Hello this is my first Clone War Fanfic featuring one of my favorite clones. Enjoy!

Ch1: A Harmless Prank

Several more holograms appeared indicating another shift in their flight pattern. A bit too thinly spread out but the strategy would be fool-proof. He had two contingency plans charted out should this specific plan of attack prove inefficient in some way but as far as it went this was the best it was going to get. He wasn't a Jedi and reading his enemies mind wasn't his job. The chrono beeped twice and then twice more to get his attention. Slowly he turned his head to the chrono massaging his neck as he realized how sore it had become from standing in the same position for well over an hour. Pain hit behind his eyes as he blinked away rapidly in an attempt to force away the blackness that was threatening to overcome his vision. The chrono rang again and he sighed at the end of his self-appointed shift. Another forty eight hours of productive battle simulation and flight simulation for the star fighters. He was silently thankful that their deployment would only have an aerial-aerial and aerial to ground component. The planet before the last had been half aquatic and he had to throw in several more hours for the possibility of an underwater skirmish.

Straightening up and shutting off the holographic display he was suddenly aware of the various officers and monitors that were present around him. Three of the troopers by terminal thirty laughed one leaning back in a chair eating his lunch the other two standing around and cracking jokes. His eyes skimmed the bridge as he gradually became more aware of his surroundings. The bridge was only half occupied and the regulation chrono read at O'thriteenhundred indicating a lunch shift rotation. On his previous ship the rotations were similarly lax when not mobilized for battle but unlike his first crew most of these were all shinies. Some cadets he knew but for the most part even after three weeks aboard this new commissioned flagship he was still a stranger. He did go out of his way to learn some names but they had been deployed twice already, and though the battles were mere skirmishes he hadn't had the time to pull away from the bridge much nor get to know his men. They were good he had no doubt, he had read through several of the files personally though he truly had no choice in their deployment to his squad, however for all their colorful accomplishments they were still not Wolfpack, not his squad, not yet.

He turned silently making his way off the bridge as he recalled the puns and good nights his old squad mates would bombard him with. They had incessantly preyed on his exhaustion, good naturedly of course, but he recalled quite several trying to drag him to bed when he passed the thirty six hour mark. To no avail of course, but his lips quirked up in half smile at the remembered attempts. The happiness however brought about a new pain and tightness to his chest with it and he lowered his face to shadow it as he passed several more cadets before he turned right and straightened as he made his way to the ships barracks. His movements grew sluggish as he groped for the door. Not many used the barracks in room 5-D in this rotation but with his ever changing schedule for bedrest it didn't quite matter. The room was large and had a good fifty built in sleeping pods, twenty five at each side. He made his way to his row and forced himself slowly up the ladder. His bunk was the fourth but he was quite wiped out and just as well pressed the combination for the third bunk. It was Boosts but his rotation would finish at O'twentyhundred. He was only planning to sleep for six of those hours but if he wasn't up by then Boost would be sure to wake him and then he'd grab a bite and maybe check on General Koon and run his strike fighter deployment and troop formation by him. The bunk slid open with a release and a beep and he collapsed into it pressing the controls to slide the bunk into the wall and then adjusted the controls adding several degrees of warmth and turning off the low lighting Boost seemed to sleep with. It took only several minutes as the lull of the ship and the warmth diffused through the ventilated air lulled him to sleep.

-0-0-0-

"You sure he's in bed now?" Jinx frowned as he observed pod 3-C.

"Dunno, I mean it's locked for sleep."

"You think Boost's skipping out on his rotation?"

"Don't think so, maybe he switched rotations, he got scratched up remember, maybe he's actually taking that extra bed rest seriously." Cubic ran a hand through his checker shaved hair as he shifted from one foot to the next. "Look we doing this or not?"

"Well he did ask for it." Jinx said as he skimmed a reg manual between snickers. "Alright let's see, its override code 3-3-5-4."

"Right, that'll teach him for dying Red's hair."

"I don't know I rather think blonde suites him don't ya think?"

"Yeah until he gets to your hair or dumps a load of soap and water into your pod."

"Well that's why you have to beat him at his game. Show him we're not as shiny as he thinks."

Cubic hesitated over the controls. "If we do lock this pod down though he could still get out."

