Chapter Forty-Eight: Get'shuk

"Something I don't understand," Plo Koon voiced, "Is how neither Anakin nor Ahsoka could resist the influence of the Son, but you could." He turned to look at me at the end.

I shrugged. "Obi-wan did too," I tried.

Anakin shook his head, struggling to remember. "No, you were there. Before...I don't remember."

"Curious, the Force is," Yoda reasoned, brushing the topic aside for the moment. I fidgeted before them as the old master shared a look with his friend.

"Skywalker," Windu spoke. "Have you any more to report?"

Anakin, still looking lost in his struggle to recover his memory, shook himself. "No, Master."

"You are dismissed," Windu responded, watching as Anakin and Ahsoka left. "Not you," he called as I turned as well. I stopped, sucking in a deep, calming breath. I could do this.

The others left the room, leaving me alone with Obi-wan and the Council. "Yes?" I asked, trying to appear relaxed.

"What was it that made Skywalker join with the Son?" Windu asked, his tone dangerous. For a moment, I hesitated. If I told them that we were shown the future, would they be even more cautious around Skywalker than they already were? I swallowed, glancing at Obi-wan. He hadn't reported that, despite knowing.

"We were in the Well of the Dark Side. The Son gave us...visions of something horrible. Of his own creation, I'm sure." I wasn't so sure. But I believed in Anakin. Believed that he was a good person.

"And how could you have resisted and Skywalker did not?" Kit Fisto asked, rubbing his chin.

I glanced down at my hands briefly. "I've had to resist the Dark Side before," I allowed. "And I continue to do it. Besides, I had help."

"Help?" Obi-wan asked. "I thought you said you looked away."

"You couldn't just not look," I reasoned. "But in my memories...Jango came to me. He helped me look away. It's his memory that has always grounded me when I face the darkness."

The Jedi were quiet for a moment, all watching me.

Finally, Yoda spoke. "Strong, you have become," he hummed. "Wrong, we were, to fear you." There seemed to be some surprise at his words from the Council. Obi-wan, however, just looked proud.

"Master Yoda is right," Shaak Ti said in her accented voice, giving me a nod. "We should have trusted you."

To all of our surprise, I let out a laugh. "No, I appreciate your apology, but I think your worries pushed me to be this way. If I wasn't forced to go sort everything out, I don't know if I ever would have."

I earned some smiles there. "Earned our trust, you have," Yoda spoke with a solemn nod.

"I appreciate that," I allowed, crossing my arms.

"Please, Kida," Obi-wan said as the Council signed off. "Stay. you can get some food in the dining hall and make repairs to your ship. Or, if you'd like...you're welcome to stay as you had before. The offer from the Republic still stands."

I gave him a genuine smile as we left the war room together. "Thank you, Obi-wan, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet."

"I understand," he returned. "Of course, feel free to still make repairs and rest before you go. Our ship will be jumping towards the Inner Rim soon, if you'd like."

"Yeah, I'll stay for the jump." The jedi gave me a smile before leaving me in the hallway alone.

I received even more glances as I made my way back through the ship, but I did my best to block them out. My ship was still fueling when I got back to it, greeted by Apex reassuring me that the astromechs hadn't touched it.

We immediately began to run diagnostics, revealing that I had to charge the back up vents, dump the engine backlog, and reboot the converter. I sighed, getting to work in silence. I wasn't far into my work when I felt the ship shift under my feet, letting me know we'd jumped into hyperspace.

And it wasn't long after that that I felt a presence approach quietly from behind. I was perched atop my shuttle, working at one of the vents to try and flush debris. Looking up, I saw familiar armor, Jaig eyes staring at me in royal blue.

I swallowed thickly as he looked around for me, scooting closer to the edge. "I'm up here," I said gently, seeing him jump and look up. I didn't say anything else, just offering a small smile as I finished working on the vent.

Rex stayed in silence as I worked, fidgeting below. Finally, when I deemed that the vent was properly cleaned, I slid to the edge of the shuttle and swung down to land deftly on the ground. The clone looked my way for a moment with his hands behind his back. He was rigid. Like he was when we first met.

I sighed. "Rex, I-"

"I'm glad to see you're alright," he cut me off with a soft tone, his voice automated through his helmet.

"Same to you." I paused, glancing down at the panel I had started mindlessly working on. "Rex...I'm sorry."

"You had to leave," he allowed, giving me a small shrug from the gangway.

I looked away. "No. I meant for asking you to come with me. It was...unfair." He seemed surprised at my words, his proper stance faltering. "I see that now. I know this is where your duty lies."

