Requested by CinemaBane (Quotev) and cecilia. clare (on here) - Hope you all enjoy the second part of Fox!

Chapter 17: Commander Fox, during 'The Jedi Who Knew Too Much'

There's a fine line between doing what you're told is right and doing what you believe is right.

Fox watched the footage of Tarkin interrogating Ahsoka, trying not to scowl. His fists clenched when the Admiral took her chin in his grubby fingers, speaking down to her like she was nothing- like she hadn't saved his life at the Citadel.

He may have just arrested her for killing a prisoner, but Fox found that he couldn't muster any hatred towards Ahsoka.

He rubbed his eyes, remembering how the little dynamo had been close to tears when he cuffed her, and he hadn't even offered a word of sympathy. Skywalker had come to see her- just to speak to her- but Fox had to refuse. Karkin' Tarkin didn't want anyone visiting her which went against the rules for juvenile offenders, but Fox knew that he called insubordinate if he challenged the Admiral.

Hopefully, this was all a big misunderstanding, and Ahsoka wasn't in the wrong. A small part of him knew that Ahsoka wasn't in the wrong.

Maybe he could go and speak to her. He and Ahsoka were friends, and he was certain she'd be more willing to talk to him- someone of the same rank- than the Admiral.

Stepping out of the office into the security room, Fox jumped when he saw Ahsoka speaking into a commlink on the other side of the glass.

A prisoner has escaped. Subdue the prisoner.

His hands landed on his pistols out of instinct, "What's going on here?"

"It wasn't me!" She looked petrified.

Prisoner is lying. Prisoner is using Jedi mind trick and that is why she sounds convincing.

He hit the emergency alarm and watched Ahsoka run, lifting his comm, "Alert! Alert! The Jedi prisoner has escaped!"

His training flashed before his eyes: Chase the prisoner. Subdue the prisoner. Suddenly, he was running as well.

"She's heading north in the prison corridor." His comm blinked at him. "Cut her off!"

"Copy that."

Ahsoka was stood in front of three men that laid motionless. Her lightsabers were on her belt and her shoulders were shaking. If she had killed them, why did she stop and put her lightsabers back on her belt? Why wasn't she stood on the other side of them, running away?

Fox raised his blasters and purposefully shot to miss.

Ahsoka saw him and started to run again. He wanted to call out to her to stop, but his voice didn't work. Instead, he rushed forwards and kneeled by his fallen men. His wrist comm was suddenly activated and he was talking into it.

"Suspect has killed three clones. Code red." No, no, no! Why did it feel like he had no control over his actions? "If you see the target, shoot to kill."

"Belay that order, Commander Fox!" He'd never been more grateful for Skywalker's presence.

"She's killed troopers." No, somebody had killed troopers, not necessarily Ahsoka.

Fox stood and was quickly joined by Skywalker and Captain Rex. His legs were shaking, and his throat felt like it was closing up from the smell of burnt plastoid and flesh in the air. There was so much to take in that he couldn't think straight.

"I know Commander Tano." Rex said, leaning towards him aggressively. "She would never do something like this!"

Fox wanted to agree, but the genetically engineered part of his brain that fed off facts instead of emotions was too strong for him. "Then who did?"

"Quiet." Skywalker said, pushing in between them. "Ahsoka!" He was using the Force to amplify his voice, "It's me, Anakin. Stop running." He sounded as desperate as Fox felt.

You're smart, sport, listen to your Master.

Then, "You can't help me, Master. Someone's setting me up."

"I believe you, Ahsoka."

Fox wanted to push his Commander of the Coruscant Guard persona away and support her as well because he did believe her. Everything was too cleverly done. It had all fallen into place as if someone had planned this, and solo prison breaks were usually anything but organised.

"But no one else will."

Fox was trembling as Skywalker turned back to the two clones, "Keep searching until we find her. Rex, call security. Tell them we need to-"

He felt himself losing the battle in his mind. As the conversation droned around him, Fox lost control to his training.

Find and eliminate the threat. Ahsoka Tano wasn't a threat. Find and eliminate the threat. Ahsoka Tano could be a threat. Find and eliminate the threat. Ahsoka Tano is the only identifiable threat.

The next hour was a blur. He was vaguely aware of setting his blasters to stun, screaming orders at his men and the sensation of water getting in the cracks in his armour on his shins. The clones' efforts were futile; he knew they stood no chance of tracking Ahsoka down.

Why did he press the emergency alarm instead of giving her the chance to explain in the prison complex? All he was doing was making a potentially crazy Jedi feel cornered and wearing down his men.

When he finally regained his perception of reality, he was racing through the tunnels of the sewer system and he finally found Skywalker who had let Ahsoka escape into the Underworld. He remembered that Ahsoka wasn't as streetwise as he was, and now she was alone with the vermin of the lower levels.

