Glad this one didn't take as long as I was expecting. Hello everyone and welcome back to the story. Pleased to see that this little experiment is growing in popularity, makes me think I'll have to plan this thing out for the long haul…maybe. Seriously though, alongside the Mantle, I'm glad that for the most part, people are enjoying the story.

A little precursor to this chapter, since it focuses more on a single main protagonist (for now) it looks more into their personal history which also means snippets of Earth/British history I've explained more in the post-story notes but I'll only ask that you don't sprint to the review section before the end. Might turn out to be nothing but writing anything about real established history is somewhat new territory for me on this platform.

I don't think this counts as a spoiler but there's no real action in this chapter. Sorry if you waited this long expecting another one. By the way, not yet but a story idea came to me and I thought I'd share it. A British version of the Final Countdown (1980) check out the original if you haven't seen it.

Replies to Chapter Five -

Jctherebel - Thanks

Guest - That would be a pretty spectacular entrance when he is found. It reminds me somewhat of how Captain MacTavish found Captain Price in MW2.

Mandalore The Survivor - Cheers Mate. His coordination with the Clones and Phoenix squadron is improving; as any other soldier will tell you, coordination is key when working in a team. As I mentioned in the story thus far, pilots in the UNSC do get a bloody good bit of regular combat training and due to the lack of pilots during and after the created conflict, making sure they can fight when downed/captured is important.

Crazzytony - I'm Glad you're finding it interesting. Me too, If the lost pilot and Phoenix Squadron are to stay together though, they will need to find a common goal. As for the Chief or anyone from the Infinity, never say never. After all, who is to say that he and Jack were the only ones to be brought here?

Chapter Six: Duel First Impressions

Phoenix Squadron Ship "Ghost", Hyper Space

Galactic Location Unknown

Several Hours After Leaving Seelos

So, what weapons does she have?"

Inside the modified rebel freighter, Captain James took peace in the few moments of silence afforded to him as the ship travelled through 'Hyperspace' as he was informed. So far, there was almost nothing audible along the journey to differentiate between this new type of galactic travel and the one he was accustomed to. So far, the only hindrance to the near silence he was experiencing was the neverending curious Mandalorian opposite him.

"More than I can count," James replied, Sabine asking him every question she could about the ship he had initially come from.

Currently, he was inside the small galley of the Ghost with a cup canteen in one hand and a borrowed data pad in the other. The First-Class Petty Officer had used one of his few military-issued ration sachets to make himself a steaming hot cup of tea. Despite being raised on Reach, Sixty-Three Trillion miles away from his homeland on Earth, the hot rich beverage gave him some resemblance to home.

"Not an answer,"

While he took a relaxed sip, his eyes darted slowly between her and the datapad in his right hand. To alleviate some of the boredom that came with Hyperspace and Slipspace, as well as make some sense of the information given to him by the Clone Captain Rex. James had decided to use the time to get a better understanding of the new language that dominated the galaxy he now found himself in.

Using a basic audio-visual dictionary program, he surprisingly found it to be not too dissimilar from the ones used by him and the rest of his 'species'. With the exception of a few characters that combined one or more others for what he could only assume was universal convenience, James managed to pick up on the new written words better than he thought he would. Learning to become fluent enough in it though would still take time and faced with the reality that this would be his new home for quite some time, he set himself the task.

Peeking up from the datapad, he saw Sabine's eyes looking at him like a murderous spellbound puppy.

"Come on, really?" James asked, putting the datapad down in front of him on the table. "All the different types of weaponry in this place and you're that interested in my old-fashioned ballistics?" He questioned.

"Same old stuff, just different patterns. Projectiles haven't been used for millennia for a reason. I've never seen a slugthrower like that, which could pierce through a TIE fighter hull and still take out the pilot," Sabine said while pointing her hand at his battle rifle that he left off to the side by his leg.

Petty Officer Bailey remained silent, taking another swig of his tea. Noticing the slight discolouration that came with the addition of the slightly rich and ostensibly blue-coloured Bantha milk. Aside from some added sweetness, it was just as good as any other cup he had before his last battle on the Infinity.

With some mild amusement, James relented. "Alright fine, First-Class Petty Officers' aren't exactly informed of classified information. What've you got?" He asked.

