Fox made his way down the corridor, mind clear and any personal doubts hidden away, heading towards the control center's back door to resume his post.
With Tarkin's order to deny visitation in the detention block, Fox's day-to-day job here had transitioned into simply standing behind a window in the control center for the majority of his shift and having to break the news to the occasional citizen that visitation was restricted and they had to leave.
While he wouldn't mind a little bit more activity, it did give him plenty of time to work on the reports generated by the recent protest that had resulted in several injuries and arrests.
If Fox truly became bored out of his mind and wanted quick entertainment, he supposed that he could simply step into the detention block and immediately be greeted with various threats of bodily harm and death.
The detained protesters that were currently held at the military base while awaiting processing and transport to one of the prison facilities appeared to still be full of energy with no sign of wavering, based on the reports he had gotten from troopers on duty.
Glancing around the hallway, he noticed that it was more empty than usual. Odd. It wasn't shift change yet, nor was anyone supposed to be on break right now.
Since the riot that had occurred at the North gate, Fox had requested that more troopers be placed on proactive patrol sweeps inside and outside the military base.
Tarkin, who was understandably furious about the series of events that had occurred, had obliged, telling him to do what was necessary to ramp up and maintain security of the facility.
"Slackers," he muttered, glancing around the sparsely occupied hallway.
Where the hell was the duty sergeant?
Someone, or rather, several someones were definitely going to be facing the music later for sneaking off and abandoning their posts.
Finding the nearest trooper, he stepped in front of the clone and crossed his arms.
"Commander!" the trooper immediately snapped to attention, a trembling ball of nerves. This led to every other clone in the room being startled and snapping to attention as well, silently waiting for Fox to start talking.
"Who's your duty sergeant, trooper?" he asked calmly.
"Sergeant Kelly, sir!"
Fox swept the room with his gaze, making sure to properly stare down each trooper present before returning to the trooper in front of him. "And where might he be?"
"I-," the trooper started, looking down. "I… don't know, sir. He never showed up."
"Half our patrol shift never arrived, Commander," another trooper spoke up.
Fox sighed. "Why wasn't I notified immediately?"
The first trooper glanced back at his squadmate timidly before answering. "We-we got nervous. We just thought that they were late and the comm units were acting up when no one answered. Or someone was trying to play a joke and skip out on patrol duty."
"Alright," Fox relented. "But don't think you troopers are off the hook. Complete your shift and report to my office immediately. I'm going to have a chat with your sergeant."
"Sir yes sir!"
With that, he stepped away from the troopers and tapped the 'open' button on the control panel of the control center's back door.
The door slid open, and Fox walked inside, his mind already mulling over the different kinds of punishments and the ass-chewing he was going to give Kelly and his men for slacking off.
"...Why are you helping me?"
Fox froze in surprise when he heard the distinct non-clone voice and saw who was standing on the other side of the control center's divider window.
Tano.
Petrified, the young Jedi looked up and stared back at Fox with pleading eyes, looking equally shocked with her mouth agape.
Fox had time to register that there were no troopers in the control center or standing guard at the detention block entrance like there was supposed to be before it fell to the back of his mind.
Tano was in possession of her lightsabers and commlink again, and appeared to have been trying to contact someone.
She had free access to deadly weapons and was out of her cell without supervision and completely unrestrained.
Snapping out of his stupor, Fox gripped his blaster pistols, confusion and anger coursing through him.
"What's going on here!?" he demanded roughly.
How the hell did she get out of her cell?
Fox's mind was in turmoil, several things passing through at the speed of light before he fell back on his training and began running on auto-pilot.
Tano was attempting to escape.
The Jedi prisoner was attempting to escape.
Apprehend the Jedi prisoner.
"It wasn't me!" the Jedi prisoner shouted desperately, slowly backing away.
Fox slammed the security alarm button on a nearby console with his fist before watching the Jedi prisoner hesitate like she wanted to say something more and then break into a run down the hallway and out of the detention block.
Mind still racing, Fox keyed his wrist gauntlet, remembering that his armor was linked up to the public address system in the military base.
"Alert! Alert! The Jedi prisoner has escaped! I repeat-the Jedi prisoner has escaped!"
Immediately charging out of the room to pursue the Jedi prisoner, he quickly switched to comm and contacted the command center for the military base. "Fox to Command! The Jedi prisoner has left the detention block and was last seen moving Eastbound. Activate all security protocols and lock down the entire base-"
No.
Fox froze where he was, feeling his blood slowly turn to ice.
The air left his body.
His hands and knees shook violently.
