Before Liera even headed to the hangar she used a couple of calming techniques to keep the persistent feeling of panic from overwhelming her. This will be her first ground engagement as part of the GAR. On top of that they would be flying down to the surface of the planet in one of the troop carriers. While she trusted the skill of the pilots she would never like flying, especially when they would be flying into enemy territory with the guarantee that they would be shot at. It sent a shudder of dread through her before she forced the feeling away again. There would be plenty of time to let herself panic later.
Entering the hangar she headed toward where she knew Ghost company would be boarding. Kenobi wanted her with him on this mission. It felt like being a padawan all over again… A strange thought occurred to her but she quickly pushed it away, annoyed at herself for thinking it. There was no way the Council would be that conniving, and she had sensed no hidden motives from the man himself. She let it go.
"Vod'ika!" Turning with a bright smile she walked over to Jaig Squad, who were waiting for Skywalker so they could rendezvous with the other troops from the Resolute.
"Ori'vod, what's new with you?" Kix opened his arms with a smile and she quickly gave him a hug. Jesse snickered at the surprised looks from some of the 212th but ignored them for his own hug before he let her go.
"Nothing, vod'ika. What's new?" She huffed, shaking her head and crossing her arms over her chest plate.
"I don't know the word in Mando'a. I'm nervous. I haven't been in a battle this large since the moment I appeared here, and back then I didn't understand what was at stake." She could see the sympathetic reaction her words had.
"Well, maybe our gift will help a little?" She looked up at Jesse with wide eyed surprise. Waving her hands out in front of her she felt a bit of color come to her cheeks.
"You didn't have to get me anything!" The vode barely had anything for themselves. For them to get her something made her heart fill with both affection and guilt.
"Vod'ika, none of that now. We care about you and want to keep you safe. Just accept it." Kix's soft voice and caring smile made her blush darken but she nodded in acceptance.
Hardcase handed Jesse a box he'd been hiding behind his back. Jesse grinned and offered it to her. The box was fairly wide but shallow. The way that Jesse held it meant it couldn't have been all that heavy. Curious she opened the lid and gasped at what she saw. Inside the box were slender twin pistols that were made of a silver material. Pulling one out she found that it fit perfectly in her hand, the ridged handle feeling similar to her lightsaber hilts. It was comfortable and weighted very little. She looked up at Jesse to see a smug grin crossing his face.
"They're KYD-21 blaster pistols. Seventy-five shots per cartridge and it has a range of twenty-five meters." Picking up the second pistol she held them both in her hands and smiled. It always felt wrong to wield just one weapon at a time. The fact that they knew this about her made her feel warm on the inside.
Beneath the pistols were two holsters. Jesse set the box down and pulled the first holster out, handing it off to Kix. "Where do you usually wear them?" She grinned and motioned at her waist.
"They'll probably sit just below my lightsabers and a little back." Standing still she let Kix attach the first holster and then the second. She knew she could do it herself but she could feel how the action eased some of her ori'vod's anxiousness about her going into battle without them. Once both of the holsters were in place she slid the guns home. With them resting against her kama she couldn't help but feel like a true warrior now. Although some of that was probably the bleed off of pleased-safe-proud coming from Torrent.
Looking at her pistols she frowned slightly. She wondered if she should…
"What's wrong?" Fives asked her, noticing her frown. The others gave her concerned looks.
"Oh, I was just wondering if you name your weapons or not..." Either in their culture or in this time period. It wasn't an uncommon practice in her time. Although the names given to the lightsaber were actually meant for the crystal inside and it always seemed to be a 'suggestion' from the force after communing with the crystals. Many jedi of her time named their lightsabers in secret and never spoke of the names, it being a very private and personal matter. She herself had named her two crystals but had only told a total of seven people, which only included her master and crechemates. All of whom were gone now.
"I think some of thevod do name their guns, but I've never felt the need to." Jesse shrugged. "Why? Is that a jedi thing?" She nodded.
"Well… it used to be. I'm not sure if they do it anymore." Looking at her pistols she brushed her hands against them. They didn't have the same living feel as her lightsabers but they were an important gift from her brothers. She wanted to honor that.
"…what are the Mando'a words for 'day' and 'night?'"
"Kebii'tra and Ca'tra. At least I think that's what you're looking for. Kebii'tra means 'blue sky, but it's used for daytime.Ca'tra means 'night sky' and is used for night time." Echo spoke up from behind her. Looking back at him she nodded in thanks.
"Kebii'tra and Ca'tra. Perfect. Thank you, Echo." The man smiled shyly.
"What did you name your lightsabers?" Hevy asked, curious.
