Revised: May 28, 2013. Thank you to CatchMeIfYouCan for pointing out an error in this chapter. (I mistakenly referred to Bly as a Captain. I know why I did it, too. In the beginning, Ordo is mentioned and his rank is Captain.)
"More Than Just A Clone"
Chapter 29
Aayla flushed, and looked uncomfortable. She looked as if she was about to say something, and then stopped. She just nodded, and then muttered, "Of course, Sergeant, I'll help in whatever way Captain Ordo sees fit."
Bly scowled, and his face darkened. Gil must have felt Bly's muscles tensing up under the hand he'd placed on Bly's shoulder.
"Easy, son," Gil said, "we'll watch out for her. You can rest easy."
Rest easy? While Aayla risks her life just to get me a bacta tank? Bly's eyes sought out Aayla's again. This time, Aayla met his gaze and the intensity of it made him suck his breath in. He saw her grim determination to see the mission through. He saw the passion she felt for him – a passion that he echoed back. He also saw something else still lingering in her gaze. Guilt? What did she have to feel guilty about? Did she still feel responsible for him getting injured? He'd have to set her straight on that one. It had entirely been his decision to do what he'd done. And, it had been his brothers, or, well, his former brothers now, who'd done the shooting. So, why was she carrying this burden of guilt around?
Bly looked back again at the datapad Ordo was holding up as he explained some last minute details pertaining to the actual removal of the tank, and transporting it through the corridors back it to the second ship.
So much has to go right in order for this to work. He looked around the room at all the different warriors who had assembled to be a part of this plan. Bly shook his head slowly.
The meeting ended, and people began leaving the room. Aayla moved closer to Bly's side. She reached for his good hand. Bly felt his skin tingle, even from this small bit of physical contact with his mate. But, much as he was craving more time with Aayla, he had to take care of a more urgent matter first.
"Ordo, Sergeant Kal, would you stay?" Bly asked.
Aayla gave Bly gave Bly a puzzled look, but didn't say anything.
Ordo and Kal, who would have been talking together in low voices as they walked out of the room, turned around together as one. The looked at each other, surprised, then turned around and walked back to Bly's bed.
"What's this about?" Kal asked.
Ordo folded his arms across his chest, and just gave Bly an even, assessing look. Bly knew that Ordo was someone whom you didn't want to cross.
"This mission," Bly began, uncomfortable with this conversation, but feeling compelled to raise it, "it's a big risk to take on at this time, challenging the Empire… something could go wrong, Sergeant Kal, and one of your sons, well, uh…" Bly felt like he was tripping on his words. He struggled to get across what he was he feeling so that Kal and Ordo would understand. "It's just not worth it, sir. Not for one person. I'd rather lose the arm, than have you lose one of your sons."
Kal was completely silent, and the silence was unnerving. Bly looked to Ordo, to see if perhaps he'd gotten through to the clone he'd come to think of as the 'Alpha-Null.' Ordo had worked out the strategic plan for the mission. Surely he could see that the risk was just unacceptable?
Ordo turned his gaze to Kal, and waited calmly and patiently. His body language clearly said that Kal would be the one who'd be fielding this question.
The silence dragged on, and Bly wondered if he should say something else. Had he offended Kal? Did he need to explain himself better-
Aayla gave his hand a comforting squeeze. Bly looked up, meeting her gaze. She gave him a comforting smile, but her eyes also conveyed a message. Be patient. Wait.
Kal looked down at their interlocked hands, and then he looked directly at each of them. He shook his head, as if they were a tricky question he didn't know the answer to.
Then, he finally took a deep breath, and answered Bly: "Request denied, Commander Bly."
Bly opened his mouth to protest, but Kal put a finger, telling him to wait.
"I'm not done, Commander. This mission will proceed tomorrow whether with or without your blessing. This mission has grown beyond just you. This place," Kal's eyes looked around, as if he could see through the walls, and take in all of Kyrimorut, "was built to be a safe bastion for all clones wishing to flee slavery. Order 66 changed a lot of things, but Kyrimorut remains. We are still here for clones who can find their way here. You are the first to find us, but we hope there will be more in the future. The extent of your injuries," Kal nodded, indicating more than just Bly's arm, but implying the other blaster marks he had on him as well, "reminds us that some of those coming here may be critically injured. Right now, we do not have the medical facilities to deal with such injuries. We could not even deal with such an injury if it happened to one of us. So, Commander, this bacta tank is for all of Kyrimorut. You just happened to be the catalyst to remind us we need to outfit ourselves as if there is still a war going on. And, there is a war still going on. It just has a much more insidious face than it had when all we had to do was shoot at tinnies, and moan about Grievous."
"When you put it that way, you make it sound glamorous," Fi quipped, then he sighed. "I do miss those days, actually."
"It got old after a while, Fi," Bly said, "although, it is a shame that you got pulled out of the war before you'd had your share of shooting tinnies."
"Not the shooting I miss so much, really," Fi said, looking unusually serious for Fi, "but, the team that I did it all with."
The room grew very quiet for a long moment.
