Ni Partayli Gar Darasuum
Author's Note: Another Fiveswalker one-shot from me! I've been toying with this idea ever since I did my first fic with them. xP Enjoy! :D
This is for the square "established relationship" on the 501st bingo. It's also for Day 3 of Haunted Clone Week. :)
~ Amina Gila
It takes Anika longer to find the clone than she'd anticipated. "Slip?" she queries when she finds him in the shadows of an alley in the Underworld of Coruscant. According to what Padme told her, Slip was stationed on Admiral Rampart's Star Destroyer when it opened fire on Kamino, destroying everything. And they need evidence from someone to prove to the galaxy what the Empire is doing.
"Who's asking?" he asks warily.
She pushes back her hood, revealing her face. "Rex sent me," she answers, knowing that her face will be easily recognizable, especially now with the massive bounty on her head.
It's been months since the Empire formed, and ever since Order 66, ever since the Jedi Order and Republic fell, Anika and Rex have been working tirelessly to save those who they can, to start a network to fight back. For the most part, they've been seeking to rescue as many clones as they can, because they are the ones who are in the most danger. The clones are being kept enslaved, forced to work against their wills, and they deserve to get freedom. They're her brothers, her family, and they deserve better.
And together with Padme and a few others, Anika has been beginning to set up a wider network, laying the foundation for a greater rebellion to overthrow Palpatine.
It still hurts her, seeing how he betrayed her and everyone. She hasn't spoken to him since he had a hand in Fives' death. Fives had uncovered the truth about the inhibitor chips, and he paid for it, shot and taken away to be sent in for decommission. She and Rex fought it, as hard as they could, but there was nothing they could do, not in time. According to the report, Fives wasn't given medical treatment, and he died from his injuries. It crushed her, her and Rex both. She'd loved Fives, still loves him, always will, and they – they had something, something special.
In Fives' name, she will rip apart what Palpatine has built. In Fives' memory, she will burn it all to ash. Ni partayli, gar darasuum – I remember you, so you are eternal.
Slip sucks in a breath, eyes widening. "General Skywalker," he whispers, reverent. "I heard whispers that you were helping us. Thank you."
"It's my duty," she answers firmly. "How could I be a Jedi if I do not fight for those who are oppressed?" A heartbeat of silence passes, and then, she continues, "You spoke to Senator Chuchi about Admiral Rampart and what he's done. She contacted Senator Amidala who contacted me. We need your help."
Slip takes a step back, shaking his head, eyes widening. "No," he says. "No, no, I can't. I need to disappear where the Empire can't find me. They're after me."
"You're safe with me," Anika vows firmly, "But we need to make public what's been done, however we must do that. I will not ask you to testify –" Though Padme and Riyo had asked her if she could convince him, but she understands that it's too dangerous for him, especially when the Empire is hunting him down to silence him, "– But the truth must come out. The attack on Kamino wiped out entire cities, not just the cloning facilities. The Kaminoans are gone."
It angers her, enrages her, because it's wrong. It doesn't matter to her that they were involved in the clones' enslavement. They were living beings, who did not deserve to die, not like that.
Slip breathes out a shaky breath, and Anika can feel his anxiety coiling into the Force, anxiety and fear. "Okay. The evidence you want is aboard Rampart's ship. Check the bridge's command log. I saved a backup to the central system computer."
The Force flares in warning, and she instinctively lashes out, shoving the trooper backwards just as a blaster bolt flies overhead, hitting the wall behind him; if she hadn't pushed him in time, that would have been him. He could have died, and there's a sniper trying to shoot them down. Definitely not ideal, but Anika has handled worse. She'll be fine. No lone sniper can take her out, and besides, she's learned a few tricks from hanging out with Crosshair and the rest of the Bad Batch.
"Get to the speeder," she orders, "At the end of the alley. I'll cover you." She pulls her blaster out of its holster, lightly running a finger over the '5' engraved on the handle. Once, this used to be Fives', but he's gone now, and this is one of the few things from him that she has left.
Several more shots are fired towards them, but Slip ducks in time, and she lifts her blaster to fire back. She catches sight of the figure on top of a nearby roof, lowering his sniper rifle as he races along the roof to get a better line of sight to them. Given the many overhanging roofs, it's relatively easy to evade any other shots, and she almost thinks they'll make it out before another shot hits the engine of the speeder, blowing it out.