"Oh… well…" She felt a little embarrassed. Kix frowned at Hevy for making her uncomfortable and she laughed. Her ori'vod was so protective of her, it was sweet.
Pulling the lightsabers from her belt she held them out. Lifting the first, the one with the gold stripe down the side, she smiled. "This one is Guardian." Lifting the second one, the one with the pink stripe, she flushed slightly. "This one is Haven." Both of the lightsabers reacted to her calling their names, giving out pulses of affection-safety-protectiveness. The names just seemed so right to her. "Guardian is my main offensive weapon while Haven is my main defensive weapon." Spinning them expertly in her hands she clipped them back to her belt.
"That's pretty cool!" Fives said with a grin. Liera smiled, feeling grateful they didn't seem to think the names were childish.
"I'd, uh, appreciate it if that information didn't leave Jaig Squad. Please."
"Don't worry, vod'ika, your secret is safe with us." Kix reassured.
"What secret? What did I miss now?" A familiar voice asked behind her with a chuckle. Turning she smirked up at the captain. He smirked back for a moment before his eyes fell on the blasters. She felt her cheeks heat slightly from the intense interest she could see in him but said nothing aloud.
"I've named my blasters. But only Jaig Squad is allowed to know." She said playfully
"Huh. Fair enough. I'll have to ask about it later. We're shipping out now." Her smile fell and the tense feeling of nervousness from before returned. Jesse put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed.
"You'll be alright, vod'ika. You'll be with General Kenobi." Jesse said. Why did that not fill her with confidence?
"We'll see you on the ground, come back safely vod'ika." She smiled and hugged Kix one last time before Jaig Squad headed off toward their transport. Rex suddenly stopped and she could feel a spike of emotion from him for a moment before it was quickly hidden.
"Stay alive, our gett'se'la medic." Immediately after speaking he fast walked away from her, trying to catch up to the rest of his squad who eyed him quizzically. Liera stood there, confused. She understood most of those words, having heard them multiple times. But she had no idea what gett'se'la meant. She would have to ask Rex later what it meant.
Opening herself to the force she looked for Kenobi and found him walking into the hangar. He was talking with Cody, probably about tactics. She hurried over to them and caught the tail end of their conversation.
"No Sir, I wasn't involved in the first assault on Geonosis." Sidling up to them she nodded to Cody and Kenobi before looking at the LAATi. With a grimace she stepped up into the gunship and waited for the jedi master to join her.
"Well, you didn't miss much. Last time I was chained to a pole and attacked by several humongous monsters." Just looking at Cody's shift in posture she could see the sudden alarm and faint anger in the commander.
"That… sounds… entertaining." It may have sounded like he was having a hard time finding a respectful answer to give a commanding officer, but she could sense how tense the man was. Hearing how much danger Kenobi had been in made the commander angry… and defensive. She couldn't help the small smile that crossed her face. It was nice to know that Obi-wan had people who truly cared about him. Now if only he'd notice and let those people in.
"It was entertaining." Kenobi said dryly as he stepped into the LAATi. "For the Geonosians." One of the men banged his fist on the wall, letting the pilot know they were all aboard. The door slid shut, locking in place. Liera tried to swallow the lump in her throat as the ship rose into the air.
"You're very brave." Looking up at the jedi she pursed her lips, frowning. If she couldn't sense the gentle calm he was sending out to steady her she would have thought he was being patronizing. But while Kenobi could sometimes be sarcastic and biting with his words she knew he was a kind man at heart. "You could always stay on theResolute, you are a medical officer. Even if I asked you along, you could have spoken to me about it." She gave him a thin smile.
"No, my place is with the vode. I won't sit back in the relative safety of the ship when I could be helping." Even if she was terrified of flying she would never forgive herself if she stayed behind. There was a feeling of pride-acceptance around her from the vode and she relaxed slightly. She wasn't alone. All she needed to do was focus on the people around her and forget her fear.
"That is why I said you were brave. Bravery isn't recklessly rushing headlong into danger. Bravery is being afraid and doing what you feel is right regardless." Her smile was a little brighter this time. "By the way, I've noticed you have some new additions." She was confused for a moment before seeing his eyes dip down to her belt.
"My ori'vod and the others bought them for me." Kenobi shook his head.
"Such uncivilized weapons." She snorted.
"Really Kenobi? What about them makes them uncivilized?" His eyes glinted with mirth.
"Well, for one thing they-" Suddenly the gunship began to shake. Liera gasped and held tighter to the strap above her head.
