Chapter Sixty-Two: A Desperate Plan

I'd seen war and death. The clones had seen even more than I had. Yet even I could feel that none of us had been in a war zone this hellish before. I ducked behind a warped root, aiming over it with my rifle. It was the only weapon I had with a scope that still had functioning heat vision. The clone beside me fell with a scream as he was struck with a bolt. I didn't turn to help him. I could feel he was already gone.

"Get down!"

I looked up at the call, seeing a blue ball of energy soaring towards us. I dove to the side, the ground exploding and tossing me into the air. I landed hard, the breath being shoved from my lungs. Gasping, I did my best to fight off the dizzy spells while looking through the settling dirt. There were screams of pain.

I fought my way to my feet, stumbling to the nearest clone. Blood painted his once blue armor. I dragged off his helmet, the clone groaning in pain. Misting my hand over his armor, I closed my eyes, doing my best to block out the clamor of battle. His injuries were deep. Too terrible for even the Force or a medic to heal on the field.

"S-sir-" the clone coughed, drawing my gaze to his face. His eyes were growing distant, unable to focus on me. "Help me. Help me-p-please-"

I held him, my jaw tight with pain as I felt his life force leaving. He clutched at me, so I returned the gesture, soothing him as shots rained over our heads. The clone's fingers loosened around my hand before slackening entirely. He was gone.

I set him down gently, breathing hard between the pain in my own body, the terror of the battle, or the trembling darkness of the Force around us. I couldn't tell which. Maybe it was all of them…

Shaking myself of the emotions and turning inward, I moved to the next clone. I could help him. I grabbed the arm he stretched to me and dragged him into cover. Kix was beside me, helping a brother of his own. I drew a stim from my belt, giving it to the clone.

"Thank you," he grunted, giving me a small pat on my arm.

I glanced up, scowling when I saw Krell standing in cover, doing nothing of use. He pushed a dead clone away from him with his foot and I almost shot him right there. His comm beeped as I stepped beside Kix to help him tend to a screaming clone.

Obi-wan appeared on Krell's holo-projector. "The capital city's too fortified. We need your battalion to help us take it." I wanted to yell to him that Krell was a madman and a terrible military leader, at that. But what good would that do? We had no time to change leaders. And besides...would Kenobi even really believe me? He trusted me, sure….but my word, against a Jedi's?

Unlikely.

"Resistance from the Umbarans has been greater than anticipated," Krell replied as the battle raged around him. "We're holding our ground at the moment."

"We've gathered intel of an airbase to the west. It is resupplying the capital's defenses." A clone screamed for us to take cover over Kenobi's report. Another cannon blast exploded before our cover, followed by more cries of pain. Krell barely flinched as his soldiers died around him, watching Kenobi. "If you capture that airbase, it will sever the capital's supply lines, allowing the rest of our forces to move in."

"I'll see to it that the airbase it placed under our control," Krell promised.

Kenobi pursed his lips. "Remember, General Krell, the entire invasion depends on your battalion." Huh. No pressure, then.

Krell only nodded in response before shutting off the communicator. "Captain Rex," he called to the clone beside him. "Have those coordinates mapped and all troops ready to move out immediately."

"Yes, General," Rex said easily, snapping to attention as the Jedi walked away. I looked up at him from where I crouched beside his brother. The clone's screaming had quieted, his chest stilling under my hand. Rex looked sad, but walked away to do his duty, avoiding my eye.

The screams of the clones still echoed in my mind as we trekked down the steep cliff-side. Ahead, the shining beacon of the airbase sent a bright beam of light into the sky, guiding our way. My boots slid over the loose dirt, my muscles impossibly tired. Krell had been pushing us endlessly. We needed rest.

"All right, listen up," Rex said as I finally stumbled to the bottom of the slope to stop beside Fives. "We'll assemble the squads in two divisions. We'll move straight up this gorge towards the airbase at the far side." My eyes widened at his words. This was Krell's plan, obviously.

"The casualties are going to be high," Kix called from somewhere in the crowd, his helmet at his side. He seemed tired. And sad. He'd already watched many of his brothers die today.

