DESTINY - CHAPTER 24

Ahsoka felt as if she'd pierced her own chest with one of her lightsabers. She struggled to breathe as she watched Rex walk through the loading gate toward the passenger ship that would take him away from her. Tears burned behind her eyes and she cursed herself for being a coward, unable to call out for him to stop. To ask him to turn around and not walk away from her. To stay and work out whatever was between them.

But he'd made his decision.

Just as she worked so hard at not asserting her influence over him the past two weeks, she wouldn't let her resolve fail now and beg him to stay. As Dian'thy had said, Rex was beginning a journey along a new path in his life. Following his destiny. Ahsoka had to accept that his destiny no longer included her.

Taking one last, longing look at Rex's retreating back, Ahsoka spun around and walked quickly away before her willpower collapsed and she did something foolish. She fought back threatening tears. She would not breakdown. Not now and not here. There was work to be done. She'd wait until she was back in the solitude of her hut on Axalon. Only then would she allow her sorrow to claim her.

Rather than returning to the VCX freighter, Ahsoka decided to head over to the YT-2400's docking bay and see how the loading of supplies was progressing for Bandrix and his crew. She quickened her pace and fifteen minutes later she arrived outside the docking bay door.

As she approached the bay, a ripple of disquiet pushed at her through the Force. She stopped, focusing her attention on the new sensation. As she became mindful of it, she realized it was stronger than she'd thought at first. She hadn't noticed it earlier because her thoughts and emotions had been centered on Rex. But as she concentrated, the Force began to pummel her with sensations of danger and pain — and death.

Ahsoka pulled the small blaster from the holster on her hip. She slowed her breathing and closed her eyes, reaching out through the Force to try and get a better sense of what lay beyond the closed docking bay door. She heard nothing, nor felt any activity. She leaned against the wall next to the door and entered her access code into the door's security keypad. The door slid open and she peered around the edge into the bay.

The sight that met her eyes chilled her to the bone. Crates were scattered across the ground, overturned and broken with supplies spilling out. Blaster burns scorched their sides, as well as the walls of the docking bay. She brought her gaze to the ship and saw blaster burns on the hull.

As her eyes tracked to the loading ramp Ahsoka froze, her stomach lurching at the sight. Michael lay face down at the foot of the ramp, unmoving. Halfway up, Trax had collapsed into a heap, also still.

Gritting her teeth, Ahsoka eased into the bay, her predator's hearing and eyesight scanning for threats as she simultaneously reached out through the Force searching for danger. She kept low and hugged the wall, cautiously prowling around the entire perimeter of the bay. When she was certain it was safe she holstered her blaster and sprinted to Michael's unmoving form.

Ahsoka kneeled next to Michael placing fingers on his neck, praying that he had a pulse but finding none. She grabbed his arm, it's hand still gripping his blaster, and pulled him over onto his back. Lifeless eyes stared blankly into the air, a scorched blaster bolt hole in the middle of his forehead. Ahsoka's stomach rebelled, bile burning in her throat. She jerked her head away, barely managing to keep from throwing up.

With her hands on her thighs, Ahsoka bent her head down toward the deck, taking slow, deep breaths to fight off the nausea. Sorrow filled her chest, the pain so sharp it hurt as she inhaled, but she forced herself to breathe. She needed to keep it together.

After a minute her stomach had calmed enough that she felt she could risk moving. She stood and walked up the ramp to Trax. As Ahsoka approached she saw his blaster lying next to him and it was obvious he was dead as well. The multiple blaster wounds in his chest left no doubt. Another pang of grief pierced her.

As she took in the horrid scene, panic began to swell inside her. What had happened here? There'd obviously been a firefight. But why? Although scattered about, the crates of supplies and equipment seemed to all be accounted for, so it didn't look like the attack had been motivated by theft. What then?

Ahsoka shook her head to clear her thoughts. She'd figure out why, later. Right now she had one more crew member to find, and her fear that Bandrix was also dead clawed at her.

