Other Stars Chapter 1 Draft 1

by DragonZoo

This is an alternative universe timeline story that starts during the Clone Wars. The chapters are short stories meant to both act as "lost The Clone Wars episodes" as well as a collection of stories that can stand alone. The odd numbered chapters will fill out a progressive story and the even chapters will stand alone.

~~~First, an introduction.

I am not a Star Wars fan. I don't really find the heart of the franchise: the Jedi, the Force, and the Jedi's rivalry with the Sith to be interesting. However, the Star Wars galaxy has expanded far beyond these core conceits of space magic and space wizards to include a lot of things that do interest me. I am unabashedly fascinated by the clones, for example.

At some point during my watching of The Mandalorian, The Clone Wars, and The Bad Batch for the first time last year I started coming up with my own stories, as I tend to do for my own amusement. Nothing new there, but the stories multiplied and coalesced into something cohesive and I finally decided to try writing them down.

So this is a test, to see if I can stick to a large project, and if I can translate what's in my head into anything worthy of reading and so -

This is an alternative universe timeline story that starts during the Clone Wars. The chapters are short stories meant to both act as "lost The Clone Wars episodes" as well as a collection of stories that can stand alone. The odd numbered chapters will fill out a progressive story and the even chapters will stand alone.

My writing project is also an art project. FanFic net isn't terribly versatile when it comes to illustrations and I also want to include links to music, so while I'll be posting rough drafts here, once final draft is achieved I'll also include the address for the dedicated blog site I'll be creating for the story complete with art and music. So far I have a prologue completed, however I'm going to rewrite it and after Chapter 1 is complete, I'll probably post both versions of the prologue.

For now, I hope you enjoy this chunk of Chapter 1 as a starting point.

~~~Other Stars~~~

~BOOK ONE~

~Chapter 1: The Mad, Mandalorian, Musician~

22 BBY, after The Clone Wars episode "Rookies"

Sunrise on Deande was always spectacular and Ghost made the effort to wake early enough to watch it every morning. On the tidally locked moon, the morning hours were the only time to see the sun from her location before it set and lit up the face of the gas planet Deande orbited. Ghost idly swayed in her hammock. The tea kettle was heating up and her breakfast was just starting to simmer. The planet only took up two thirds of the sky from her vantage point, and the western limb was forming a brilliant ring of light at its rim. Soon the sun would burst from behind it, lighting up the sky in an instant, and as if to match the sudden brilliance, the tiny tree dwelling avians would erupt in song. The sun would remain visible for several hours, rapidly heating up the chilly side of the moon before setting. Then its light would shine on the milky blue face of the giant planet, bathing half the moon in a softer, reflected light and fuzzy, nearly nonexistent shadows for the rest of the moon's long day.

Ghost closed her eyes. Sun warmth filtered through the branches of the broom topped trees, birdsong, a floral scent from a nearby yellow blossomed gramany bush and a gentle breeze to dance the flames of her campfire. The kettle whistled and Ghost began to sit up, then paused with a frown. Thunder? No, it sounded more like...

A sudden stiff wind whipped up the flames of her campfire, sending a shower of sparks flickering away like shooting stars. The birds fell silent. Ghost grabbed for her hat before it went sailing off and a blue-scaled kwikwi ran past squawking, its tail fan spread wide in alarm. A deafening roar filled the air, the wind became a gale, the fire blew out and the hammock came loose from its moorings, folding Ghost within, as the wind sent her and her belongings tumbling wildly across the ground.

---

The Jedi stood side by side. The older of the two, wearing the traditional robes of his order over less traditional pieces of clone armor, looked to be a distinguished gentleman approaching middle age. He had auburn hair, was slightly above average height, and in possession of a neatly trimmed mustache and full beard. His blue eyes sparkled with humor and tolerance as he glanced towards his companion.

The other Jedi was tall and lean with mid length hair that couldn't decide if it wanted to be brown or blond. Blue of eye and a stubborn cleft chin, there was a roughness to him, enhanced by the thin scar that marred the right side of his face from eyebrow to cheek.

Shortly a clone captain joined the pair as they stood at the top of the massive ramp leading from the immense Venator-class Star Destroyer down into the open woodland below. Neat columns of clone troopers marched in a seemingly endless river from the bowels of the massive starship. Below, soldiers were already busy cutting down the stubby trees and clearing brush. Transports carrying everything from crates full of supplies to the shipping container-like barracks were zipping up and down the ramp and delivering their loads in the areas already cleared. The captain watched the activity and was satisfied with the swift efficiency of the men. Already this patch of wilderness was transforming into the military base that would be their home for the immediate future.

"No matter how many times I see it, it's always an impressive sight." Jedi Master and High Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi turned towards the clone, "Captain Rex, please pass my compliments on to the men."

"Yes, sir." Rex was pleased. "In a few more hours we'll have everything offloaded and the venator will be able to rejoin the fleet.

Jedi Knight and Jedi General of the 501st Legion Anakin Skywalker looked up at the sky. "Hopefully our other friends up there don't try anything while the Resolute is grounded."

"Our backs are well guarded," Kenobi grinned with mischief, "After all, your padawan is up there keeping watch."

Skywalker grimaced. "Ahsoka gave me a real earful when I told her I was sending her over to your flagship to intern for a bit instead of bringing her down here."

"So I heard."

"Hey, I already know how good she is with her lightsabers. Learning ship to ship combat tactics from the great General Kenobi," The younger Jedi gave his former master a mock bow, "will help...round her out."

"Oh? And here I thought you sent her to me because you were being run ragged by your student's enthusiasm."

Skywalker opened his mouth to retort when a commotion across the space being cleared caught his attention. At the far end of the field, a clone was rapidly backing away from something in the woods. In short order, another figure emerged, and even from their considerable distance away, the generals and the captain could hear the stranger shouting.

"You touch this tree and I'll hang you from it!"

Then the distant figure looked in their direction and pointed, "You!" and proceeded across the clearing at a rapid pace.

Skywalker crossed his arms. "Master, I thought this moon was uninhabited."

"Well, it was supposed to be."

The figure had reached the bottom of the ramp, yelled, "MOVE!", and bulled their way up through the oncoming clones. Startled only briefly, the troopers hurriedly parted to either side of the stranger and neatly reformed their ranks once past. The clones on guard tensed up, but the Jedi indicated there was no physical threat.

Kenobi watched the approaching stranger with growing apprehension when Skywalker leaned in, "Well, this looks like a job for your famous skills in diplomacy." He gave Kenobi a quick pat on the shoulder, and was suddenly off with his captain in tow.

"Anakin! Get back-" But whatever he'd been about to say was cut off by a flood of invective.

"So you Jedi skugs just roll in and immediately start destroying everything?!"

The stranger, a woman in a gray longcoat and matching hat, wasn't shy about getting in Kenobi's face and the Jedi held up his hands in a placating gesture as he backpedaled. "Madam, I assure you we have no intention of doing more damage than absolutely nec-"

"Bantha's arse! You nearly landed on my damn head and crushed who knows what else. That standard procedure? Oh look, a pleasant village with children playing in the streets. Let's go smash them under our giant fucking ship!"

"Yeesh." Skywalker looked over his shoulder as he retreated from the spectacle.

"Sir? Are you sure we should leave General Kenobi alone with, ah, that?" The clone captain looked back with concern.

"Oh he'll be fine. Hey, they've already started putting the modular command center together. Let's go take a look."

---

It was some time before Kenobi joined them at the command center.

"Thank you so much for the help." He hailed Skywalker with dripping sarcasm.

"Oh come on, surely she wasn't too much for you to handle?"

"Let's just say if words were blows I'd be quite dead. What's more, apparently my ancestry includes a colorful bestiary of space lice."

Skywalker bit his lip as he attempted to keep a straight face.

"Really, you should have stayed. I think you would have enjoyed yourself." Kenobi continued.

Placing his hand over his heart, "Hardly, master. I would have been dutifully outraged at the insult to your-"

"Oh please."

Finally, the young Jedi did laugh before growing sober again. "So, what was that all about anyway?"

"Well, the young woman, she didn't give me her name, isn't so much a local as a...vacationer I suppose. She was camping in the area when we nearly landed on her. The outflow of air from our thrusters blew away her belongings. She gave me quite a list of damages."

"Ouch."

"I'm afraid we'll have to take some responsibility for this. It really was careless on our part. We shouldn't have forgone the sweep for lifeforms simply on the assumption that we were landing in an uninhabited area."

"Sooo, I take it she wants some sort of restitution?"

"Mostly she wanted to make it clear that she wasn't moving from her camp site and seemed at least somewhat mollified when I assured her she could stay where she was at. Her camp is just beyond the eastern edge of the field. She seemed satisfied when she left. I've also ordered the troops to keep an eye on her but otherwise leave her be."

"Well great. Now that the local drama is over, let's get down to business. Rex, if you please?"

"Yes, sir." The captain stepped towards the holo-table and brought up a basic three-dimensional map of the moon. "Our location is here, in the wooded plateau region of the northern hemisphere. As far as we can tell, the Separatists only occupy the canyon lands here, at the base of the cliff on the eastern side of the plateau, though there does seem to be a secondary site further out in the desert. As soon as we're set up here, I recommend a recon team be deployed to-" Rex paused in his report. A clone trooper had respectfully approached and was quietly waiting to be acknowledged.

"I beg your pardon, generals." Rex turned to speak quietly with the trooper then turned back to the Jedi. "Ah, the camper seems to be commandeering storage crates to build a wall around her campsite."

The Jedi looked at each other and then moved to the open front of the command center to peer across the field. Sure enough, a barrier of metal crates had sprung up around the woman's camp with a cluster of nonplussed clones standing nearby, watching its construction.

"Is there anything in those crates?" Kenobi turned toward the trooper.

"No, sir. She's only taken ones we've emptied." The trooper answered.

The reinforced crates were not exactly small or lightweight, but as they watched, the camper hauled another one to her wall and hefted it into place with apparent ease.

"Well, no reason to get touchy over empty boxes," Kenobi reasoned. "Let the men know she's allowed to take crates so long as there's nothing in them."

"Understood, sir." The trooper saluted and departed.

Skywalker gave Kenobi a look.

