Um in case yall haven't heard, THE BAD BATCH ARE GETTING THEIR OWN SERIES
A few days later…
A full two weeks on Mandalore. Esinon couldn't believe that as much that had happened, had all happened in two weeks. She'd come to Mandalore, gotten dragged to Carlac, had her first kiss, fought Pre-Vizsla while injured, had gotten injured again, confessed her love for Korkie, argued more than she ever had with Korkie, all while getting verified to have custody of Dogma and his cellmate, CT-0116. She wished Kaminoans would just tell her his name. She rifled through a pile of clothes on the floor, her comlink buzzed,
"Windcaster," she answered, rifling through a pile of clothes.
"General Windcaster, this is Lama Su," the soft-spoken Kaminoan replied, she immediately shot up from what she was doing and scrambled to the comlink.
"Yes, am I verified yet?" she asked anxiously,
"Yes you are verified, you can come collect the prisoners now," he said, Esinon kept all of her cheering on the inside and the General part of her mind took over.
"Thank you, I'll be there in two days to pick them up," she replied, she would need a day to pack and say goodbye and a day to fly there.
"We'll be anxiously awaiting your arrival," he replied, ending the transmission,
"Hang on Dogma, I'm coming for you," she then proceeded to call Rex. "Rex! I have good news! Where's Tup?"
"Slow down kid, I'll go get him," Rex said, still looking exhausted, but he wasn't being reconditioned or locked up and she was so grateful for that. Soon Rex returned with Tup, "Alright, what's the big news?"
"I have been verified and I can go pick up Dogma!" both troopers faces lit up,
"Really?" Tup asked,
"Yes, after a whole lot of paperwork and psych evals, I've been cleared to have custody of Dogma," she said, proudly,
"Wow," Tup muttered, a huge disbelieving smile on his face, as he ran a hand through his unruly hair. "That's- that's incredible! Thank you General,"
"Of course Tup, and you can just call me Esinon. We're off duty for the time being anyway." she said,
"How soon are you going to Kamino?" Rex asked,
"I'm leaving tomorrow morning, I've gotta wrap up some stuff here on Mandalore and then I'll be headed out."
"On your leave? Doesn't that count as work?" Rex asked,
"Will you calm down ner'vod? It technically counts, but we're gonna explore some different spots to see where they want to live. I'll get them settled with jobs and then be on my way." she replied,
"Can I see him… when you arrive?" Tup asked tentatively,
"Of course Tup, I'll call you as soon as we get into hyperspace." she said, with a soft smile. "Now I've got to pack, but I'll contact you guys when I leave Mandalore."
"Thank you Gen- Esinon, you don't know what this means to me," Tup said,
"Of course Tup you're my brother, I would do anything for you guys."
"I'm really sorry I have to leave early, but my time here was wonderful," Esinon said, Satine smiled,
"You're like Obi-Wan, he never stays in one place for very long. A new adventure awaits you my dear." Satine said, embracing her. Esinon smiled,
"Thank you for everything Satine,"
"Of course Esinon, never hesitate to contact me if you need anything." she replied, Satine glanced from Korkie to Esinon.
"I'll give you two a minute alone," she nodded to the guards to follow her. The pair waited for a moment till they were completely alone,
"I really wish you didn't have to go," Korkie said, Esinon sighed,
"I know, but I really have to get to Dogma as soon as possible. I'll call you every day," she replied, Korkie nodded, she placed a kiss on his cheek. She started for her ship but before she could make it away, Korkie grabbed her wrist and pulled her back in, kissing her deeply. This was something she could get used to.
Two days later, Tipoca City, Kamino…
Esinon pulled up her hood over her head as she stepped down the catwalk of her ship. She reached out her hand and let the rain splatter over it, she had always loved the rain, it reminded her of home. Spinner beeped a couple times,
"You can come with me if you want," She said, Spinner beeped excitedly, "Yeah, I'm anxious to see Dogma too," Only the force knew what he had experienced in there. She walked towards the door and was greeted by Taun We.
"General Windcaster, it is so good to see you," he said, bowing to her, she repeated the gesture,
"As well you, Taun We," she replied, she followed him down the hallway of Kamino, nodding to a few troopers, a few of them recognizing her from her time training troops. A group of young cadets passed by them, whispering to each other at the sight of a Jedi. She waved to them as they passed,
"So why did you wish to have custody of CT-2254, and CT-0116?" she asked,
"I… the prisoners in question both seem to have a loathing of Jedi. For my studies at the temple, I'm doing an extended study on their psychological state." she lied, she couldn't lose custody now. "Taun We, may I ask why the prisoners are being held here, instead of a Republic prison?"
"For special cases such as betrayal and execution of Jedi is quite concerning, so we ask to keep them here for observation to find what went wrong in their training." Esinon's stomach clenched, she had trained Dogma, nothing went wrong, but they probably blamed her for Dogma's 'failure.'
"Have you found anything?" she asked, tugging her cloak around herself a little tighter.
"CT-2254 believes he did the right thing against his traitorous General, and CT-0116 refuses to say much of anything anymore. It is quite troubling. The clones are designed to withstand any psychological stress or trauma. His flawed reasoning and firm belief that he did the right thing is quite unique."
"I see," she replied quietly, she wasn't going to probe further because she knew what happened to clones here when they 'served beyond their usefulness.' She swallowed the bile that was creeping up her throat,
"Coming through!" the voice of a clone shouted, Esinon turned around to see a giant ball droid rolling down the hall, with a clone walking along the top. She and Taun We split to let the droid and the clone pass, just as the droid was about to disappear around the corner the clone jumped off. He had gray stripes and curved around his armor, and his hair was way past regulation length, he looked like Tup when he left his hair down.
"CT-2195, what are you doing out of the lab?" Taun We asked quite annoyed. The clone grinned,
"Well, Taun We, for the last time my name is Byte and it isn't often that we get a new Jedi in the building." Esinon raised a brow at the clone, he stuck out his hand, "I'm Byte,"
"General Esinon Windcaster," she said, shaking his hand, Byte glanced down at Spinner before crouching down in front of the astromech.
"And who might you be?" he asked,
'I'm Spinner,' the droid twittered, Byte grinned,
"He's your droid I presume,"
"My friend," Esinon added, Byte grinned even wider,
"Now that is my kind of person, my droid Emily and I are like you and Spinner," he explained,
"And that was the ball droid?"
"Yeah, she's got legs, but we prefer to roll. I see you modified him to have thrusters," Esinon nodded,
"I like computers and other mechanics so I mess around with his inner working while I'm off. He likes it, being unique from other mechs." Byte chuckled,
"Maybe me and my brother Jeho can join your legion after the Kaminoans are finished profiting off our inventions." Byte said, glaring at Taun We. The Kaminoan rolled her eyes,
"You are Republic property CT-2195, so technically they're our inventions." she shot back. Byte scoffed,
"Yeah, yeah, they can be your inventions when you are putting hours in at the lab, when you are laboring over failed projects, and creating something out of nothing."