Rex let out a breath, the sound weird coming through his modulator. He took off his helmet to let me look into his golden eyes, and stepped up the gangway into the hold of my ship where I worked. "Please believe me when I say that I wish it laid with you. But…"

"I understand, Rex," I said gently from where I crouched. "I really do. I'm just sorry for putting you in that position. And for being so angry when you answered it right."

The captain tilted his head at me. "You've changed."

I hummed, "Yes, people have been telling me that a lot lately."

"I like your new design," he commented, obviously a little uncomfortable. He gestured to my armor, now painted in crimson. "Any meaning to it or…"

"Of course," I chuckled. "When is there not to Mandalorian armor?" I turned a little in my crouch to let him see it.

"Is it for defiance or honoring a parent?" he asked, raising his brow. I heard his unvoiced question, though. Was it for Sith?

"Both, I guess. Obviously for Jango, since he more or less saved me when I was at my lowest. And defiance because...despite resisting the darkness, I'm not fully ignoring my heritage. I know what I've descended from. And the knowledge has helped me grow. I won't just throw it away."

Rex hummed at me, giving a nod.

"It's your design still, though," I added, looking away.

"I noticed."

It fell silent as I worked on the panel again. I wasn't sure how I had planned for this all to go. Or how I even wanted it to go. After all this time, I was sure my emotions would have calmed, especially considering the journey I'd been on.

"It's been a year," Rex voiced softly, stepping a bit closer, but looking away. "I thought seeing you...would be easier."

I stopped short, my hand stilling over the panel. "Easier?"

He breathed for a moment. "I know you're not staying. I thought knowing that would make seeing you easier." He fidgeted. "Do you ever wish that you'd stayed?"

"No. I needed to go to figure things out."

"And have you figured them out?"

I smiled gently. "Almost."

"Will you come back when you do?"

I turned to look at him, finally standing. "I...don't know." What would I do? My list of to-do's ended with fixing my kyber crystal. It completed the journey I'd started on a year before. Would I return to the war effort? It seemed the Jedi were fine with my doing that.

But was I?

Was that my path?

Rex looked down-trodden, nearly jumping out of his skin when his wrist comm beeped. He was being called to the bridge. He sighed, glancing at it and fiddling with his helmet. "Even with your changes, Kida," he said gently. "What I said back then...before you left...it's still true." He put his helmet back on and strode away, leaving me to my thoughts.

I knew what he meant.

"Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum."

I could still hear the words clearly, despite him having said them a year prior. And he still meant them, apparently. My heart ached, knowing I had to leave. I breathed out slowly, watching him recede.

I'd fix things one day, I decided in that moment. But for now, I knew that I had to get to a forger. One with a very special skill set. And who wouldn't ask questions.

"Miss," Apex interrupted my thought process as my fingers touched the lightsaber still concealed in my pouch. The kyber hummed under my touch, seeming hopeful, rather than in pain. "Diagnostics are nearly finished. We will be ready to launch within the hour."

"There's no rush," I resigned, knowing the Star Destroyer was still in hyperspace. "Do you have this covered?" I asked, glancing over to see some familiarly painted armor in the hangar.

"Of course."

"Good." I stashed my weapons away, especially the lightsaber, before making my way over to the clones I recognized in 501st blue.

Jesse's face lit up as I arrived, ducking around the crates that littered the hangar. "Kida!" he cried, throwing his arm around my shoulder. "Care to join in?" He gestured to the group that was standing there, holding a ball. Get'shuk.

I chuckled. "I haven't played in a long time," I allowed.

"And you won't be playing today," Kix said with a stern look to his brother. "Doctor's orders."

I scowled, but rolled my eyes with a laugh. "Yes, sir."

He put his arm around me, dragging me over to the crates to sit with him. Hardcase was there, removing the top half of his armor. "Blacks versus blues," he explained to my questioning look. He gave me a smile before handing me a cup and jogging into the playing field they'd created with spare crates.

Sitting comfortably beside Kix, I took a long, slow sip of the clear liquid. I coughed slightly. "Is this tihaar?" I asked.

Kix shrugged. "As close as we could get it." I couldn't fight the smile on my face as I took another drink. "So...are you sticking around? I saw the captain talking to you."

I hummed slightly into my cup. "No. I still have some things to do on my own."

"After?"

I glanced at him, quirking my brow. "You guys really want me to come back, don't you?"

Hardcase stopped on the playing pitch, ball in hand. "Well, you're fun. We like having you watching our backs." Speaking of, the man got tackled from behind. Hard.

"Focus, Hardcase," one of his teammates chided, slapping him upside the head as the tattooed clone got up. Beside me, two clones chuckled. They looked younger. Sounded younger, even.

