A/N- This week, we have another double-length chapter. We meet more citizens of Ando. Sia, Nikka, and Tinrik are host family to Tank, the one-legged heavy-gunner featured in earlier story artwork. Since this story is a collaboration, these characters are the work of Reulte.

In the second part of the chapter, we have the highly-anticipated reunion between two major characters. Grab a strong cup of Andoan caf, a treat from Sera's bakery and enjoy.

Ando

Chapter 11

For all her life, Nikka knew she would never forget the night Tank and his brothers came home until she lost who she was in age, accident, or death.

She had volunteered only because it was the best way she could think of to find out how Tank was and let her mother know before anyone else told her or she saw the list of wounded and dead. Tank was good, one of the best troopers in drills according to Tag and Sink, but Tank only had one leg and Nikka wondered how he'd be able to keep up with the others. She was almost grown up and knew there was a difference between 'drilling' and what happened in real life.

Tinrik volunteered also, but he was too young for an independent task so he ended up in Fisherman's Hall assisting Rosetta and the cooking team.

Nikka was fast so they made her a runner for one of the paralyzed men. She was smart so they made her the runner attached to the clinic. She moved in, sleeping on one of the cots, to wait for the troopers return.

Karyn was worried; anyone would be able to tell that, but Tag was simply there; in the same way that Tank was so quintessentially present in their home. Observant and protective, though Tag smiled a lot more and gently teased her out of the sulks; re-assuring her that his brothers would not leave Tank behind if he lost his crutches.

"What if they all die," she had said in a small voice as she curled into a blanket on the cot.

His eyes had lost their sparkle and he sighed. "You're old enough, Nikka, to know that's a possibility. And, you're old enough to know they will do everything they can do to return to Ando."

That night Nikka opened her eyes, wondering where she was and what was that small humming noise. Then came Tag's voice, loud to reach up the stairs. "Karyn!"

Nikka jerked awake, gripping the blanket tightly in her fist. She took a deep breath to reassure herself she was, indeed, awake and this wasn't another dream.

"Karyn!"

Nikka pulled on her coat and reached for her boots even as she heard the pounding of Karyn running down the stairs.

"Report, Tag!" Karyn yelled back, "What's happening?"

"Razor commed..."

And that was how it started. Nikka jerked on her boots, making sure they were tight; she'd have a lot of running to do. The most important thing, though, was to find Tank. The one thing she promised herself was to see him with her own eyes before daybreak when her shift was over.

Oddly enough, in spite of her promise, Tank was one of the few men she didn't see that night.

She ran to the field on an errand for Skipper Megs. One of the newly-returned clones must have recognized her as the daughter of Tank's host. He told her that Tank was helping Mako take a wounded man to the clinic. Nikka raced back to Karyn's, but by the time she reached the clinic Tank wasn't there.

Hodges had been there, Karyn hovering over him like an insect at an aga-flower. His face was so pale that for just an instant Nikka angrily wondered why Karyn was tending the dead when there were wounded men needing attention. Then Hodges rolled his head slightly, his eyelids fluttered and he made a soft, unconscious whimper of pain. Karyn moved to one side, reaching for something, and Nikka saw all the blood that coated his armor.

Nikka was going to be ill. She must have made a noise because Karyn turned and saw her. "Out," she ordered with a voice hard in urgent anger.

Nikka had gone to Tag in the room by the outer door, her face white and her eyes wide at the thought of Tank wounded like that. Tag was speaking to someone, but he rolled his hand palm side up and gently moved his fingers, Nikka grabbed hold of him like he was a lifeline.

He made soothing noises, rubbing the back of her trembling hand with his thumb, in-between talking with his brothers and relaying information to the medical staff at the clinic, in-between sending lightly-wounded troopers to one of the aid stations. He was really too busy to deal with her squeamishness.

"Give me a run," she said softly, loosening her hand from his as she heard over his comm unit that Odds had collapsed. They were all Tank's brothers and she had volunteered to help. He'd be ashamed of her if she didn't try to live up to that promise.

