A/N: Credit goes to
klcutting Moments: Chapter 19: Where Has the Time Gone?
Reality Chapter 1 on AO3 by agirlinsomefandoms
Crosshair returned to Cantina's Hosnian Prime Underground to receive his payment after another successful mission. The climate is mild, which Crosshair knows is because of the reflectors in orbit that control Hosnian Prime's weather, making seasons irrelevant, just like on Coruscant.
As he enters the Cantina, he can see the lights shining on the roof, supplying the light that illuminates the area. He looks around and spots holotables with dangling lamps over them to provide supplemental light. He can hear the gentle hum of the holotables in use combined with the beings talking.
Under the smell of cotton, slightly rotten food and alcohol, Crosshair can detect the subtle scent of spice, which he can also taste. The soft carpet crunches under his feet, which clues Crosshair in that although the place looks well maintained, it isn't vacuumed or de-dusted often.
The masked figure approaches Crosshair with his payment. Once accepted, Crosshair takes a seat at the bar. The Masked Figure then shows Crosshair the image of a light-skinned human wearing bits of what looks like Clone Armour.
"So, Crosshair, we've got a former Mercenary who's gone rogue. The last known location of the Mercenary is the mountains of Ord Mantell. Capture or eliminate him," the masked figure stated.
Crosshair nodded and coolly replied, "I will. What's the payday?"
"The full payment is a month's normal salary. Since we split it 50/50, you'll get two weeks' worth." the figure replied.
"Consider it done. Crosshair replied, and he exited.
Soon, he returned to his ship, a modified YE4 Gunship custom-made just for him. He got a lot of credit for handing over the stolen Imperial Shuttle to the Rebellion. Climbing on, he headed out.
"Why Ord Mantell? Why is he hiding there?" Crosshair asked himself as he pushed his ship into Hyperspace.
He also wonders if he will encounter his brothers and sister on this mission. It had been several months since they had seen each other last. Would they feel any less negatively about him? Shaking those thoughts from his mind, he focuses on the mission ahead.
Back to Clone Force 99
The end-of-the-month visit to Dantooine came to a mixed reception from the Batch, the Lawquanes and Alejandro's family.
"Good luck, stay safe and keep in touch," Suu said to Hunter, who replied, "We will don't worry,"
"We'll miss you, Omega," Jek said, and both he and Shaeeah hugged Omega, which she returned. Smiling, Omega replied, "We'll be able to keep in touch, don't worry,"
Once they broke apart, Omega was hugged again, this time by Alejandro. The Batch noticed but didn't do anything about it, knowing that Alejandro cared for Omega.
"I'm going to miss your presence. Keep in regular touch, please, Meg," Alejandro said.
"I will, Al, don't worry. You've proven to be a dear friend and invaluable support," Omega returned the hug.
"I'm surprised how quickly their friendship developed," Echo said.
AZ replied from the door, "Considering they've been walking around the town for hours at a time at least three days a week, just talking, that shouldn't be a surprise,"
Omega and Alejandro broke apart, and both said to AZ, "So it was you who was following us during our walks,"
"It was simpler to send AZ to keep an eye on you two instead of one of us. I did say someone would be keeping an eye on you two," Tech stated.
Omega asked, " One, why? Two, what did AZ tell you about my conversations with Al? three, why AZ? And four, don't you trust us?" from the expression on Alejandro's face, he was thinking along similar lines.
That last question hit the entire Batch. Hadn't they shown that they trusted her? Hunter sighed, remembering what Suu had told him about Omega's thought processes now that she's a teenager, then got down to Omega's level and said, "We're addressing your last question first. It's not a question of trust but safety. You two are teenagers. He's partially disabled, and you were injured, making you two especially vulnerable. As to question two, AZ only told us enough that we knew you two talked about sensitive topics that both of you related. We didn't want to feel like we were imposing, but we also wanted that peace of mind that you two would be safe. That's why we sent AZ". Hunter, though addressing Omega, kept his voice at a level where Alejandro could hear him too.
"Alright. I understand," Omega replied, and Alejandro added, "Well, you took the best path to help keep us safe while respecting our privacy. Thanks for that,"
"You're welcome, Alejandro. You've been a big help to Omega," Hunter replied, smiling at him, which he returned.