Fox could distinctly hear that Command had acknowledged his orders and was waiting for a response, but the sound quickly faded, stopping as quickly as it had started.
The filters in his helmet could not completely prevent the putrid smell of hot burned flesh from reaching his nostrils.
And that's when he felt it.
Pure rage and hate began to course through every inch of his body.
The Jedi did this.
Hound was right about her, and Fox had ignored his warnings.
From behind him, Fox could distinctly hear the footsteps of troopers entering the hallway, but he simply continued to stare numbly at the decapitated corpses of his men.
His brothers.
"Oh my god…"
Someone behind him made a gagging noise before retching loudly, and that finally snapped Fox back into action.
He keyed the PA system again, not quite managing to keep out the anger that was seeping into his voice. "Suspect has killed multiple clones. Code red! If you see the target, shoot to kill!"
A clone's voice could suddenly be heard just outside the detention block entrance, quickly rising in volume. "Sir! General-I'm sorry, but this area is off-limits. We cannot allow you or the Captain entry-"
"Let me pass, troopers!" the distinct voice of General Skywalker bellowed.
"General, please-!"
The detention block entrance slid open, revealing a trio of troopers who were grunting in exertion, straining to hold back the desperate Jedi.
Skywalker's eyes swept the room before locking with Fox's T-visor. "Fox!" he growled. "Belay that order now! Do not kill her!"
Fox took one look at the General, crossing his arms. His decision was immediate, and it was surprising how collected and cold his voice came out. "I don't follow your orders." He jerked his head forward. "Get him out of here."
"Wait-!"
Skywalker's eyes had this frantic look in them, and it appeared like he urgently wanted to say something else, but he was overpowered and shoved back out into the hallway.
Fox couldn't bring himself to care.
Turning, he prepared to take an alternative route to go after the Jedi prisoner.
"Captain, you need to leave! Hey-!"
Fox heard the scuffling and creaking of plastoid, but didn't see it until it was too late.
Shoved up against the bulkhead, he grunted, preparing to pull a blaster pistol from its holster before lifting his head up to the 501st blue and the Jaig Eyes.
Fox's eyes widened. "Rex?"
It was Captain Rex. He hadn't seen him since the beginning of the war-or at least, it felt that way.
The Captain ripped his helmet off, tossing it to the ground.
"Listen to me, Fox!" he shouted firmly, face inches away from his own. "You're making a big mistake right now-this is a big mistake!"
When Fox didn't respond and the only sound was the heavy breathing of clones, Skywalker's shouts from the hallway, and the blaring tone of the alarm, Rex shifted his grip to Fox's shoulders. "You're not thinking straight, brother! You need to calm down. Where is Thire? Or-or Stone?"
"I'm not thinking straight?" Fox repeated quietly, his mind playing Skywalker and Rex attempting to barge into the detention block over and over. "I'm not thinking straight!?"
The Commander snarled viscerally, twisting against Rex's grip and bringing the pair of clones to the ground, Fox on top.
Pulling Rex up by the chestplate, he pointed at the corpses of his men. "They're dead Rex!" he roared. "My men are dead and she killed them!"
Rex's golden eyes were firm and unwavering, and he calmly shook his head. "No. Commander Tano would never do such a thing."
Fox saw red.
His fist jerked back, rising into the air.
Rex simply squeezed his eyes shut, tilting his head away in anticipation.
"FOX!" a gruff clone voice barked from behind him. "ENOUGH!"
Fox's brain told him that he knew that voice, but by the time he had even processed the thought, he felt himself being roughly lifted up and slammed into the bulkhead again.
"Fox! What the hell do you think you're doing!?"
One glance at the white-and-red painted helmet adorned with wings told him all he needed to know.
Scowling, he tried to shove the Guard Commander away. "Get off me, Thorn!"
Thorn shook his head. "Not a chance," he scoffed, then gestured to Rex, who was still sitting on the floor. "Explain yourself."
Fox simply crossed his arms, refusing to say another word.
"Are you going to tell me what is going on?" Thorn asked, grabbing Fox by the shoulders and drawing them together so their helmets were almost touching.
When Fox didn't answer, Thorn glanced around the room. "For fuck's sake!" he exclaimed. "I just got back planet-side. Will someone tell me what the hell happened!?"
Fox grimaced.
"The men," he said quietly, pointing at the bodies. "They're dead. The Jedi prisoner killed them and escaped."
"Shit," Thorn muttered solemnly. "That explains the alarms and all the troop movement, then."
The clone Commander sighed. "Well, there's no way in hell that they're gonna get far. We'll find em', Fox."