Tag assigned her to check on the kitchens of Fisherman's Field, but before she left, he had reached out his marginally stronger arm to her shoulder and drew her closer to his face. He touched his forehead softly to hers. "You never forget, Nikka, but you're doing well."

His encouragement stiffened her determination and she set off at a run. She'd make Tank proud of her.

Nikka saw Odds as she ran towards Fisherman's Hall. He was as pale as Hodges had been and her stomach tightened as she wondered if he would die. Euna held a bag of med-fluids above Odds' warmly wrapped form; all of her attention intently focused on the injured pilot. She held two fingers to the side of his neck and frowned as they carried the stretcher into the clinic. Nikka recognized Shadow, but not the other trooper carrying Odds. Det limped behind them, his attention also fixed onto the unmoving pilot as if willing him not to die.

As she was leaving the kitchen after checking how much more soup would be needed, Nikka ran into Red – not literally, thankfully – sitting on the back porch of Fisherman's Hall. His distinctly crimson armor was from the Red Tails unit as Tank had told them one evening in conversation. It seemed a strange name, but no odder than Tank or, as their guest trooper had laughingly explained to her and her brother, no more different to the clones than Nikka or Tinrik was to them.

Red wasn't laughing, though. He had his helmet in his hand and he was staring out into the darkness towards the mountains, shaking; almost as if he were crying violently though no tears fell and his face was a stoic mask.

Nikka paused. She didn't particularly like Red. He made crude jokes and slept with any woman who caught his attention. Still, he was one of Tank's brothers.

"Are you alright, Red?" She asked, remembering to face him because he was deaf. His face twisted as he ground his teeth together and violently shook his head, his fists pounding against his bad leg. Then he shut his eyes, alone in his private agony, shaking his head in some denial.

That wasn't right. Tank had explained once why he was so attached to his brothers and why brothers were so important to each other after battle. To know you weren't alone; to know that someone else understood. She had told Tank she didn't understand; he had smiled. 'I hope you never understand, Nikka' he had said.

For a moment, Nikka watched Red's fierce shaking then, catching the rhythm she cupped her hands around his face. He stopped moving, but refused to open his eyes and he was still trembling. Slowly she let her hands slide around his neck, a loose hug because she didn't particularly like him.

"I was afraid," he whispered after a moment of stillness. He gestured toward the snowcapped mountains. "I'm free here."

"I've never been afraid before, but I was scared I wouldn't come back."

After a moment, Red stopped shaking so violently and opened his eyes looking into her face, his own pale and streaked with black marks. Nikka took his hand and guided him into the hall so he could be with his brothers. She was beginning to understand. Red needed to talk over what had happened to him and he needed to talk to someone who could relate to his words and actions; not a civilian, not a female and not a youngling.

Taking a shortcut to the clinic put her through a darker part of Fisherman's Field. Nikka wasn't worried, the moon's glow provided light across the frosted field. She knew where she was and how smooth the field was; she knew how much faster she could make it back to the clinic by taking the shorter route. As she moved across the field, crackling half-frozen grass under her boots, Nikka caught sound first then sight of a trooper in green-striped armor, one arm daubed in darker paint.

"Fekking Kazzies! I can hear your flamethrowers. Come out, you shabuirs, and show yourselves!" He was yelling, his helmet in one hand and his blaster in the other, whipping around at the sound of imaginary targets.

Nikka made a small, startled noise. The trooper turned and faced her.

"Ah hah! Found you!" His blaster was trained on her.

Suddenly terrified, Nikka froze in place, as unmoving as the blaster targeting her. He stared at her without recognition, his face hard in hatred and Nikka knew he'd fire if she tried to run.

The darkness slowly dripped from his gauntlet, a droplet hanging for a moment from the blaster then falling to the ice-coated grass. and Nikka knew it wasn't the decoration of his armor. His eyes narrowed and he gave a sharp motion with his face, still not recognizing her. "Get outta here, kid. It's a battlefield." Then he whipped around to another non-existent enemy.