"Thanks. Take good care of Omega, alright?" Alejandro replied, returning the smile.
Hunter replied, "We will" before they got on board, and the ship departed, heading back towards Ord Mantell.
On the way back, Hunter gets an idea.
"How about you put on your Armour Omega? So you can show it to Cid," Hunter suggested.
Omega nodded and replied 'Good idea, Hunter" she went to get her bodysuit and armour.
Once they returned to Ord Mantell, they found Cid waiting for them. Exiting, Cid got to see Omega's armour for the first time.
The facial plate was white like Wrecker's but had the red bandana like Hunter's and the crosshair over one eye like Crosshair. It was lighter like Tech's and had a handprint on her right breastplate like Echo's. The part over her stomach was the same as her dress, with a skull on her right shoulder plate, 99 in Aurebesh on her left shoulder plate, and red lines right down her leg and arm plates.
"So, you're back. Finally, Tiny's all healed up?" Cid asked, knowing that was the main reason they'd gone to Dantooine,
Hunter nodded, then replied, "Yep, all better now. Plus, as you can see, Omega now has armour,"
"Good," Cid replied, then said to Omega, "Nice armour, Tiny, it suits you,"
"Thanks, Cid," Omega replied. Cid then turned to the rest of the Batch and stated, "Got a pretty simple, local mission for you all. Not only will it let Omega get some experience in her armour, but it will help get you back into missions,"
"Alright. What are we doing?" Hunter asked.
Cid replied, "Follow me," she went inside with the Batch following.
Cid's parlour seemed like a typical mid-rim parlour. It was open and expansive, with a mix of music boxes, gambling machines, and holotables spread across the parlour, the source of the ambient light of the Parlour, along with some rectangular lights scattered here and there. The bar covered one entire side.
It was full of alcoholic drinks, with its light source highlighting them.
The armour dulled the taste and smell scents Omega got, but she could still detect the alcohol, the electricity of the holo table, and the slightest hint of spice.
The tiled surface felt warm but rough, and the air in the parlour was still and stale.
Everyone could see the tiled floor was not white, but only Omega noticed that the holotables were different types. None of them was identical, even if the differences were so subtle only Omega observed them.
Cid took them to a free holo table and activated it, showing them their mission.
"A commissioned Separatist base in the mountains. It never got completed before the small force there got routed by local forces. Your mission is to get data from the computer there and to see if you can find the mercenary that went awol," Cid stated.
Wrecker asked, "What's the information for?"
"Who do you think, Muscles? The Rebellion," Cid stated.
"So, our mission is to get in and collect the information?" Tech asked.
Cid replied, "Yep. Pretty simple, all things considered. Now get going", and the Batch nodded and headed out.
The Batch returns to the ship, and, probably not entirely surprisingly, she's excited and nervous about equal measure. Her first mission while wearing her armour. But also the first mission since she was injured.
"Ready?" Hunter asked.
Omega replied by putting her helmet on and nodding. Tech started the ship up, and they headed for the Ord Mantell Mountains.
When they arrived, Tech brought it into a careful landing, landing with a soft thud.
"Let's do this. Take it carefully," Hunter said.
The rest of the Batch nodded, and they slowly exited the ship. They were expecting anything, Droids, Wildlife, Troopers, Crosshair, but nothing attacked them as they reached the rock faces.
"Well, you know what to do," Hunter stated, and they got out their tow cables and shot them onto the rock face.
Omega had a little trouble with hers but got it after multiple attempts. The Batch then slowly ascended.
It was then that Omega realised how much clumsier everything was when weighted down by armour. Then again, she shouldn't be surprised, having never done a mission in them before. After a while, the Batch reaches the top, with Hunter and Wrecker helping Omega up.
"Searchlight," Echo called, and the Batch hid behind a large bush to not get spotted.
"Take it out," Hunter said, and Tech nodded, then shot a stun at the guard near the searchlight. The guard was stunned, and the Batch was able to get closer.
Meanwhile with Crosshair
Crosshair brought his ship into a landing, not too far away from the Batch.
