Chapter 11
"I hate to tell you this sir," Jace muttered after another shell exploded beside our position, sending shockwaves into the ground around us. "But that artillery is still firing."
"I know that," I growled as I loaded a fresh clip into my DC-17. Another explosion rocked our position. I stole a glance over the barricade we had erected before us. A blaster bolt hurled towards me with violent intent. It careened into the barricade, flinging a chunk of the barrier into the air with murderous intent. I was fortunate to have avoided it.
"Ace!" I screamed into my commlink. He should have had that position down. He should have set the charges already. If his ego had gotten in the way again I would murder him after we survived the op. "What the fierfek are you doing?!"
"Ran into some friends," he answered as I heard a quick burst of blaster fire over the commlink. Another shell exploded near us. I cursed. Their aim was improving. We had to move, and quick. I had no plans on becoming a jigsaw puzzle left on a battlefield. "I'll get it down, don't worry."
"Move quicker," I ordered bluntly before I motioned to Jace for his attention. "We need to move. Now."
"They have us pinned," he responded. In fact, my quick foray glancing above cover had nearly cost my skull. Besides, it wasn't as if I had gotten any useful information, other than where one enemy emplacement might be. All I had done was confirm my position. In short, it left us in a losing position. We could sprint to another position of cover, but expose ourselves to searing plasma. The alternative was to stay and pray that Ace got the artillery destroyed before they found us and risk rapid dismemberment. That was war. I was cursed with two awful options.
I'm not a spiritual man. I won't wait for Ace or the Force or some damned idea like that to save me. I save myself.
I motioned towards another barricade. "Get there. I'll cover you." He nodded once. Another blast shook our position. He reached for his belt, gripping a cylinder with a pin at the top. With one fluid motion he ripped the pin free, before tossing it over our barricade. A white smoke began to expand, concealing the path between us and safety. It was brief cover, but it would do the job. A smirk found a home under my helmet as I prepared my rifle.
The DC-17 is such a wonderful weapon! It has an interchangeable weapon system that's standard issue for a Republic Commando; it's a weapon for every situation. Need a reliable rifle? It will do the job. Need an armor emplacement destroyed? If you don't mind lugging along the shell, it will blow everything to hell. I'm not flashy though. My favorite attachment always will be the sniper. That thing drills better than anything I've ever used. All I need to is change the ammo clip, add a scope and barrel, and my enemies will die.
I set the sniper up on what remained of our barricade. To my right, where Jace had sprinted, I heard a couple of blasts. He was drawing their fire as the smoke from his decoy cleared. Good.
A battle is just a hunt with a herd instead of individuals. Hunt in packs, kill, and reap the rewards. Remember that strill Vau had? Strills are fantastic hunters simply because they have brains. They're smart. Their prey isn't. The stupid ones die; it's called evolution. As the smoke cleared, a few blaster bolts tried searching for Jace from where he had drawn their fire. That was idiotic. They revealed their position. It was all I needed.
I felt the recoil of the rifle as I fired once. The target fell. In an instant I headed towards the next target. The rifle recoiled again. The bolt rushed through the enemy skull. Another explosion shook me. I cursed. I was running out of time, and the reverberation had forced me to realign a shot. That could have cost Jace. Still, I squeezed the trigger, catching the head before he could strike my squadmate.
"Clear!" I heard Jace yell over the commlink. I dove into a prone position behind the cover with my rifle as they rediscovered my location. I flung it over my back, drawing my sidearm. "I got you covered!" He added, before I noticed he had emerged from his new position, unleashing an entire clip of ammunition into an enemy placement. Scurrying forward, I rushed after him.
Fortunately, his barrage had bought me some relief, though they could retaliate the moment he reloaded. I noticed he returned behind cover and realized that time had come. Then the blaster fire began gnawing after me, nipping behind my heels. At least it made me run faster when he began unloading into them once again. I leapt behind him as I reached the new position. Nearly instantly, the artillery found our old position. I took my Deecee and returned to the regular rifle, covering Jace when he had to reload. Now we just had to hold our position until Ace destroyed the artillery. If he would.
"Status!" I demanded over the commlink while I took a moment to reload. There wasn't an immediate response. Fierfek. If Ace had gotten himself killed we would have failed the mission. Fierfek. "Status!" I screamed again. Now he decided to answer.