Nikka slipped back into shadows and found a trooper to relay the message to the Overviews then found a corner where she could throw up, the trooper stroking her hair from her face and holding her shaking shoulders then offering water from his canteen when she was done.

"Rinse your mouth and spit," he said through his helmet, "it will make you feel better." Nikka nodded, knowing that once he must have gotten ill at what he had seen or experienced. He tilted his head, listening then spoke again to her. "Lieutenant Torch will take care of the situation." He paused, lifting off his helmet; his dark brown eyes concerned and uncertain of her reaction.

"Sometimes..." he shrugged. "Don't blame him, Nikka. Sometimes it's hard to come out of battle."

Nikka nodded as she woodenly reminded him to report to a medical station for clearance then to Fisherman's Hall for food and debriefing.

Towards the end of her shift, she saw Tek and Gears with a servo-lift lined with vats; blind Gears with a hand on Tek's shoulder for easy guidance and Tek pushing the servo-lift forward, letting it take most of the weight off his bad leg. They were arguing, as they usually were and Nikka debated slowing down to let them know debriefing was at Fisherman's Hall. They all should have known. The plan was for the message to be sent out through the four paralyzed men to the commanding officers and then to all the troopers, but Tag had told her to remind them if she saw any men not heading that way. However, Tek and Gears were headed towards the hall so Nikka decided to continue running back to the clinic.

"We were di'kutla to bring them," Tek was saying and his voice was angrily loud. "We made the wrong decision in bringing them. The women won't want them and they'll die."

"Better than dying in the lab," retorted Gears.

Tek shook his head. "A quick death would have been more merciful for these babies; like Chance and our other vode rather than neglect and starvation," growled Tek just as he saw Nikka and jerked the lift to a stop as she halted in her steps, her eyes wide, at the mention of babies.

Gears tilted his head to get a bearing on her then squinted trying to see her. Tek answered his unasked question. "It's Nikka, Gears. Part of Tank's host family."

Then the two men with the servo-lift simply stood there and Nikka looked into one of those translucent vats. With an indrawn breath of wonder, she understood why Karyn had gotten into the speeder and gone to her mom.

Smiling, she looked up into Tek's frowning face, grim and angry, then into Gears' stern visage lined with exhaustion. Her smile died; she could see they'd been through too much already.

"Don't worry about the babies, Tek," she answered his worries she'd heard before they saw her. "They'll be a wonderful addition to Ando." She remembered what she should remind the troopers. "Debriefing is in Fisherman's Hall and there's food as well." She bit her lower lip as Tek started pushing the servo-lift slowly around the corner of a building, wanting to ask who had died besides Chance; wanting to know if Tank was alright. She hadn't heard anything about Tank after that first message at the beginning of her shift.

"Tek," she whispered and didn't expect him to hear her but he stopped the lift, turning his face to her, no longer angry but only infinitely sad. Facing his expression, It wasn't in her to ask about Tank. She could wait until she saw him herself or until the lists were posted.

Tek was waiting and Nikka glanced at the containers, translucent from condensation, and gestured towards the vats.

"May I touch one?" she asked hesitantly, staring in fascination at the sleeping, dark-haired babies.

Gears moved forward. "Better not. We have orders from Mako. The doctor needs to clear them all through medical."

"They look like you, like all of you. They're beautiful babies." Neither Tek nor Gears made any remark but their faces relaxed slightly. "I can help, if you need it. I know what to do. I have a younger brother."

By the time her shift was done, Nikka was ready for soup and sleep. She'd seen many troopers, but she hadn't seen Tank. He was the one trooper she'd been looking for all evening; the one she was beginning to think of as family.

She reported to Fisherman's Hall at the end of the night, her eyes searching for Tank. Her brother, Tinrik was there, serving water to everyone in the hall.

