Maze blinked and tried to stretch, unsuccessfully; everywhere ached, even his eyes. He hadn't been stunned, not by a gun anyway, in years.

"Ah! You're awake. How do you feel?" Zey asked calmly.

Why were Jedi always calm?

Maze rolled his shoulders, as much as he could with the Republic issue binders restraining him. He pulled, they still worked, despite their age, "Great. Brilliant. Love being hit by a stun gun. My most favourite thing after being struck by a stun stick."

"It wasn't only stun rounds." Zey held up his cloak, poking his finger through one of several blaster holes burnt through.

"You hit?" Maze asked, worried.

"No!"

"Good. I'd be stuck without you keep getting me into trouble. Essie would have nothing to worry about."

"I think you can get into trouble quite well without me." Zey replied huffily.

Maze slumped back against the wall before stretching out various limbs, as far as they could go. He groaned a few times.

"We seem to be in a predicament. Our two friends in the other cabin are arguing about us." Continued Zey. "And have been for a while."

"You don't say." Maze griped. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"You looked as if you needed the sleep." Zey retorted.

Maze glared before he shuffled towards the door, putting his ear to it; he listened, hearing two distinct clone voices bickering to and fro. They were arguing, not always coherently, about who their two captives were and what to do with them.

"Another fine mess you've gotten me into." Muttered Maze.

Zey chuckled.

Then a third, more authoritative clone voice joined the two.

"I think we've found who we're looking for." Zey said and smiled; he did not seem fazed by all this.

Within a few minutes the door to the small cabin they were being held in opened, and a clone stood, filling the doorway. Hands on his hips. His build was stocky, like Maze was now and not as thin as Jac had been but he wore parts of 501st armour. Shaved bald, with a full bushy blond beard, streaked with white; he was not immediately recognizable as a Fett clone, unless you knew them well or were one. Then it was obvious.

He studied the occupants.

Then stepped inside, undid the binders, clasping Maze's hand, he pulled him up and did the same for Zey.

"It's been a long time, old friend." He clasped Maze's right forearm and pulled him towards him, clapping him on the back.

"General!" He nodded to Zey, "it's good to see you."

"Arligan now."

The clone nodded.

"Rex?" Maze asked, to be sure.

He nodded.

Maze grinned.

"Wolffe and Gregor…..are here." He indicated behind him.

"Just the three of you?" Asked Maze.

He nodded, "I apologise for the welcome but Wolffe and Gregor are very security conscious."

"I can appreciate that."

"Come on! You're welcome to stay until we get your ship fixed." He opened the door leading to the main cabin. "It's the least we can do."

Maze looked at the layout; it had obviously been upgraded over the years. Additional trackers and data ports; Rex's helmet sat, dust covered, in the corner. More screens than he expected and some sophisticated monitoring equipment.

"See you've made some improvements." He nodded towards the additional equipment.

"Some of it was getting on a bit!" Gregor replied, "just like us eh!" He nudged Maze and winked. "And we like to keep tabs on the Empire."

Maze wasn't sure about Gregor; this wasn't the 'by the book' Commando he remembered from SOB.

"Come on Gregor, let him have some caf." Interrupted Rex. "Wolffe?"

The ex Commander Wolffe stood at the end of the cabin, arms folded and a DS17m blaster rifle still slung across his back. He too wore parts of his armour. The Wolfpack sigil still visible on one shoulder piece. His face was set in a stern expression and that was how Maze remembered him, although Essie always thought differently but then she would.

Hells! She broke through his own defences quickly enough.

"He's a Jedi." Wolffe nodded to Zey.

"Was!" Said Maze, watching the ex Commander closely. He could turn at any minute and any of them would be dangerous at the best of times.

"I know you." Gregor loomed up in front of Maze. "You're an Alpha?"

"Yes— formerly Captain Maze." He instinctively backed away.

"Maze eh? SOB. I never thought you would desert, eh Rex?" He turned to the Captain and back again. "I told the Captain, they'd got it wrong,nthe plebes. I never thought you would desert, even though you were in the list of wanted clones but Rex thought differently. You had reasons, he said."

Rex just smiled.

"See!" Said Gregor as he punched Wolffe's arm, "I always told you Commandos were better than Alphas. Alpha's get sidetracked." He returned to stare at Maze, daring him to retaliate; Rex stepped between them.

"Let's eat!" He said.

Wolffe grunted, it may or may not have been in agreement.

Gregor rubbed his hands together, "It's Joopa rib steak. The best part."

Maze and Zey exchanged glances. This wasn't exactly what they had expected.

"The rib steak's big, so we'll do a fire pit outside." He rushed off and slid down the ladder. He zig zagged across the desert a few meters. Stamped his foot a couple of times, then gave a thumbs up. Wolffe had followed him out carrying two shovels. They started digging; some kind of competition.

"Sometimes the Joopa gets near to the surface and you get sinkholes. We have to monitor that as well, although this is a fairly stable area."

He turned back into the cabin, "I'll make that caf. Unless you want something a little stronger. We did some trade with a smuggler, a while back. Still got a few bottles."