"Well, you can hardly blame her for wanting some privacy," Kenobi shrugged. "Captain, please, let us continue."

"Sir." Rex nodded and picked up where he had left off. "Reconnaissance teams should be sent here, here, and out here to try and determine the purpose of these buildings." Rex pointed to a small cluster of structures roughly two kilometers from the nearest edge of the canyons.

"Weird spot to put something." Skywalker mused. "Too small to be a base and completely exposed to aerial assault."

"Let's try to find out what it is before we blow it up." Kenobi said dryly.

"A solid bombing run could get us out of this backwater and back to where the war is actually happening a little faster."

"The fact that the Separatists are here in this backwater and stubbornly refusing to be chased out is cause for investigation. What's more, we know the CIS fleet here is commanded by Admiral Sneed and we suspect Commander Schtubborn is planet-side. Not exactly lightweights. Our primary objective is to figure out why they're here. Blowing everything up is a secondary objective."

Skywalker sighed. "Yes, master."

He then looked up as another clone trooper approached the command center and raised an eyebrow at Rex. The captain frowned and motioned for the trooper to join them and report.

"Sirs," the trooper said uncomfortably, "The camper is taking supplies. Your orders are to leave her be but...we would like further instruction on how to address her...incursions."

Annoyed, Skywalker asked, "Which supplies?"

"Sir, she's taking ration packs, ripping them open and picking out the liquid nutripackets."

Kenobi groaned and massaged the bridge of his nose. "I'll go have another chat with her."

---

The barracks were being set up in orderly clusters with open lanes between along the eastern side of the field. They were organized by company, each arranged in an open square with its own mess tent at center. At the end of the center most lane, a little distance off, stood the woman's fortified campsite. Crates with food were in neat stacks near the mess tents and within easy pilfering range of their undesired guest. As Kenobi walked down the lane, helmeted troopers hurrying by on business would glance at him, then turn to glance at the camp as they went. Kenobi didn't need to see their faces to know they were giving him meaningful looks. The world of the military base was supposed to be orderly, and apparently, he'd allowed a gremlin to take up residence on their boarder.

As he drew closer, he could now see the wall didn't surround the camp but formed more of a blunt wedge, dividing the camp from the Republic base while remaining open to the woodlands beyond. At six crates high, it stood a little over twice his height. Kenobi walked to the end of the wall and knocked to announce his presence before rounding the corner.

The camp was well organized with a rather homey quality to it. At center was a small and tidy fire, a pair of folding stools, and cookware stacked to the side. Cloth bags, boxes, and a tightly rolled tarp were tucked up against the back of the wall, and strung between two trees was a hammock where the woman in the long coat reclined. She stared stonily at him, one arm draped over the side of the hammock holding what looked like a slender wooden rod with a taught string running down one side and a musical instrument he wasn't familiar with resting on her chest.

"Please forgive this intrusion," the Jedi began, "I'd like to reiterate that we deeply regret the disruption to your life and are willing to accommodate your needs within reason..."

Ghost gave the Jedi a hard stare. She was still fuming from the desecration of this, her sacred place. She desperately wanted to be left alone to re-center herself, but there he stood, blathering on about agreements and compensations. Time to make the Jedi go away.

Keeping her eyes locked on him and her face expressionless, she lifted her 5-string xilin and rested her chin in the notch on its base. Then she raised the bow and held it over the strings of the instrument. Letting only the slightest smirk blemish the inscrutability of her expression, she set the bow on the xilin and dragged it roughly across the strings.

Kenobi's train of thought derailed, crashed and burned as a sound fit to split the ear and shrivel the soul like the fabled scream of the banshee assaulted him. He squeezed tight his eyes and shuddered to his core. The noise was brief and he opened his eyes to stare in horror. Unmoved from her relaxed pose, the woman glared unblinkingly at him, the hand holding the bow poised threateningly above the demon instrument.

After a long pause, Kenobi cautiously tried again. "I am certain that together we can reach an accord-"

Down came the bow to scratch harshly across the strings. The dying wail of a tormented loth-cat could not have been more screechingly discordant than a badly played xilin. The hair stood up on the back of his neck, goose pimples erupted down his arms and his eyes wanted to roll back involuntarily. This time when he looked back at her, she was smiling at him in open and gleeful malice.

Kenobi took a deep breath and said in a rush, "IseethatI'mbotheringyou - pleaseacceptmyapologyandI'lltakemyleave," then abruptly turned and left the camp.

---

"She actually ran you off." Skywalker did not know whether he should be impressed or annoyed.

"She forced me to regroup and rethink my approach." Kenobi corrected.

"Then I'm just going to throw her out. I can't have this nuisance right next to my base."

"During our initial meeting I did say we wouldn't force her to leave. I'd rather try to talk to her one more time before we have to take action. However, I may not be the right person to do so. During our initial, ah, conversation, her commentary implied a distinct dislike of Jedi." Kenobi was suddenly looking speculatively at Captain Rex.

Skywalker followed his gaze. "So, if she can't be civil to a Jedi, then maybe someone else will have more luck."

Rex's eyebrows shot upward as he became the center of their attention.

"It's certainly worth a try. Captain, if you would please? It would be best if she'd just leave of her own accord, we can offer to escort her safely out of the system. Otherwise make it clear certain boundaries must be respected if she wants to remain," said Kenobi.

"I understand, sir. I'll give it my best shot."

"Good luck." Skywalker smiled and Rex gave him a less than happy look as he turned to make his way out.

---

Captain Rex strode across the field. Like most every clone, he stood 1.83 meters tall and was slender and athletic. The clones were wiry of build rather than bulky. Well-proportioned with chiseled features, they were handsome by most human standards, though the slope of their eyebrows tended to give them a naturally stern look. Like all clones, the captain had brown eyes and light tan skin, but the peach fuzz crowning his shaved head was blond instead of black, a trait that appeared in only one out of every seventy thousand clones.

Around him, the base had already taken on an identifiable shape. He swept the scene with a practiced eye and estimated the last of their gear would be unloaded within the hour. Temporary barricades to shelter the base from the winds stirred up by the venator's launch were already in place. The flattened area the giant ship vacated would then be converted into a landing field for their own fighters and bombers. Finally, a shuttle would ferry General Kenobi back to his flagship and this operation would be well and truly underway.

But first there was one small matter to attend to.

The sun was slowly sinking towards the horizon, which in this backward place meant it was still morning. When the sun set there would be a brief interlude of twilight, then the long day would again brighten as the planet overhead reflected light back onto the side of the moon that permanently faced it.

Rex had reached the barrier. He was not a diplomat and was used to taking a direct route in most matters. That said, the diplomatic approach had not exactly worked thus far. Rex mulled things over as he walked slowly towards the end of the wall. Before he had a chance to announce his presence, he suddenly found himself face to face with the woman in question.

"So now that the Jedi have fled, they're sending one of their carbon copy soldiers to accost me?"

Rex did not respond immediately, instead taking a moment to sweep his gaze over her. She stood there with arms crossed, every bit as tall as he was, belligerence shining in her eyes.

She had a clone's slender build though her metal clad arms added a bit of extra bulk to her. A quick examination and Rex decided, based on the elbow joints, that they were prosthetics rather than armor. Her face was oval and young, but her hair, which hung below her shoulders, was white and gray like an old woman's, save for a single tress of raven black at her temple. Her eyes were a washed out silver, making the pupils prominent and piercing. There was a general paleness to her, right down to the faded leathers of her coat and hat. The only other colors he could see being the dark browns of her pants and steel-toed boots. She had the look of a bounty hunter or mercenary, and she was clearly spoiling for a fight.

Rex was not going to rise to the bait, but he also wasn't going to be chased off, and decided to meet her bluntness with his own.

"Ma'am, you have every right to be angry about us dropping in and disrupting your life, but we can't have you helping yourself to anything you please in the base."

"I never did find all of my belongings and you cut down my forage."

"We are well provisioned and more than willing to share if you ask."

"So I should come begging to the Republic after the Republic deprived me of what I already had? Where have I heard that one?"

Rex sighed. "You clearly have some deeply felt criticism of the Republic, but I'm not the one to have that discussion with."

"I suppose not. You clones were made to fight a war, not reason about why you do or if its right."

Rex allowed the slightest hint of heat to creep into his voice, sharpening his words even as he remained calm.

"You are right, we were created to fight a war, but we are not mindless war machines. The Republic has been the center of stability and democracy of the galaxy for millennia. It has assured the disparate peoples of the galaxy are able to come together and work together while respecting each other's rights and needs."

"And who needed the political corruption and exploitation and backroom deals? Or were you clones only taught propaganda: the Republic is good and all who oppose its sacred unity are evil?"

"I am not so naive as to think the Republic is flawless and free of corruption, but that is a battlefield for other people. As a soldier of the Republic, I have to operate under the assumption that the ideals I fight for are real. My job is simply to assure the Republic itself continues to exist. What is broken can't be fixed if it's thrown away. That is my reason, and what I think is right. Or do you believe that if the Republic were allowed to split in two, the conflict would simply end and those who seek to exploit others for their profit would vanish?"

"As for "us clones", only now did Rex's expression darken, "We may share a genetic template, but we aren't a monolith. We may look the same and sound the same but we are still individuals inside. I would appreciate it if you'd see who we are for yourself, rather than work off of whatever biases you currently have." Rex finished and held his peace.

Like a splash of cold water, Ghost felt her unfocused fury extinguish. She felt righteous in her anger at the Republic and the Jedi, but she did not know this man or anything about the clones and looked away guiltily.

"I apologize. Your reprimand is well justified," she said contritely as she looked back up and met his eyes.

Rex was taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor, but it seemed genuine and he felt the tension in the air melt away. "Apology accepted," he said with a touch of surprise as he re-evaluated his impressions.

"You never introduced yourself."

"You didn't exactly give me a chance to, but it's Rex. Captain Rex."

"I'm Ghost."

Rex nodded.

"Why are you all here?"

"There is a Separatist base dug into the canyons east of here housing an army of battle droids, and within the solar system a Separatist fleet is challenging our own. We are here because they are here and we can't afford to ignore them." Rex looked past Ghost towards the forest beyond. "This is a beautiful place. It has a natural serenity to it and I hope our stay here will be brief, and the damage we cause minimal."