"We're entering the battlefield now." A sharp jerk to the left had her feet leaving the floor for a moment and she felt sick to her stomach. Around her she could feel life-forces flicker and fade, sometimes vanishing instantly.
"General Kenobi! Don't land! The landing zone is hot!" Kenobi pulled the comm up to his face, expression fierce.
"But there's nowhere else to go!" The ship shook violently and listed. "We're hit! We're going down! Brace yourselves!"
The fear was palpable in the air. The men might be willing to fight and die, to be brave in the face of everything, but they were still afraid. Liera's breath hitched as they fell out of the sky, descending rapidly. Her eyes darted around the cabin and took in every single man in sight. Grim determination filled her and she shoved down her own panic as hard as she could. Closing her eyes she gathered the force around her.
"What are you-?" Opening her eyes she flung out her hands and wrapped the force around every man aboard. Curling her hands she envisioned a soft cocoon around each spirit. Then they hit the ground and searing pain erupted behind her eyes as she slammed into a wall. She let out a pained yell, losing concentration and falling to the ground in a heap.
[Obi-wan]
Just before the gunship could crash headlong into the surface of the planet he felt a ripple in the force. "What are you-" Liera's eyes opened and he choked on his words. Her eyes were nearly white with the amount of power she had gathered into herself. She flung out her arms and he could feel the force surround every man in a pocket of air. She had created over thirty separate barriers to protect the clones and himself but none around herself. Reaching out quickly he surrounded her in the force and held on.
They hit the ground hard and he could feel Umber perish in the cockpit as it crumpled. The men were tossed around, hitting the walls and each other, but seemed relatively unharmed, if a little bruised. Liera, however, was flung hard against a wall and collapsed with a sound that sent a wave of concern through him. Diving over the men on the ground he knelt next to the young woman. She was breathing hard and her face was pinched with pain. Opening her eyes she looked up at him with a groan. "Is everyone alright?"
"All except Umber." She swallowed hard and nodded. Placing a hand on her abdomen he felt the faint waves of the force and knew she was healing herself. The men finally collected themselves and got back to their feet, guns up and ready to go.
"Sir, we need to get moving." He held up a hand, motioning them to wait. Once Liera's hand fell away from her abdomen he helped her to her feet. Her body trembled and he looked down at her, worried.
"Get those doors open." The men quickly complied, prying the doors apart and shoving with all their might.
"Are you able to stand on your own?" Liera nodded and he carefully let go of her, watching her carefully.
"Don't worry, I got rid of the concussion. All I have now are a few nasty bruises." Giving her a curt nod he turned his focus back to the men. From the open doors he could see the circle of tanks and gunships his commander had set up in the distance.
"We're going to have to run for it." Stepping out onto the planet he heard something wet hid the sand and turned to see the young healer doubled over and vomiting. One of the men was rubbing her back, murmuring to her quietly and holding out a square of fabric to clean her mouth with.
"Liera?" She glared up at him and shook her head, looking annoyed.
"I told you, I'm fine." Obi-wan felt a pang in his chest.
"If you're certain. Let's move out."
The rush over the sands toward the rest of his men was nerve wracking. Thankfully the crash hadn't incapacitated anyone so they made it to relative safety in record time.
"General, glad to see you in one piece." Obi-wan smiled at the commander. The squad of men with him dispersed, receiving orders from their superiors and taking up defensive positions. Oddly, Waxer and Boil appeared next to Liera and led her over to a group of boxes to sit down. Boil stood nearby, gun held tight in his hands, while Waxer handed the poor young woman a canteen of water and urged her to drink.
"Waxer could feel her distress the moment you were in range." Cody let out a frustrated sigh. "We've got no air cover. Two generals on the ground beyond opposition, and a mess of bugs surrounding us. The enemy was more than prepared for the attack, Sir. They knew our every move." Now they were surrounded and far from the landing zone with no air support to speak of.
"Well I'm sure General Skywalker and General Mundi will make it to our position. We just have to make sure we're still here when they arrive." Cody nods and Obi-wan can feel his brilliant mind at work. A sudden wave of cold, what he might call ruthlessness, settles over the commander and Obi-wan stills, watching him warily. The man has come to a decision and Obi-wan isn't quite sure if he's going to like what the commander has come up with.
"This is Commander Cody. Cease Ranov'la lockdown protocols. Acknowledge." There seemed to be a beat of surprised silence before the men acknowledged the order.
"This is Crys, acknowledged, Al'verde."
"Gearshift; heard you loud and clear, Al'verde."
"Waxer here, you got it,Al'verde."
"Wooley, acknowledged, Al'verde."
"Kajil, let's give them haran, Al'verde."