Ahsoka stepped cautiously to the top of the ramp and reached out with the Force. She felt no danger from within the ship. However, she did feel a life force. It was weak but still alive, and it was familiar. Bandrix.

"Bandrix," Ahsoka called out. "Bandrix, where are you?"

Silence.

"Bandrix, it's Ahsoka. I'm coming up. Don't shoot me."

Stepping slowly up the ramp Ahsoka rose to a level where she could peek over the opening in the deck into the cargo hold. Finding it empty she quickly climbed the rest of the way. As soon as her boots hit the deck she sprinted to the far side of the hold and scrambled up the ladder that led to the gangway. She made her way along the curving passage to the starboard side of the ship. With each step she felt Bandrix's weak Force signature getting closer. Finally reaching the cockpit hatch she cautiously peered around the edge of the door.

Her breath caught at the sight of a bloody and scorched Bandrix sitting on the deck, his back leaning against the far bulkhead behind the pilot's seat, next to the navigation and communication station. His blaster lay beside him. His eyes were closed and his head was slumped forward. But unlike Michael and Trax, Ahsoka could see the faint rising and falling of his chest. Relief crashed through her and she rushed to his side.

"Bandrix!" She shook his shoulders but he was unresponsive. "Bandrix, can you hear me?"

Still nothing.

Ahsoka scanned his body. The left side of his torso had been burned and shredded by at least two blaster bolts. But more disturbing were the wounds to his legs and arms. Each bicep and each thigh had been shot once, at close range, the wounds mirroring each other, as if someone had stood over him after he was down and defenseless and shot each limb, just to torture him. He hadn't bled out because the blaster burns cauterized the wounds, as they typically did. But the pain must have been excruciating and the only defense his body had against it was to pass out. She knew Bandrix needed immediate medical attention if he was going to survive.

Ahsoka slid into the seat at the communications station preparing to send an emergency medical request to the space port authority when a terrifying thought sent a chill through her.

What about Jin and Kip?

Had Bandrix's ship been targeted specifically? And if so, had they also gone after the VCX-100? Ahsoka keyed in the VCX-100's communication's frequency and sent out a call.

As she waited for a response, dread began to invade her thoughts. She had no idea what had happened, or why. No idea as to the identity of the attackers or where they were now. No idea if they were coming back or going after the other ship. She'd stumbled upon a disaster and everything was completely out of her control.

As she tapped her hand impatiently on the console praying that Jin would respond, she felt her dread begin to morph into something more powerful — and more dangerous.

Fear … and … anger.

Fear for Jin and Kip. Fear for herself. And if this was a targeted attack, fear for her people.

Anger was fear's accomplice, and it began to boil inside her at the unprovoked attack on her people. Her anger began to expand into rage as she thought about the slaughter of her two friends and of the gruesome torture of Bandrix.

Ahsoka felt her self-control begin to slip and that, in and of itself, fueled her fear and anger even more. Ahsoka knew what could happen if she let her fear and anger control her. She could sense the dark side waiting eagerly to take her.

Just then the com panel chirped and Jin's voice stopped her downward spiral.

"This is Jin. Bandrix is that you?"

Ahsoka pushed out a hard breath of relief.

"Jin, are you alright? Is everything okay?" Ahsoka said, unable to keep the frantic worry out of her voice.

"Hey, Commander," Jin said. "We're good here. But you don't sound so good. What's going on?"

Ahsoka didn't have time to explain everything. She couldn't anyway because she knew nothing.

"Listen carefully," she said. "Bandrix is critically hurt. Call the emergency medical response unit of the port authority and have them dispatch a unit to this hanger. Hurry, Jin, Bandrix needs help now."

"On it," Jin said. "Stay on coms Commander, I'll be back with you in a minute."

"No, Jin. I can't. The crew was attacked. Michael and Trax are dead. As soon as you get emergency medical on the way, you and Kip get over here. Suit-up. Full kits, weapons hot. Be careful and watch your back."

"Commander…?"

Ahsoka could hear the confusion in Jin's voice.

"Just do it, Jin. Do it now!"

"Roger that. We're moving. Jin out."