Kriff.
She hits a button on her comm to let Rex know that things have gone downhill, and she needs a pickup, but it'll be a short while before he can make it here. They'll have to fend for themselves, as if that's a challenge, what with her being a trained Jedi and Slip being a trained soldier.
"C'mon," she calls, gesturing to the clone, "There's a warehouse just down there. If we can get inside, we can lose him until Rex shows up."
They make it into the warehouse without being shot, though she does have to redirect one shot that comes too close to them with the Force. Though she's trying to be careful, Anika still suspects that the mysterious sniper might have figured out she's a Jedi. Which means they need to get out of here as fast as possible before the Empire shows up and rips the place apart to find her. If only Rex could get here faster…
It's dark inside the building, and Anika tightens her grip on her blaster, looking around carefully. She can sense the approach of their masked assailant, but she can't see him, not through the darkness. The Force twinges, tenses, and she ducks reflectively as a blaster bolt skims over her head. "Get down," she hisses to Slip. "Find cover. I'll be fine."
He listens to her, obviously respecting her ability to protect herself, being a Jedi and all.
What she expects is a blaster bolt.
What she does not expect is the familiar snap-hiss of a lightsaber, the red glow illuminating the other end of the walkway and the ominous figure holding it. His armor is black, entirely so, and he has a sleek helmet that's almost skull shaped. "Jedi," he hisses, and his voice seems… strangely familiar, even as it crackles through a vocoder.
Anika reaches for her own blade, igniting it, bathing the area in blue light as she braces herself for a fight. She's heard of the Inquisitors before, but that's not who this is. She doesn't know what he is, but there's something about him that's familiar, buried beneath a twisted mass of darkness and wrongness. "What are you?" she asks, voice level. She isn't afraid. He's alone, and there's no way he could ever come close to defeating her. It will be easy to kill him, but she won't do that, either. She needs him alive, to know what the Empire is doing.
"The one who will destroy you," he intones, but in the Force, it feels more as if he's repeating something he's been told than something he actually believes. He might be dark, but he's not Dark, not like the Sith are. His mind is empty, as if the person who had it was stripped away entirely. It's eerie and unnatural, and Anika feels a pit in her stomach on seeing him. What is the Empire doing?
She steps forward, unflinching, swinging for him. Their lightsabers crash, blades sparking at the impact, and he shoves against her blade, but her metal hand gives her the advantage. She pulls back, and they trade a rapid series of blows. It's obvious to her that he's not… skilled exactly, as if this is something he's only recently begun to learn. A trainee then? Maybe he's an Inquisitor, or meant to be one, and he was sent out to kill Slip as some sort of initiation mission or something.
Somehow, that doesn't quite feel right either, and Anika thinks she's missing something, but whatever it is, they need to know. They need to know about all possible threats from the Empire, so they can counter them effectively. That is the only way to build a rebellion, after all.
It's laughably easy for her to send her opponent's lightsaber skittering from his hands, and she throws out a hand, blasting him backward with the Force, sending him crashing into a durasteel post. He groans on impact, stumbling, half falling, but he pushes himself back up as she moves toward him, lightsaber poised. And then, he lifts his own hand. She expects a Force shove, or some other Force-based attack. What she doesn't expect is for electricity to spark at his fingertips, bluish-purple and wrong, as he tries to Force choke her. She blocks the attempt with her own Force shield as well as the crackle of lightning that he tries throwing at her, shoving him back hard. It dazes him long enough for her to whip out her blaster and hit him with a stun bolt.
Rex shows up, then, and they take their unconscious prisoner and Slip back to their base of operations. On the way, Anika fills him in, telling him what happened. He looks troubled, thoughtful. "Whatever information Slip possesses is something the Empire doesn't want getting out," he concludes gravely, "And he –" He jerks a head toward the unconscious, masked individual, "– was sent to make sure that wouldn't happen."