"Avid, they won't know what hit them, Al'verde." The abrupt switch from strict military mannerisms to an almost mercenary way of talking left Obi-wan blinking in confusion. Cody let his arm drop and there was a subtle shift in his stature before Obi-wan felt the shields around him drop. Seven new powerful force presences suddenly appeared, as if from the ether. It left him absolutely astonished. Suddenly, from where he was standing, he could sense a burst of amusement from Waxer. Cody's head whipped around and he could feel the man's cold ire.
"Waxer, get your lazy ass out there!" He barked. It sounded so surreal to hear his normally calm and collected commander cursing.
"Oh come on, he's projecting! We can all feel that!" Obi-wan felt his cheeks fill with warmth, embarrassed to realize that they could, indeed, feel him in the force. The ease he felt around the 212th always made him drop his shields, if only a little. Add his surprise on to that and his emotions were spilling out into the force. He would have to rectify that from now on.
"Gev! Vaabir meg ni sirbur." Cody growled into the comm, voice dropping an octave and making the hair on the back of Obi-wan's neck stand on edge. He had never seen the commander acting this aggressively before. As if noticing his discomfort Cody calmed considerably until the anger was a faint simmer in the background.
"Obi-wan." Eyebrows rising into his hairline he stared at the man that he isn't quite sure he actually knows. Cody sighed, reaching up and slipping his helmet off. Caramel eyes gazed into blue-green, intense yet earnest. "As a jedi you should understand how fundamental it is to be able to feel and use the force. But we aren't allowed to display those abilities freely. Locking a part of ourselves away… of course it's going to change how we act." There was a loud explosion and Cody sighed. "We'll discuss this more later on the Negotiator." Putting his helmet back on he turned away and started trying to make contact with the other groups.
Obi-wan wasn't sure what to make of any of this. He hadn't realized just how much the men had been suppressing themselves and it pained him to realize he had never truly sat down with any of the men under his command and gotten to know them.
"Kenobi." A feminine voice nearby pulled him out of his spiraling thoughts. "Go with the current, not against it. Don't question why the current exists, just question where it's going and if you need to avoid the rapids." Well that was certainly an odd way of putting it… and for a single solitary moment it was like Qui-gon was standing there, telling him to focus on the 'here and now.' He shook his head to clear it and turned his focus to the battle.
"Are you ready?" Liera nodded curtly.
"Ready when you are. If you watch my back I can start evacuating the wounded and healing them until help arrives." Obi-wan nodded and palmed his lightsaber. This battle was going to be hellish. But as an enemy tank turned and obliterated a large group of Geonosians, to the amusement and delight of the force sensitive troopers, he felt hopeful that they would make it through.
[Rex]
Running around the bend in the canyon he skidded to a stop as every nerve in his body shrieked that they were in danger. "Scatter!" He yelled, grabbing the nearest trooper he could feel freezing in place and hauling his dumb ass into cover. They lost two more men from the sudden onslaught and he cursed. There'd been thirty-six of them and the two generals when the ship left the Resolute. Now they were down to twenty-three men.
Next to him the General and Commander started to bicker and he clenched his teeth in frustration.
"Well this is another fine mess you've gotten us into!" Ahsoka yelled at her master over the sounds of blasterfire.
"What!? Hey, it's not my fault! You were supposed to study the holomaps!" Wasn't that just like his General? To push the blame on someone else. There was no sense of responsibility for the actions of someone under his command. In times like these Rex really wished he could speak up. But he swallowed his professional pride and checked his shields as he popped back up and took a couple pot shots at the clankers.
"I did! Remember!? When I reminded you about the giant wall and you said, 'don't worry Snips. We won't be anywhere near that.'" If there was a god that ruled Chaos in the universe then Anakin Skywalker had to be its spawn. There was no other explanation for the shitty situations they constantly found themselves in.
"Just get ready to climb, Snips!" Skywalker yelled at his padawan as he got up and took a pack of grenades from Denal.
"So what's the plan, General?"
"Just keep us covered Rex. There's too much laser fire for all of us to make the climb. Ahsoka and I will handle this." Of course they would. "Just be ready when that wall comes down." The two of them dashed off and Rex sighed.
"Crazy jetii." He cursed under his breath. "Pick your shots, lads! We're the distraction!" Aiming for the turrets he started to systematically destroy them one at a time, immersing himself in the force to make his reaction time faster even as he let his sense of danger warn him of incoming fire. Whenever he fell into this kind of trance it always felt like a sort of intricate dance. Except his partner wasn't another sentient but the ebb and flow of the universe itself.
