Well... this is the end. The last chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this short (but fun) little fic. If you liked it, maybe go check out the companion story, "Commander Pillow" or drop a review. Otherwise, please enjoy the end.

One year later, General Kenobi made his rounds, his heart heavy.

The battle was over. The wounded were being tended to, the fallen were being gathered, and the survivors were being comforted by other survivors.

The planet had been harsh. Obi-Wan had a feeling he'd be sending a request for more troops within the next week. Too many had fallen. Too many… It felt like everyone had lost someone. A batchmate, a squad member, Force, Obi-Wan had lost contact with full squads over the course of the past two weeks.

As such, practically every clone he came across received condolences. He only wished he could do more than just give empty words. Like end this kriffing war.

His thoughts were drawn to Light and Checkered Squad who were standing off to the side of the rest of the men. Obi-Wan approached doing a mental check of who was there.

Trigger's mohawk made him easy to see among the group. His armor had a few orange highlights with a target painted on his right shoulder plate. He was clutching a smaller than usual blaster with his hands. His familiar sniper rifle was thrown over his back and surprisingly enough a datapad hung at his side. Both blaster and datapad were Soft Shot's.

Trigger had lost his other half almost nine months previously.

Click sat on the ground next to Trigger. His brown hair was hanging down in his eyes, but he didn't seem to care. Eyes were fixed downward at his hands and the helmet in them. Rift had died six months ago leaving only his helmet. Click had patched it up and added some modifications. Hands shaking, he shoved it back on then pushed himself to his feet.

Zee was nowhere in sight.

Obi-Wan moved to go comfort them but a sharp order from Buzzer to, "Stop struggling you kriffing idiot," drew his gaze.

Tile's long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail made him stick out. His right shoulder plate had the now-familiar checkered pattern that all of his batchmates had painted on. A few orange highlights decorated the rest of him. The pattern for a marshal's badge had been painted on his left forearm, which was clutching another forearm with the same picture.

Dodge. His helmet was removed revealing the brown arrow tattoos that decorated the bald head. Three brown arrows, two behind his ears, one down the center of his head. Lying loosely in his hand was an unfamiliar knife, which Obi-Wan recognized as being locally made. If Obi-Wan only focused on the clone's head, he could almost convince himself the clone was alright. The blood-stained bandages that were turning more and more red around his stomach said otherwise.

Buzzer was bent over Dodge, giving a shot to ease the pain. The medic symbol blazed in orange and red on his back, accompanied by the same special marks that Tile had. His helmet also had four orange parallel lines streaking down the left side over his visor. The shot finished, Buzzer took Dodge's other arm and clutched it for dear life.

A blur and cry from the side drew Obi-Wan's gaze to the last member of Checkered squad, who came to a grinding stop in front of Dodge. His red hair had grown long on one side, with the other half kept short enough to shave in the word "Cliff" above his ear. His armor reflected his team members with the symbol of the Blue squad on the other shoulder. Cliff dropped to his knees and gripped Dodge's right knee with his hands. He had a bloodied bandage wrapped around his right leg, but he didn't seem to care about keeping it tight.

Obi-Wan found himself next to Cliff. Dodge's bleary gaze found his, a smile tugging at his lips. "Hey… General."

Around them, Obi-Wan could feel the mourning brothers of Light and Checkered squad gather closer to their dying brother.

"Dodge," Obi-Wan replied as gently as he could. "You did good, vod."

Dodge struggled to breathe, coughing up blood. "Thanks…" He burst into a coughing fit, hands shaking. He fought for the next words. "General… will I… see… Marsh again?"

Obi-Wan hesitated for a moment, feeling the eyes of all of the clones on him. As a Jedi, he knew all things returned to the Force when they died. But what that looked like was a mystery in itself. Did they all form the Force? Or remain separate? Was it a combination of those? Were only Jedi able to retain themselves? Obi-Wan had no such answers.

