separating themselves and Death at every opportunity. "I have some ways...I know some people," he admitted sheepishly. "It takes work, but," his eyes met Rex's, and his mouth curved into a hint of a smile, "I don't think any of you have a problem with that."

They did not.

They couldn't afford to.

Denal watched the General somberly. "If we had been assigned to another command, were you planning on giving us this information?"

Anakin shrugged again, and he ducked his head down uncomfortably. "I was going to direct you to Guide. He's a Vod in the Coruscant Guard—"

Rex blinked, baffled. Why would he direct them to a Corrie?

"—and I've shown him a lot of...this kind of thing." The General fiddled with some of the wires on his table. Rex watched his fingers, tracking the slight hitch of the new mechanical fingers. Where had his other mech hand gone? It had been a much better quality. Rex pointedly ignored the insistence in the back of his mind telling him that the General did not fidget, that for him to be doing so now said /something/, even if Rex did not know what. "If you decide this is a good way to go, I'm still going to involve him because I...still can't leave this room without having a seizure."

Everyone winced. Coming out of hyperspace had been unpleasant for everyone.

The General continued, unbothered. "To get raw credits, sabacc or other card games are possibilities, as is betting on various pod races, though the latter is a lot more likely to get you arrested. Credits aren't really necessary, because several of the people I'll be sending you to are usually more than pleased to trade services for goods," he explained, fingers twisting wires and fingernails screwing tiny screws in place. Was he actually building something? "Those goods can then be traded for other things that we can actually make use of, or even trade again for something else."

This all sounded very good. Rex really only saw one rather major obstacle.

Jesse piped up, voicing Rex's thoughts. "We may have issues getting to those places without you, sir." He met General Skywalker's eyes unflinchingly. Warning of danger ahead was his job as a scout, and the General had always heeded him before. "Not every place is as welcoming as the Temple."

The General nodded in agreement, then said rather dryly, "Helmets or masks with hoods are high fashion in those parts."

That...made sense.

Rex's men made their own noises of understanding, and the General went on.

"There are more places that are clone friendly than just 79s, Jesse," Skywalker—and it was Anakin Skywalker saying this, not General Skywalker—told him with the upmost seriousness, "and if we do this thing, than you're going to be visiting quiet a few of those places. Even if those places are homes of people who are more concerned about whether or not you take off you shoes before leaving the foyer, than if you have a perfectly unique face."

Hardcase fiddled with the cuff of his gloves. "Foyer?" He asked almost hesitantly. As hesitantly as Hardcase was about anything.

"Mm," The General hummed. "Foyer. There's a woman, an older Rodian, named Miz. Met her a few years ago, and fixed her air filters and cooling unit. Very good shot with her pistol, and vicious about keeping her spaces clean, so if you don't take your shoes at the door, she will shoot you point blank." Rex would be concerned about how amused the General sounded, but he had seen his jetti do and say crazier. "She's one of the better people at pointing me in the right direction when I'm looking for something in particular."

He looked them over them while they processed this.

One of the biggest challenges Torrent faced with every mission was limited medical supplies. Only having four official medics didn't help, but they could work with that. That being said, no medic, however capable, could do much of anything without even basic supplies, like bandages.

Another obstacle was weaponry. They had blasters for every trooper, but amo ran dry in the middle of missions far more often than anyone was comfortable with. Energy cells could be and were recharged before, during and after missions to alleviate some of that strain, but there was only so much they could do when the standard issue energy cells they were given stopped holding charge every five or so recharges.

Food was...also a concern. There was only so much they could do to stretch rations when under fire.

This...could work.

Rex's bones just about turned to gel, and it was only sheer willpower that kept him from running shaking fingers over his buzz. He had known Torrent had been missing out with the General holding himself back as he had been, but he will admit he hadn't realized the true extent of that truth until now.

Thank the Force Skywalker had finally decided to accept his place among them.

Maybe now they could show him what support felt like on the other end of it.

"How are you feeling now?" The General broke the silence that had settled over them. "Are you ready to learn how to shield a bond?"

No. They were not.

"As we'll ever be, sir," Jesse said anyway.

Hesitation touched the skin between the General's eyebrows. He had, of course, heard what they weren't saying, how they very much did not want to shield anything much less their brand new bonds, but visibly steeled himself, and began explaining the shielding process her had lead Rex himself through earlier.

Rex knew why the General was so insistent on the shielding; he did. He didn't want his jetii experiencing his nightmares either. This knowledge did not make forming and then /holding/ a shield up any easier.

Mind to mind wasn't quite the same with a wall between the participants.

Hoping to help his vod'e with this uncomfortable process, Rex wordlessly passed his understanding of Bond shielding along. The thanks they send back to him in the slant of their shoulders spoke volumes.