"Explosives laid and ready to blow, pulling back!"
"Understood," I acknowledged him. We continued holding our position for a few moments. Then a brilliant explosion lit up the sky. Good. We did the job.
Within moments, the simulation ceased, and we were transplanted from a battlefield to an elaborate training arena.
"Excellent work cadets," the automated female voice blared through the arena, "Please report to your training sergeant for further instruction."
"Not bad," Jace commented as he removed his helmet, casually holding it in one hand while he slung his rifle over his back.
"Should've been better," I grumbled. My helmet remained on, despite the simulation being over. We should have finished far quicker. It might have been a fictional training exercise, but I was not about to come that close to death in an actual combat simulation. I wish I still worked alone. Then I could do the job the way I wanted to instead of having to wait for someone else.
Speaking of that someone else, I found Ace waiting casually outside the arena, leaning against the white wall of the corridor. His arms were crossed as he lazily acknowledged us.
"Told you I'd get it done," he spoke with an aura of self-importance. I marched up to him and flung my helmet.
"What the fierfek was that!?" I screamed at him.
"My job," he responded with a condescendingly raised eyebrow. "Did you expect anything else?"
"I kriffin' expected you to take your fierfeking job seriously instead of fierfeking around and kriffin' us over!" I grabbed his arm above the elbow, jerking him into a more alert position. He ripped his arm free as I continued to chastise him. "You think this is funny? Do you? Do you think this is a kriffin' joke just because this is a kriffin' simulation! No! It might be some lousy fierfeking simulation now, but when that becomes live fire this osik is what keeps you alive instead of kriffin' the whole op!"
"In case you've forgotten, I wasn't the one who got in trouble."
"Because you kriffed us over!"
"We still passed," he shrugged again. I growled lowly. This was ridiculous. He needed to learn how war worked. It wasn't a joke, and raw talent wouldn't keep him alive. Right now, the only thing keeping him alive was me.
"This time. Next time," I jabbed my finger into his chest as I adopted a calmer and colder demeanor, "You'll get to watch how you let us die before they skull-kriff you with a rifle."
That got his attention. A snarl forced its way onto his face. See, if I had learned one thing about Ace it's that he hates traitors. Anyone who abandons a comrade is a traitor in his eyes. Accusing him of such is. "I'm sorry sir, I don't think I heard you correctly."
"You did. I know you don't like me, private," I then jerked a thumb towards Jace, "But what about Jace? You almost got him killed."
"It was a kriffin' simulation…"
"This time," I repeated. "Next time? The squad's dead. Remember that."
"Mate, I didn't come to hear you preach."
"Well you better start listening."
"About teamwork from someone who hates everyone?" He chuckled sardonically, "You're worse than the cloners."
"I hit harder," I growled as I clenched my fists, my temper rising once again. I hated the simulations. It never felt like true combat. There was never any sort of thrill in it. There was no blood to draw, nor was there any satisfaction in destroying a hologram. I longed for a true opponent. If Ace wanted to bleed, I would gladly oblige.
"I'd love to see that."
"I think you'll have to wait," Jace interrupted. Both of us glared at him. He was always playing peacemaker. Right now, neither one of us wanted it. Just once he should have let us pound the fierfek out of each other. However, he simply pointed ahead of him. We turned to face where he motioned. Contrasting the pristine white, a dark figure of a gaunt human was striding towards us. Instantly we stood at attention.
"Not the best," Vau calmly observed. At least he agreed with me. First he scanned our faces, mine, Ace's, then Jace's. Then what might have been an amused smile formed on his lips.
"RC-2213, go report to Kal. He'll give you a more in-depth assessment."
"Yes sir," he seemed hesitant to leave us, probably assuming we would have tried to strangle each other when he left. Still, he had an order he was not keen on disobeying. He proceeded with decent haste as Ace and I shot spiteful glances towards each other while awaiting criticism, or an uppercut, knowing Vau.
"You know," he tilted his head in the direction Jace had headed. "He scored higher than both of you." Vau paused. "And you know the funniest thing? I know he doesn't give a flying fierfek about which one of you scores highest on the simulation. And Kal's going to coddle him and tell him what a great kriffing job he and why he should be proud. It's pathetic to treat soldiers like children, but because of you two numbskulls, he might have earned it. Why? Because he sees you're a kriffing team and isn't letting his ego get in his way."
