He thought he'd moved past it—he really had.

There was no reason for him not to have banished the experience from his mind, and he'd tried to—really, he had.

And for a few blessed weeks, life went about as usual, Zygerria entirely forgotten; Kadavo, a distant memory.

But Rex had told Fives once that some hurts never heal. Echo was gone and his batchmate would never fully recover from such devastating loss.

Sometimes, Rex wondered why he didn't listen more often to the advice he so readily gave to his brothers.

Because just as Echo was dead, Kadavo was very much alive.

And no one ever fully recovered from such a devastating ordeal…

… They were seven days into the Syrenus campaign and to say things were going poorly would be an understatement.

"Where's my backup?" Rex shouted into his helmet's comm channel. "The boys and I needed backup on the northeastern sector five minutes ago!"

A sharp crackle ushered Fives' voice into his ear. "We're a little tied up right now, Captain. But we'll get to you as soon as we can! Have you checked in with Appo? Maybe he can—"

"Negative, Fives," Rex shot back, dodging a fresh barrage of blaster bolts. "Appo's platoon are knees deep in droids. Where's the general?"

"General Skywalker and Commander Tano are keeping that bald witch distracted."

Blast!

With Ventress on the loose, there was no telling when their general would come leaping in to save the day.

Well then, Rex didn't need saving. He could handle himself and his troops just fine. Though, a little help would be appreciated.

Particularly before we end up as scraps of droid bait.

Where was Cody when you needed him? But Rex knew better than to pull his vod away from his forward assault into the heart of the city.

Which left Rex and his team to secure the outskirts, though for every two droids Rex demolished, it seemed ten more arrived to take their place.

Biting out a curse, Rex pressed on. They were supposed to rendezvous with General Plo Koon and the Wolf Pack once the perimeter of the city was in Republic hands. As Rex flung his last droid popper at a group of tinnies, however, he began to realize Wolffe might just have to wait a little longer for their arrival.

If we make it there at all.

"Fives," he called once more, shoving Tup out of the line of fire, "how's my backup looking?"

"You mean since you last commed five minutes ago?" There was a slight pause as Fives fired a quick warning cry at Jesse. "It's gonna be awhile, vod. Do you think you can hold out until we get there?"

Rex looked at what remained of his original team of forty. Kriff. Tup, Checkers, and a handful of shinies fresh off the ship from Kamino were all that was left of his men.

"Yeah," Rex lied. "We'll hold them off as long as we can."

Even through the comm, Fives must have sensed Rex's strain because he added, "We're doubling our efforts. Hang in there, Captain."

"Don't worry about us, Fives."

Even as he said it, Rex felt the sharp claws of dread tighten around his chest. They were running out of time and resources—not to mention man-power.

We're not gonna make it, Rex realized as the droids continue to close in. Aloud, he called out to his men.

"Stay together! I want a defensive position formed around those gates now!"

"Sir!" One of the shinies returned, blaster firing once every half-second. "There's no way we can take this—!"

The blazing red of a droid blaster bolt pierced the trooper's flesh—the soft, unprotected part of his neck.

And just like that, Death claimed yet another of Rex's brothers.

Stars, Fives! Where are you?

"We just have to hold out until Fives gets here with our backup!" Rex hollered to the rest of his men over the chaos. Just a little longer boys…

But with every shot, every punch and kick, Rex felt his energy drain; felt old wounds resurface and gnaw at his flesh.

Burns around his neck…

Scars atop his back…

No!

Bolts of electricity coursing through his veins.

With a swift shake of his head, Rex blocked the memories from his mind and placed all his focus on keeping his men alive.

I can't lose anyone else… I can't—

"Did I hear someone call for backup?"

Whipping around, Rex scanned the thick forest that kissed the edge of the city and immediately felt a rush of relief fill him to the brim.

Wolffe.

"It's about dang time!" Rex replied through the comm as the Wolf Pack began closing in on them. "But I was told we were supposed to meet you, not the other way around."

