"Master Luke"

He called and Luke gave him a weak smile before walking over. The clone studied Luke's face as the boy approached him. Overall, his master's son looked fine, but with a hint of tiredness and a bit of stress.

"Hi, Tin" Luke said, almost timidly as he now stood beside the clone's bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, a bit sore but I can still move," Tin replied, looking as Luke's shoulder slightly relaxed. Suddenly, Tin didn't know what to say. Luke was still the same as he remembered and this only amplified the melancholy in his heart. He didn't know what to do, honestly. He still cared for Luke, but Luke was no longer with him. The boy was with the Rebels. The boy was now the Rebel.

Without thinking twice, Tin found himself saying "Master Luke, please come back to us."

Luke's eyes widened and he took a step back and it sank Tin's heart. However, he continued anyway. "Please, come back. I'm certain that your father will forgive you. Please."

"Tin," Luke just shook his head. "I cannot go back. Not when my father cannot listen to reason. He's never listened. He's never cared about me."

The bitterness in the boy's voice made Tin wanted to pull Luke into his arms and told the boy that everything was going to be okay – just like when Luke was still a child. Tin used to do that when a storm hit the base and Luke was afraid of the thunders.

"That's not true," the clone shook his head. "He cares about you. He really-"

"He wants me to be his successor, not his son," Luke cut him off. "Tin, please, I don't want to argue with you about this. Please, just…" the young Rebels sighed and sat down on the bed. "…I want to talk to you without bringing my father up. Just, just you and me, okay?"

"Okay," Tin nodded. Anything for you.

"Okay, so…" Luke nodded, his expression lighted up a bit. "…how are you doing? I…um… the Rebel's spies said that you're sent to Mustafa. How is that planet?"

Tin wasn't sure that Luke was trying to pry any information off him or not. There was a possibility that Luke was doing that and it hurt Tin's gravely. However, the clone knew that he couldn't blame Luke. They're on a different side now.

"It's all lava and hot. All black and red," Tin said, keeping his voice neutral and not letting his own sadness slipped in. "It's like what you read about on the holonet, just like what you wrote on your reports," he added a bit of Luke's past into this. After Luke turned eight years old, every week he had to do at last one reports about any planet of this galaxy. The boy always asked Tin to check his works before he handed them in.

"That's almost ten years ago," Luke said, but there was a smile on his face. "What do you mostly do?" Luke asked, and Tin raised an eyebrow at him.

"You're not trying to pry any information off me, right?" he said, using his expression and the tone of his voice to pretend that it was a joke. Yet, it seemed like Luke knew because the boy averted his eyes.

"I… honestly Tin, the Rebels asked me to do that, but…" Luke shook his head and turned back to Luke at Tin. "Several cycles ago, the Rebels Intelligence told us that they could interfere with the Empire's transmission. Like…changing some parts of the missive or something like that." The boy seemed hesitated to continue and Tin patiently waited. He knew that Luke would eventually tell him.

In the end, Luke shrugged and continued. "They ended up trying it on a transmission sent to Mustafa. They changed the coordinate."

That's how we ended up in the Rebels's hand. Tin thought, biting his lower lips. So that's not a fake transmission, the Empire will have to improve their communication system; if I'm able to escape and inform them, of course.

"Did you specifically pick this transmission?" Tin asked, wanting to know if Luke intended to take him away from Lord Vader.

"No, I wasn't at the base when they tried interfered with the message," Luke replied. "I was informed of what happened two cycles ago. They let me checked on you once when you're the bacta tank. I was worried about your injuries."

"I've survived worse," Tin said, unable to stop himself from ruffling Luke's hair affectionately. He's sure that no matter what happened or how old Luke was, the boy would always have a special place in his heart.

At first Luke tried to act like he didn't enjoy it. Yet, after a few seconds of trying to resist, the boy leant forward and rested his head against Tin's shoulder. His arms looped around and hugged the clone gently, mindful of Tin's injury. Tin sighed and hugged Luke's back, tugging Luke's head under his chin.

"If my father could be half the parent you are…" Luke murmured and Tin didn't know how to describe his feelings. On one hand, he was ready to defend his boss. On the other hand, Tin had to accept that Luke was right about Lord Vader not doing well enough as a father. "…if he could at least try to care about you. He's never cared about you or the team…" the boy continued on and Tin sighed, massaging Luke's shoulder as he kept the boy close.