"Is Krell trying to get us killed?" Tup asked beside him.

It was Jesse's turn to speak. "You know, I wasn't sure that Krell was crazy before, but now I'm positive."

I crossed my arms, letting the clones argue without my input. "We had to retreat from the capital because the general pushed a flawed strategy," Fives joined in next to me. "Now this?"

"I don't know," Hardcase chuckled. "Could be fun." I rolled my eyes at the crazy battle-hungry clone.

"Well," Dogma spoke up, immediately prodding another roll of my eyes. "I, for one, agree with the general's plan." Of course he did. "We're running out of time and this is the best option."

"No recon?" Jesse asked sarcastically. "No air support? We don't know what we're up against." He knocked his helmet against his head with exasperation. "They have weapons we've never seen before.

Rex stepped forward, remaining calm. "A few of General Skywalker's plans seemed reckless too, but they worked."

Fives sighed while I frowned. "Yeah, but General Skywalker's usually leading his men up in the front, not bringing up the rear like General Krell. A full-forward assault would leave us too exposed!"

The clones erupted in dissatisfaction, worrying over the coming battle. I felt their anxieties rise, the morale falling. I agreed with Fives, but I also understood the importance of relying on your leader. Questioning Rex….wasn't a good look.

Of course, we were questioning Krell. But because Rex wasn't, we were technically questioning him, too. "Fives," Rex said gently, gesturing for the ARC to follow him. Fives did, and I waited only a moment to follow silently. "It would help," I heard Rex sigh as I approached quietly. "If you'd ease their minds."

"Oh, you mean coax them into following another one of Krell's suicide missions?" Fives shot back, scowling at his commanding officer. "We lost a lot of men last time."

Rex lifted his finger, pointing it at his brother. "Krell may do things differently, but he is effective in getting them done. He's a recognized war hero."

I took that as my cue to step in. "Maybe he gets things done," I allowed as I approached, my voice quiet so the other clones couldn't hear. "But he has more clone casualties than any other military leader of the Republic." Rex gave me a disbelieving glance, but I tapped the side of the goggles that were resting on my hairline, useless in this environment without the heat vision working. "I had Apex do some research when Krell first got here."

Rex sighed slowly through his nose. "That's the price of war." He looked back at Fives with a solemn look. "We're soldiers. We have a duty to follow orders, and if we must, lay down our lives for victory." I scowled at his words, my nose crinkling in distaste as he went to walk away.

Fives caught the captain, pulling him back slightly. "Do you believe that? Or is that what you were engineered to think?" I cut my gaze to the ARC, surprised by his words. Fives had always been a bit….different. But I'd never imagined I'd have a moment in time where I'd look at him and swear I heard Cut Lawquane for a moment.

Rex's mind seemed to flash briefly to that farm, too. His Force signature was trembling with uncertainty and fear. His brothers were in danger. And now I was there, too. We were all stuck on a suicide mission with a Jedi leader who didn't seem to mind if we died. Yet his honor. His training.

"I honor my code," he said finally, not looking back at us. His words were heavy with resignation. "That's what I believe." The captain pulled away, moving to organize his men into two groups.

I glanced sideways at Fives, discovering him offering me a dirty look. I raised my brow in confusion. "You weren't much help," he muttered.

"What was I supposed to say, Fives?" I returned. "You know as well as me that he won't go against Krell's orders." I glanced after the clone I loved. "Not unless something horrible happens."

He crossed his arms. "It will if we follow this plan."

"Fives," Rex called, he and Hardcase heading up to get a good view of the gorge. The ARC beside me seemed reluctant to listen to his captain.

"Go," I prodded, pushing him gently. "We'll be alright." Of course, my words did little to lessen the dread growing in my gut. I watched the trooper climb the slope with Rex while I waited beside Kix.

"Without General Skywalker," the medic worried softly beside Tup and Jesse. "I don't know how long we're going to last down there."

I didn't look back at the worrying clones, my gaze on Rex's back. I'm sure he could feel my frustration burning. "I'm not a Jedi," I sighed, still not looking back at them. "But I have a lightsaber and I know how to use it. I'll do my best to get us through this."

