So Come All You Warriors

Men who were fighting for all of our lives
Are now fighting for children, for homes and for wives,
Fighting for the memory of all who fell before,
But the soldiers of peace just can't kill any more.

"Soldiers of Peace" - Graham Nash, Craig Doerge & Joe Vitale

It was night when they assembled.

It was for practical reasons, really. The day was full of screaming and playing children, of Nura stuffing people full of food, of Rex giving everyone briefings on their more recent activities, and of Ahsoka trying to give the younglings new Force lessons to work on.

Now the children slept, and the adults gathered outside on the verandah. Dim lights filtered through windows, giving a soft warmth to the space around the table, the nighttime darkness held at bay. To look up and look out would reveal a navy sky with white stars, standing out brightly against a moonless heaven.

There was a soft clatter as Nura set a platter of sticky-sweet sesame cakes in the center of the long table. She pushed them directly in front of Cody, who'd she'd decided needed feeding. Cody, in turn, was proving himself not completely adverse to some mothering. Ahsoka smiled as she watched Nura sit and Cody pick up one of the sweet cakes to eat.

They did not always assemble like this when she and Rex returned home. They usually didn't need to, and any gatherings after the children went to sleep were usually relaxed affairs involving random chatter, Corellian ale, pastries and cards.

There was a kind of excited aura of apprehension hovering around the table, thoroughly mixed with curiosity. Fives had continued being mysterious; the battered bantha-leather carry-case he had with him only further piqued the sense of interest from the rest of them. He would only say that it was no bad thing, and not to worry, but that did little to relieve the sense of concern about the situation, of what he might have found.

Ahsoka leaned to the side, pressing her cheek on Rex's shoulder for a moment as he broke one of the cakes in two and offered her half. She smiled, accepted it, and began to munch as Fives cleared his throat, looking a little nervous now that it was time to explain himself. His hands ran over the leather case, fingers drumming on the surface for a moment.

"I know you're all wondering about it. I'm trying to think of the best place to start."

"The beginning is usually good, Fives," Echo suggested wryly.

Fives nodded. "The beginning, right." He tapped his hands on the top of the case again. "Clink contacted me awhile ago and sent me some coordinates for a rendezvous with an informant. The informant was one of us." He made a vague gesture indicating Rex, Echo, Cody, Waxer. They all waited expectantly, with varied expressions on their faces. "It was one of the Null ARC's."

Ahsoka straightened up as a strange ripple of amusement, annoyance, respect and what she could only describe as a feeling of droll unsurprise rolled around the table. Cody snorted, chuckling, and leaned forward to put his arms on the tabletop. "Why does it not surprise me at least one of those delinquents got themselves out?"

"Meesa not be understanding. What be bein' a Null ARC?" Nura was looking between the clones, head tilted curiously.

Waxer explained, "They were prototypes of us, I guess. Never met one myself. If half the rumors I heard were true, they were all trouble."

There was a smattering of dark laughter from Rex and Cody. Ahsoka gave Nura a shrug, not quite getting the joke either. Then she looked at Rex, who replied with a grin, "Nulls weren't ones to cross. They were a couple years older than me, but I distinctly recall the time when they rigged the broadcast system on Tipoca to scream some crazy Mando cuss every time one of the Kaminoans tried to open a comm channel to give orders. Well, everyone assumed it was them, anyway. The Kaminoans never could trace the slicer. That's about as close as any of us ordinary troopers got to that group."

Cody was snickering. "I remember that. It sounded a lot like Sergeant Vau, if memory serves."

"Took almost a week to weed out whatever they'd done to it," Rex finished. "Learned all kinds of interesting vocabulary you don't get from flash training."

"So what have the Nulls done now, then?" Echo asked. "Rigged the Emperor's cruise ship to scream at him in Mando'a?"

Fives was fidgeting. "I'm not sure of all the details. I met with Seven, Mereel." He took a deep breath. "They've got some sort of fancy geneticist working for them, or did. They've found a way to switch off the rapid aging gene sequence the Kaminoans worked into our DNA."