Her curiosity being replaced with excitement, Sabine then asked, "How big was that ship you were on?" She asked immediately.

"The Infinity?" James clarified, "About Five and Half Klicks, or maybe 5 of those Star Destroyers that we encountered after you guys found," He answered, trying to give her something to compare in order to fully understand the full size of the UNSC Supercarrier.

Sabine's face flinched when he told her, "Seriously? That's insane, the only thing the Empire has that's bigger than that is a Super Star Destroyer and there's only like a dozen of them," She exclaimed.

"As far as I know, there are only two Infinity-Class Supercarriers, assuming the Infinity survived the engagement she was in when I 'left'. James informed her.

"Who were you fighting? I thought you said the war was over between you and the Covenant?" Sabine asked.

"I did, and it is. Unfortunately, Humanity can't seem to catch a break in my Galaxy," James answered before going into the further details he knew she was after. "Without getting too much into it, the Galaxy is in a three-way free-for-all between Humanity, a rogue AI and a tyrannical splinter faction of the Covenant," He said, blurting out what assumed would be an unintelligible explanation.

Sabine blanked out, "Sounds pretty intense," She said.

His mind partially drifted to multiple battles involving the Banished and the Created. While James never thought that he or the rest of Humanity could face an enemy worse than the Covenant, the Banished proved themselves worthy of such a claim. While they were much less organised and tactical than the Covenant, the Brute-led faction made up for it in pure barbarity and ruthlessness.

However, at least they had a chance when it came to fighting the Banished. Cortana, her AI followers and the Promethean forces under her command made it all but impossible to fight them conventionally. Using Forerunner technology, they were able to travel faster through Slipspace, use hardlight technology the UNSC could only dream of and wipe out any power networks and infrastructure through the use of Guardian Custodes.

Overall it was hard to see Humanity prevailing through it all, James thought. That's what people thought about the war against the Covenant though.

"Who knows", James said, shaking his head to wake himself up back to the present, "Maybe by now the Banished have destroyed themselves from within and the UNSC is one step closer to victory," He said optimistically, subtly commenting on the well-known fragileness of the Banished command structure.

While he may have only been an average-level Non-Commissioned Officer, it was no secret that the Banished went through constant stages of in-fighting. Only their cause and devotion to their former leader, Atriox, kept them somewhat stable enough to continue fighting against Humanity and tyrannical AIs.

"Anyway, I guess I still owe you an answer," He said, changing the subject of the conversation back to her original question. "Well, you already know about the MACs, but Infinity does have about a thousand missile pods give or take. Couple hundred dorsal defence weapons, for dealing with everything from old Covenant Banshee fighters to heavy transport ships and small class Corvettes," He detailed.

"Sounds like a menacing ship alright, what I wouldn't give to see something like that put the Empire in its place," Sabine wondered as she tried to picture the ship in her head.

James chuckled at her less-than-hidden amusement. He couldn't blame her, not being that old when the Infinity was unveiled to the public during her official ceremony, James felt like a star-eyed kid again when he saw her for the first time. When he and Jack were eventually posted to her for duty, they felt like they were invincible. Even during combat and dangerous deployments behind enemy lines, they felt safer on the behemoth warship than on Earth.

The Petty Officer's enjoyment of the moment ended when his canteen was pulled from his loose hand. His attention was drawn behind him, James hadn't even heard the door open when both Ezra and Zeb marched into the room. Finding his tea had fallen into the hands of the young boy, James tried to swat it out of the young Jedi's hands and back into his but unfortunately for him, Ezra was too quick.

"Too slow," Ezra joked as he paraded over to one of the counters, leaning against it.

"Come on kid, I've only got like six of those," James protested passively as he watched Ezra take a short mouthful, woefully aware of his limited inventory of the homely beverage.

Seemingly unaffected by the taste, Ezra shrugged, "Hmm, almost like Caf. I don't see the appeal," Ezra said as he carefully put the lidless cup back down on the table.

"Well, it's something my people have enjoyed quite a lot. I didn't even have to ration this during the war so I would prefer to keep these for as long as possible." James said tolerantly as he picked up the cup with a firm grasp on it, content with keeping it to himself before his newfound Lasat friend decided to try some too.