"But General Krell said-"

"I don't care," I cut Tup off, knowing he was talking about Krell forbidding my use of my saber. "I'm not about to sit here and watch you die. Krell can sooran ni'jagyc." The clones seemed surprised by my language, as well as my balls to say it. Dogma, in particular, seemed bothered. He was staring at me, the eyes behind his helmet hard with judgement. I returned the glare, daring him to say something.

He looked away.

Hardcase and Fives returned, leading our group down the gorge. Rex had led the other group along a parallel route. "Everybody stay alert," Fives ordered, his nerves high. "Fingers on the trigger."

My rifle was in my hands, my lightsaber still in the pouch on my belt. The flying bug-like creatures were above us, flying in the direction we'd come from. "They look spooked," Kix observed beside me, my own nerves rising at the thought.

Something rumbled, the ground trembling beneath our feet. "What the-" Hardcase grumbled on the medic's other side. The ground continued to shake before it suddenly erupted, a machine rising high into the air. It looked like a centipede….a really big one.

"Oh, skrag," a clone cussed. I couldn't have said it better myself. The machine let out a terrible shriek as if it was alive, the glowing blue of its eye washing over us. I could barely make out the silhouette of an Umbaran inside, manning the controls.

"Blast it!" Fives screamed. We opened fire, but everything bounced off. The robot let out another angry scream before it started unleashing its own storm of shots.

"Scatter!" I yelled, diving to the side as the machine swung through my cover, decimating it.

"It's head is ray-shielded," Hardcase growled, firing his rotary cannon beside me in cover. Another machine erupted from the ground on our other side, our heads turning in surprise and fear.

"We need rocket launchers," Fives responded, as I tried firing at the new machine. He tapped his comms. "Mayday! Mayday! Rex, we need rocket launchers, now!"

I looked out from our cover, seeing the two machines mow down my men. The scowl on my face grew as my anger rose. "Screw this," I grumbled, throwing my rifle on the ground as I strode from cover.

"Kida!" Fives called from the cover I'd left. "Get your ass back here!"

I ignored him, walking out into the firefight. I wasn't afraid, though. Krell had called me a Sithling before. I'd felt how much it bothered the clones. He wanted a Sithling?

Fine.

The Force rippled around me as I drew my lightsaber, the white blade igniting at my side. I felt my frustration bubbling inside, strengthing my connection to the Force. The machine bore down on me, the Umbaran screaming inside.

I jumped. And found myself soaring through the air like Ahsoka and the younglings had back on the Trandoshan moon. Huh. I'll be damned. I landed deftly on top of the machine, its occupants completely unaware of my joining them.

The lightsaber spun in my hand deftly before I thrust it down into the metal casing, cutting a hole. I dropped in.

The mechanical centipede of death was filled with Umbarans, each manning a turret. Thankfully, their rather impenetrable armor meant their focus was outwards and not on me. Taking care of them was easy. With my lightsaber in one hand and my pistol in the other, it wasn't long until I was clearing myself a path to the machine's controls.

Once the pilot was dead, I turned the rather confusing controls sideways, sending the machine straight into another. Leaping up and out through the access hatch, I was quick to put my lightsaber away again as I ran after the retreating clones. Two more of the machines had erupted from the ground behind me, with even more on the way.

And as simple as it might have seemed, I wasn't sure how many more I could take out. Using the Force, while I was getting better, was still tiring to me when I used it in ways I wasn't used to...such as sending myself hurtling through the air like a damned Jedi.

"We're safe for the moment," I heard Fives report to Rex as I ducked into the thick cluster of trees they'd taken cover in. "But they'll be coming around any second."

The clones had taken out a centipede death machine on their own, using a rocket launcher from Rex's group. Still, we only had so many rockets and it seemed the Umbarans had an endless supply of clever ways to kill us.

"Bring up the launchers," Rex ordered, "Spread detonators along that corridor. Trap them into the bottleneck." The clones moved immediately, gathering detonators. "We're going to blow those things sky high."

