My dear and lovely reader, you are now reading the revised version of this chapter! Enjoy the extra worldbuilding, since I barely had any the first time around.

For the new reader, enjoy my Alphian species! I have more information on them over on my tumblr!

Just type the tag "Alphian(s)" and it should come up!

Hunter leaned back against the console and crossed his arms, mirroring me. Crossing one ankle over the other, he began, "You know we are looking for the name and location of a planet that is hidden away in a secret cave in your mountains."

"Aye. The Vault," I said with a nod. "You said somethin' earlier about a group enslavin' a planet?

"Good, you remember. Saves me time," he snorted before continuing, "Standard weapons are useless against 'em. We don't know what they are, or even where they came from. We weren't given a lot of information, but what we do know is they're very powerful and even after one has been shot down it can get back up."

Yeah, that's definitely pretty powerful.

"If they'd just let us go in-" Wrecker began.

Hunter cut him off. "I don't like flying blind into a situation like that. They're organics, not droids, and could have abilities we can't imagine."

"How big is this planet and how many enemies are we talkin'?" I asked.

Tech stepped forward. "It's not a large planet at all, the local population is only about two hundred million. It's a desert planet, so not very kind conditions for human life. Their civilization is quite primitive as well. The invaders, from what information we were given, have around a quarter of that number."

My eyes widened. Four to one and the planet was still losing? "That's some pretty powerful invaders. The hell can they even do?"

"Again, we don't have much to go off of," Hunter said. "But rumor says they shapeshift."

Shapeshift ? A strange chill went down my spine. Almost as if I knew the species they were talking about. What would the odds be that this mystery species is my very own Alphians? "That's a big advantage..." I commented, still half way lost in thought.

Hunter immediately picked up on my tone shift. "You know 'em?"

I shook my head slowly. "Without a specific name, I can't be sure. Plus, with such a big galaxy, there could be many shapeshifter species runnin' about. There's those Clawdite things, right?"

"Yes, but Clawdites can only mimic species they see and cannot add physical mass to their bodies," Tech interjected. "A Clawdite also undergoes great physical pain while shifting. These invaders could not only transform into strange and unknown beasts, but could so so with no sign of physical discomfort. I wish I could have gotten more information on them, but sadly few reports managed to bypass the invaders."

Ain't you just a little xenobiologist . "Is there any more information you can tell me?"

Hunter spoke up. "They glow."

A frown dug into the corners of my mouth. "We talkin' mystical markings or we talkin' organic glowstick?"

A brow raised at my wording but Hunter replied, "Markings."

That's certainly interesting . Still, for it to be my own species is just too cliché. There's no way .

Eyes narrowing as he watched me closely, Hunter added, "It shows up when they use elemental powers."

Nope, that's just too damn cliché. Maybe I was living in denial, but honestly, it really was cliché! Granted I was thrown into a TV show in a fucked up type of involuntary self-insert, but for me to travel to my own planet that I created and unlock the key to a species I was basically a goddess over... now that was just plain silly.

"It really is quite fascinating!" Tech chirped. "The markings look so intricate and are the same no matter the color." He scurried to the console, shooing Hunter out of his way. "I should be able to bring up one of the holo files we were sent."

Hunter moved away and came to stand next to me, an action that unnerved me.

I swear if you start sniffin' me for signs of fear, I'm gonna start swinging.

Tech typed away at the motherboard of buttons before an image flickered to life on the screen.

The feed was patchy at best, but I didn't need 4K HD to recognize the species.

The fighter was a tan skinned female with bearing the traits of a feline type Alphian just as I had, but her tail was far thinner and her speckled tan fur shorter. Pale grey markings glimmered across her skin, and as the video continued I caught a glimpse of the Air symbol before a swirling column of air shot outwards towards the poor soul taking the video.

A scream, a blurred image, a crunch, and crimson droplet splattering across the camera as it laid abandoned in the dirt. The female coming into shot once more, the blue streaks of blaster bolts clipping her shoulder, a fierce snarl revealing savage teeth, her crouching and mist surrounding her, a roar and the mist vanishing to reveal a large, lean feline that launched itself offscreen followed by another scream.

The video shut off, leaving me with a slight feeling of nausea.