Anika approaches him, hoping that the stuncuffs on his wrist, keeping him attached to a pole, will be enough to stop him from breaking loose. They took all of his weapons and stashed them out of sight, and she's relatively confident in her ability to keep him subdued with the Force if needed. Carefully, she reaches for the helmet, finding the release and frowning when she realizes that the armor is pressurized, far more than most armor ever is. But still, she pulls the helmet off, sucking in a shocked breath at the face behind the mask.
His head is somewhat tilted to the side, limp in his unconsciousness, and she – she can see the tattoo on the side of his head, the '5' scribbled into his temple.
"A clone?" Rex says, surprised.
"No," Anika whispers, stepping back, shaken, "It's – Fives." The helmet slips through her fingers, clattering against the floor, but she pays it no mind, dropping to her knees, her hands coming to rest on his armored shoulders as she sends the Force through his body, trying to understand what's wrong with him. He feels so different now in the Force, and there was no recognition in his eyes or Force signature when she saw him, and that doesn't make sense, because even if he hadn't removed his chip, he would never have fought her.
Rex inhales sharply, coming closer, standing behind her and staring down at him. "What – what happened to him? How's this even possible? He was dead."
Anika skims a fingertip against his cheekbone, lightly touching his tattoo, and he stirs, groaning weakly. "Fives?" she asks, her voice wavering. And then, to Rex, "I don't know how this is possible. I thought – I thought he was gone, just like you did. I don't…"
How could this have happened to him? To Fives? Was this Palpatine's doing? Was this his plan from the start? Take Fives from her and turn him against her and everyone? What have they done to him?
"Fives, can you hear me?" Rex asks, nudging his shoulder.
His eyes flutter and open, and he blinks up at them, his gaze empty and blank, unrecognizing. It sends a stab of pain through her, because this – it doesn't make sense, any of it. They mourned Fives for so long. It was his loss that brought them together, that made them family. It was Fives' loss which brought her and her boys together, his loss that brought Echo and the rest of Clone Force 99 into her confidence. So much changed because of him, and they have never stopped fighting in his memory, not once.
"Where am I?" he rasps out, his voice hardening, becoming cold. "What do you want with me?"
Rex makes a quiet, wounded sound, and Anika reaches blindly for him, grabbing his hand and squeezing it tightly. It was war, and they all knew they shouldn't get too attached, but it was Fives, and they both loved him for who he was anyway. He was Rex's right hand, and he was Anika's… everything. Her husband, practically, though they could never have legally married.
"What was your mission?" Anika asks him when Rex can't bring himself to talk. He needs a moment to recover, to pull himself together, and she'll let him have it, no matter how desperately she needs to fall apart and scream about the unfairness of it all. This is Fives – she recognizes the tainted, twistedness of his presence now that she's looking – but he's so different, and he doesn't even remember them; he could practically be a totally different person.
And he's Force sensitive. How did that happen? Fives was never Force-sensitive when they knew him. What has been done to him?
Her assessment of him with the Force isn't very conclusive. The most she can sense is that he has synthetic organs now – one of his lungs was replaced, probably because of the shot that went through it – and that there's something about him that's… weird. How, she can't quite tell, but the Force inside of him isn't natural or normal.
"I was given a target," he answers blandly, as if he doesn't even matter, "And then I found you." In the depths of his eyes, though, Anika sees something flicker. Curiosity, perhaps. Intrigue. Wariness. She can feel him reaching out to her with the Force, touching her presence lightly and finding their bond, the one that's remained unbroken all this time. She hadn't even realized it until she saw him again, realized it was him, but it's still there, even after so long. They're still bound together, and that gives her strength.
No matter what the Empire has done to him, to them, no matter what it has tried to do, they will find their way back to each other's sides. She has to believe that.
Yeah, maybe he won't be the same person that he used to be, but then, neither is she. They both changed; it's natural. But for the sake of the love that they had for one another, Anika will hold fast to the faith that they can put something back together. Eventually.
"Fives," Rex whispers, something in his tone so broken that it hurts.
Empty brown eyes flick to him, and his brow furrows before his eyes widen slightly, but not quite with recognition. "Captain Rex," he says, almost harsh, "The traitor. They told me about you."
"You don't remember us," Rex realizes, numbly, sitting back. Anika squeezes his hand harder.
Fives tilts his head. "Should I?"
"Yes." Their answer is unanimous, unwavering.