I found my way into the trees, crouching beside Jesse as the others prepared the trap. "Lose this?" he asked, handing me my rifle without even looking at me. I rolled my eyes, but thanked him nonetheless as I settled the weapon back into my arms.

"Here they come," Dogma muttered from a few clones down, his eye on his scope. The clones began to scream at and taunt the Umbaran machines as they came into view. As they drew closer, they only seemed to multiply in numbers.

Still, the clones were laughing. I shook my head in mild disbelief. These boys found joy in the weirdest of things sometimes.

Then again, I guess you had to appreciate the little things in war.

Everyone rose as they came closer, Rex standing still with the detonator in his fist. We raced from the branches, getting to cover while the captain blew the trap. In all honesty, it was almost pretty.

The machines exploded in a symphony of colors, sending a shock wave over our heads. I slid into cover beside Jesse just in time, seeing Rex fly over us as the explosion sent him sailing. He landed hard, the clone grunting in the dirt. Still, I could sense he was fine.

"We got em!" the clones cheered. "We got em!"

"Good job," Rex said as he stood, looking around at his men. "Alright, let's move out!" I followed him, but still said nothing as we walked through the wreckage of the Umbaran war machines. There was a darkness looming in the captain. A confusion and resignation that only heightened the shadows I felt in his mind.

It worried me.

One of the pilot viewports of the machines flickered with life, casting a green glow over our group. "That one's still got some juice in it," Rex announced, gesturing to Hardcase. "Waste it!"

Hardcase happily obliged, sending a rocket into its nose. It exploded, smoke billowing from the shattered glass. An Umbaran groaned as he fell from the cockpit, face down into the dirt. The clones walked by him like he wasn't there.

"No juice left in him either," Rex grumbled before shooting the Umbaran twice. I stopped in my tracks, my blood going cold. I was never one to blush at blood, or even straight up murder. I was a bounty hunter, after all. But the action surprised me. I knew the captain to abide by his code of honor like it was his lifeblood. I'd never considered that killing unarmed prisoners was part of that. Or maybe it was the words he'd said before pulling the trigger.

Then again, the Umbaran bastard had just helped wipe out a good number of Rex's troops. Maybe I would've shot him too.

I kept walking, but my thoughts were far from the battle.

"Hey!" Kix called beside me, letting off a few shots. I jumped in my absent-mindedness, earning a look from Jesse. "Still hungry?" the medic screamed as he raced ahead of us. He was shooting at the bug-like creatures we'd seen flying before. They were eating a dead clone. "Chew on that!" He got one of the bugs, shooting it even after it was dead on the ground.

The other tried to fly away, but found itself at the end of Rex's pistol instead. "Everyone, keep moving." The captain's tone was easy. I guess this was normal for them. "Hey, Kix," he called back to the medic I was waiting for. "Leave it."

For a moment, Kix didn't move, his gaze still sliding over the dead clones that littered the forest floor. I reached out, touching his elbow gently. My expression was sad, but encouraging. He nodded before turning to follow us.

We stopped at the ridge, Rex looking out over the next area we had to transverse to make it to the airbase. He was scanning the tree line with his electrobinoculars, Fives and I stepping up beside him. The Force shivered with a warning, my eyes sliding closed as I crouched. I felt the clones' gazes on me while I pressed my palm against the soft dirt, reaching out with my feelings.

There was a trembling in the ground, but it was unlike the last machines we'd faced. It was a steady booming, every few moments. Like heavy footfalls. "What is that?" I whispered, eyes still closed.

"We've got a problem," Rex announced, my eyes snapping open. I followed his gaze, seeing a green ball rise from the trees to soar towards us. "Fall back!" he screamed, the clones scattering in an instant. "Fall back now!"

Rex's hand wrapped around my upper arm and dragged me to my feet, the captain practically carrying me in his retreat. The ground exploded where we'd been standing, followed quickly by more energy blasts shaking the trees.

As he pulled me, his wrist comm beeped. "Captain," Krell sounded angry. "Continue your attack!"

Rex shoved me up against a tree, taking cover beside me. "Sir, we're overpowered," he replied. "We need reinforcements."