Oh, I knew exactly what species that was.

"You know what that was, don't you?" Hunter asked from beside me.

"Yeah..." I muttered, salt returning full force. Of course it'd be my species. "I know what they are."

"What is their name?" Tech asked, staring at me with intense curiosity. "Where did they come from? Why are they so powerful?"

"Easy, Twenty Questions," I said, raising my hands.

"What weakness do they have?" Hunter demanded.

"Both of you chill with your questions," I growled. "Their name isn't important. What is important is that you're right. The Vault is needed to gain their weakness. I'll take you there."

"But what are they, Small Fry?" Wrecker spoke up.

Hunter was staring at me again, and sure enough his nose twitched.

This is weird... Nevertheless I shot him a pleading look, hoping at least he had some mercy and would let me off with this.

His eyes narrowed as he stared me down, but then his gaze softened ever so slightly and he looked over my head to his team. "Doesn't matter, she's helping us find the weakness anyways. Right, Shadow?"

"Aye, sir," I said quickly, relieved he let me slide.

He'll ask you later, you know .

Then I'll deal with it then . Problem for future me .

"But you'll tell us eventually what they were, right?" Tech prompted, coming to my side.

I nodded. "Yeah." Eventually.

"Alright, how do we get to the Vault? You know the way there?" Hunter asked, moving past me to lean on the console once more.

"Yeah, over the river and through the woods." I recalled the information dump, and suddenly grew excited despite everything else going wrong all at once it seemed.

Hiking. Just the very word brought a smile to my face. I hadn't been able to do that in forever. The Smokies were my favorite place to hike out of all the places I'd been, and these woods were exactly like those. Temperate rainforest. This actually could be pretty fun, all things considered. I'd probably explore it anyways, Bad Batch or not. With them could admittedly be pretty fun, maybe.

I began to pace back and forth, four pairs of brown eyes tracking me.

"What are you doin'?" Crosshair grumbled, finally speaking up from his spot in the corner, and all I could think of was that Spongebob meme.

He's just standing there! Menacingly!

Creepy ass murder twig.

"I got ADD, I think better when I'm movin'," I answered, glancing at him.

Tech perked up. "You have an attention disorder?"

"Yeah, movin' and visual stimulation helps me concentrate."

"Told ya exercisin' helps me!" Wrecker said triumphantly, grinning at Tech.

"I never implied it didn't! I merely asked you not to use my equipment as weights!" Tech shot back.

"Fellas, let her think," Hunter called, eyes not leaving me as I paced back and forth.

I shot him a grateful look and went back to pondering. "Some rivers to cross, but there's large enough rocks we can just rock hop. A few steeper paths, but nothing major. Ain't no real civilizations in the mountains, so water should be clean to drink on the way. Will have to get supplies from Trevor."

"We've got our own gear," Hunter said.

"Well then I need gear for myself. Pack some weapons too, since y'all are just a lovely beacon of trouble."

"Thanks, Small Fry!" Wrecker laughed.

Pointing finger guns at him, I continued pacing. "I think, if I recall correctly, it takes two days there and two days back, plus a day or so to get through the mountain itself, so three or four nights sleeping out there. Trail shelters will make that a lot easier."

Hunter hummed thoughtfully. "Any major obstacles?"

I stopped pacing and closed my eyes, tracking the route in my head. Leave the outpost, travel over a river and a mountain to the first trail shelter on the edge of a farm, over another two mountains to a second trail shelter, travel along a large canyon to a trestle bridge, follow that to an old abandoned train station by a large river, follow the tracks from there to... I frowned, memory becoming hazy.

"What is it?" Hunter asked.

"Hang on, thinkin'. It's on the tip of my consciousness but it's scuttling away." I sighed. "One second. Don't freak when you see this."

"See what?" Tech asked nervously. "What are you about to do?"

"You'd better not do any weird jetii shit," Crosshair spat.

"Not a Jedi, and wait for it..." I sighed, holding up a hand. Info dump? Hello? I need the rest of the-

Another wave of information slammed into my head, making me stumble back against the wall. I heard the men yell something and the tremble of the ship beneath me told me Wrecker had jumped up, but I couldn't hear what they were saying through a wave of images.