Getting out, he scans for lifeforms. And in addition to the fugitive mercenary, he discovered that Clone Force 99 was with them.
"Typical," Crosshair sneered as he made his way towards another entrance to the base.
He also had to avoid a searchlight. But, using his sniper rifle, he disabled the searchlight without attracting any attention.
"Let's see where our little friend is," Crosshair stated before entering.
When they reach the incomplete base in the mountains of Ord Mantell, the temperature falls noticeably. The only light is filtering in from the sky, lit up by Ord Mantell's star. The only sources of sound are natural. These sounds come from the gentle wind blowing through the base, the stream that created the ravine and the calls of Leatherwings flying.
The surface transitioned from rough and rocky to smooth but hard steel. The smells and tastes of the base come from Rocks, Moss, Water, Dust and Steel.
The floor of the base was full of dust. Hunter, however, can sense the decaying electricity of dead Battle Droids. The Batch, and Crosshair, realise that they're at the bottom of a ravine.
"They built this base in a Ravine?" Wrecker enquired.
Tech explained, "It would be a good spot, as Ravines are deep, and most people won't explore them. I wonder why they never completed construction,".
"We can speculate about that when we've completed the mission," Hunter replied.
Tech replied, "Right" the Batch slowly made their way inwards.
Crosshair is the first to encounter resistance, but it's of the natural variety, as a Leatherwing whooshed over him, causing him to duck. Before the time he got up, however, the creature was long gone.
"Seems like a few faunas have decided to make this place their home," Crosshair stated. He then looked around and briefly saw a masked man run past.
"That must be the mercenary," Crosshair said, and he took off in pursuit.
As the Batch continued inward, they heard a rumble from above. Suddenly, Hunter and Omega were separated from Tech, Wrecker and Echo by a sudden rockfall.
"Kriff," Hunter thought. He messaged, "Tech, Wrecker, Echo, are you all OK?"
"Yeah, we avoided the rocks. How about you and Omega?" Tech asked.
Hunter replied, "Yeah, we're fine. We'll try to find a way to get back to the ship. You guys finish the mission".
"Understood," Tech replied, and the comlink went dead.
"What do we do?" Omega asked nervously.
Hunter replied, "Get back to the Havoc Marauder and get it over to pick up Tech, Wrecker and Echo".
"Sounds good," Omega replied, and they went to make their way back to the ship. However, Hunter senses the approach of another person.
"Who's there?" Hunter asked, and he drew a blaster while Omega activated her Zygerrian Bow. A few moments later, a figure stepped out from a nearby alcove.
"Crosshair! What are you doing here?" Hunter gasped, both he and Omega shocked by Crosshair's appearance.
"I could ask you the same thing," Crosshair stated coldly. He looked at Omega and sneered, "It looks like you finally got the kid armour. Guess you're making her a part of the squad,"
"She needed the protection, and we finally got enough to get her some. It's even got a crosshair on the helmet to remember you," Hunter stated, and Omega pointed to it.
"How touching," Crosshair replied. "What brings you guys out here?"
"We're on a mission for Cid. Where are your Imperial friends?" Hunter asked.
Crosshair sneered, "I'm no longer associated with the Empire," he removed his helmet, which both Hunter and Omega do.
"When did this happen?" Hunter asked.
Crosshair sneered, "Two weeks ago, after I discovered I had been lied to about the inhibitor chip," he sighed.
"You were right about something Hunter. The Empire did only see me as a number. They even lied to me about my Inhibitor Chip," Crosshair stated bitterly before showing the scar on the side of his head, barely visible amongst the others.
Hunter bit back the "I told you so" he was so tempted to say, but said instead, "Who got it out for you?"
"Nala Se," Crosshair replied, which shocked both Hunter and Omega.
"She's on an Imperial Stronghold planet called Wayland. You'll never get in there to do anything to her, '' Crosshair continued.
"So that's why you abandoned the Empire. Because of the chip?" Hunter nodded.
Crosshair stated, "They betrayed my trust. That's why I left"
"Then why aren't you returning to your brothers? To us?" Omega asked.
Crosshair replied, "I abandoned the Empire because they lost my trust. But you don't trust me. So, I cannot return until that's corrected,"
"Understandable, Crosshair. I forgive you. Maybe one day, we can trust each other, and you'll return," Hunter said.
