STORY SUMMARY
For Ahsoka Tano, the belief in a personal destiny died the day her belief in the Jedi died.
In the decade since she renounced the Order she's roamed the galaxy trying to help others, trying to find her path.
Deep down she knows she's running away. Fleeing a grief so profound she's not sure she'll survive its pain: a seething rage that sometimes breaks through her defenses to overwhelm her Force powers and strip away her control, a constant reminder that the dark side waits patiently to devour her.
When an injured clone trooper — a symbol of the destruction of her home world and her race — is taken prisoner by her clan and dumped at her feet, the fires of Ahsoka's rage are fanned into an inferno.
But this clone is not the monster she expected. As she cautiously comes to know her captive, she realizes he may be more like her than she could have ever imagined. Striking a tentative détente, Ahsoka is startled when feelings other than anger begin to emerge for the clone.
When pirates of the Black Sun Syndcate threaten to enslave her clan and murder her people, the skill and experience of the seasoned clone soldier may be her only chance to save the lives of those she loves.
AUTHOR NOTES
This is a RexSoka romance. But there is plenty of action and adventure as well. I hope you enjoy it.
This is an Alternative Reality story — not an Alternative Universe. The story takes place in the same Star Wars universe we're used to. But many things are "different" in order to explore the relationship between Rex and Ahsoka.
The main differences in this Alternative Reality are: there is no evil chancellor/Sith Lord; Anakin Skywalker is not the chosen one (he barely appears in the story); there are no clone inhibitor chips; the war between the CIS and the Republic has been raging for over a decade; Ahsoka and Rex are both adults, biologically the same age.
At its essence, this is a romance between two lost individuals set against the backdrop of war. There is no graphic violence, but lots of action. There is no explicit sex, but lots of sexual tension and several sexual situations.
This is my first story in the Star Wars universe. But it is not my first story, nor my first romance. I am a huge Clone Wars and Rebels fan and I hope I've done justice to both Ahsoka and Rex in this story.
I hope you enjoy the story. I would really appreciate your reviews. Taking just a few seconds to write a review about a chapter is an incredible gift for me and I can't thank you enough.
Enjoy.
DESTINY - CHAPTER 01
All Ahsoka Tano wanted to do in that moment was kill the clone.
A powerful and familiar rage pulsed through her as she glowered at him sprawled on the ground before her. Drawing on the Force she reared back and snapped a savage kick to his armor-plated chest, sending him skidding several meters across the dirt. His groan of pain should have filled her with guilt. It didn't. Instead, she basked in his agony and her ability to make him suffer.
She stalked across the ground toward him. Her friends and comrades stood frozen in shock. She'd heard their gasps. Saw the disbelief in their eyes. But that did nothing to deter her. Anger roiled off her and she just didn't care.
As she closed in to deliver another blow a hand grasped her shoulder — firm, but respectful.
"Commander! Stop."
She didn't turn toward the old Twi'lek. But she stopped and planted her feet — only by a sheer force of will. Ahsoka shrugged the hand off her shoulder, glaring straight ahead.
"He's a clone, Dian'thy," she spat.
"He is a man," Dian'thy replied. He stepped next to her and gently placed a weathered green hand on her shoulder again. "And he is injured."
"Then a little more injury really shouldn't be a problem," Ahsoka growled, staring at the clone.
Dian'thy let out a sigh. "That is not your way."
Ahsoka jerked her head toward the Twilek, her long lekku whipping across her body. "I am no longer one of them," she snapped.
Ahsoka glared at Dian'thy a moment longer. Then she blew out a hard breath, averting her eyes in remorse for her outburst. Her tone softened. "You know that more than anyone."
"I do not speak of them," Dian'thy said. "I speak of my friend. Of someone I love like a daughter. Of our leader and our champion."
Ahsoka looked into the kind eyes she knew so well. He was right. Her rage began to drain from her body, leaving her exhausted. She glanced around at the others. Shame slumped her shoulders and burned her eyes.
Dian'thy's hand gently turned Ahsoka around and began to guide her back toward her hut. "Come. Let us have some tea and enjoy the warmth of the fire," he said.
"Commander," one of her clan, the human Kip, called after her. "What about the prisoner?"
"Lock him in one of the animal cages," Ahsoka said, not looking back.
Dian'thy leaned close to her and said quietly, "And treat his injuries."
Ahsoka gave him a sidelong glance, perturbed at his suggestion. "They were not given by us, so they are not ours to treat."
"Still …," Dian'thy paused, his eyes searching hers.
"He's nothing but an animal," she said. "One out of millions of animals. All bread to do one thing."
"Perhaps," he replied. "But even an animal is shown compassion and mercy."
Ahsoka scowled but turned back to Kip. "Bring T'annon. Ask her to see to him." She stopped and caught Kip's eyes. "Protector her and keep her safe from that … beast."
"Yes, Commander," Kip said.
Ahsoka started to turn away when another thought came to her. "And fit him with a restraining collar."
Kip nodded.