Rusty tracks, long since abandoned and overgrown with weeds. Abandoned tools, left out to the mercy of the elements. A gaping black hole stretching far over my head, blocked by a wire fence topped with razor sharp barbed wire and locked shut with heavy chains. Cool, moist air flowed like an invisible river from the darkness, washing over me and leaving behind a chill. Deeper into the tunnel, past the barricades, the rusty tracks continued as rocky walls drew closer and closer. Twisting, turning, going deeper still into the heart of the mountain. Trestles bridging the gap above an unfathomably deep chasm. Sharp scent of wet rock and the heavy smell of mold filled my nose. Utter, crushing silence broken only by the occasional clatter of pebbles and water rushing somewhere in the inescapable darkness, carving out the rock as it went along its way.

Mineshafts !

The word blazed in my mind and my eyes snapped back open. Tech had shoved his helmet on at some point, his visor down as he stared at me. Various words and colors flashed across the display, and while I didn't know what they meant I had a feeling they weren't good.

Panting, I gripped my head and groaned, " Fuck , I hate that part."

"What the heck was that?!" Wrecker yelled, making me wince.

"Voice down, big guy. Major headache."

" Headache ?" Tech yelped. "What did you do ? Your vitals are all over the place! Your heart rate shot up before nearly stopping completely! You should be dead! How are you still alive? Why did that happen? Does this always happen when you think?"

I can't play twenty questions right now, Techy . "My brain already feels like it nearly got torn in two, please don't rapid fire at me right now," I hissed. Letting my head thump against the wall, I tried to steady my breathing. "Oh, do I need a nap." I winced as another flash of pain stabbed my head. "Or maybe even a light coma."

"Aw, does sweetheart's head hurt?" Crosshair taunted.

"Keep diggin' at me and I won't be the only one in pain, Twiggs," I growled at the sniper.

"You don't scare me."

"And that's your first mistake." I groaned, closing my eyes again. Breathe. Breathe. At one point, I clamped my hand over my mouth as a wave of intense nausea nearly evicted the contents of my stomach. If there even was anything in my stomach. Finally, I reopened my eyes. "Ok, there's not a percussionist section of a marchin' band in my skull anymore. To answer your... many questions, Tech, I don't really know what happens. If I forget a location, I can call up the actual images in my head. Only issue, this happens. Sucks, but it is what it is."

"What did you forget that could cause that ?" Hunter barked.

"Mineshafts. Lots of tunnels and twisting tracks. Will probably have to get a map for those, tunnels are not my cup of tea. And these go deep ."

Did Crosshair flinch? My nose twitched as I got a smell of what I could only assume to be fear. Hunter subtly glanced back at him, worry crossing his face briefly.

He's scared of tunnels? Oddly makes sense. He and Wrecker are like polar opposites, if Wrecker's scared of heights then Crosshair would be scared of small spaces. Wait, why would I care? Do I hate Crosshair or do I feel sympathetic for him? Why do these boys gotta make me all types of confused? First my sexuality, now this?

"But it was an old tourist attraction. So, they had to, you know, make sure it was as safe as it could be. Otherwise I wouldn't dare step foot down there, I'm claustrophobic." I looked back at Hunter. "It's blocked, locked I think, but Wrecker can take care of that I'm sure." I flashed a grin at the scarred clone.

That seemed to brighten his mood and he grinned. "Oh, I can definitely take care of that!" he boasted.

I looked at Tech. The nerd still looked disturbed by my episode, eyes a bit wider than normal. "Tech, seriously, my vitals may have gone wonky but I'm fine." I pushed myself up, leaning back against the wall. "I've been hit by a speeder, remember?"

Wrecker's eyes went wide. "You've been hit by a speeder!?"

"And yeeted about ten meters through the air into the side of a buildin'." I scratched the back of my head. "I've had some adventures..."

"Yeeted?" Wrecker asked, head cocking to the side.

I froze, eyes going wide. "I did not mean to let that phrase slip around you..."

"Why? What does it mean?" Tech asked.

"You yell it when you throw somethin'," I admitted, glancing to Wrecker.

The large grin across his face struck terror into my core. " Yeet ," he repeated, no doubt savoring it. "I like that word!"

