AN: I'm still having massive migraines, so this chapter isn't as long as I would like it to be and I hope to reply to everyone's comments by the time I publish the next chapter. Thank you for your patience and your comments about the chapter, y'all give me life.
Chapter 15 - All in This Together
Jango's chest burned with humiliation from Obi-Wan sweeping in and skipping past every obstacle that Jango himself had been trapped in, and admiration for the man.
Boba tugged on Obi-Wan's hand, "I want to show you around!"
Obi-Wan smiled at him but shook his head gently, "I'm sorry, Bo'ika, but not today. I need to meet the rest of the vode and until your Buir allows you to join your brothers' daily routine, this is not your space."
Boba pouted at the Jedi but didn't protest when Jango called him to his side. Jango wasted little time in leaving. Until he knew everything that Obi-Wan had changed, he would have to be careful about what he said and di.
"Buir," Boba wined.
"No, Boba," Jango said. "It isn't our place to be there right now."
"Why can't we stay?"
"Because I never claimed the vode as my ade as I claimed you, Boba. Obi-Wan has claimed them now. The vode deserve to get to know their first buir."
"Why aren't you their buir?"
Jango sighed, "Because I am just a man, Boba, and I make mistakes. Not protecting the vode is the greatest mistake I have ever made."
"But Wan is my buir too, right? And now the vode are really my vode and you are really their buir now too."
Jango went to his knees beside him, he hugged him tight, "I'm so sorry, Bo'ika that I failed you all like this."
Boba patted his shoulder, "It's alright, Buir. You needed a Jetii'Riduur for all of us."
Jango choked, not sure if he was ready to laugh or cry.
He settled on lifting Boba up into his arms and taking him back to their apartment. He had so much he was going to have to plan.
Again Cody was struck by the General's generosity and respect for their ways. He might be changing everything but he knew they were different from Boba.
Cody would rather have the general for a Buir anyway.
The Jedi offered Cody a hand and asked, "Will you introduce me to your vode, Cody?"
Cody took the General's hand and realized when he did that that the General was asking for a hand up. He had a flash of worry before realizing the General was doing so as a sign of goodwill, not because he actually needed the help.
This was proved when he stood fluidly, his robes swooshing around him. He wasn't as tall as the Prime but it still seemed as if he towered over them all.
The General looked at him expectantly.
Cody flushed remembering the Jedi had asked him to make introductions. "Sir, would you like to be introduced by classification?"
"By age is fine, yes," the General said.
Cody nodded, and everyone stood, going toward their batchmates and classifications in organized lines.
The Nulls and Alphas stepped to the front.
"These are the Null-Advanced Reconsions Commandos—" Cody began, but stopped when the General raised a halting hand.
"Please tell me how you would prefer me to address you."
The CCs hid smiles at that but the Nulls and Alphas looked grumpy as ever.
Not that Cody blamed them. They hadn't been batched in the thousands like the CCs and CTs, but there had once been dozens of Nulls and a few hundred Alphas.
But now there were only six Null-ARCs and fifteen Alphas.
N-7 spoke first, "My name is Mereel."
The General bowed his head, "Well-met, Mereel, bu'ad of Mand'alor Jaster."
Mereel actually smiled up at the General.
The other Nulls were far less welcoming, their voices clipped in such a way as to invite no personal comment on their chosen names:
"Kom'rk, Sir."
"Prudii, Sir."
"Jaing, Sir."
"Ordo, Sir."
"A'den, Sir."
The General nodded to each of them but said no more.
"And these are the Alphas," Cody said, wanting to get away from the Nulls' implicit rudeness.
"Alpha-17, General, Sir," Seventeen said with no less rudeness.
Cody fought not to roll his eyes at the older vod.
The other Alphas, thankfully, had less of a stick up their shebs, their voices less hostile as they introduced themselves.
"Spar, General, Sir."
"Maze, General, Sir."
"Solah, General, Sir."
"Sull, General, Sir."
"Trantos, General, Sir."
"Muzzle, General, Sir."
"Fordo, General, Sir."
"Nate, General, Sir."
"Aven, General, Sir."
"Mar'ek, General, Sir."
"Stec, General, Sir."
"Tavo, General, Sir."
Cody waited for the General to be annoyed or get bored, but he met everyone's gaze acknowledging them all with a bow of the head.
