Ninety Three
Echo had given himself an ultimatum.
If he finished the work load for the day before his noon time break, he would look up the IT consulting company on Coruscant.
Happy with his decision, he set about his work for the day.
A problem arose on the new assembly line.
Fixed; in just under 23 standard minutes.
A meeting with the General Manager ran over time.
Not to worry, he would simply miss his morning caf break.
His fingers thrummed across the data pad, his efficiency was second to none.
He knew that.
He knew that no matter what they threw at him in relation to his work he could deal with it.
It was all running to plan.
He knew he could do it; more importantly, he wanted to do it.
He just had to apply himself.
.
"So sarge," Atin was accompanying Niner back to alpha barracks on Triple Zero. He had just returned from a debriefing with HQ straight from the tank. He was tired and glad that the meeting with the brass was over.
"You haven't mentioned anything about the bird in the underground cage."
"What?"
"You know," he continued, "the skirt."
Niner stopped dead in his tracks and turned slowly to Atin, the expression on his face deadpan.
"The, ah, female RIA," before adding, "sir."
"Nothing to tell," he said before he began moving again.
"Nothing to tell?" Atin's voice was an octave higher in question.
"That's right, nothing to tell." Niner swung into his quarters and threw the data pad onto his cot as he began to strip down. It was then Atin saw the damage the rpg had delivered before his sarge was buried alive. The pink scar ran horizontally across his chest, the bruising still evident even after a day in bacta. Niner became aware of Atin inspecting the wound and for the first time in his life, felt self conscious.
He then remembered the more intimate moment with Agent Tanner Mills and how he blew it big time. He hadn't thought about the Honourable Representative of the Oriian people in months. He knew she belonged to another, but why, why in the name of the stars did he say her name in the heat of passion with another woman?
"Fek. I've had enough of this," he said as he opened up another bacta patch and placed it gingerly over the scar. Atin looked away as he did, "have you heard from Kal?"
"No," he grimaced as he lowered the red tunic over his head, "not likely to either."
Atin knew Niner was right.
Kal had conveniently disappeared. He had spent time setting up the underground refuge for his boys on Mandalore.
He still had his contacts within the GAR but kept communication with Omega at a minimum to avoid suspicion; to keep under the Republic radar.
Niner wasn't concerned; he knew that Kal would have learnt by now that there had been a difficult mission, but that they had also, come through.
He had trained them to do no less.
There was a plan at hand. An escape route for them all when their old drill sergeant gave the word. It haunted their thoughts, like the proverbial carrot dangled in front of them.
A chance, a promise of a full life.
Would they leave?
They would do as Kal asked.
"You coming to grab some food?"
"Nah, I'm planning on a detailed inspection of my eyelids for the next six hours."
Atin laughed and left his sarge to it, heading through the labyrinth of corridors until he could smell the strong aroma of freshly brewed caf beckoning him onward, towards the GAR mess hall.
.
"Rex! Rex wait up?"
Rex turned quickly to acknowledge the voice calling out his name as he continued towards his designated room.
"Commander Cody. Welcome back ner vod," not breaking stride.
'Fek! Not now, not here.'
"Is it true?"
Rex didn't answer him.
He was fairly confident he knew what his friend was asking him, but was unprepared to answer it in a corridor of the barracks.
He pressed the combination and waited for the door to slide open before he stepped in and made for his desk. Picking up and rifling through the flimsie work that had accumulated the captain avoided eye contact until he couldn't ignore the heat from Cody's gaze boring into his back.
"Well?"
Rex placed the flimsie work down slowly and turned to face his commander in chief.
"Is-it-or-is-it-not-true?" Cody made it abundantly clear from the outset he was there for answers.
Rex was immobile.
The past nine weeks, since the birth of his daughter had flown, and Rex was at his tactical best.
It was as if he was straight from Tipoca City.
Ruthlessly, methodically, mentally the sharpest he had ever been.
Even his general had noticed and commented on his renewed, unrelenting desire to bring the Clone Wars to an end.