"I saw Tank earlier," he said quietly as he handed her one of the bottles of water and led her to a table. "He's sore but ok, Nikka."

Everything she'd seen that night, from Hodges to Odds and everything she'd done, from facing a blaster to seeing the clone babies overwhelmed her. Nikka sank down and felt tears hot on her cheeks. Her brother- obnoxious little Tinrik- put his arms around and gave her a tight hug.

# # #

Karyn waited tensely, medbag in hand, as the unfamiliar ship settled down on Fisherman's Field.

A medship. How did they ever manage such a thing? And, who thought to bring such a ship back to Ando? Must have been Captain Rex; he had always seemed so concerned about the other troopers.

She studied the ship more closely. It could make a huge difference to Ando. She'd done a training rotation on an older version Pelta frigate, a ship not so different in design to this one.

She glanced down at her datapad again, consulting the list Mako had sent ahead of the wounded who would be transferred to the clinic. He had detailed their injuries and the treatments given en route.

"First priority is Hodges," Karyn said, "his condition is critical."

The volunteers nodded, listening carefully to her instructions.

Karyn turned her attention back to the ship, waiting as the thrust exhaust nozzles blew out and the landing gear extended. Her grip tightened on her medical bag as she heard the pressure seals equalize on the hatch.

"Let's go," she said, running for the ramp as soon as it deployed..

Mako was waiting for her in the hatch entryway, looking as if he'd aged considerably in the one week he'd been away. He didn't speak, but simply pointed and directed her toward the medbay. It was as if he were too tired for even words. She would insist he rest soon, but there was no time now.

Hodges had a clean white bandage across his torso that matched his pale complexion. Another trooper was keeping a bunkside vigil next to Hodges. Karyn couldn't recall his name, and she berated herself for not knowing every member of the Legion by sight. She glanced at him quickly.

"Clank, ma'am."

The keen intelligence of these physically-enhanced men could be unnerving. She smiled quickly in greeting, and then directed her volunteers on detaching the stretcher from the medbay bunk. Hodges stirred briefly as he was lifted, but her team did well.

"Get him to the clinic and prepped for surgery. I'll be right there," Karyn said, looking down at her datapad, and moving on to gather the rest of the wounded. The two stretcher bearers hurried away.

Tank came over to assist, a copy of the list of wounded to be transferred. She noticed his fingers trembled. She wondered what happened to the heavy gunner's other crutch. He was strong and fit, like his brothers, but moving such a way for a long period would take a toll on his body. She'd make sure to examine him soon, as well.

"Next on the list is Scythe and then Keen," she said, pointing to the names on her datapad. Tank nodded and moved off to show the volunteers which of his vod were the ones on the list.

Keen?

She didn't recognize the name.

"Mako," she studied the list again, already working through treatment logistics. She wanted to confer with Lance and Mako simultaneously. She looked around the medbay, wondering why the other medic hadn't made an appearance yet. "Where's Lance? Is he on one of the other ships?"

Mako nodded. "Eh… yes. But, he won't be joining us. He's headed there." He directed her attention to the row of bacta tanks at the back of the ship. They were all occupied by unconscious clones. He pointed to the third tank in. "I'm pulling Huii out since he can finish healing on his own. None of these troopers are on your transfer list. They'll stay on the medical ship. They'll heal faster here. As bacta tanks become available, we'll rotate men in."

It was a good plan. In time, she would be able to integrate the medship more seamlessly with her simple clinic.

"What happened to Lance?" She'd worked closely with the medic over the past two months, and considered him a friend.

"Close-range det explosion. Crushed his right side." He frowned and shook his head. She knew he and Lance were close. "Came close to taking out the whole commando team. It's a wonder any of them lived through it."

There were so many details about this past week she needed to learn. She was torn between not wanting to know, and wishing to hear every detail. She didn't even know who was on this commando team Mako was talking about. Normally, she would want to discuss the detailed condition of every trooper, including the ones in the tanks. But, now was not the time. Mako was right. They had the best chance of healing in bacta, and she was tasked with caring for everyone else at the clinic.