"Really?" Zeb asked, "The scale of the war so far, sounded like those Covenant guys would have changed that," He mentioned.

"Maybe, but these leaves come straight from Earth only. If the Covenant had found it earlier, it might have been a different story," James explained. "I always kind of worried that ONI would intentionally reduce the supply and blame the Covenant to get us more pissed off at them as if that was even possible," He said.

"They'd really do that?" Sabine asked, rolling her eyes. Partially sceptic about him having such a concern.

"What can I say, we love Tea. Jack always told me the reason they never did it was because they knew if we found out, the Covenant wouldn't be the only group of pricks we'd be going to war with." He stated.

"War…over that?" Ezra asked, dubious of his absent friend's assumption.

"Among other things, it wouldn't be the first time," James stated.

"You're kidding right?" Ezra asked, slightly less disbelieving by the Petty Officer's tone.

"Of course, I'm kidding," He said, watching as Ezra's face became somewhat reassured before he added, "It wouldn't be the second time," He said with a smile as he brought the cup of warm brown liquid to his mouth and drank what was left of it.

Before anyone had the chance to respond, the familiar voice of the ship's Captain could be heard over the ship's loudspeakers. "We're about to drop out of Hyperspace. James, Kanan, I need you in the cockpit,"

Hera's message brought them all to full readiness. Petty-Officer Bailey abandoned the canteen and datapad where they lay and stood up from the small galley seat. Carrying only his sidearm and combat knife on his waist webbing, James nimbly made his way out of the room and down the hallway. With the Captain's announcement, everybody else on the ship was suddenly busy preparing for the arrival of the person who had sent them on their mission in the first place. A person that James was both eager and nervous to meet.

Walking down the catwalk, James watched the old clone Captain cleaning one of his small handguns that he seemingly carried with him at all times just as he did. It did make sense to him though, despite their differing appearance in age and military profession, they were both seasoned war veterans. Even in an undoubtedly safe position onboard the Ghost, they both felt exposed without a sidearm at the very least by their hips.

Letting himself be fascinated by the alien weaponry, James failed to hear the small droid on the ship roll out from behind one of the corners leading down the docking port hallway. He managed to pick out the small orange and white from the corner of his eye and clumsily skirted around him.

"Sorry, about that little guy," James apologised.

The small droid let out a series of what he could only interpret as semi-annoyed beeps and continued to roll right past him.

"Guess I have to brush up on more than just this Galactic Basic stuff," James muttered to himself, continuing his walk to the cockpit.

"Ignore him," Kanan said as he dropped down from the ladder leading up to the Phantom dropship. "Chopper's like that with everybody,"

The two of them walked into the cockpit where Hera had her eyes glued to the sensors and controls, waiting for their departure from Hyperspace. Kanan took the co-pilot's seat while James stood just behind the two of them.

Briefly looking out at the view in front of them, James couldn't deny that it looked vaguely similar to Slipspace. The blue hypnotic tunnel ahead of them had some key differences but as it served the same purpose, he knew it would likely prove more exciting to the ONI scientists if they ever got the chance to study it.

"Alright, hope you enjoyed the scenery," Hera said as she reached out her right hand to the lever on the centre console. Slowly pulling back on it, the infinite number of blue and white lights passing by them vanished as the ship emerged back out into real space.

Still looking deeply out into the now black empty void of space, Petty-Officer Bailey noticed the small collection of ships that appeared to be awaiting their arrival. From their distance, he couldn't quite make out their size just by looking at them but it seemed to be a small flotilla of three ships that all seemed to be of the same make.

James could hear the humming and vibrations of the engines increase ever so slightly as Hera guided the ship forward towards the small fleet.

"So Petty-Officer, what do you make of those?" Hera asked him as the Ghost rapidly approached the friendly vessels.

Now that they had moved in closer, James gave them all another look. Squinting his eyes to try and make out some of the more finer details he scanned the ship closest to them. From the small size and large quantity of engines at the rear, James assumed it to be some type of Corvette or fast assault ship designed to be used in packs for guerilla-style hit-and-run tactics.