Skywalker shook his head, "We've lost her. Regroup the clones."

Members of the Coruscant Guard stepped out of the way for their Commander as if they could sense the tension in the air. Fox kept his visor pointing down, making his intention to be alone as clear as glass.

He heard a murmur of conversation between two men who had been attacked before he hit the emergency alarm, the ones who had only been knocked unconscious.

"…A black shape came from nowhere, didn't it?"

"Yeah… and when we came to, it looked as if Commander Tano had just arrived…"

"That's Jedi mind tricks, I bet."

Once inside his office, he removed his helmet and threw it against the wall in a fit of rage. It bounced back, hitting him on the knee in its rebound. He barely registered the flare of pain and he clenched his fists so hard that the plastoid threatened to crack and splinter.

He was so angry.

He was angry that his men had been murdered. He was angry that all the evidence pointed towards Ahsoka being the killer, the same little dynamo who helped organise a welcome home party for him when he kriffed his ankle. He was angry that Skywalker was reacting irrationally and letting his emotions cloud his judgement.

Most of all, he was angry at himself for letting it all happen.

When Ahsoka had come to the prison complex to speak to Turmond, he'd nearly went into the cell with her. He hated Turmond, but he would've stopped Ahsoka from killing her.

I don't know what happened! Her voice was shaky: shock.

Commander, she's dead. Ahsoka's eyes widened when she heard the news.

Can't say I blame you, Commander Tano, but all the same, you're under arrest.

He slammed his fists on his desk, trying to erase Ahsoka's fear-filled eyes from his mind. If she had just Force-choked someone to death, why did she not resist arrest and throw them against a wall?

He'd held a kriffing gun to an unarmed teenager's head; what the hell was wrong with him?

A knock on his door snapped him out of his thoughts. Somehow, he'd ended up on his knees, forehead resting against his desk and fingers gripping his hair. Some chunks fell out as he stood up, wiping a hand down his sweat soaked face.

The knock sounded again, followed by a short, "Commander?"

"Come in." He barked, turning around to face the door but leaning against his desk. He felt too weak to stand. Hound entered, his helmet off and a worried expression on his face, "What is it, Sergeant?"

"Commander Fox, sir." Hound was nervous; great. "Admiral Tarkin has ordered you to interrogate General Skywalker to better understand his involvement in Commander Tano's escape."

Kriffing fabulous.

Tarkin wanted him to interrogate one of the most powerful and well-known Jedi Knights in the Order who threatened Fox when he didn't let him see Ahsoka. Fox found that he couldn't blame Skywalker for helping his Padawan escape, even if she was the filthy murderer that the evidence was suggesting she was.

For the first time in his career, Fox found himself wanting to pass the job onto someone else and just collapse onto his bunk, but there was a crazed Jedi on the loose. Having clones killed was one thing; dead civilians was another.

"Tell Tarkin to contact the Jedi Council. They'll speak to Skywalker." He forced out, "I don't wish to be disturbed for a few hours."

Hound tilted his head to one side curiously- he was spending too much time with Grizzer. "Were you injured during the chase, sir? Are you not feeling well?"

"Never better." He muttered, trying to not look like he was halfway through a breakdown, "Tell the men to stand down for now. We'll wait until the Council clear us to persecute Ahso- Commander Tano."

"Yes, sir." Hound said, finally leaving Fox in peace.

Stepping around his desk, Fox opened the bottom drawer and started scavenging through the odd things he'd collected during his time on Coruscant. There were some dusty medals, tourist brochures and the occasional gift that a civilian had given, but he didn't even glance at those.

Instead, he pulled out the picture that he, Dex and Ahsoka had taken near the start of the war. It was slightly crumbled as it was shoved to the bottom of his drawer, only being pinned up to his bulletin board when he knew the little dynamo was coming to visit.

How could someone with such a contagious smile, big eyes and kind heart be a criminal? Fox dealt with bad guys every day, and Ahsoka was no bad guy. Even when they had entered Turmond's cell and seen her dead, Ahsoka looked saddened. If only the sound had been operating on the footage, they could-

The sound!

Fox ran out of his office, picture in hand. He raced to the barracks, scaring the life out of his men who were trying to get some rest before the inevitable chase they were sent on, "Where's Lecky?!"

Everyone blinked at him- he must've looked like he was losing his mind. Fox growled, "I said, where is Lecky!"

"I'm here, sir." The shiny scrambled out from his bunk, standing stiffly at attention for only a second before Fox grabbed his arm and pulled him out into the corridor, "Sir! What are you doing?"

"My job, which is to analyse the evidence." Just like what Ahsoka had been assigned to do right after the Temple bombing. He held up the data rod with the footage on it, "The sound was disabled. I need you to lip read."