"Our battle got a bit dull once air support wiped out the rest of the droids. Besides, one of your ARC troopers said you could use a little help."

Fives. Rex grinned, joining his brother in a back-to-back defense against the Seps. "Well, I don't think I've ever been this glad to see you."

"Oh, please," Wolffe replied, "you're always glad to see me."

"A highly debatable subject. Any word from Cody?"

"Yeah. The capital is swarming with droids of all kinds. He said one of them slipped and mentioned something about bounty hunters to the others before Boil blasted his head off."

"Bounty hunters? What? Is that hairless witch so concerned about her own abilities to make this a victory that she has to call in the scum of the galaxy?"

"Beats me. All I know is Cody said to keep a sharp eye out. Got it?"

"Did you boys hear that?" Rex called through the comm. A series of affirmatives flooded the channel.

Good.

No other words were exchanged, not even the slightest bit of banter. The Wolf Pack must've sensed the fatigue of Torrent Company and wisely laid off the chatter.

Rex, for his part, was determined to end this and end it quick. He needed to take stock, to scan the battlefield, hunt down those who were still alive and mourn those who didn't make it to see victory.

And it did turn out to be a victory. With the help of the Wolf Pack, they turned every droid into a sparking pile of scrap.

"Well," Wolffe began, holstering his blasters and scanning the area, "that was easier than I thought it'd be."

Putting away his own twin blasters, Rex rolled his eyes, a motion discreetly hidden beneath the safety of his helmet. "That's because you missed the hardest parts."

The parts when his men were shot down one by one.

The moments when Rex thought for certain none of them would make it out alive.

The times when those debilitating memories had tried to break free from their cages tucked away in the back of his mind…

Turning from Wolffe, Rex began doing a headcount. One, two, three, four, fi—

"Where's Tup?" The thought slid off his tongue before he could even check his tone of voice. The last thing he'd wanted was to sound frantic in front of his men.

Wolffe rushed to his side at the sound of the panic lacing his tone. "Rex?"

But Rex couldn't hear his brother. He was too busy scanning the area again. And again.

"Talk to me, people! Where's Tup?"

Please… He can't be dead. Don't let him be dead!

"Captain!" Checkers called, joining the two commanding officers. "I saw him."

"Where?"

The sergeant was panting so heavily from his sprint that he could hardly get the words out. "They took him. I saw them take him."

Fear seized Rex's chest and he suddenly found it very difficult to breathe. "Who? When?"

"Those bounty hunters you warned us about, sir. They dragged him off just before our victory."

"And you're just remembering to tell me this now?"

"Sir, I tried to tell you, but I was too far from your position and my outgoing comm has been out of commission since before the commander showed up with reinforcements."

"Which way did they go?"

"Rex…?" A subtle warning was hidden in Wolffe's tones.

Checkers pointed a finger towards the darkened forest. "That way, sir."

Right. "Take care of the men. I'll be back soon."

A rough hand on his shoulder stopped his forward avance before it'd even truly begun.

"Rex, what in the stars do you think you're doing?"

Jerking out of Wolffe's hold, Rex turned to glare at the commander through his visor. "It's not a victory until every brother who still breathes is safe. I'm going after Tup."

"Not alone, you're not."

But before he could make a dash for the woods, another transport of droids arrived on the scene.

"Looks like you weren't the only one who requested backup," Wolffe remarked, drawing his blasters again.

Rex bit out a curse, caught in a cruel decision between saving Tup and aiding the rest of his men.

Blast it! He was beginning to hate this war more with each passing day.

"You go on, Captain!" Checkers shouted over the chaos. "We'll hold them off here!"

Rex opened his mouth to protest, but his sergeant batted a hand at him. "Get out of here!"

That was the final push he needed to send his legs sprinting after Tup. Fives would kill him if he let anything happen to their vod'ika.

"Rushing headfirst into a dark forest," Wolffe panted lightly beside him and Rex couldn't say he was surprised to see his brother. "A brilliant tactic."

"Didn't you just come from here?" Rex shot back over their private comm channel.