There was silence. Ahsoka blinked at Fives a couple times, then looked around the table, at the growing expressions of numb shock, incomprehension and disbelief. The air had grown thick with quiet, a seaside feeling of withdrawing before a wall of water rose up to cause chaos upon striking land.

"What?" Waxer repeated, blankly. "They did what?"

Fives said, carefully, "They found a way to stop the rapid aging of clones."

"That's not possible," said Cody, brows drawing together in consternation. "It's built into the gene structure. It's not a light switch you can flick on and off. Aging is a part of cellular deterioration and everything alive experiences that. "

"The Kaminoans did do something to increase the speed of our maturation, obviously. But it's not natural. If I'm understanding Mereel's explanation right, they worked an artificial sequence in to cause the rapidity of our aging. If you can shut down the artificial sequence, the natural one all humans have takes over." Fives frowned.

Echo said, slowly, "Not so much flicking off a switch as exchanging a light bulb for some sunlight."

There was another pause. Then Ahsoka pressed a hand to her mouth as an onslaught of emotions rushed forward, almost enough to cause a sensation of drowning from their intensity as understanding began to catch up to each of the men. Beneath the table, she felt Rex's broad hand abruptly grasp hers, tightly, though his face remained warily neutral. She squeezed back, feeling the tension running from his hand up through his arm, his breath coming suddenly shorter.

There was only one question to ask, then. Quietly, Ahsoka said, "It works?"

Fives nodded. "The Nulls say it does, and they've had it for over a year now." He made a faint gesture towards himself, took a deep breath, and plunged forward again. "It doesn't cause any real harm either. Some headaches and nausea as your metabolic rate slows and restabilizes."

"Yousa already done it!" Nura exclaimed, a hand going up to her mouth in surprise, long earflaps twitching rapidly behind her as her yellow eyes widened.

Fives nodded, then clicked open the case and turned it around for the rest of them to see the contents. There were a variety of delicate, sealed transparasteel tubes cushioned against soft foam. "All we need is a hypospray. There's enough here for us and some others besides."

Cody began to laugh. He buried his face in his hands, and laughed, something like, "Those bastards" occasionally coming through coherently, only to be interrupted by another burst of laughter. Within a moment, Echo began to chuckle. Waxer leaned backward, breathing deeply, hands resting tightly on the wooden tabletop. Nura placed a hand on his shoulder, comfortingly, and beginning, hesitantly, to give a hopeful smile. Ahsoka turned to Rex, whose head was lowered, eyes closed. She slipped an arm around his waist, and felt him sag a little against her, then begin to laugh quietly.

Fives, sitting at the head of the table, looked benignant, a wide smile on his face.

"We have to open up contact with these people," Ahsoka said, not sure if she should be laughing along with most of the rest of the table, or crying from some sort of relief. Or both, the way Cody seemed to be. She was nearly trembling from her own feelings and the flooding tsunami of emotions of the men around her were experiencing. Her arm around Rex tightened and her thoughts raced. "We'll need to get word to the other clones we've gotten out, find the ones that went underground. These Null ARCs, they might even have more information on other Jedi as well if they've been helping clones."

She was beginning to get excited. There were a huge number of potential outcomes from this. There could be massive repercussions if the existence of a 'decelerating' cure for rapid aging existed. Most of the Imperial military was still made of clone soldiers, even if many of them were not Kaminoan in origin. If they knew of the existence of a way of extending their lives into a normal range, how would it affect the Empire? It could cause massive disruptions in the Empire's internal functions. Mass dissent and potentially desertions if the men in the army were not given access. The cure for rapid aging was not only a salvation for men whose lives were cut short, but potentially a dangerous weapon against the entire Imperial power structure, if they could handle this right. It could be extremely difficult, if the Empire knew where they were working from. Dangerous. But the potential good was too great. She wondered why these Nulls hadn't already begun to spread the word – no, they had. Through Clink and then Fives and then to the rest of them. It was small scale. They didn't want to be discovered. It was a practical reason, a good reason. Still, the thought of saving so many and striking such a blow without firing a shot was deeply alluring if they could make it possible. "Another group standing against the Empire is good news. We need to meet them, establish some connections to work together. We'll have to pass on word if-" her words trailed off as she noticed Fives' expression. "What? What's wrong?"