"Sir, yes, sir!" The good thing about shinies is that they didn't question orders.

Fox connected the datarod to a terminal on the wall, running a hand through his hair as Lecky stared at the recording of Ahsoka seemingly Force-choking Turmond. The prisoner was undoubtedly killed by suffocation, but Ahsoka wasn't the type of Jedi to Force-choke someone who committed a crime that was worthy of the death penalty.

Ahsoka wasn't the type of person to even raise a hand to someone who was unarmed.

On the recording, Ahsoka turned and reached out for the door, as if trying to signal someone. As if she was trying to signal to Fox. Why didn't he wait outside the cell? Another mistake made.

Lecky leaned back, scratching his head, "Commander Tano seems to say the same word four times, sir. It's a name, beginning with an 'l' and it has a 't' in the middle."

"Letta." Fox said, "That's the name of the prisoner." This was proving unhelpful. "Is that all she said?"

"Whilst the prisoner was being Force-choked? Yes, sir."

That gave him an idea. Fox recorded the clip to when he left Ahsoka in the cell, "Tell me what you see, Lecky."

He pressed play and the lip-reading clone payed close attention, translating only a moment after Ahsoka's and Turmond's lips would move.

"Commander Tano said that Letta should get whatever she needs to say off her chest as she doesn't have much time. Letta said that feeding… someone's name- the nano droids wasn't her idea."

Then whose idea was it?

"Commander Tano asked why Letta was saying this now and why she didn't reveal this before?"

Fox couldn't help but smile at Ahsoka's attempt at playing detective. He had taught her about interrogation.

"Letta said because her life is in danger." Fox paid closer attention. Turmond knew someone was going to kill her. "Sir, if the prisoner-"

"Stay focused, Lecky." Fox barked, startling the shiny into concentrating again.

He knew from dealing with criminals that they were more cooperative with answering questions when they knew their life was on the line. Terrorists were different. They usually didn't give a bantha about their lives. This only told Fox that Letta was a puppet of something- or someone.

"Letta said that the person behind this will be able to get to her unless Commander Tano knows the truth… Letta said that a Jedi showed her how to make the bomb."

Fox felt his heart rate pick up, "Does she say a name?"

"No, sir." Lecky shook his head, trying to understand the silent conversation between the two women, "Letta started talking about the Jedi Order, about how they're all warmongers and a Jedi agreed with her. Letta said she would only tell Commander Tano who it was if she promised to protect her. She said she's been set up."

Fox felt himself starting to tremble again; why hadn't Tarkin asked someone like Lecky to investigate the recording? At what stage in his advanced training did they tell him that it was normal for the sound to be disabled right before a murder?

"Commander Tano demanded to know who was behind this, and Letta was choked before she could reveal the name." Lecky stood upright.

That meant that someone had been watching the exchange and they had been the Jedi responsible for Turmond's death; not Ahsoka. Everyone was chasing the wrong Jedi.

Fox felt his hands curl into fists, screwing the picture from Dex's into a ball. Ahsoka's escape had been set up as a distraction. By now, it would be impossible to find who had killed Turmond. They were probably long gone.

"Thank you, Lecky." He forced out, closing his eyes, "You're dismissed."

Once the shiny was gone, Fox activated his wrist comm to the Jedi Temple, "General Skywalker, I have critical information regarding Commander Tano's case. I need to speak to the Council." He uncrumpled the picture, smoothing out the creases over Ahsoka's face.

"Tarkin already told us, Commander." There was bitterness in Skywalker's tone, "Myself and General Koon have been tasked with finding Ahsoka. Have your men organised into search parties."

He wasn't going to give up, "Sir, wait-"

"Have your men ready to find my Padawan, Commander Fox!" The Jedi Knight snapped, "Skywalker out."

There was nothing he could do. Fox couldn't disobey an order. Hopefully, Ahsoka would stay on the run long enough for the Jedi to figure this out. And maybe she would forgive him for being such a di'kut.

Until then, he had a duty to his fallen men. A duty to find who was responsible for their deaths and punish that person accordingly.

"Sir, yes, sir."

Word count: 2,613 - Published: 20/05/2020 - Last updated: 20/05/2020

I'm sorry for putting Fox through such a rollercoaster of emotions. I wanted to embody a sense of duty versus virtue, like the 501st had to on Umbara. Hope you enjoyed it!

Just as I came to finishing the final lines of this piece, 'Start Again' by OneRepublic and Logic started to play and the first line is 'Can't I just turn back the clock? Forgive my sins. I just wanna roll my sleeves up, and start again.' If that's not symbolic of Fox's emotions in this one-shot, I'm not sure what is.

Thanks for all the reviews and support!

Yours truly, dieFabuliererin

P.S. I feel like Fox only puts up with Karkin' Tarkin because he has to.