There were seventy-eight CCs, and again, the General heard out each and every one of their names and/or designations for those who hadn't chosen a name yet or who weren't ready to share it.
One hundred and ninety-eight CTs later, the General had not tired. Which considering the CTs were toddlers was more than mildly impressive.
Cody glanced at the chrono on the wall, worried that one of the Longnecks would call the General away.
"I am going to introduce myself to the younger CTs, it is my understanding that they are not in set classes and are instead being cared for by nanny-droids. You all should be headed to the first meal right about now. I'll be walking through your classrooms this afternoon to answer any questions about the changes in schooling modules."
Cody saluted him, Rex a perfect mimic at his side, and the others followed only seconds later.
The General clasped his hands over each other and bowed deeply to them.
Obi-Wan went to the room next door, and at one years old these boys were two year olds. All of them could stand and they were watched by dozens of droids.
Thank Force though, the room was much bigger than the older clones' rooms and there were toys and stuffed animals, puzzles and games, all geared toward exploration and learning but it was the hellscape Obi-Wan had been shown during his first tour of the Kamino.
Realizing what he was doing, the droids opened the side walls, showing that these rooms together made up a mid-sized hanger.
Nearly two thousand two year olds were a lot of kids.
All the youngling ages combined at the Temple were at most three thousand, and it was staff to youngling at a one to three ratios.
Thankfully, it seemed Obi-Wan would not need to untrain these children in asking for their needs to be met. They were perhaps quieter than they should be but Obi-Wan could spot no other odd behaviour aside from their obvious starvation of adult contact.
In other words, when he got on his knees to introduce himself, no one called him Sir and the babies turned to him like flowers toward a sun. He made sure to leave no one out as hugged, kissed foreheads, and ruffled hair for all of them.
By the end of an hour, Obi-Wan was telling them stories about sea dragons and legends he learned from the histories of Kamino before the Longnecks colonized the planet.
Then Obi-Wan organized a massive game of sharks and minnows that dissolved into sharks and sea dragons, the sharks replacing the minnows, of course. The Force glowed with the boys' happiness as they began to laugh openly as they ran, rolled, and jumped on the mats.
Amazingly, none of the boys injured themselves, showing that whatever the Kaminoans had done to reduce the boys' anger and individualism had some notable alterations.
Comparing the second CT class to the Alphas, the CTs were more compassionate, more aware of each other, and incredibly group-oriented.
What broke Obi-Wan's heart was that this generation had had the highest causality rates in the entire GAR during the wars. Because with increased empathy and group orientation, it meant they had been most affected by the Kaminoans' cruelty and apathy. They had not borne being separated across the battalions well.
Much less how they handled casualties during the war.
The second CTs were possibly the most Jedi-like of the vode. It was perhaps the reason the Padawans connected to them so quickly.
Obi-Wan had to catch himself by addressing any of them by name as their names weren't his to give them.
It seemed a twist of fate that Helix —Obi-Wan's once medic— and Fives —who had become Rex's shadow— attached themselves to his side more determinedly than others.
After three hours of tag, Obi-Wan was able to get the little ones down for their afternoon naps with the promise he would be back to tell them another story before bed and that, yes, he would be back in the morning as well.
Cody was sort of glad the General wasn't around for morning practices, they were distracted, to put it mildly. Even though they were all able to talk over breakfast that consisted of vegetables and salted seaweed.
Absolutely no one complained about the absence of rations that had literally been imbued with evil chemicals.
Luckily, today was just weapons management and weight training.
"I can't believe he's real," Neyo said.
Bacara snorted, "We can't trust him."
Cody looked at the Alphas and Nulls who didn't say a word as they took apart their weapons with apparent single-minded focus.
"Alpha, what do you think of the General?" Cody asked.
Seventeen acted as if he hadn't heard.
No one rushed him.
They all knew Alpha-17 had been tapped by the Kaminoans to oversee everyone else's training.
It meant he was under more scrutiny and pressure than anyone else, and he would also be responsible for judging the rest of them. He was in essence, the Kaminoans' left hand.
But finally Alpha said, "Boba was right. He's a Mandalorian Jedi. He knew the meaning behind Mereel's name, he claimed us all as aliit, and he…"
They waited.