Gem was now back on Coruscant with Piia and she had successfully negotiated the perfect lie to explain not only her extended absence, but also the arrival of a child. She was backed by Olphina and together, the women of Oriis had regrouped and were united in protecting their respective partners from the critical eye of the Republic Army cronies.
"Yes."
One word, a multitude of answers.
Yes, I am married; yes I have a daughter, and yes I want this fekking war to end.
"I can't believe it?" Cody seemed perplexed.
Rex rolled his head and sat heavily at his desk. It was time to come clean, wipe the slate, confide in his oldest friend.
Cody sat in the chair opposite him. "I mean Commander Tano, on trial for murder?"
Oh and yes, Commander Tano was in lock up, charged with the murder of accused bomber Letta Turmond.
.
Echo checked his chrono again.
Three, two, one.
He counted it down as if he was deployed on a covert operation.
His fingers typed in the company name, the one he knew Freya worked for, all those months ago. He would relive the time spent together on Concord Dawn alone at night, charged with breaking the Sep codes and delivering the intel back to Coruscant. He remembered how he felt out of depth working intimately with a woman undercover.
It had been life changing for the former ARC.
He had fallen head over heels for the short big busted freckle faced bespectacled analyst.
Then the news she was pregnant.
There was now a reason other than the accelerated aging process to grow up.
He had known about the thirty mission reprieve for an ARC and together they mused over the possibility of a life outside the confines of the army.
It was their dream; his and Freya's.
But what if she had moved on? What if she, like everyone else, had given him up for dead and met someone new, someone to replace him?
It was these thoughts that made him feel like being left back on the Citadel all over again.
Blown up and bleeding.
Unwanted.
And now, anything but perfect.
The screen beeped and Echo was in. It was hardly what he was used to hacking into, but the satisfaction was there none the less. Being the perfectionist he was, once he had started something, Echo had to finish.
It's what made him a good ARC.
Had, made him a good ARC
"Amateurs," he muttered as he immediately got into the mainframe and negotiated his way into the personnel files.
"Wha - ?"
The name he would never allow himself to say out loud was missing.
He delved further, into the restricted company profiles until he saw her name and his face prickled with realisation.
There she was, or wasn't, in luminescent green.
Freya Trask. Senior Data Analyst. Status: no longer active.
No longer active. What exactly did that mean?
"Fek it."
This wasn't supposed to happen. Echo's usually cool exterior was folding by the second, frantically replaced by his fingers tapping away and looking up the more detailed personnel files of each of the IT employees.
"Gotcha," he whispered satisfied.
He had done it. He had managed to complete the mission he had tasked himself to complete.
Why then, as he read the details of her resignation, did he feel so empty?
.
"Thank you Finn."
"You're welcome captain. If you don't require me further, I'll be down on level three."
"Another problem in Ordinance corporal?"
"Always a problem in Ordinance Sir," he smiled and gave a quick salute.
"Dismissed."
Rex, dressed in his armour was working through another set of new roster changes. Things had certainly changed for the captain of the 501st. General Skywalker had become more distant and moody in recent weeks, and coupled with the incarceration of Commander Tano, Rex felt as though they were all heading towards... something he couldn't quite put a finger on.
Finishing his caf, Rex signed off a squad to Appo.
He raised his eyebrows as he looked at the group of men he had assigned the newly appointed lieutenant. Skywalker must have seen something in him the captain didn't.
Coric would keep him in line and with the likes of Tup and Didge on board, he knew Appo would succeed in the trip to the outer rim to deliver much needed munitions and supplies to a small Republic outpost.
He then grabbed his helmet, tucked it neatly under his right arm and left his office.
Rex walked with purpose, only hesitating once, thinking he should put the bucket on.
No, not this time.
With his jaw set tight he looked more menacing without it.
He pressed the buzzer and waited.
"CT-7567."
His name, wouldn't work here.
Filling in the obligatory flimsie work and leaving his beloved hand pistols with the soldier on guard he was escorted to the room on the high security level of the Coruscant Republic Prison.
The door swished open and with it his heart sank.
Momentarily.
"Thank your sergeant," he said and stepped inside.
She stood from the small cot.
"I didn't do it Rex."
"I know Ahsoka, I know."
.