"You're an engineer?" Esinon asked, cutting into the argument. Byte nodded,
"Some of the GAR's finest, it's pretty much just Jeho and I. You should come visit the lab," he said, Esinon nodded. She'd never met clones who were engineers, especially when he appeared to be a Kaminoan guard. Creativity wasn't exactly encouraged among the clones by the Kaminoans.
"CT-2195, please go back to the lab where you belong," Taun We said frustratedly, "General Windcaster is very busy," The Kaminoan pushed her along as Esinon waved to Byte,
"Maybe some other time!"
"It was nice meeting you!" he called back, Esinon grinned at him as she shoved around the corner.
"Sorry about him, he has a mind of his own." Taun We said as soon as they were out of earshot.
"Oh, that's alright, he seems nice," she replied,
"As long as he supplies the latest and greatest in weaponry technology," Taun We sighed, Esinon nodded as they reached their destination. The detention block. If she searched hard enough through the force she could feel Dogma's presence, it hadn't changed much since the last time she saw him. It had been what? Three weeks, maybe four? Time seemed to blend together these days. She just hoped he was ok, and hopefully, his cellmate would like her, it would be a miserable eight weeks if he didn't. "Beyond this checkpoint is where the prisoners are held. And you needn't worry about escape attempts, they are quite futile," she reassured, Esinon only nodded, this place was starting to mess with her head. "You may proceed," Taun We motioned her forward, Esinon handed over her lightsaber and comlink,
"Alright, you're good to go General." he said, she began to walk forward, "Sir, if I may," she nodded, "I have a word of advice, even contained… the men in there are very dangerous. Just be careful,"
"Thank you for the warning, I will be careful," she said, smiling, he nodded and opened the door. Esinon was met with another Kaminoan scientist on the other side of the door,
"They way please," she said, Esinon hated that voice. So sickeningly sweet, ever Kaminoan seemed to share that feature. She scanned along the rows of cells seeing they were all fogged, and it was quiet. Eerily quiet.
"It's really quiet in here," she murmured,
"The cells are sound-proof so the prisoners don't have any interaction beyond what is permitted." the scientist said, Esinon resisted the urge to pause at any cell.
"Is that why the glass is fogged?" Esinon asked, she hadn't been allowed in the detention center a year ago, although Bear's tight expression always tightened further whenever they passed it.
"Yes, outside of tests, exercise time, they mostly stay here, and some get the privilege of eating in the mess hall." She paused at a cell sensing distress inside, she could see the outline of a hand against the fogged glass. The scientist was continuing to ramble about prisoner privileges and procedures, as Esinon tentatively reached out her hand. "General?"
"Can he hear me?" she asked, fingers brushing the glass. The fog flickered for a moment and she backed away, afraid she had broken something.
"No, but if you wish, you can touch the glass and it will clear, enabling you to see each other." she pressed her hand against the glass, she wished she hadn't, but she couldn't help herself. WHOOM. The fogged glass cleared and a trooper with half of his face covered in metal stared back at her. His cybernetic eye flickering, he tapped his finger five times then paused, six times then paused, four times then paused, eight times and then stopped. She recognized that it was tap code.
H-E-L-P
"I want to," she whispered, "You don't know how much I want to help, I want to fix it," He tapped his message again, "Why is he in here?" she asked the scientist,
"An injury." the doctor replied, her voice void of all emotion. "Too much psychological trauma, he can only recognize the prisoner in there with him. We can't send either of them out to battle."
"You're studying him," she murmured,"
"Yes, and when we finish, he will be destroyed." The scientist explained. The other trooper in the cell got up and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. Esinon couldn't hear him but she could read his lips just fine,
'She's not here to help us, no one's coming for us. Let her go.'
'But she's a Jedi,' Esinon could sense the turmoil, the pain, the guilt. The emotions that echoed in every cell,
'Let her go, she's not here to help us. The Jedi got us in this mess in the first place.' The other trooper glared at her, 'Go. You're only making him suffer further,' A tear rolled down the face of the first trooper's face, 'I know you can understand me. Go!' Esinon removed her hand from the glass, stumbling backward. Spinner nudged her leg worriedly, letting out a low whistle. She didn't realize her hands were trembling until Spinner extended his metal hand and clasped hers.
"Sorry," she whispered,
"Are you coming General?" the scientist asked, Esinon nodded, gripping Spinner's hand a little tighter.
"Yes, I'm coming," she followed the scientist down rows of cells, trying to keep her eyes down and off of all the troopers she couldn't save. She was saving Dogma and his cellmate, she was doing what she could to save who she could from the cruelty of the Kaminoans. When the war was over, she made a promise to herself and to all of the soldiers here, she would come back and save them. She continued to take deep breaths as her crystal began to heat up on her chest, Jedi, a clone pounded against his cell as she passed, respect, more pounding, her crystal burned hotter, life, she could feel her breathing quickening as she passed another cell, where she could see a trooper hugging his knees to his chest, in any, her crystal grew even hotter, was Qui-Gon trying to tell her something? "What is it?" she murmured. There in the middle in the hallway was Krell holding a struggling Waxer in his massive fist, he grinned wickedly.
"Verd'ika," Waxer choked, scratching at Krell's hand. Her fingers flickering over her lightsaber. Searching for a weapon that wasn't there. Krell cackled,
"You can't save any of them padawan!"
"Esinon please!" Waxer strangled, then Krell snapped his neck and her brother crumpled to the ground.
"No!" Spinner beeped loudly in binary, as the Kaminoan stared at her. Her crystal went cold, it wasn't real, Waxer wasn't there, he was dead. Dead because of her. All that stared back at her was a scientist, she ran a hand down her face, her head pounding.
"General, are you alright?" she asked, Esinon tightened her grip on Spinner's hand again trying to ground herself.
"This place is messing with me," she mumbled to herself.
"General?"
"I'm fine," she replied quickly, Esinon quickened her pace to catch up with the scientist who was waiting in front of a cell.
"We did not have time to alert the prisoners of your arrival, so they may be startled," she explained, Esinon nodded, clasping her crystal, her stomach flipping over itself. The scientist pressed the button the door opening,
"...a visitor, I wonder who it is," the first trooper said, sarcastically, both of them still facing the wall, "More psych tests, ooo, maybe they'll put me in isolation again, or maybe they'll finally end my suffering."
"Don't jump to conclusions, and quit being such a-" Dogma said, turning around, he froze seeing her standing in the doorway. "General?"
