Danny P.O.V.
Sabine and I were working on fixing the Phantom; it took quite a bit of damage from the probe.
"The probe hit us pretty badly. Even with Danny and I working together, repairs are gonna take a while." Sabine informed Kanan through the com.
"We don't have much time. There's no telling when the Empire will get here." Kanan responded.
"Well, the Empire isn't our only problem. There's a storm headed for us from behind." I told him through the com, looking at the storm through the scope of my helmet.
"We have got to get out of here." Sabine added in agreement.
"If the Empire gets here before we take off, the storm will be the least of our worries." Kanan said before cutting the connection.
"We should probably work faster." I told Sabine.
"Yeah. I don't want to face the storm and TIE fighters." She agreed as she continued with the engine while I worked on the main panel. As if on cue, a TIE fighter could be heard in the distance.
"Uh oh." We said in unison before running to the main room. We ran in, just as the TIE shot the tank.
"They found us!" Sabine said as we barged in.
"Guess that search pattern paid off." Ezra quipped.
"Battle stations!" Rex ordered his brothers. Gregor brought a crate over and opened it, revealing a few blaster rifles. Zeb, Sabine, and Rex each grabbed one and we all ran outside to defend the Phantom.
"Hurry! He's coming in for another attack!" Sabine exclaimed as we ran. Kanan, Ezra and I ignited our lightsabers to deflect any blasts coming. Ezra was about to go on the offensive, but Kanan stopped him.
"Ezra protect the Phantom!" Kanan ordered his apprentice.
"But what about the walker?" Ezra protested.
"It can take a hit! I think." Kanan responded as Ezra came back to the Phantom.
"You think? That's reassuring." I said to Kanan sarcastically as I took a spot on top of the Phantom while Zeb shot at the TIE with a Gatling blaster.
"Zeb, shorten your leads! You're wasting ammo!" Rex advised the Lasat as he approached with a bazooka.
"You're welcome to help!" Zeb shot back.
"Why spoil the fun? We haven't been shot at in years!" Gregor exclaimed excitedly.
"Yeah? Well it happens to us often enough." I told him as I deflected a blast from the TIE.
"Everyday in fact." Sabine added as she shot at the TIE with a rifle.
"Why doesn't someone man the big gun?" Ezra asked Rex.
"It's no use in this situation I'm afraid." Rex responded with a sigh.
"Oh, kinda like you guys." Kanan shot at the clone as he joined me on top of the Phantom.
"Says the guy who wasn't able to help his Master." I hissed at Kanan. I was really getting tired of his anger towards the clones. Rex and his brothers did nothing to Kanan, yet he hated them nonetheless; it reminded me of Jack and Maddie. Kanan looked at me with wide and angry eyes for my comment.
"That's right; I went there! Now drop your anger and focus on the TIE before I drop you off of this tank!" I ordered him. I can't deny feeling a bit bad about what I said, but sometimes things need to be said. He growled at me before deflecting a blast from the TIE.
"You want the shot?" I heard Rex asked Gregor as I jumped off the TIE and he tossed the bazooka to Gregor.
"Love to." Gregor said with a Cheshire grin. He ran over to the front of the tank and aimed. After a few seconds, he fired. The missile flew towards the TIE and crashed into it, exploding as it did so.
"Gregor, you still got it." Rex said to his brother with a grin.
"Yeah, nice shot man." I added.
"It's in my blood." Gregor responded, puffing out his chest proudly.
"You know, we'd make a pretty good team if we fought together." Ezra pointed out, probably try to persuade Rex to join the rebellion.
"Yeah, tried that once, it didn't work out." Kanan spoke up before Rex could reply. I shot a glare in his direction, though he didn't react.
"Sabine, Danny, we need the Phantom to fly. If that storm get's any closer, we'll be grounded." He added.
"On it." Sabine responded and ran to the Phantom. I sent Kanan a look that said 'we will talk later' and followed Sabine.
"Done with the panel." I told Sabine as I finished.
"Good. I'm almost done here." She responded. I nodded in response and left the Phantom, finding Ezra sitting at the big gun, Rex showing him to work it. I turned and saw Kanan, facing the storm with a pair of binoculars.
"Kanan." I said, grabbing his attention as I pulled my helmet off.
"That was low, Danny. Very low." He said as he turned to face me with an emotionless expression.
"I am aware, and I feel bad for it, but you're taking your hatred for the clones too far." I responded, narrowing my eyes at him.
"I have good reason." He shot back, glaring at me.
"No you don't. Rex and his men never did anything." I shot back.
"What's it to you anyway?" He hissed. I sighed.
"You're discriminating against them for being what they are. I have been a victim of that discrimination." I told him, sending him a glare. His eyes widened.
"My own parents shot me simply for being what I am. Had I not stopped you, you would have done the same to the clones." I said as my glare softened. He thought my words over.
"I understand Danny, but-" I cut him off.
"But nothing. They removed their control chips and have done nothing wrong. How would your master react if she was alive today and found a few clones that chose to not betray their Jedi?" I asked him. His eyes widened again.