Crosshair stated, "I doubt it. But we'll see," Crosshair replied.
He then said, "Looks like the way forward is blocked. The person I'm after couldn't have gotten far. Hunter, if you trust me, maybe we can work together to track him down,"
Hunter considered this for a moment. Does he trust his brother? Well, since Crosshair saved Omega.
He and Omega are the only two members who trust him. After a few moments, Hunter nods and puts his helmet back on. Crosshair and Omega do the same.
"Let's do this," Crosshair sneered, and the trio headed back, looking for their target.
They didn't have to go far before said mercenary tried to lunge for Omega.
Hunter was first, delivering a punch to his face. The mercenary staggered back, then lunged at Hunter and Crosshair and managed to get Crosshair's blaster out of his hand.
As he tried to grab it, Hunter kicked it away. Omega lunged for it, but the Mercenary broke partially free of Hunter and Crosshair's grappling and grabbed Omega. Omega kicked and thrashed, trying to get free. In desperation, Hunter and Crosshair attempted to pull him off Omega, but Omega managed to grab her Zyggerian Bow and whack the mercenary on the hand to force him to let her go.
Omega managed to grab the blaster, but the three of them were grappling too closely for Omega to be able to stun the mercenary without risking a stun of Hunter or Crosshair.
The Mercenary then managed to break free of the brother's grasp by elbowing Hunter and kicking Crosshair. He took a lunge at Omega, but that was what Omega wanted to happen.
She shot the stun, and he fell to the ground, though not before knocking Omega off her feet.
"Everyone OK?" Hunter asked as he got to his feet.
"We're OK"
"Good. Crosshair, chain him up. We're just here for the information on the crashed ship," Hunter stated.
Crosshair nodded and did likewise, muttering, "I was going to do that anyway, but thanks".
Once Hunter had done a quick check over of Omega, he said, "Well, I guess this is goodbye for now, Crosshair."
"Save it," Crosshair sneered. Hunter was taken aback a bit but rallied quickly.
"If it's anything, you have reinforced that I can trust you, Crosshair," Hunter said.
Crosshair replied, "Thanks, I guess. I still have the rest of the squad to convince. But thanks for the help,"
"No problem, Crosshair," Omega replied. Crosshair grunted, then stated, "I'd better get this guy back to the ship. I know I should have eliminated him, but I think having him face the guy he betrayed will be more satisfying" before he departed.
"Alright, Omega, we'd better get back to the ship and wait for the others," Hunter said.
Omega nodded, picked up her bow, and they departed for the Havoc Marauder.
With Wrecker, Tech and Echo
"I hope Hunter and Omega are OK," Wrecker said.
Tech stated, "So long as they have each other, they'll be OK,"
"We don't want another Agamar. Let's just finish the mission and get back to the ship," Echo stated.
Tech replied, "Affirmative," and the trio went further looking for the crashed battleship.
Soon enough, they come across it. A crashed Munificent Class Star Frigate.
"Well, that's where our mission objective is," Tech stated.
Echo added, "Be careful. We don't want a situation like Agamar,"
"That is true. But I think we're ready this time, in case that happens. Right?" Wrecker enquired.
Tech nodded. The trio then enters and finds B1 and B2 Battle droids, all decommissioned, all over the ship.
"Battle Droids just like on Agamar. Hopefully, they won't activate," Tech whispered.
Wrecker whispered back, "I'd love to smash a few,"
"Don't," Echo growled as they slowly moved across the ship towards the computer.
When they arrived, Tech quickly transferred the needed information onto his holopad and did a little tinkering.
"Uh, Tech, what are you doing?" Echo enquired.
Tech stated, "Seeing if there's anything that I need to disable before I withdraw and potentially trigger the droids,"
"Good plan," Wrecker whispered as Tech kept working. After a minute or two, Tech managed to find a link. He subsequently disables it.
"Good work. Now let's get out of here," Echo said.
Tech and Wrecker nodded, and they made their way back.
On their way back, they find a new way out. However, their path isn't that simple.
