Soph walked into the barracks and looked around. She spotted Domino quickly, all five of them sitting toward the back of the room, cleaning their weapons. She made her way over with a smile. "Can I join you?"

"Sir!" they snapped to attention quickly, looking a bit startled. She waved them off.

"Relax, boys," she told them. "I just wanted to talk with you, see how you're doing."

"We're fine, sir," Echo told her. "We were wondering if you could tell us more about our lives."

Soph hummed. "I'll be honest, aside from what I've told you, I don't know much."

"That's okay," Cutup told her. "We'll change things."

"Yes, we will," she smiled at him. They fell quiet, not even bothering to continue cleaning their weapons. "What is it?"

Domino exchanged a glance, and it was Droidbait who finally spoke. "We were wondering why you have so much faith in us."

Soph smiled sadly at him. "A few reasons. For you three, I heard plenty of you from Master Shaak Ti after your… deaths. As for Echo and Fives… it may be best if I show you some things instead of explaining."

"Show us?" Hevy asked curiously.

"Using the Force, it can be possible to… share memories," she explained. "What would happen is that I'd use the Force to touch the top of your mind - nothing invasive, just enough to show you my memories, or the ripples in the Force that your lives made. So, essentially, your memories from your past lives."

"That sounds…" Fives looked troubled.

"I won't force you to do it," she assured them. "It was just a thought."

"I'll do it," Echo told her. Cutup nodded.

"Me, too."

Hevy shrugged. "Count me in."

Droidbait nodded along. She turned to Fives with a small smile. "If you're not comfortable with it, we won't do it."

"What does it mean to… touch our minds?" he wondered. "Can you read our minds?"

Soph laughed a little. "That's a bit of a complicated question. To read your mind, it would require consent and a great deal of focus and energy. It's why we don't do it often, and why we absolutely do not read an enemy's mind. Crossing that boundary is a slippery slope to Falling. The Sith do invade your mind, however."

"Did that happen to you?" Fives asked. Echo smacked his chest hard. Soph's eyes drifted a little, a memory she'd tried to tuck away drifting forward. She shook herself and gave a weak smile.

"Yes," was her simple answer.

"I'm sorry," Droidbait said, because it was clear the question had disturbed her. It left them wondering what it truly meant to invade someone's mind, and how bad it hurt.

"We don't have to do this," she reminded them. "If you're not comfortable with it-,"

"I'll do it," Fives interrupted. He winced. "Sorry, sir."

"Soph," she corrected him. "Don't apologize. It means a lot to me that you trust me with this."

"We trust you with our lives," Cutup pointed out. "I'd gladly trust you with my mind, too."

His words brought a genuine smile back to her face. He felt vaguely triumphant at the sight.

"Alright," she waved at them to move. They arranged into a circle. She was sandwiched between Echo and Fives since they lived longest, and would be using them to grip onto memories and ripples in the Force.

Soph closed her eyes and focused, slowly reaching out to touch each of their minds. With five of them, it took a bit more effort than usual, but she finally managed it after a few moments. With a bit more effort, she pushed all the memories she had of Fives and Echo out rapidly, allowing them just enough time to process what they saw. She showed them everything she'd been there for before moving onto what she didn't see, but what the ripples in the Force told her had happened.

She knew the moment that something went wrong, but as she had no idea what had gone wrong, she had no idea how to fix it.

Memories flashed through. Things she had never seen before, and some things she had - things she'd never intended to show them from their past lives. It started on Rishi with Droidbait getting shot by a droid. Then, Cutup getting eaten by the eel. Hevy blowing himself and the base up. Echo being kidnapped, tortured, used. Fives' journey with the chips - Tup shooting Master Tiplar, taking his chip out, running, being framed, Palpatine, Fox killing him, Rex holding him as he died with Soph standing behind Rex, tears running down her own face.

More memories flashed by - mostly from Echo and Fives' lives. Things that she hadn't wanted to burden them with. It was a frantic flurry of the past that she was trying to retreat from, but it felt impossible. She fought the storm of memories fruitlessly until finally, it ended on its own.

She threw herself out of their minds and stumbled back, gasping for air. The onslaught of memories through the Force left her shaking and feeling like she'd just run a marathon. She felt someone grab her arm and lead her to sit down. After a moment of trying to calm herself, she opened her eyes to find Cutup kneeling in front of her. He shook as well, but concern shone in his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"That… shouldn't have happened," she said, feeling sick. Seeing her boys be killed was rough, but the worst of it had been Fives' death - something she knew she could and should have prevented. "That shouldn't have happened. Something's wrong."

"That… was how we died?" Hevy asked. His voice shook. She glanced up and around.

"I'm so sorry," she told them. "You were never meant to see those things. Force, something's truly wrong. That's never happened before."

"I knew," Fives said quietly. "You told us, I knew how I died, but…"

"It's different seeing it," Soph understood. "You were never meant to. I need- we need to get to Obi Wan. Come on."

"I can't…" Droidbait frowned as they followed her through the Resolute. Obi Wan and Cody were on board to talk about the upcoming mission - the blockade over Ryloth. "I didn't even make it out the door."