Sensing the jetii had made it to the top of the wall he saw the droids turn toward the bigger threat. "Focus on the droids!" Tugging Hevy with the force, out of the way of a bolt that would have taken his head clean off, he smiled at the string of surprised curses leaving the rookie's mouth. Even if they'd been trained to expect the sudden application of the force there were few brothers who actually enjoyed being pushed around by an invisible entity.
As immersed in the force as he was he could sense something pulling him toward the top of the wall. With a grimace he eyed the wall of rock. "Appo, you lead!" The man didn't even glance at him, just waved him onward. They both understood the pull of the force.
Finally up on the wall he watched as two rollies pop out of the ground. Ahsoka and Anakin were back to back, deflecting bolts. Carefully he walks toward the rolly in front of him. Ahsoka notices him but doesn't falter even for a second. Entering the shield he shot the head off the droideka, which promptly fell over; inert. Without the risk of Ahsoka being shot in the back Anakin jumped into the air then dove beneath the second rolly, sliding past its shield and slicing its head off.
Rushing toward the hole the droideka had popped out from Anakin slipped the pack off his back.
"Hey, did you get them?" A B1 asks its downed fellows as the elevator rises.
"Catch!" His crazy general says smugly as he tosses the pack at the B1, who catches it in confusion.
"Huh? Wha?!" Rex can feel the force shove that sends the elevator back down as Ahsoka tosses her entire pack of grenades down the hole as well.
'Oh, hell.' They did not need that many explosives.
"Come on, Rex!" Anakin grinned.
'What?' He felt the force swell.
"Up and away!" Ahsoka lifted him off his feet before Anakin tossed him off the wall.
'Fuckin jetii!' He cursed internally, even as he bit the inside of his cheek so as not to make a sound. The two of them jumped after him, diving for the ground without a care in the world. The wall exploded above them and Rex braced himself for the shock wave, which slammed into his body and sent him toward the ground even faster. Now, he knew he could have denied them, used his force abilities to counter what they were trying to do, but all of the CFS' had sworn to only use their abilities to save their lives or the lives of their brothers. Hell, some brothers had made him promise not to save them if it gave himself away, so they could protect their force sensitive brothers from being discovered. He wasn't about to throw that away because he was pissed off.
As the ground got closer he tensed, ready to catch himself if the two jetii did not. He was barely a foot from the ground when he finally came to a stop and was set down, none too gently. He knew why, as force rose to shove the falling debris away from them, but he didn't have to like it. Letting out a disgruntled sigh he rose to his feet, going over his mental checklist to make sure he hadn't been injured.
After taking a couple of calming breaths he turns to the two force users. "Next time just tell me to jump." Ahsoka turns to him, concern and confusion all over her face.
"Now where's the fun in that?" Anakin asks with what he must have thought was a playful smile that just ended up looking arrogantly smug. Rex clenches his hands into fists and mentally says 'fuck it.' Give the general a piece of his mind. But Anakin is talking before Rex gets a chance to speak. "Come on, we can't keep Obi-wan waiting." Rex breathes out slowly and lets it go.
"You heard him, lads, let's go!" Anakin dashes off toward the rubble of the broken wall as the men follow. But Ahsoka doesn't follow. Instead she puts a hand on his arm.
"Rex? I'm sorry we didn't warn you, there wasn't really any time. But… I'll try to tell you next time." Putting a hand over hers he feels his temper calm considerably. Ahsoka is still just a kid. A kid with a poor example for a teacher. He squeezes her hand reassuringly.
"Thanks kiddo. I think we'd all appreciate that. Not everyone has the force." She nods, looking thoughtful before Anakin calls to ask her for help moving the rest of the debris out of their path.
They'd just made their way out of the canyon when Ahsoka pointed ahead at something in the sky. "Look! What's that?" Aiming his pistol at the flying figures he slowly lowered it again when he realized the bugs were on fire. He knew that General Mundi had a group of flame troopers with him and felt relieved. None of them had been able to make contact for a while.
"Master Mundi, do you read me?"
"We are here, Skywalker. We took a slight detour that out us out of communications for a bit." Thank the stars, at least General Mundi would be able to veto any bad plan Anakin came up with.
"This has been a day for detours, master." Rex glanced at his brothers, they all looked like they wanted to groan and roll their eyes as much as he did.
"Indeed. But now the road is clear. I can see the landing zone, it does not look good." Anakin's expression turned grim and Rex found he couldn't fault him for it. Cody and the 212th were over there… along with Liera.
"Admiral, we're at the breaking point. You've got to get some fighters down here." And here he thought his General couldn't do understatement. He was wrong.