"Hi Dogma," she greeted softly, they both stared at each other for a moment, Spinner beeped excitedly nudging Dogma's legs.
"Hey little guy," Dogma said softly, crouching to meet the droid. Esinon smiled softly at the scene while Dogma conversed with Spinner who was excitedly blabbering. Esinon glanced up at the second trooper who was wearing an icy glare and a look of disgust,
"Hi, I'm Es-"
"I don't care scum," he growled,
"Slick," Dogma hissed,
"Oh, I uh- Slick was it?" Esinon said a little flustered, she opened up her mouth to speak again, but the scientist interrupted.
"General Windcaster has come to collect you. I expect both of you to be compliant to her and follow her commands," she instructed, the second trooper crossed his arms, staring at Esinon with disdain.
"You can expect all you want, but I'm not going anywhere with a Jedi. You'll have to sedate me to get me to go anywhere with her." he snapped,
"Slick!" Dogma hissed,
"As always, sedation can be arranged," the scientist said, folding her long fingers over each other. Esinon held up her hand,
"Sedation won't be necessary," she said, the General part of her mind taking over. She just wanted to leave this place before she had another mental attack. "It's not a far walk to my ship, so let's not make this more difficult than it has to be." Slick stepped forward, a snarl forming on his lips, Esinon could feel her heartbeat quickening, but held her ground.
"Difficult? Listen Jedi." he crouched down and got to eye level with her. "I am not going anywhere with you!" he snarled, she stepped back feeling very, very, guilty.
"Could I have a moment with them alone?" Esinon asked the scientist, never breaking her gaze with Slick. The Kaminoan scientist nodded and walked off,
"I'm getting you out of here, that's why I came," she said quietly, Spinner nudging her hand worriedly as Dogma rose to his feet. "So can we please go?"
"Wait Jedi, are you serious?" Slick asked, she could tell he didn't want hope, just to be tricked. Esinon pulled out a holo-recorder from her belt, pressing the button, her verification form appearing. She let them both get a good look at it,
"Please? Can we go?" she asked in a quiet voice, she glanced past the two men to where Waxer had been.
"Yes sir," Dogma said, Slick rolled his eyes,
"Yeah, yeah, whatever Jedi," he said, Slick said, Esinon led them back down the hall, keeping her eyes ahead, trying not to have another surprise mental attack.
"General Windcaster?"
"Here we go," Slick murmured,
"Calm down," Esinon muttered, "Yes?"
"We were wondering if you submit your findings as soon as you complete your studies?" The scientist asked, she nodded,
"Of course, I won't have any problem turning in any findings I have. I'll send a copy," she said, flashing a smile,
"What are you playing at Jedi?" Slick hissed through clenched teeth,
"Deep breath, a ploy," she replied, turning on her heel and heading for the door. It was gonna be a long two months.
"So why do this anyway? Jedi have never cared for us before." Slick whispered, Esinon paused for a second but forced herself to keep walking.
"Because there have been a lot of people I couldn't save. People I cared about, Slick. This is the least I can do." she said, as they neared the checkpoint.
"It's about time one of you Jedi did something half decent," he grumbled, Esinon's fist clenched, it wasn't too late to leave him- she glanced over at the cell that the cybernetic clone resided in. When we are finished, he will be destroyed. She bit her lip, her chin quivering, she turned her head down, Jedi do not rule over other's lives.- Jedi must protect those who are weak and defenseless. That is why you are blessed with such extraordinary gifts, so you can protect those who can't protect themselves.- You can't save any of them!
"Why are we stopping?" Slick asked, Esinon blinked a couple of times. she had stopped dead in her tracks.
"Sorry, let's go." she pressed the button to open the door to the checkpoint, the trooper in gray still waiting there.
"General Windcaster, when I warned you about the men in there, how dangerous they are, I didn't expect you to come back with... deficients in tow." Esinon's stomach clenched, we can only assume there is a malfunction in your design.
"You want to say that again?" Slick growled, she put a hand out in front of him and shook her head,
"Slick," she whispered,
"Are you hard of hearing as well deficient?" the guard asked wryly,
"Why you piece of-" Esinon cleared her throat loudly, both of them stopped.
"Yeah, I may look little, but I'm still your General. Now, Sargent, you're kinda holding me up here." She flashed her verification form, "I've got a lot of work to do and-" she glanced down on her Chrono, "I've got Captain Rex waiting on the line for me. So can I have my saber and comlink so I can go?"
"Of course sir, my apologies," the Sargent continued to glare at Slick, with Slick holding his ground. She wanted to get out of here before Slick did something stupid and she lost custody of them. The Sargent finally handed over her stuff and opened the door to the rest of the facility, she heard Dogma follow her, but she heard the Sargent whispering, "It's too bad you're leaving, I was really looking forward to your termination." Esinon resisted the urge to punch that clone out cold, how could he ever say something like to a brother?
"I'm sure you were," Slick smirked, before finally following Esinon out into the hallway.
"General, if I may give a word of advice," She inwardly sighed, when would he let her leave?
"Yes Sargent?"
"Be careful around Slick, he's always been vocal about his hate for Jedi, calling them slavers. Nor has he shied away from his want to personally harm any of you."
"I'll keep that in mind," she replied quickly, she'd find out more about Slick later, she was more concerned about getting off Kamino. They made the short walk to her ship, where a thunderstorm raged,
"The weather here is just lovely," she mumbled to herself,
"Yeah, hasn't changed much since you were here a year ago." Dogma replied,
"Are we making a run for the ship?" Slick asked,
"Probably better to get soaked instead of making the Kaminoans suspicious," she replied, tugging her hood over her head. Esinon pressed the button and the catwalk lowered, "All aboard,"
"I can't do this," Dogma murmured, Esinon turned around,
"What do you mean?" she asked, gently placing her hand on his shoulder. Dogma had been through so much, Umbara left its scars on all of them,
"I can't- after… what I did," he choked, staring down at his hands, like they were some sort of weapon he would use to accidentally hurt her. "I almost executed my brothers because I was too stupid and blind to even consider Krell was wrong! I could have been the reason you never got to see Fives again."
"Fives will go out of his own accord," she muttered to herself, "But Dogma, we really have to go, I know how hard this is."
"I should never have left," Dogma said, starting to back away from the ship.
"Dogma, look at me please,"
"How can you even look at me?" he whispered, refusing to turn his head up.
"Because I know you, Dogma." she tapped a finger over his heart,
"I deserve it- I deserve everything that was waiting for me in there, I deserve it General-"
"Dogma." She said, a little more forcefully, "You do not deserve that. Look at me." He finally turned his head up, "You do not deserve that."