"Looks like the Seppies weren't even able to finish the bridges," Tech stated, looking at the half-completed bridge that didn't quite go across the river. Wrecker, seeing this groaned, "I hate having to cross broken bridges,"
"Well, we're going to have to do it if we want to get back to the ship," Echo snapped before he jumped across. Tech nodded, then added, "Follow me, Wrecker, and you may need a bit of a runup,"
"Fine," Wrecker replied, and as Tech leapt over the gap, Wrecker took several steps back and ran for it. He jumped and barely made it. However, the noise he'd made had awoken the clankers in the local area.
"Run," Echo said, and the trio ran for it. The Battle Droids approached from the other side of the bridge but missed all the handful of shots they could get off before the three of them were out of range.
"Extend the Bridge," one of the Droids demanded, and one of the others went to work. However, due to B1's stupidity, instead of extending the bridge, the bridge started retracting.
"I said,'' Extend it!" Not "Retract it, you Buckethead," the first B1 yelled as they tried to retreat.
However, two battle droids lost their balance and fell into the river.
"Next time, listen to orders," the B1 snapped.
The other one replied, "The bridge was already fully extended, you idiot,"
"I didn't know that," the first B1 replied. The third B1 then added, "We'd better go around then,"
"Roger, Roger," the first B1 replied, and they headed back the way they came.
Tech, Wrecker, and Echo eventually returned to the ship, where they found Hunter and Omega waiting for them.
"Got the information?" Hunter asked.
Tech replied, "Affirmative," as he ran to the cockpit and started the ship up so they could get out of there.
Once they were heading to the city, Hunter said, "You won't believe who we ran into".
"Who was it?" Echo enquired.
"Crosshair"
"Crosshair? What's he doing out here?" Wrecker asked, surprised.
Omega replied, "The Empire lied to him about his inhibitor chip, so Nala Se removed it for him. He then abandoned the Empire and is now a mercenary on the run like we are"
"Why doesn't he come back with us?" Tech asked.
"Trust"
"Of course, it is. We didn't exactly show much trust in Crosshair while on Kamino. It's not surprising that he doesn't want to rejoin us. I know I wouldn't want to keep with a squad I don't trust," Echo said.
"Well, we'll soon be back at Cid's Parlour. Then we can get our payday and figure out what we're going to do next" Hunter nodded.
Soon, they were back at Cid's Parlour. As a Hunter returned, he saw the holotables were off, but there were now a few more people at the bar, which was more active. The smell and taste of alcohol were more substantial, which masks any spice.
Hunter could sense the electricity struggling to keep everything running.
"You got the information?" Cid leered.
Tech stated, "We've got it right here,"
"Good. Come to my office, Goggles, and transfer them to me. I'll pass it on to the Client," Cid stated, and she headed back to her Office while Tech followed.
While Tech was off with Cid, Wrecker and Omega went to grab some Mantell Mix from the stand, even though they still had a fair bit back at the ship.
When Wrecker and Omega returned, Tech returned with the credits.
"It's not a huge amount, but it'll do," Tech stated. Cid asked, "So, what are you all going to do now?"
"We're going to do a supply run, get some of the new Ration Bars we've heard about," Hunter said.
Cid stated, "Alright. I want a few games of Dejarik from Tiny. So, she stays here,"
"Sure," Omega replied, and she took a seat at one of the Dejarik tables. Hunter shook his head and followed the rest of the crew.
With Crosshair
Crosshair made it back to his ship and chained up his prisoner. Crosshair's ship was colder than outside, but not by much. The only light that came from his ship was from the internal lights on the roof.
The gentle hum of the ship, combined with the engines, was the source of the sound. Crosshair could taste and smell the steel of the craft and the fact the mercenary had been living rough.
The seat he was in was soft on his behind but harder on his back. The leather on the controls was smooth on his hands. Everyone would notice the carpet Crosshair had put in his ship, but only Crosshair would see the radio he'd stuck in the control panel.
On the way back to Hosnian Prime, he messages his boss.
"I have a rogue mercenary. Unfortunately, we had to bring in alive," Crosshair sneered,
His Boss replied, "That's acceptable, Crosshair. Maybe we can get some information from him".
"Sounds good. I'll see you soon," Crosshair replied,
His boss nodded, and Crosshair cut the communication.