With every passing second, James was able to analyse more of the ship in greater detail. As the Ghost started to come alongside it, he noticed at least six different weapon emplacements mainly in the middle and towards the front of the ship. It seemed more capable of forwards facing combat than any other direction but James still had no idea as to the power of the weapons mounted on the ships.

"Almost as big as a Mako-Class Corvette," James said, drawing curious looks from the two in front of him. "If those Imperial Destroyers were standard size for the Empire's Capital ships, then I'm guessing those are some sort of blockade runners or screening ships, probably used to support larger combat vessels or engage smaller targets in packs of three or more," He guessed.

Kanan gave a small smirk to Hera after hearing James' quick summary of the rebel ships. "Not bad, he's pretty good at that," He said.

Hera returned his smile in kind, "They're CR90s Corellian Corvettes used by the Alliance for pretty much everything. Command ships, Escorts, Transports, you name it," She explained.

"Hmm, versatility is important," James stated as he started to wonder about the true size of this Rebellion. He hadn't told them of the current state of Humanity, UEG or UNSC apart from a few small details about the Battle for Earth and the Battle for Reach. However, as far as he was aware, all they truly knew about the current state of him and his Galaxy was that the UNSC had survived against an almost unbeatable enemy and was growing ever stronger.

A small thought started to grow in James' mind, one which plagued him with hypothetical guilt. This Rebel Alliance clearly had some level of organisation and resources to fight a Galactic-level power as strong as the dreaded Empire. From the ships he had seen so far though, they were at a serious disadvantage. Seeking out retired veterans for support, using small-scale Corvettes as Command ships and dedicated combat vessels, it all suggested that they'd willingly take any help they could get.

So far, the small band of rebels had been only too happy to help him in his mission to find his captured Comrade and get in contact with UNSC command. However, if there was any way to ensure he had the help he needed to accomplish both tasks, his guilt-ridden plan might be worth it. Convincing their Command that the UNSC was more than ready to fight and lend its support to this Rebel Alliance could be what he needed to do.

With the Rebels convinced that all they needed to do was locate and rescue a single soldier and find something as small as a UNSC research outpost to gain the support of a dedicated military, it would mean getting back home and back to HIS fight much sooner.

James winced as he let out a subtle breath, he hoped that such deception would not be required. From rescuing him from certain death to providing basic assistance in locating his fellow Petty Officer, the kindness his newfound shipmates had shown him only amplified the feeling of regret at even entertaining the idea of deceiving them for his own gain.

"You good there, James?" Hera asked, looking back at him as she gently docked the ship to one of the Corellian Corvettes.

"Hmm, yeah I'm good. Just zoned out there for a second." James said, brushing off his moment of distraction.

"Well shake it off then, I'm sure Ahsoka and Commander Sato will want to speak to you in the debrief," Kanan informed him.

"Commander Sato?" James asked, unaware of whom he was speaking about.

With the ship locked and secured in place with the Corvette, Hera turned around. "He's the commander of the Phoenix cell, I spoke to him very briefly after we escaped Seelos and he is just as eager to speak to you as he is Rex," She explained.

"One can only wonder why?" James said,

Subtly raising his brow, James was caught wondering if he had jumped the gun in thinking the rebels would have to be immorally convinced the UNSC was an attainable ally. However, there was also just the chance that whatever details Hera had told him had aroused his curiosity. He might meet with the Petty Officer and come to be unimpressed or unwilling to provide any assistance.

Concerned that he was likely ballooning the situation in his mind, James shook his head lightly and followed closely behind Hera and Kanan who were currently leaving the cockpit and heading for the airlock.

Passing the ship's crew accommodation, James' glance shifted to the quarters he was currently sharing with Kanan. Of course, if this did end up being his final stop he would remove any and all UNSC property he had with him, but similarly to before departing for Seelos, he pondered on whether or not he should retrieve his rifle and helmet.

Although they were departing into unknown territory then and thought it best to have his rifle with him, James still had no idea what he was about to walk into. Against his inner judgement though, he believed that the appearance of a strange unknown soldier carrying multiple weapons around a ship with his face concealed behind a polarised helmet would not do him well. Despite present company and at least some knowledge of his arrival, James committed to only leaving the Ghost with his current light armour, sidearm and combat knife to protect him.