"He's having a lucky streak," Ace mumbled. I had to agree with him. According to the simulations, Ace was usually one of the best soldiers in the entire army. I jostled with him for a high position. Jace tended to score respectably but far lower. More recently, he had begun matching us, and the only thing that made sense was luck. It would have been a shot which should never been able to find a target, or ducking behind cover with convenient speed. The best explanation was that he was having a remarkable streak of luck. I don't know why Vau had decided to now mention Jace had been bettering us in the more recent exercises.
"Is that an excuse?" Vau demanded. Ace and I both knew if we answered in the affirmative, that we'd be in for weeks of hell. Instead we both remained silent. "You say that's luck? In this galaxy, there's no such thing as luck."
"Duly noticed," I answered.
"And you know what else? He isn't a little man trying to prove he can play with big boys, and that working alone makes him real fierfeking tough. He'll end up dragging you both through the war if you don't get your acts together. Both of you need to learn how to work together. Figure it out," he stared at me, "Or Mird will teach you."
He stormed away without another word, leaving Ace and me alone again. Neither one of us wanted to reconcile at the moment. "Mate," he spoke with a cold disdain, "If you ever suggest Jedi or I would betray each other again, I will break your neck."
"Why's that?" I inquired.
"Aliit, mate. Maybe you should learn what it means," he ordered before he stormed after Vau.
I shook my head before I began wandering in the other direction. He had tested my nerves enough for the day. Hopefully he was planning on bolo-ball or something instead of heading to barracks. He would probably be slightly more willing to get his head out his shebse after kicking the osik out of some poor keeper, or the net if he wanted to be less merciful. In fact, I took a long a longer way back to the barracks than usual. I was both aggravated and humiliated. I needed to be calm. Emotion has no place in war. Betraying any would be a weakness. I had betrayed far more than I should if. I never made that mistake as a hunter. I shook my head again.
I needed a drink. In fact, it had been far too long since I had a decent meal, let alone a decent drink. I don't think the cloners understood how taste worked. Then, as I began to calm down, a smile formed on my face. I would get that meal after all.
Tawny was coming. She had begun to visit for a couple days at a time every few weeks. How the Senate allowed her to travel to some forgotten planet at the edge of the galaxy baffled me, but I figured the bureaucracy just never noticed she left. At least it worked out for us. It had been three weeks, fourteen hours, twenty-two minutes, and thirty-nine seconds since I last saw her in person. Needless to say, it had felt longer.
"He keeps a timer?" Her voice was the first I heard as I entered the barracks. I walked inside to find Jace putting his equipment back into a footlocker. He nodded as he took his chestplate off.
"There are a lot of things the helmet HUDs can do," he informed her.
"That's remarkably sweet of him," I heard her stifle a chuckle while she sat on my bunk.
"Don't get him used to it," I interrupted as they both shifted their attention to me.
"Why not?" Tawny asked with a feigned innocence as she leapt from the bunk onto the ground. I noticed my squad mate smirk and shake his head as he placed an armguard into the locker.
"I promised him I could get him to call me Jedi."
"I don't like Jedi," I hissed. Meanwhile Jace just shrugged as he placed his last piece of armor and shut the locker, sitting on it.
"I still keep my promises," he added.
"Speaking of Jedi," Tawny turned her attention back to him, "How's the lightsaber coming?"
"Along," he answered laconically.
"That all? How did you get that far anyway?"
"I found schematics in a library the cadets had access to," he explained, "Cloners probably thought it might be useful to have. Most of the parts were easy enough to find, and I just got a power cell. Finding crystals for it has been proving more difficult than I had hoped."
"You need crystals?" She asked as I noticed her tone shifted. Kriff. I knew that tone of voice. It was the tone when she got a dangerous idea. Dangerous ideas are her favorite ones. I could guess where this was headed. Already I disliked it, although, to be fair, I dislike most things. He answered with a simple nod.
"I can get some," she told him. Immediately his face lightened up like an excited child.
"You're joking…" he began in amazement. She shook her head.
"I work for the Senate, remember?" Jace looked at her for a moment, before he turned to face me.
"Sir, I love your girlfriend."
"Don't get any ideas," I ordered. "About the lightsaber either. You'll never use the thing anyway."