Eventually, all of them manage to erect 'thin' shields over their 'side' of the Force Bond under their own power. If the slight crinkles between eye brows, or slight dips in the corners of mouths and the slant of armored shoulders was anything to go by, each and every one of them was just as unhappy with the success as Rex himself was.

Curling into himself almost apologetically, but also looking like he didn't regret making them learn to shield the bond, the General rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. Rex caught his gaze, and held it. The General blinked at him, questioningly. Rex blinked back slowly.

What next, General?

The General stared into Rex's eyes blankly for several seconds. Rex watched in fascination as thoughts zipped through Skywalker's eyes faster than Rex could track. Raindrops on Kamino.

Anakin really wanted to know what Rex expected from him.

The thought flew out of nowhere to nail Rex right in the forehead, and he flinched back.

What in haren was that?

While Rex flailed mentally, scrambling, a new thought struck like lightning. Rex froze, a looming sense of terror rising to curl above him. He shoved it away. His vod'e's head snap around to pin him in place with glares of various intensities. Hardcase missed the mark entirely, but Denal's was particularly searching, and Kix's, as always, was by far the most fiery. He ignored them.

What could they do? Test it.

Skywalker—and he was Skywalker, Rex forcefully reminded himself, as that is how he introduced himself, and so that is what Rex would call him—was the one to voice it.

"If you can barely stand some of the lightest shielding I have ever seen..." he said slowly, "how are you going to handle having two heavy-duty artificial shields between us?"

Jesse swore. Hardcase swallowed hard, eyes darting from Vod to Vod before settling back on Rex again. Ridge stiffened, and Denal paled. Kix, the mir'sheb he was, just grimaced, not particularly surprised.

It would be nice if Kix would share his thoughts more often, Rex laminated to himself. If only so things would stop taking Rex by surprise so often.

Rex gathered himself, just long enough to feel more solid, then said what they were all thinking anyway. "We'll have to send two out to test it." The words came out of his mouth as anything did, but the film they left on his teeth and tongue was bitter. He put the glass of water, half finished, in a clear spot on the table. His fingers quivered slightly as they left the glass, so he curled them into his palm.

What else could they do? It wasn't like they could stay in this room forever. They had to go back to the rest of Torrent at some point.

Its not like they hadn't all lost vod'e before—they could survive it again. It would only be temporary.

The glaring, having slipped slightly at the General's question, snapped back to him, stronger than before.

Kix caught his eye, and Rex forced himself to breath, even as Jesse pulled Skywalker's attention to himself.

In, two, three, four, hold, two, three, four, five, out, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

The General is fine, Rex told himself. He doesn't feel dead anymore, hasn't since he had dropped whatever shield he had put up before. He's just...weirdly flat right now.

Distant, almost. Shielded.

It's not natural.

Rex shoved that thought down as far as it could go, and buried it under all the other oisk he wouldn't live long enough to deal with.

The General did not need to hear that. Ever.

Forcing himself to put down roots in the present, Rex turned his attention to his jetii, ignoring the ifs-ands-maybes clamoring for his consideration.

The General blinked, surprised and something else Rex couldn't name. Rex waited, mind carefully blank. The General's eye flick from Jesse, to Rex, then Kix, and back again. "Yeah," he said slowly, "alright. I can comm someone to show the pair around."

"That won't be necessary, sir," Denal said. He looked up from the datapad he had been scrolling through. The one the General had handed Ridge on shielding techniques, if Rex recalled correctly. "We downloaded the Temple map to our buckets when we were transporting you here."

The General raised his eyebrows. He had questions; Rex saw them. He didn't ask any of them. "Normally not," he agreed instead, "but if the chosen two go out and collapse, I imagine things would go much more smoothly if they had someone with them who knew to drag them back here, than if they didn't."

Denal tipped his head in silent acceptance. "Good point, sir."

Looking faintly amused, Skywalker said, "I have someone in mind for that," because of course he did, "but, ah—" at this, his eyes slid hesitantly over to Rex, then away again. "Should we first test my mirror shield idea to see if maybe we could get used to the feeling of shields? Those ones I can at least drop in a second," he offered.

The terror spiked again, but Rex stomped it flat. He forced himself to look at this logically. Rex was very good at being logical. He had raised himself to be that way, to compensate for his defect on Kamino.

He was very good at being logical. It never got easier.

"That is probably," the words grind on the way out, but they do come out, "the smart thing to do," Rex agreed carefully. He had everyone's attention now. Pieces moved together like rusty machinery, but he got them to fit. As he picked up speed, oxidized metal flaked off, smoothing the process. He nodded along with his thoughts as a fuzzy plan took form. "You said before, that your shielding idea was like overlapping armor pieces."

Skywalker nodded, eyes locked on Rex.

Rex raised his chin, and met him head on. "I take point."

Skywalker grinned. "Don't you always?"

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