After making a decision he would dare dream of on a UNSC ship, he entered the unknown ship along with the rest of the Ghost crew.

Upon entering the Corvette, the first thing James noticed above all else was the refinement. Solid white panels with bright lighting coming from above, UNSC ships never had such dazzling lights. While the ships he was used to serving on were by no means completely dark and gloomy, standing on the Corellian Corvette made the hallways of Humanity's Cruisers and Frigates look like lightless bat caves.

Only a few steps in and James' head was on a swivel. The ship looked more like a VIP luxury ship rather than a warship of any kind, so far the only indication it was an armed Corvette were the soldiers and very lightly armed crew members walking past them or performing their various duties in the halls and corridors.

As he continued to take in the details of the completely alien warship, James heard a stifled chuckle from behind him and knew exactly who it had come from.

"Oh right because you didn't go all googly-eyed over my rifle and sidearm," James commented sarcastically.

"Not as much as you," Sabine jokingly replied.

"You like weapons, I like ships," James brushed off her attack with a smile, he knew he was probably looking a little bit too eager to analyse the ship but it was something he just couldn't evade.

Approaching a T-Junction in the ship, James followed Hera, Kanan and Rex in front as they turned right but stopped shortly after turning the corner. Somebody was standing still in the middle of the corridor and based on their stance, they had been waiting for them. James' first thought was that the alien in front of him looked vaguely similar to Hera, despite the different skin colour. While curious, the Petty Officer didn't let his interest show too much for fear of causing any offence.

If Hera had told Commander Sato or Ahsoka much of anything about him, then he hoped they might be kind enough to overlook any minor infractions he might have caused by his overly curious state of mind. After all, he'd now met at least three new intelligent species and none of them had tried to kill him and wipe out his entire race, if it weren't for the Human-Covenant war, he might have had a similar interest in the Species that it was made of rather than pure hatred.

"Commander," Captain Rex greeted as he walked forward, the first to address the person waiting for them who he all but confirmed as the Ahsoka Tano James had been waiting to meet.

With what James could only assume to be a look of elation, Ahsoka stepped towards the clone. Since the mission of the Ghost crew was to find him, James felt little surprise seconds after meeting.

"Glad you're still alive," She said to Rex.

"You too," Rex replied, "I wouldn't have been if it weren't for these guys," he said, gesturing thankfully to the seven of them.

"Thank you, for trusting my friend," She said.

Grateful that he could help reunite the old soldier with an old friend, James could feel who the praise about trust was aimed towards.

"It wasn't easy, and it still isn't," Kanan said with pain in his eyes.

From the moment he felt they were a threat and was prepared to attack, it was clear that Kanan still felt uneasy about the whole situation even years after the killing of the Jedi.

"Nothing worth doing ever is," Ahsoka replied.

To some degree, James had to agree with her. However, he was still glad that after the Human-Covenant war ended, it was an extraordinarily rare occasion when he had to fight a battle alongside any Sangheili or Jirahane pilots during the conflicts that followed soon after it.

Being in no mood to delay the upcoming debriefing any further, the group continued the short walk to the front of the ship where the command room was located.

"Petty Officer Bailey I presume?" Ahsoka asked, looking over her shoulder to where James was walking behind her.

"Affirmative Commander," James said respectfully.

Hera and Ahsoka shared a grin with each other, not unnoticed by James. He guessed that his professional tendency of addressing by rank first and foremost was more than likely something that came up in the momentary communication Hera had during their hyperspace jump to the rendezvous point.

"My apologies Ma'am, is it not Commander?" He asked, wondering if the rank that Rex had addressed her as had an ulterior meaning.

"Not anymore," Ahsoka said, "I do not exactly hold a military rank within the Rebellion, for now though, Ahsoka will do just fine," She partially explained.

James frowned internally, it was Ahsoka that had sent Hera, Kanan and the rest of the crew to Seelos to try and find clone, Captain Rex. If she had no authority in the rebellion, why had they agreed to go on such a mission? A lot of explaining was due but for now, James pushed it from his mind, content on dealing with it after the imminent meeting.