"I'm never going to say this again but for once just listen to the Jedi!" Slick exclaimed,
"I can't save everyone, but I can save you and Slick. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you I was coming, I'm sorry you thought I abandoned you, I know how much that hurts." her tone softened, "Please let me, Dogma," He finally nodded and allowed her to take his hand and lead him up the catwalk, "Any last words because we're not coming back here." Dogma shook his head,
"Well I do," Slick said, following them into the ship, "Good riddance."
"Alright, cockpit's this way," Esinon motioned for them to follow,
"So you got a name Jedi?" Slick asked, peeking his head in a few rooms,
"Esinon, I'll answer all your questions as soon as we get into hyperspace," she promised, "Also, Dogma, Rex and Tup want to see you. I promised them we'd call as soon as I get to hyperspace."
"Tup wants to see me?" Dogma lit up,
"Of course he does," she replied, taking her seat, "You coming Slick?" she called to the meandering clone,
"Yeah, yeah, I'm comin'." He plopped down in a seat, looking relieved to be out of his cell, but not too happy that it was a Jedi who had gotten him out. "So what exactly is the plan?"
"I'll explain everything when we get to hyperspace," Esinon said, trying to avoid the inevitable, telling them that she had to pay to get them out. Slick was going to kill her. She tightened her grip on the controls, Spinner nudged her leg. He looked up at her, urging her to keep going. "Right, Spinner find some planet in the outer rim, we'll figure it out." The droid beeped in response, plugging into the port.
"You're hiding something," Slick said, she knew she saw the muscles in her shoulders tense. "I want to know what it-"
"Slick," Dogma growled, "Leave General Windcaster alone, if you've got a problem with her then you've got a problem with me." Esinon discreetly glanced at Dogma, he never used to be this forward… about anything.
"Are you serious?" Slick exclaimed, betrayal hunting in his voice.
"Do you want to test me right now?" Dogma snarled, Slick growled, and turned around. Esinon kept her eyes forwards as she pulled the ship into the sky, steadily gaining altitude as they burst through the cloud layer into a bright sun-filled sky.
"Whoa," Dogma breathed,
"I thought I'd never see it again," Slick murmured,
"Me either,"
"See what?" Esinon asked,
"The sun," they replied in unified awe. She smiled softly, sadness lacing it, she almost didn't want to know what had happened to them in there…
"I'm glad you get to see it," she whispered, she fiddled with her crystal, "I promise to get both of you somewhere safe,"
"Safe…" Slick murmured, he ran a hand through his hair, "This is actually happening. Whoa."
"W-we're alright," Dogma muttered, burying his head in his hands, Esinon squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. Spinner plugged in the coordinates and shot them into hyperspace.
"I… I'm ready to answer any questions you might have about what's gonna happen from here or… anything along those lines," she said, rubbing her sweaty palms along her knees. Slick grumbled to himself before standing up and making to leave.
"I'm going for a look around," he said,
"O-ok, have fun," Esinon said, he rolled his eyes in response.
"He'll come around," Dogma assured her,
"It's fine," she said, "he doesn't have to… come around. He can hate me all he wants I guess."
"But it doesn't have to be that way," Dogma said, Esinon sighed, slouching in her seat, watching the star whip past.
"I can't change others, I've learned that the hard way. I can't control anyone's decision but my own." She'd been saying that to herself a lot, she couldn't control anyone's decisions but her own. "I'll get food and clothes when we stop,"
"I was wondering what the plan was," Dogma said, "You know how I get when everything isn't planned out." She chuckled, Dogma grinned, it was nice to see her smile after everything. There was the bouncy Commander… now General, he had always known and loved.
"Well, we're going wherever you and Slick want to go. Although you'll have to translate for me, I don't speak in grunts and groans." she joked, "Anyways after you guys pick a place to live, I'll get you set up with jobs and housing. That way you'll be able to buy a ship and travel where you want. So you just have to pick the place and we'll go." She would tell them about the money thing later when they were all together again.
A few hours later…
Esinon tugged a cloak over her head, securing a blaster in her belt. "Are you sure you don't want us to come?" Dogma asked, following her towards the catwalk, with Slick close on his tail.
"I'm sure, I'll be alright Dogma." she replied, smiling at him, "I am an ARC trooper after all," She tucked a credit card in her belt, "And I should be gone for a few hours tops," Dogma grinned, it was nice to see him smile. "She's told you multiple times that she'll be fine Dogma, just let her go and be useful for once," Slick said, it took all of her willpower to not glare at him, what was it with this guy? Maybe Cody would have some answers,
"I'll be back in a few hours with clothes and food," she said, pulling her hood over her head, Slick rolled his eyes, disappearing around the corner. She produced a comlink from her pocket, "Take this, contact me if you need anything, and I'll be there in a flash." She winked before starting down the catwalk into the open-air market of an outer rim planet they had made a pit stop at.
"General, I-" Dogma began, she waited, "Thank you for coming back, and taking time out of your leave to come and get us, and I'm really sorry about Slick. He's a… tough personality."
"You really don't need to thank me," she assured him, "And after seeing- feeling everything in the detention center. I understand why he hates me." She couldn't shake the feeling of pain and guilt, she knew it was childish, but she just wanted to… fix it. Somehow. She knew she couldn't, but she really wished she could.
"He'll learn," she sighed,
"He doesn't have to," After Umbara there were plenty of troopers who hated her, blaming her for everything. Rex said it was because they didn't know her, they were grieving and needed someone to blame.
"General?" Dogma asked, searching her face as she rubbed her side where the worst of her injury had been. She'd of course had more, a pierced kidney, she almost collapsed a lung, the gash on her side seven pieces of shrapnel. Now that she thought about it, it was really stupid what she had done. She thought it would make things better, it didn't all it got her was almost dead, and everyone worried sick.
"It's nothing," She murmured, "Anyways, I'll be back in a few hours." She walked down the catwalk and headed into town.
"A few hours," Dogma said, tapping his foot, thumbing the comlink, "a few hours," he looked around, Slick had been gone for a while now, he wanted to find him before he got into something he wasn't supposed to. "Slick!"
"Now what are you hiding Jedi?" Slick muttered to himself as he slunk into Esinon's quarters, well until she decided to dump them when it was convenient for her, their quarters. This was a Corellian Rigger-light freighter, mostly used for spice running, but was also used by the Jedi. Both parties were scum in his opinion. There were about six bunks in here, but only one of them was in use, the bed was disheveled, but two of them had fresh sheets and blankets on them. She had been preparing for their arrival.
He sat down on her bed, tugging at the drawer underneath. A few cloaks and spare robes were shoved haphazardly into the drawer, looked like she hadn't bothered to fold her clothes beforehand. He rolled his eyes, she wasn't a soldier, that was for sure. He spotted a datapad sitting on top of the clothes, he grabbed it, scrolling along data entries, and letters. He scrolled down the entries to a folder marked Dogma, he got curious and tapped on it.