"You might be wrong, Master Luke," the clone said. "Lord Vader does care about us."

Luke pulled himself back and was about to argue when Tin continued on. "He let Coyote leaved the army unharmed when the rule stated that he must be…terminated because he knows about you. He let all of us live. And he…" Tin closed his eyes. This was hard for him to say, but he's going to say it anyway. "It no longer hurts… it doesn't hurt anymore. It's not because I'm used to it or my sensory is damaged, Lord Vader intends for it not to hurt."

"I…" Luke opened his mouth and then closed it. The boy seemed to be thinking hard about what to say. Then, he just sighed and leant back against Tin. "…I know you're not hurt, not right now. But for how long? How can you be certain that he won't hurt you again?"

Tin didn't know what to answer to that, so he kept stroking Luke's shoulder in a soothing manner that always calmed Luke down. However, before he could think of things to say, Luke abruptly pulled himself away.

"Someone is coming here," the boy said. If Tin didn't mistake it, Luke looked slightly annoyed. Then, the boy stood up and walked toward the door. Luke walked out and the door slid shut behind him. Tin tried to listen for anything and did catch some distinctive talking. It didn't sound like Luke was arguing, so the clone let himself relaxed a bit.

A minute later, Luke walked back in and the door slid shut. The boy's expression was the one that Tin knew all too well.

"Is there a problem?" Tin asked, keeping his voice calm and neutral. "They want to send in a new interrogator?"

"I… they wanted to, but I told them you're not ready," Luke replied, sitting down again. "I…I want to move you away from this base. It's a large base with too many people."

Tin wanted to say that Luke should go back to the Empire then, but he knew that's not going to change Luke's mind. So, he decided to go the other way around. "So…what do you think of the Rebels then? Are they like what you've imaged?"

Luke seemed surprised by this question. Nevertheless, the boy straightened his back and started talking. "They're…so much more than what I thought. Both good and bad. They come unite under the same goal; to free the galaxy from the Empire's evil gasp. However…I do find some of them quite unpleasant to work with."

"How come?" Tin prompted. "You said that they'd the same goal?"

"Yes, but…" Luke shrugged. "They also have their own agendas, their own interests. Not all of them, just some of them. And it's… Well… it's not as bad as the Empire's, but it did remind me that not everything is black and white. People are different shades of gray, not one is pure white nor pure black."

"Even your father?"

Luke grimaced at his words, but the boy did nod. "Even my father. At first I think he's all black, but… when I'm less angry and my head is clearer… I know that he's not totally black. Just a dark gray, but never black."

Tin smiled at Luke's words. "You've grown a lot." He added and couldn't help but feel like a proud parent.

Luke's expression lightened and he gave Tin a genuine smile. "Thanks."

After that they didn't talk about anything in particular. Luke did tell Tin about his progress with Force training and his lightsaber skill. The boy refused to tell Tin if he had a new mentor or were there any Jedi left, but Tin was okay with that.

However, their peaceful time came to an end when one stern Rebel officer came to tell Luke that he was needed at the command room. Tin didn't say anything as Luke stood up and walked toward the door. Yet, the boy did look back to him, mouthing the silent 'I'll be back' before he left.

After Luke left, the Rebel just turned to look Tin up and down. The clone straightened his back a bit, waiting for that Rebel to speak first.

Silence stretched out until that Rebel walked out and closed the door. Tin sighed and dropped back down to the mattress. It seemed like there was nothing he could do right now but wait.

Tin didn't have to wait long for the Rebels to make the move. Since Luke had un-verbally told them that he was not going to interrogate Tin, the Rebels decided to move Tin out of the medical bay and leaded him somewhere with blindfold covering his eyes. Yet, Tin still managed to remember the order of turns and stairs they took before he was shoved into a new room. His blindfold was removed before the clone was pushed to sit on a chair.

Interrogation room or sort of, he thought as he looked around. There were guards in the corner, a table, and another man sitting in front of him.

The interrogator was female who didn't look entirely like a human. Tin blinked and realized that she must be a hybrid between a human and a Mirialan. Her skin tone suggested that she's a human, but the marker on her face showed her another heritage.

"So…" the interrogator started. "…we'll start with your name."

Tin determined to keep his mouth shut and he did just that. He wouldn't make a sound whether what she asked, just like what he had been trained in the academy. The longer the time past, the more frustrated she had become. Tin knew that the Rebel was trying to be the light, to be the good people who wouldn't use violence. But Tin knew better. He knew that there were always ugly truths laying around behind everything.