"You were part of the 501st Legion," Anika elaborates, holding his gaze, "Until you uncovered a conspiracy. You were – you were… shot trying to warn us, and they took you. I – we were told you didn't make it."
He licks his lips. "I don't remember that." There's wariness in his eyes now.
"Search your feelings, Fives," she tells him. "You can feel the truth to my words, can't you?"
She almost can't believe this is happening, that this is real. For so long, she's mourned Fives, grieved him, sought to avenge him, but here is he, memoryless and against them, and none of this makes sense. Was this the Sith's plan all this time? Was this – did Palpatine do this on purpose? What have they done to him? It almost doesn't seem real or possible that he's here, but she can't deny the realness of his Force signature, the light and warmth of their bond. It's real. It's all real, somehow.
"You seem… familiar," he states slowly, almost grudgingly, his Force signature nudging against hers, and she welcomes him closer without even thinking, letting him brush against her shields without pushing him away.
"I was your General," she replies, "And Rex was your Captain. We were… close. All of us." She can't quite hide the flicker of longing and love and warmth inside of her, and his eyes widen marginally.
"What has the Empire told you?" Rex asks him. Despite his obvious pain and anguish, he still manages to keep his voice surprisingly level.
"The Empire is making the galaxy a better place," Fives answers, and he believes what he's saying. Fully. That's what hurts the worst. It was Fives who made them start questioning the Republic, the Chancellor. It was Fives who gave them the courage to get as far as they have. And to hear this from him? It hurts. It hurts, because they both know Fives, and they know that the man they knew would never have said this.
"Is it?" Anika queries bitterly. "The Jedi Order was wiped out down to the last man, and the clones are being treated as trash, used and discarded, and sent away to a destination that we don't even know yet, probably to be experimented on or terminated, and that – that's not right. None of that is right, Fives! They're hurting people, people who only want to live their lives. There is no freedom there. No justice, no peace, no order. It's corruption, plain and simple, everything we fought against throughout the entire war."
Fives shifts in his restraints, though he doesn't struggle or try to break free. She thinks that's a good sign. Probably. "I don't…" He hesitates, looks away. "I don't remember the war. Or… anything beyond waking up like this. They told me the Jedi did it when they committed treason."
"And the Force?" Rex questions. "How did you get the Force?"
"… I don't know."
For a moment, the three of them just sit there, and then, Anika looks at Rex. "We gotta contact Echo. He needs to know what's happened, and maybe – maybe he can help us get into the Imperial network so we can find out what they've done to Fives."
**w**
Captain Rex and General Skywalker.
He knows them.
He knows he knows them.
But he can't remember from when or from where or how. He thinks they're telling the truth, about how he fought with them during the Clone Wars, but he can't remember any of it. And he doesn't know why, either.
Fives, they called him.
He doesn't have a name, though, just a… title, of sorts. The Trooper is what they've called him, nothing more. When they address him, that's the only title they've ever given. He'd known it was strange, but he didn't really know or understand enough to question it. Maybe he should have. Maybe he should have paid more attention at the beginning, when he was in a medbay somewhere, when they had him strapped down to a table and hooked him up to more machines than he even knew the purpose for. Maybe he should have been more watchful as they injected substances into his veins and then observed him to see how he handled it.
He hardly even remembers any of it. Mainly, he just remembers the pain. He remembers knowing that his body was being changed against his will. He remembers a burning pain which had consumed all of his senses, whiting out his brain enough to take his mind from him, until he became nothing more than a blank slate. He remembers that much, at least, and he remembers that he woke up with a strange, burning awareness of the world around him.
It's always felt wrong to him, somehow, as if reality rejects whatever his body has been twisted into. This isn't his body. It – it doesn't feel like his anymore. He's dependent on the mechanical lung in his chest to keep him alive, dependent on the pressurization of his armor to keep it properly functioning. He thinks he shouldn't be, but he is, and there's nothing he can do about it.
It only felt more wrong when he trained with someone who called himself an Inquisitor, who taught him the Force and how to fight, training him with sheer brutality, beating him down and forcing him to get up again and again, even though he only wanted to drop. It… is probably the only reason he lasted against General Skywalker as long as he did. She's had years of training; he's had a few months, and no matter how he got the Force, nothing in the galaxy could compare to the sheer strength of her presence. It's overwhelming, almost, but it's warm and welcoming and familiar. He could bask in it for hours if he had the choice.