"This isn't going to be easy. For now, it's probably best if they didn't see you, Ahsoka." At her puzzled look, he continued, with some discomfort, "The Nulls are very, very Mando." He looked at her pointedly.

Bewildered for a moment, Ahsoka stared at him. It took Cody muttering something dark and incomprehensible for her to suddenly understand, and she blurted, astonished, "You're telling me they wouldn't work with us because of some stupid centuries old vendetta against Jedi?" She felt her face and lekku flush darkly. Rex quickly put a hand on her shoulder, restraining, as her voice peaked and she began to rise from her seat. Fives hands went up helplessly, placating. She spluttered in anger as Rex pulled her backward, against him. "It doesn't have anything to do with Jedi! Palpatine is exterminating entire populations and they're holding grudges? That is the stupidest – most narrow-minded…!"

Rex quickly interrupted the tirade before it went any further. "We'll need to keep up contact of some kind, though, if that's a limited supply you have. Maybe it would be better if we kept things quiet for awhile until we figure out how best to approach them. Just brothers helping out other brothers, until we know exactly," he looked at Ahsoka, who was calming enough to slowly seethe, "how open minded – or narrow minded – about Jedi they are."

A few gazes were cast towards the house, where the Force-sensitive younglings lay sleeping inside.

"Meesa be thinkin it be best to keep contact," Nura said, but her expression grew grim. "For the sake of other boys like yousa all be. But nobody gonna be knowing where my Roo and the little ones be hiding. Theysa all be needing to stay safe."

"I think we can all agree on that," Ahsoka ground out after a moment. She grimaced. "Stupid grudges or not, they're probably about as welcoming to visitors as we are, and for good reason. I can't fault them for that. We're already doing the same."

"Who wants to take bets they're hiding somewhere on Mandalore, if they're so into being Mandalorians?" Echo rolled his eyes. "It's not that big or populated a planet. Someone knowing they're out there though, with enough reason to flush them out, probably wouldn't have too hard a time of it. They're taking a big risk spreading word. One leak and they're done."

Ahsoka snorted and folded her arms sourly, grateful in spite of the insult to her kind. "Well, we won't be the weak link, regardless of what they might think of Jedi. We're all for helping clones, so we're on the same side in that regard, whether they want to acknowledge that or not."

"Fives, I'm assuming you've got a way of contacting Mereel again?" Rex asked. At Fives' nod, he sighed. "Then once we've had a turn at this, we'll be busy spreading this cure for awhile. Echo, can you start compiling a list of last known locations of the men we've gotten out?"

"Not a problem."

"Nura, do we have any hypos?"

The Gungan woman shook her head. "Weesa not be having any here. Meesa can drive down to town tomorrow and be picking one up."

"Actually," Fives interrupted before Rex could start issuing any more orders, "it might be a good idea to do this one or two at a time. We've only got so many refreshers and," he winced a little, absently rubbing his belly, "we should be sure we don't have more nauseous men than we do 'freshers."

Rex paused, looked vaguely ill at the thought of the process coming up, but agreed. "I'll go first."

Cody cut in, looking sharply between Rex and Ahsoka. "That's not necessary. I can go first."

Fives rolled his eyes. "Stop talking like it's dangerous. I've already gone through it, we don't need to test it on anyone." He flushed a little red. "We just need to keep enough 'freshers open during the metabolic and digestion adaptations. The worst is over in a couple days. You'll all have taken it within a week."

"It would make the most sense if Rex went first anyway," Waxer said. "The sooner he's over it, the sooner we can start delivering the serum to others." He eyed the transparasteel tubes and the syrupy liquid they contained.

Before anyone else could raise further objections, Rex decided, "Then it's settled. Tomorrow Nura will pick up a couple hyposprays for us, and we'll take turns."

"Meesa will be sure to pick up some nuna noodle soup for sick stomachs," Nura chuckled.

