Unlike To the Far Reaches, this fic is nothing but canon interference. It's the first fic that really steps into the greater Star Wars Clone Wars universe. As such, we got some big name characters coming in! Domino Squad of course, Cody, Rex, the Jedi Council, Anakin, Ahsoka, and some 501st members! The Jedi are more background characters, but Domino and Rex (Cody too) definitely qualify as semi-main characters. If anything, the Bad Batch end up kinda secondary. But still important!

Also unlike TtFR, the ShadowxBatch stuff is more lowkey/implied since its been around a month since they all met and the bumps are mostly smoothed out. Cross is still prickly but thats Crosshair for you.

All comments/saves/favs are appreciated!

Blaster fire.

"General Skywalker, a droid is manning one of those turrets. They're going to blow up the shuttle, sir!"

Duel green bolts streaking towards a target.

"This is our only chance, we've got to stop him!"

The whir of gears and servos.

"Echo! Look out!"

Targeting.

Locking on.

Zeroing in.

Ready.

Aim.

Fire.

One blast.

Two.

Three.

Four five six seven eight nine ten eleven.

Contact.

A blinding flash.

A searing fireball.

A powerful shockwave.

A lone soldier's cry.

"Echo!"

"NO!"

I shot up in the bunk. Sweat drenched me from head to toe, leaving my shirt and shorts soaked despite the frigid temperature of the Havoc Marauder's bunk space. I barely registered it, however. The fireball remained burned into my retinas, blazing to life whenever I closed my eyes. Fives' cry rang in my ears, the agony and despair sending hot tears to scald my throat and blur my vision, and I buried my face in my hands.

Oh, Echo...

Fives...

"See how the dominos fall."

"Sweetheart?" came Crosshair's concerned inquiry from the floor.

My sudden wake up must have startled him enough that he'd fallen out of our bunk. But I couldn't turn to look at him, my eyes fixed on the wall in a blank, haunted stare as the explosion continued to echo in my ears.

"Echo!"

"Kitten, hey." Crosshair quickly climbed back into the bunk with me. Wrapping his arms tightly around me, he gathered me close. "It's me. It's Crosshair. Twiggy," he whispered, pulling my head to his chest. "You're safe."

I just nodded, burying my face into his blacks as my arms clutched his shoulders. I knew I was safe...

But Echo wasn't. He was down, presumed killed, and would soon be subjected to one of the worst fates in all of canon.

It couldn't happen. I couldn't let it happen. I had to do something. Anything!

But what?

"What's going on!?" Wrecker yelled, sliding through the doors as they wooshed open. Skidding to a halt, he pulled me from Crosshair, ignoring the sniper's hiss, and cradled me in his arms. "It's ok, Wrecker's got you."

"Had 'em," Crosshair spat, kicking the larger clone.

"Fellas, not now," Hunter scolded, joining us.

Tech must have been flying. At least, he was when Crosshair and I went to sleep. Otherwise he would have been in here fussing over me before Hunter or Wrecker. Not the best at emotional comfort, but he knew pressure points to help me relax.

Hunter looked over me, concern in those rich brown eyes. "Icy? Are you alright?" he asked gently, curling an arm around my shoulders.

I nodded, huddling close to Wrecker as I buried my nose into his neck in an attempt to wash away the smell of ozone and hot metal.

It only partially worked.

"You're not ok, Squeaky," Wrecker said firmly, maneuvering himself around to sit in his bunk while taking care not to drop me. "Tell us what happened."

Crosshair's head hung upside down in front of us, silver curls hanging loose. "Need the bingo sheet?" he asked, tone suggesting he was only partially joking.

Perhaps keeping track of the hell in the main timeline via Bad Luck Bingo was a rather morbid idea, but gallows humor was the name of the game with these guys. Besides, we all agreed "Crosshair acts like a jackass/commits a war crime" was a very funny free space.

Nevertheless, I shook my head. "Wasn't you. Any of you."

"Then who?" Hunter pressed, shimmying himself into the bunk beside Wrecker as Crosshair hopped down to kneel in front of us.

I wouldn't meet their gaze.

"It's... that reg, isn't it?"

Crosshair's snarl struck deep, making me flinch. "Echo's not just a reg," I mumbled, ears flat.

A rough sigh. "Sorry, sweetheart. Have a nightmare?"

I shook my head. "Premonition, sure of it. I was... on Lola Sayu." I mumbled, giving Wrecker an appreciative glance as he stroked the tip of my tail.

"The reg that we originally saved?" Hunter asked gently.

I nodded.

"So, you want to save his life early?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah. If possible." I clenched my fist, markings shimmering faintly to light. "I won't let those bastards turn him into... that."

Dimly, I registered that I was quoting canon!Crosshair from Season One Episode One but I had bigger problems to worry about right now.

Such as the scowl on my Crosshair's face.

""Still can't believe we were only introduced because of a reg."

"Crosshair, knock it off!" Hunter barked.

The pair remained locked in a staring contest before Crosshair broke it off. "Tch, not dealin' with this," he growled, heading towards the rear gunner's station. He cast a glance back towards me, grumbling, "Isn't you. Promise. It's the reg." Climbing up, he slammed his fist into the controls and shut the door behind him.

I burrowed into Wrecker's arms. "Why does he have be so... Crosshair at times?"

"The Regs never really accepted us. Kaminoans weren't exactly the friendliest either, so often it was us against a planet. Regs liked to pick on him the most," Hunter explained with a sigh.

Yeah. I remembered the Farlands. Remembered seeing... that horrible memory while in the Fractalis section. Before then, I had wondered why his tattoo felt different from the others. But, after seeing what really happened, I wished I never found out.

"He... He knows I'd never choose a reg over him, right?" I asked, looking desperately at Hunter.

Of all his bad habits, relapsing was Crosshair's worst. In the month since I'd been with the boys, I'd found that out the hard way on a couple occasions. I know he didn't mean to, and I knew all too well how past trauma could reappear at the worst times but...

It never failed to hurt when he turned his back and isolated himself.

"Regs were always chosen over him," Hunter said. "Doesn't matter how different the reg is, a reg is a reg to him."

"But I'm no reg."

"He doesn't mean to slight you."

"Doesn't make it hurt any less."

"Sorry he's like that, Squeaky," Wrecker said, holding me tighter.

I sighed. "You and me both, Wreck."

Tech walked in, earning himself a glare from Wrecker. "Where have you been?" the demolition expert growled, the low sound vibrating within my chest.

"Hacking into the secure channels to find word of Lola Sayu since Shadow's premonition dreams usually occur the night before an event occurs," Tech replied, not looking up from his datapad. "And my hypothesis was correct. They have left for Lola Sayu approximately three hours ago."

My ears flattened. "Then we need to go. Now."

Tech nodded then vanished back into the cockpit.

"Don't worry," Hunter soothed me as Wrecker and I snuggled together in the demolition expert's bunk. "Tech will have the encryptions cracked in no time."

I huddled into Wrecker's arms. "Hope you're right, Hunt."

'Cause I can't take much more of this.

But I knew one thing for certain.

Echo may have fallen, but I sure as hell was gonna make sure he wasn't forgotten.

No matter what.

If only I could have known the sheer chaos that would follow that rescue.