Kal studied Bly, as if measuring his character, "You're a good man, Bly. I always figured you for one of the good ones. I appreciate your concern for my sons," something changed in the pitch of Kal's voice when he said the words my sons. There was a whole world of emotions contained in those words. "But, we're leaving at 0500 tomorrow morning to get that tank. It could save a lot of lives here in the future. Whether you choose to take a dunk into it upon our return is entirely up to you. Any risk my sons are taking on this missions is their choice as free men. They are doing it because of their belief it is the right thing to do, in order to help others become free in the future. You suddenly showing up in the woods yesterday just reminded us of our mission." Kal paused for a moment. He looked a bit distant for a moment, as if remembering something painful he'd rather forget, "Your timing was rather good actually. We could all use a distraction, right about now."
"A distraction?" Bly questioned, wondering if he was the distraction, or if taking on the Empire counted as a 'distraction.'
Kal didn't elaborate any further.
"Well, rest easy, son," Kal nodded his head to Bly, and then gave a very brief to Aayla. He left the room, accompanied by Ordo, who'd been completely silent for the entire conversation.
Son? Now, Kal was calling me son, too? What brought that about? Bly stared after where Kal had just exited the room, a puzzled expression on his face. He was trying to work through all the complicated emotions his arrival at Kyrimorut had brought about, but he just couldn't process it all. Or, maybe it was the effect of the extra-strong painkiller Fi had pumped into his system. He just felt confused, at the moment, and he was normally a decisive, quick-acting clone.
"You, OK?" Aayla asked, gently rubbing the back of his hand.
"Uh, yeah," Bly answered after a moment.
"You need anything?" Fi asked, from his position, still perched on the next bed.
Bly looked at Aayla and again felt a strong longing to be with her alone, and someplace other than the medical bay.
"Yeah, I do," Bly said, "I need to get out of here."
Fi looked confused for a moment, and a bit hurt, "Kyrimorut?"
Bly smiled, "No, Fi, just the medical bay." He nodded his head, indicating Aayla.
Fi's lips formed in an "oh," instantly understanding. He hopped off the bed, "I'll track down the doc, and see if I can get you sprung. You'll probably have to stay in bed, but maybe you can do it back in the General's quarters." Fi still flushed at the end of the sentence. Even though Bly had told him he and Aayla were married, the whole idea still seemed somehow very taboo.
Bly smiled widely. He was still getting used to the idea himself. And, it just made the reality that much more exciting. He looked up at Aayla, an excited sparkle in his eyes.
"Yes, I'd like to see these quarters of yours, General Secura," Bly said, dropping his voice into a sexy drawl.
Aayla rolled her eyes, at first, and smacked his hand. But, after Fi left the room, and they were alone, she quietly said back, "Well, Commander Bly, yes, I definitely need to see you in my personal quarters, if it can be arranged. Very urgent." She picked up the hand that she was holding and pressed it up against her chest, close to her heart.
Bly smiled at her, then studied her for a moment, "Hey, you looked a bit tired when you first came in? Are you OK?"
Aayla laughed gently, and reached her other hand up to caress the side of Bly's face. Bly leaned in to her touch, still amazed how a simple touch from this woman could affect him so powerfully.
She let her hand wander freely across his cheekbone, and then up over the scar that cut deeply above his left eye. She remembered when he'd gotten the scar. They'd been involved in a building collapse, that had left both of them battered and badly injured from falling debris. Bly had been cracked across the face with a falling beam. His helmet had taken the brunt of the punishment, and was completely destroyed. But, he still had a deep cut over one eye that was bleeding badly. Aayla remembered Bly digging her out from under the fallen rubble with his bare hands. He looked such a sight with all the blood running down his face. He kept blinking rapidly, trying to clear the blood from his eyes. Occasionally, he'd swipe at the blood with one hand, trying to clear it away as if it was just a nuisance. He was singularly focused on getting Aayla digging Aayla. She remembered very clearly his first words to her: "Are you OK?"
He always had a way of putting her welfare before his own. She later found out he'd never gone to the medcenter to get that cut stitched up, or healed. He'd just cleaned it up himself, grabbed a spare helmet from someplace, and gone back into the battle. No wonder it had scarred so badly. At the time, she'd wanted to lecture him for not taking better care of himself. Although, there was a part of her, deep down inside, that found his scar rather rakish and sexy. Seeing it always reminded her of that moment when he was there for her, digging her out with his bare hands.
"You know, you ask me that a lot," Aayla said, as she gently caressed her fingers across his face. The affect was so soothing that Bly just had to close his eyes. To Ayala's delight, Bly moaned softly in pleasure. His headache from earlier was completely forgotten under the light, soothing tantalizing touch of Aayla's fingertips. "I will admit I didn't sleep well," Aayla murmured.
Bly cracked his eyes open, and gave her a concerned look. Aayla began massaging the area around his temples, an act that quickly caused Bly to close his eyes again.
"But, I didn't sleep well, because I am no longer used to sleeping alone," Aayla murmured quietly.
Bly's eyes flew open, and met hers. She smiled at Bly, giving him a look full of promised intensity and passion. Bly sucked his breath in.
Bly threw off his covers with his good hand, "OK, we're out of here."
# # #