"Yeah, but I had a full platoon to back me up. You just have me."

"I was under the impression that you were enough backup for the entire GAR? Or were you lying to Bly when you said that?"

"Oh no, I am. But just like anybody, my senses are rather dulled in the dark."

"I'm sorry, would you like it if I turned on my floodlights and gave away our position?"

Wolffe's reply was more of a growl than the hiss Rex knew he'd been going for. "Just shut up and help me find your vod."

Right.

For what seemed like an eternity, Rex searched the forest with Wolffe. He wanted nothing more than to call out to Tup, but that would alert the bounty hunters to their presence and do Tup more harm than good.

"Rex, stop!" Wolffe's sudden command coated his veins in a frosty dread. "Did you hear that—?"

And this was why Rex hated dealing with bounty hunters. The trained assassins possessed powers of stealth a clone could only dream of, and it was this power that had caught the two troopers off-guard.

Quick shadows closed in on them from every direction. Rex heard Wolffe curse through the comm before he began firing left and right.

The brothers put up a better fight than Rex ever thought they could against bounty hunters, but in the end, their efforts didn't amount to much.

The hunters had the upper hand from the very beginning. In fact, Rex would even go so far as to say they'd been expecting him.

He watched as Wolffe got in one last kick before the largest of the four hunters jammed a pair of binders on his wrists. His foot hit its target, if the Trandoshan's pained howl was any indication.

As Rex's own hands were bound before him, he forced himself not to think—not to think about anything. Because if he didn't think, he wouldn't remember. And if he wanted to keep his wits about him, he couldn't remember.

"Now what?" Wolffe asked through their private channel, and Rex hoped he'd had enough sense to his internal helmet comlink so the bounty hunters wouldn't be able to hear them.

"We get out of here and find Tup," Rex replied, ignoring the blaster trained on the nape of his neck.

"And how do you suggest we do that?"

"I don't know. I thought you were the backbone of the GAR. You figure it out."

"Get moving!" A sharp jab to his neck sent Rex stumbling forward alongside Wolffe.

"And keep your mouths shut!" Another snapped, the tall Trandoshan guarding Wolffe. "I'm not in the mood for answering any stupid questions."

"Bold of you to assume we have any," Wolffe shot back, earning a bash to his helmet with the butt of a blaster.

Only, Rex had plenty, all bubbling up inside his chest and bringing his rapidly beating heart to a boil.

Where was Tup? What had they done with him?

And what are they going to do with us?

The answer came when the group stopped in a small clearing.

"Where's Tashe with the ship?" The Rodian questioned.

"She'll be here," one of the humans replied, her half-shaved head craning towards the empty sky. "Just give her a minute."

"And what'd you do with the other one?"

The woman pulled her eyes away from the sky and jerked her head toward the edge of the clearing. "He's over there with Bríko. Still out cold."

It was then that Rex noticed Tup lying on the ground, hands bound behind his back. They'd taken his helmet, which allowed Rex to get a good look at his bruised face and limp eyelids.

He felt his fists clench. Kriffing barves. What have they done to you…?

"Hey!" One of the bounty hunters behind them gave Rex a hard shove. "On your knees!"

Rex tried to regain his footing, but he was already too far gone and his knee pads were colliding with the grass before he could even think to fight back.

Wolffe's voice filtered through his comlink once more. "You all right?"

"I will be when this is over," Rex replied, keeping his eyes trained on the woman with the blaster rifle and the wacky haircut. There was no doubt in his mind that she was the leader as she seemed to be holding all the high cards.

"What do we do with 'em now?" one of the mercenaries asked.

The leader rolled her eyes. "What do you think?" Rex's heart skipped a beat as she stepped closer, turning her attention to him and Wolffe. "Honestly, I have to say I'm surprised. I expected more of you copies to come rescue your pal over there. I guess you don't care about him as much as he thought you did. He wouldn't shut up about you guys. We had to knock him out just to get some peace and quiet."

"If we didn't care," Rex bit out, "do you think we'd even be here right now?"