"The rest of the battalion is holding the entrance to the gorge, Captain. They're guarding it so your troops can break through to the airbase!"

A cannon blast hit beside us, Rex flying into me. We both fell sideways, the clone doing his best to get off me and talk to his commanding officer at the same time. "Sir," he tried. "We can't possibly-"

"You must stand your ground," Krell interrupted harshly. "Do you read me? Captain? Are you listening? Do not fall back! That is an order!" Rex was quiet when Krell ended the transmission abruptly.

The new machines bearing down on us were even more deadly than the ones we'd faced before. Instead of resembling centipedes, the new ones looked more like spiders. And they were bigger. Much bigger. Each was topped with a narrow head that fired terrible energy blasts. Its beam was white hot, evaporating all it touched.

I slouched against the tree as Rex stepped away to help Kix lower a wounded brother to the ground. The screams were deafening, both outside our cover and within my mind. I screwed my eyes shut, trying to block it all out, but it was dizzying.

"Keep the wounded as quiet as possible," Rex instructed Kix gently, turning to look at the rest of us. "All right, you heard the general. Let's go."

My eyes snapped open as I glared at the captain. My vision was still swimming, but I could find him amongst his brothers anyways. "You can't be serious," Jesse exclaimed at the edge of our cover.

"I used to think General Krell was reckless," Fives announced, glancing at me with a flash of worry when he saw my pale face. "But now I'm beginning to think he just hates clones."

"The captain is right," Dogma spoke up beside Jesse. I turned to glare at the young clone. I loved Rex, I'd admit it. But I wasn't a fool and I wouldn't ignore it when he was being an idiot. Like now. "Now, let's move out."

My eyebrows shot up, my mood only darkening the longer I felt the clones die as we tried to fight the newest killing machines. "You don't give orders here," I spit. Dogma said nothing in response, but I could feel his glare behind his helmet.

Fives stopped Rex as he moved to leave. "We can't take them head-on. We need to find another way."

"You got any ideas?" the captain asked, gently shoving his brother in frustration. Fives was quiet for a moment before slowly shaking his head. "Then this is it." I wish I could have said something as the captain ran past me, but I had no words. My mind was focused on blocking out the terrible pain of the men I cared for. And the fact that I didn't have any other plan either.

"Okay," Hardcase breathed, settling the rocket launcher on his shoulder. "Let's do it." He ran after his captain, along with the other clones. I hesitated a moment, my eyes lifting to the cliffside in the distance, where I knew Krell was watching the battle from.

Hu'tuun.

I ran out to join the others, my rifle in hand, to find we had nothing that could work against these things. Missiles rocked the machines, but did no significant damage. Besides, any scratch we might have caused them, they dealt back tenfold.

Something creaked above us after a machine fired into the trees. "Fives, move!" I cried, throwing my shoulder into his back to get us both out of the way of the falling debris. We tumbled to the ground heavily, but we weren't crushed.

"Thanks," he grunted, breathing heavily as we struggled to find cover again. The machines were closing in, practically stepping on us now as we raced about between its feet.

One of its monstrous appendages descended over us, crushing some of the wounded. "Kix!" I cried, seeing him rush over to one of the screaming clones whose legs had been caught under the machine.

The medic looked up, seeing me as I approached. "Help me with the wounded!" I didn't hesitate, waving away more of the scavenging bugs as I started dragging a moaning clone. "We gotta get these guys out of here," he panted as he pulled one of his brothers towards cover.

Fives and Rex appeared, helping us pull the clones we were already helping. Kix turned to grab more as I checked over the clone I'd brought in. He was stopped by Rex, my head lifting immediately when I noticed.

"Forget it," Rex said gently. "We have to leave them."

Kix threw off his commanding officer's hand. "We can't just leave them, sir."

"You don't have a choice. That's an order." I stared at the captain as he turned away from his soldier, my gaze cold. That wasn't my captain speaking.

Kix apparently felt the same way. "You sound like General Krell."

Rex stopped in his tracks, a flash of anger rippling through him. No one noticed but me, of course. He turned to look at Kix, his golden gaze flashing to me with surprise when he found anger in my expression.