"I'll see if I can get trained," he admitted before sauntering out of the room. "And I know you two want to do things I don't want to see. I hope your evening comes out nicely."
"I thought he would never leave," I muttered as Tawny ran into my arms. We stood for a moment in an embrace before letting go.
She paused a moment before kissing me on the cheek. "What's new?"
"I'm surrounded by idiots," I answered in the bluntest way I could.
"I don't think that's new."
"They always think up new ways to drive me crazy."
"Which one is it?" I noticed excitement dance across her face. All it did was add further insult to a humiliating situation. Yet she looked eager, as if there was some humor to be found in the situation. There wasn't.
"You think this is funny, don't you?"
"To be honest? Just a little…"
"It isn't."
"Well to be fair, we do this every time I come…"
"We do what?" I asked with further indignance. The day, as most others, was certainly testing my nerves. She shrugged nonchalantly.
"Well, I come by, you complain about Jedi or Ace, I smile and nod, you grumble about how I'm not listening, I give you some advice, you decide not to listen and then we…"
"I get the picture," I cut her off with a subdued grumble. She was right, of course. I just wasn't interested in hearing it.
"That doesn't mean I won't listen," she continued. There was an irony about that. She was about to listen to me about how other people won't listen to me. "So, which one was it?"
"Ace. I swear, he's going to be the death of me."
"A lot of people have tried before him."
"He's gotten closer to the rest of them," I muttered as I pulled myself away from her and sulked over to sit on my foot locker. "For fierfek's sake! This isn't some game! Instead he just plays around and kriffing decides Jace and I can shove it! That idiot! That selfish, glory-hunting, idiot! He wants to die for glory? Fine! Just don't drag Jace and me into it!"
She didn't answer, not at first. I was seething. Instead she just followed my footsteps, sitting on the bunk next to me. I began to calm down. I don't know, she just has that effect on me, I can't explain it. She just does. I mean, I like it, don't get me wrong, it's just I'm not used to people getting that close to me. "Sev," she whispered gently as she put her head on my shoulder, "Have you tried trusting him?"
I snorted at the suggested. Trust? Trust comes slowly, if ever in bounty hunting. You can't trust someone who wants money or glory. You can't trust anyone. It's one of the first rules of bounty hunting: Trust no one. The end result is staying alive.
"Well, you trust me, right?" She asked as she took her head off my shoulder and stared at me. I stared back. Trusted her? Of course I trusted her. Why wouldn't I?
"Why do you have to ask?"
"You didn't at first. You locked me in the holding cell of your ship."
"I didn't know you at first. You were my target, I had to assume you were a dangerous enemy and would kill me at any possible moment. It wasn't until Jang'buir showed me otherwise that I began to trust you."
"He didn't give you much choice." She was right. If Jang'buir hadn't told me to trust her, I wouldn't have. I probably wouldn't be stuck in this damn army and would have been well-paid after handing her over to my employer. Well, I'm glad I didn't. "And I mean, you don't have much choice at the moment."
"We always got along better than I do with Ace."
"Sev, I put a blaster to the back of your head."
"You had a mission. It's different."
"So is this. Sev, this isn't bounty hunting anymore. Ace isn't a rival, he's a friend, but you can't trust him. He'll follow someone that will. Why do you think he gets along fine with Jedi?"
"Jace is gullible enough to trust the Chancellor," I retorted. After a moment to consider it, Tawny realized I was right.
"Ok, well…he's...he just...ok, you're right he's probably the most gullible person I've ever met."
"And how does this help me with Ace?"
"Because Ace knows Jedi will have his back. They trust each other. Just show him he can trust you too."
"And how do I do that?" I raised an eyebrow skeptically. She just smiled.
"I can't give you all the answers, can I?"
"You always make things more complicated than they have to be."
"It's my job." She giggled slightly and kissed me on the cheek again.
"How do you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Put up with the idiots of the galaxy."
"I put up with you," she bantered back instantly. We both laughed. I put my arm around her as she put her head on my shoulder again.
"I'd be totally kriffed without you," I confessed.
"No… You'd just be doing what you always did with more grunting than actual talking." she joked.
I looked at her with an expression of a confused and scrunched face I don't think I could replicate, "What?"
She smiled at me, "It's cute when you try, though."