"Those are some of our newer recruits," Kix said softly when he saw me looking. I took a sip of my drink again, already feeling the warm haze of alcohol. "Dogma, Tup. This is Kida."

The two seemed more than pleased to be introduced, both turning in their seats immediately. "You're Kida Fett," one said. He had long hair that he had pulled up into a top knot and a teardrop tattoo on his cheek.

"You know criminals usually sport that tattoo," I responded immediately. He glanced away shyly, not sure what to say. "And you," I quipped, leaning casually. "What's that supposed to be?" I was referring to the other's 'v' shaped tattoo over his eye and nose.

The second looked insulted, but Jesse only laughed from the pitch. "Now, don't feel special, boys. She does that to all of us." The clone caught the ball as he talked, running along the pitch and dodging the other team.

The one with the teardrop chuckled gently. "I'm Tup." His voice was a bit higher. Definitely younger than the clones I was familiar with. It hurt my heart to know how young he really probably was. Biologically? Probably in his 20s. Physically? He'd been alive for half that time.

"Nice to meet you," I managed, forcing a genuine smile to my face. "So you must be Dogma, then," I said to the other.

"Yes, ma'am," he said formally, straightening his back.

I quirked my brow. "By the books, is he?" I muttered to Kix, making him laugh.

"Eh, he's a good kid. Loyal soldier."

I hummed at his comment. Loyal was a good thing. To an extent. I sensed an ominous presence about the particular clone. I wasn't sure what it was, but there was something foreboding. I shook it off as I continued to watch the game in silence, sipping my drink.

"I had heard a rumor you came crawling back." The voice made me jump, nearly spilling liquor on myself. Whirling, I saw a familiar bearded man leaning casually against a crate.

My face broke out in an immediate smile. "Fives?" Hopping off my crate easily, I approached him slowly, taking in his new getup. He grinned, letting me circle him. "Wow, ARC looks good on you," I teased, taking in the new pauldron and kama.

"Oh, it looks better on me," a second voice assured, making me turn to see Echo. Fives punched me in the shoulder gently, right over the kyr'bes. "Nice to see you, kid."

I rolled my eyes, surprising myself when I dragged them both into a hug. "I'm so glad you guys are alright."

"More than alright," Fives bragged as we stepped away. "We're ARC Troopers now."

I smiled. "When did you guys graduate?"

"Not too long ago," Echo explained. "So you didn't miss too much."

"Relax, boys," Kix called from where he still sat on the crates. "She's not staying."

"What?" Fives asked, making some of the other clones roll their eyes.

"We just went through this," Hardcase complained before being decked by the other team again.

I shrugged at the two brothers. "I can't yet."

"You say that like you will eventually," Echo commented, walking with me back to my seat.

"Well," I looked away. "Maybe."

"Of course she will," Fives joked, nudging me over to sit beside me and steal my drink. "She knows she can't stay away from me."

"That's what it is," I teased back. The group laughed, dissolving into playful banter as the game continued.

At some point, we all became rather intoxicated, the group divided between players, drunk clones singing terribly, and those of us who sat and told war stories and jokes, constantly refilling our drinks.

Amongst it all, though, I felt when he arrived to the scene. His golden eyes watched me from the other side of the hangar where he stood with Skywalker. He took in me enjoying the company of his brothers and felt warm inside.

He was practically projecting, his emotions were so easy to read. I worried that Skywalker would notice, but then again, I was sure he already had. He wasn't stupid.

But neither was he cruel. He broke the rules for love. Why would he stand in the way of his captain?

I shook myself. Was it love? Maybe it was. Even after all this time, seeing him made my heart soar. Through it all, even when Darth Bane was turning my own thoughts against me, I always thought about Rex. What would things have been like if I weren't who I was? Or if he wasn't a clone?

Of course, such speculations would only cause harm. Things were as they were. There was no changing that.

Glancing across the hangar to where I knew I'd find him, I met his gaze. After a moment of merely looking, I offered him a smile. It was small, but real. The corner of his lips quirked slightly at the sight before he nodded slightly and turned back to his general.

As I felt the Star Destroyer lurch out of hyperspace, cuing my time to leave, I came to a decision. Spending the time with the clones. With the jedi. With Rex, even from across the room. I loved it. Sure, it was war. It was loss. It was horrible.

But I never felt more at home than when I was with them.

As I said my goodbyes and made my way to my ship, Apex already readying the engines, I decided that after I fixed my kyber crystal, my next goal was rejoining the war. I would live for balance. And I'd live for the people I cared about.

If joining the war was how to keep them safe, then so be it.

MANDO'A

Get'shuk - A team game similar to rugby