Unable to pull any information from him, the interrogator waved for the guards to take Tin to another room. And the real face of the pretending-to-be-all-light-and-pure-interrogator was revealed.

After hours of torment, Tin was thrown into a cell.

This is more like it, he thought, looking up at a metal ceiling and then the metal walls. The room was empty, no window, only one door and one light on the ceiling. Still, he had to give it to the Rebels for trying to be so nice for so long.

Looking back at himself, Tin sighed as he tried to find a more comfortable to sit with his hand still tied behind his back. He missed a tooth or two, he thought. They were lost after one of the Rebel punched him and after they decided to play a game called 'a dentist and a stubborn patience' and just pulled one of his premolar out with a giant pliers. It hurt like hell and Tin was still bleeding.

Apart from the dentistry the Rebels had kindly provided him, Tin also had another pair of broken lips and bruises. His back hurt even more from the 'feet massage', a 'courtesy' from one of the guards. His brain still felt a bit like jelly after being electrocuted. There were brises everywhere along his torso, another courtesy from the guards.

Overall, Tin was tired and he felt like shit. There were still blood in his mouth but he didn't have an energy to split them out. So, all he could do now was sitting with his side leaned against the wall and breathed.

It felt like days had past when Tin saw Luke again, even that it was only several hours after being tortured. Tin was about to drift off into sleep when the door opened and Luke stepped inside.

"Tin!"

The boy gasped and rushed to his side. Luke looked at his injuries and bit his lower lip; there was anger in his blue eyes.

"I'm going to speak to them," Luke said, voice stern and cold. "They have no rights to do this to you."

"They have," Tin replied, still managing a smile as he looked at the boy. "I'm a prisoner, aren't I? They can do whatever they want."

"No," Luke just shook his head. "I didn't think that…oh Force. I didn't think that they would go as far as…this…" the boy bit his lower lip and Tin was torn between wanting to comfort Luke and letting the truth sank in. Tin still wished to protect Luke from the ugliness behind everything - protecting the boy's dream and innocence. Yet, he knew that he couldn't protect Luke forever. So, Tin sat back and let Luke experienced another truth about what he believed in.

"Behind every beautiful words lie their ugly truths, something they always try to hide," Tin spoke, his voice calm and soothing. "This is true to both the Empire and the Rebels," he added and was surprised with how calm his own voice was. Well, talking bad about the Empire might not be good for him. But right now he was in the Rebel's base – Tin guessed that he was allowed to be honest about his side for once; he had no need to protect the Empire's reputation here.

Luke was silent for a while, but then the boy leaned in and Tin let Luke released the cuff that held his arms together.

"I know," the boy finally spoke after Tin's arms were free. "I know that it's not all sunshine and rainbow. But… it's still shocking…" Luke trailed off, looking at the cuff in his hand before he threw it away. "…I'm going to talk to whoever responsible for this. They're… they're not supposed to do this to you. You didn't deserve this."

"There is no need," Tin shook his head, wincing as pain erupted by his movement. He sighed and continued. "Master Luke, you've to accept that I'm a prisoner here. And this is…war. There is no rule. And…if you're to defeat the Empire, being soft is not going to get you anywhere close."

"But this is not…" Luke's blue eyes flashed with anger. Tin watched as the boy took a deep breath again and again before he could continue. "I'm going to make it better. I know the Rebel needs information and they'll try everything. But…but if they let this…cruelty continue… they're nothing but just another Empire," Luke sighed. "…I'm not changing my mind about my side. I know they might not be all pure and light, but it's not going to be another Empire. I'll make sure of it." The boy took a deep breath and somehow Tin felt proud. It took a lot of courage to accept the truth, especially such an ugly truth. Also, the strong determination in those blue eyes made Tin rethink about the whole situation.

At first, Tin was thinking about trying to talk Luke back to the Empire side. But then he stopped because there was a small voice in his mind kept asking if this was what he really wanted – for Luke to be back with them after all of this? Beside, although he did persuade Luke to come back, but would the boy did it because he really wanted to be back or just to make Tin happy?

To make me happy, of course, Tin knew the answer even before he had to really think about it. It was obvious that Luke cared deeply about him and parting away from Tin was probably the hardest decision Luke had to make when he decided to join the Rebels. Tin found that he respected that strong determination and had no intention to take it away from the boy in front of him.