"Whatever," I grunted. Instantly, she threw her head back and burst into laughter. It took me a moment to register what had made it so funny.
"C'mon," she motioned to a satchel next to the locker that I hadn't noticed beforehand. Damn it. That was dangerous. If I missed that because I was angry with Ace, that could have worse repercussions on the battlefield. "I promised you real food," Tawny added, "Didn't I?"
My expression just lit up in absolute happiness. "Is it Life Day already?"
"Not quite," she commented as she left to grab the satchel. She grabbed it and shoved a hand inside, fumbling around for something. "You better eat healthy," she joked as she tossed the fruit she had found to me. I grabbed the reddish-orange sphere out of the sky, before promptly shoving the ripened morsel into my mouth. Muja fruit: also known as real food. I had forgotten how good actual food tasted. It sure as hell was better than the synthesized garbage they claim is food that they feed us.
"Phanks wou," I garbled my thanks through chewing. Tawny just smiled again.
"Anything to get that scowl off your face," she responded as she brought the satchel back to me, sitting on the foot locker once more. I was told that the best way to make friends, romantic or otherwise, was through food. I guess it makes sense, considering everyone needs food, and Kamino had taught me how much value good food has. Regardless, Tawny and I spent the next hour or two eating and talking. It was probably the best part of a day that had been rather poor otherwise.
As we finished most of the contents, Tawny reached back into the bag, pulling out another muja fruit. She offered it to me, "You want it?"
"Not at the moment." Tawny shrugged and handed it to me anyway.
"For later. If not give it to Jedi or Ace or something." I took it without comment at first. In fact, I hadn't thought much of it. Then, I realized something. Tawny was a genius.
"I have to go," I kissed her quickly before I burst off the foot locker. "I'll be back soon."
"Hey," she stumbled after me for a few paces. "Where are you going?!"
"Taking your advice!" I yelled as I waved the hand with the fruit. Tawny just stopped and a reassuring smile formed on her face; she understood. I ran to the mess hall, which, after overeating, was probably one of my worst ideas. I'm still amazed I didn't vomit on the way. I took the fruit and safely secured it into a pouch on my belt, making sure the thing wouldn't get squished. That would both ruin my plan and infuriate me.
I didn't find Ace inside the mess hall actually. I think he was heading there, but he had been interrupted by one of the cloners. He later explained it was just about a malfunction with one of the simulators and they wanted to know if he had noticed anything. It wasn't anything important, or it wouldn't have been if it hadn't stopped him long enough for me to reach him. He glared rather disdainfully towards me.
"What do you want?"
"I just wanted to talk…" I began only to be interrupted as a group of regular troopers began walking past us. There were three of them.
"Well, well, gents," the leader of the trio sardonically muttered, "Commando units. They're supposed to be great enough to win the war themselves. Makes me wonder why we're here at all."
"Mate," Ace retorted, "We clean up your messes."
"You think you're better than us?" the trooper stopped, turning to face Ace with his two thugs behind him. Sometimes, I wonder how we were all part of the same genome considering the variety of personality and, more bluntly, decency within the army.
"Better than you?" I crossed my arms, "He definitely is." I noticed Ace raise an eyebrow for a brief moment. He hadn't expected it. Truth be told, I hadn't either.
"You're worse than the kriffin' ARCs," the trooper snarled, "Thinking you can win the war yourselves without us…"
"I can win this war myself," Ace chuckled.
"Oh? Why, I'm surprised you don't need your precious sergeants to coddle you."
"We don't get coddled. We learn to fight," I informed him, before a bloodthirsty grin flashed on my face, "Want me to show you?"
I could smell the tension. My muscles tense with excitement. Finally, something other than the damn simulations. Finally I could remember what it was like to see something bleed. The thrill of the hunt, the savage simplicity. My nostrils flared in anticipation. If this moron wanted to fight with me, fine. My armor needed some new bloodstains anyway.
He didn't say anything, instead trying to respond with a sucker punch. I blocked it while one of his cronies lunged towards Ace. Ace responded instantly with a block of his own, before bringing his fist into the stomach of the attacker. The trooper stumbled backwards, before Ace grabbed his head and decided it was best if he introduced his opponent to his knee. The unconscious form of the trooper crumpled to the ground. The other thug swung wildly at Ace, only for my comrade to easily avoid the blow. Immediately he jabbed forward, wrapping his arm around his foe. The poor fool was flailing his limbs pathetically as he tried to loosen Ace's grip. Fortunately, he slipped into unconsciousness soon enough.
