"Sir?"

He could feel Rex's steady gaze on his back. He sighed, he knows he's not gonna like this. He's not sure he likes this. "They're making her Commander." Anakin repeated, finally tearing his gaze from the window.

"Sir!" Rex half-shouted, "She's not even fifteen!"

"She's a jedi." he threw back, unenthusiastically. It's a faulty argument and they both knew it.

"But—" Rex spluttered, seemingly at a loss, "Even if she's a jedi. She's still a child."

"So are you." He tried (and failed) to come up with a convincing grin.

"That's different. We were trained for this. Years of training. All due respect sir, she has no idea what she's getting into." His voice carried an edge as he continued. "She's wearing a kriffing tube-top. Anakin didn't interrupt him and waited until the tendrils of anger emanating from his Captain dissipated.

"I know this isn't… ideal," Rex snorted, but let him continue. "But we're gonna have to work with it."

Rex set the helmet he'd been clutching like a lifeline on the desk, looking as tired as Anakin's ever seen him. "How?"

The pinch nagging at his forehead returned, and he scrubbed his hand over his face. "I won't give her any actual command for the time being. But, she will eventually need to act as Commander." The datapad in his hand glared up at him. A new mission, barely a week after Teth.

His eyes traveled back to the youngling, bounding across the hangar. She looked so tiny from up here, half-walking/ half-skipping beside Cody. There was a light that followed her, youth and hope still radiating from every inch of her body. His chest ached that he's going to have to be the one that takes that from her.

"I'll do my best." Rex relented after a long pause, "To make her into a good leader."

He smiled, a genuine one this time, looking at his long-time friend "I know you will, Rex."

He nodded, a familiarly determined look disappearing behind his helmet as he took his leave.

Anakin glanced back to the datapad still waiting open on his desk. I really need to call Padme.

Being in the dirt was never particularly fun. Dust, dirt and sweat stuck to his undersuit, so even after a sonic-shower he still didn't feel clean. It had already been a week and they weren't any closer to finding the Clanker's hide away than they were when they got here.

"Come on!" Ahsoka yelled from somewhere up ahead of them. "We have to beat Skyguy! We're almost a full klick behind them." At least she's entertained. Somewhere around day two the Kid made some sort of race with the general of who is gonna reach the 212th base first.

"Kid's got gumption, I'll give her that." A trooper, Drift, a younger transfer, said as he clambered over a log after her.

Rex only sighed, plopping heavily on to the ground and removing his helmet again to wipe the sweat from his brow. His commlink beeped twice and Skywalker's tag popped up on the screen.

"Rex Here. Everything alright sir?"

"All good here, Rex" Skywalker's all too cheerful voice echoed across the call. "We took out two droid bases, the tin-heads rigged mines over the top. Found the first one after one of the clankers tripped their own defenses." He chuckled and Rex grinned, for an army of expensive battle-bots, they're pretty bad at it. "I just wanted to check out how Ahsoka's doing."

The kid was holding up better than he expected; a little worse for wear but still happily chattering with half the men as they meandered through the dense foliage. He was pleased to see how whole-heartedly she took to them and how easily they embraced her back.

"She's doing fine." He relayed, grinning, to his General. "Been chattering almost non-stop with my shiny. Last I heard, they were going on about the Z-6s."

"I'm glad." He sounded softer than Rex has ever heard him.

"Come on, Slowpoke!" Ahsoka's voice called back, already sounding farther away.

"Looks' like I gotta go. See you at the 212th!"

Anakin's laugh was cut short as the line dropped.

He let himself breathe for another moment before scrambling after them. He followed them into an open clearing, Ahsoka was laughing as Drift huffed to an undignified heap beside her. She grinned up at him, teeth flashing in the waning light.

He smiled at her, going to pat her shoulder lightly," Sorry, Kid."

"Hey, Cap. Come'ere look what I found."

Ahsoka's head snapped to the trooper, still waiting a few feet away.

"NO!"

Ahsoka screamed, shoving herself at him. Half a second later, an explosion rocked the grown as they were thrown back.

He wrapped his body around hers as they fell. They collided hard with the ground and tumbled away. His head cracked against something hard and everything went dark.