"Look, Kix," Rex said, ignoring me for now. "It's more important to save yourself right now. If we survive, you can patch up our wounded later." He looked through his electrobinoculars, ending the discussion.

I looked away, still fighting the trembling in my chest. Some of it was rage. Rage at Krell for his recklessness and cruelty. Rex for just taking it in stride. Dogma for being a kiss-ass. The chancellor for calling Anakin away and causing all of this to even happen.

Even more of it was sorrow and grief. I was feeling the clones in their moment of death. The Living Force was dying all around me, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I glanced away from Rex and the clones, letting my gaze go unfocused as I turned inward to try and block some of it out again.

"We're….we're finished," Tup panted, looking out over the battle. He was probably right.

"We've still got some fight left in us, Tup," Rex reassured his soldier, earning my attention with his words. "And I got an idea."

"What were you thinking?" Fives asked immediately, jumping on the first plan that wasn't Krell's.

Rex was back to looking through his electrobinoculars. "Remember what you were saying about finding another way to destroy those tanks?" My brow lifted as my head tilted to better listen. I liked where this was going. It was sounding more like the captain I knew. The one I loved.

"Yeah?"

"Well," Rex glanced back at the ARC. "I have a mission for you."

My back straightened as I turned to them fully, slinging my rifle over my shoulder. "I'm going, too."

Rex turned in surprise. His expression was hidden by his helmet, but I knew he was worrying. "I'm assigning this to Hardcase and Fives."

"And me." My words were firm, my arms crossing defiantly over my chest. I gave Rex a glare, daring him to challenge me. He accepted.

Good.

"What?" he asked, his voice sharp. It was his military leader's voice. The one he never used on me. Until now, of course.

My jaw clenched. "I will not stay here and carry out Krell's ridiculous plan," I spit, not trying to contain my anger anymore. I shook my head, still feeling the death. "I can't. Send me where I can help."

"You can help here."

"How?" I asked genuinely, lifting my brows. I knew Rex didn't appreciate me questioning him in front of his men. But he could kiss my ass at the moment. "By hiding until those machines find us? Or by doing what Krell wants?" I lifted my hands to my side. "We all know he hates me. If you really want to give him what he wants, why don't you stick a gun in my mouth-"

My words were cut off by Fives grabbing my arm and pulling me backwards. "That's enough," he said softly, practically cradling me against his side. He looked up at his captain, lifting his brows.

Rex sighed, avoiding my glowering eyes. He nodded to the ARC trooper, never looking at us as Fives dragged me away from the battle...and the captain I suddenly wanted to punch.

When the battle had long faded away, our group fell into silence. Hardcase seemed to know that Fives would bring up my outburst...and decided he didn't want to hear any of that. So he started droning on about his own things, those things mostly being war stories.

Despite him having his helmet on, I knew Fives was looking at me expectantly. I felt his surprise at my outburst. I was surprised, too, honestly. The emotions of the clones….they'd affected me more than I cared to admit.

I guess I was starting to understand the Jedi policy of detachment. Not to the extent they went...but I had to get better at locking down my awareness during battles, especially ones like these.

I cut my eyes back to Fives, giving him a clear look that told him to drop it. He looked away. For now, at least. I tuned back into Hardcase's endless talking, finding him talking about his supposed plan to take the airbase.

"The second they spot us," he goes, lifting his gun to animate his words, "I start blastin'-"

"Hardcase, can't you take it easy for once?" Fives asked as he stepped forward, taking the lead. "Stick to the plan, instead of guns blazing."

Hardcase only shrugged. "I'm sorry, it's just how I am. My commander on Kamino said my growth acceleration chamber had a leak." I lifted my brow, glancing sideways at the clone. "Made me...hyperactive, I guess," he chuckled.

I couldn't help but laugh, letting him lighten my mood a bit. "That would certainly explain a lot," I allowed, earning another laugh from my friend.

Fives shushed us both, making us turn forward again. "There's the airbase," he whispered, our group crouching down to slink towards the fence. We crouched at the base of a tree, the fence glowing and rippling with bright energy. Fives hummed. "Some kind of sensor wall."