Maze looked at Zey, "Does that mean were eating worm?"

Zey smiled, "Looks like it."

"Oh great."

.

"Thank you for that information Mel. I did wonder what could possibly make him act like this. So with Gregor, it's the aftereffects of the explosions he was in and Wolffe has PTSD. It makes sense. I didn't go through half of what they did."

The blue holograph wavered. "Don't forget your survivors' guilt…." Started Mel.

"Thanks. I know survivors' guilt can be just as bad. How is she?"

"Nesting!"

"Nesting, what….she's not a bloody shriek hawk."

"It's an expression, Maze. It means she's preparing for the birth."

"What has she gone into labour?" he panicked there was no way he could get back in time, if she had,

"No. No sign yet."

He breathed out the breath he was holding.

"Don't tell her about the clones yet."

"I won't."

"Maze out."

Rex stood at the door.

"Everything okay back at base?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Were you talking about Essie, that Librarian you were seeing?"

"Yes."

"You two got away together?"

"Four of us in total."

"And she's having a baby?"

"Yes."

"Yours?" Rex asked tentatively.

Maze nodded.

Rex's face split into a grin and he slapped his back, "That's the best news I've heard in a long time."

He poured three small glasses and handed one to each of the two men sitting with him.

"Cheers. To a new life."

They downed the alcohol.

"So….Order 66?" Asked Rex.

"I didn't take action on it. Haven't got a chip." Maze tapped the side of his head.

"You were lucky then. We didn't have a choice."

"I can't imagine."

"I knew it was wrong, as soon as the order came through but I had to do it. I tried but I couldn't fight it. Had to kill the Jedi. All my autonomy was taken away. That's what I can't forget, that feeling."

"But you've had the chips removed?" Maze pointed to the tiny scar on his brother's head hoping that was true considering what had happened with Wolffe and Zey.

"Yes."

"Care to elaborate and how you survived."

Rex looked down, "It was during Order 66. On the Tribunal."

"I've seen the wreckage." Maze admitted, "I wondered who buried the bodies. We scanned the area."

Rex's head shot up, he couldn't say anything, just shook it.

"It's okay. You don't have to say anymore. It was the worst time." His hand went to his brother's shoulder. Maze could not imagine what happened on that ship for it to go down the way it did.

"We were transporting Maul. He got free."

Zey went white.

"He's still around." Maze said, "we've had a couple of run-ins with him and his ….associates."

"I can imagine. He ripped apart the hyperdrive."

"He what?" Zey was astounded

"Afterwards, I wandered around a little, joined up with a few like minded individuals…..and clones." He looked at Maze, "I thought, any clone at that time, with a chip was dangerous to anyone against the Empire. Anyone."

"We know."

"I managed to locate Gregor and thought his chip was damaged but when we tried to remove it, it wasn't there. We assumed at first we were using faulty scanning equipment."

"Early Commandos didn't have the chips." Explained Maze.

Rex nodded.

"There were other clones whose chips had either degraded or they hadn't been near a Jedi at the time. The Further away from the Core Worlds the better." Rex went on. "And some, who still chose the Empire, as they knew nothing else."

Maze saw him get that look he had seen in some old soldiers, remembering; the ones Rex had tried to contact and had no luck with, adamant that as soldiers, it was all they knew and they had to be with the Empire.

"Lost souls!" Muttered Zey.

"So you?" Rex changed the subject from him to them.

"The order still came through. Couldn't do it. Wasn't right. Found Essie and Del and got off the planet."

"That's a short explanation for what I assume was an arduous journey." Observed Rex.

Arligan and Maze looked at each other.

"It couldn't have been that easy. What with the Coruscant Guard and the 501st there. I heard about the Temple. I'm sorry General Zey."

"It wasn't easy." Admitted Zey, "All of us were in bad places. Looking back, it was probably the child that saved us, Del, we had to protect him."

Rex was silent for a moment. He was remembering other children, on Saleucami. He had heard they got away.

"We have to, General. They're the future."

"Arligan. It's been too long for that title."

Rex nodded, "Arligan."

The sound of clone voices arguing about the depth of the fire pit, reached them.

"Excuse me." Rex rose. "Have another drink."

"Troopers!" He shouted, as he slid down the stairs.

.

The five men sat around the fire pit; the embers were glowing now, after they had eaten their fill of the Joopa steak.

Maze licked his fingers, after he sucked the last few strands of meat off the rather large bone he had been given. He liked it; it would not have been to everyone's taste being on the gamey side but he enjoyed it. The smokiness added by the fire pit helped.

"Enjoy that ner vod?" Asked Gregor.

"Hmm."

"Good! Sorry about the ship. We'll look at it tomorrow. Eh, Rex?"

"Of course."

"But I have to ask you ner vod. How come you look so young? We have the same genes. Or had yours been tinkered with by the Empire." Gregor leaned forward, menacingly.

Wolffe was up in a second, his blaster out. "I told you. They're with the Empire. He's one of those new clones."

"Stand down, Wolffe." Rex was up facing Wolffe.

He turned to Maze.

"There's a good reason, isn't there Captain?"

.