"Master Luke," so Tin smiled. A genuine and happy smile. "I'll no longer try to talk you back to the Empire side. If this is what you truly want, then I won't stop you. I only want you to be happy. You…you've made me proud."

Luke's eyes lightened up but he said nothing. They just sat in silence before Luke started crying.

"Master Luke?!" Tin gasped and reached for the boy, but Luke reached for him first. The young Jedi hugged him as he cried.

"Thank you Tin," Luke gasped out between each sob. Yet, beneath the tears, Tin could still hear how relieved Luke was. It was like Tin's approval was the only thing Luke truly needed before he could move on. "Thank you."

"I'm proud of you," Tin whispered as he caressed Luke's hair, cradling the boy in his arms. "I'm so proud of you."

Tin had a feeling that Luke was going to do something big, something that would change the galaxy. However, he didn't say it out loud but continued to hold the boy and gave him a soothing massage. For now, Tin allowed his mind to forget where they were and focused on Luke because he didn't think he would have a chance to hold the boy like this again. He didn't want to think of this as a good-bye, but it was still possible.

They talked a bit after that. Luke ensured Tin that he would have a word with the interrogator as soon as possible after he got back from the mission. Tin nodded and told Luke to be safe. However, he didn't tell Luke that it wasn't going to work. Despite how talented and reliable Luke was to the Rebels, he was still a child. And no adult in such position would take his request seriously when it came to an Imperial prisoner.

Several hours after Luke was gone, several Rebels came to visit him. Tin braced himself as soon as he saw them went into the room. He knew what they wanted from their expressions. They wanted revenge for whatever the Empires had done to them, and they were going to take it out on him.

As he took the first punch, Tin wished that he would be long gone before Luke came back to see what had happened to him - hoping the boy would come back after his body was disposed. He wanted Luke's last memory about him to be the good one, not his crippled and bloody corpse.

To his surprise, Tin found that he was still alive after being used as a punching bag for what felt like ages. He was still alive, bloody and severely injured but alive. He was laying on a medical bed, bandages were applied to his face, torso, and limbs.

I'm stronger than I thought, Tin thought as he slowly brought his right hand to his face. His arm shook but he still succeeded. After that Tin dropped his hand back to his side and start wriggling his fingers and toes. Good, it seems like my nervous system is still working.

It took Tin several minute to be able to sit up. It was a painful and exhausting process but he pulled through. The clone was panting when he succeeded.

Looking around, Tin noted that he was back in a med bay. Also, he was wearing a patient gown, just liked in the first time he woke up here. However, the different was that his left wrist was chain to the bed by a handcuff.

So, they still want me alive, Tin thought, slowly brought himself back to a lying position. He was exhausted and since there was nothing better that he could do right now, Tin decided that continued sleeping was his best option.

Tin woke up to a loud emergency siren. He didn't have to be a Rebel to recognize this noise; it seemed to be galactically known by everyone.

What happens? Tin thought as he looked around the room. He was still chained to the bed but there was no one here. However, Tin was still able to hear a lot of people running and shouting outside the room. And after trying hard to listen to those distinctive voices, Tin could make out the world 'Imperial'.

So the Empire is here, good, the clone grinned, sitting up. Sitting up still made him pant but Tin was determined to get up on his feet before the imperial broke in. He didn't want to look weak and pathetic in front of them. And secondly, he didn't know if the Imperial was here to sweep the Rebels off and search the base, or just bombed this place to pieces. In that case, Tin needed to move. He wasn't afraid of dying, but this time he couldn't die yet – not until he had got his message to Lord Vader.

The clone tested the handcuff and grinned because he knew how to work himself out of this. He knew this type of handcuff and was able to break the artificial plasma chain between two cuffs with a right way to pull and shut the circuit down. However, the process still consumed strength and Tin found himself panting heavily after he was done.

I'm getting older, and weaker, Tin mused, still panting. No, no, this is not a time to sit and brood. I need to get out of here.

With pure determination, Tin pulled himself to a standing position. This process also consumed strengths and he had to lean on the wall for support. It took Tin several seconds before he could start walking and pain flooded through his veins as soon as he did. Yet, Tin remembered his training to focus his mind elsewhere and continued to walk.

Tin headed toward the door. It seemed that luck was on his side because the door wasn't locked. Yet, as soon as the door slid open, Tin was met with several armed Rebels who were about to open the door to get him.