There's a problem with my crusade to get Dogma and his cellmate out of prison. The Kaminoans want money, and no matter what I try to do they won't move. They keep saying that Dogma is their property, if I could I would punch the Kaminoans in the face. I also wish they would tell me Dogma's cellmate's name, other than just a number. I've looked him up everywhere and every file is locked. Obi-Wan never told me the passcode, so I can't open any of them. At least I hope he likes me, I guess I'm nervous. I'm going to tell him and Dogma, and maybe Dogma will hate me, but him hating me is better than him being-
"Slick, are you in here?" Dogma asked, peeking his head around the corner. Slick shoved the datapad under the blanket, Dogma would get all in a fuss about him looking through Esinon's stuff. "There you are,"
"What? Did ya miss me?" Slick asked, rising from Esinon's bed. He would have to question the Jedi filth about all of this later.
"Well uh- what are you doing?"
"Checking out our new living amenities," Slick replied, "Looks like your precious Jedi has been preparing for our arrival." Dogma looked over a few holos that were posted above Esinon's bed, mostly ones of her and Obi-Wan.
'She must miss him so much,' Dogma thought to himself, "So how much of the ship did you explore?" he asked,
"Enough," Slick grumbled, thinking about everything that he could probably find on that datapad. Dogma sighed,
"You could be nicer to her you know, she's been through a lot." Dogma said, turned away from the holos. He remembered when Rex explained everything that had happened with Esinon ignoring injury, right before he was shipped off to prison.
"Sure she has," Slick replied sarcastically,
"She was there Slick. On Umbara, she was devastated you know."
"Yeah, I'm sure she was," Dogma sighed, he knew he wasn't winning this battle right now.
"I'm gonna go check on Spinner," he said, Slick watched him leave, listening to his footsteps fade before returning to the datapad.
"Time to catch up on some light reading," he murmured to himself as he opened the next entry.
A few hours later…
After about the second entry Slick had to stop, he was fuming. She bought them. She bought them. Like pieces of meat, slaves, he was going to kill that Jedi if it was the last thing he ever did. He hid her datapad in the drawer and went to find Dogma, he could convince his brother to steal her ship while she was out. They could get out before she could use them again! He set off into the ship to find Dogma, he soon found his brother standing in front of a door,
"Dogma- what are you doing?" Slick asked,
"Thinking," he mumbled,
"Well, have you tried going inside the room?" Slick asked,
"It's locked," Dogma said, staring blankly at the door, trying to process everything that had happened in the past few hours. Slick elbowed past him, forgetting his little crusade to get them out of here and leave that Jedi behind. He fiddled with the panel, trying to get the door to open. "We should leave it alone, General Windcaster probably doesn't want us going in there anyway." Slick pulled the panel open, starting to mess with it to hardwire the door open.
"No, we're going in here," Slick said, hand flying as he yanked out a bunch of wires. Dogma sighed, "Come on, I was kriffing bred for this."
"Let it go Slick,"
"You're only saying that because you want to appease your Jedi," he growled, Slick paused,
"Quit calling her my Jedi, will ya?"
"Wait Dogma, she's gone. That Jedi filth is gone! Let's take the ship while she's out and leave before she can use us again!" Slick exclaimed, jumping up from his crouched position on the floor.
"We're not leaving Slick, she got us out of prison. We're not even entertaining that idea." Dogma said, Slick grumbled in response,
"Come on Dogma-"
"That's the end of the conversation," Dogma said, his comlink buzzed,
"Your Jedi's calling," Slick said, turning his attention back to the panel and the locked door.
"Quit calling her that," he mumbled, answering the hailing. "Hello General,"
"Your brothers call you General?" a woman on the other line asked,
"Uh- childhood nickname. I was a very bossy child growing up," Esinon said hurriedly, Slick rolled his eyes. But pumped his fists in triumph as the door slid open,
"Tell your Jedi I'm going into her locked room," Slick whispered, Dogma rolled his eyes, "Is there something we can help you with?" Dogma asked, shoving Slick's shoulder.
"What sizes do you guys wear?"
"Huh?" she sighed,
"Sizes, what cloth sizes do you wear?" she asked, "Like do you guys have tags in the inside of pants and shirts?"
"People tag their clothes?" Slick asked quietly,
"You know, they tag their clothes to tell sizes-"
"I think it's one size fits all, General," Dogma replied, Esinon sighed,
"Of course it is," she whispered, "I'll figure it out, one more question before I go. Do you guys have any preferences for colors?"
"No orange," Slick said suddenly,
"I've always liked the color green," Dogma said,
"No orange and get green. Alright, thank you." she ended the transmission,
"See? Not so bad," Dogma said, Slick didn't answer, he was distracted by something in the room he had just fought to enter. Dogma stuffed the comlink in his belt and carefully entered the room. "Slick, what are you- whoa." Slick had found the rec room, There was a small section of training equipment, a kitchenette with an open box of honey-lemon tea on the counter, there was a closet off on the right, and a wall full of holos.
"Look Dogma, there's one of you here," Slick said, Dogma scanned down a row of holos. There was one of her, Fives, Echo, and Rex, one of her and her cousin Elliot, one of the Tornado Trio, one of her and Obi-Wan, and right there, was one of her with and his squad. He really missed them. It hurt to lose everyone but Tup, and then be ripped away from him as well. He hated that his brother had been left alone… well, he wasn't alone, not exactly. Slick turned away from the holos as Dogma continued to study them, he looked over at the silver closet on the right. He pulled it open, an array of blasters and Vibro-knives covered the walls. Her favorite seemed to be a DC-17,
"Slick, what are you- whoa." Dogma murmured, staring at the plethora of weapons, Slick pulled a DC off the wall studying it.
"Why would she have all these?"
"I dunno, General Windcaster is versatile with all sorts of weapons. She had informal ARC training, it's why she was chosen to train troopers on Kamino." he explained, Slick replaced the blaster back in the closet.
"But what is one woman doing with this many blasters and knives when she already has a lightsaber?" he asked, Dogma shrugged his shoulders,
"General Windcaster is versatile with all sorts of weapons, she had informal ARC training."
"I knew she was hiding something," he murmured, Dogma didn't hear him.
Esinon added another shirt to her stack of clothes,
"You got somethin' against the color orange?" the twi'lek saleswoman asked,
"No, I actually quite like it, but my brother requested no orange."
"You're brothers made you go shopping for them?" she asked with a laugh,
"Nope, out of the goodness of my own heart. Besides, they needed to talk some stuff over and it's been a while since I've gotten off the ship," she replied,
"I'm ready to help you check out whenever you're ready," she said, with a smile,
"Thank you," Esinon added a couple of dresses and clothes for her to her basket, she didn't want to rock Jedi robes for the next six weeks. It would be more inconspicuous that way. She finished finding all of the clothing and checked out, heading to the next store to find toiletries.