Ghost gave this clone captain an appraising look and wanted to start this talk over. "There was a reason you came to visit me?" she prompted.

"Yes ma'am. We need to have a conversation about respecting boundaries, as well as what we can do to make amends for your own losses."

"Then let me invite you to my camp to do so. Tonight, er, moon's mid-day."

"Very well." Rex considered. "Would nineteen hundred hours be too late?"

"Not at all."

Ghost fretted as she watched the clone, Rex, leave. Spend too much time alone and living in your own head and you lose the knack for dealing with other people. She had given herself some time to review and think, but she'd also invited him to her camp. Should she tidy it up? Serve food? What should she say? Ghost remembered her mother entertaining guests but she couldn't pull off anything of that caliber. At the very least, she could manage to serve tea.

---

Rex sat on a camp stool outside of his company's barracks. He bunked with his men, though he did have his own sectioned off area as befitted his rank. The time after third meal and before lights out, if they weren't on alert, was usually reserved for leisure. The long, softly lit hours of the moon's day cooled as they wore on and both fusion lanterns and small bonfires had popped up in the open spaces around the compound where troopers congregated and chatted amiably with each other. Inside the barracks, a group had gathered for a game of Card Commander.

Rex looked up at the bright face of Se-2, the gas giant planet that dominated this tiny star system. It was the only planet that orbited the star Selna, but sported its own planetary system in miniature. Se-2 boasted no fewer than one hundred thirty-four moons, of which Deande was the only habitable one. Those moons and the planet itself provided a lot of cover. The captain did not envy their small fleet, and the dangerous game of cat and mouse they would be engaged in.

He checked the time and stood, retrieving his helmet from a neighboring stool. Rex had inspected his appearance with care. His white armor with its blue markings was meticulously kept, though no amount of scrubbing would remove the stains of use. He tucked his helmet under his arm. He did not need it, but he wanted to maintain an official presentation.

A warm light emanated from behind The Wall as he approached. At some point over the course of the day, the clones had started thinking of the crate wall as a formal landmark. A barrier one was not to cross unless invited. Rex walked to one end of it and rapped his knuckles on the metal surface. Ghost popped from around the corner as if she'd been waiting.

"Welcome to my camp, Rex. Come on in."

She looked exactly as she had that morning, minus her hat, and lead him into her campsite. It was a welcoming space, lived in but not messy. On the far side of the campfire, a low table with a tea service had been set up, with cushioned mats on either side. Ghost settled herself onto a mat and motioned for him to join her. She lifted the pot and poured a clear brown liquid into a pair of cups.

"Hetisarad tea is a favorite of mine, ever had it?"

"I've had cold bottled tea-"

"Blasphemy." Ghost picked up a small glass jug filled with a thick dark gold liquid. "I have to add a bit of honey to take off the edge of bitterness, would you like some?"

"I'm fine." Rex accepted the steaming cup, which looked like it was carved from a single piece of highly polished wood and took a sip. It had a pleasant spicy flavor.

"Let me start things off." Ghost held up her cup as if examining it. "With another apology. Be you Republic or Separatist, the intrusion here is upsetting to me and yes, I do take issue with much of what is going on in the Core, but none of that is under your control and it was unfair of me to attack you for it. I also want to reiterate how sorry I am for what I said in regard to clones. That was another thing I allowed my frustration to bleed into and I said ignorant things, when I really don't know much about you at all. It was very much not in the way of epand'at."

"I appreciate your candidness." Rex said in appreciation. "You were hardly unique in your assumptions."

"No excuse and I gave myself plenty of time to think about it." She took a sip from her cup. "So, on to business. You mentioned boundaries and amends. I don't need any reparations. I can replace my things; it's this place I'm worried about. I don't want a battle tearing it apart. I also promise to ask if I want something. It's not like I'm a professional thief." Ghost smiled with humor. "It's more of a hobby."

Rex returned the smile and Ghost noticed how it was all in his eyes.

"I wish I could assure you the fighting will stay contained to the area occupied by the droids, but I can't. On that note, it would be best for your own safety if you allowed us to escort you out of the system."

"I'm not leaving until all of you do."

Rex simply nodded in acceptance.

"Mind if I ask you something, Rex?"

"Go ahead."

She leaned to the left a bit and gestured with her cup at his helmet sitting on the mat next to him. "Jai'galaar'la sur'haii'se. That's not a casual decoration. Who gave you those?"

Rex nodded slowly, as if something had just been confirmed. "You're Mandalorian."

"I know I don't read as one. It's the hat, it throws people off," she said with a smirk. "You don't seem surprised though."

"Some of what you said before, I thought it sounded like Mando'a." He held up his cup. "This is pepper flower tea?"

"You got it."

"I didn't catch the other phrase."

"Epand'at. It's a philosophy. A rough translation would be 'internal direction' but a better one would be "to direct the inner self," she fluttered her hand in the air, "it's a whole thing."

Rex nodded then reached over and picked up his helmet, setting it on the table. "The shriek-hawk eyes." He touched the blue marks, resembling a pair of upside down V's painted above his visor. "Bounty hunters, mercenaries, and warriors of all stripes were hired to train clones on Kamino, where we were created. The most elite of these were Mandalorian. Our donor, the man whose genetic material became the template for all clones, was a Mandalorian by the name of Jango Fett."

Ghost's thin eyebrows shot upward in surprise, "I had no idea."

"My understanding is he handpicked the individuals who became our trainers. I was trained by a Mandalorian name Zenna Dryd, a grizzled old warrior who could probably chew iron and spit rust. I guess I impressed her."

"I'm impressed. Jaig eyes are a symbol for exceptional acts in battle. That also explains why you speak Mando'a so well."

"Reasonably well. Most first generation clones do. By the time generation two went into production there were fewer Mandalorian trainers."

"I suppose that might have to do with the change in culture on Mandalore. Did very many clones earn Jaig eyes?"

"A few. They do make you stand out a bit."

"Hmm, what about the kama? They don't seem to be part of the standard kit." Ghost pointed out the skirt-like armor that covered the clone's thighs.

"It's standard for ARC trooper armor."

"ARC? Does that have to do with being a captain?"

"No, it's more of a specialized field and stands for Advanced Recon Commando. Rank is often denoted by a pauldron." Rex placed his hand over the piece of blue painted armor that flared out over his left shoulder. "ARCs also have pauldrons like this one, but on both shoulders. My style is a hybridization."

Ghost looked like she was about to ask another question when Rex held up his hand. "My turn." He pointed at Ghost's right shoulder and what looked like a pauldron of her own that was incorporated into the material of her coat. "Is the engraved wing your clan's signet?"

"It's actually part of my House's crest. This is the full crest." Ghost stood and pulled her hair to the side as she turned around so Rex could see the back of her coat. Embossed in a silvery blue on the leather was some sort of stylized bird with a long upturned beak. Its head was in profile, but the body faced front and its wings spread to her shoulders. "Wosor'sarad'senaar."

Rex raised one eyebrow. "Something flower bird?"

"Fluttering flower bird, also called a flurgette. A little nectar eater native to Mandalor. Probably been extinct at least eight thousand years by now. The jungles of the equatorial region were among the first areas devastated by wars."

"Your House must be very old."

Ghost suddenly went quiet, then after a pause, "We've been around," she said cagily and changed the subject. "So every clone I've seen has blue paint on their armor, but the marks are all different..."

Rex explained about legion colors and how under the Jedi the clones were allowed to customize their armor to a certain degree, and then he fielded a dozen more questions. The hour was growing late by standard time, but he was reluctant to leave, not simply because he was enjoying talking to Ghost, but because a mystery had steadily developed. Her willingness to talk about herself always seemed to have a limit. She would start describing something or telling a story then abruptly bring it to an end as if she belatedly realized she was about to reveal something she shouldn't. The more they talked, the more his curiosity was piqued, but time was escaping him.

Rex checked his wrist comp. "Ghost, it is with genuine regret that I am going to have to excuse myself."

"My fault, I've kept you from your rest."

He shook his head. "Not at all. I've enjoyed our conversation."

Ghost stood and lead Rex to the part of her camp she'd come to think of as her "door". "You have an open invitation to stop by any time. Besides, I need you to go over the difference between a CT, CC, ARC and ARF. You clones are an alphabet soup."

Rex chuckled. "I'll be happy to clarify. Good night."

"Good night, Rex."

---

Of the trio of recon units that had been sent to gather intelligence on the droid army, Unit 3 had the greatest distance to go. The arid region beyond the canyons was not nearly as flat or barren as it had seemed from a distance. The team of five clones scrambled in and out of gullies, skirted thickets of thorn bushes and spiny trees and climbed around outcroppings of rocks. The terrain was incredibly rough, the sort of landscape one would rather bypass with a swoop bike. Flight was out of the question though. Even in the fuzzy light of the moon's afternoon, a vehicle would be easy to spot and the dark of night was many hours away. Armor painted to blend in with the browns and grays of the stone and hard gritty ground, the recon unit made their way undetected and their goal was soon reached.

Their destination was the curiously located compound out in the desert, over two klicks away from the droid base. A chain link fence topped by coils of barbed wire surrounded a couple of squat, warehouse-like buildings and a power generator. Pairs of battle droids patrolled the inside perimeter. The most outstanding feature of this place was the airfield that partially surrounded it where no fewer than four squadrons of vulture droids chittered at each other. Whatever purpose this small compound served, it was set to swarm like an angry wasp nest at the merest sight of a Republic bomber.

The team spread out to record the site from as many angles as they safely could. They would stay for five hours before heading back to report. With any luck, something educational would happen.

---

Ghost sat atop her wall. From her perch she had a decent view of the near part of the base. Speaking with Rex had suddenly made her interested in her neighbors and she had settled in to clone watch. Activity seemed constant. Nearby they came and went from their barracks, in the middle distance a group of them were marching in formation, and in the far distance, they moved amongst the numerous walkers, fighters, bombers, and transport ships that had taken over the space vacated by the venator. All of them wore their armor, most of them also kept their helmets on, though here and there she could see a face.