"He what?" Bly snapped.
Alpha-17 looked up, "He argued with the Prime. The Prime is owned by the Kamonians. They did something to Boba and if the Prime takes us as ade, the Longnecks will just use us to harm him too."
"And you think the Jedi can change that?" Rex asked.
Alpha sighed, "I don't know, I don't—"
"But what do you think?" Cody asked.
Alpha looked away, "Someone's lying to us. Why is the Prime training us for the Jedi if he hates Jedi? Why is a Jedi a Mandalorian when Mandalore isn't a part of the Republic?"
"But what do you think?" Cody asked.
Not Seventeen but Mereel answered, "Names are important, Cody."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Ponds asked.
"Obi-Wan Kenobi has a special meaning in Mando'a," Mereel said. "The Prime told us once that we were not Obi-Wans, that we were free to choose our own names and that we were not Kenobis, because we're not clanless, that our clan was each other."
"So what does that mean?" Ponds repeated.
"Obi-Wan Kenobi literally means One Who is Nameless and Clanless," Ordo said. "It's a name they give to babies who are destined to be decommissioned."
"So why wasn't he decommissioned?" Rex asked.
Rex whose entire batch except for him had been decommissioned when Rex had passed a test and his batchmates hadn't.
They hadn't done anything wrong, they were just training. But in being born blonde, the Kaminoans had marked him for death and had used the most convenient excuse.
"Because he's a Jedi," Mereel said. "And the Jedi don't kill their younglings."
"So what does that mean about the General?" Rex asked.
"That maybe it's okay to hope," Fordo said.
"Hope that what?" Cody asked.
"That he gives a kriff," Ordo said.
Alpha-17 sighed, "Because he's like us, Mandalorian but not really Mandalorian."
Cody didn't think he had a choice in that, he didn't just have hope that General Kenobi cared about them.
No, for Cody, it wasn't just hope.
He had faith in his General.
That afternoon, was quiet as helped the older vode find their places in the school modules.
Obi-Wan didn't let it bother him, he remembered this from the first time he went into hyperspace with the 212th.
How they had been afraid.
Not of the war.
Not even of him.
Fear that they would fail each other.
So Obi-Wan let them keep their silence, and said nothing until the end of the class.
"You all did very well today. Though it was plain to me that many of you have already covered some of this material, the review never harmed anyone. Furthermore, if any of you found contradicting information and are unsure of which source to trust, I suggest you make note of it. While you may not feel comfortable approaching me about it, I can help you look up further information so you may discern what you trust to be real and unreal."
"Yes, Sir," the vode said.
"You may go to last meal, I will see you all tomorrow after first meal."
"Yes, Sir," the vode said again with a salute.
Obi-Wan fisted his right hand and clasped his left over it, then bowed deeply as he had done in the morning. "May the Force be with you."
Then Obi-Wan walked out before any of them could alter their normal day more than they already had.
Obi-Wan went round the back of the kitchens and paused when he saw a morose group of vode.
Five vode and a sixth hiding in the vents.
The one in the vents bled with loneliness and the other five looked as if they had been kicked while they were down.
99 was easy to recognize both by his physical appearance and more so because of his Force presence.
99 was extremely Force sensitive and had likely survived the Kaminoans much the same way Obi-Wan had survived his own childhood. Though where Obi-Wan had shielded, a sort of 'notice me not' Force shield, 99 projected peace like a balm on the soul.
"I can't believe they are kicking us out of our room, isn't it bad enough we have to be separated from the others," the one boy said who looked the most like Boba, though clearly older, around six.
"That's because we are a bad influence," the largest boy said, stabbing a vegetable with his fork. "Is this really all they are feeding us?"
Ah, Obi-Wan thought, this is the Bad Batch.
He didn't recognize them immediately because thinking of Echo's fate was not a particularly pleasant memory for Obi-Wan, one he had avoided revisiting.
Though Echo was currently among Fives's batchmates.
The first boy who had spoken, Hunter, continued, "How can we be a bad influence when the Nulls get to stay with the CCs and Class 1 CTs?"
"Because we belong to Nala Se," Tech answered. "And our food changed because the Jedi stopped the advanced ageing protocol."
"Joy," Hunter said with thick sarcasm, "Another decade in the labs, just what I always wanted."