"You're in luck, General, we have one squadron available." With the jetii's attention on the comms Rex gently prodded the bond he shared with his brother. Rather than the small trickle he normally felt he was surprised to find it almost completely open.
'Rex? You were out of range. I've dropped the protocol. All the High Generals know about us already, including Obi-wan and General Mundi. Raise hell, vodika.' Rex's mouth fell open and his eyes went wide in surprise. Pinging Appo, Kano, and Kicker he waits until they're all listening on the private line before he speaks.
"Cody has dropped the Ranov'la protocol. Keep it under wraps until we rendezvous with the 212th." There was a beat of silence before Kano started laughing. "Acknowledge." He barked.
"Loud and clear, Alor'ad." Appo replied first.
"I hear you, Alor'ad." Was Kicker's response.
"S-sorry, Alor'ad, ac-acknowledged." And there was Kano with his odd sense of humour, he hadn't stopped laughing yet.
"Kano? Are you okay?" He glanced over to see Ahsoka looking at the trembling trooper with worry. She was a sweet child.
"I'm fine, Commander. Just catching my breath." The padawan stared at him for a moment, eyes narrowing as if she could discern the truth, before she finally stepped back with a smile.
"Okay, good."
By the time time General Mundi and his troops meet up with them Kano has finally stowed his humour. Rex signed at Jet, letting him know that if he has any force sensitives in their number that the Commander has allowed them to use their abilities, but requested that they wait until they meet up with the 212th. Jet takes a moment but responded positively. It was one less thing to worry about.
"Let's go. We must aid Master Kenobi." General Mundi's soft voice called out to them. Rex checked his weapons and prepared for a long trek to the landing zone.
[Cody]
Closing the mental bond he and his younger brother shared he focused back on the battlefield around him, expression stern. He'd already stopped two potential disasters but with his brothers no longer holding back they were devastating the opposition. The Geonosians had no idea what they had unleashed upon themselves, a thought that gave Cody a grim satisfaction.
Seeing Obi-wan constantly throwing himself into the fight made him tense. His suicidal jetii ignored his own wounds and spent his time saving troopers, helping Liera swoop in and drag them back for healing. He itched to jump into the fray, to shadow Obi-wan and enact retribution on anything that dared hurt the normally gentle man. But he knew his place. He was a Commander. He couldn't go rushing into danger without a good reason.
One of the AT-TE's faltered, catching his attention. The gunner was being assaulted by an enemy soldier. Raising his hand he swatted the bug off the trooper with the force. He probably used more pressure than he needed to, the bug slammed into the ground in a broken heap. But Cody was getting tired of feeling his brothers dying and the hordes of flying enemies bearing down on them.
"Reinforcements!" Someone yelled over the comm. Turning back he heard the sound of low flying ships and let out a relieved sigh.
His comm crackled. "We've got you, Commander." A small smile crossed his lips.
"Ruus'alor Riddle, excellent timing. Feel free to join your brothers in letting loose." There was a faint surprised curse and Cody smirked.
"Acknlowledged, Al'verde. Let's confuse some bugs." The fighter squadron soared overhead, splitting up to attack the enemy surrounding them. One fighter in particular shimmered for a moment before three more of them appeared, as if from thin air. There was a cheer coming the men as the enemy broke and retreated.
"I believe we're about to have some guests, Commander." Came the soft lilting voice of his jetii.
"Rex is close by, they should be arriving soon."
"I should have noticed that before, you have a force bond with the good Captain?" Cody snorted.
"I have a force bond with all my siblings." Though he kept most of them closed unless it was an emergency. He didn't need them faltering on the battlefield whenever he had a particularly bad vision.
A few minutes later Obi-wan joined him, with Liera tagging along behind. It was almost like watching a master and padawan duo, although if he said so out loud he was certain there would be objections from the both of them. The young woman's face was carefully blank but he could see the pain around her eyes… she was already mourning the lost vode. She stood nearby, hair covered in sand and armor stained red.
"What happened to you guys?" As Skywalker and General Mundi's group finally arrived he saw the young woman perk up slightly from the corner of his eye.
"I could ask you the same thing." Skywalker and Tano passed the medic as she zeroed in on Jaig Squad. Instantly she has her hands against Rex's chest plate and is muttering angrily in that musical language of hers. He can feel his brother's surprised amusement before it melts into something more tender. Cody swallows and turns back to the conversation at hand.
"Where the hell did these other jedi come from!?" Skywalker asks heatedly as Tano looks around, eyes wide and mouth agape. Obi-wan and General Mundi share a look.