Ahsoka watched as several of her clan grabbed the edges of the clone's white and blue plastoid armor and dragged him away. She turned and walked slowly alongside her friend toward her hut.
Pain shot through his side as Clone Trooper 7567 was dragged across the ground and tossed onto a hard sheet of metal. The sound of a door slamming and a lock clicking into place brought his eyes up to focus on the metal bars of the cage he'd been thrown into.
Captain Rex crawled across the cage floor and pulled himself up to prop his back against the bars. The effort drained the last of his energy and left him fighting to catch his breath. He leaned to the left, favoring his right side where he was sure he'd suffered a couple of cracked ribs. Each breath sent a sharp stab of pain through his chest.
Several of his captors stared at him through the bars. They were an odd mix. A Weequay, a couple of Humans, several Twi'leks, a Snivvian and an Ugnaught. They wore no uniforms or insignias, but it was clear they were part of some type of organization. He'd heard one of the humans call the Togruta female that had kicked him, 'commander.'
He winced at the memory. He was lucky he had his armor on or she'd have cracked a couple more ribs with that kick. A kick she'd obviously augmented with the Force.
There weren't many Togruta left in the galaxy after the Battle of Shili. A Force using Togruta had to be rarer still. Rex knew of only one other — Jedi Master, Shaak Ti. He'd trained under Master Ti when he'd been a cadet on Kamino. She'd been a demanding but compassionate teacher.
This shabuir could learn a thing or two from Master Ti.
Rex shook his head to clear his thoughts and began to take stock of his situation. He was a prisoner but had no idea who his captors were. He didn't know why he was imprisoned or where he was.
There were no battle droids around, and they hadn't killed him … yet. So, they were most likely not Separatist sympathizers. But the fact that he was imprisoned meant they were probably not aligned with the Republic, either.
One thing he was sure about, their commander wasn't very subtle about her hatred of clones.
Rex took a breath, causing him to wince again. He considered his injuries and struggled to recall exactly how he had cracked his ribs. His mind was foggy, but as he concentrated, the memories started to return.
He'd been on a moon … in the Quarlian system. There'd been some type of battle … to capture something.
Rex closed his eyes, fighting to recover the memory.
A Separatist supply facility. They'd attacked and destroyed it. He was commanding the last squad of the 501st left on the moon to do the final mop-up. They'd finished and were loading onto a LAAT. They were scheduled to rendezvous with a GAR corvette on another moon in the system in 12 hours. He was patrolling the perimeter of the landing zone, covering his brothers' backs until they were all loaded and ready to liftoff.
A blinding flash of white exploded in his mind's eye and Rex gasped as if it had just pierced his skull. That was probably when he'd lost consciousness.
Rex dug deeper, struggling to rebuild the picture of what had happened. The next thing he remembered was waking up. The sun was setting, but when they'd been loading the LAAT it had been midday.
He was unable to move, a searing pain in his side. As he looked around he realized he was pinned under one of the heavy sliding doors of the LAAT that had been ripped from the transport in the explosion. The carcass of the destroyed ship lay burning.
Bodies of the men who'd been on the ship lay scattered throughout the clearing, mangled and broken and burned.
Some clankers must have survived the clones' assault. They must have snuck up on Rex and his men with a rocket launcher and taken out the LAAT.
They'd gotten past him. It had been his responsibility to protect his men and he'd failed. Guilt flooded him as he realized he'd let his brothers die.
Rex called out, trying to find any survivors. He screamed until his throat grew raw and his voice gave out. But there was no one.
He must have passed out again because his next memory was of the sound of voices. Then the creaking of metal followed by blessed relief as the pressure on his chest disappeared. He'd been grabbed by the arms and legs and carried to a cargo ship on the edge of the clearing and thrown onto the deck of the hold where he'd passed out again.
The next time he woke, his woozy brain had been trying to focus on an angry Togruta looking down on him. He remembered thinking how beautiful she was. Then she'd kicked him in the chest and he'd landed in a heap, pain engulfing his side.
Rex hissed as he shifted position against the bars, trying to relieve some of the pressure on his ribs.
"You may think you are in pain now," came a menacing voice, "but this is nothing compared to what awaits you."
Rex glanced up to find a male Togruta gloating at him through the cage bars. He was tall and fit, dressed in a simple brown tunic and pants. A blaster was nestled in a holster on the belt around his waist, a long dagger sheathed on his other hip. His montrals were pronounced and his lekku were long enough for Rex to guess he was an adult in his physical prime. Rex remembered him. He'd been in the group that had carried Rex from the LAAT wreckage. He'd also been the one who'd thrown Rex to the ground in front of their commander.
"I'm a Captain in the Grand Army of the Republic. By who's authority are you holding me prisoner?" Rex demanded, trying to imbue his voice with as much authority as possible, despite laying helplessly on the floor of a cage.
The Togruta laughed. "The Republic is a Kabul of hypocrites and murderers. And your rank is meaningless here. You are an animal. A beast. Nothing more," he sneered.