A few hours later…
She had finally collected everything they would need, everything except food of course. She strolled through the sandy open-air market looking over food options when a billboard caught her eye.
'Mass breakout out Republic Prison, including the Jedi Killer, Rako Hardeen.' she froze, I lost him! Does anyone have eyes?- POW!- AHH!- OBI-WAN!
"Miss, are you alright?" The salesman asked from behind his stand of fruit, Esinon shook her head slightly before using her speed to disappear back to the ship. She sunk to her knees, her heart racing, she sucked in a harsh breath, I can do this, I'm ok. She pulled herself back upward and walked into the ship, finding the halls eerily quiet, when there was supposed to be two clones here.
"Dogma? Slick?" she continued to wander the halls, "Come on, where are they? Dogma! Slick!"
"General?" Dogma asked, peeking his head around the corner,
"Move it Dogma," Slick pushed Dogma out of the doorway to the rec room.
"Hey, great, you guys found the rec room," she said, happily, trying to shove away all the memories from that night pounding through her mind. "I-" She looked at Slick's hand to see him holding up a datapad,
"Yeah Jedi, recognize this?" He asked, his voice filled with venom. The force rippled with only one thing, Slick wanted to kill her. "When were you planning on telling us that you bought us? Feel like adding a few more slaves to your army?" A look of betrayal and hurt crossed her face, she knew exactly where she'd put her datapad.
"You went through my stuff?" she asked quietly,
"Slick!" Dogma exclaimed in horror. Slick ignored him, a snarl forming on his face, taking steps towards the young Jedi General.
"That's right, I read your little datapad and you bought us." he snarled, Esinon took a step back, fingers flicking for a weapon that wasn't there.
"I was going to tell you," she said, trying to not feel terrified.
"When," He growled,
"You had no right to be going through my stuff," she said, her voice hardening ever so slightly.
"And I have a right to know this!"
"And I was going to tell you if you would have stopped and listened to me for four seconds!" she snapped, "Just-" she took a deep breath, "Right now, I want you off my ship. Now I am going to go meditate before I punch a hole in the wall, or your face, whichever comes first."
"See Dogma!" Slick shouted as he stormed off, "This is what Jedi do! They throw you away!"
"No. No!" Esinon shouted, getting increasingly more upset. "I am holding you accountable for your actions. We are all taking time out! Take the datapad, go outside, keep reading!" She stormed off towards the cockpit. She couldn't believe that Slick had done this! He went through her stuff! She never said that he couldn't look around, but seriously? This was a violation of her trust,
'Are you ok?' Spinner beeped,
"No, no Spinner, I am not ok. I'm starting to think that this was a very, very bad idea," she said, collapsing into the pilot's seat. "Argh! What was I thinking! I should have just taken Dogma and gone!" She paused, When we are finished, he will be destroyed. She let out a shuddered breath, pressing her forehead to her fists. "Spinner, being strong all the time is really hard." she whispered, Esinon felt vulnerable and weak. Things she couldn't afford to feel, she had to keep being strong, she had to.
"Slick! Slick slow down!" Dogma shouted as he chased after his brother. "Why are you acting like this? What made you think it would be alright to go through her stuff?" Slick turned on his heel, clutching the datapad tightly,
"Acting? She's hiding something, doesn't that bother you? The datapad, the knives, the locked rooms, everything! She's not telling us something if your precious Jedi trusted you so much-"
"It's not about her trusting me, Slick!" Dogma shouted, motioning to himself, "It's about me trusting her! She got us out of Kamino, didn't she?"
"But she's still hiding something, look if you don't believe me." Slick said, tossing him the datapad.
"No! That's my point! We have to trust her-"
"And how well did it end last time you trusted a Jedi, huh?"
"Slick. Don't go there." Dogma growled,
"I'm just saying, you were blind to Krell using you-"
"I said to leave alone,"
"How do you know she's not using you now?"
"I SAID LEAVE IT ALONE!" he screamed, shoving Slick away from him.
"Dogma! Quit being blind to what's happening. You think we're gonna stay here and act like one big happy family? It's not gonna happen, as soon as it's convenient for her, that slaver will come out and use us again! What in the galaxy has she done to earn that loyalty from you?"
"She's the only one other than Rex who fought for me! Don't you get that? General Windcaster came back! No one else did that! On Kamino while she was finishing my training, she invited me to sit at lunch with her, she got me to open up to my squad and actually make friends, to have a bond with my brothers. Before she arrived, I had had longer conversations with rule manuals. She didn't have to seek me out, but she did, and she didn't give up when I wouldn't open up. Our own brothers didn't raise a hand to defend us because they thought we were defective. General Windcaster doesn't think that. She doesn't think that we're worth being disposed of that way, in a way that everyone else thinks we should. What about any of that makes her the enemy?" Dogma started towards the ship, "I know I was blind to Krell, but I'm not being blind to General Windcaster." Dogma stalked into the ship, Slick growled sliding against the ship wall and into the sand.
"Dang it Dogma."
Dogma sat down in a corner, pulling his knees up to his chest. He was so angry at Slick. Why couldn't he just leave Esinon alone! She was allowed to have a private life, and Slick was wrong. Esinon didn't buy them, she bought their freedom. If Slick thought that the Kaminoans would let her take them without paying first he was delusional.
"Dogma," Slick called softly,
"What do you want Slick?" he asked, staring at his feet.
"I wanted to ask if we're ok? I don't want a Jedi tearing us apart," he said, sitting down next to Dogma.
"Yeah, we're good. I'm just asking you to open to it. If you think about it, she bought our freedom, not us. I'm sure if she had any other options she would have used them. General Windcaster trained me, and I knew her for my first year on the field." Slick wrapped an arm around Dogma,
"I'll be open to it if you'll be open to the possibility, she isn't everything she says she is." Dogma nodded, wrapping his arm around Slick,
"Alright," Esinon came around the corner, thumbing the edge of her cloak, holding the bags of clothes in her opposite hand.
"Can I talk to you both?" She asked, the troopers nodded as she sat down at a safe distance away from them. "I wanted to tell you about how I had to pay the Kaminoans to get you out of prison. The reason I didn't tell you both right away is that for one I was nervous, that's on me. But two, if you would have kept reading Slick, you would have found out that I'm attempting to get both of you Republic citizenship. I didn't want to tell you in case it fell through, I was waiting for the process to be completed. I should have everything through by next week," she set the bag of clothes in front of them, she'd already dropped her own clothes in her room, well their room. She was sharing for the next eight weeks. "Here are the clothes I bought, but we need to get going." Slick peeked into the bag,
"Hey Jedi, where's the food?"
