Innocents of Ryloth
Scene 6
Republic command base, in the city of Nabat. Clone troops mill about among the fallen chunks of masonry, ready to launch an offensive on the city's central courtyard.
Cody stood, one foot propped on a tumbled bit of wall or roof – something pretty, all carved and smoothed out on one side – and tried every channel available on his gauntlet comm.. array. Nothing. It was way past 1620, and not a word. The men were ready to move out. To go take a shot at those cannon. Cody should have been happy. For reasons best known to himself, the General had decided to do it the straightforward way this time: go in with everything they had. But worry snaked through his gut with sickening persistence, spiraling into a vague dread.
"Are the men set, Cody?" the Jedi asked, hopping lightly down the slope from stone to stone. Then, changing abruptly to a tone of keen personal concern, "What is it?"
Cody about jumped out of his skin. Might have actually done so had his black bodysuit not kept him contained inside. He hadn't uttered a single word about his secret anxiety and his helmet was securely in place, concealing his face entirely. It was that Jedi mind-reading thing again, vape it. But there was no use hemming and hawing in denial, now was there?
"Waxer and Boil are not responding. They never returned from scouting," he explaned succinctly. He knew the General would get all the subtle implications.
Kenobi ran a hand across his chin, frowning. Oh yeah, he understood all right. "That's not like them," he said. "They may have run into trouble."
That response might once have irritated Cody – repeating the obvious wasn't his style. But he was getting to know the Jedi well enough to catch the meaning behind the understated assessment. It meant, I have exactly the same bad feeling that you do about this, Cody. Waxer and Boil could be trapped, wounded, imprisoned, dead. We can't do anything about it until we get in there; and the fact that they ran into trouble means that we are in for unanticipated problems, too. But we must stay calm and keep a clear head.
Cody nodded in agreement, not really feeling any better but confident that Kenobi would not leave Nabat without at least finding out what fate had befallen his missing brothers. "Sergeant," he barked at Wheeze, who stood a few meters away. "Use the high power transmitter. See if you can reach Waxer or Boil." It was a long shot, but worth a try. They might at least be able to pinpoint the truant clones' position.
"Yes sir."
The General surveyed the area somberly. His eyes rested on each member of Ghost Company in turn. Cody had seen him do that before too – every time they prepared for a dangerous engagement. It was like he was either imprinting them on memory, or else taking responsibility for each one individually. Seemed like a damn fool thing to do – war didn't leave room for sentiment. Or maybe it was part of the General's hokey Jedi religion. There were plenty of things the commander knew he would never understand about that. At any rate, the Jedi's gaze eventually settled on Cody.
"Let's get the rest of the men moving," he said quietly. All but the perimeter guard would accompany them into the citadel's center. "The others will have to catch up." And that was his oblique, off-handed way of telling Cody not to give up hope.
Well, he hadn't given up – not yet.
They marched forward to find the cannon and whatever else lay in wait.