Fives. Oh, Fives. Oh no. Fives…Captain Rex couldn't stop thinking about him. How Fox had killed him, his own brother. He remembered how Fives wouldn't stop talking about something that he thought was very important. No one else had understood him, but Rex did a little.
"This... it's... bigger than any of us, than anything I could have imagined. I never meant to... I only wanted to do my duty..." Fives had said.
"Brother... Fives. Stay with me, Fives! Fives!" Rex had pleaded.
"The mission... the nightmares... they're... finally over." Fives has said just as he died.
What if what Fives had said was true? What if the clones were blind to not see this? The Jedi too? Rex wondered. Someone has to investigate further into this situation. AN idea occurred to him. He had to find AZ.
He dashed out of the room and into the halls of the cloners' base. He raced into every medical facility, looking for the droid. He finally found him in the last facility.
"AZ!" Rex panted as he raced in.
"Hello, Captain." The droid responded, turning to face him. "Need something?"
"Yes, I do." He replied, having caught his breath already. "What was it that Fives was trying to tell us before he-before he died?"
"He wanted to tell you about something very important." The droid began. "There are chips inside every clone's head, even yours. They were implanted in your embryos and you have lived with them in you for your whole life. He wanted you to know because, well, the Senate can control clones through these Inhibitor Chips."
"Control us?" Rex repeated, shocked.
"Yes, they can control you with them." AZ replied. "Fives and I discovered this not long before his death. We found out that there might be a plot from within the Senate to destroy the Jedi with the clones and have them all go to the Sith's side."
Rex was gaping at the droid. "So, we're dangerous to our own generals, to ourselves?"
AZ nodded. "That's exactly what CT-5555 wanted to tell you and General Skywalker."
"He was right." Rex looked at AZ. "Take my chip out." He ordered.
"But-"
"Just do it." He responded. "I'm never going to kill a Jedi."
The droid had him lay down on the bed. "Don't worry, you won't be unconscious long."
Rex saw tools spinning down at his face, making him dizzy. He felt a needle poke him in the neck. His eyes closed.
*X*
A few minutes later, Rex opened his eyes and sat up. He ran his hand over his head. He felt some kind of path on it, probably covering where the chip had been.
"Thank you, AZ." He told the droid.
"You are welcome, Captain."
"Just call me Rex." He replied with a slight chuckle.
"Okay." AZ answered.
"Hey, is there a way you could bring Fives back?" He wondered.
"Like, back to life?" The droid asked.
"Yes."
"Hmm." The droid thought. "Yes, I think there is, but I need his body here too."
"I'll go get it then." Rex stood up. "I'll be right back, don't go anywhere."
He dashed out the door.
*X*
Fifteen minutes later he was holding Fives' body. He knocked on the door. "AZ, open up! It's Rex!"
The door opened and he dragged the body in, lifting it up onto the bed. He closed the door.
"Okay." AZ thought. "We have everything now. This shouldn't take long."
"Good, good." Rex replied. "Should I wait outside?"
"Probably."
"Alright." Rex consented, walking towards the door.
"You'll know when I finish." AZ warned him.
Rex turned back and glanced at him, a bad feeling nagging at him. He nodded and left the room. He stood outside, leaning against the wall as he waited. He heard a lot of noise inside, but only from AZ and his tools. He took his helmet off and turned it to face him, looking at it as he thought.
He jumped from a banging noise from inside the room. Heart pounding, he put his helmet back on and leaned back against the wall. He heaved a worried sigh. Rex really hoped this would work for two reasons; One, Fives would be alive again. Two, they would be able to prove what the clone had been trying to say during his death.
Rex heard a human coughing from inside the room. His hopes soared and he burst back into the room, kicking the door shut.
Sitting on the medical bed, feet dangling, was Fives. The clone smiled weakly. "I'm back from the dead, eh?"
Rex chuckled slightly. "You're as humorous as ever. Glad to see you alive, Fives." He turned to AZ. "Good job."
AZ just shrugged. "It wasn't much of a problem."
"Now, back to business." Fives interrupted, suddenly impatient. "We have to warn the others."
Rex nodded in agreement.
"You know what I'm talking about, right?" CT-5555 double-checked.
"Yeah." Rex nodded. "AZ told me everything."
"Good." Fives hopped off the medical table. "Did you grab my helmet?"
"Uh…" Rex shrugged guiltily.
"You always put the men first." Fives laughed. He ran a hand over his shaved head. "Go find me one that matches this armor, okay?"
Rex nodded. "Alright."
He walked out of the door and through the halls. He went to the same place he had found the body and grabbed the helmet. He took it back to the room and knocked on the door, which they had locked after he left.