"I'm sorry, Droidbait," Soph said quietly.

"You said there's something wrong," Echo reasoned slowly. "It's not your fault."

She didn't reply. Truthfully, she didn't know if it was her fault or not. It didn't feel like it, but she also knew the Force was touchy. It reacted heavily to emotions, which was why Jedi had such strict teachings on emotions. It was the Sith way to give into emotions. Not the Jedi. It was, admittedly, not something Soph put into practice often, staying strict on her emotions. Obi Wan had told her and Anakin both numerous times that they needed more control. They'd been bad influences on one another - one of the reasons Jedi weren't supposed to have more than one Padawan at a time - and had firmly ignored him.

They reached the office that Obi Wan, Cody, Rex, and Anakin were waiting in and filed inside quietly.

"Soph," Anakin looked between her and her team. "What happened?"

"I don't… know," she admitted. "We were talking, and I tried to show them some memories, but something happened and they saw more than I meant to show them. It was like I wasn't in control at all. It ended when it wanted to end, not when I tried to end it."

"Hmm," Obi Wan frowned at her. He closed her eyes, and she could feel him reaching around her, feeling the ripples in the Force. "There is certainly something wrong. The Force reacts to you differently now. I don't know how I didn't notice it before."

"So, what, I broke the Force?"

Anakin snorted. "You broke the infinite Force?"

Soph had the childish urge to mock him. Instead, she just screwed up her nose at him.

"This is certainly a concerning discovery," Obi Wan said. "It almost doesn't feel like the Force."

They were quiet for a moment. It was Rex that spoke thoughtfully. "Didn't you say it was the Cosmic Force that sent you here?"

Soph's eyes widened. "Rex, I could kiss you!"

Anakin put his face in his hands, Domino exchanged looks, Rex stared, Cody rolled his eyes, and Obi Wan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

She really made it difficult for him to pretend he didn't know.

"I mean… you're probably right," she cleared her throat. "Sorry, Captain."

"Anyway," Anakin said. "Try not to do too much with the Force until we can figure this out. I'd say let's talk more now, but-,"

"The natives of Ryloth need help," she agreed. "Mind if Domino joins?"

"Feel free," Obi Wan waved for them to sit. When everyone was seated, he spoke again. "What do you know about Ryloth?"

Soph sighed. "I know we need to talk to Ahsoka before she takes command. Last time, she disobeyed orders and some of her men were killed. I'll talk to her- I remember her explaining why she did it, so I may be able to prevent it. And this way, we won't lose a star destroyer."

"Wait, what?" Anakin stared at her.

"Don't look at me," she made a face at him. "It was your idea."

"That does sound like Anakin," Obi Wan laughed. "You handle Ahsoka, then. We'll set up for the attack on the blockade and invasion force."

They spoke for a few more minutes about Ryloth, but eventually, Ahsoka sighed and got up. "Domino, you're dismissed. And… I'm very sorry. I never meant for you to see any of that."

"It wasn't just seeing it," Cutup told her quietly. "That wasn't the part that bothered me. It was… it felt like we lived it."

"And that's what it is when you see memories, really," she said sadly. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to keep apologizing," Fives told her. She looked surprised.

"I figured you'd be the angriest at me."

"Why?" he wondered. She shifted.

"You…"

"I died trying to do the right thing," he told her. "That's all I can try to do, really. If it came down to it, I'd do it again. Thanks to you, I won't have to. So don't apologize- just keep me alive by changing this."

"I can do that," she bowed her head. "Get some rest. We'll be setting to work in an hour."

They left at the same time, with Domino turning left while Soph turned right to find Ahsoka. The young girl was in her quarters, meditating and disassembling her lightsaber before reassembling it. It was something that Soph and Anakin had taught her - meditation was easier when you focused on something else, something small and repetitive.

"'Soka?"

Ahsoka finished putting her lightsaber back together quickly. When she finished, she opened her eyes with a nervous smile. "Hi, Master. Is it time?"

"Almost," Soph nodded, walking over to sit on the bed with her. "I wanted to talk to you for a minute before we head out there."

"Is something wrong?"

"No, but I wanted to give you some advice."

"Oh, okay."

Soph shifted to sit with her legs crossed. "When I was younger, when this war just started, I had a hard time adjusting to orders. Not just receiving them, but giving them, too."

"You did?" Ahsoka looked surprised.

"I did. I often thought that I knew better than Master Kenobi," she admitted. "Really, he saw a broader part of the picture that I saw. He knew enough to give me good, sound orders, and it helped me not only give the correct information and orders to my men, but most importantly, it helped me keep them alive. I thought I was right quite often, but without the help of my superiors, I'd have lost a lot more men than I have.

"Your squad is your responsibility. Their lives will be in your hands, Ahsoka. I'm not telling you this to scare you - I'm telling you this because I know it's what I need to hear before the first time I took command. So please, listen to us, listen to your gut, and listen to your men. We won't win this war by ourselves. Taking it on alone is a suicide mission."

"Thank you, Master," Ahsoka smiled. "I think I see what you mean."

"We're nothing without each other," Soph told her. "You'll be with Epsilon today."