"She's been up there half an hour at least."

"Would be pretty embarrassing if she were just sitting there spying."

"I doubt the Jedi would allow a spy to set themselves up so obviously at the edge of our base. I think she's just bored and we're the only entertainment going."

The two clones were off duty. The base was mostly set up and since there was no fighting yet, there wasn't much to do besides organize supplies, drill, or clean one's rifle for the tenth time; and so the pair leaned against the wall of their barracks and watched the camper watch the men.

"Hey," The one on the right tapped the arm of his companion, "She's looking this way."

"We should probably move somewhere el- Fives, don't stare back at her!"

The clone addressed as Fives met the woman's gaze and after a moment, waved.

"What are you doing? We're under orders not to bother her!" The other clone urgently hissed.

"How am I bothering her? Look, she's waving back." Fives pushed away from the wall and started walking in her direction. Belatedly, his companion hurried to catch up.

Speaking in hushed tones, "Fives, this is literally our first deployment with the 501st and I would very much like to not start things off with a reprimand for insubordination! We are under orders to-"

"Not bother the woman camping at the edge of the base, I know. Don't repeat yourself, Echo."

"Echo responded with a growl."

"I'm just going to go say a neighborly hello. Besides, if you're so worried, why are you following me?"

"To keep you out of trouble. Have you even read the protocol manual for interacting with civilians?"

"And here I thought you were uptight as a cadet."

Ghost swung her feet over the edge of her wall and let her legs dangle as she watched the troopers approach. They certainly looked like Rex, though unlike Rex, they both sported full heads of short black hair, severely cut into a flat top, which she thought was a bit unflattering. The one on the right sported a neatly trimmed goatee beard and the number 5 tattooed on his right temple. The one on the left had an unusual blue mark in the shape of a hand-print on the right side of his chest plate.

The pair arrived and looked up at her. "Good morning, ma'am," said the one with the tattoo.

"We're not bothering you, are we?" the other one quickly added.

Ghost leaned forward and rested her arms in her lap. "Not at all, I'm Ghost."

"I'm Fives, and this is Echo."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am." Echo nodded.

"Please just call me Ghost. Every time someone says 'ma'am' I think they're addressing my mother."

"Ghost it is," Fives smiled, and then seemed to search for something to say, "What brings you to this middle of nowhere star system?"

"I used to camp here with my siblings. I've been coming here yearly to keep the tradition alive."

"Ah, that would explain why you were so upset earlier," Echo said.

"Upset earlier?" Ghost asked a bit sheepishly.

"Your chewing out of General Kenobi is already infamous." Fives smiled to take any sting out of his words. "Don't worry about it."

"Oh, that, don't worry, I won't." Ghost abruptly pushed herself off her wall startling the clones as she landed in front of them. "Not that I'm looking forward to this becoming a war zone, but there doesn't seem to be much action right now."

Fives and Echo glanced at each other and grinned. "The life of a soldier does involve a lot of waiting around between instances of getting shot at," said Fives.

"Not that we just sit around idle, there are plenty of things to keep us busy." Echo added.

Fives smirked and laid his arm across Echo's shoulders, "for example, Echo here enjoys spending his leisure time reading regulation manuals."

"Fives, I am going to find a river just so I can dunk you in it."

Ghost laughed. Where Rex comported himself with natural dignity, these two were highly animated and immediately put her in mind of her brothers joking around.

Ignoring any further ribbing from Fives, Echo continued. "It's not like nothing is happening now, it's just that as lowly foot soldiers, we don't learn anything until orders are given, and the command center's been busy since oh-six hundred." Echo nodded towards the fan shaped building at the far end of the field.

"Not that we don't speculate. Guessing what our orders will be is practically a pastime. Though the preoccupation right now is more why the clankers are here in the first place. It's not exactly a strategic hot spot," said Fives.

"Now that's a good mystery," Echo agreed, then turned back to Ghost. "You said you've been coming here for years? I don't suppose you could shed any light on what might have attracted them here?"

Ghost considered a moment. "An army of machines against an army of people. Maybe I do."

---

Skywalker frowned as he examined the holomap of the canyons and stretch of desert beyond. "That base is going to be one tough nut to crack."

"I'm almost certain the commander has to be Schtubborn." Kenobi in holographic miniature hovered over the edge of the holotable and contemplated the map. "Burrowing into the canyon's very walls is his style. He won't come out unless he has an advantage. Instead, he'll try to force you to attack and use his defenses to wear down your army. Even a solid bombing run is unlikely to have much effect on his position."

"So, we need a clever way to pry him out." Skywalker mused.

In addition to the two generals, this meeting also included the clone regimental commander and four clone battalion commanders that had come down to Deande's surface with their men, and Captain Rex. Battalion Commander Query leaned forward and gestured at the site out in the desert.

"Despite the sheer number of vulture droids stationed here, this site doesn't look like an airbase but something the Separatists want protected. Perhaps an attack here would force their army to respond."

"That's certainly a possibility," said Kenobi's hologram.

Skywalker's frown only deepened. "There's something about that compound in the desert that I don't like."

Rex had also been leaning forward examining the map. He was facing the front of the command center and so saw the three figures approaching the building: Ghost escorted by two troopers. "Generals, if you would please excuse me a moment."

Skywalker looked up and sighed in exasperation. "Now what?"

Rex recognized Fives and Echo, recruits who were new additions to his own company and walked out to intercept them. After a brief discussion, he took charge of Ghost and brought her into the gathering of high-ranking officers.

"General Skywalker, General Kenobi, Ghost thinks she may know why the Separatists are in this system."

Skywalker straightened up. "You certainly have our attention."

Ghost looked at Rex who nodded encouragement. She crossed her arms and asked, "Are any of you familiar with implorium gas?"

Skywalker glanced at those gathered. "I've never heard of it."

"It's extremely rare, but trace amounts of it can be found on Se-2. The gas is only stable in the lower atmosphere, right above the liquid transition layer so it's hard to extract and needs to be kept pressurized or it'll break down and dissipate. It's when you put it under higher pressure that things get exciting. At higher pressures it collapses catastrophically."

"An implosion," Kenobi said with interest.

"And very weaponizable. When it implodes, it causes a particularly nasty sort of percussion wave with two falloff zones. A small area around the bomb is lethal and destructive to anything caught there, but beyond that is a truly outsized damage zone that does very little if anything to machines but anything with blood vessels will suffer extensive hemorrhaging."

"In other words," Skywalker said after a moment of thought. "It's a bomb an army of droids could set off in the middle of a battlefield and wipe out their enemy without taking any damage themselves?"

"It probably wouldn't outright kill most of the soldiers, but it would cause severe enough injury that the droids would have an easy time mopping up. What's more, you'd only need to have a small tank, maybe yay big," Ghost spread her hands apart a short distance, "to cover a huge area."

"Like a two kilometer radius?" Skywalker asked while looking at the map.

"Yep. And that location is perfect. The flat open space would maximize the effectiveness of the percussion wave."

"If I may ask," Kenobi addressed Ghost, "how you know so much about this exotic substance?"

Ghost shrugged, "I'm a demolitions expert. I craft explosives and I've studied all sorts of combustible materials. I've never experimented with implorium, nor would I want to, but I've read about it as a curiosity."

Skywalker gestured at the desert site. "The recon team that visited this place reported that a person of unknown species completely encased in a hazard suit was sighted walking between the two buildings here. Is implorium toxic?"

"No, but a lot of the gases it'd be mixed with are. If you were trying to extract pure implorium, a hazard suit would be prudent."

Skywalker nodded in satisfaction. "Thank you, Ghost. You've given us something to think about."

That was a clear dismissal and Rex walked Ghost back out of the command center.

"I want to thank you as well. If the Separatists really are building this sort of bomb, then the knowledge you shared will save a lot of lives."

"I'm glad I could help, Rex."

---

Two battalions accompanied by four of the hexapodal AT-TE walkers were mustering to set out. Fives and Echo formed up with the rest of Torrent Company and spirits were high. Orders had finally come down and it was time for action. They would march to the cliffs, repel down, and enter the north end of the canyons. The canyons themselves were a multilayered labyrinth. Once within, they would stick to the upper pathways and attack the outpost furthest from the droid base. Taking the outpost would give them a foothold below the plateau and protected access to the desert.

Echo craned his neck to look past the ranks of soldiers ahead of him and caught a glimpse of the general at the front. He'd been told General Skywalker always lead from the front and Echo regretted being a rookie, stuck in the rear.

"I know what you're thinking."

"Hmm?" Echo turned towards Fives and tilted his helmeted head in inquiry.

"You want to see the general in action. We won't be green forever, Echo. Soon enough we'll be on the front lines too and everyone will know our names. Look sharp, we're moving out."

Echo faced forward and as his rank moved, he and Fives marched in step with them.

"Heh, you mean ARC Trooper Echo and Arc Trooper Fives, eh?"

"Damn straight, no fault in a bit of ambition! Now try not to get stepped on by a walker."

The pair were at the back outside corner of their formation, right next to the rear-most of the six-legged tanks. With each loud clank-kachunk, clank-kachunk of its legs as it moved it kicked up dirt and Echo was thankful for the filters in his helmet. Bad enough to be wearing the dust without eating it too.

---

"There's Rex at the front of Torrent Company. That's Jesse…Kix, Zim, Dustoff and Jolt…" Ghost had climbed on top of the barracks nearest the parade ground and from her seat on the roof watched the troops form up. Fives and Echo had introduced her to other members of their company and her eyes darted back and forth across the rows of men picking out the ones she'd met so far. There at the back she spotted Fives and Echo. When the order came to move out, she was impressed with how the assembled army marched as if it was a singular organism. Granted, this was not the entire army, only two of the four battalions that had come down to the surface was on the march.

She looked out at the vast space that had been carved out for the base. Over two thousand clones occupied it. They came from a single venator and Echo had told her their legion, the 501st, was spread across four such ships. The Grand Army of the Republic had nearly a thousand Venator-class Star Destroyers and more in production. Ghost had already been well aware of the vast scale of the conflict between the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems but seeing the soldiers, even such a relatively miniscule number, made the reality far more visceral. The army of the CIS was even larger.