His awareness of her is a constant, and he can feel it acutely now that she's gone. She left, saying something about going to meet up with someone named Echo to do a short infiltration mission to obtain intel on him. He… does not know how he feels about that. He doesn't know how he feels about anything, to be fair. What he's been taught in the last months is in direct contrast to everything that the Jedi and rogue clone have told him. He's been taught that the Empire is good. They're telling him it's not. But he's also been taught to rely on the Force and trust his instincts, and his instincts, the Force, are telling him that the two are speaking the truth, or at least what they believe to be the truth.
"What do you remember?"
He – Fives? Is that his name? Can he just… take the name they're calling him? When he doesn't even remember having chosen it? – looks up to see Rex approaching, sitting on the edge of a crate, watching. No one has said in quite so many words that Rex stayed behind to keep an eye on him, but they all know it's true. He understands it. He'd have done the same if he was them, no doubt. They're rebels, traitors, and they haven't stayed out of the Empire's hands this long by being careless.
"Very little," he answers, licking his lips, shifting in his bonds. "I know that something was done to me. I remember… a lab, I think. Machines." Whatever he can tell them might be useful. He doesn't know what he wants. Maybe it'll be easiest to let them reach whatever conclusions they can about what was done to him, so they can see if they can do anything, or…
Well, he doesn't know what the 'or' is.
Rex leans forward, brow furrowing. There's pain in his dark eyes, grief. "What kind of machines? What can you tell me about what they did there?"
He turns the question over in his mind, trying to dredge up the details of those days from the back of his mind. Mainly, he just remembers the pain. Burning, searing pain. Remembers wanting to beg, wanting it to stop. Remembers thinking please not again every time the scientists – or doctors? He doesn't know – came back. He remembers ice cold, blue eyes peering down at him impassively, remembers the compassionate brown eyes of a woman, a medical assistant of some sort, who made sure he was alive.
"I don't know the machines," he answers, shaking his head, "They injected me with… something. Different drugs. I don't know. All I remember… is pain."
He could never forget the face of the main scientist in charge of the experiments on him, though; it's burned into his mind, lost amid a sea of agony.
Rex's expression falters, and he swallows. "I know this won't mean anything to you," he murmurs, "But I'm sorry. This – we should have fought for you. We should have tried harder."
… What is he supposed to say to that? He doesn't even know what happened to him, doesn't even know who these people are, not personally. "I appreciate that," he says at last, "But I don't remember you." Blunt, straightforward. There is no other way that he knows. They mean something to him. They did, rather, and he knows that, can feel that, but – but he can't remember anything.
The other clone's smile is sad. "I know," he answers quietly, simply. He doesn't say anything further.
**w**
"Echo! Echo, calm down," Anika tries, watching the ARC trooper's furious pacing. His fury is burning, seething, and even Omega is throwing wary looks in his direction. No one else is brave enough to approach him; they've made themselves scarce.
Echo whirls toward her, fury and grief battling for dominance in his eyes. "They did that to my twin brother!" he yells, his voice breaking on the words. "They turned him into an experiment, and he might never remember anything!"
It's like losing Fives all over again, he doesn't say, but Anika hears it all the same. She understands that pain. She feels it. Knowing that she'll go back and look her lover in the eyes when she might never see a spark of recognition or love, knowing that he might never be able to joke around with Echo and Rex ever again, it's gutting.
She lets out a breath. "Yeah," she says, "I know."
Echo's trembling, minutely, but still visible to her. "He was nearly decommissioned when we were cadets," he relates, "Because he was so independent, and they didn't like him mouthing off to the trainers. That's why I started memorizing the reg manuals, so I could keep him out of trouble."
Her lips part soundlessly as she searches for words. She never knew that. He never told her that before. Nor did Fives. As if sensing her conflict, Crosshair leans into her closer from where he's draped across her from behind, his chin on her shoulder. He's trying to be casual about it, but they all know he's hiding from Echo without actually looking like he is. Wrecker is cuddling Omega in the gunner's mount, and Tech is in the cockpit. Hunter is the only one of them brave enough to be in Echo's vicinity, sitting quietly on a rack, watching him.