"So, which one of you is in charge?" She asked, ignoring Rex.

In other words, which one of them knew the most intel? And which of the two would be taking all the punches…

"I am," Wolffe replied a bit too quickly and it took everything in Rex to keep his head fixed forward.

"Ah. Then you can tell me whether or not my pilot is going to meet any kind of air resistance when she tries to land here."

Rex could practically see the death glare contorting Wolffe's face beneath his helmet.

The woman heaved a sigh and nodded at her human counterpart, who planted a firm fist in Rex's side.

He bit down on his tongue to keep from hissing, his bound hands moving instinctively to cover the sore spot.

Wolffe jolted into an attack position, but the cool durasteel blaster against his neck slowed his advance just long enough to give the Trandoshan time to yank him back down on his knees.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" The woman was in Wolffe's personal space now. "Will my pilot be shot down if she tries to land here."

Rex watched as his brother turned to him.

"Don't do it," he whispered through the comm.

"Sorry, vod'ika," Wolffe murmured in reply before glancing back at the bounty hunter. "No." He growled. "She'll be able to land just fine."

A satisfied grin stretched her lips. "Good. Now, you both just sit tight like good little boys. Tashe will be here soon."

"I've never heard of bounty hunters fighting for the Separatists," Rex said in an attempt to stall while he and Wolffe brained-stormed their escape. "Since when did you pick a side?"

"Since it started paying more than any other job," she replied, shifting between checking the sky and smirking down at Rex.

"So, they're paying you to capture clones?" Rex asked, keeping his voice incredulous. To Wolffe, he said, "How's it coming?"

The commander didn't even move, betraying no sign of their secret conversation. "Cody's too far out of range to contact. So is General Plo."

"Fives?"

"I'm working on it."

"No," the woman replied haughtily, pulling Rex's attention away from his brother. "They're paying us to kill clones. But Ventress never said we couldn't take a few spoils of war. I already have a buyer lined up who is willing to lay down more credits than you'll see in a lifetime if I can bring him a clone." Her smirk widened. "And now, I have three."

A bolt of fear pierce Rex's heart. No… He tried to push the debilitating emotion away, but it spread through his body like a virus, and Rex didn't have the cure. No…

As the bounty hunters began to talk amongst themselves about timing and the possibility of an air attack, Rex found himself zoning out. The world didn't seem real anymore. Nausea gripped his stomach and drained the color from his face.

"Got it!" Wolffe's excited cry sounded far too distant. "Fives is on his way!"

No, no, no!

The screams began to echo through his mind once again, as they had in those first few days afterward. The crying, the begging for mercy.

The sharp crack of the whip and the cruel laughter of the slave drivers.

"Everything about this place is designed to shatter the will."

And it had, hadn't it? Rex had been fooling himself this entire time, thinking he was fine—insisting he was fine.

But the unadulterated fear that choked him now was proof, wasn't it? Proof that the Zygerrians won.

Proof that he'd been shattered.

"Rex? Rex!" Wolffe was shouting at him now, the comm speaker nearly bursting his ear drums. "Rex! Did you hear me?"

"I can't—" And Rex cursed his voice for breaking. He swallowed. "I can't go back there again… Wolffe, I can't—!"

His throat was too tight to speak. He couldn't swallow—couldn't breathe.

Flashes of flames scorched his dark memories, backed only by screams and the heaving of Togrutas taking their last breaths.

There were so many we couldn't save. So many I couldn't save.

He couldn't even protect General Kenobi from the ruthless Zygerrians.

As his throat continued to constrict, Rex felt several sharp pulses of electricity tear through his neck. He remembered the screams.

The Torgruta's screams.

Kenobi's screams.

His screams…

"Where? Rex, you've gotta talk to me!"

And now, these bounty hunters were going to sell him right back into the world he'd so desperately tried to escape.

The world of slavery.

He couldn't go back to Kadavo, couldn't breathe the suffocating air.

Couldn't listen to the sickening screams.

He'd prefer death to that mine any day.

"Rex!"