Ghost had done her duty to her family. She had observed, listened, and carefully recorded the political turmoil, the escalation of aggression, and the outbreak of war. She had been in both the territories of the Republic and the Separatists and traveled to numerous planets trying to stay neutral. She knew the gossip from one side of the galaxy to the other and reported everything to her House. Obligations done, Ghost had retired to this remote system and this singular moon to observe her other, more personal duty. Believing herself removed from the conflict and safe to return to her preferred isolation when away from home, she had been shocked when the war came here too. In hindsight, that had been a foolish notion. Nowhere was safe from such a conflict. Nowhere in the known galaxy that is, and Ghost was thankful for her hidden homeworld. There, her family would remain untouched, the Drasha would assure it.

The forest beyond the base was not dense and the army had an easy time moving through it, leaving a broad trail a blind slug could follow. Ghost slid down the roof, dropped to the ground, and ambled through the trampled grass.

---

The army approached the cliffs, Skywalker sent scouts ahead to spread out across the edge and watch. His soldiers would be exposed to attack as they repelled down, perfect time for an enemy air strike. Skywalker had a sneaking suspicion one would not be forthcoming but if any of the scouts spotted a single vulture droid he could call on his own fighters, their pilots on standby just in case. First over the edge were a pair of the AT-TEs, which simply stepped over the cliff face. Their accordion-like midsection flexed, allowing them to bend over the ledge and continue walking straight down, their claw-like feet affording a solid grip on the stone. Following behind the tanks came the first of the companies and Skywalker himself. Once down they would guard the bottom as the rest of the army descended.

The recon report had said that aside from the large outpost, the canyons were dotted with guard stations at bottlenecks and battle droids patrolled the cliffs and channels, but Skywalker saw no sign of any opposition. The rest of the army had landed and he spotted Captain Rex approaching.

"Well Rex, which do you think? Ambush or are they just going to let us walk up to their front door?"

"Ambush, sir."

"Even if your friend is right? The Separatists may actually want us to establish ourselves down here."

"Even if true, letting us walk in would be too suspicious. They may not want to stop us here, but they will want to hurt us."

"Hmm, good point. These canyons are ideal for an ambush. Let's keep an eye on those cliff tops."

The army reorganized itself into a column six clones across and funneled into the canyon. Their chosen path was a relatively shallow channel that afforded them some cover without completely cutting off their view for the most part. The low cliffs on either side did rise up higher in places however, and these were the spots the soldiers paid closest attention to. Thus, the warning cry came as no surprise.

Torrent Company was rear guard and on high alert. Fives and Echo felt the subtle vibration through the soles of their boots and looked up even as someone started yelling, "Rockfall, 'ware above!"

Soldiers darted forward, scrambling out of the way, as the first slabs of sandstone crashed to the channel floor. Fives and Echo rushed to follow their column but a boulder rolled across their path and Fives screamed, "Back, back!" They reversed course and were engulfed in red dust and the sound of growling thunder. The two clones burst from the cloud at a full sprint and did not stop until they were half out of breath. The ground shuddered for several seconds before all was again still.

"Look at that, clankers brought the whole cliff face down." Echo waved away the cloud of dust and looked up at the massive pile of stone blocking the path forward and cutting off retreat for the army. Fives had started to move towards it to examine the rock fall when more stone came loose and tumbled down.

"Best stay back, Fives. It's nowhere near stable."

"Yeah. I don't think we're climbing over that. Hope the boys ahead of us made it clear."

The pair's wrist coms came alive and Fives raised his arm to listen.

"All units report status."

"Captain, this is Fives. Echo's next to me. We're uninjured but cut off.

"Understood, rejoin if you can, otherwise find a secure position and wait."

The com went silent and picked up static and after a few moments Fives cocked his head to the side and listened. "You hear blaster fire?"

"I do, sounds like the general finally met some resistance."

"And us stuck back here out of action. Shiprat's luck!"

"Well," Echo looked around, "what are our options?'

Fives gestured towards a narrow side canyon. "That might run parallel."

Echo walked over to look down the passage. "Seems to descend. But it does look to angle in the right direction. We'll try it a ways and see if it joins back up to the main path."

"Can't hurt."

"Wanna bet?' Echo gestured towards the tough plant life filling the passage with thorns and spines.

"Well alright, maybe it'll hurt a little," Fives conceded.

---

The passage sloped gently at first, then more steeply before it transformed into a giant's staircase of short drops interspersed with prickly scrub filled pockets of level ground. Fives levered himself over a ledge and dropped to the ground below as Echo carefully negotiated his way past a shrub bristling with stiletto-like spines.

"Fives, we're going to hit the floor of the lower level before we see any chance of getting back up to where the army is at."

"Probably, but I'd rather move forward and see where this takes us than try climbing back up the way we came. At least we're still heading in the right direction, even if it's at the wrong elevation."

Echo hissed and paused to pull a spine out of the back of his arm. "Damn things have an uncanny way of finding all the soft spots."

"Hey, you hear that?"

Echo flicked the spine away. "Droids on the march."

"Lots of 'em. Up ahead."

The pair cautiously worked their way forward. Finally, the narrow passage opened up onto a broad ledge overlooking the bottom of the canyon. The final drop was a good nine meters. Here, the floor of the canyon was a grand corridor walled on either side by towering multi-tiered cliffs. The hard, gritty ground was densely covered in more of the tough thorny scrub, saw edged grasses, and stunted stiletto trees. Also droids, lots of droids. They were humanoid in body shape and utilitarian in design. Their heads were almost birdlike, with long cylindrical faces and tiny eyes.

"Couple hundred at least, and four tanks," whispered Fives.

"They're marching somewhere with a purpose. Headed in the same direction as our forces."

The pair had crept to the edge of the ledge overlooking the ground below. Laying flat, they watched the column of mostly B1 battle droids and a scattering of bulkier super battle droids march past.

"If they're moving to intercept, they've got a climb ahead of them."

"Not with those AATs."

"Yeah, so what are they up to?"

"I could try scouting ahead to see where they're going," suggested Ghost.

The startled clones scrambled back from the edge and looked up to see Ghost crouching next to them.

"What are you doing here?!" Echo whispered harshly.

"I followed you."

"Why? Ghost, it's dangerous here."

"If it's dangerous for me, it's dangerous for you."

"We're soldiers, we have to be here."

"And I choose to be here."

"Tsst!" Fives had moved away from the drop-off and was motioning for Echo and Ghost to join him, "can we continue this conversation back here? I don't know how good those droids' hearing is but you two are whispering very loudly."

The three reconvened huddling next to the cliff face.

"Besides," Ghost continued, "I'm Mandalorian, we aren't exactly known for being battle shy."

"I thought your people were pacifists these days." Echo said.

"Yeah, well, not every Mandalorian follows the trends on Mandalore. I keep my own traditions. Let me help. I have mobility options you don't. I can zip up ahead, take a peek, and report back."

"Fine," said Fives, "Just don't get yourself spotted or we'll have a few hundred droids using us for target practice. We'll be on the move too, shadowing the clankers as they march south."

"You got it." Ghost said with a bright smile and was off.

---

The winds had carved the sandstone of the canyons into many fantastic shapes. Great spires rose from the edges of the cliffs or the canyon floor, arches bridged the curving walls of red and yellow stone and columns tilted together like the ruins of a fanciful cathedral. As she ran along the ledge, Ghost took aim at a finger of stone higher up the cliff and fired a grapple wire. The arrowhead tip punched into the stone and anchored. With a mechanical whine, Ghost drew herself up to a higher route. The ledge here was narrow but gave her a longer view of the canyon floor. Further ahead, past a massive stone arch, the canyon seemed to open up into a wider space. With a thought, she released the anchor, reeled the wire in, and dove off the cliff.

As Ghost dropped, she thrust her right arm out, hand balled into a fist, and fired the grapple wire from where it set in its niche above the wrist. The spindle inside her arm, below the shoulder, played the wire out at high speed. As soon as the tip anchored into the stone, she revved the spindle motor briefly, reeling in enough wire to lurch forward and increase the acceleration of her swing. She released the anchor and repeated the gesture with her left arm at the top of her arc, finding another anchor point, and continuing her undulating flight.

A new perch in the form of a flat topped column rising high above the canyon floor presented itself. Ghost set both anchors into a jutting point on the cliffs above and swung beneath it. Approaching the bottom of her swing she kicked the spindles into high gear. A wave of heat was expelled from the vents on her upper arms, distorting the air as the spindles whirred madly in their metal casings. Tightening her swing and releasing the anchors as she hit maximum velocity on the upward arc, Ghost launched herself towards the sky.

It was a perfected maneuver, one she had performed in these very canyons many times. It was here she had tested her unique wire and spindle apparatus, testing the power of the motors and her ability to control her direction and momentum. The RPM of the spindles was already far beyond what flesh and bone could handle and she'd tweaked the acceleration values to push to the edge of what her metal joints could manage without ripping her arms off. After years of practice, so long as she had an anchor point, she'd learned to fly. Her landings weren't always graceful though.

This time her calculations were exact, and with a flourish, she flipped at the apex of her parabolic flight and landed solidly at the center of the column top. From here, she had a commanding view of the corridor below and the surrounding cliffs. Far below her the long lines of droids marched south. Ahead of them their route passed beneath a stone arch and ended in a large cul-de-sac. The cliffs beyond that were step-like and easy enough for the droids to traverse, but impossible for the hovering Separatist tanks. The canyon cul-de-sac itself must be their destination. Ghost turned her gaze upwards. The Republic army was following a route across the upper regions. She knew the passage they were following and spotted the natural bridge they'd have to cross to go deeper into the canyon lands. The Separatist tanks would have a clear shot at it from the cu-de-sac far below.

---

The two clones watched in wonder as Ghost used a grapple line to zip upward, then proceeded to fling herself through the air and down the canyon.

"Huh, most Mandalorians would just use a jet pack," commented Echo.

"Whatever works, time for us to get moving as well."

The two clones rose from their crouch and, hugging the canyon wall, ran along the ledge. The droids were making enough noise with their mechanical whirring and clicking as they marched along that the pair didn't worry about the sound of their own footfalls. There was an overhang ahead and the troopers went belly down and crawled out onto it. They'd gotten ahead of the droids and watched the army approach.