"What have you got me chained up for, huh? And who are you? One of them Imperial whack jobs?" the mercenary asked.
Crosshair replied, "I was. Until they lied to me and broke my trust. And I chained you up because I don't want to take any risks with you hurting me,"
"Oh. What happened? And who's the guy in the bandana? And that girl?" the mercenary enquired.
Crosshair replied, "Another group of people I was with, but who also broke my trust. I appear to have regained two of the member's trust but not the other three."
"Oh," the mercenary replied and remained silent for the rest of the journey.
Eventually, Crosshair made it back to Hosnian Prime. Parking his ship in one of the bays, he dragged his prisoner back to his boss.
Once he got back to the parlour, he saw that the patrons had arrived and were now playing Dejarik, so the hum of the activated holo table added to the noise of the parlour.
The scent of spice was more potent, so Crosshair suspected illegal dealings.
"Ah, well done Crosshair. I knew I could trust you," his Boss said.
Crosshair sneered, "Be glad he's alive. He wouldn't be warm if my siblings hadn't interfered".
"Right," his Boss replied. He then grabbed the prisoner and threw him into the holding room. He then said, "Now, how about I pay you? It's 50/50 split if I remember correctly,"
"That is right," Crosshair replied, and they went to the Boss' office for payment.
After payment and a supply run, Crosshair returned to his ship to think. He first realised that he had called Omega his sister instead of the kid.
"Force kriff it. She's not even here, and the kid's already affecting me," Crosshair thought. He then sighed and ticked off another day alone. Part of him wanted to return to his brothers and sister. But at the same time, he knew he had to earn back the trust of Tech, Wrecker and Echo before he could. One thing was for sure though his new life was, ironically, more comfortable and fulfilling than his time in the Empire. He had never considered this a possibility, but it seemed like he was only a number to the Empire. Now, he was his person, able to, for now, at least forge his destiny.
As he ate the ration bar, he thought over his life path. Honestly, it wasn't so bad. One day, the six of them might reunite. But until he'd regained their trust, that wasn't happening.
The following morning, Omega was up early. Hunter awoke and saw her hovering over him.
"What is it, ad'ika?" Hunter asked.
Omega asked, "Can we please start training?"
"Alright. But after breakfast, alright?" Hunter sighed. Omega excitedly cheered and ran to get her breakfast.
During breakfast, the Batch discusses what parts they want to teach Omega first. Hunter agreed to start by teaching Omega basic hand-to-hand combat while showing her various stretches, exercises and warm-up techniques. Wrecker decided to show Omega things about explosives and start weight training to improve Omega's body strength. Upper, Lower and Core. Tech decided on showing Omega various technical things, while Echo decided on Strategy, mainly strategic in scenarios unfamiliar to Omega. Omega, meanwhile, just ate her way through breakfast, only half-listening.
After breakfast, Omega went to freshen up (Taking 20 minutes to do so, for female teenager reasons) while the Batch set up their training sectors for her. In the end, it was good she was in the refresher for so long, as they were all ready by the time she exited the Havoc Marauder in her armour.
"Did you deodorise the refresher?" Hunter said.
Omega blushed under her helmet.
"Alright, let's get started," Hunter said.
Hunter started by showing Omega basic stretches, which every Batcher joined in on.
"Ah, that feels good. I feel nicely loosened up," Omega sighed happily, stretching happily.
Hunter replied, "Good. You don't want to hurt yourself while training,"
"That's true," Omega replied, nodding. She then took a combat stance, and Hunter showed her basic hand-to-hand combat. And quickly registered that Omega didn't hit hard.
Therefore Hunter didn't feel her hits.
However, Omega was soon able to fight Hunter, even though Hunter barely felt Omega's hits.
After that, Hunter showed Omega basic knife skills, which Omega also picked up quite quickly thanks to her Mimicry.
Once Hunter was done, it was Wrecker's turn. He showed Omega the basics of explosives, such as how they work and how to defuse and arm a couple of bombs. The main two were the Smoke Bomb and the Droid Popper.
And it was going well until Omega accidentally activated a Droid Popper and accidentally stunned herself, which sent a major scare through the Bad Batch.