"Are we done here?" Fox growled, gripping one of Thorn's wrists for emphasis.
"You still haven't told me why you attacked the Captain," Thorn said, shaking his head. "And while we're at it, you can also explain why a Jedi General is being dragged down the hallway by the men right now."
Fox snorted derisively, glaring at Rex. "The Captain trespassed into a restricted area and then assaulted me and at least one other trooper. Not the other way around. Same thing for General Skywalker."
"Mmm," Thorn acknowledged, turning to Rex. "Do you deny these allegations, Captain?"
"No, sir," the Captain answered quietly.
Thorn was still for a moment, before grunting. "Disappointing."
The clone Commander finally released Fox's arms, stepping back. "What are your orders, Commander?"
Fox straightened up, stretching his arms. "Captain Rex is to be removed from command and confined until further notice. The 501st will be put on lockdown for the remainder of the investigation."
"What!?" Rex shouted, and began standing up, only stopping when Thorn put a hand on his shoulder. "You can't do this!"
"I can and I will," Fox stated coldly. "I'll recommend the same for your General to Admiral Tarkin."
"Fox, just listen to me-!"
"That will not be necessary, Commander," the Admiral called from the detention block entrance, followed by Skywalker and a group of clone troopers.
Mixed emotions flared up at Tarkin's and Skywalker's sudden appearance, so Fox did what was only natural and forcefully snapped to attention. "Admiral Tarkin!"
Every other clone in the room, including Rex, did the same.
"At ease," the Admiral said airily, waving a hand. "The Chancellor has been made aware of the manhunt for Commander Ahsoka Tano. His excellency has ordered that General Skywalker be put in charge of the operation, with Captain Rex assisting. He believes that they are the most familiar with the prisoner and will have crucial knowledge on apprehending her."
He glanced at Fox, clasping his hands behind him. "I expect that this change will not be an issue for you, Commander?"
"No sir!" Fox said immediately, wincing. Guess Tarkin hadn't forgotten about their conversation in the office. "I'm simply concerned that the General and Captain are too personally involved with the prisoner for their assistance to be effective."
"I would agree," Tarkin started. "But the Chancellor believes differently."
If it were up to him, Rex and Skywalker would be sitting together in a cell right now for interfering with a criminal investigation, trespassing, and assault.
But it wasn't up to him.
He had said his piece and the Chancellor had made his decision.
He had his orders.
"I…," Fox gritted his teeth. "...Understand, sir."
"Now, I believe what happened prior to my presence was simply," Tarkin paused, placing a hand on Skywalker's shoulder. "A misunderstanding. Is that correct, General?"
Skywalker's jaw visibly tensed, and he glanced at Fox darkly. "I-yes. Yes, that is correct, Admiral."
"Good. I expect that you can take it from here, General Skywalker," Tarkin nodded before glancing at the corpses strewn around the room with disdain. "Someone ought to really clean up this mess."
Fox felt his fists automatically tense, and saw the other clones shift slightly; an unconscious movement made out of sudden unease and anger.
Skywalker, to his credit, visibly started as well, disgust written on his features. He took a full step back from Tarkin, causing the man's arm to awkwardly fall back to his side. "Yes, thank you for your assistance, Admiral."
Skywalker's tone made it clear that he was waiting for Tarkin to leave.
The Admiral, now looking a bit put-out, made a 'hmmph' noise before inclining his head and stalking away, followed by a pair of troopers.
With Tarkin gone, they were left with an uncomfortable silence.
Fox certainly wasn't going to talk to Rex right now.
At one point, between Cody and Wolffe, he would've considered Rex his little brother.
They were both in the same class in Command school and deployed together during the first Battle of Geonosis, among other things.
Times change.
He glanced over at the Captain almost automatically.
The clone had his helmet back on and was quietly leaning against a bulkhead by his General, arms crossed.
Whatever.
As long as he stayed out of the way and did what Fox told him to do, he couldn't care less what Rex thought about him or the reality of his Jedi Commander being under investigation for murder-not to mention treason and conspiracy, as well.
Skywalker finally spoke, his eyes finding Fox's T-visor. "Commander," he began. "For what it's worth… I'm sorry about your men."
Fox had plenty of responses to the General's apology, not to mention his recent behavior, but in the end he settled for a nod.
What was it Tarkin had said earlier in the office?
Oh right.
Time was of the essence.
They had a manhunt to get underway.
A rogue Jedi to catch.
"What are your orders, General?"
Author Notes:
And so the hunt begins.
Wanted to take my time with this chapter and all of the AU stuff, so hopefully you all enjoyed.
Cheers.