Captain Rex was running from a monster.
The clone didn't normally run from things. He was a clone, after all. The perfect warrior. But he was also old. Older than he should be, because most clones were dead by his age.
But Rex's mind didn't focus on any of that, because it was on something else. Don't stop, don't stop, don't let it catch you.
He ran through what was left of Yavin 4's Rebel Hq. The Empire hadn't waited, they had attacked again a mere day after the Death Star's destruction. They had shot Skywalker, wiped R2-D2, blown up Chewbacca, and those were the merciful ones. The Empire had released a toxin in the base that gave you terrible hallucinations, your worst nightmares come to life. They had all bear witness to it as Princess Leia, still clad in her ceremonial robe, had begun to scream in terror before clawing out her own eyes, screaming about creatures digging into her flesh.
Rex had put on his helmet, safely filtering out the toxin. He was sure he wasn't contaminated, as he hadn't mutilated himself to death like half of the rest of the rebels.
No, his monster was real. And that made it all the more terrifying. As Rex passed a small debriefing room, he heard someone whisper, "Hey, clone! In here!" Rex turned around and saw a head poke out of the door, covered head to toe in a hazmat suit.
"Hurry, you idiot!"
Rex decided there was more safety in numbers, and went inside with the man. God, maybe he had been contaminated. He didn't ever have those kind of thoughts before.
He entered the dark room to see seven people all huddled inside, looking like plague doctors.
Rex heard a click, and turned to see the door locked behind him. He whipped out one of his twin DC-17 blaster pistols, pointing at all of them. "Who are you? What is this?!"
One them hissed, "Keep your voice down!" as another muttered, "He's been contaminated."
One voice rose above the others, though, and said, "Take it easy Captain, we're all friends here. The name's Han Solo."
The name was instantly recognizable to the Clone Captain. "You were one of the pilots who destroyed the Death Star. You were in the celebration room, you should be infected."
Han broke him off, saying, "Don't remind me. Luke was the luckiest of us all, shot by one of those guards. Everyone else? Psh, they're gone. I saw guards clawing out their own throats, soldiers slamming their hands against the ground, and Leia, poor Leia gouged out her own eyes."
"And you?"
Han shrugged. "Guess I'm immune. What were you running from, anyway?"
At that moment, that damn moment, the Captain heard a metallic breathing fill the air.
Horror could not even begin to describe how Rex felt. "He's here." he whislered.
"He? Who? What's going on, here?" Han demanded. The smuggler captain was cut short, though, when he was lifted into the air by an invisible force. He gasped, clawing at his throat with one hand, while reaching for his blaster with the other. "Nooo!" Han tried to speak, but it came out as more of a croak. Han pointed the gun at his head, and squeezed the triggor. Han Solo fell to the ground in a heap.
That set everyone else off as well, as they surged towards the door, trying to escape. Rex was pushed aside, falling and feeling his ankle make a snap! sound. He groaned in pain.
Then, all at once, the hazmat wearing rebels were thrown away from the door and against the wall. All six began to claw at their throats before a loud cracking soumd was heard. The crack was follwed by a crash.
The hazmat suits were now worthless, and the gas began to seep into the rebel's suits. One had the smarts to hold his breath and looked around, but found he could not move his neck. His neck suddenly twisted at an unnatural angle, before his corpse fell down and lay still.
One down.
The next rebel, a female this time, lunged for Solo's gun and pulled the trigger, shooting herself in the face. A short scream followed, befofe failing silent. The woman's brain began to leak out of her head.
Two down.
The next rebel, an Aqualish male, had taken. small vibro-blade and plunged it into his jugular vein. Blood began to leak out, trailing down the Aqualish's neck, followed by a short gurgle.
Three down.
The next, a Twilek female, had started banging her head against a wall, before stopping. Her corpse slumped down the wall, laying still in a pool of blood.
The last, a human male, lay curled up in a ball, sobbing uncontrollably. He lay there, in a fetal position, for another minute
Rex was about to drag himself over to the man to see if he could help, when he heard a familiar hiss. A red lightsaber blade cut a neat circle through the wall directly behind the bawling man. The poor rebel screamed at the sight if it and started dragging himself away.
He was too late, and the circle dropled itself onto the man's lower body. The man's screams were cut short when the newcomer's black, polished boots stepped on the man's head and twisted, crushing his skull.
The newcomer stepped out of the man's carcass, blood coating his legs and lower cape. The breathing sound never stopped.
"Captain," Darth Vader greeted. "You seem a bit shocked." Rex backed up as far as he could go, but he was trapped in the corner.
"Vader," he spat. "What do you want?"
"You." came the reply, and Vader bent down and grabbed Rex by the neck. "I want to make you an offer."
"No!" came the choked reply.
"Oh, but you'll like this one."
Vader pulled out a hologram, revealing four figuers on their hands and knees, in cuffs.
"You remember Cody, right? And Wolffe and Gregor? Oh, and who could forget Little Soka?"
Rex stared in horror at the four figures, his friends. "What have you done?!" Rex shouted. Vader giggled with glee, it seemed.
"Nothing... yet."
"What do you want?"
"I want you to come and train my stormtroopers. Think about it Rex!" Vader dropped Rex to the floor and knelt down next to him. "It'll be just like old times!"
"Go to hell!" Rex spat at him.
"Oh, Rex." Vader shook his head sadly. "You just don't get it do you? Either you come with me, or I kill them. One by one. In the most. Painful. Way. Possible."
Rex sighed and lowered his head in defeat.
"Damn you."
Vader clapped his hands giddily. "Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"
Vader picked Rex up and dragged him out of the base, activating his comm. and radioing his star destroyer. "Admiral, destroy this base. I don't want any survivors." A crisp, "Yes, Lord Vader," followed, and Vader and Rex boarded the Dark Lord's shuttle.
As Rex watched from afar, he saw green turbasers streak down from the sky, obliterating the Rebel Base.
In the background, he heard Vader strangling the admiral of the fleet, saying, "I warned ya last time, Ozzy. Those explosions aren't pretty enough."
Rex turned and fled, ending up in the quarters that Vader had given him. And Captain Rex, last survuving soldier of the rebel alliance, put his head in his hands and wept.
Clones weren't supposed to cry, but Rex was something that he hadn't been before.
Broken.
So that was dark. Did you guys like it? I might make a second chapter if you guys liked it. Also, check out my other story, Death on Endor. It's great (I think).