The clone tried to fight back as he was pulled harshly out of the medical bay. With the little strength he had, it didn't take long until Tin couldn't do anything but walking into the direction that the Rebels wanted him to go, surrounded by a squad of Rebels. His hands were tied behind his back and his injuries were screaming in pain.

As soon as the squad of Rebels had him under their control and ordered him to start walking, Tin had picked up a lot of things from the distinctive noises and activities around them. The Rebels were evacuating. An emergency evacuating. The Imperial had found this base and they were breaking in. Tin was glad the Imperial was doing such a good work on making the Rebels on a run. Yet, he still couldn't help but wonder why the Rebels had chosen to waste their limited resources on him. These squad would probably be more useful with helping the evacuation.

Why am I so important that they need to send a squad to get me? Tin thought, confused. Presumed that they're not idiots who thought the Imperial with bargains for a life of one sergeant. Maybe I'm one of the very few prisoners they've and they're really in need of information? Or maybe…maybe because I'm important to master Luke?

After a few seconds of trying to chew on these options, Tin decided to drop the subject and paid more attention to what happened around him. Now they were out of the building and were crossing a bridge linking two buildings together; these two buildings were built on two side of the river. Also, Tin could spot smoke and fire on the distance along with faint gunfire. Up on the sky, he could make out several Rebels ships trying to escape, only to be shot down by many Imperial fighters approaching the area.

Good, blast them down guys, Tin thought as he was shoved into the entrance of the other building and into another series of passageways. However, Tin could still guess that they were approaching a hangar bay - judging from many Rebels heading this way with their supplies.

Tin guessed that this Rebels base must be quite huge. Those Rebels ships he had seen getting shot down seemed to have taken off from somewhere else. That meant this place must have at least two hangar bays. And judging from how far all those smoke and the source of gunfire were, it seemed like the other entrance to this base were very far away from here.

As he was pushed to turn at one corner, Tin was able to look at the map of the base and got a brief image of it in his head. This base was truly huge, with three separated facilities - each with their own hangar bay and several entrances. The question was, did the Empire manage to cover all the entrances or not.

"Move!"

One of the Rebel pushed him with the end of their blasters and Tin stumbled forward, groaning as he could feel the stitches tore. Another Rebel jabbed their blaster right into his bruises and Tin winced, biting the inner of his cheeks to will himself not to make a sound.

Silently, they walked into what looked like a storage room. Many Rebels were busy moving whatever they stored here toward two large entrances at each side of the room. Tin was sure that one of these two entrances, or both, would lead to a hangar bay.

The Rebels pushed him toward the right entrance. They joined the panic wave of Rebels trying to evacuate and save their resources as much as possible. There was a large opened gate at the end of the passage and Tin was sure that it was a hangar bay. However, as they were half way there, the screaming began.

"Imperials!"

"Back! Back!"

"They're here!"

"To the other hangar!"

The frantic shouts were accompany by sounds of gunfire and screams. Tin was pulled backward and he stumbled, grunting as one of the Rebel dug their fingers into his skin to haul him to his feet.

"Back!" that Rebel shouted at him. Tin was pushed around them and for a moment he weighted his option on stealing their blaster and tried to take as many Rebels with him as possible. However, that thought was stopped by a sound of something crashing and more screaming.

"They're bombing this facility!"

"To the hangar! To the hangar!"

"It's Vader. It's Vader!"

Lord Vader is here! Tin thought, almost smiling. Now what he had to do was stay alive a little longer – just long enough to deliver his report.

"Don't you get any idea!" one Rebel his him across the face and Tin grunted as blood ran down his nose. "We're not letting you run back to your master."

"As much as I want to see you dead, the order is that the boss wants you alive," another one grumbled, pushing Tin to walk faster before forcing him to run.

They emerged back into the storage room. This time they went to the entrance on the left. The guards taking Tin was pushing and pulling their way through the crowd, shouting that they had a very important 'asset'.

It took a while but in the end they made it into the second hangar. Tin looked around to see Rebel ships readying themselves to leave the base. Most of the ships here were half loaded and would be leaving soon.

"That's our ship!"

Beside him, one of the guard shouted to her friends as she pointed at a small ship near the center of hangar. The other Rebels immediately pushed Tin toward that ship, and that was when every door of the hangar bay slid shut. Then, one of the ship which was about to take off flew right into another ship, crashing both of them to the wall and exploded. People screamed while some were already dead from the blast. And it was not an accident.

Tin almost smiled. Lord Vader is here.