"This Jedi has a name," she mumbled to herself, "And we're gonna eat at the next stop,"
"Why can't we eat here?" Slick asked, Esinon never answered because she had already disappeared around the corner. Emotions were high on the ship, and sometimes people forgot that Esinon could feel all of those emotions all of the time. So with memories of Obi-Wan and Rako Hardeen pounding through her mind, Esinon set a direct course to Coruscant in the heat of the moment. She was going Hardeen hunting, Anakin had gotten a chance to, why couldn't she? She pulled her knees to her chest, getting lost in all her memories again when the whoosh of the blast door tore her from her thoughts. Dogma and Slick entered wearing the news clothes she had bought, Dogma was wearing a green tunic and black pants. Slick was wearing a blue tunic with pants that were tan with a black stripe up the legs.
"So you like the clothes alright?"
"They're great sir," Dogma replied,
"We're wearing them aren't we?" Slick grumbled, flopping into one of the chairs.
"Spinner, can you help Dogma land the ship?" she asked, getting out of the pilot's chair. Spinner spun his head in a yes response and shoved Dogma into the pilot's seat.
"Wait, sir, are you sure about this?"
"You'll be fine Dogma, you watched me land the ship the first time. Besides, Spinner won't let anything happen," she reassured, patting the droid's head. "I'm gonna go get changed," Esinon walked out of the cockpit, starting for her, well for the next two months, their quarters.
"Hey Jedi," Slick called, she turned, plastering a smile on her face,
"Yes?"
"I need to have a word with you," he said, grabbing her wrist. She quickly pulled away from his tight grip,
"What can I do for you?" she asked, she was really trying to get Slick to like her, she was still mad at him for going through her stuff.
"Stop being so pleasant," he growled, slamming his hand against the wall, trapping her. "Just listen, and listen good because I'm only gonna say this once. Unlike Dogma, I don't care what secrets you're hiding, and I know it's more than just the money. But if any of them come around to hurt my brother, I will ki-" he stopped himself, backing away from the shrinking Jedi,
"You will…" she paused, her eyes filled with fear, though he could tell she was trying to hide it. What Slick didn't know is that Esinon was having persistent nightmares of clones coming to kill her, because she didn't stop Krell. Slick backed up a little further, for an instant he didn't see a Jedi in front of him, he only saw a scared little girl.
"Nothing, I gotta get back to Dogma," he replied, folding his arms over his chest, she nodded, a little bit shaken by their encounter.
"Slick I-"
"What?" he snapped, she shook her head,
"Nothing, I'll meet you guys at the ramp," she replied, entering her quarters,
"Whatever you say, di'kut," he growled, stalking back towards the cockpit. Esinon sighed, rubbing her temples, she flicked on the lights. She pulled open the clothes drawer, stuffing her new dresses and clothes in along with it. She was getting locks for these next time they stopped. She pulled the blaster from her belt and stuffed it underneath her pillow. She couldn't shake the anger that she had felt radiating off of Slick, Nor has he shied away from his want to personally harm any of you. She had to be aware of who she was dealing with, Slick had been a former GAR soldier, he had the capability to kill her, and the want. She couldn't trust everyone, as much as she might like to.
A few minutes later…
Esinon was now armed, Vibro knives in her gauntlets and a blaster in her belt. She wouldn't risk being caught with her lightsaber, it would instantly ID her as a Jedi. She headed towards the catwalk where Slick and Dogma were waiting with blasters strapped to their thighs. "I see you guys found my weapons supply, good," she said, smiling,
"I see you guys found my weapons supply, good," she said, smiling. Yes, she had noticed that Slick had opened the door she had locked. It wasn't because she cared if they went in there or not, she locked that room more out of habit than anything. That weapons closet was Cody's for when he was on the ship, and she locked it so that if the ship was captured they would have a hard time getting to the supply. She didn't have a problem with them taking the weapons, as long as they didn't plan on using them against her.
"Yeah," Dogma said, seemingly more uncomfortable with the fact that he had a weapon strapped to his leg when she remembered that the last time he held a blaster it wasn't exactly a good day.
"So how many knives have you got under that pretty dress of yours?" Slick asked,
"Too many for you to count," she replied,
"So where exactly are we?" Dogma asked, Esinon pressed the door to the catwalk, it lowering,
"Welcome to level thirteen thirteen of Coruscant's underworld," she replied, as the glittering lights of the underworld appeared as the catwalk finished lowering.
"And why exactly would you bring us here? We're clones, everyone knows what clones look like here." Slick replied,
"I have my reasons. And contrary to popular belief, most people don't know what a clone's face looks like. Clones are mainly recognizable by their armor, and besides. The guard doesn't patrol down this far, so as far as anyone will be able to tell, you're a couple of twins." she explained,
"Why in the galaxy would you want to come here?" he asked again,
"Again, I have my reasons. Come on, there a bunch of good places to eat down here," she said,
"So you've been down this far?" he asked,
"No, but a friend told me about it. Don't worry, I know my way around down here."
"That's reassuring," Slick grumbled,
"You're a real ray of sunshine, you know that?" she smirked, Dogma stifled laughter and Slick elbowed him in the ribs,
"Couple of jokers," he grumbled, they walked through the streets for a little bit past different places,
"So I know a couple of places I like to eat, but we can eat wherever you guys want," she said, motioning to a couple of restaurants she liked.
"Wherever is fine," Dogma said, Slick didn't voice any objections as she quickly chose a restaurant and pulled the door open. They chose a table and sat down,
"Scoot," Slick said, edging Dogma further into the booth.
"I'll go get us some menus," Esinon said, getting up,
"Not to be nosy- nope, yeah I do mean to be nosy." Slick began, "But where are you getting all the money to pay for this stuff? Wouldn't want to waste all the money that you make as a Jedi on us." He meant it as a dig, but Esinon was a little absent-minded at the moment.
"Jedi don't get paid, we're all Republic funded. My dad is providing me with money, he's a Senator." she replied, before leaving. She soon returned with menus and they quickly ordered and received food. Esinon didn't eat much, she spent most of pushing food into different piles on her plate, getting lost in her thoughts.
"Sir, you alright?" Dogma asked, ripping her from her thoughts of Hardeen,
"Hmm? Oh, yeah, fine. Not that hungry," Which wasn't true, she was always hungry, speedster metabolism.
"That's surprising, Fives said you're a bottomless pit." Dogma laughed, she cracked a small smile,
"Yeah, that's how it usually goes-" she spotted someone pass by the restaurant, a blue-skinned man, with angular cheekbones, where tubes would have normally resided. Cad Bane. "I'll be right back, I've gotta take care of something." she said, getting out of the booth.