"Yeah, but only if and when the maintenance droids get the signal and their busy cleaning those cruiser tanks we mucked up, not to mention the Commander wants those transports and starships in top notch order so they'll be at it for a while."

"You don't think they have several on standby maybe?"

"Right they somehow know in advance that two pranking troopers are going to lock down one of the pods for no good reason. Come on Cubic don't get wet feet now."

"Right," Cubic chuckled, "Well here's to a missed shift and a very unpleasant wake up from those droids or that tight wound Commander himself." He pressed the buttons before initiating a pod lockdown for maintenance.

Several more laughs later at Boosts expense the two troopers made their way out elbowing each other as they returned to their shifts while trying to gauge which hallway best to camp out in during their evening shift to see the Commander chew his man out for oversleeping. Or better yet seeing him wake up to a protocol droid yanking open the pod for inspection.

-0-0-0-

It was dark, suffocating almost and cold. He shuddered as he attempted to exhale the ever present vacuum that seemed to follow him as he struggled with the controls trying to get a signal. "Keep that signal alive Commander!"

Yes sir, he mentally responded as the chill of space intensified. Sweat poured down his brow as he attempted to get a signal, but try as he might nothing came up through the receiver. "Commander Ashoka? Come in Commander." Slowly but surely the droids descended on the pod. Slowly but surely their metal pincers grated at the walls. But when he looked out of the pods viewport once more it wasn't the sight of the droids he was met with but Booster, Sink and General Koon floating in space blaster marks sieving their bodies. Cold sweat poured down his back as he grasped weakly at the wall for support. But when he did so his hand went right through the wall and with a sickly hiss and snap the hunters finally cracked open his pod and he was thrown headfirst into the cold vastness of suffocating space.

This was wrong, this wasn't how the mission had gone, he gasped grasping at his neck as the air thinned almost as if he could will it back inside, gasped awake into the cold darkness and emptiness of nothingness. But it was not nothingness he felt surrounding him. Where was he? What, what's going on? His mind floundered as he fought against an onslaught of fear and pain that radiated through his chest, the heaviness pulsing and gathering at the base of his throat as he swallowed blinking away tears that he had not realized he was instinctively holding in and forcing back. He focused his mind pushing past the anguish of loss pressing down on his chest like blaster fire. Think, he had been tired, tired from what? There was a battle, no there was to be a battle, he had been keeping long hours again, running simulations, everything suddenly snapped into focus he must have woken in his sleeping pod. But why was it so dark? Where were the lights for temperature control? He slammed at the panel and then at the walls as he attempted to punch his way out but the pods were all made of duracreet. What time of rotation was it? These barracks were for the O'twentyhundred rotation but surely someone else was in here? Rotations did vary and shift. Pain wracked through one of his fists as he kept punching at the outer wall almost gasping for breath. What was going on? Why was the air so thin? He tensed against the memories that suddenly flooded his mind trying to push them away through sheer will as they overwhelmed him with their vividness. He had sealed away these memories, sealed them away in the darkest deepest recesses of his mind. But there was too much to forget. Alone in an escape pod in the middle of space the droids descending on him ready to crack the glass between him and the nothingness of space. But it was not his death that hung over him like a lightsaber. It was that of his men. They had been so alive so vibrant. And then in seconds their lives had been snuffed out. The Triumphant nothing but ash and space debree the bodies of his men propelled into the airless vacuum that was space. And those that he saw dying with his own eyes. They were his brothers! And he had loved them. His lungs shuddered at the memories of gasping in vacuum which sent waves of weakness and agony through his body the pain of loss clinging to his mind as if ice was squeezing at his heart. He pounded at the wall to no avail as his punches weakened his mind dizzy with effort. He ceased his flailing attempting to calm himself as he focused on his breathing. They were gone and nothing he did would bring them back. Something warm and wet trickled down the side of his cheek as the ice around his heart cracked snapping as his chest burned alit with fire he hadn't known he possessed, his breath hitched as he centered himself hand clutching at his chest for support. As if he could somehow douse the flames. The moment of weakness passed and the severity of the situation and adrenaline sharpened his senses snapping the memories away for another time. He was using up too much oxygen he needed to conserve his energy and figure out a way to somehow leave the sleeping pod. Because this was a sleeping pod wasn't it? But what had happened? Why was the pod not working? Had someone broke the controls? But if that were so then the pod wouldn't be sealed. Was it in maintenance mode? But who would lock down a pod for something like that when someone was actually inside? Was he even inside a sleeping pod? Maybe they had been boarded while he had slept and he was taken prisoner. But how? Surely he would have heard gunfire. He ran through several possible attack simulations and scenarios but none made much sense. The air if possible grew even thinner and he shuddered involuntarily as he blinked against the darkness. Were those stars he saw? He pressed his hand to his eyes attempting to calm his racing heart but it was getting harder to do so. Where was he? Was he really in the barracks? Or was that just a dream? Maybe he was dead? Or was he never even alive? Such a small speck amid the vast darkness and cold emptiness of space. He shuddered as he pounded once more at the wall trying to figure out where he was and what was happening but the dizziness was back. The air suddenly dropped to a near nothingness and he was left breathed harshly against the waves of darkness that surrounded him choking on the waves of nothingness and the memories of those that did.