"Think about that Kanan. Would she have reacted the same way you did? Or would she have been happy to see a fellow war veteran who proved to be loyal to her and the Jedi?" I asked him. He stood there, allowing my words to sink in.
Before our conversation could continue, I heard a strange sound in the distance, like massive footsteps.
"Anybody else hear that?" I asked everyone.
"I hear it." Zeb spoke up.
"Enemy contact, point 24." Wolffe informed, pointing into the distance. Sabine and I used the scopes on our helmets to check the direction.
"Walkers." I said.
"Big ones too." Sabine added.
"How many legs have they got?" Wolffe asked.
"Looks like 4." Gregor answered as looked through a pair of binoculars.
"4? How are they not falling over?" Wolffe asked in shock as Rex took the binoculars from Gregor.
"The size helps." I answered.
"Huh. Reinforced armour plating, heavy cannons, and anti-personnel blasters." Rex analysed the walkers.
"I'm glad your impressed, but their headed straight for us!" I exclaimed to Rex.
"Wolffe, set vector 290." Rex ordered his brother, getting a salute in response.
"Wait, you're just gonna turn and run? Just like that?" Kanan protested.
"Well, if you've got a better idea Sir, now's the time." Rex said as he got into the seat on the main gun.
"I thought clones loved to fight?" Kanan asked. I was pleasantly surprised to not hear any of his anger in that comment.
"I do love a battle, but on my terms." Rex responded.
"Gregor, drop the Joopa, we gotta get moving!" He ordered his brother over the com. I could feel Gregor's disappointment as the Joopa fell off of the side of the tank.
"Wolffe, turn 180." Rex ordered.
"Copy that." Wolffe responded and turned the tank.
"Kanan, I'm not sure how far we'll get, but I think she'll fly." Sabine informed Kanan as she wiped some sweat from her forehead.
"Good enough for me. Zeb, we're going." Kanan said the last part into the com.
"Too late, the walkers are already on top of us." Rex warned Kanan.
"He's right." I added.
"How will going into that storm be any better?" Kanan asked Rex.
"Well, the storm will scramble the scanners. We'll all be blind." Sabine told him.
"That means the Empire too." I added again.
"But a Jedi won't." Rex told Kanan. Kanan thought things over for a minute before speaking up.
"Alright, everybody inside!" Kanan ordered all of us as he headed towards the tank's main room.
"Sir yes sir." Rex said as we followed and the tank entered the storm.
"We're not gonna be able to hide in this storm forever." Ezra warned.
"Those things are practically impervious to blasters, but they have a weak spot: the neck." Sabine explained.
"One well placed shot from the main gun should destroy it." Gregor mused.
"That's all we might get, one shot." Rex added.
"Better make it count." I advised.
"I don't know how we're supposed to shoot something we can't see!" Zeb said.
"I don't even know where the enemy is!" He added.
"You don't have to see something to shoot it." I told him.
"Danny's right. If you're willing to trust me, I can get us that shot." Kanan told Rex.
"I always trust my General." He responded, giving Kanan a salute. Kanan nodded and closed his eyes, stretching his arm out.
I started to feel the energy of the force resonating with Kanan, like it was coming off of him in small waves. I heard a strange sound, like the air was whistling.
"Prepare to stop, now." Kanan instructed. The tank came to a stop, and we all watched Kanan in silence. The only sound heard was the sand scraping against the tank outside, and the enemy's footsteps getting closer.
"Commander Wolffe, circle left, double time." Kanan spoke up again. I wondered what his plan was as the tank turned to the left.
"Full stop." Kanan ordered after a few seconds.
"If what I'm sensing is right, we're surrounded." Kanan told us as he opened his eyes.
"What?" Ezra asked in a raised voice.
"Wait a minute, Kanan you're a genius!" I said as I realised his plan.
"You put us right in the middle of them, to get us a shot!" Rex exclaimed in realisation as he also picked up Kanan's plan.
"It's crazy, but it's probably our best chance." He added with determination.
"Once we fire, we'll reveal our location, if we miss, it's all over." Sabine said grimly.
"We're going to have to be quick." I mused out loud.
"I'll take the shot." Gregor said as he got up.
"No, Ezra should take the shot." Kanan spoke up.
"Uh, why don't you do it? Or Danny?" Ezra asked, unsure of himself.
"Kanan's right. We need one Jedi manning the cannon up there, and another leading us through the storm." Rex told Ezra
"OK, but why not Danny then? He is stronger than me in the Force." Ezra reasoned. I could sense his reluctance and lack of confidence.
"I may be stronger, but I'm still adapting to the Force." I told him.
"I lost most of my powers when I joined Ahsoka. You will have a better chance at hitting the target than I will." I explained as I placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You can do this Ezra." I assured him. He sighed and nodded.
"Sabine, go with him." I told her. She nodded with a smile and put her helmet on as she and Ezra headed outside.
"Hey kid." Rex called to Ezra. He turned around and caught the helmet that Rex had tossed towards him.
"You're gonna need that. And hang on tight." Rex told the kid with a smile. Ezra returned the smile and put the helmet on.
"Ready." Exra commed us as he and Sabine made it to the cannon, Kanan reached out with his senses again and tried to find the walkers.