After a few moments, Omega came to after waking up.
Hunter asked, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"
"Nah, I caught her before she hit the ground. So, she isn't hurt, I don't think," Wrecker replied.
Omega shook her arms and legs to get the last of the laziness out and replied, "I'm fine. Thanks, Wrecker. What did I do wrong?"
"You accidentally activated the Droid Popper and forgot to throw it before it activated. I should have mentioned that. Sorry" Wrecker replied, hugging Omega, which she returned.
"Alright, Wrecker," Omega replied, and they started again. After a while, Omega was familiar with the basics of explosives.
Omega then moved on to Tech, who showed her around the cockpit of the Havoc Marauder and showed her how various areas of the cockpit worked. Omega was full of questions about each part, and Tech was too happy to answer them.
Finally, Omega moved on to Echo and found him in Cid's Parlour at a Dejarik table. Except, it wasn't a Dejarik game that was on it. Instead, it was a 3D representation of a battlefield.
"What's going on here?" Omega asked curiously.
Echo replied, "I decided that, for strategy training, you should move on from Dejarik. And learn a few strategies you can apply to real life".
"Sounds good," Omega replied, taking a seat opposite Echo.
Over the next half hour, Echo tested Omega's battle strategies. Echo guided Omega through each battle, and soon, she could give at least basic instructions to her virtual Clone Troopers against the virtual Battle Droids.
"So, this is what the Clone Wars were like?" Omega asked.
Echo replied, "This is a good idea of what the war was like, or at least one small part. So, you at least have some details of what we did. What I did, back in the 501st,"
"Oh. OK. Aw man, not everyone made it" Omega sighed as she noticed that she'd lost ten of the fifty soldiers she had started.
"It's OK, Omega, you're learning. Let's adjust the scenario for something that you'd likely encounter," Echo replied, and the virtual scene changed to Omega separated from the rest of the Batch.
Omega analysed the situation. She saw the Stormtroopers between her and her brothers.
She got virtual Omega to a nearby set of crates and waited. She went between boxes until the Stormtroopers passed the Batch's corridor.
After a few moments, Omega sent her virtual self across. That was a mistake, though not one that cost Virtual Omega her life. It was an intense but brief firefight, but the Stormtroopers were all killed.
"I won. But I get the sense that you guys, or maybe I, was hurt," Omega said. And sure enough, Hunter and herself had been hurt.
"Ah, oops. I should have waited a bit, right?" Omega asked.
Echo replied, "Another second. You would have been off clean. But well done"
"OK," Omega replied, scared by seeing Hunter and herself injured.
She tried again, and this time she wanted four seconds instead of three. As a result, the Stormtroopers didn't sense her movements and kept patrolling while she reunited with the Batch,
"Whew. That was nerve-wracking," Omega admitted, letting out a shaky breath she didn't realise she'd been holding.
"Hmmm. Alright, let's take a quick break and maybe take it a bit easy here," Echo said, noticing Omega's white knuckles. He walked over and put a hand on Omega's back to calm her.
"I hope I didn't trigger anything. It seems like what happened to you on Agamar is still playing on your mind," Echo said, embracing Omega and holding her gently. Omega returned the embrace and replied, "It's more than that. Hunter getting shot by Bracca was part of it, and one of my nightmares involves Cad Bane killing both of us. On top of that, it all happened to me in such a short period. It makes it difficult to process. I'm still scared of failure and getting hurt again to the point of having to go to a medical facility," Omega replied, starting the breathing exercises that Alejandro had taught her. Slowly, she managed to get most of the Anxiety out of her body and calmed down to some degree.
"It's OK, Omega. I know how you feel. You saw my reaction when I awoke after being hit by the tray back on Kamino. If you want to talk about it, that's something we can work on," Echo said, gently rubbing her back to calm her down. Omega nodded and replied, "It's OK Echo. I'm glad you're here to help me with this and that I can help you,"
"Thanks, Omega," Echo replied, smiling. He then asked, "Would you like to hear about a couple of stories from my time in the 501st?"
"Sure," Omega replied, eager for something to take her mind off the events of the last half hour. Echo nodded, then started on the tales, which seemed to calm Omega down.