-0-0-0-

Boost rolled his arm as he pushed himself back from the last blaster he had cleaned. It glinted in the light of the supply room and he placed it in a stand as he hefted his own onto his back. It was O'twentytwo hundred, he'd already grabbed some lunch earlier and had been pestered by that medical droid for a good hour after that so that meant he didn't have to go to that place again. Time to hit the sack then, he rose rolling his shoulder again pleased that it was not as stiff as it had been yesterday and marched his way to the barracks wondering whether he should go to the bridge and check up on Wolffe or Sinker. Sinker was probably in the mess hall though so he'd go grab Wolffe from the bridge and then maybe they'd all grab some grub together. It wasn't the best stuff in the world but hey it was better than rations and it wasn't what you ate it really was who it was with.

The bridge was buzzing with minor activity with the rotations changing but for the most part everything was running smoothly. "Hey anyone seen the Commander?" A couple of heads rose up shaking their heads or saying no they hadn't but several nodded and Trill spoke up. "He left some time ago, not sure where but I'm guessing the barracks, or maybe the mess hall."

Boost smiled his thanks and made his way to the barracks. He was thinking to check out the mess hall first but then decided against it. If Wolffe was really sleeping he might as well just go to bed himself. It wasn't as fun with just Sink anyway. Room 5-D was relatively empty which wasn't surprising. They all had plenty of sleep in the last few days so no doubt some were taking several hours just to catch up on some hobbies or chat up some brothers. Grabbing the railing he made his way up to pod 3-B the pod above his own. "Yo Wolffe?" Releasing the pod controls he was mildly confused at its emptiness but his eye then caught the flashing light on pod 3-C. He frowned, at the flashing maintenance sign. This was strange he'd just used that pod last night why was it on maintenance?

He tried fiddling with the controls but he didn't have his reg manual with him and he wasn't maintenance. He frowned slamming at the pod with his foot. Only to hear someone shift inside. "Kriff is someone in there?" His eyes widened as he heard another shift in the pod. "Kriff it! Kriff it! Which moron put this pod on maintenance there's a damn trooper in there!"

"Boost what's going on?"

"Sink? Have you seen Wolffe some bantha head put this pod on maintenance and there's a Kriffin trooper in there."

"What the Kriff are you for real?"

"Yeah I think so anyway?"

"Wait, I haven't seen Wolffe in the past several hours? Maybe he's the one who locked down your pod. Maybe you're just hearing things."

"You sure? I mean I'm pretty sure I heard someone or at least something in there."

"Maybe it's a maintenance droid?"

"But why would Wolffe not tell me?"

"Maybe he figured the droid would be done by then obviously."

"I don't know. Maybe I should just blast the panel open."

"Look Boost which idiot or droid would put a pod in maintenance with a trooper in there? Come on that would shut off all life support. No ones that stupid."

"Yeah your right but what if someone is in their?"

"Well what if it's a Kriffin droid? Admit it you've been jumpy ever since that mission."

"And you're not? We lost everyone in that hell hole."

"Not everyone, let's go get Wolffe."

"Didn't you just say you haven't seen him?"

"Not in the mess hall no, but if he's debriefing General Koon maybe he's in the Generals room."