Which is why he was a little confused when the words seemed to tumble out of his mouth with a will of their own. "Yes, Dodge. You will see all of your brothers again. Not just Marsh."

Dodge seemed to relax. He laid his head back against the rock he had been propped against and closed his eyes. A few ragged breaths later and his lungs fell still followed by his heart. Obi-Wan felt the Force retreat from the still body and bowed his head in respect. May the Force be with you. All of you.

Cody was a little confused when he received a notification from Coruscant that quote, "the requested companion of the 212th has been approved for deployment."

He was more confused when his General did not seem surprised by it at all. If anything, he seemed very happy about it. In fact, General Kenobi immediately requested that the "companion" be sent to the company's current position (which was quite a distance from Coruscant). Then said General locked himself in his room.

Cody's confusion now tripled, the Commander decided it would be best to just wait for his General to explain what the kriff was going on.

As usual.

Force, why did Jedi have to always be like this?

Cody stared down at the General's surprise.

"Well?" Obi-Wan asked. He sounded on edge like he was afraid that he had made a mistake.

Cody didn't know what to say. On the one hand, it was a very cute dog. On the other hand, it was a very cute dog.

Hadn't they gotten rid of their dog issues?

Obi-Wan noticed the pause and quickly explained, "He's trained for combat and rescue. I do not expect to take it on all missions, but you must admit he will be useful when trying to find missing clones… or generals."

Cody had to admit, he felt some appeal to that. Losing his General was an occurrence that happened far too often in his opinion. "Sir, do I want to ask where and when you got this idea?"

"Probably not," Obi-Wan admitted. "I tried to find one that was similarly colored to what I looked like during those… interesting days."

"Well the pattern is certainly different, but I think you got the right colors." Cody examined the brown, tan, and light red hues that covered the dog. "And it looks older."

"A small puppy just wasn't ideal for most situations," Obi-Wan explained. "And it is easier to have the dog grow into habits. He's trained for combat, including that fun reverse fetch trick that Waxer and Boil invented."

"Mmm…" Cody rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I assume he will have a handler?"

"I was thinking Tile would be a good choice," Obi-Wan allowed a smile.

"Of course you do."

"Do you object?"

"...No," Cody sighed. "If anything it is the only option because Tile would kidnap the dog if he wasn't."

"My thoughts exactly," Obi-Wan looked over at his commander. "So… can we keep him?"

Cody resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Sir, you outrank me."

"Yes, but I want your approval before anything else."

The clone looked down at the dog.

Said dog looked up, blue-green eyes pleading with the clone.

Cody groaned. "I don't think I can say 'no'. So I suppose my only question is what's its name?"

Obi-Wan grinned. It was that look that reminded Cody that this man was the master of General Skywalker. "General Canine."

The dog perked up at the title, letting out a small bark.

"Sir. Why." Cody's tone was more resigned than questioning but nonetheless… why? Just why?

Obi-Wan shrugged. "No reason to let a perfectly good name go to waste."

General Canine barked again, wagging his tail. Obi-Wan clicked his tongue twice. The dog got to his feet and began to trail behind. "Come along, Commander. Let's introduce the troops to the latest addition to the 212th."

Cody sighed in defeat, grabbed his helmet, then followed the two generals out into the halls. This was going to be an experience.

To say the 212th loved General Canine would be an understatement. The troops adored the dog.

Tile wouldn't let go of the creature for the first hour. No one had the heart to tear the thing away, so a line to pet the dog formed. This line stretched out the door and down the hall all the way to mess. Those who started in the mess hall grabbed a little treat, which they gave the dog.

The following weeks consisted of troops drawing for turns to brush up on the dog's training (aka playtime), walk the thing around the ship, and feed it. The drawings happened on a daily basis with the tickets being "bought" from Tile through various methods (although most troopers used candy).