I glanced up, seeing the tree reached high above the fence. Ignoring the boys as they began plotting how to get through the wall, I climbed high into the tree to find an indented well at the top and drew my rifle. The thermal sensor wouldn't have worked through the intense energy coming off the sensor wall. Hence...getting above it.

The airbase was crawling with Umbarans, but they didn't seem alerted to us at all. And despite being well occupied for three measly gunners, the numbers here were certainly ones we could take.

Especially if we managed to cop a few gunships from them.

A cable connected to the wood below me, my muscles coiling slightly in fright. I relaxed quickly when I saw it was Hardcase slowly scaling the cable towards me. When he pulled himself onto the platform, I cast him a lifted brow.

"Felt left out?" I teased.

"No," he said back a bit too quickly. He soon followed up with, "Fives told me to use the tree to get over."

My mouth opened slightly, but no words left my lips for a moment. "I beg your pardon?" I managed finally.

Hardcase ignored me, looking out over the base. And standing in my way while doing it. "Nice view."

"Wouldn't know," I grumbled, making him move out of my way with a poke of my rifle at the back of his knees. He walked away quickly, slowly moving down a sloping branch that reached over the fence. I shifted to the edge to watch him, my mouth agape.

The branch bent under his weight, practically giving him a slide into the airbase. "I'll be doing our mission, if you wanted to join," he called softly over his shoulder. "Even though I prefer a good fight to all this sneaking around." He barely even had to stretch his toes to reach the ground at the end of the bent branch.

Fives appeared beside me, having scaled the cable. "Didn't know you liked to free climb," he teased as he pulled the cable up behind him.

I lifted my brow. "This is your plan?"

"It's not my worst."

"I'd hate to hear your worst."

The ARC didn't respond as he began making his way down the branch after his brother. He knew I'd follow. And then suddenly I saw a flit of neon green, my eyes leaping sideways to spy one of the giant bugs crawling after Fives.

"Fives!" I whispered hoarsely, getting him to turn and see his attacker. It was no use. The creature was too fast in the air, swooping over the unbalanced clone. He dropped his blaster, nearly falling from the branch.

He was barely holding on.

I leapt onto the branch, sliding down it deftly as it bent under our combined weights. My lightsaber ignited in my hand, slicing through the air to get the creature away from the falling clone. With my other hand, I drew my pistol, firing at the bug until it fell from the sky in a smoking pile.

Fives slid on the bottom side of the branch until he reached the ground, leaping off. I soon followed, my lightsaber disengaging. "Wow," he chuckled gently, "I never actually thought that would work."

I snorted, letting him know I didn't think it'd work, either. We raced into the facility, wary of where I'd spotted Umbarans patrolling from the tree tops. We made our way below the various machines docked there, ducking below the same type of death-dealers the captain and the men were trying to survive right now.

"Now what?" I whispered beside them, seeing a lot of Umbarans between us and the gunships we were meant to steal.

"Don't worry," Fives assured, lifting his wrist to his helmet and pressing a button. "I've got it covered."

A deep rumble shook the ground beneath my feet, loud explosions sounding in the direction we'd come from-Fives had rigged the tree we used to climb in….rigged it to blow up. We pressed our backs against the bottoms of the machines, watching as the Umbarans reacted. They yelled in their jabbering language, their numbers breaking to investigate the possible attack.

We moved in the opposite direction, no one between us and the gunships now. And then an Umbaran rounded the corner, yelling, "hey!"

The boys handled it like a well-oiled machine. Hardcase shoved the Umbaran back immediately with a palm to the face-mask. Fives quickly followed with a knee in the Umbaran's chest. I didn't even have time to draw my weapons before Hardcase shot him with his rifle. My brows lifted, genuinely impressed.

I glanced over my shoulder, worried that someone might have heard us, but we were in the clear. For now.

"So," Fives grunted as he approached the open cockpit of the gunship. "How do I start this thing?" He climbed in before either of us answered, knowing we had no better idea than he did. Umbaran technology was as foreign to me as it was to him.