"Not moving too fast. Where do you think this force is in relation to ours above?" Fives asked.

Echo thought the question over. "That depends on how long that attack delayed them, probably to give this lot time to do whatever they're up to." Echo heard the crunch of boots on gravel behind him and this time was not surprised when Ghost joined the conversation.

"I'm pretty sure they're moving those tanks into position to fire on a bridge your army needs to cross."

Fives looked back at her, "You see any of our troops?"

"No, they wouldn't have reached the bridge yet."

"We've got to warn them." Echo backed away from the edge and knelt as he tried to raise the captain on his com. Only static greeted his efforts. "Signal's jammed," he said in disgust.

"Then we need to figure a way to stop them ourselves." Fives asserted.

"Well that's a tall order."

"Don't be such a pessimist. There's got to be something down here we can use to at least delay them."

Echo looked down the canyon. "How many detonators you got?"

"Just two."

"Same, not enough to drop that stone arch."

Wordlessly Ghost unbuttoned her coat and flipped open the right side. The interior of the coat was lined with row after row of explosives in a multitude of flavors.

Echo was dumfounded. "Why do you carry so many bombs?"

Deadpan, "It's a roomy coat."

Fives stifled a laugh. "I'll take three."

The trio hurried to the massive stone arch and attached five bombs to both ends of it. Ghost assured them that would be enough to detach the broad span and drop it neatly into the canyon below. The droids were using the tanks to push over the taller brush in their path and Fives, on the far side of the arch, saw them just starting to break through the nearest cluster of stiletto trees as he set his last bomb. Staying low, he scurried back up over the arch then dove onto his stomach to slide down the other side. Ghost and Echo caught him and the three ran for cover among a cluster of jutting stones.

They were close to the end of their ledge. It dropped off at the cul-de-sac rather than continue around the broad curve of the wall. From here they couldn't directly see the tanks enter the area beneath the arch, but they would see the tip of the tank's long canon protrude from the near side. That would be the moment Ghost hit the button on her remote detonator.

"Would be nice if they could go through two by two but I don't think those shovel bottomed tanks will fit. Yeah look, they're rearranging their formation to go single file." Fives watched the droids reorganize. "Here they come."

Two squads of B1s lead by a B2 super battle droid preceded the tank line. Ghost watched, holding her breath, for the tank's canon to appear. The fading light of late day glinted off the tip of the barrel and Ghost pressed the button.

The canyon reverberated with the sound of the explosion, followed by a dull boom that shook the ground as the stone span struck the dirt, completely flattening the front of the Separatist tank. The trio giggled as the droid operating the turret on top of the tank was neatly catapulted, it's spindly limbs windmilling comedically, up and over the obstruction to land on top of its comrades within the cul-de-sac.

"Someone's up there!" a droid sergeant yelled. "Open fire!"

The droids within the corridor turned and started firing their blasters at the ledge. The angle meant nothing was going to hit them, but Ghost and the clones quickly moved to vacate their position.

"They'll be throwing grenades next, we need to get down from here," Fives lead the way.

The clones went over the cliff edge to free climb down into the cul-de-sac. Ghost set her anchor line and started repelling when she spotted something below.

"Super droid!" she warned her companions before releasing her line and dropping straight down on top of it. She body slammed the bulky droid into the ground, popped the metal talons hidden in her finger tips, and ripped it's disproportionately tiny head off.

Fives and Echo dropped down next to where she knelt on top of the sparking body.

"Are you alright?" Echo said in concern.

"I'm fine." Ghost said as she stood and hopped off of her victim.

"You're fine after a six meter belly flop on top of an armored droid?" Fives asked incredulous.

"I'm sturdy."

Blaster fire suddenly popped around them and Ghost followed the clones deeper into the brush.

"I think I saw something." A droid armed with an E-5 blaster rifle was quickly followed by the rest of its troop. They fanned out and began poking into the dense scrub lining the edge of the canyon.

"We need to move or we'll be surrounded." Fives unhooked his own rifle from where it hung at his hip. "Let's make our way around the perimeter and-"

Ghost had played out a bit of her wire and unscrewed the grapple tips, sliding them into her coat and replaced them with a pair of small steel-gray spheres. Then sliding her hand into the right breast of her coat she bolted. Echo reached out to try and pull her back into cover only to be dragged back by Fives. The pair of clones crouched beneath the sheltering branches of a thorny shrub as droids rushed past them.

"Hey you! Stop!" The lead droid called out.

"That doesn't look like a clone, should we blast them?" asked another droid.

"I don't know, let's catch them first."

The center of the canyon cul-de-sac was a sea of saw edged grasses surrounding a thicket of stiletto trees. Ghost laughed as she ran heedlessly through the waist high grass and into the thicket. She'd easily outpaced the droids who doggedly followed in her wake. Behind them came Fives and Echo.

"Dammit!" Fives ripped his foot free from an entangling bramble and Echo caught him as he nearly lost his balance.

"We're not going to catch up!" Echo dragged him forward as he used his rifle to shove more clinging branches out of their way. "What is she thinking?"

They finally fought clear of the scrub and entered the saw grass as the droids disappeared into the thicket of trees. Immediately the thicket was lit from within by blue flashes and a static crackling.

"Electromines." Echo slowed up and walked cautiously among the bristling trees.

Fives followed him. "Looks like she got most of them," he said as he stepped over the bodies of a dozen smoking droids, their circuits fried.

"Not all." Echo pushed through the trees towards the clearing on the other side and there he and Fives were treated to a spectacle.

Ghost stood in the open facing off the remaining droids which stood in a firing line before her. Gripped in each hand she held a length of wire that she twirled with blinding speed. With a twist of her body she threw the spinning wires into a whistling orbit, sending their weighted tips lashing outward and knocking the blasters out of the droids' hands.

"Hey! That was rude," said one of the droids as it backed away.

The droids bunched together as they retreated in uncertainty.

Then Ghost seemed to dance. She pirouetted forward, throwing the spin of her body down the wires and sending the metal orbs, first one, then the other, sailing without resistance through the heads of the two nearest droids. On the next step she leaped, continuing her spin in the air and shattering the head of a third. On her landing she bounced into a high forward tuck redirecting the spin of her wires into a hard downward slice. The twin weights hit the top of the droid's head and shattered their way down through its lightly armored torso, then they hit the ground and rebounded into a reverse spin as Ghost landed.

The last remaining droid turned and ran, only to be brought up short in front of the clones.

"Oh no..." It said in misery.

"Yours or mine?" Fives asked Echo.

Echo shrugged. "Yours."

Fives casually raised his blaster and shot the B1's head off.

Ghost slowed the twirling of her wires, letting the orbs stall out at the top of their arc and dropping neatly into her hands.

"Okay Mandalorian, that was impressive. I've never seen the like." Fives said as he rehung the blaster rifle from his belt.

"What are those?" Echo indicated the orbs as Ghost unscrewed them from her wire tips.

Ghost held one up. It was a small sphere with five short, blunt spikes, four around its circumference and the fifth at the end opposite the attachment point. She tossed it to Echo who caught it, then nearly dropped it. The weight was shocking as he hefted it in his hand. The sphere was small enough that he could conceal it in his palm but he estimated it must weigh around one and a half kilos or more.

"Tungsten morning stars." Ghost grinned.

"Ah, well then. No wonder you were smashing things with them." Echo tossed the heavy ball to Ghost who slipped it back under the left breast of her coat.

"Again, I am impressed, but you could have let us in on your plan." Fives crossed his arms.

"Plan?" Ghost said with a raised eyebrow.

"You ran out in front of a bunch of armed droids without knowing what you were going to do?"

"I had a general idea."

"Seems like a good way to get yourself killed." Echo admonished.

Ghost shrugged. "Not dead yet. I'm more of an improviser and opportunist than a planner."

Echo could only shake his head.

"Speaking of plans, I have an idea." Fives had twisted to look in the direction of the droid army before turning back towards Ghost. "You have any smoke bombs?"

---

The droids had fired countless rounds and lobbed dozens of grenades at the ledge running along the cliff face before their commander was able to get their attention and stop them from attacking.

"Think we got them?" asked a droid as it craned its skinny neck to try and see the top of the ledge.

"I'm surprised there's even a ledge left." said another.

Two droids were inspecting the slab of stone now blocking their path.

"This isn't good, sir," said a lieutenant addressing the commander. "There's no way we'll be able to move this within our timetable."

The droid commander considered. "You're right. We need new orders."

"How do we get new orders with the signal jammer activated? It may have stopped the Jedi army from calling for help, but now we can't call for help either."

"We'll march back the way we came and return to the outpost."

"That's the long way around, weren't we supposed to go up the staircase cliff to join the attack after we blew up the bridge?"

"If we go back the way we came, we can take the remaining tanks with us."

"Oh! Good idea."

"That's why I'm in charge. Let's get these tanks turned around." The droid commander turned and shouted to the ranks of droids. "Company, about face!"

Smoke bombs and flares suddenly rained down around the tanks filling the area with thick clouds and blinding points of heat and light to confound the droids photoreceptors and infrared vision. Some of the brush caught fire and droids ran to stamp these out even as the commander yelled for them to prepare for an attack. The droids braced themselves, but nothing happened and the smoke thinned out and slowly vanished.

"Well that was weird," said the lieutenant.

The commander looked around and seeing nothing out of place stated, "It must have been a distraction so the enemy could run away. Enough delays, let's get moving!"

The three tanks had rotated to face the amassed droids. As the droids moved out they drifted after, all save for one, the last one in line. The droid up on the turret seemed to be leaning awkwardly against the back of the canon mount when the tank suddenly fired, blowing up the tank immediately in front of it. The droids reacted in confusion and turned to stare at the sudden fireball when the rear tank fired again and blew up the lead tank. The droid in the turret limply fell out and tumbled to the ground, in its place a clone popped up and gave them a jaunty wave as the secondary blasters came alive and poured fire into the droid's ranks.

Echo peered through the screen of the targeting computer and sprayed heavy blaster fire at the panicking droids while yelling into his com. "Fives, keep firing that canon!"

