It was cramped on the freighter, Brook tugged at the stiff, oil crusted overall he was wearing.

Scorch looked over to him and grinned.

"Hey, at least look like you are working vod." He said, "before the inspection mistakes you with a kicked Ack-hound. Or are you still looking for your other boot?"

"Which inspection?" Brook grumbled, fingers itching to open the box he was sitting on.

"I thought this whole thing," he gestured around," was just a backup."

They had stowed their armour beneath tons of weird civy stuff, mostly weird smelling powders and plexi bottles and the young cone was desperate to get his kit back.

"No plan survives first contact." Was all Scorch replied.

The last night before they took off everybody had nicked in to finish it and Brook hadn't been able to hide the moisture in his eyes as he armoured up for the final tests. It had been in the very early morning, pretty much all of them running on caf and sugar alone, but it had been the best feeling to finally but his bucket back on and feel the weight of his kit again.

The sleep during the flight had been very welcome, indeed, after loading the ship Brook had collapsed in his bunk, the next morning he had even still found a boot on his right foot.

Scorch was still bringing it up whenever he could. At least his brother had- so far- been quiet about the physical changes that had taken place. Most people didn't look for clones- most of them didn't even know what one look like outside of armour- but no one wanted to take risks here.

Boss whacked Scorch across the back of his head.

"Ow!" The other clone protested, glaring at his brother.

"Hey, I was only including him." He protested, looking over to Brook for help, but he only smiled buisying himslef with a data-pad about procedures of the freighter company Vau had borrowed the ship from.

None of them had asked just how far the story really was true.

Only Boss was even less in a joking mood than usual. He sat down next to Brook , put his elbows on his legs and leaned forward.

"Look Scorch he started," a menacing form even in the worn clothing of a simple help of a freighter, "I know this is how you deal with stress, but if you don't shut up I will tell Brook how you got your name."

Brook perked up, that sounded good. Scorch on the other hand paled.

"You would not do that."

"I will if you don't keep your mouth shut and for every time you continue to put even one foot out of line during this mission I will tell our Spaarti one report with which he can shut you up, vod."

Both clones looked each other, Brook uncertain on the side lines. He still had trouble telling what a situation was like at times and Boss was harder to read than most people, almost as hard as a civy.

Than, Scorch swallowed audibly. "Understood Sir." He answered. Than stood up, stiffly marching towards the doors.

"I will check up on Fixer, see if he needs to be relieved."

"Do that Scorch." His brother answered, than waited until the doors had closed behind Scorch before he turned around t o Brook.

"And now to you vod'ika."

Brook felt himself straighten, thoughts started to race. He had not done anything wrong, had he?

Boss could not give out official demerits any more, but his words and Scorch's action had made very clear that they still lived, breathed the structure of the GAR, the only life they had ever known.

Would Brook get his part now? But for what?

Boss shook his head and clasped a broad hand over his shoulder.

"Look Brook, I will make this short. Vau is hard. I will be honest, because while he is a bloody bastard, he made us strong, strong enough to survive. I have no doubt Sev, my brother, is still alive and I have no doubt it is because Vau put us through all hells of Corellia while were on to him and listen to us. We are a squad and we will do this. Understood?"

"Yes Sir!" had Brook been standing he would have snapped to attention, sitting down, his brother so close to his side, all he could do was sit up ramrod straight, hand twitching at his side. They were not in the GAR any more and at Kyrimorut a salute had not been appreciated by most of his brothers.

Boss let go of his shoulder, giving him a last pat before he stood up and grabbed the next data pad, browsing through it.

"Good and now get to it. In case the Sargent's plan fails we need to know this ship and its contents inside out."

The next hours passed with the four clones rooting through the containers and inhaling the information on the data pads.

The plan was to fake being an ordinary freighter, supplies for the civilians on the planet.

Brook remembered one of Vau's very few grins as the men broke a few perfume bottles and emptied them over the containers.

"I am very glad they are still reying more on the animals than on scanners here. Good intel from the Nulls" He had rumbled. "That should keep their hounds from smelling our small arsenal. Skirata's personal army does have it's uses every now and then."

Brook had pulled a face, pulling a few steps back. "I'm sure everything in the forest will be smelling us." Escaped him, he flinched as the man straightened from his crouch and turned to him.

"Well, then you will just have to scrub your gear like a good trooper." Vau snarled, before cutting off an amused laugh. The old mando just didn't do laughs.

"The hairstyle suits you shiny." He added before strolling out of the room, seemingly as at home in the uniform of the freighter group than in his gear.

Brook pulled at his worn overall and wished he could do the same. Than he ran a hand through his hair, and sighed. He must look ridiculous.

Scorch, somehow appearing behind another crate punched him in the arm.

"Well, he's in a good mood today and that bright blond mow-hawk really does look good on you, as well as the blue eyes."

Brook scowled, but didn't argue that he found Scorch's beard and darkened skin to be a much nicer disguise as his own.

In the end it didn't take long for the inspection team to snoop through the small space ship.

The guards looked faintly embarrassed as their animals shied back from the overly sweet, potent smell of the cargo bay.

"Feck, what is that?" one of them complained, both hands tightly gripping the lash of his ack-hound, who was lying on it's belly, refusing to take one step closer to the source of the stench.

Vau was playing the wary ship owner and at least part of it was true, he desperately wanted these men off of his ship.

"Some of the perfume bottles must have broken during transport. Apparently this stench is the new trend from Coruscant." He shook his head.

"I will never understand why woman think they smell better with that stuff on." Rough laugher echoed through the corridor.

Brook shifted from one leg to the other, imitating the restlessness of the civilians he had met so far. Even as a shiny Spaarti he could maintain a position longer than most of the mongrels. His thoughts wandered. He knew Laseema and Besany wore perfume every no and then, he had liked the smell, it had been nothing like the heady, overly sweet cloud that hung in the ship.

It took a few more moments, the men now going through the ship without their hounds, but they were pretty lax, opening a few crates, but not really going through them, just skimming the surface layer.

Brook had to keep his chin from falling to the floor. None of his brothers would have been so lax. Feck, even he would have been more thorough.

Shortly after that the Sargent pressed a data pad into Vau's hands.

"There you go Sir." He said, giving the older man a short nod. "I wish all of the people here were so cooperative as you are. Good travel."

"Thank you." Vau replied, waited until the men had left the ship, waited until the door had closed and turned to the cloes.

He flung the pad into a corner and started bellowing out orders.

"Well? What are you standing around like brain-dead banthas? Get cracking. Get your kit out, scrub it, I want t so scentless even Mird wouldn't be able to smell it. Then get the crates ready for transport."

Then he stalked off to release the animal from his cabin. Originally Kal had suggested locking it in a small transport cage to present it as a novelty for the resort, but Vau had nearly decked Skirata for even suggesting it.

A.N.:

So, here is the next chapter, extra long just for you guys.

And next chapter the actions starts (for real, I promise.)