As for General Canine, he was very well behaved… mostly. He did beg at the table, which Bacta would lecture anyone caught feeding him. But other than that, he was well trained. Whenever Tile put on General Canine's battle vest (made of a similar armor to the clones) the dog snapped into "military mode". He would not move unless told to, remain silent unless danger was sensed (then he would growl), and no amount of treats would distract him from the job at hand.

And to be frank, the dog was quite terrifying when he wanted to be. Although the droids were metal, General Canine would bite and tear the smaller ones apart (with a little help). He was often involved in interrogation sessions with non-droid prisoners. It was funny to watch (on camera) General Kenobi play the role of "Good Cop" while General Canine played "Bad Cop". And some days Tile would participate. Those days were especially terrifying (Bad Cop Tile was a sight no clone ever wished to see).

Over the course of the war, General Canine was involved in a few battles, several search and rescue missions (most of them the target being General Kenobi), and too many therapy sessions to count. The dog was a welcome addition to the 212th and loyal as any dog could be to the men of the battalion.

And then the order came.

Execute Order 66.

Boil ignored the buzzing words in the back of his head. "Good soldiers" may follow orders but since when had he ever cared about being a "good soldier"? He cared about his brothers more than this war. So kriff his orders and kriff the new "Emperor". Both could go to the deepest, darkest part of a Sarlacc pit.

There was nothing he could do for General Kenobi. Cody had already carried out that particular order. A sharp pain filled his chest but he swallowed it down. There would be time to mourn later.

For now, Boil had to get the kriff out of there. Of course, that was easier said than done.

The haze that had fallen over his brothers had helped. It was easy to avoid everyone. But the main problem was getting a ship. Stealing wasn't a big deal but it would definitely attract some attention. But that wasn't the hardest part.

Boil was loathed to leave anyone behind but… it was impossible to help everyone. He had to pick one. If Waxer had been there, then the choice would have been easy. But for the first time in his life, Boil thanked the Force that his dead brother wasn't there. Cody was too important to go unnoticed. Same with Wooley. If he could find Trapper then maybe-

A dog barked.

Boil froze in place, turning slowly. General Canine was sitting in the door of the supply tent Boil had been rummaging through. Boil motioned for him to be quiet before beckoning him closer. Maybe he could use the dog as a distraction.

To his surprise, General Canine did not listen. Instead, he whimpered softly then turned away. Boil recognized the sound as one of the dog's "signals" for help. He threw the backpack on his back and carefully made his way through the camp, keeping out of sight of the robotic-like clones.

General Canine was sitting outside of a barrack tent. He whimpered again, entering the tent. Boil hesitated before following him inside. He then found his choice made for him.

Tile was sitting on a cot, hands shaking. Unshed tears shone in his eyes and his voice was a trembling whisper of "good soldiers follow orders" over and over again. At his feet, his knitting needles laid broken in pieces and the yarn was torn in shreds. General Canine put a paw on the clone's leg and whined, but received no answer.

Boil carefully approached, eyes searching for anyone else. The tent was empty, but wouldn't be for much longer. He put one hand under Tile's arm and gently hoisted him to his feet. "Come on, kid. We gotta move."

Tile shook his head, mumbling that cursed line again. Boil resisted the urge to scream. "General, lead us to the ships. And keep quiet."

The dog straightened up and Boil swore the thing nodded. General Canine trotted out of the tent with Boil dragging Tile close behind. It was tense and Boil wished that Tile would just shut up but there wasn't much he could do.

The ships were clear except for a few mechanics. Boil thought he saw Cliff, but the clone disappeared before he could do anything. The guilt was shoved aside quickly. Get out, then break down.

General Canine growled a warning. Boil shoved Tile behind some crates just in time. The patrol passed with no incident, thank the Force. Boil made a few signs at General Canine then pointed to the closest ship. The dog tensed up, ready to move at the signal. Boil checked around and found no one in the immediate vicinity. "Go play, General."