The quiet began to return. There were quick, encouraging smiles exchanged, hopeful looks, but nervous too.

Ahsoka sighed, leaned back against Rex, then quickly kissed him on the cheek as she stood, giving Nura a nod. The Gungan woman joined her, and though the five men sitting at the table gave them questioning looks at the departure, none moved to stop them.

The two women let the brothers be for a time.

Ahsoka walked out onto the verandah, feeling a breeze press past her face.

It was a bright day; there were few clouds, and wind rushed through the grass and trees. A day for feeling alive, and looking forward. She took a stand beside Rex, who was leaning against the rail, and placed a hand on his arm, peering around to look at him. She frowned a little, brows creasing in worry.

"Rex, come inside and rest. You're starting to look Mirialan, and not in a good way."

He managed to chuckle once, then winced as his stomach made an uncomfortable gurgling noise. He seemed to turn another shade greener, and Ahsoka reached up, closing her eyes and focusing, willing the Force to wrap around him like a comfortable blanket, smoothing down frayed nerves and queasy organs. The discomforting sensation of churning he radiated began to slow into a lackadaisical whirl. She felt him breathe in deeply, relax. Rex was, at least, slightly more stable than he'd been last night. He was barely in bed at all. It worried her.

It was days like this she missed Barriss. Not only her friendship, but her skills. She had been so much better at healing, in all its aspects. Ahsoka had improved with fixing wounds sustained in battle, but she would rather have relied on her friend's knowledge for internal matters such as this.

"Thank you."

"You should rest," she urged him.

He shook his head and turned back towards the yard. "I've been inside too much. The air helps."

She gave him a skeptical look, but did not further press the matter. She stood beside him, their arms just touching. It was spring, cool but warming, and the vegetable garden off to the side of the house was starting to show sprouts. It supplemented all of their diets, and gave the children good practice sensing currents of living Force moving through the plants. Now, though, the younglings were arrayed across the backyard. The two eldest, Maera and Rithron, were fencing, wooden staves clacking off each other as they went through rounds of preset steps, advancing and then retreating in unison. Ahsoka smiled a little as she noticed them seeming to favor a reverse grip. She'd have to be sure they were capable of a forward grip, though it pleased her a little to see they were trying to follow her favored style. The pair occasionally would throw something unexpected into the mix, trying to catch the other off guard, either to impress or outdo their partner with attempts at fancy spinning strikes. She hoped they wouldn't end up clouting each other in the head too hard.

The younger ones were lined up in rows, Echo and Waxer marching up and down either side attentively. Each pair was levitating a boloball between them, shooting it back and forth between each other without touching, practicing levitation and control, the balls sometimes flying up into fantastic swoops in attempts at showing off and playing.

"You'll have Padawans in a couple more years," Rex said, eyes on the elder two.

Ahsoka looked up at him, then back at the Twi'lek girl and Zabrak boy. They were both smiling as they worked their way back and forth, five steps one way, then back the other. Their movements were simple and unrefined, but solid and well executed. She wished one of the Masters were here to teach them properly. Her tutoring seemed like so little. She had been starting to learn more advanced forms at their age; she spent time learning to leap mid-air and deflect low-frequency blaster bolts with a training saber, not block boloballs with a carved wooden stick. So much was gone. She worried for their skills, that they would not be enough. Echo and Waxer were both teaching them all hand-to-hand, and eventually blaster work.

She wished she knew better how they would turn out as adults. Their schooling here was abnormal, not Jedi, not clone, and to be honest she wasn't exactly sure what Gungan education looked like, though Nura made sure they studied more mundane topics like science, mathematics and language. Echo was starting to take over instruction for the older children.

Still though. It was, in part, their lack of training that kept them safer here. A dozen full-blown, adult Force signatures in one place, even with Alderaan's highly populated cities and forest masking them, would begin to attract attention. For now, those signatures were murky, vague.