"That's not for me to say, Cody?" Hearing his name in that cultured tone makes his heart beat a little faster but he pushes the feeling aside. Now was not the time.
"With my authority as the senior Commander I ordered the men to cease the Ranov'la lockdown protocols." Skywalker frowned, crossing his arms and glaring at him. "In layman's terms, I told our force sensitive troops to stop shielding. Although not everyone obeyed that command." He signed at Rex and his vod'ika sent him an annoyed nudge. A moment later there were four more force signatures. Skywalker choked on air and whipped around so fast he almost tripped over his long legs in an effort to stare at the captain.
"Rex! You're force sensitive!?" Cody bit his lip hard in an effort to keep himself from laughing. He swore that Skywalker had squeaked there for a moment. He could feel waves of smug satisfaction from his brother and sent him an admonishing nudge, although since Rex could feel his amusement it didn't do much.
"Yes, Sir. As are a select few of my brothers." He motioned toward Appo, Kano, and Kicker, who were also quite amused.
"It is remarkable that we did not notice this for so long. How, pray tell, did you find out Master Kenobi?" Anakin spun around, glaring at Obi-wan, and Cody's good mood dimmed. If the man started yelling like a spoiled child again he wouldn't hold his tongue this time.
"Cody and I share a powerful ability. Because of that I could sense whenever he fell into a powerful force trance. I also have spent more of my leisure time around the troops getting to know them." Obi-wan tilted his head in Anakin's direction and the man deflated slightly. It was well known that Skywalker had a tendency to disappear whenever on Coruscant, of course it was an open secret amongst the vode that he was off to see the Senator.
"What about you, Master Mundi? How long have you known?" The Cerean shook his head.
"I only learned of this development recently, thanks to Master Ti." Cody smiled. In all the rush to begin the battle he had forgotten to tell Rex what had happened.
"One of the cadets was having dream visions of being a jetii. General Ti took little Nova as her padawan." He explained over the internal comm.
"Good for the kid. Did buir object at all?" Cody crossed is arms and signed a negative, his hand hidden slightly by his arms.
"What ability do you have?" Skywalker asked, tone bordering on demanding.
"Anakin, leave the poor man alone. We have more important things to discuss." Obi-wan said with a sigh, pressing a hand to his head. As if she had been summoned Liera appeared and pressed her fingers against the man's temple, frowning slightly.
"Stop pushing yourself." She admonished, Cody was inclined to agree.
"In any case," said his crazy jetii, clearing his throat. "Our combined forces should be enough to take out the shield generator. Anakin, you'll need to take a small squad through the shield, as close as you can get to the gun emplacements. From there you'll be able to temporarily jam their scanners so they are unable to target incoming attacks. Once the tanks knock out the shields Master Mundi and I can bring the rest of the troops in the remaining gunships." Skywalker grins.
"Consider it done, master." Cody looks at Rex, Rex's helmet tilts slightly in acceptance. He'll keep the crazy knight in check. It's all they can really do.
[Ahsoka]
Once Rex has picked everyone who's coming along Liera makes sure none of them are injured before giving Kix a hug. Sidling over to Rex she looks up at him with a wide grin. She hears a quiet snort and feels his amusement clear in the force. It's really surprising! She never would have guessed that Rex was force sensitive but now that she can feel him, she believes it. After all the times he's seemed to know exactly when they were about to be attacked, or dodged something that should have hit him, she really should have guessed it a long time ago.
"So, what kinda stuff can you do? Do you have a lightsaber?" He lets out a mock huff of annoyance but it's all in good fun.
"I have heightened intuition, Cody calls it my danger sense, and I can reinforce my body. Other than that? Most of us can move things with the force, sense each other over long distances, and a lot of other things that seem pretty normal for jedi. As for a lightsaber… no. Although I've used one before I don't have my own." She could hear a wistful note in his voice and wanted to snicker. It was obvious that he wanted one.
"Does this mean you can spar with me if we get you your own lightsaber?" Rex laughed.
"Sure, although I don't think the jedi would let us. Since we aren't jedi." Ahsoka stopped bouncing, a thoughtful look coming over her face. She hadn't even thought of that. For some reason she just expected they'd been secretly raised as jedi and hid it for some reason. Speaking of…
"Why did you hide for so long?" She felt, rather than heard, Rex let out a sigh. He turned toward the commander.
"Ori'vod, rejorhaa'ir kaysh tion'jor." She scrunched her nose at him. She sometimes forgot that they spoke a different language, since they rarely used it around her. Usually they'd just speak over their private comms.
