Chapter 1: Escaped
(A/N: I do NOT own Star Wars, no matter how much I WISH I did!)
Commander Fox sat in his room and removed his boots. He had finally been granted some time to rest, and he was going to take the opportunity to sleep. He rubbed his foot as soon as the first boot was removed. He hated new footwear. It was horrible to try to break in the white leather, as it was made for durability and could last for a LONG time.
Fox was about to pull of his helmet when shouting came through the comm link followed by blaster fire.
"Shab." Fox muttered as he began to get up. Someone slammed a fist on the door to his room, causing him to jump.
"Stupid rookiees." He growled as he pulled his boots back on and opened the door, stepping into the hall. One of his newer guardsmen, Cards, stood at attention.
"What?" Fox demanded.
"Sir, one of the prisoners is escaping. He is heading for..." Fox held up a hand.
"Who, what, when and where is all I want to hear at the moment." He ordered in annoyance.
"It is the traitor known as Slick and..."
Fox was running down the hall at the mention of the clone traitor, unholstering his hand blasters as he
went, looking back at Cards who was hurrying after him.
"What happened?" He demanded.
"I don't really know Commander, just a little while ago I heard shouting and then someone shoved me over as he ran past. He is being pursued, and is currently heading for the lower levels." The clone answered, trying to keep up with his commander and keep a tight grip on his
shield at the same time.
"Set off the alarms! Why aren't they on?" Fox demanded in annoyance.
"They have been disabled for this floor, sir." Cards answered, and Fox rounded on him.
"Then Slick has obviously been out longer than a few minutes!" He shouted. "Either that or he's had some help."
Cards looked at him as Fox began calculating in his mind. "I want all units alerted. Get Wolffe's Wolfpack down here, and I want you to get Hound and his mutt, whatever-it's-name'-is down here." Fox ordered.
Cards saluted. "Yessir." He answered, turning and running off in the oppossite direction.
"Cards!" Fox shouted, causing the youngster to turn around. "Lend me your shield, will you?" Fox called. Cards threw the steel toward him, Fox catching it from the air and he turned toward the prisons.
He met up with Hound a few minutes later, and someone had gotten the alarms back on line, if the noise wasn't already warning everyone. Several groups of clones were combing the halls and prisons for the escapee. Fox could see Coruscanti Guards, a few of the Wolfpack and
Prison Guards searching.
"Where do you want us looking?" Hound shouted above the noise.
"Take your dog outside! He may have already made it out!" Fox shouted back. "I'll get some others together and meet you out there!"
Hound saluted and hurried off, straining to hold his mastiff in check as it got excited by all the noise.
Fox gathered some of his guard: Jek, Grade and Bleak and led them out to where Hound already had his dog searching for Slick.
"What do you have?" Fox asked the clone, who was focusing intently on his mastiff.
"The ground is a bit damp, but Grizzer doesn't seem to be picking anything up..." Hound paused as the mastiff barked loudly.
"Wait a minute." Hound knelt next to the mastiff that was sniffing one specific dry patch of ground excitedly. "I think that-" Hound was cut off as Grizzer bounded forward, cutting off Hound's sentence as the leash wrapped around his wrist grew taught, dragging him after the dog.
"Don't let him go, Hound!" Bleak shouted, running after the two.
"I'm trying!" Hound shouted back, trying in vain to regain his feet.
Jek, Bleak, Fox and Grade ran after the dog and his handler, trying to grab onto Grizzer or Hound before the clone could lose his grip on the leash. Bleak jumped for the leash and grabbed hold of it, getting dragged along with Hound as Grade jumped and grabbed Hound's legs causing the clone to release the mastiff. Bleak got his shoulder dislocated when he hit the corner of a building with the point of the shoulder, causing him also to release the leash, Grizzer running off into the darkness.
Fox swore and stopped next to Bleak, who groaned.
"I'm fine, sir, just get that stupid dog!" He growled, rolling to his feet, his good hand holding his shoulder.
"I think that Grizzer's gone for now." Fox answered, grabbing Bleak's arm and relocating his shoulder.
"No he's not, sir!" Grade's voice caused them all to look up. The clone had gotten a hold on the end of the leash and wrapped it around a wooden stake lodged into the ground.
"Good job, Grade!" Jek applauded as he hurried to where the rookiee clone lay on his stomach, grabbing onto the leash to help him drag an overly-excited Grizzer back to his handler.
"Thanks." Hound grumbled, glaring down at the mastiff. "You know, Grizzer? Sometimes I think that you do it on purpose."
"Or he just knows that you love getting dragged through the mud!" Jek answered, elbowing Hound.
"And that he will still get a treat afterward." Bleak added.
"Or how much you love to clean your armour." Fox snapped. "Cut the chatter and get that mutt to work finding Slick!" He ordered.
"Yes, sir." Hound answered, groaning as he looked down at his dirty armour.
They headed off again, with Hound digging his heels in to keep from getting dragged again as Grizzer jumped forward, wanting to hurry them along.
"Sir." A voice crackled over the comm link.
"What have you found, Trooper?" Fox demanded, listening.
"This is Mongrel of the Wolfpack." The voice responded.
"Didn't take Wolffe long to get involved!" Bleak muttered to the others, Fox made a silencing gesture and they all stood silently, with the exception of Grizzer.
"The escapee has been sighted heading into the Underlevels." The voice continued and those accompanying Fox groaned.
"Alright. Is Wolffe with you?" Fox asked in annoyance.
"Yes, sir he-"
"I'm here, Fox." Wolffe's cold voice responded.
"Are you pursuing now?" Fox asked.
"We are." Wolffe responded, cutting off for a moment to speak to his troopers. "If you get down here we may be able to find him faster." He added.
"Right. We'll be down ASAP." Fox responded, cutting the connection.
"Alright, boys, lets go."
Fox stormed into the communications room.
"Get me a connection to Captain Rex. Let him know that Slick has escaped." Fox ordered angrily.
The clone technician saluted and turned to do as he was told while Fox considered his options. If Slick escaped the planet, finding him would be as long as years, the Jedi were too busy to search for one rogue clone, and something like this would be an embarrasement for the Coruscant Guard. Fox sighed. He knew one thing. They had to find slick ASAP. Before he did something horrible. And Fox had a feeling that Slick was going to cause not only a lot of problems, but a lot of... he didn't know what. He just had a terrible feeling that if Slick was left loose for long and he got to Rex and Cody, the ones responsible for his arrest... Fox refused to think of it. Rex was with Anakin and Ahsoka, and Cody was with Obi-Wan. They would be fine. And as for Slick, Fox thought, he wouldn't be loose long enough to cause any problems other than finding him.
(A/N: That's all for now, guys! Please check out the poll on my profile for a story I wish to write in the future!)