Ahsoka slid out of the coms seat and dropped to the floor next to Bandrix. She examined him once more just in case there was something she could do. But his trauma was beyond her training, so she clenched her jaw as she settled in to wait for help.

"Hang on, Bandrix," she whispered. "Just hang on."

Ahsoka tried to sit quietly and wait while she watched over Bandrix. But every cell in her body vibrated with the adrenalin coursing through her. She stood and began to pace back and forth in the small cockpit. As she moved, her mind began to wander, having lost the focus of dealing with the immediate crisis. She felt the sparks of anger and fear that she had earlier pushed down, begin to pulse again deep inside her.

No. I will not be afraid. Fear is the path to the dark side.

Stepping up behind the pilot's seat she grabbed it's top with both hands, squeezing the cushion in a death grip. She closed her eyes and began to softly chant.

"I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me. I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me."

Ahsoka's anxiety began to calm as she continued the mantra. Her grip loosened on the seat and her breathing grew steady.

But then the Force burst inside her, almost knocking her to her knees. Fear and anger pounded against her. But not her fear and anger, it belonged to someone else. They were close, outside in the docking bay. They were coming, hard and fast. The emotions preceding them were filled with murderous intent.

Ahsoka's eyes snapped open, her fear ramping up, her heart racing faster. She turned and crouched down behind the communications console drawing her blaster and training it on the hatch that opened into the cockpit.

Seconds seemed to slog past in slow motion. Her own turmoil clouded her senses along with the visceral anger of the approaching individual that assaulted her through the Force. Thoughts and feelings swirled inside her, confused and frantic. But she was sure of one thing. If the murderers of her friends had returned, she wasn't going down without taking as many of them with her as she could.

"Ahsoka!"

Her name rang out, the frantic call echoing through the gangway into the cockpit.

Her breath caught, doubt and denial keeping her silent. It couldn't be true.

"Ahsoka!" came the panicked voice once again.

Everything inside her snapped. She stood and shouted.

"Rex! Rex, I'm here."

Rex swept his gaze across the crowd beyond the passenger loading gate one last time before resigning himself that Ahsoka had left. Bowing his head, he turned and entered the transport ship. Walking down the long aisle Rex jostled past other passengers until he found a spot on a bench with room for himself and his gear. He settled in for the first leg of a very long journey.

"Ten minutes until liftoff." The announcement boomed from overhead speakers in the large, crowded cabin.

Rex's stomach dropped as the inertial dampeners initiated. Even though he'd experienced the sensation a thousand times as a soldier, the sudden pulse of artificial gravity always nauseated him. He took several deep breaths and the sensation finally passed.

Rex wondered where this new journey would take him. Would he stay on the transport until the end of the line, or would he take interest in one of the stop-over worlds, disembark there and see what the universe had in store for him?

For the first time ever, Rex had no one telling him where to go and what to do. He was totally free, and the feeling was completely foreign to him. It was frightening, but the anticipation of everything being brand new was exciting. No longer was he a slave to the Republic.

He had Ahsoka to thank for that.

"Five minutes until liftoff," the loudspeakers announced. "Please secure your personal items and take a seat."

As his thoughts dwelled on Ahsoka, Rex's heart grew heavy. Somehow, the universe had brought them together, if only for a painfully short time. Or maybe it had been the Force. Or perhaps, destiny. He didn't know. He wasn't a Jedi, or a sage, or a learned man. He was a simple soldier, who'd been gifted with a light that shone brighter than any of the suns he'd seen across a hundred different worlds. And just as he'd had to leave each of those suns behind, he'd had to leave Ahsoka behind as well.

Pressure began to build behind his forehead, his pulse beating against his temples. At first he thought it was his body's reaction to the pressurization of the cabin along with the effect of the inertial dampeners. But the pain flared and his pulse spiked as emotion that wasn't his flooded into him through the Force. Fear gripped his chest, followed by gut wrenching sorrow. Then a sense of raw, desperate panic drowned out the other sensations.

Something had happened to Ahsoka. Something terrible. He needed to get to her. Now.