"Fives waited half a second for the cool down and muttered to himself, "Stop having fun, Fives, get to work," before firing another shell straight down the lane. The corridor was like a shooting gallery and the droids had no cover.

"Like blasting fish in a barrel." Echo turned towards Ghost sitting in the pilot's seat. "Figure out how to operate this thing yet?"

"Well, if I hit enough buttons, something will do something, surely."

"Just don't turn the damned thing off."

The tank lurched forward, then moved to the side. "Okay, think I got it." Ghost started moving the tank around the flaming wreckage giving the clones a clear view and advanced. Echo swept the corridor with blaster fire and Fives unloaded with his rifle between canon shots. In only a few short minutes there was nothing left to shoot and much of the brush had erupted into an inferno.

"Time to get out of here!" Echo yelled as Ghost vacated her seat and shoved open the hatch.

Fives, Echo, and Ghost evacuated their commandeered AAT and ran to climb over the fallen arch as the canyon filled with smoke.

"This is going to make for one hell of a story. The boys'll never believe us!" Fives laughed.

"Well, you've got outstanding evidence that something happened," Ghost said as she ran, indicating the raging fire behind them.

The trio sprinted to the end of the canyon and reached the sandstone formation the droids had called "the staircase". Bounding their way up it, they hoped this path would finally lead them back to the Republic forces.

---

The battle to take the outpost only lasted around two hours. The droids fired from the cliffs, the clones took cover within the canyons, and the two sides shot at each other with little effect. Uncharacteristicly, the droids refused to hold their positions and fell back if advanced on while continuing the onslaught. The result was a slog towards their goal for the clones until the Republic army moved past the great span of stone that bridged a deep gap between the cliffs. Once on the other side, the droid forces seemed to melt away. Expecting another ambush, Skywalker lead his forces forward cautiously, but no further attacks materialized, and once they reached the outpost, they found it abandoned.

Bomb sweeps revealed nothing and it looked as though the droids had been stripping the outpost hours before the Republic army invaded the canyons. Skywalker left behind a battalion to man the outpost and establish a secondary post at the top of the plateau cliff to keep watch on the lands below. He then led the rest of his forces back to their base.

---

The milky blue face of Se-2 was reduced to a bright crescent and Deande was entering the twilight hours while floodlights kept the base lit bright as day. Groups of clones gathered around the returned troops to hear about the events of the canyon battle and Fives and Echo quickly drew a crowd as they told about their adventure. Ghost also found herself the center of attention and showed off the versatility of her wires. The clones set up random objects as targets and she skillfully thwacked them with her morning stars. Then she switched out the weighted tips for leather strips and snapped the lines like a bullwhip. She swapped one leather strip out for a carabiner clip to create a lasso and roped a clone named Jesse much to the amusement of his friends. Finally, she topped one wire with a sling and using pebbles for ammo, performed trick shots for her growing audience.

"Impressive aim with such an anachronistic weapon," said a clone who had styled his hair in a short cut mohawk. "Name's Longshot."

"Thanks," Ghost touched the brim of her hat. "I can do more than knock over cans though."

"I'd like to see what you can do with a blaster. We've set up a firing range if you're interested."

"I don't carry a blaster."

The clone looked surprised. "You don't? Why?"

"I'm a terrible shot."

"Oh come on, anyone can learn how to shoot."

Echo looked at her curiously. "I thought you said you followed older Mandalorian traditions. Surely you've been trained how to handle most any kind of blaster."

"I have," Ghost said with a touch of exasperation. "I'm just not so hot at hitting my target."

Longshot gestured at all of the targets Ghost had easily struck with wire and sling. "Nonsense, someone must have botched your training. I can get you shooting straight in no time."

Ghost held up her hands, "That's neither necessary nor a good idea," But the clone was already steering her towards the firing range.

Fives, Echo, and a group of troopers from their company followed along and parked themselves on a nearby bench to watch as Longshot handed Ghost a practice rifle.

"Go ahead and aim at the target, I want to see how you hold it."

Ghost did so and the clone inspected her grip and stance then moved behind her to sight down the barrel before finally nodding in approval as he stepped to the side.

"I see no faults and you're dead on, go ahead and fire."

Ghost pulled the trigger and a small puff of smoke erupted from the ground just behind and to the left of the target.

"Eh?" Longshot shook his head. "You must be moving when you pull the trigger. He repositioned himself behind her to watch her aim more closely. "Fire again."

This time the shot went wide to the right and hit the ground in front of the target.

"That's...no, that doesn't...let me see that rifle."

Longshot took back the blaster and pulled its battery pack before giving it a thorough inspection, even going so far as to dismantle the barrel and examine the pieces. Reassembling it, he took aim at the target and hit it dead center three times before finally handing it back to Ghost.

"You know," Ghost said, "My last fire instructor insisted I was cursed, then went into early retirement."

"Nonsense. Let me aim for you this time." The clone positioned the rifle as Ghost held it, and fired the blaster, again hitting the bullseye. He then carefully let go and sighted down the barrel again to try to catch the slightest quiver. "Okay, don't move, just pull the trigger."

"What's this then?"

The clones sitting on the bench quickly stood as Captain Rex joined them.

"Sir," said Fives, "We're just watching Longshot..."

The clone with the mohawk was frantically gesticulating at the sky as he said in rising tones, "That is physically impossible!"

"...slowly lose his mind." Fives finished with a grimace.

Echo leaned over. "I think it might be time for an intervention.

Longshot was again examining the rifle as the group walked over. Dustoff, a clone medic, slung his arm across Longshot's shoulders.

"Leave off that and let's head to the mess."

Longshot shook his head, "No, there's a logical explanation for-."

"I'm sure there is. C'mon, I'll get you a coffee." Dustoff gingerly took the rifle and handed it off before guiding the protesting sniper away.

The gathered clones watched the two walk off before turning to look at Ghost.

"Hey," raising her hands as she shrugged, "I warned him it was a bad idea."

Fives was shaking his head in wonder. "How can you miss so badly that you shoot wide in either direction without moving?"

"My theory is my mother sucked up all the talent before giving birth to me." Ghost then turned to Rex. "Captain Rex, how are you? You've come on down to share vital information with the troops yes?" Ghost widened her eyes in emphasis.

Rex's eyes twinkled in amusement as he turned to address the men. "As a matter of fact, I do have news to pass on. We've got some extended down time ahead of us."

"Really? Right after taking ground from the Sepies? No movement out of the clankers at all?" asked one of the troopers.

"They gave that outpost away then went and bottled themselves up in their base," said another.

"The Separatists want us to make the next move. They have to have something cooking." Fives frowned. "So what's the general's plan?"

"For now, the plan is to wait," Rex stated. "We're headed into the moon's night and we'll be at more of a disadvantage than the droids in the cold and dark. Since they aren't in a hurry, no need for us to be."

A clone sighed, "so we're going to be sitting on our hands for, what, almost fifty hours?"

"I'm afraid so, trooper." Rex said sympathetically.

After that, most of the group broke up with clones drifting off either towards the mess tents or their barracks. Only Rex, Fives, and Echo remained and unhurriedly walked Ghost back to her camp.

"Fives, Echo," the two clones gave Rex their attention, "I wanted to let you know your actions down in the canyon bottom have been noted. You did good work down there."

"Thank you, sir," smiled Echo, "we did have a bit of help though."

Rex turned to Ghost. "Thanks are due you as well, though I'm not sure how to feel about your involvement in a combat situation."

"Please don't tell me it's dangerous. I'm familiar with the speech. I can take care of myself."

"No doubt, but no one here wants to be responsible for the injury or death of a civilian who got themselves mixed up in our fight."

"No one here is responsible for me."

"Wrong. When we go into battle, we are responsible for ourselves and the soldiers next to us. It's not possible to control all that goes on in combat, but we take care that our actions do not put our brothers in danger. If you choose to walk out on a battlefield, you become part of that dynamic as well. Please be careful, and please be mindful."

Ghost looked at Rex for a long moment, before solemnly nodding.

They reached Ghost's camp and she swung out her arm in invitation. "Care to join me for a bit? I can stoke up the fire and put the kettle on."

Fives and Echo looked interested but Rex hesitated. "You boys go ahead. I think I'll be heading back."

"Rex, please, stay and chat for a bit if you can."

Rex looked at Ghost and considered, "Alright, but," then turned his eyes to his company's newest recruits, "Only if you two stop trying to stand at attention. We're all off duty here."

"Yes, sir. Habit, sir." Echo made the effort to relax.

"It's different out here than Kamino, or even at your first posting. You'll settle in quick enough."

"Speaking of settling in, please, have a seat." Ghost had set out her folding stools and was breathing life back into her fire and adding logs.

The clones made themselves at home and Rex leaned back to look up at the sky. A sliver of the planet was still visible, but the rest of it carved a great black hole in the sky, with only a scattering of the brightest stars visible above the moon's horizon.

Fives also looked up at the sky, then asked Ghost, "what's the night like here, aside from incredibly dark and long?"

"How dark it is depends on where you're at, and I don't mean just in regard to the sky. Out on the desert or in the canyons, it's nearly black as a cave. It gets cold too. There will be frost on the ground before we see the sun again, though air mixing in from the sunward side of the moon keeps it relatively temperate here. You want to see real cold, go into the umbral region where the planet takes up the whole sky and the sun is never sighted. It's colder there than the poles and the ice never thaws."

"Now up here in the forest, it's quite a bit brighter because so many plants and animals are bioluminescent. You won't see it near your base. It's so bright here most creatures probably think it's still day, but go further away and almost everything glows."

All bundled up in thermal gear, my breath visible in the air. Charna leading me by the hand to the field of flowers. Their petals glowed the softest purple and their stamen shone as tiny points of white light. As if the absent stars had come to rest here amidst a hazy lavender nebula.

"Nighttime on the plateau is beautiful; I prefer it to the day. The broom top trees don't glow but the moss that commonly grows on their bark glows a soft green. The plumes of the foxtail flowers that carpet the open spaces shimmer gold and the white flowers of the moon drop tree only open at night, shining like their namesake. Swarms of emberflies fill the forest like clouds of sparks from a bonfire. When I was little I'd run around with a net catching as many as I could to fill a jar. They'd light up as brightly as a lantern, but you can't keep them captive. They don't live long."