"I…" He couldn't catch a breath; he was going to suffocate on his own anxiety. "Wolffe—!" He choked out, chest heaving.

"Hey," one of the bounty hunters snarled, "what's wrong with 'im?"

"Rex?"

"Wolffe… Wolffe, I can't—" He was gasping now, unable to draw in anything more than a few puffs of air. "I can't… breathe!"

"Hey!" Rex heard the woman shout as the world blurred around him. "What are you—?"

Almost as soon as Wolffe's cuffed hands tightened around the brim of Rex's helmet, they were yanked away.

"No! Let me go!" The harsh cry was followed by a grunt and a gasp as the bounty hunters struggled to subdue his brother. "You need to get his helmet off! Rex! Take your helmet off! He can't breathe, you kriffing idiots! He can't—!" Another gasp filled the air and Rex began to tug at his helmet.

His efforts were in vain as he was barely taking in enough air to keep himself sitting upright.

Several shouts echoed through the air and Wolffe dove into Rex's line of sight. He managed to rip Rex's helmet off before the Trandoshan tackled him to the ground.

Though it was a little easier to breathe now that he was inhaling fresh air instead of filtered, Rex still fought to fill his lungs.

"Get off him, Kaesik!" the woman shouted. "They're no good to me dead."

One short scuffle later, Wolffe was hovering in front of him. "All right, Rex, you've gotta breathe with me, okay? Breathe!"

Rex nodded, but he couldn't take a proper breath. "I… I'm trying. Wolffe, I can't… Help, I can't—!"

"No, you can! Just focus on me, all right?" Then, Wolffe ripped off his helmet and took Rex's head in his bound hands. "Focus. And breathe. Okay? Breathe… Kriff, Cody could do this so much better than me. Rex, you can get past this. Just start with a single breath."

Rex tried.

"Get back to work you lazy scug!"

He gasped.

"You're gonna be all right, Rex," Woffle whispered, pressing their foreheads together. "Breathe!"

Rex tried…

"Get up, General! Get—"

"No talking, slave!"

"I can't…" Rex sucked in a breath—a real breath. "I can't go back there. Wolffe, don't…" Another breath.

Then another.

"Good," Wolffe said softly, pure relief drenching his voice. "Good. Keeping breathing."

Rex sucked in another breath. "Don't let them take me back there."

"Where?"

"Please, don't let them—"

"All right!" the woman with the wacky hair pointed her rifle at the brothers. "That's enough. Tashe is landing. Get the other one over here so we don't waste any more time on this vaping planet."

When Wolffe was yanked away by the Trandoshan, Rex felt the loss greatly.

The ship was coming. They had to get out of there before—

Before we're sold like droids.

Like property.

Rex took another deep breath. We're not property. No matter what the Kaminoans said.

No matter what the Zygerrians—

No!

No matter what anybody says…

"Get up!" And Rex couldn't stop himself from flinching. The memories were still too fresh, the wounds too raw. "We're getting out of here!"

Rough hands pulled him to his feet and pushed him forward.

Where was Wolffe? He needed Wolffe… And Tup. What were they doing to his vod'ika?

What were they—?

The low rumble of a ship sent shivers down Rex's spine and he dug his heels into the ground, only to be shoved forward again with no small amount of force.

If they set foot on that ship, there was no telling if they would ever make it back again. They almost didn't make it out of Kadavo, and they wouldn't have if it weren't for—

"Commander Wolffe," a familiar voice said through their comms, "I never thought I'd see the day when you called for backup."

Fives!

"Shove it, trooper!" Wolffe replied, but his annoyance was laced with more relief than Rex ever thought his gruff brother was capable of feeling. "It's about time you showed up!"

"What can I say? We like to draw out the suspense."

With the element of surprise on their side, Torrent was able to subdue the bounty hunters rather quickly, and in no time, Rex and Wolffe were surrounded by brothers.

"Get these binders off, will you?" Wolffe demanded, a bit of his earlier concern still lingering in his tone.