Crosshair growled, "How can we be Nala Se's if the Jedi still control our fate?"
Tech shrugged, "I don't create the rumours, I just report them."
"I think the Jedi will be good for us," 99 said soothingly.
Wrecker stabbed another vegetable on his fork, "Less food and we are getting shoved into a tomb room makes me disagree with you, 99."
"Especially as we are never going to meet him," Hunter said bitterly.
Obi-Wan took that as his cue to intervene, "I do hope not to disappoint you all quite that much, ad'ika."
They all turned to gape at him, only Crosshair stood to salute him.
Obi-Wan motioned for him to sit down as Obi-Wan went to the counter in the back where there were cups and a facet.
"Sir, we didn't mean—" Crosshair began.
"It's quite alright," Obi-Wan said. "It appears I owe you all an apology, when I requested a room near the vode, I did not think I would be displacing anyone."
The Bad Batch were braver than the other vode.
Likely because they had already been singled out for their differences and knew there were in fact worse punishments on Kamino than decommissions.
That was something he had learned from Crosshair in the old timeline.
The man had been quite the strong projector and seemed to be motivated by a powerful hate toward the Jedi.
The adiik Crosshair didn't seem to be broken that far yet, however.
"It's okay, Sir," Tech said. "You're new and have much to learn."
Obi-Wan laughed even as Hunter and Crosshair whapped their brother on the back of the head with a familiar swat.
"You are most correct, Tech," Obi-Wan said, knowing that these five already had their names.
Tech blinked, "You know my name?"
"I'm still learning but if I remember correctly," he motioned to Hunter, "Hunter, Crosshair, Wrecker, and 99."
Obi-Wan didn't have a clue who was in the vents.
"And, I'm sure you've heard, I am Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi."
Wrecker asked, "Are you going to show us how to fight like the Prime?"
"The Prime is my Mand'alor, while I consider galactic histories, languages, and military tactical training within my purview to change, Jango knows what is best for your physical development. Though I don't see why he wouldn't allow me to assist in your training."
"So you are really Clan Fett then?" Tech asked.
"As of today, we all are. The fuzziness about your citizenship in the Republic has been cleared up as I have claimed you all as aliit."
"Mandalore isn't a part of the Republic," Crosshair pointed out.
"Very true, but what happens to the Republic if Mandalore falls?" Obi-Wan asked.
Crosshair exchanged a look with the others.
It was Hunter who said, "Isn't a weak Mandalore good for the Jedi Order?"
"Not in the slightest," Obi-Wan said. "Mandalore, even the New Mandalorians guard their Beskar as jealously as the Jedi Order, the Temple of Jedha, and several other smaller orders guard their kyber. If Mandalore falls, the Jedi Order will be put in considerable danger. If Mandalore falls into the hands of Death Watch, the extremist group that killed Jango's birth parents and his Buir, Mand'alor Jaster Mereel, the Jedi Order will be forced to go to war with Mandalore. So you see, it is in the Order's interest —the Republic's interests— to support Mandalore."
"Didn't the Senate destroy the True Mandalorians with the help of the Jedi?" Hunter asked.
"Do you think the Senate is a benevolent power without corruption or that the Jedi are incapable of error?" Obi-Wan asked, knowing this was a lot to throw at a group of six year olds.
But Obi-Wan remembered being this age and grappling with the same sort of issues.
The Bad Batch were all frowning at him.
Obi-Wan smiled at him, "That is not a question you need to answer for me. However, I do have some questions for you?"
"Shoot," Hunter said.
"Do you like being separated from the others?"
"No," they answered together without hesitation.
Obi-Wan nodded his head, timing his answer for Nala Se who was entering the room, "Then you will be returned to the others."
From the ad'ika in the vents, he felt a surge of sorrow.
"Absolutely not," Nala Se said.
Obi-Wan smiled at her, "I'm afraid that wasn't a question, my dear. The documents you signed off on this morning patented Jango's DNA and an alteration of as my property. These clones, however singular you believe, are my wards."
Nala Se stared at him, and he was glad he thought to overwhelm her on the first day. Obi-Wan had installed his own personal server in the Jedi Archives that was wholly separated and personally encrypted. He had stored in it; Tarre Vizsla's history, all documents pertaining to Galidraan, Dooku and Sifo-Dyas's Jedi records, and created a Muunlist Bank Account for. The latter was a sub-account of the account that had been set aside for the Kaminoans. They would be able to trace the transmissions to the Temple.