"The Teth survivors," Ahsoka's eyes widened excitedly. "I thought they were being folded into to the 212th."

"I had the transfer canceled," she explained. "They didn't want to go, and I knew you'd be more comfortable with men that you know and trust well."

"Thank you," Ahsoka grinned. "I'll keep them alive, Soph."

"I know you will," Soph said honestly. Ahsoka understood what she'd told her, and Soph could tell. "Del will be waiting for you in ten minutes. Be ready, okay?"

Ahsoka nodded, so Soph got up and smiled.

"I have faith in you, 'Soka. You can do this."

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Ahsoka did, in fact, keep her men alive. The beginning of the attack remained the same. They were quickly overwhelmed, and Anakin soon ordered a full retreat. They rendezvoused with the 212th again, this time sending out Soph with Domino along with Ahsoka and Epsilon. Obi Wan sent one of his squads, Inferno, as well. The three of them took on the blockade together, and that time, they broke through. The 91st and the 212th shot forward together, breaking through the atmosphere to take back the planet.

While they took care of Ryloth, Soph, Anakin, and Ahsoka decided to do something that was never done - they called the entire 501st into the mess hall group by group. There would be four groups of 150 clones, while they left 24 of them on the command deck to keep the Resolute steady.

Between Echo, Coric, and Kix, they'd finally finished the device to deactivate the chips. They'd decided to tell everyone what was happening with a little more convincing from Anakin.

"Even if they don't know it, they're slaves. It isn't right, and they deserve to know that they'll be free. This isn't a question - we're telling them."

Soph looked around at the gathered clones and felt a weird sense of overwhelming sadness mixed with pride. She was crushed, looking at the loyal men, with the knowledge of the chips. At the same time, she was indescribably grateful for them. She knew that without the clones, they'd have lost the war as quickly as it had begun. Master Sifo-Dyas may have had them commissioned for the wrong reasons - and what were those reasons, really? Was he working for Palpatine, or was he truly trying to fight him? No one really knew - but despite those reasons, he very well may have saved the Republic.

"Okay, men," Anakin called. They slowly quieted until finally, the group was silent, watching their generals and commander as they stood on a table at the front of the hall. "We have some bad news, but the important thing to remember is that we're fixing it immediately. Soph?"

They'd argued for ten minutes about who would be delivering the bad news. It was turning nasty when Ahsoka had rolled her eyes and suggested they take turns. A quick coin flip meant Soph would go first. She sighed and prepared herself. "We've asked you here because we came upon a deeply disturbing discovery. Every clone that's come out of Kamino has an inhibitor chip inside their brain. It ensures loyalty and… ensures you will follow certain orders. The only one we know of for sure would force you to kill any and all Jedi you come across. There's two important things I need you to know- one, we had no idea about these chips until recently. They were placed there by someone else. And two, we're fixing this. Right now."

Almost every man in the room was running their hands over their heads, searching for something that they honestly knew they'd never find. There was some outraged yelling that was quickly quieted by a stern look from Rex. He wasn't standing on the table with them, but rather next to it - he'd rolled his eyes when the Jedi had climbed up on the table and muttered something about wiping it down when they got off of it.

"With the help of Echo, Coric, and Kix, we've created a device that deactivates these chips. It's been tested on Domino Squad and every time, it was successful. They managed to create a long range device that, at max, will deactivate two hundred chips. We're playing it safe and doing a hundred and fifty at a time. It won't hurt - you won't feel anything at all. It's a bit like droid poppers - it only affects the inorganic pieces."

"How do we know it works?" someone called out. She offered a tight smile.

"We can show you the scans and information on the chips," she explained. "A memo should go out to all of your datapads as soon as we finish deactivating everyone's chips. If that isn't enough, we will permit a level six subatomic scan on anyone that wants one, but you need to be aware that it's painful and dangerous. That being said, they're available to anyone that wants one. There'll be a sign up sheet for the scans, and you'll get a notification on your datapad when it's your turn. Sound good?"

There were murmurs of assent through the room. Anakin spoke next, his eyes scanning the group of clones. "You'll feel a little different when these chips are deactivated. It's crucial that you know that you're free to leave the GAR once these are deactivated if you so wish. We will never force you to fight for us. It's your decision, and no one will blame you for leaving. You deserve freedom as much as the rest of us do."

"I'm going to turn it on," Ahsoka told them. She had the small device in her hands. It was designed very simply - a small, metal device with one button that sent out a pulse to deactivate the chips. Almost every clone in the room seemed to brace himself. She offered a comforting smile and then pressed the button.

It looked and sounded like nothing had happened, but it certainly had. The men all looked startled, and it was obvious that they felt the change - that forced loyalty was gone, replaced instead with genuine respect and loyalty.

"It does feel different," Nax, one of the Teth survivors, said in surprise. "There really… was a chip."

"I think that's all the proof we need," Attie said from Nax's side.

"If you have any questions, feel free to find us and we'll answer whatever we can," Soph told them. "After we finish up, that is. We'll be on leave for a few days, and it should be enough time to get scans and questions out of the way. For now, go ahead and get some rest."

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