"Hold still," Jesse said before blasting their binders off with his pistol. "There. Captain, are you all right?"

Wolffe seemed to be asking the same question with his eyes, which bored into Rex's soul.

Though his tongue felt heavy and his breath was still a little short, Rex nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Kix!" He called, suddenly needing to direct all the attention away from himself. "Those barves knocked out Tup. Check him out, will you?"

"I'm on it, Captain."

"Fives, Jesse, find Appo and contact the nearest air support. Give them our coordinates and don't forget to tell them about our prisoners."

"Yes, sir!"

"What about you?" Wolffe's voice sounded beside him, yet Rex couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with his brother. It was all he could do to keep from openly trembling like a fresh cadet.

"I'm gonna check on Tup with Kix. Then we'll need to gather the men together and make for the capital. This battle isn't over yet."

"For you, it is."

Rex froze. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Are you gonna try to tell me that you're okay after what happened back there? Can you even breathe properly right now?"

"I can breathe just fine, now lay off."

"I used Fives' ARC signal to contact General Plo," Wolffe explained. "It's stronger than mine and I was able to reach the general with no problem. He's sending a transport that will take you back to the Resolute."

"And what," Rex shot back through clenched teeth, "makes you think I'm going back to the Resolute?"

"Well, you can't go back into battle, that's for vaping sure. Look at you! You're—"

"I'm fine."

"You're shaking!"

Kriff! He was, and he'd tried so hard not to!

"Whether I'm fine or not, we have to finish this mission. That's how it works."

"Rex—"

"I'm done talking about this, Wolffe." And with that, Rex turned to go. He had to find Kix, find Tup.

Tup…

If he was caring for others, focusing on his men, he wouldn't have time to think about…

About that place. That hell he'd been forced to endure.

General Kenobi had said they never should've been on a mission like that in the first place. He said they weren't trained for that kind of undercover, for that kind of stealth and infiltration…

General Kenobi had said—

The mere touch of fingers curling around his arm sent him sailing into a panic.

No…

"I think it's time to teach you a lesson, clone."

Let go of me!

Rex jerked out of the slaver's grip.

"No, please! Let him go, it was my mistake!"

The general…

He stumbled backward. Back, and back, and back.

"Sir, it's all right, don't worry about—"

"Silence!"

A crack, an endless stream of electricity, and pain.

Merciless pain.

No…

No, stop!

Stop—!

Something knocked against his foot and Rex lost his balance.

No…

He couldn't fall, not now. He couldn't let the guards see his weakness, couldn't let them have the upperhand.

They always have the upperhand.

"Rex!"

Strong hands latched onto his arms and Rex jolted even as he fell. And he struggled, because they would not take him. Not again. He was free.

Free!

"Rex!"

It took a moment for him to realize he was standing once again, not falling. And that it was Wolffe who clutched him so tightly, not the Zygerrian slavers.

"Rex?" Even his brother's cybernetic eye was somehow clouded with concern.

"Wolffe…" Rex blinked away the memories, blinked away the pain. "I'm… I'm fine. I'll be fine."

"No, you're not. And if Cody were here, he'd tell you the same things I am. You are not fit for battle right now. If you keep going on like this, you'll only make things worse for yourself and your men."

Rex pursed his lips, keenly aware that he was attracting the attention of his troops.

What must they think of their captain now?

"Now, don't make me pull rank and order you onto that transport."

Wrenching out of his brother's grasp once again, Rex took a few steps back. "Well, you're gonna have to because I will not abandon my men without a fight."

Wolffe heaved a sigh. "Nothing will convince you to see reason, then?"

Rex gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head and his vod sighed again.

This time, when Wolffe cupped a hand on his shoulder, Rex didn't flinch. Much.

"Then you leave me no choice." And Rex should've seen it coming the second Wolffe's fingers tightened around the edges of his armor. "I'm sorry, vod'ika."

The punch to his face was swift and hard, instantly plunging Rex into a void of black.

Just before he blacked out, however, he had enough time to feel the slightest flicker of betrayal.

And then, he felt nothing.