"Yeah that makes sense. Especially if he's waiting on the General to finish a meditation or something."

"Yeah." Sinker snickered. "Cuz he's too polite to interrupt, you actually think he'd stand at attention for hours?"

Boost laughed at that. "With him I think that just might be possible.

-0-0-0-

Plo Koon had indeed been meditating for the past five hours but only three of them had been peaceful. The fourth had been filled with rampant fear nearing the verge of terror and pain so intense it took everything out of him to sit still in his meditative trance and not double over as he was. He had meditated at the source of the pain only to find his Commander at the center of it. This revelation was troubling at best. The loss of their ship had been devastating and it had taken much from both himself and his men to move past that but this. He wasn't quite sure what to make off it. There was of course the possibility that his Commander had snapped, despite being a clone he was human after all. But there was also the possibility that he was merely sleeping and in throes of a nightmare. Clones were harder to read in the force but that was likely do to the lack of sufficient time of meditating upon their presence within the force. They were much like humans but they did differ in their presence. He frowned as he contemplated as to what to do. He did not wish to confront the Commander or impede on his privacy. He trusted the Commander to come to him with any issues or concerns, and he and the Commander worked quite well together. But finding no answers in the force he persisted his meditating. After a good two hours he was beginning to grasp at their presence. It was remarkably easy once he realized how to approach them and their force presence which was more similar to other humans then he had first assumed. His eyes widened fractionally as he began sending out tendrils of the force to sense for his Commander. Remembering his signature could prove useful in the future particularly if they were separated during an assault or a rescue mission was in order. He breathed in centering himself the Commanders pained presence in the force a bright beacon of distress and anguish. His eyes widened at the ebbing of light as the life force of the Commander flickered in and out of being. Wolffe was dying! Had he made an attempt at his own life? There had been quite a number of both Generals and Commanders that had done so throughout history what made the possibility of such in a clone Commander any different? His shock and fear flitted into the force as he attempted to calm himself. He could feel the Commander's signature from the Barrack's it was still strong. He rose from his meditative position sharply. If he hurried now there was still time to save the Commander. His turned as he felt the presence of two troopers by the door. He released the lock and the two troopers nearly toppled into the room as they had been almost leaning on the door and hadn't expected him to open it with the force. At any other time he would have been amused but now was not that time.

"Boost, Sinker, where is the Commander?" He felt he may have come off too sharply but the two troopers eyes only widened and he could feel their distinct confusion through the force.

"We couldn't find him Boss." Sinker spoke up.

"It's actually why we came here sir." Boost added in quickly his eyes taking in the empty room.

"We thought he was with you… We needed to find him because someone put my pod in maintenance mode and we thought it was Wolffe."

Plo Koon's eyes widened as he suddenly found clarity through the force.

"Boss what going on?"

"Kriff! He's in that pod isn't he!?" Boost flinched at the sudden change in General's demeanor and the look of general fear in his eyes.

"I believe he is. We must hurry."

-0-0-0-

Boost all but ran to the pod his fear and shock pumping bursts of adrenaline as he ran. Not quite caring that there was a General behind him and was quite surprised when said General rushed ahead of him. They ran through the corridors following the General and turned quite a number of heads but as much as Boost loved attention this was not the way he wanted to get it.

He skidded to a stop before the barracks several of the troopers were there lounging around or prepping for some rest. But General Koon was already way ahead of him. His lightsaber was out and his mere presence was turning heads some even drawing back startled as he plunged his lightsaber into the pod controls yanking the pod out. He ran to the pod as Koon pulled out a man. It was Wolffe, he collapsed on his knees beside his brother, his face was drawn and pale tinged blue from the lack of oxygen. He could hear gasps and murmurs ranging from confusion, shock and horror as the other troopers gathered round. "Wolffe?" He whispered as he saw the General check for a pulse.

"Coric, summon a med droid for the Commander, preferably one with an Oxygen tank." The Generals baritone was laced with worry though his voice even.

"Yes Sir!"

"His lung may have sustained some damage."

"Kriff I shouldev believed you when you said you heard something! This is all my fault! If you would have pulled him out when you did he could have had a better chance."

Anger welled up inside Boost as he cradled Wolffe's limp hand in his own. "I should have trusted my gut Sink. This is my fault."