"Wait where are you going?" Slick asked,
"I'll be back in a couple minutes, both of you stay put." Slick started to rise from the booth,
"I'm not takin' orders from-" Dogma put a hand on Slick's shoulder and shook his head. Slick settled back into the booth grumbling, as Esinon left the restaurant. She crept after Bane, knowing that where she found him, she could probably find Eval and Hardeen. She was going to make that sniper pay for what he had taken from her. She tailed Bane for a while through the winding streets of level 1313 until they reached a ship, she grabbed the Vibro knife from her gauntlet as Bane stepped onto the ship. A man walked past him, stepping out of the ship. Hardeen. She plastered her back to the alleyway she had shrunk into, waiting for Hardeen to creep close enough to her.
Against his better judgment, Slick had followed Esinon through the streets of Coruscant, sending Dogma back to the ship to pick them up.
"Why am I doing this? I don't care about that Jedi," he growled to himself, yet he kept following her from a safe distance. She was following this blue-skinned man until she halted near a ship, plastering herself in an alleyway. What did she want with this guy?
She could sense Hardeen coming towards her, what was drawing him to her, she didn't know, but all she could feel was rage pounding in her heart. She could only see red as she focused in on Hardeen. As soon as he got near enough, she sprung forward, kicking him in the chest and stalking forward, baring the knife, he fumbled with a blaster for a moment and fired. She was hit in the shoulder, but it didn't hinder her, she could barely feel the wound with the amount of adrenaline pumping in her veins. Hardeen had scrambled to his feet, continuing to fire at her, but she used the force to deflect them, she called the blaster to her hand and crushed it in her fist.
She continued to march forward as Hardeen started to sprint away, she used her speed to get in front of him and socked him hard in the stomach bringing him to his knees. She pressed the knife against his collarbone, using the force to choke him, he grappled at the invisible hands closing around his windpipe.
Kill him.
She squeezed tighter, it would be so easy to kill him right here, right now. What did he do to deserve to live? The darkness started to shroud her whole being, without Obi-Wan's bond there, everything felt cold, so cold. Enough to send a shiver up her spine.
Kill him now, while you have the chance.
She was doing the galaxy a favor, getting rid of a killer. A murderer.
KILL HIM NOW!
"Esinon!" a voice yelled, she lost her concentration, letting go of Hardeen. She spotted Slick sprinting towards her, it distracted her long enough for Hardeen to disarm her and sock her in the jaw and make a run for his ship.
Slick had just watched Esinon almost kill a man, the smiley sunshine child that was always in too good a mood to be real, had almost murdered someone. His comlink buzzed, Dogma yelling something he couldn't understand in the moment, so instead of answering as he should have, he denied the hailing. Instead, he ran over the panting padawan,
"Jedi, can you hear me?" he asked, shaking her shoulders. The ship that the man had entered took off, leaving in a hurry. It was like she was going into shock, but she didn't look injured. Wait- she had been shot. "Esinon, come on, we have to leave," Slick said, pulling her up, seeing Dogma pulling around, the fight that had just happened was attracting an unhealthy amount of eyes. She finally pulled herself to her feet, following Slick into the ship, her eyes wide with terror and she was silently screaming in anguish. She quickly shook herself from her stupor, already looking at Slick concernedly,
"Are you ok?" she asked,
"Fine," he replied, already heading into the cockpit, she didn't say anything more, disappearing into her quarters, he heard the lock click behind her and whimpers come from behind the door. He entered the cockpit, "Hey, did you chart-"
"You should have answered me." Dogma whispered,
"Dogma I-"
"Slick you should have answered me!" he shouted, his voice breaking, "I thought you got hurt, or worse! That guy he killed a Jedi! He could of-" he buried his head in his hands. Slick walked over to Dogma, placing his hands on Dogma's head. "You should have answered,"
"I'm sorry Dogma," he whispered, pulling him out of his chair and hugging him tightly.
"I'm mad at you," he mumbled, Slick gave a half-hearted chuckle,
"I know, and I'm sorry," he broke the hug, leaning their foreheads together, "I'm ok, and you're ok. We're together and that's all that matters." Dogma pulled away,
"Thank you for going to get General Windcaster, I know that couldn't have been easy for you,"
"Save it,"
"I'm serious, thank you. You pushed past some stuff to get to helping her, speaking of General Windcaster, where is she?" Dogma said, looking around the room for the young Jedi, noticing Spinner had disappeared. "Is she ok?"
"She's in her quarters. I don't know if she wants to talk to anyone right now." Slick said, flopping down in the copilot's chair.
"We should go check to see if she's ok," Dogma said, making it clear he wasn't suggesting for Slick to come along. He sighed, following Dogma to her quarters, Dogma tried to open the door, but it was still locked. He could hear small choked whimpers coming from inside, Dogma knocked on the door. "General, are you ok?"
"I'm fine," she called, her voice strained into a normal-sounding pitch.
"General, can you open the door please?" he asked, Spinner shoved past him, placing his probe into the port and unlocking the door. Slick scooted out of the young General's eye line, not that she was looking up. She had her head buried in her knees, Dogma entered slowly, talking softly. Slick poked his head around the door watching the scene.
Esinon tugged her knees closer to her chest. That was always something she did when she was trying to provide enough comfort for herself. "General, are you alright?" Esinon shook her head, Dogma sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her. She finally broke down in sobs,
"I-I almost m-murdered someone, Dogma. I still k-kinda want to." she choked,
"I know," he whispered,
"I don't wanna be a killer, but I snapped." she whimpered, "I just felt like he owed me. I wanted to make him suffer Dogma! It was so dark… I wanted to make him suffer as much as I have. I wanted to kill him, I wanted to take what he took from me." Dogma didn't say anything, just holding her close as she cried. He knew what she felt, it was exactly the type of darkness that had overcome him when he pulled the trigger on Krell. The difference between Dogma and Esinon was that one of them succeeded.
Cad Bane's Ship, Hyperspace…
Obi-Wan wiped at his eyes again, what had he done? Right then he knew this was a mistake, cutting off his bond with Esinon, leaving her out on her own? What was she even doing on that level of Coruscant, and with a clone? What was happening? Every time he closed his eyes all he could see was the raging face of his padawan, she had been prepared to kill him if that clone hadn't been there. A few more tears dripped out of his eyes, he knew this was a mistake from the very beginning.
"Esinon, I'm so sorry," he whispered,
Alright, alright, alright, starting up the next mini-arc in the larger deception arc.
Anyways, yall remember Slick? That traitor, 'member him? Yeah, told you he and his squad would come around.
Alright, next up on lets make this canon corner: not related to the chapter but Xavier can throw his voice, and can impersonate anyone he hears
thank you for reading and make sure to leave a review!