The dog took off and tackled the guard to the ground with licks and barks. The clone mechanic yelped in surprise and several other mechanics went to see what the problem was. Boil counted to ten before running/dragging Tile in the opposite direction to the furthest transport. It was definitely too big for a stealthy escape but if Boil moved quick enough, he'd be gone without anyone being able to identify him. Or at least quick enough to jump to hyperspace.

He managed to drag Tile up the ramp without anyone noticing. The ship's cargo bay was empty, thank the Force. Boil laid Tile down in the corner, out of sight of anyone who might do a quick peek for stowaways. He paused for a moment to catch his breath and rub his temples. The pounding words were getting harder to ignore.

Rex. He had to find Rex.

But first: the kriffing dog.

Boil pushed himself up and backed down the ramp, making sure to stay low and out of sight.

General Canine was in a bad spot. Something about this new attitude or whatever the heck was going on with the clones must have affected their memories or something because Boil wasn't sure what to expect but this was not it. The dog was currently being cornered by the men, blasters pointed to kill. Looked like one already did some harm because General Canine was limping and whimpering pretty loudly.

Without really thinking about it, Boil raised his blaster rifle, peered through his scope and fired.

Good news: he had it on stun. Bad news: There were five of them and one of him. More good news: the other Clone's reaction times were down. By a lot. So, by the time they turned to see who was knocking them down, there were only two left. Boil took another shot and missed.

The com in his helmet crackled to life as a familiar yet empty voice said, "Sir, we've gotta-UGH!"

The clone dropped with another shot from Boil leaving one left. Well, this one must be smarter than the others because he had run for cover when the shooting started. Boil kept an eye out, letting out a sharp whistle for General Canine to come.

The dog limped a few steps before falling on his stomach with a whimper.

Kriff.

"CC-2224, we've got a rogue clone in transport 623. How should I proceed?"

Kriff!

"Eliminate him on sight."

KRIFFING-

Boil whistled again. General Canine crawled on his stomach but again stopped and whimpered in pain. The clone groaned, slinging his gun over his back. No way was he letting down another General today. He took a deep breath then ran out into the open. Some part of his brain registered blaster fire, but he chose to ignore it, focusing on his goal.

Thankfully, the dog was small enough to pick up with little trouble. And thankfully, his brother had somehow become a terrible shot. Boil sprinted back to the ship and slammed his hand against the controls for the door.

His com flared to life again. "The deserter is trying to take-off, CC-2224."

"All troops move to intercept."

Boil cursed. Next time he saw Cody he was going to punch him in the face. He ran to the cockpit (which was thankfully empty) and flicked the switches to take-off. He found himself off the ground just as the first clones began to arrive. Boil ignored them, shooting into the sky, into space and jamming in the first coordinates that popped into his head.

As soon as he was in hyperspace, Boil allowed himself to finally yank off his helmet, chuck it against the ground, and scream. He pressed his hands against his head, the headache that had been building now in full effect as those kriffing words pounded into his brain over and over and over again. He screamed and screamed until his throat felt shredded into raw flesh. Then he cried.

Down in the cargo bay, Tile was laying on his side. His hands were shaking so badly and he couldn't stop the words tumbling out of his mouth. "Good soldiers follow orders…" Yet his body wouldn't do what his voice said. It was like something had shut him down and he was unable to move, let alone follow orders.

The dog crawled over, his blaster wound cauterized. Painful, but not deadly. General Canine cuddled up next to his handler and whimpered. Tile's arms somehow pulled the dog into a hug and the words came to a halting stop. Tears began to stream down the clone's face, dripping onto the floor. Tile's shaking voice spoke again. This time, it was only two words. "Good boy."

A General is many things in the war. A leader, a warrior, an inspiration. And when it comes down to the line, a General is someone who knows when their men are in trouble… and know how to get them out of it. Apparently, this includes when your General is a dog.

It took a while to find Rex. Mandalore had made sure of that. But Boil had managed. The chips were removed and suddenly it was just Boil, Tile, and a dog. There weren't a lot of places they could go. The Empire had taken over. Clones were considered to be the oppressors. So where do you go?