Rex jammed his helmet onto his head, grabbed his pack and bolted down the aisle to the cabin's front bulkhead. He pressed a large red emergency call button next to a video screen. A second later a green skinned Twi'lek male appeared on the screen.

"This is the captain," the Twi'lek said in an exasperated voice. "What's going on back there? What's the emergency?"

"The emergency is that I need to get off," Rex demanded. "Open the forward outer hatch."

"I can't do that," the captain said. "We're about to liftoff. Go back to your seat and keep quiet."

Rex took a step back from the video screen so the camera would have full view of his body. Then he drew a blaster and held it out for the captain to see.

Gasps rippled through the crowded cabin.

"I'm getting off," Rex growled. "Either you're going to open that door, or I will."

"Good luck trying," the captain scoffed. "This ship's equipped with a standard dampening field that disables all energy-based weapons."

Rex knew about the energy dampening fields on civilian commercial transports. He also knew that all GAR weapons were chipped so the field didn't deactivate them. He pointed his blaster at the deck and fired off a bolt.

The color drained from the Twi'lek's face, his skin turning from green to a pale yellow. His stunned expression was evidence that Rex had gotten his point across.

"You've got five seconds to open the door," Rex said, "or I'll blast it open myself."

"Wait. Don't. I'll open it. I'm opening it now," the captain said, frantically.

A second later the door pushed outward and then retracted along the side of the outer hull. Rex grabbed his pack and dropped the ten meters to the ground as easily as stepping off an LAAT, his genetically engineered muscles and skeleton barely feeling the impact. He burst into a run, sprinting past the departure gate, back into the terminal and began to retrace his steps to the VCX freighter.

Rex run as fast as he could, pushing his way through the crowded aisles. As he rushed past an intersection he jerked to a stop. Ahsoka's emotions still flowed strongly to him through the Force, but something was telling him to backtrack to the intersection and take the other juncture. Then he realized that the other route would take him to the YT-2400's docking bay. Ahsoka wasn't at the VCX, she'd gone to the YT instead.

Rex ran back and took the other aisle. The YT's docking bay was closer than the VCX. At this pace he'd be there in just a few minutes.

As he ran, the sense of Ahsoka through the Force became stronger. The enormity of her emotions began to cloud his mind. As he'd done so many times before when around Jedi, he brought up his mental barriers. He didn't completely shut her out, but he protected himself enough so that his combat awareness and abilities weren't impeded. He didn't know what he was running into and he needed to be clear headed.

Rex came around a corner and saw the open docking bay door up ahead. He skidded to a halt, put his back against the wall and drew both of his blasters. Cautiously he moved toward the door. Taking a quick look inside the bay he saw the scattered cargo, signs of a firefight and the bodies of Michael and Trax on the loading ramp. He ducked inside and hugged the wall, listening for attackers and scanning for movement.

Rex glanced at Michael and Trax. He struggled to push down the murderous rage rising from within. If the ones who'd hurt his friends had harmed Ahsoka in any way, he would make them pay with pain and agony they would not have imagined could exist in the universe.

He took a moment to concentrate on his sense of Ahsoka through the Force. She was close now. Probably inside the freighter. He couldn't tell if she was hurt, but her fear beat hard against his mental barriers.

Urgency drove him now. He needed to get to her. If Ahsoka had been hurt, she needed his help. Rather than clear the rest of the bay, Rex took the risk to sprint to the loading ramp. With no blaster fire coming his way, he relaxed just a fraction, holstered one blaster and pulled off his helmet.

As he passed by both Michael's and Trax's bodies he didn't have to bend closer for a better look to ascertain if they were dead. There was a certain way a dead and lifeless body looked — limp and sunken in on itself. Different from an unconscious body which still held the tension of life in its limbs. He'd learned to recognize the difference on a thousand different battle fields.

Rex stopped just below the level of the cargo bay deck. He stilled his breathing so he could listen. The only sounds that came to him were the soft creaking of the ship and the hum of its systems.