Tank hobbled over on a single crutch, his slow movements showing his exhaustion. "All the wounded on the transfer list are on their way to the clinic."

"Thank you," Karyn nodded to the trooper, "I'm on my way."

She quickly exited the medbay, and ran into Travis.

It was an accidental meeting. He was mid-sentence, shouting orders to troopers, and spun around, nearly toppling Karyn. He caught her by the elbow and they both froze.

Karyn wasn't prepared for the rush of emotions at seeing the Marine. She was the leader of the Women Warriors. She'd held together the survivors of a planetary apocalypse. Even harder, she'd survived the loss of her husband and sons. But, seeing Travis alive made her almost sink to her knees in relief. She was glad for his steely grip on her arm holding her up. She simply stared at him.

"Lieutenant?" someone waved to him from down the corridor to catch his attention. "We need you for-"

Travis looked up, reading lips. "I need a microsecond here!" he growled back to the trooper impatiently.

He turned his attention back to her, "Karyn-" he started and then stopped. She could see remorse in his face and eyes.

His face was dirty, scratched and covered with stubble. He was filthy, seemingly covered with mud everywhere. His brilliant red- no, burgundy, hair- was dull and dark. She'd never seen him so unkempt.

His normally pristine armor was covered with grime and battle residue, coloring it more charcoal than burgundy. His chestplate was covered with blast damage, mud and scoring.

She frowned, putting a hand up to his chest. "What-"

He shook his head. "Det explosion."

"Travis," she made a note of protest, remembering the det explosion Mako had described, the one severe enough to crush Lance's bones. She examined his chestplate more closely and noticed it was melted.

"Alright," Travis clarified, "a flamethrower and then a det." Her eyes widened at the description, and she wondered if it would keep getting worse as she learned more about this 'mission.' She probed at his chest, worried what was hidden under his armor. Travis stilled her motions, gripping her hand between both of his own. She frowned at the bulky feel of his hand and looked down at the compression splint engulfing his hand.

He shook his head and gave her a sad smile. "It's alright. I'm a little banged up, but I made it back."

"You'll come by the clinic later," she said, still peering at the melted chestplate, "so I can clear you through medical."

"I will," Travis said, not giving her any argument. OK, this was a new and different Travis, as well. "I'll also make sure the rest of the men make it over."

She looked into his eyes. He looked so tired. There was pain and sadness there as if he'd seen and suffered too much over the past week. He released her hands.

She reached up and traced the rough hair across his chin and cheeks. He dropped his face into her palm, closed his eyes and relished in the simple touch. Then, his eyes opened again and he took a deep breath. "Karyn, I'm -"

But, whatever he wanted to say, he never had a chance to finish.

"Karyn!"

One of the volunteers shouted for her and she knew they were out of time.

"I'm on my way!" she shouted back, turning to leave.

Travis halted her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Karyn," Travis' voice was so stricken and it was clear he wanted to speak with her. There was something different about his eyes. Something that had not been there a week ago. She could see experiences had changed him since he'd been away and he was not the same man who'd left. "I-"

She wasn't sure if she was ready to hear what he had to say. Not yet.

"We need to talk," she said quickly. She'd been planning on telling him 'no.' She'd thought over his marriage proposal constantly over the past week. The passion between them wasn't enough to hold them together if he could betray her trust so completely. But, he'd left as someone too immature for her to consider spending a lifetime with and come back as… she didn't know who this person was standing in front of her.

He nodded, looking pained and unsure. Not the same cocky man she knew before. The one who infuriated her so easily they were as likely to fight as make love.

"Lieutenant!" the trooper waved again to catch Travis' eye.

He hissed in frustration, spun on his heel and disappeared into the interior of the ship. She could already hear him bellowing orders. She ran for the ramp and immediately set off for the clinic. Whatever was between them would have to wait.

# # #