"Ezra, there's a walker, somewhere around point 5." Kanan informed his padawan.
"Around point 5? Perfect. The targeting scope is useless, I can't see!" he told us through the com.
"It doesn't matter, you're not going to see it with your eyes." Kanan responded.
"The walker is there, trust yourself." He advised.
"Trust the Force." I added. We all heard Ezra take a deep breath. I could hear the wind whistling again as Ezra focussed on the Force, and a moment later, I heard the cannon go off and hit something.
"Got him!" Ezra said triumphantly through the com.
"Wolffe! There's your opening!" Ezra exclaimed to the clone, who drove the tank in the direction that was open. The other walkers could be heard shooting at us.
As the tank left the sandstorm, we all headed towards the Phantom, where Sabine and Ezra were waiting for us.
"Great shot Kid." Rex praised Ezra, who smiled gratefully.
"Now get yourselves out of here!" he ordered.
"What? We can't leave now!" Ezra protested.
"We have to get the information they gave us back to the rebellion!" Kanan told him.
"I don't like it either Ezra, but we can't force them." I added as the rest of us went into the Phantom.
"The other part of that mission is to bring Rex back with us!" Ezra reasoned.
"Like I said, we can't force him." I said.
"We can't abandon him either!" Ezra shot back.
"You're not abandoning us, we're covering your escape, now move!" Rex ordered him. Ezra sighed in defeat and gave Rex his helmet.
"We're soldiers Ezra, this is what we were born to do!" Rex assured him as he manned th big gun.
"And Danny, tell Commander Tano I said hello!" He said to me with a 2 fingered salute, which I returned as the Phantom's door closed.
As we flew off, I felt really sad. I really liked Rex; he was a great guy, and a great soldier. I wasn't looking forward to telling Ahsoka he stayed and seeing the look of disappointment on her face.
"Kanan, you know better than anyone, they won't give up. This fight is gonna be their last." Ezra spoke up forlornly.
"Like I said, I don't like it either Kid." I said to him as Kanan briefed Hera on the situation through the com.
"It's too bad about Rex, but at least you got the intel." Hera said as Kanan finished the briefing.
"I'll rendezvous with you shortly." She said.
"Copy that." Kanan responded as he cut the transmission.
"What am I going to tell Ahsoka?" I asked out loud.
"Rex was her friend, even thought he was a clone." Ezra added. Kanan could be heard groaning after a moment.
"I hate it when those 2 are right." He mumbled, though I think only I heard it.
"I've got my problems with clones, but as Danny told me, they're not the ones who betrayed the Jedi, and I don't want those men to die." Kanan said as he stood up. I smiled at his words, and everyone smiled at me for what Kanan said.
We turned the Phantom around and shot at the walker that was practically climbing over Rex's tank. As we shot past it, we curved up so that the door of the Phantom was facing the other walker. Kanan, Ezra, and I jumped out of the Phantom and landed on the walker, igniting our lightsabers. We jammed out lightsabers into the hatch and circled it, cutting it open. While they pulled the hatch off, I jumped in and deactivated my lightsabers.
"What was that?" One of the pilots asked the other.
"It was me." I said as I got in between them. I grabbed their heads and smashed their helmets together, knocking them out.
"I can see why Zeb likes doing that; its fun." I joked with a grin as I took one of the seats.
"Danny, focus." Kanan ordered as he took the other seat.
"Sir yes sir." I muttered as I took control of the walker's cannons and shot at the other walker.
"Where do you think their air support is?" I asked Kanan as he steered the walker forward.
"I don't know, but let's just focus on this for now." He responded. In nodded in response and kept shooting.
"Look! They got their power back!" Ezra said as we saw the clones' tank power up again and shoot the walker's neck. The walker toppled over, and a speeder with Agent Kallus and another trooper emerged, speeding away with another trooper on hi tail, running with arms waving in the air. I shot at the speeder, just for the fun of it, and burst out laughing when the speeder toppled into a forward flip. Kanan just rolled his eyes at me.
We exited the walker, and saw the clones standing in front of their ruined tank. They all gave Kanan a salute, to which he responded with a single nod as we heard the Ghost approach from behind.
We all headed towards the command center to meet with Commander Sato and Ahsoka, to report our findings. As we approached the door, we saw Ahsoka, waiting for us. We smiled at her and made room for another to walk through. Rex walked towards Ahsoka with a big smile on his face.
"Commander." He greeted as she closed the gap between them.
"You got old." Rex remarcked as she stopped in front of him.
"Had to happen some time Rex." She responded with slight chuckle before she embraced him.
"I'm glad you're still alive." Rex said as he returned the hug.
"You too." Ahsoka responded as they parted.
"I wouldn't be, if it weren't for your apprentice and the Ghost crew." Rex told her, gesturing to all of us.
"Thank you for trusting my friend." Ahsoka said to Kanan.
"It wasn't easy. It still isn't." Kanan replied honestly. Clearly he still held what happened with the clones close, but this was definitely an improvement.
"Nothing worth doing is ever easy." Ahsoka told him with a smile.