"None of this is either of your fault."

"General, Sir?"

"You are both good men, and by alerting me to this situation you have saved your friends life."

"I know sir but if I would have just followed what I thought was right!"

"I shouldn't have questioned Boost!"

The General sighed deeply resting a hand first on his shoulder and then on Sink's the other never leaving the half hold he had on Wolff's prone form. "Both of you should go rest. We will speak of this later."

He moved aside as the Coric came around with an oxygen tank strapping a mask onto Wolffe's face the medical contraption snapping on with a hiss as pure oxygen rushed through its tube. "Alright everyone out but these three out. Doctor's orders." The shocked and frightened troopers all filed out whispering amongst themselves as they left, one even had the gall to ask if their Commander was alright but Boost wasn't even in the mood of answering him back. Who was he kidding this wasn't the Wolfpack he knew. No one save those immediately around him would have his back. With the old squad they'd all be here gathered around worried for a brother. But this wasn't them, they had a ship, they had a crew, but it just wasn't the same. "Hey, you ok?"

He looked up at Sinker slightly startled. "Yeah why? Oh…" his hand went to his face as he realized that he was crying, and had been for a while now.

-0-0-0-

There was a tightness in his chest, he couldn't breathe. He gasped for more air gulping it greedily as it flowed painfully through his lungs. It was dark, and now light, now warm, now cold. He shuddered at the pain of loss, the pain of defeat. He hadn't thought about their deaths, not for the past three weeks doing everything he could to forget, and if not forget at least occupy himself with something so he wouldn't need to remember. Because if he remembered it would hurt and if it hurt he would fall apart. And if he fell apart he would lose his focus. He couldn't lead his men without his focus, and not being able to lead them would mean he couldn't do his duty, and if he couldn't do his duty what good was he then? Men counted on him, had counted on him and he had failed them, and they had died.

He gasped at the darkness, at the gut wrenching pain behind his chest as he breathed in and out rapidly shuddering against the cold that seemed to now cling to his skin and squeeze at his heart. "No!" He shot as the hand over his heart tightened its grasp, gasping and nearly sitting up before collapsing back at the wave of nausea that overtook him plunging his mind through heavy waters.

"Easy there Commander." A worried face floated into view.

"General what's happening?" The words felt heavy on his tongue as he struggled through them. The smell of antiseptic and bacta was overwhelming but try as he might he could not remember what had happened to land him in the med bay.

"There has been a terrible misunderstanding it would seem. You are quite fortunate to be alive, Wolffe."

The use of his personal name by the General confused him as he attempted to shift but a warm scaly hand pressed his shoulder down at the attempt. "The medic was quite clear that you are not to make any excess motions until your body has replenished its oxygen supply." Oxygen, the lack of it, the memory of his confinement and being locked in the pod rushed into him as his body lashed out trying to free itself from a confinement that was not there. A kind hand grabbed at his arm pinning it down beside him as his body shook against his will and against the hold. He gasped spasmodically into the oxygen mask as he attempted to rein his body in. It took several more moments of shuddering and shaking before his body calmed and General Koon settled down into a chair beside him. "Sorry Sir." The memories that had crashed down over him were now clearer and he felt the sting of shame at his reaction at being locked down in a mere sleeping pod. He'd slept in one his entire life; one would think that he could hold his head when locked in one.

"There is nothing to be sorry for Commander. You have been through a very traumatic experience; there is no shame in that."

"I could have handled it better."

An amused look crossed the Kel Dor's face as he sat back in his chair observing the Commander. "And how would you have handled that differently Commander?"

"I, uh…" To begin with he could have focused kicking at the pods exit instead of flailing around wildly, which now that he thought about it he had done. He should have attempted to calm himself to conserve the pods oxygen supply which he had done. He should have realized that though life support for the pod was terminated the ship still circulated with oxygen and some would flow through the cracks of the pod keeping him alive. But that had happened and the cracks in the pod were no doubt the only reason he was still among the living. He could have done something, anything had his communicator on with him had his earpiece with him. But he had left those in his armor trunk to be cleaned from their previous deployment and hadn't bothered with replacements. In the end he really had made what best he could from the situation. He wanted to ask the general why he was still here and how long he'd been out for but he was interrupted with the presence of two young cadets that stood stock still gawking at him from the doorway of med bed in which he lay. He racked his brain trying to remember the names of the two cadets that made their way towards him, one with the generic clone cut and black hair a tattoo of three red teardrops under his eye to distinguish him. The other his hair in a close cut with checker patterns shaved off in intervals. This one he recognized. Cubic, shock trooper, support division thirty two, primary weapon blaster rifle 44-B, and demolition expert. His shifted as General Koon rose giving the two troopers a glance and then giving him a strange and contemplative look.