"Kind of busy, vodika." The commander said, waving him off absentmindedly. He crossed his arms, cocking a hip. It was more dramatic thanks to the kama he wore. That word Ahsoka definitely knew. If anyone called it a skirt Rex would get revenge in the most creative way.
"Fine. You've heard about the Kaminoans? Well, when some of our brothers were caught being able to use the force the Kaminoans… didn't take kindly to it. One of the trainers found out and informed the others. Together they stopped what the Kaminoans were doing and started to train us to use the force. But they were worried the jedi, or the GAR, would take advantage of us. So they taught us to hide it and only use it in an emergency." He shrugged nonchalantly but she could feel some of the darker emotions from the men around her. None of them liked Kaminoans very much and the idea that someone would try to take advantage of them… it felt wrong.
"We'll protect you guys. All of you guys." She promised, stepping forward for a hug. Rex relaxed, opening his arms and giving her a gentle squeeze before letting her go.
"Ahsoka, we're almost ready to go." She frowned at her master, feeling his simmering anger in the force.
"Coming, master!"
[Slick]
With the CFS' unleashed upon the bugs and all of the jedi focused on one objective it hadn't taken them long to destroy the factory and capture the bugs. Unfortunately he got clipped with laser fire just before the end to hostilities. Laying on a cot in the med tent he watched the force healer flitting around to each of the vode. He knows that his own wounds aren't that bad, so she wouldn't be coming to help him for a while, but one of the medics had jammed him full of painkillers anyway so he could wait.
Across from him he sees her tense over one of the beds and blinks as she sags slightly. Carefully she folds the man's hands over his chest then slowly, reverently, she takes the man's helmet from the ground beneath the cot and sets it on his chest. "Faas nihar juehaa. Meialhaas hiif aouul lalleea." The words flow from her tongue like music on the wind. Slick frowns.
"What does it mean?" He really didn't mean to ask the question out loud but the painkillers were messing with his head. She looked over at him with a sad smile.
"It means- your life is gone, but your spirit will be remembered… Or perhaps it's more like 'your spirit will remain as long as we remember.' It's a little hard to translate, since part of the prayer is felt only through the force." Slick swallowed hard. It wasn't common among the vode but there were a few of them, him included, who wanted nothing to do with the force. There was just something inherently terrifying about someone being able to move him against his will. He hated it.
"Where is it from?" Anything to get away from a lecture on the force.
"The people I was born to. They believe that the spirits of the dead are always around watching over their loved ones. Waiting for the day they can be reunited in the afterlife. Sometimes if a particularly powerful or intelligent child is born they will say that the child is one of those spirits reborn. That the spirit loved their descendants so much they came back to guide them." Coming closer she reached out for him, he couldn't hide the flinch fast enough. Her hand stopped mere inches from his chest plate, her unnaturally bright eyes aglow. "I promise I will not use the force on you if it makes you uncomfortable. I am trained as a normal medic." Looking at the bloodstains on her armor, he can believe it. He nods.
While she works he can see thoughtful looks on a few of the vode. There's no doubt they heard her speaking of her home planet's beliefs and found it very similar to their own.
"Nu kyr'adyc, shi taab'echaaj'la." He muttered under his breath. She looked up from her task, staring him in the eyes, and nodded.
"Kiles. His name was Kiles." Slick's mouth went dry. Even with the armor markings there were a lot of brothers who preferred to keep to the simple designs shared by the entire battalion, how she knew who he was despite that baffled him.
"Kiles." He agreed, committing the name to memory. Once she moves on, telling him to stay off his feet and to eat only broth for the next while, Slick laid back fully and stared at the ceiling.
Slick would readily agree that he was a grumpy hardass. He didn't like to talk more than necessary and he wasn't a fan of people with bubbly or excitable personalities. He thought they were a pain in the shebs. He was also wary of the jetii and even tended to avoid the force sensitive brothers, because the force gave him the heebie-jeebies. Even with all of that he knew when to give someone their due. He might not want anything to do with the healer but he could admit, at least to himself, that she was someone worthy of respect.
Vod- Sibling, Comrade
Vode- Siblings, comrades in arms
Vod'ika- Little sibling
Ori'vod- Elder sibling
Ranvo'la- Secret
Al'verde- Commander
Haran- Hell
Gev! Vaabir meg ni sirbur- Pack it in! Do what I say.
Alor'ad- Captain
Ruus'alor- Sergeant
Rejorhaa'ir kaysh tion'jor- Tell her why.
Nu kyr'adyc, shi taab'echaaj'la- Not gone, merely marching far away. A Mandalorian tribute to a dead comrade.
Shebs- Ass