Obi-Wan didn't know if Palpatine or Dooku knew that the account had been transferred to Obi-Wan and that Obi-Wan had renamed and encrypted the account with the Muunlist approval.
Obi-Wan had, after all, contacted them with all the correct passwords and encryption that he had painstakingly gathered during his investigation during the war.
Why all those sleepless nights during the war had accounted for nothing then, not with Palpatine and Dooku actively countering his efforts, in this life; Obi-Wan had the keys to the kingdom so to speak.
That his Grandmaster had so readily given his approval this morning, had sealed Obi-Wan's legitimacy.
No one in the Order knew of Obi-Wan's hack into the archives systems and if they did, would crash the whole system if they tried getting into it. Which would just randomize the system when it was turned back on.
Not foolproof but it was good having once been a Council member and the Master of a droid mechanic.
Nala Se stared him down, "These five are unstable."
"I'm certain the vode have survived worse than six unruly brothers," Obi-Wan disagreed, setting his empty water glass behind him on the counter.
"There are only five members in this squad," Nala Se said.
Obi-Wan turned up his palms and the screws holding the plate above him unscrewed with the Force. The screws pinged on the floor, all eyes tracking them as they fell then they looked up as—
Obi-Wan took a step back and then reached out with his arms a split moment after the grate fell to catch the little one in his arms.
"Aaaaaaahhh—!"
Obi-Wan cradled the adiik close and asked, "You alright, ner ad'ika?"
Big brown eyes looked up at him surrounded by long blonde hair, he didn't have a chance to register the meaning behind those differences in appearances.
"She is mine," Nala Se all but growled.
"Who are you, little one?"
The child gulped but answered in a higher voice than her brothers, "I'm Boba Fett's twin sister, Omega."
"It is an honour to meet you, ner ad'ika."
She smiled up at him.
"No," Nala Se said.
"You signed the documents."
"She is not Jango Fett," the Kaminoan argued.
"No," Obi-Wan agreed. "None of them are, but they are his kin, his blood, and under my care. If you wish to clone another template with the compensation you receive for creating the GAR, you are welcome to. But you may not use Jango's DNA and may not use the funds dedicated for creating the GAR unless you would like to be sued by the Muuns."
Nala Se's nostrils flared.
Omega curled herself against Obi-Wan's as if she planned to beg him to not let her go. Her fear in the Force was humbling.
Finally, Nala Se said coldly, "As you wish, Master Jedi." Left without another word.
Omega did not settle.
Obi-Wan didn't put her down, "Are you all finished with your meals?"
The boys nodded.
"Please follow me," he told them.
Leading them back to the main sleeping rooms, he walked into the sleeping room where all the older vode were clumped together, talking animatedly with each other.
They all looked up at Obi-Wan as if caught initiates who were out past curfew.
Obi-Wan stepped aside to let the Bad Batch into the room, "Hello, ner ade. If any of you separated or see one or a group of your vode for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me. Especially if you suspect something of a darker nature happening. I have told the Kaminoans that decommissions are firmly against Jedi practices and will not be tolerated."
They all stared at him wordlessly.
"Try to get some sleep tonight," Obi-Wan said. "Good night, ner ade'ika."
"Good night, General," they chorused at him.
He bowed his head and walked out with Omega still in his arms.
He wasn't exactly certain about how Omega would have been received by them and still sensing her fear, he brought her into the younger CT room where they were immediately swarmed by vode. The barriers between the three rooms remained open.
It took a bit to settle them all and none of them was particularly awed by Omega being a different gender. And by the end of the second story about Tatooine's legends, she was half asleep in his arms, her fear forgotten.
Obi-Wan had meant to talk to Jango tonight, but he was exhausted.
By the time the lights dimmed to their lowest setting, he found himself beneath a puppy pile of would-be medics, Domino squad, and Omega, he didn't fight the sleep that he himself slipped into.
When Obi-Wan woke the next morning, he found himself veritable buried by sleeping children.
He admitted to himself that this was likely to be his future, and as far as fates went, he found himself rather content.
AN: Thoughts, collie puppies, or feedback on the chapter, pretty please?