"It appears Commander you have some company, I believe these two troopers have a confession to make."

-0-0-0-

Cubic looked around nervously as he made his way to the med bay with Jinx. He had been there when general Koon had dragged the Commanders near lifeless body from the pod. And the Commanders pale face and prone form was not an image he felt that he would forget soon. He still felt the shock of what he'd done. That moment when a prank goes so terribly wrong that you don't know what to do with yourself or even if you deserve to live after what you've done. He hadn't meant for the prank to turn out this way, to go this far. The worst part of this whole mess was that it could have been Boost or any other one of his brothers. And there seemingly harmless prank could have killed someone and they wouldn't have even realized. Who was he kidding, he was a shiny. He didn't know the first thing about a hands on assault let alone how to place charges under fire during a full scale invasion. Boost was right he should have curbed his arrogance when he had the chance, not goaded Boost into some pranking war which all but fatefully seemed to lead to this very moment in time when a prank finally blew up in his own face.

He paused by the entrance to the med bay not quite sure what to say. Everything still felt so unreal. His lip quivered as he resisted the urge to bite it in nervousness fidgeting as the General looked them up and down. He didn't deserve this consideration, especially when he had just very nearly killed his Commander, very nearly killed his brother through his own kriffin idiocy. Somehow he found himself moving forward to stand before the General.

"It appears Commander you have some company, I believe these two troopers have a confession to make." He swallowed nervously as the Generals gaze turned to study them first resting on Jinx and then on himself his scrutiny making him feel both discomforted and somehow exposed followed by the Commanders neutral yet cursory glance that left a deep pit of guilt welling up in his stomach. He looked like kriffin hell his skin as white as the sheets he laid on his breath hitching every other breath as if the mask was a lifeline and removing it would cause him to choke on nothingness.

Several more moments passed in stock silence as the General looked between them and the Commander whose eyes gained more focus and clarity as the seconds wore on. "I'm listening." The eyes narrowed and Cubic was drawn aback at the gaze's intensity. Beginning to realize why it was that this one of his clone brothers was a Commander,

"What we wanted to say..." Jinx began nervously with quite a bit of fear in his voice. "Is that we were responsible for locking down the pod." He interrupted beating around the confession would only make it worse. Better to get the words out now and get the sentence then wait and squirm for the Commander to wheedle it out on his own. He'd made a terrible mistake. One he'd no doubt pay his life for. But he wouldn't go down like a coward. He'd go out with his head held high and eyes looking straight at the firing squad.

"General?"

He blinked out of the sound of his own voice which had been chanting a death sentence in his mind's eye at the sound of the Commander voice, waiting on the General to respond as if he had posed a question.

"The slight was done to you Commander it is only natural I give you full authority on the matter." He swallowed for all it was worth he would have preferred the Generals verdict to the Commanders who was far more intimidating than the General. The verdict was to wait however, the ship which had been moving at a steady pace halted suddenly and sharply nearly throwing Cubic off his feet with a jolt. A red alarm blared causing his spine to stiffen at attention his hand grabbing for the blaster strapped to his back.

"We're being shot at general." Commander Wolffe was half way up before General Koon stopped him. "I believe it best you rest Commander."

"But the battle…"

"I have your battle tactics do I not Commander."

"Yes, yes of course but…"

"I am needed on the bridge Commander. It would be best if you remained here there is no need to push yourself, the war will still be here when you recover."

"He's right sir…" Cubic spoke up, "You're in no shape to fight." Let alone be walking around…Was the Commander really so careless with his own health?

"We may be boarded."

"Then we'll stay by the doors sir."