"How have you been finding things so far?" Ahsoka asked him softly, seemingly concerned for the soldier's well-being.

"I suppose it's been somewhat overwhelming," James said. Truthfully though, there was no single word he could have used to describe his situation. Throughout the past several days, nothing about his experiences could have been explained as normal in the slightest. Insane, unbelievable, ludicrous and countless other less courteous words would have been more accurate.

"That's understandable," Ashoka agreed. "From what little I've been told, your war, losing your friend and finding yourself here of all places," She said.

"I'll find him," James said confidently.

Approaching a large white panel door, one of the lightly armed guards beside it turned around and accessed the controls. Seconds later, the doorway opened and gave way to a large circular chamber with dozens of people of various species talking, walking about and performing various duties.

In spite of the fact that James knew he was amongst a struggling rebellion group and not a UNSC-style military, one factor that stuck out to him almost as much as the variety of species was the lack of military appeal. Only a few small groups of individuals were wearing identical or similar uniforms and the small square dotted patches he assumed to be rank identifiers. To survive against a powerful totalitarian regime for this long meant that they all had to have at least some level of training and skill, but the crisp firmness of corresponding uniforms and seniority remained largely absent.

Entering the room, James allowed Ahsoka, Rex, Kanan and Hera to go forth first as he was sure the rebel Commander would wish to speak to them first about their mission. Heels together and eyes front, James stood at attention just ahead of Sabine, Ezra and Zeb, all of whom gave him an inquisitive eye, not being used to such standard soldier-like behaviour. At least with Rex standing straight and focused just ahead of him, the First-Class Petty Officer didn't feel completely out of place.

Looking towards the centre of the room where a large circular table was positioned, James saw who he believed to be Commander Sato. While the man had no name tag or drastically different uniform, his posture displayed the authority and leadership that James had observed an infinite number of times throughout his life and career. He seemed Human, middle-aged with brown greying hair and tan skin. James saw no firearms on the man attached to the brown uniform belt he had on, one more indication that he was a naval officer who wasn't expecting to see any immediate combat.

Currently, he was discussing something with another crew member of the Corvette next to him. Holding a datapad in one hand and gesturing towards part of the vast amount of information displayed on the large holographic display. Checking the corner of his eye, the arrival of the Ghost crew plus a couple more caught his attention. Putting the datapad aside, he politely dismissed the officer next to him and turned his focus.

"Phoenix Squadron," He greeted. "I take it your mission was successful," He said, looking towards Captain Rex and giving a cursory glance towards the UNSC enlisted officer.

As the Ghost Captain, Hera took the responsibility of providing the brief report. "We ran into a minor setback Commander, but we have the information," She quickly summarised.

"Yes, you're run-in with the Empire, I am pleased that you managed to escape undamaged," He said, expressing his relief that none of them had been killed or seriously injured.

Pulling out the data tape with the Information Rex had provided, Hera handed it over, "Here's the information Sir,"

Taking the disk into his hand, the Commander looked it over before handing it over to a waiting officer. "We'll begin looking over it immediately," Sato said gratefully before his attention turned fully to both Captain Rex and Petty Officer Bailey. "Apologies, where are my manners, Commander Jun Sato of the Alliance to restore the Republic," He said, introducing himself to the pair of them.

Shaking the Commander's hand, Rex gladly introduced himself, "Captain Rex, 501st Clone Battalion…former I suppose now," He said.

"Perhaps, but your knowledge and skill will undoubtedly serve the Alliance well," Commander Sato said as he moved to James.

"UNSC Navy First-Class Petty Officer Bailey, 296th Air Wing, Sir," James said, providing his name, rank and division as he was unaware of how much the Alliance Rebel actually knew about him.

Commander Sato looked the man up and down, eyeing everything from the small amount of light armour to the slugthrower sidearm he was wearing on his upper right thigh. Whether he was feeling impressed or let down he hid it very well, leaving James drawing a blank on what the man was thinking.

"We have no such rank within the Rebellion, Petty Officer nor are you under my command.

You may stand at ease," Sato said.

"Thank you, Sir," James said.

Relaxing his stance and letting go of Commander Sato's hand, he asked, "Do you mind if I ask what your responsibilities are within this…UNSC," Sato enquired.