I groaned. "I've created a monster..." I looked at Hunter. "Guess I better go talk to Trevor about supplies, huh?"

"Not alone you won't." He blocked my path. "We're going with you."

"I was afraid of that..." I sighed, rubbing my temple. The after effects of the headache still lingered, a faint throbbing pain right behind my eyes. "You know, you aren't gonna be able to keep eyes on me the entire extent of this little escapade."

"You don't get a say," Crosshair growled, stepping closer to stand over me.

He was way too close for comfort. "You're in my personal space."

"Get used to that, sweetheart."

Tech I'll get used to. Wrecker I'll get used to. HunterI'll get used to? But you?

Squaring my shoulders, I stared him down. "I will not get used to it . I may respect your sniper skills, but currently my level of personal respect for you is on par with my respect for Kaminoans. Threatenin' me only results in my getting agitated, which ain't good for anybody involved."

"Oh, why is that?" he asked with mock concern.

I bared my teeth in a dark grin. "A Shadow who don't care is a dangerous Shadow, because I don't give a shit about what anyone says and I do whatever the hell I want."

"Watch it, you don't want to make an enemy out of me," Crosshair warned, jabbing a finger towards my chest.

"If you treat me as an enemy first, then be damn sure I'll return the favor," I snorted, crossing my arms.

His eyes narrowed before he lunged at me, going for a headlock. Tech started forward, but Hunter held him back. No matter, this was simple. Reaching behind his leg, right above his thigh armor, I pinched hard . Hot satisfaction burned through me at Crosshair's pained yell. Taking advantage of his loosened grip, I locked his wrist against my shoulder, ducked out, placed my other hand on his elbow, twisted it downward, and took quick steps backwards. Using the arm lock to force him to his stomach on the floor, I twisted his arm to pin it against his back.

But Crosshair was far quicker than I expected.

His knee came up and I leapt backwards to avoid it. Unfortunately, that meant he was now free to push himself up and tackle me. Rolling with it, I somehow managed to end up on top. My brief victory was abruptly cut short as Crosshair's legs hooked over my back and trapped me. The armor pressed painfully into my sides, making me hiss through gritted teeth.

He grabbed at my shoulders, lips twisted in a sneer as he began to press down on my pressure points. "That's your best, sweetheart ?"

I returned his sneer with a smirk of my own. "Nah, Twiggs. This is!"

Getting my feet under me, I grabbed onto his chest armor. Muscles trembling under the strain, I slowly stood up, leaning my weight backwards as counterbalance. If I was able to lift a sensei who was over a hundred pounds heavier than me with my real-world strength, I could lift Crosshair with my augmented Alphian strength.

Surprise flickered across his face as his back lifted off the ground, only to be replaced by a grimace when I slammed him back down. His legs' grip around my back loosened just enough for me to slam my hand into his inner thighs, forcing them apart and freeing me.

I quickly reeled away, shaking and panting. That move definitely took the energy out of me, but I needed to make sure Crosshair stayed down and stopped messing with me. I readied myself for a kick to his groin, but Wrecker wrapped his arms around me and held me back.

"Easy, Small Fry!" he shouted with a laugh. "Cross learned his lesson!"

I slouched in his grip, glaring at Crosshair. "Lemme kick him for good measure."

The sniper pushed himself to his feet, looking downright murderous as he drew back a fist, but Hunter stepped between us. " Enough ."

"He started it!" I protested, pointing at Crosshair.

"I don't care who started it, I'm finishing it." He looked between me and Crosshair. "We need to get along, otherwise this will be much harder for everyone involved."

Crosshair and I shot venomous looks at each other. "Get along with that disrespectful stick?" I grumbled, crossing my arms over Wrecker's. "You askin' for a miracle."

"I'm not asking ," Hunter barked. "You two are going to play nice and we're going to be one big happy family for the next few days, is that clear?"

I sighed. "Yeah. Crystal..."

Hunter looked at Crosshair. "Understand, Crosshair?"

"Fine, I won't shoot the brat."

I rolled my eyes. "How kind." This is just gonna go swimmingly, ain't it?

"Good. Now," Hunter turned his gaze to me. "Let's go talk to your friend ."