-0-0-0-

The battle had been won. It took several hours and many downed enemy fighters but the fighting was over. All that was left was the mop up of lone fighters that hadn't retreated to their escaping flagships in time. Wolffe stood in his crisp white uniform hands folded behind his back as he gazed at the blinking holographic displays before him turning on his heel as he heard the doors to the bridge open.

"General, the enemy is in full retreat, we've won the day."

"Indeed we have."

"So what happens to us now?" The trooper Cubic who had entered with several others behind the Jedi Master stepped up standing at attention his helmet resting in one arm. The other trooper whose name was Jinx, a communications officer, stepped up next to his accomplice standing in attention as well.

So it had come to this. After being rehydrated with Oxygen Coric had released him and he was able to rejoin the end phase of the engagement. All that being said and done his mind lingered as to why General Koon hadn't had the troopers executed for treason or at least locked them up in the brig till after he was ready to pass judgement. If they were truly making an attempt it would make little sense for the General to even let them take part in the assault. But if there ever was a time to make an example of those that tried to hurt their brothers it was now.

"Why?"

"It was meant to be a prank. A very funny prank." Jinx answered nervously as he looked around the room now filled with troopers of all stations. They all had heard the rumors and now were unsure as to what they should be doing with what they knew. Protocol stated the two troopers be executed but Cubic and Jinx could never had done such a thing.

"I'm not laughing."

"It wasn't meant for you Sir."

"I would hope not."

"I we never..." The Commanders growing frown deepened.

"What Cubic is trying to say Commander is that we had no idea that placing a pod in maintenance mode would terminate life support."

"Then what was placing the pod in maintenance mode aimed to accomplish?"

"We thought it be funny if Boost missed a shift."

"And woke up to a maintenance droid." Jinx hurried in adding.

"That is the most ridiculous prank I have ever heard off." The troopers that looked on weren't quite sure what to make of the answer. It wavered between sheer ridiculousness and a lie that was worse than bantha poodoo.

"But it's true sir. We didn't mean any harm we just wanted to get back at Boost for all the things he's been pulling on the shinies." What? Boost had been messing with the shinies? If there was one thing Wolffe disliked it was slapping around cadets just because one was more experienced and could. It set a bad example and if the jokes and men in question went too far they could verge on inhumanity and downright cruelty.

"Is that true Boost?" Boost who had just walked in several moments ago wanting to have a word with Wolffe paused as he saw the gathered troopers and tense atmosphere. "Is what true Commander?" He said snapping into attention.

"Have you been giving kriff to the shinies."

"I…" Boost relaxed his stance as he looked around the room rubbing his neck sheepishly and then looking down at the metal hull of the ship. "I uh…may have messed around with them a bit, but it was all in good fun…"

After that hell hole on Abregado none of them were the same but it hadn't crossed Wolffe's mind that unlike himself his friends could be handling their loss in very different ways. Wolffe's eyes hardened as he looked around the room meeting the eyes of as many troopers as he could. "Is this true men? Has it all been in good fun?" He held the troopers gazes as he waited for someone to step up. "You have my permission to speak freely on the matter and you will not be punished for doing so and incriminating a high ranking officer."

"I don't know if what he did is incriminating, sir." One of the troopers with his hair dyed blonde stepped up. "But I didn't find it funny when he grabbed my slacks and spare towel from the shower leaving me butt naked in there."

"I didn't find him dying my hair funny." Another blonde clone stepped up, this one from the main sensory array. The confession of the first no doubt giving him the nerve to speak up.

"I woke up to find some sort of alien looking salamander species in my bed, sir." Another trooper spoke up.

"He set my pods wake up alarm system for O'twohundred , I don't know how he managed to do that sir but it wasn't very funny waking up three hours into my sleep rotation." Several more troopers spoke up. The pranks ran from annoying to downright ridiculous and though none of them were in any way cruel Wolffe could see why it was that everyone was fed up with Boost's antics.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose he sighed as the voices rose and then dwindled when he made it clear that he wished to speak. "If all this is true why wasn't I informed of all this?"

"You're his friend." One of the troopers spoke up. "You'd just take his side."