"Rex?" Fives asked.
"Yeah, it's me." He replied.
The door opened and he came in. He closed the door and tossed the helmet to Fives, who easily caught it.
"So," Fives put on the helmet," Let's go, Captain."
Rex nodded. "Follow me."
They went back into the hall.
"Which way?" Fives asked when Rex hesitated.
"This way." Rex turned right and headed out a set of doors, into the rain.
A republic clone ship sat there, awaiting them. They raced over to it and got in.
"Do you know how to fly this thing?" He asked Rex.
"Nope." The captain replied quickly.
"Let me do it them, sir." Fives offered. "Remember my 'practice' on Umbara?"
"Oh, right." Rex got out of the pilot's seat and grabbed a nearby blaster. The captain moved over to the open door, making sure no one else tried to come aboard. "Let's go!" He called back to Fives.
"Working on it!" The clone shouted back louder than necessary.
He heard the engines start and felt the ship take off. "Good." Rex muttered. He closed the doors on the side of the ship and went back into the cockpit. He sat in the empty seat.
He tapped in some comm. coordinates. :Captain Rex to General Skywalker, Rex to Skywalker. Do you hear me, sir?:
:I'm here, Rex.: Skywalker responded. :What do you need?:
:To know your location, sir: Fives answered for him.
Rex glared at him. That was what he was going to say…
:I'm on Corusant right now: Anakin replied.
:Alright, sir. We should be there soon, I hope: Rex said, taking off his helmet.
:Who's we?: The general asked.
Rex glanced at Fives, who shook his head.
:You'll see when we arrive, sir: Rex told him. :Captain Rex out: He cut the comm. connection.
They had made it into space now and Fives had taken off his helmet too. The ship turned in the direction of Corusant. "Pull the hyperdrive." Fives ordered.
Rex pulled the lever and the ship went into hyperdrive.
"The general is going to know who I am." Fives frowned, scratching his chin. "I still have a bullet hole in the armor."
Rex shrugged. "Maybe he won't, Fives, but we won't know until he sees you for himself."
:Sir, are you at the temple?: Rex wondered
:Not yet, but I could meet you there, Rex: Skywalker responded.
:Very good, sir: Rex replied. He shut off the comm. link.
Not long later, they came out of hyperspace to see Corusant. Rex smiled slightly.
"They took out your chip too, right?" Fives asked him.
"AZ did, yes." Rex told him.
"Good." Fives nodded.
They flew into the planet's atmosphere, landing on a ship runway. They caught another ride to the Jedi temple and waited just outside the entrance.
A little while later, General Skywalker got out of another ship and walked over to them. "Hello, Rex."
"Hello, sir." He responded. "Are all the other Jedi here?"
"No." Anakin looked surprised. "They're on missions, of course."
Fives heaved a frustrated sigh. "Well, we need them over here now."
"Why is that?" Skywalker asked suspiciously.
"It doesn't matter, we just need them here." Rex responded, calmer than Fives.
"Well, they can't come right now." The general answered.
"Fine." Fives snorted. "We'll leave it up to you to tell them then."
"Tell them what?"
"It's a long story, but they all have to know." Rex told him. "It'll save many lives. Many lives."
"Well, tell me." Skywalker demanded.
Fives and Rex told him all about Fives' discovery. The only part they left out is that this was Fives and his rebirth.
"So you're saying that the Chancellor could wipe out all of the Jedi with clones?" Skywalker asked, amazed.
"Yes." Fives responded.
Skywalker burst into laughter, making it obvious that he didn't believe them.
Rex felt a burst of anger and saw Fives kick the ground.
"You have to believe us, sir!" Fives shouted at him. "Do you want to be one of the ones who gets killed?!"
The Jedi stopped laughing and looked at him. "So you're not joking, are you, Fives?"
Fives slightly jumped and looked at Rex, who was just as surprised. "How do you know who I am?" Fives asked.
Skywalker rolled his eyes. "How are you still alive?"
Fives was angry now. "I was brought back to life."
"Why should I believe you about the clones?"
"Go to Kamino and search it all up for yourself. You'll find it's true and that it was a bad idea to not believe us, because by then it'll be too late to save anything. Next thing you know we'll be in the hands of the Senate!"
"Alright, alright." Skywalker held his hands up. "I believe you. I was stupid to not back then."
"Good." Fives muttered. "Tell every Jedi you see about this."
"I will." Skywalker promised.
*X*
A few days later, all of the Jedi knew about it and clones were having their chips removed.
Time to have an army that would not betray the Jedi.