"Well, how should I know?" Hardcase answered anyways. "Start pushing buttons." Fives obeyed, the blue ray shield coming to life around him. He removed his helmet, tossing it to the side as he started pressing switches wildly.

My eyes cut around the side of the gunship, seeing that the Umbarans had spotted the gunship coming to life. They were headed our way.

"Woah!" Hardcase yelled with loud laughter as he spun in his own ray shielded orb, having found a gunship, too. I ducked behind Fives' bubble as Umbarans approached and opened fire, shooting my rifle from the cover. "Glad these things are ray-shielded," the clone commented with glee.

"The orb, maybe," I yelled, ducking behind the wings as Fives maneuvered his orb up and into its place in the gunship. "But not the rest. Get moving!"

Fives' gunship began to rise in the air, my feet still planted in the wing. I allowed it as he figured out the controls, finding his balance in the air. I hand practically pinned myself within the open wings, firing my rifle from the cover he was providing.

"What about you?" the ARC trooper called through the orb at me.

I looked up at him, smirking as I put my rifle away, my beskar lightsaber hilt appearing in my hand. "Our mission is to take the base, right?"

He was quiet while he watched me. "And Krell?"

I wanted to respond to that. With defiance or dismissal. But instead I just stared at the clone. What about Krell?

What about Krell….

He could get me taken off the mission for using my saber, since he ordered me not to. Then again….Anakin told Krell to use the advantages I provided with my abilities. That included the skills I acquired due to my Sith heritage.

My blood still boiled at how he had spit the word "Sithling." It bothered me that I took offense to a title that was technically true. Maybe it was because I knew it was intentionally meant as an insult.

I decided that Krell could try to take me off the mission, but I wouldn't be going anywhere. He'd have to either kill me or imprison me.

Both of which, I'd love to see him try.

I didn't respond to Fives' question in the end, giving him a solemn look. My lightsaber ignited, glowing a brilliant white in the darkness of Umbara. "Go." The trooper nodded, seeing the determination on my face.

And maybe a bit of the anger.

It probably wasn't good, but I was already tapping into my emotions as I stepped off the gunship's wing. Hilariously, the boys practically followed me as they tried to get control of their ships and turn them towards the battle, Hardcase scraping his ship's nose across the ground.

I landed deftly, using the Force to slow my fall. It was easy to slice through the first four Umbarans, all of them shocked by my use of the lightsaber. I heard Hardcase and Fives yelling in their cockpits, a laugh coming from the former before he blew a few Umbarans sky high.

The boys, as they began to 'figure out' how to fly their ships, handled the beautiful destruction of the Umbaran's war machines. We didn't want them running off with them in a retreat now, did we?

As the platforms exploded around me, I handled the foot soldiers. I cleared my mind, pushing away the emotional tidal wave I felt building in the direction of the battle I knew my friends were in. I felt their fear. Their pain. Their death.

I shoved it away, letting the Force flow through me and lead me through its dance. I dodged the blasts coming from the gunships before they were even fired, making my way to the central control tower. By the time I was glancing over my shoulder to check on the clones, they were flying towards their pinned brothers.

Well, as close to flying as they could manage.

I grinned slightly, feeling the Force whisper that they would succeed. I turned, lightsaber glowing at my side, to enter the elevator. It rose steadily, the dial flashing with each passing floor. It dinged gently when I reached the command deck, my fingers twisting the lightsaber in a cocky flourish.

The Umbarans turned with a fright, their weapons already aimed at me.

I flashed them all a wide smile, feeling the Force flow through me easily, licking at the emotions I used carefully to strengthen the connection. "Hi everyone," I called into the room, being met with only confused silence. "We haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet, but my name is Kida Fett. I'm here to accept your surrender."

They jabbered at me in the native tongue, the few closest to me taking a tentative step closer. They were warning me to surrender instead, clearly not understanding who was in charge here.

"Alright, then." With a final flourish, I held the saber up at my side in a ready stance. These soldiers and their machines were slaughtering my friends. Soldiers that surrendered were just cared for and usually released after the fighting was over. "I was hoping you wouldn't, anyways."

MANDO'A

sooran ni'jagyc- suck my dick

Hu'tuun- coward