Wolffe wasn't sure what to say to that but he wasn't happy at the notion of being accused of playing favorites. He didn't play favorites, and it was time that he made clear to this new squadron of men under his command what it meant to be Wolffe pack. "I may be his friend but I am also your Commanding officer. If any of you have issues with any of the other troopers here and can't solve it on your own you come to me. It's my job to make sure that this ship runs smoothly and that's exactly what I'll do. Am I clear?"

"Sir yes Sir!"

"Boost, your actions are not worthy of Wolffe squad. I want you to go and think on this. I'm grounding you to the ship until further discussion and notice. No more pranks am I clear."

"Yes sir." Boost replied dully. This wasn't good. He would have to speak with Boost about all this later. After hearing all the complaints he wasn't surprised at the actions of the two troopers who stood before him but he couldn't dismiss them either. Any number of his brothers could have been in that pod and on the receiving end of a very bad prank not even meant for them and this he couldn't overlook.

"Who came up with this pod prank idea?" The two troopers before him shifted the hopefulness in their eyes dimming as they glanced at each other and then back at him.

"I did sir, I'm not asking for my life but it was my idea. Cubic shouldn't have to pay for it."

"You may have come up with it but the both of you will share the consequences."

"What! No please you can't just kill him! This was all my idea, force I'm such a moron I can't believe it's going to end like this."

"Who said anything about killing the both of you?"

"We nearly killed you Commander! What else would happen to us?"

"Well for starters since all this could have been avoided if you actually read the reg manual on regulating sleeping pods, I'm thinking of assigning quite a bit of reg manuals to the both of you. There all very long and dull I'm sure, and many of the troopers would rather not have to go through each and every detail so why don't the both of you summarize them for me?"

"Wait what you're serious?"

"Am I smiling?"

"What no that's not what we, I meant, I meant we're getting off that easy?"

"Easy? I'm counting about two hundred reg manuals each and that's without the mess hall rotations you two will be running for the next several months. Since you two seem to have so much time on your hands and don't know what to do with it I may as well help you out. The rest of you, that was some fine flying out there switch rotations accordingly and get some rest. Dismissed." Most of the troopers filed out and Wolffe was left with Genrall Koon on the bridge. He shifted nervously from one foot to the next not quite sure whether all he said was well put or whether he was even allowed to lecture his men with his General present. "I'm sorry for that sir. I shouldn't have spoken out of turn it should have been you."

An amused look crossed the General's face and another look which looked positive but one he couldn't quite identify. "On the contrary Commander, you spoke well and your compassion gives you much credit and me much pride."

"Ah thank you sir, though I'm not sure what I did that was so overly compassionate. Reading reg manuals is a living hell for us troopers." He waited for Koon to speak but the Kel Dor merely hummed under his breath as he passed the bridge looking out into the viewport before turning to go. "This was a finely planned out battle Commander."

"Thank you sir."

"If you have need of me I will be in my rooms meditating."

"Of course sir."

And with that the General left the bridge leaving Wolffe to himself in the vast expanse of the beeping and blinking monitors as he looked out the viewport wondering what it was that he had done right this time around.

Alright so to clear up some things for those of u who were confused on my take on Wolffe. Why is Wolffe so timid and ooc ? Well the truth is he's not ooc. In the first few episodes when we see Wolffe he is really timid. If u notice, his assessments of the situation are all sharp and accurate especially for a non force user but he is still only giving updates on the situation and not actually taking control. Koon is giving out all the commands and Wolffe is just following them. Even in the pod Wolffe is largely focused on Koon to give him orders and direction. Now what's my take on this from his transformation from season 1 to season 2? My take is time and space. In the first season wolffe is fresh off of kamino that means that while he knows he will be expected to take command he's still not sure at the how and when. When you look at the kamino chapters the Commanders are all still largely monitored by overseers so even though they can lead they don't know exactly how because there is always someone above them in rank telling them what to do. To continue Koon is a very laid back Jedi master letting his Commander assess things and giving him alot of space. This would confuse a Commander who is super smart knows that he has to make the overseers happy and is quite unsure at what to do when he's placed under the Command of a general who doesn't give many orders. My guess is over the course of the first season the leeway and general positive atmosphere gives Wolffe the support he needs to feel secure in the post of command and become the awesome self assured slightly cocky and still super smart commander who's continually sent out on rescue missions to save everyone else's collective butts.

With all that being said it's quite surprising that he even is keeping it all together.