"Of course not, Sir," James said, gaining the interest of the Phoenix squadron as well as the Commander. "I was…am a multi-role pilot, my partner and I fly nearly all standard UNSC craft and carry out missions from Air Superiority and Interception, to close air support on the ground and against airborne targets,"

"And Tie pilots," Sabine said under her breath.

The Commander looked up to Sabine but James interrupted before Sato could ask what she had to add to the briefing. "I believe Sabine is referring to an Imperial Tie pilot that engaged us over Seelos, I managed to hit them after a strafing run on the Captain's Tank." He explained.

"That was not something listed in the report from Captain Syndulla," Sato said as he turned to Hera.

"I thought it more impressive than relevant, Commander," Hera said.

In an attempt to humble himself, James felt the need to explain further, "Pilots receive similar training to the UNSC Marines, though it's not as long or intense, we are able to hold our own against enemy forces if we are required." James said, "Though with armour-piercing rounds and a lack of shield on the fighter, I still maintain that luck had some part to play in my aim," He said, trying to reduce any excitement about his Imperial kill.

"Commander," A voice said from behind.

Commander Sato looked over his shoulder to see one of his officers with a data pad in his hand.

"I apologise but I'm afraid we'll have to cut this briefing short, we'll notify Captain Syndulla when we have a possible target for your team. Petty Officer, I am loosely aware of what happened to your co-pilot, we can discuss any reconnaissance and rescue missions shortly, for now, though I advise all of you to get some rest while we go through the data provided to us by Captain Rex," Sato said as he turned to greet the officer waiting for him.

The small band of rebels, excluding Kanan and Hera, started to leave the room the same way they had come in once the Commander had dismissed them.

Only being slightly longer than a hundred metres in length, it took the six of them only a minute to walk back to the airlock where the Ghost was docked with the Corvette. The five coming back from the mission all looked completely worn out and in need of some much-deserved respite. Opening the door to the bridge between the ships, Sabine took first foot.

"Do you guys mind if I borrow your Petty Officer for a few moments?" Ahsoka asked just as James was about to re-board the Ghost.

Before any of them could agree or object, James said, "It's fine guys, I'll catch up in a few minutes,"

With an unsuspecting shrug from Sabine, they all entered the ship while James turned around to face Ahsoka and stepped out from the main corridor.

"I just wanted to ask how you're handling all of…this?" Ahsoka asked him while gesturing around her, to the ship, the people on it and herself.

With a raised eyebrow James looked on curiously, wondering why this alien woman he had only met just a few minutes earlier was repeating her concern for his well-being. Even with evidence to the contrary, he still found talking to, living with and working with non-humans to be somewhat unnerving.

James lowered his head, "I've had more challenging assignments, it's not the first time I've had to save Jack's neck. I just wish it wasn't because he got shot saving my life," He said, trying to avoid her actual question tactfully.

"You feel guilty, that you and your friend ended up here so far away from home is somehow your fault," Ahsoka calmly stated, ignoring his attempt to dodge her first question.

Looking up with surprise, James wondered how she had come to such a conclusion. It was obvious that he felt immense shame in allowing Jack to have been injured because he failed to notice a Jackal sniper, but the guilt in the both of them waking up in an entirely new Galaxy was something he thought he was doing well.

He wanted to question where she was getting her accurate assumptions from but stayed silent. Drawing his eyes back down, something familiar caught him. On each side of Ahsoka's hips were two cylinders, both looking very similar to the hilt of the energy weapons that both Ezra and Kanan used.

'I guess mind reading is one of those mystical abilities, or I just have a terrible poker face' James thought to himself.

"Hey," Ahsoka said, regaining his attention, "I understand wanting to throw caution to the wind to help a friend, but getting yourself killed by taking on a Star Destroyer by yourself isn't going to help your friend," She said.

"Captain told you about that, did she?" James asked with a bold eye-roll.

Ahsoka nodded, "You're not exactly the first hot-headed soldier I've run into that wanted to charge an enemy warship." She said,

James gave her a quizzical look, "You must keep some interesting company," he stated.

"Don't we all these days?" She asked.

"I suppose I'll let you be the judge of that when I find Jack," James said.