Their leader, well, he wasn't as lucky. After his initial strike, I responded with a fist of my own, right into his jaw. He stumbled backwards, as I followed menacingly after him. Grabbing him by the shoulders, I flung him to the ground in the roughest way I thought possible. He slammed against the pristine white, before rolling onto his back. Good. My foot then promptly dove onto his chest. He convulsed as it slammed into him. Then I was upon him. My fists began pummeling his face, furiously driving into him. First I made his eyes black. Next came the face. I think blue suited him better. Offering an example of Vau, I broke his nose with another punch. Then I drew some blood. Good. The floor was too fierfeking white anyway. Afterwards I knocked a tooth out. At least the garbage in the mess hall wasn't difficult to chew. I should have stopped long before, but no, the thrill of battle is a drug. Once it strikes, it consumes you. And I love it, by the Force, I love it. I wish training could be like this more often.
"Sir! Udesii!" Ace grabbed my fist, stopping my fist before I could deliver another blow. I let out a guttural noise before I ripped my hand free.
"I'm not finished," I turned my attention to the trooper who was well unconscious by now. He probably would have died if I had gotten another punch or two in. In hindsight, it was good Ace stopped me.
"He isn't worth it, sir!" Ace ripped me off the trooper. I stared at him, my chest rising and falling rapidly, I was panting, the adrenaline flushing my system. Perhaps I would have punched him instead and ruined any chance of reconciliation. I never found out, though, as we heard footsteps coming in our direction.
"Kriff," Ace cursed, "We're getting court martialed…"
"I'll deal with this," I grumbled. I turned in the direction of the footsteps. Approaching us was a sullen man with an animal on a leash, a predator that seemed excited by the current scene before us. He approached us with a cold demeanor, before stopping to investigate. He saw the three unconscious troopers, silently noting one was in far worse shape than the other two.
"Care to explain?" Vau inquired bluntly.
"I didn't like them," I answered bluntly before motioning to Ace, "And I made him join in to even the odds."
"Did you? That lack of discipline has consequences. Reassignment, probation, probable court martial," he turned his focus to Ace, "Although I'm sure your squad will be happy to see you go."
"Actually, sir," Ace mumbled, as if he was reluctant to support me. I think part of him wanted to see me humiliated and arrested. Except I had supported him. The least he could do was repay the favor. He wouldn't consider the alternative. Tawny was right about Ace. "They picked a fight with me. My commander just stood by me. It wasn't his fault, sir."
"I see," I noticed his lips turn upward. I think it was his version of a smile. He nodded deliberately before glancing at me. "Son, you're a terrible liar. You should return to barracks. That's an order."
"But what about this," I motioned to the three unconscious bodies.
"At my age," Vau shrugged, "I sometimes lose my grip on Mird's leash. If they understood strills they'd realize they're lucky to be alive. Now, go. I'll take care of this."
Ace and I both nodded silently, before marching back towards our barracks at a much quicker pace than usual. As soon as we were sure we were far enough to avoid suspicion, we returned to a much more casual speed.
"Nice work," I informed him. Ace just responded with perplexion.
"Sir?"
"In the fight. Kandosii." He stopped abruptly.
"Sir, what is this about?"
"I'm congratulating you for a job well done, Soldier, is that a problem?"
"What ever happened to bashing my face in? Not that you could, but I thought you wanted to try." I nearly did since he insisted if I couldn't. Although I simply clenched my fist again. I had narrowly avoided a court martial once already.
"We need to stick together. Whether we like or not. I need to work with you, and you need to work with me. Understand?"
"If you trust me to do the job," he responded, "We won't have a problem sir."
"Good," I nodded once. He began ahead of me again, before I interrupted him.
"Wait," I opened that pouch on my belt. Somehow the fruit had survived. Finally something had gone well. He turned to face me as I tossed it to him.
"What's this?"
"Real food," I explained, "I expect you to be at your best during tomorrow's simulation, understood?"
He smirked, before taking a bite out of his snack. There was a cockiness about his demeanor. "Me? Why would you expect anything less."