That would change in time. They had to learn, and grow up. She did not want them to be ignorant of who they were. Of what they were. It would get harder on them as they aged. They had to learn, and had to get real experience outside of the cloistered lives they led here. The galaxy was set against them. They had to be able to survive. It was her responsibility to teach them.

The ship had grown quiet since Echo and Fives left.

"Is it alright?" she asked Rex.

He gave her a puzzled look. "Alright?"

"For them to come with us. They need to train, but," she paused, trying to think through what she wanted to say. Bonds between a Master and a Padawan were often familial, not just in the big, extended family way they were now, but often sibling-like, or parental, depending on the width of the gap between the ages and the people involved. Anakin had eventually felt like an older brother as much as teacher. Obi-Wan a much older brother or perhaps a kind of uncle. The thought of Rex and herself taking two younglings in, in such a fashion, felt like a small, almost natural family, two children and their parents. Without the officialty of the Jedi Order, working on their own, that perception felt even stronger. "It would be a lot like having children, Rex," she said eventually, quietly.

Beneath the greenish tinge currently accenting his skin, she noticed a little pinkness begin to color his cheeks as he processed that. They had not spoken of such things before. "Oh," he said after a long moment. There was a lull as they watched Maera pull a trick out, trying a technique she'd picked up from one of Ahsoka's lessons, and vaulted over Rithron's shoulder, body tucking in close as she rotated mid-air, landing gracefully only to find Rithron's wooden sword poised to strike. She pouted a little.

"The boy's getting good," Rex commented, casually. "He'll be hard to keep up with."

Ahsoka's smile bloomed softly, and she resisted the urge to trail her fingers down his cheek. "So is she. I only showed them that yesterday."

"I never thought I'd live long enough to see anything like this," Rex said, gazing towards the ground. "What do you do with so much time?"

Ahsoka reached out with her mind, brushed lightly against his, giving reassurance, and sensing a feeling of stretching and length. A normal lifespan. She tried to imagine what it would feel like if someone told her it was possible to double the length of her life. Many people would perhaps rejoice at such a concept. To cheat death awhile, to live on and on.

What did it feel like, to grow up knowing you'd pass others by, watch yourself grow gray, wrinkled, worn, while others took the slow road to reach those same markers of life? Rex was afraid. Happy at the thought of living what most would call a normal life, but intimidated too. Years and decades more living. Years and decades of more fighting, more running, more training, more Empire.

"You live on," Ahsoka replied. "And someday you die." Rex's head bent, and Ahsoka bit her lip. Then she added, for levity, to make him smile again, "Of course, first we'll retire in a nice galaxy uninfested with megalomaniac dictators. Then we can have our Padawans visit with their Padawans, and complain about younglings these days."

Rex seemed a bit confused by the joke for a moment, then guffawed. "I'll get old," he said, in a tone almost awed. "Gray hair. A few of the older clones started getting gray hair, but I've never seen a really old one."

"You'll be a pioneer," Ahsoka laughed, then added, with a more gentle warmth, "We'll grow old at the same time."

He stared at her for a moment, uncertainly at first. Then as the feeling eased and understanding came, he smiled down at her, slowly, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She leaned against him.

Before them lay the future.

Just a little reflection here, rounding things out. Though having read the RepCom series, I'm not sure what the age decelerating 'cure' (for lack of a better word) would look like. I'm assuming it's a gene therapy triggered by an injection of some kind. I am by no means a medical or nursing student, so I'm shooting in the dark on this and trying to remember my many-years-ago biology classes. If there's a canon explanation (or any med students/geneticists/mad scientists) out there, please feel free to share info. I'm just going by what seems logical to me, and sadly the series cuts off before explanations are given.

There are really so many places and things that could happen to this group of characters post-series. The more I wrote about them, the more directions I found the characters spinning. Ahsoka becoming a responsible leader, Rex relaxing a bit, Echo getting some confidence and Fives some independence. Their varied stories could go on for ages. I hope I've managed to touch on a least a few of the major possibilities, and you've enjoyed the ride as I have. I'd deeply appreciate it if you could drop a line and let me know if you've enjoyed the story.

An epilogue to go.

Always,

~Queen