Ghost's description had captivated the clones and the silence held after she finished speaking, the spell finally breaking after she moved her kettle away from the fire.

"Would anyone like a cup of tea?"

"Please." Rex affirmed and Fives and Echo nodded.

Ghost dropped a teabag into her pot to steep.

"How long have you been coming here?" Fives asked.

"Since I was nine. My sister and brothers would bring me here. Charna was eldest, followed by the boys, twins, Ren and San, then a nine year gap to me. When I was little I, um, could get overwhelmed pretty easily so, this was like a sanctuary. The galaxy is a busy place. There aren't a lot of spots that are both pleasant and empty of people."

Ghost collected her cups, filling them from the teapot and passed them to her guests.

Rex accepted his with a nod of thanks and spoke. "I've already said this, but I am truly sorry we've disturbed this place."

"It's fine. I know I was…a bit upset at first but," Ghost laughed nervously, "This is going to sound sad but I've been living like a hermit when I'm away from home and I've actually enjoyed the company. You clones are a lively bunch."

"If I may ask," Echo said tentatively, "Why like a hermit?"

"I don't know. I've interacted as needed with lots of people but I never bothered making friends. I don't know why."

"Sounds lonely."

Ghost tilted her head to the side in thought. "No, I don't think I've been lonely. If I wanted people around I'd just go home. I think I just wasn't looking for company. Are you clones ever alone?"

"Hah! Rarely. Echo and I have been together since we were formed into our final cadet squad." Fives nudged Echo with his elbow.

"Sadly true." Echo carefully kept his cup from spilling as he was jostled. "I've been putting up with Fives for a long time."

"And how long is that?"

"Well, since we were seven."

"Seven? You have been together a long time. You look like you're what, in your twenties now?"

"Ah, yes and no. Clones have been genetically modified to age differently than regular humans. To clarify, physically our bodies are equivalent to that of a twenty year old human, but our literal age is ten years. So Fives and I have been together..for...three years..." Echo trailed off as he became aware of the look of shock on Ghost's face.

"Ten?! That would mean you age twice as fast as a regular human. By the time you're my age you'll be in your mid-forties?"

"Ghost, it's alright." Fives said soothingly, concerned with how upset she'd become. "That's just what's normal for us."

"But that's horrible, that's-"

"Ghost," Rex interjected, "We clones were created to do an important job. We know why we're here and the circumstances of our creation. There's little point in arguing about something that can't be changed."

She found Rex's statement wholly unsatisfactory but the clones seemed at peace with this reality. Ghost swallowed her objections to the idea that a deliberately shortened lifespan was perfectly fine and acceptable and took a deep breath. "Sorry. That wasn't a revelation I was anticipating."

"No worries, and I'm sorry too." Echo said. "I'm not really used to talking about these sorts of things with non-clones. There's a lot we take for granted that other people might find strange or alarming."

"I suppose so." Ghost was silent a long time as she started really thinking about the implications of what it might mean to be one of these clones. "You're weird."

"Weird in a good way?" Fives gave her a hopeful smile.

"Just weird. Like my family is weird. Myself included. I'd like to know more. I hope you'll trade stories with me."

"Sure. Ask us anything."

They talked until the last sliver of light shining on the planet vanished. Ghost kept her questions innocuous, in line with what she'd asked Rex during their first conversation, as she wasn't quite ready for another disturbing revelation. Eventually the party broke up and Ghost bid good night to Fives and Echo, but as Rex turned to go she touched his shoulder.

"You were right. My House is very old."

Rex's eyebrows raised as he recalled the conversation.

"House Dyne dates from all the way back to the founding of the Mandalorian people, in fact."

"You seemed hesitant to talk about your family before."

"Well, Echo said he wasn't used to talking to non-clones about certain things. I'm not used to talking to anyone not of House or clan about much of anything at all."

"What changed your mind?"

"Well," Ghost shrugged and gave Rex a simple smile, "I've decided you're alright."

---

Echo lay back on his bunk. He'd stood for inspection and had first meal with Fives at the mess but rather than wander off to the shooting range he'd returned to the barracks to relax and read for a bit since it was empty and quiet for a change. Reception was lousy out here but he'd gotten the hand screen to pick up a few news feeds out of the Mid Rim. Head pillowed on one arm, he was scrolling through the available selection. Not surprisingly, a lot of it covered the war.

"Hey."

Echo started and fumbled the screen, finally clapping it against his chest as he turned his head to see Ghost, chin resting on her folded arms, peering at him from the edge of the mattress.

"How did you get in here?"

"I walked through the door. Is there another way in? Are you reading a regulation manual?"

"What? No, no I am not. For the record, whatever Fives says, I have never read manuals for fun."

Ghost slid off the side of Echo's top bunk and hopped off the ladder. "It's dreary in here. Looks like the inside of a shipping container."

"Well, you're not wrong." Echo sat up and swung his legs over the side of his bed. "It'd designed to be portable and armored for defense against airstrike."

"I do like the graffiti though. Adds some color and enhances the industrial wasteland feel." Ghost inspected some of the doodles various clones who'd used these barracks had added to the walls over time. "What's this?" Ghost tapped the chest next to the head of the bottom bunk.

"That's my storage unit...that you are now rummaging through." Echo dropped down, his bare feet slapping on the floor. He was dressed in the simple t-shirt and cloth pants issued the clones for sleeping. He stood, hands on hips, watching Ghost as she pulled his helmet out of the chest. "Do you usually go through other people's belongings?"

"I promise I won't take anything."

"That's not really what I mean."

"Oh? That's usually what makes people upset." Ghost had lifted the helmet to peer inside of it.

Echo just shook his head and leaned against the end of the bunk. "You're Mandalorian."

"Yes?"

"I don't mean to stereotype but, you don't really wear traditional Mandalorian armor and I thought that was part of the old tenets of being Mandalorian."

"I wear a traditional cuirass under my coat. The beskar is thinner than typical though since the coat is armored too."

"And a hat instead of the helmet?"

Ghost slipped off her hat and handed it to him.

"Heavier than I expected." Echo turned it over and tapped the crown. "Metal plated inside the fabric."

"It basically is a helmet."

"Why this style instead of that?" He pointed towards his own helmet.

"Sensory incompatibility."

"Eh?"

"I can't tolerate having my head fully encased in a hard surface. I freak out. Since I'm not wired for a traditional Mandalorian helmet, I made my own compromise." Ghost held out her hand and Echo passed the hat back to her.

Echo was still digesting that bit of information when Ghost moved on.

"What's this thing?" She pulled out what looked like a black onesie for a toddler.

"It's a body glove. It goes under the armor."

She gave the material a tug. "Stretchy. How do you even put it on?"

"You'll have to use your imagination."

Next she pulled out his chest armor. "This is really light weight compared to Mandalorian armor."

"It's mostly made of plasteel instead of durasteel or beskar."

"That won't do much to stop a blaster bolt at close range."

"Any little bit helps, besides, a trooper may have to march, climb or fight in his armor for hours on end so lighter armor isn't as fatiguing to wear."

"What's this funny mark that looks like a hand print?"

"It's a hand print that looks like a funny mark."

Ghost wrinkled up her nose. "You and Fives did invite me to ask you anything."

"We did," Echo conceded. "I just wasn't expecting to be grilled in my pajamas."

Ghost laughed. "Fair enough. This isn't even why I came in here. I just got distracted."

"Well, what can I do for you then?"

"I wanted to ask you and Fives for a favor. My ship's a ways out there and I wanted to make a supply run since I'm staying in my camp longer than I planned for. I also have an appointment to keep. Normally I'd just walk but you have speeder bikes and I promised Rex I wouldn't help myself to one. Mind giving me a ride?"

"Hah, Fives and I'll have to secure permission to leave base but I don't see a problem. Let me get dressed and we'll go see where he's kicking around."

"Okay." Ghost said brightly.

Echo stared at her as she stared at him.

"Ahhh, why don't you wait for me outside."

"Oh! Are clones modest?"

"Well I doubt there's any part of me my brothers haven't seen but...why don't you just head out and I'll be there in a moment."

"Sure thing." She handed him his chest armor back and left the barracks.

"Huh." Echo could only laugh.

---

When Echo stepped outside, he found Ghost reclining on the ground, propped on her elbows. She didn't immediately move when he approached so he sat down next to her.

"What is that hand print?"

"Still on that, eh?"

"Sorry, everyone has custom markings on their armor but you and Fives are mostly plain, except for that. It just sticks out to me."

"Well, I think of it as an initiation mark."

"Initiation?"

"It was our first post, Fives, me, and the rest of Domino Squad. That was the name of our graduating cadet squad. Long story short, things did not go well. We were supposed to protect an outpost that in turn kept Kamino, the closest we clones have to a homeworld, safe. Droids overran our post to stop us from alerting the Republic ships that a Separatist fleet was trying to invade. Our commander was killed and we lost half our squad, but Fives and I, and another squad member called Heavy lucked out. Captain Rex and Commander Cody had arrived to do an inspection and found us. This hand print is Rex's. He shot and killed a Rishi eel that popped out of its burrow to snack on us. Rex touched it and stained his hand in its blood, then left his print on my chest plate, telling me I was a "shiny". A rookie with clean, new armor. No experience."

"With the captain and commander's help, we took back our post and were able to warn the Republic that we were in trouble. It cost though. Heavy sacrificed himself to make our victory possible. So, that's what I mean by initiation. That was when the war became real, the stakes and costs high. I'm still a rookie, one of the new guys who just joined the 501st, but I stopped being a "shiny" on that mission, when the captain stamped my chest plate."

"I knew there was a story there." Ghost said softly. "How did you deal with losing so many of your brothers? On your first mission. You must have only just completed training."

"Part of that training includes accepting loss quickly. In war, there often isn't time for anything else."

"So you just moved on?"

"In the moment, yes. It's not like I don't ever think about them, but as a soldier, I have to keep moving."

Ghost pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "I couldn't do that."

"Are, are you alright?"

After a moment passed, "I'm fine." Suddenly Ghost stood, bouncing to her feet. "Let's go find Fives."

((writing in progress))