Bringing his awareness back to the Force once more, Rex checked on Ahsoka. She was very close now. He was almost to her. His muscles vibrated with the need to find her. It took every bit of will power not to barge up into the cargo hold. It wouldn't make for a happy reunion if she shot him by mistake.

He inhaled and shouted, "Ahsoka!"

He tilted his head, listening. At the same time he sent out a silent prayer to the Force.

Please let her be all right. Please.

Nothing.

Panic began to rise in his chest. He took in another breath, shouting louder, his voice on the edge of breaking.

"Ahsoka!"

Still silence. His panic was beginning to crest like a wave that threatened to drown him.

Then he heard it. A voice shouting his name. Her voice.

"Rex! Rex, I'm here."

Now it was relief instead of panic that threatened to drown him. He pushed it down. He needed to keep his wits about him. He was still in a battle zone and didn't know the whole situation.

He stepped up the ramp into the cargo hold.

"Where are you?" he shouted.

"The cockpit," came her reply.

"I'm coming to you. Don't shoot me."

"Weapons cold," she yelled back.

Rex scrambled up the ladder and flew down the gangway. As he burst through the cockpit hatch he took in the scene. Bandrix lay against the far bulkhead, severely wounded, but still alive. Ahsoka was crouched beside him, her blaster in hand but pointed at the deck. At the sight of him she stood and put it in her holster.

"Are you hurt," Rex asked, his voice tense.

"No," came her shaky reply.

Rex blew out a breath and thanked the Force for answering his prayer. They stepped toward each other, stopping a few feet apart. Even though the threat of danger had passed, his heart was still pounding as he looked at her.

Rex could see how rattled Ahsoka was, even though she was doing a good job at maintaining her self-control. He could feel the remnants of her fear and anger through the Force. His arms itched to reach out and wrap around her to make sure she was whole. To keep her safe. But he kept his hands clenched stoically at his side.

"What happened here," he asked.

"I don't know," she said. "It was like this when I got here."

Rex stepped to Bandrix and leaned over him. "He needs medical attention."

"I contacted Jin. He's calling emergency medical services. They should be here any minute."

Just then the communications console chirped. Ahsoka leaned down and hit a button. "Jin?"

"Commander. Kip and I are outside the bay. Emergency medical is here too, but they won't go inside until they know it's secure. What in the Holy Five Suns of Bennis Liotus happened here?"

"I'll tell you what I know. But first tell the med techs that it's all clear. No hostiles on site. Bring them to the cockpit, Jin. And hurry."

"Roger. We're on the way."

Jin's voice drifted up into the cockpit from outside as he yelled at the med techs to follow him into the ship. Boots clanged across the deck, up the ladder and down the gangway. A few seconds later Jin climbed through the hatch, followed by two med techs carrying their gear, with Kip taking up the rear.

"Over here," Ahsoka said, moving next to Bandrix. "This Togruta's been badly injured. Multiple blaster wounds."

The med techs dropped to their knees next to Bandrix. "Move back. Give us room to work," one of them said.

Rex reached out and grasped Ahsoka's hand, pulling her with him to the far side of the cockpit. Jin and Kip followed.

"Rex, what are you doing here?" Kip asked. "I thought you'd already be gone."

"I was," Rex said. "I just got … a bad feeling. So, I got off the transport."

"And you just happened to know Bandrix and his crew were attacked?" Jin asked.

"It's … hard to explain," Rex said.

Jin shook his head in confusion but didn't push the issue. He turned to Ahsoka. "What do you know, Commander."

Ahsoka blew out a breath. "Nothing," she said, her voice frustrated. "After I dropped Rex off at the terminal I decided to come here to see how the loading was going. It was like this when I arrived. I don't know who did this, or why."

Rex watched Ahsoka take another shaky breath and glance back at the med techs working on Bandrix. Her eyes were half-focused and barely visible tremors rippled across her hands. He'd been observing her, waiting for shock to set in. These were the first signs. She needed a break from the death and disfigurement.

"Guys, can you cover here for a while?" Rex asked. "I need some air." He turned to Ahsoka. "Commander, why don't you join me."

Ahsoka gave him a grateful smile and nodded.