Well, Boil wasn't sure where he should go. But he knew where he wanted to go. Tile refused to leave him and with Tile followed General Kanine. And if Boil was honest with himself, he was okay with that.

"Nerra!"

He had a feeling that Numa was delighted to meet them both.

Cue credit music and the camera rolling away from that happy scene.

I hope you all enjoyed and May the Force Be With You!

...

...

Also, here's a bonus thing that is just for fun because WHY THE KRIFF NOT?

*A random scene that happens at some point in the afterlife after Return of the Jedi:*

Cody comes running into a giant room with all of the 212th and 501st gathered inside. He holds up his hands for silence and waits until he gets it before speaking. "Alright! So the baby has been born. It's a boy."

Several clones whooped out in excitement.

Cody glared at them, then continued. "He's healthy and General Kenobi says he's strong in the Force."

Another shout for joy and another Commander glare-of-doom. "Now, General Skywalker is about to come in here and tell you all this but I thought you all deserved a warning. They named the baby after General Kenobi…" Cody hesitated. "Kind of."

Someone (probably Waxer) yelled, "What do you mean?"

Cody tried to keep a straight face. "The baby's name is Ben."

There was silence for a moment. Then the entire population of clones dropped to the floor screaming with laughter.

Seconds later, General Skywalker comes in this huge smile on his face. "Everyone, I have a grandson! He-" he cuts off and looks around in confusion. He walks up to Cody, confused. "What's going on here, Commander?"

"I told them the news, sir."

"Why are they laughing?"

"I told them his name."

"... what's wrong with 'Ben'?"

Cody looked around the room at the dying clones. "It's best not to know, sir."

"...Does Obi-Wan know?"

"No, sir. If he did, I doubt he would have used that nickname."

Anakin frowned. "Oh."

*During The Force Awakens*

"So…" Waxer looked up from his hand of Sabacc cards. "I've been thinking about little Ben."

Cody frowned. "What about him?"

Boil groaned, "Ignore him. It's not important."

"Well," Waxer pushed on, ignoring the elbow in his side, "I was thinking that two Ben's are confusing. And seeing how this Ben is turning out… worse than our General."

"He slaughtered a Jedi school," Bacta replied, his voice flat.

"Exactly!" Waxer explained, "I was thinking he deserved another name."

Cody raised an eyebrow, "Like…?"

"Uh…"

Tile piped up, "Bendi!"

Everyone stared at the clone. Cody spoke for everyone when he finally found his voice, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Bendi. Bacta's Eternal Nightmare, DANG IT!"

Everyone flinched at the last two words, which were practically shouted at the top of his lungs.

Bacta growled, "He's more of the original Ben's nightmare then mine."

"Well then," Tile frowned, "Ben's Eternal Nightmare, DANG IT!"

Waxer cleaned out an ear. "Must you yell it every time?"

"No. But I heard that he just activated Starkiller base."

"DANG IT." Every clone present groaned, moaned, and shouted at basically the same time.

"See?"

*after the ninth movie: SPOILER ALERT*

"Hey, Bendi."

"Hi, Bendi!"

"Bendi, what's up?"

"I hear you're sparring with your grandfather later today, Bendi. You nervous?"

"I still don't think you deserve being up here, Bendi."

Ben looked around confused at the hundreds of thousands of identical men in armor painted in all the colors of the rainbow who are all calling him a name he never heard until now.

Uncle Luke put a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry. They've been calling you that since before I got here."

"That doesn't make me feel any better."

In a nearby corner, Obi-Wan and Cody stood watching the chaos. Obi-Wan shook his head, obviously confused. "Commander, please. What does Bendi, or Ben for that matter, mean to you and your brothers?"

"Just nicknames, sir."

"Nicknames that still send everyone to the ground in fits of giggles."

Cody shook his head, "Some things are best left unknown."

*And thus, "Ben" was the best clone-kept-secret that was never revealed to anyone who was not a clone.*