Despite Hera cutting down his suicidal rescue attempt before it had even started, James wasn't about to lose his perseverance. With no Banished forces in sight and no current way to get in contact with UNSC command, his only mission remained the same for now.

"If you still have that data that Rex gave you I might be able to find something, I have a few…contacts here and there who can tell me if any odd-looking prisoners get moved around," Ahsoka suggested.

A small glimmer of newfound hope spread across James' face. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the data tape and handed it to Ahsoka. Before she took it from him though, he looked at him directly.

"No promises though," She said, trying not to get his hopes up too high.

"I'll take all the help I can get, Sabine was kind enough to make me a copy on the ship so don't feel the need to rush through it and hand it back," James said reassuringly as he turned to walk down the hallway to the Ghost. Ahsoka looked down at the disk and back up to James as he walked away from her before walking away further into the ship herself.

As he boarded the smaller vessel, James hoped that he, Ahsoka or somebody would find him some information as to where his second officer was.

.

.

.

Meanwhile

Many lightyears away

Onboard an Imperial Star Destroyer, Inside a small private office, a lone officer scrolls through reams of information on a datapad. The frivolousness starts to get to him as he spends hours going over standard issue reports he has gone through what seemed like countless times before.

He almost started to wish something would attack the ship he was on so that he'd have something to shoot at instead of examining and approving a limitless number of reports and documents. The only thing off-putting to him about such a scenario was that if he were to survive, he'd only have more of the same neverending dullness that came from clerical work and dealing with Imperial administration protocols.

When a metallic knocking noise came from the door in front of him, it felt like a larger relief than bacta on an open wound.

"Enter," He said.

The grey metal door opened and an officer in a similar dark dusty uniform entered holding a small datapad.

"Reports from the detention level, Agent Kallus," The officer said as he handed him the device.

Swapping out one pad for another, Agent Kallus picked it up and skimmed over the details. "Has anything more come from the prisoner in cell three-four-three?" He asked, as he searched for the cell reports himself but assumed the officer who created them would know before he could locate them.

"Unfortunately, he is still unconscious. The last round of shocks was unsuccessful in extracting any further information besides his name, rank and many other…obscenities, the specificity of which I have left out of my report," The officer stated.

"Hmm," Kallus said as he read through, "That will be all," He said, dismissing the officer who quickly saluted and then departed the office.

Looking down at the report, Kallus stared at the photo file attached to it of the prisoner. The dried blood from a partially treated wound covered a large part of his once grey, silver and black battle uniform. Small singed parts from blaster fire remained and degraded the attire even more.

One of the only parts that remained intact and undamaged was a small piece of writing in a foreign language.

CLAYTON. J

With what he assumed to be some type of predatory bird above the writing with its wings raised and standing above a sphere of some kind and a banner below it. Kallus had managed to put some of the information the prisoner had told them and determined it was the acronym for his organisation that lay just below the symbolistic bird.

U.N.S.C.

Putting the datapad down, Kallus turned around from his small desk and looked out the transparisteel window to the open and empty part of space the ship currently occupied.

"Where are your friends at, soldier?" He said to himself as he pondered.

I guess I'll have to leave that one there. Sorry that this one isn't as long or has any real action moments. Guess I have a few things to say about this chapter though since it gets a little bit more into personal history. I know most of my readers are in the US so I'll say that when I or Rather James is talking about that war, it is referring to the Opium Wars in China, not the US war for independence. Britain's demand for tea was one of the major triggers of the First Opium War in 1839.

There you go, a mini history lesson. With the references to the armour used by Jack and James, there is not a lot of information and pictures of the armour they'd be using at this particular time so I have gone with what I know so picture it however you choose. Similar stuff goes when talking about the interior of ships that don't exactly have specific blueprints, just have to tolerate a bit of artist's impression.

As for the rations and supplies James has, I'm mostly just going off of British military MREs, accessory packets and other survival kits used by the armed forces since I do know what's in them and most of the standard ones contain about half a dozen hot drink sachets, though not all tea admittedly. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed this chapter, the next one published will be for Mantle of Responsibility.

Leave any comments, thoughts or suggestions in the review section and I'll respond at the start of the next chapter like usual.