Echo growls quietly, and his pacing continues.
Anika sighs softly, trying to draw strength from the presences of her brothers – and sister, in Omega's case. This isn't easy. They'd infiltrated all the way into Tarkin's office here on Coruscant, and Echo had spliced into the network, downloading all the information he could find about Fives. Tech had decrypted it, and what they found was somehow worse than their darkest imaginings.
Fives survived the blaster shot. He was given an injection to stabilize him, and then, he was put into statis until he could be taken back to Kamino for healing. From there, he was transported elsewhere – the destination, strangely, was erased from the files – and turned into a lab rat. An experimental drug, several actually, was given to him to induce amnesia. Subsequently, injections of a drug that included her midi-chlorians were repeatedly given until his body adapted and accepted them, making him artificially Force sensitive. Or that's the gist of it, at least. It's horrifying, and Anika doesn't even know how to begin processing any of it.
They're still on the Marauder, trying to regain their bearings before she goes to see Rex again, and Fives. There has to be something that she can do for him. Force healing might work, but she doesn't know exactly. She has an idea, but it'll be risky, and… But if they can heal Fives and get him back, it'll be worth it, right?
"I always tried to protect him," Echo says bitterly, kicking at a crate.
Hunter leans forward, ready to speak, but Anika beats him to it. "Echo, this isn't your fault," she points out gently. "It's not Rex's fault, either, or my fault. We didn't do this to him. His condition? That's all on the Empire. Please don't beat yourself up over it. He wouldn't want that." She'd been leaning towards guilt and self-recrimination as well, but she knows it's not fair to her or to Rex or to Fives, even. This? This is on the people who did it to him.
A myriad of emotions flicker across Echo's face, resignation last. "Yeah," he admits, "You're right."
"I'll find a way to fix this, Echo," she vows. She can only hope it's a promise she won't be forced to break.
Rex is quiet when she finally goes to tell him what they discovered, but his expression is visibly pained. It's hurting him as much as it is Echo, as much as it is her, and she has to fix this. She must. "I can use the Force," she tells Rex. "I might not have learned Force healing – I was not a healer – but I can – I can still do something. I brought Ahsoka back when we were on Mortis, and I know it was a different situation, because the Force was so strong there, but…" Her voice trails off as a realization hits her.
"There is a planet I can go to," she suggests. "Tython. It's an old Jedi world, uninhabited now. It's strong in the Force there, and the legend is that there's something there called a Seeing Stone, from which a Force user can see things more clearly. Maybe I can go there with Fives, direct the Force through his body to heal him. It'll be risky, because the Sith will feel me, but I – I might be able to heal him."
Rex's expression is torn. It's obvious that he wants to agree, that he wants to take the chance, but at the same time, he doesn't want to put them at risk like that. "Only if you take the rest of us with you," he says finally. He continues before she can argue. "If someone comes for you, and you're helping Fives, you won't be able to get distracted. Let us help you."
Anika hesitates, reaching out to the Force, trying to see if this is the right path for them. "Okay," she agrees, "But talk it over with the Batch first. Make sure they're on board with it."
**w**
Asking the Bad Batch was more of a courtesy than anything else, because of course, they agreed. Hunter was a little wary of taking Omega, so the compromise was that she'd stay on the ship, ready to fire up the engines in case anything goes wrong.
Anika's heart is pounding as they climb the mountain to where the Seeing Stone is at the summit. She can feel the Force here, powerful and almost overwhelming, the Light thrumming through her blood far more strongly than it ever has in the past – except on Mortis. She can feel everything around her, the whispers of life from each blade of grass, the pulsing light from her brothers, her family.
Fives goes with her, and Rex follows a short distance back, the rest of the Batch scattering and taking up defensible positions where they deem it best.
"Good luck," Rex says simply to her, unholstering his blasters and settling on a bolder to wait.