A human male in his late teens or early twenties with light brown hair and slight in stature appeared at the bars. A small Pantoran girl with blue skin and white hair stood by his side. "Bandrix," he nodded toward the Togruta.
"Kip," Bandrix nodded in return. He turned his gaze to the girl and scowled. "Take her away, she is not needed here."
The girl, no more than ten standard years old, took a step back, cowering behind Kip.
"You heard the commander," Kip retorted. "She is to treat the clone's injuries."
Bandrix turned his scowl toward Kip and much to Rex's surprise Kip held his ground, never breaking eye contact. The staring match lasted for several heartbeats, then Bandrix spun on his heel and stalked off.
Rex let out a silent sigh of relief. He wasn't afraid of bullies like Bandrix. But he was in no condition to stand up to him if things became physical. Once he was recovered, however, he and Bandrix were going to have a 'talk'. That is, if he survived that long.
Kip aimed a blaster at Rex with one hand and pointed to the girl with the other. "She's a healer and will try to help you. You need to know that I'll die before I'll let you hurt her."
"Relax, kid," Rex said. "I'm not gonna hurt anyone unless they try to hurt me first."
Kip stiffened and his eyes flew open wide. He shoved the blaster muzzle through the bars. "Is that a threat?" He was almost shouting.
Rex blinked in surprise. "Woah kid, take it easy. That was no threat."
"The commander, she … hurt you," Kip said. "Was that a threat against her?"
Now Rex understood Kip's reaction.
"Nah," he said, trying to calm Kip down. "She didn't hurt me. That was just a love tap." Rex placed his hand over his chest. "Honest. I give you my word as a soldier and an officer."
Kip seemed to think that over for a moment, then slowly lowered the blaster. "Alright. But if you harm one hair on the commander's head, I'll hunt you down and make you pay."
Rex was pretty sure the kid couldn't hunt down a tame tooka, but he gave Kip a solemn nod. Then he grinned and said, "I couldn't harm a hair on her head anyway, because she doesn't have any."
Kip looked confused for a moment. Then Rex saw the realization dawn on Kip's face as he tried to hide an embarrassed smile.
Kip unlocked the cage door and the girl took a timid step inside and stopped. She stared at Rex with impossibly wide, ice-blue eyes. Her hands fidgeted at her side, drawing Rex's attention to the tattoo on the back of her left hand. A Zygerrian slave tattoo.
Now her timidity and fear made sense. She'd been a slave. If she was a healer, she'd probably been spared the most horrific and degrading demands. But any slave sold by the Zygerrians suffered abuse beyond imagination. A pang of sadness pulled at his heart.
"Hey," Rex said in a soft voice. "It's okay, little 'un. You don't have to come in if you don't want to. I'll be fine."
The girl caught Rex's glance at her tattoo. She looked down at her hand, then brought her eyes back to his and took a deep breath.
"I am not afraid of you," she said, her speech stilted with a formality common to many none-native Basic language speakers.
"Well … I'm glad," Rex said.
"There are stories of clone warriors freeing thousands of Zygerrian slaves," she said. "Did you fight the Zygerrians?"
"I … did," Rex said, past a lump that had suddenly stuck in his throat. "Is that what happened to you?" he asked gently. "Did clone soldiers set you free?"
"No," the girl said. "Ahsoka rescued me. I was sold to a Dug salvage trader. She took me away from him and let me stay with her."
Rex quirked an eyebrow. That name — Ahsoka. He thought he'd heard it before, but he just couldn't place it.
Rex smiled at the girl. "Whoever this Ahsoka is, she must be very brave," he said.
The girl beamed a bright smile. "Yes! She is very brave! And kind and wise and beautiful and …" Her words trailed off as her smile faded and her eyes dropped.
Rex wondered what had caused the pained look on her face.
The girl was silent for moment, then took a trembling breath and reached into a satchel slung over her shoulder. She pulled out a restraining collar, holding it at arm's length like it was a snake about to strike.
Curse the Maker. Rex hated restraining collars. "Is that really necessary. I'll be good, I promise."
"I am sorry," she said, her voice shaky. She stepped up to him. "Please turn so I can put this on."
Rex sighed but kept his tone light. "Sure," he said.
She'd shown him more compassion than anyone else so far and he was grateful for that. He wasn't going to give her a hard time.
He shifted to the side so she could move behind him and place the collar around his neck. The movement sent another stab of pain through his side and he let out a groan.
When she'd finished with the collar she moved around to face him, dropping down to her knees. "I am called T'annon. What should I call you?"
Rex looked at her in surprise, then smiled and said, "Rex. My name is Rex."
"Rex," she said, thoughtfully. "I like that name. Alright, Rex. I possess the gift of healing. It would be my honor to help your body heal if you wish it."
"Kid, right now I couldn't wish for anything more."
She gave him a serious nod. "Very well. Please lay back. This will take some time."
Rex gritted his teeth against the pain as he turned his body and laid flat on the steel floor. T'annon sat cross-legged next to him and raised her hands over his injured ribs. She closed her eyes and quietly began to chant.