Have another angsty oneshot because I'm in a crap mood and this was the product of it! Because I'm a nerd and too invested in this fandom, there's a lot of Mando'a sayings in here. Rough translations to English will be at the bottom of the page. WILL CONTAIN SEMI-GRAPHIC GORE AND OVERALL HORROR!
Captain Rex was falling, falling into darkness. He spiraled downward and couldn't get back up. What had happened? Order 66...Ahsoka...all of his brothers...no, oh Force please no. It couldn't be true, it was all a bad dream. He slammed into something hard, apparently having reached the end of his long fall. He stood unsteadily, his legs wobbling from terror as his cheek throbbed. The invisible surface that had broken his fall was smooth like glass. Rex started, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up as he spun around. He wasn't alone, he could feel someone standing behind him.
But there was no one there, until an eerily familiar voice cried out: "Traitor!" The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once. It echoed and rebounded in the chasm, Rex started to shake. "Traitor!" Now it was multiple voices, all surrounding him. He grasped for the pistols on his belt, his hands trembling as he held them out in front of him. "Traitor traitor traitor traitor traitor!"
"Stop it!" He howled, whipping left and right as he tried to find the source of the voices. His fingers were on the triggers, but something held him back. He knew who the voices belonged to, he couldn't hurt them.
"Brother," the hiss sounded directly next to his ear and Rex jumped away, tucking and rolling as though dodging enemy fire. When he sprang back up, his eyes went wide with terror. Cody was standing directly where Rex had been only moments before. His brother's eyes were dead, no light penetrated the irises. "Why did you betray us?" The voice was alien and cold, Cody would never talk to him like that.
"Why did you let us die?!" Jesse appeared by Cody, his face accusatory. Rex felt his legs collapse, staring up at his brothers from his knees. Pain filled him like a tidal wave, tears blurring his vision. Too soon, it was too soon.
"You had a simple task Rex," Cody spat, his lifeless eyes trained on Rex's face. "Exterminate the Jedi, and we could all be one big happy family. Isn't that what you wanted?" Cody's voice turned mocking, the iciness palpable. "For us to live normal lives? For us to be a proper family? You had that opportunity Rex, you threw it all away!" Rex opened and closed his mouth, his head hanging.
"Cody," his voice was thick with tears when he finally choked out the words. "I didn't—this wasn't—I never wanted this to happen!" Rex felt a few tears escape his overflowing eyes as his pistols clattered to the ground.
"It's too late for that Rex!" Jesse snarled, his eyes bright with hatred. "You abandoned your brothers for that Jedi aruetii!"
"Vod Gedet'ye!" Rex wailed, his tongue slipping into the Mando'a dialect. "Jorcu ni nu copaani kyr'amur!"
"Bic's du'car vod!" Jesse screamed, Rex flinched. "Gar jehaat, vi ash'amur!" Rex's shoulders slumped as sobs wracked his body. Tears flowed from his eyes and down his face, blurring his vision.
"Jate verde shekemir ke'gyce!" Cody barked, his footsteps coming closer. "Good soldiers follow orders!" The Republic sigil on Jesse's face glowed as though he'd been branded. It glowed hotter and hotter as the chanting increased in volume. Rex wanted to shut his eyes, he wanted to look away. But he couldn't, he couldn't even move. "Good soldiers follow orders, good soldiers follow orders!"
The sigil on Jesse's face burned even brighter, Rex could hear his brother screaming. Jesse grabbed at his face, his legs trembling in agony. Smoke rose from behind Jesse's hands, Cody still chanted mindlessly. The stench of burnt flesh invaded Rex's senses and he gagged, nausea roiling in his gut.
"Vod!" Rex stared at Jesse as the ARC trooper removed his hands from his face, Rex screamed in horror. Half of Jesse's face was burned off, revealing red muscle and stark white bone. The sigil burned even brighter, searing itself into Jesse's flesh. The skin was cracking and raw, red with pain. "Vod!" Jesse wailed and stumbled towards Rex with one hand outstretched, the other clawing at the burning symbol on his face. "Vod Gaa'tayl ner!"
"Jesse!" Rex strained and trembled, trying to move towards his brother. "Jesse, Jesse no! Jesse!" No matter how hard Rex willed it, his body would not budge even an inch. "Cody help him!" If Cody heard him, he gave no sign. He just chanted and watched Rex, seemingly oblivious to Jesse's torment. "What are you doing?" Rex roared, thrashing against his invisible bonds. "Help him, you have to help him! Snap out of it Cody, SNAP OUT OF IT!"
"Rex!" Rex's head whipped back to Jesse as the trooper collapsed to his knees. The ARC troopers hands were trembling as he held them up to his face. Like logs in a fire, Jesse's face was half burned away. Embers trailing from the singed corners. Rex felt like he was going to throw up. Jesse's one good eye locked with Rex's horror-struck ones. Jesse was terrified, Rex could see it in his eye. He didn't see an ARC trooper anymore. He saw a tentative shiny doing what was best for his brothers. He saw innocence, an innocence that had been stripped from them all.
Jesse collapsed into a pile of ashes and embers, his armor an empty husk. "NO!" Rex turned to look up at Cody, finding the barrel of a gun pointed at his skull. The sharp metal dug into his scalp and he felt the blood drip from the wound.
"Good soldiers follow orders," Cody hissed just before the gunshot sounded and Rex's world went white.
Rex jerked awake with a scream and sat bolt upright, his hands covering his head. Breathe, breathe, why was it so hard to breathe?! He was trembling all over and broken whimpers escaped his throat. He cast his gaze around the room, his eyes flitting from one object to the next. His chest was heaving, there wasn't enough air in this room. Out, he had to get out.
Stumbling rather than walking, he managed to shove open the door to the small balcony. He gripped the metal banister tight enough it cut his palms. Gulping great lungfuls of air, he could slowly feel himself calming down. But only slightly, the terror and helplessness still remained. Once he was calm enough to think straight, he began to pack up his things. He'd stayed here long enough, he had to keep moving. Keep moving until it was safe, despite the fact that it would never be safe. He'd never be free of the nightmares.
...Yeah, I'm beginning to think this is more of a Halloween horror fic than anything else. Sorry if I scarred anyone, writing is just a good way to vent.
"Aruetii" (traitor/outsider)
"Vod Gedet'ye!" (Brother, please!)
"Jorcu ni nu copaani kyr'amur ner vod" (Something along the lines of: I would never hurt you willingly)
"Bic's du'car vod!" (It's too late brother!)
"Gar jehaat, vi ash'amur!" (You lied, and we died!)
"Jate verde shekemir ke'gyce" (Good soldiers follow orders)
"Vod Gaa'tayl ner!" (Brother help me!)