Anika nods to him, before going the rest of the way alone, with only Fives at her side. She explained to him, briefly, what they wanted to do, and he'd agreed, but she isn't certain if he agreed because he actually wants her to try and heal him and his memories, or if it was because of the thinly veiled hope in Rex's and Echo's eyes. It's hurting them both, so much, to see Fives and know he doesn't remember them. If this works…
Well, it's worth the risk, but Fives has to agree. She won't force on him something to which he can't consent.
"I need to know that you want this," she tells him seriously, meeting his eyes as they stand on the stone structure, the Stone not far from them. "I don't want you to agree because it's what we want. I can't make this choice for you. You've had enough taken from you." She doesn't call him his name. He doesn't remember choosing it, and names are sacred to clones. He is not hers to name as she sees fit.
Fives hesitates, before straightening with an all too familiar expression of stubborn determination that he's worn so many times in the past. "I want it," he states, the Force echoing with the truth of his declaration. "I want to remember, if I can. I need to know who I am."
She gives him a small smile, moving to sit on the Stone, legs on either side, patting the surface in front of her. "Then come sit."
He does, though it's obvious that he's a little uncomfortable at being so close to her, close enough that their thighs are touching. There's something strangely intimate about it, especially in the way the Force curls around them, giving them the chance to reach out into the galaxy. She can see anything here if she focuses, and this place can be a powerful tool for her to use to aid the Rebellion – but it just isn't safe. Sidious can find her here, even if he's not able to use the Stone himself.
Healing Fives is the most important thing right now, and once this is done, they won't be able to come back.
"What do I need to do?" Fives queries uncertainly.
"Nothing," Anika answers, shaking her head. "I just need to focus." Ideally, she should touch his face or head, but she thinks it might make him even more uncomfortable, so instead, she reaches for his hands, linking them together, and using that as a focal point of connection.
And then, she reaches for the Force, drawing it in, bright and burning, channeling it into Fives' body. She lets the Light pour through him as she silently asks the Force to let him heal. She can feel the universe, its ebb and flow, can feel Sidious on Coruscant reaching out to her, trying to find her, and she bats him away with a mere thought. She can feel and see so much, and it's overwhelming, but the warm presence of Fives next to her keeps her grounded so she doesn't get lost. Heal him, she asks the Force. Please.
It feels like it did when the Daughter's lifeforce flooded through her to Ahsoka. It feels like that, but it also feels like so much more, and she can feel the way her body is warming from the power racing through it, can feel the way Fives' body and mind are knitting together, repairing under the sheer intensity of the Light. It's so much, too much, but she holds on through stubborn determination, refusing to lose focus or let go, not until it's done.
Anika. She startles at the whisper on the edges of her mind, and she doesn't know if Fives is saying her name aloud or through the Force. Let go.
He sounds like hers, the Fives she knew, and she trusts him implicitly. With hesitation, she shuts off the flow of the Force, feeling weightless and distant from her body. It takes a few moments, or minutes, for the world to stop spinning around her, and when she blinks open her eyes, it's to feel Fives' hands on her shoulders, tight and firm, keeping her grounded.
For a few seconds, they just stare at each other, and her breath catches when she sees the warmth and affection in his gaze. Their bond is open, and she can feel Fives' mind teasing the edges of her own and she realizes – he's still Force sensitive. Maybe that's not something she can heal. But it's enough if he remembers her, if he remembers all of them.
"Hey," he whispers, one corner of his mouth quirking upward into the smile that she loves so much. "You with me?"
Anika lets out a shuddering breath. "Yes," she croaks, blinking away errant tears. "I'm – here."
One of his hands moves to cup her cheek, and he leans closer, pressing their foreheads together. "I still have the Force."
She nods. "Do you want it?"
He shrugs, his uncertainty obvious. "I never… It was a power I accepted I could never have. Clones were never meant to be sensitive. I never really thought about it, but it is what it is, yeah?"
"Mm." She hesitates. "I'm sorry."
"Stop," Fives answers before she can go on. "This isn't your fault, Anika. Maybe you could have done something differently, but so could I. This is the reality we have. What ifs aren't going to change it." He leans in and kisses her, and her counterargument disappears under the familiar love and longing and grief that rush up, and she slides closer to him, leaning into the kiss with a desperation. She's afraid to let him go, afraid to lose him again.
"It's going to be okay," he whispers when he pulls back. "We're together. We'll figure it out." He slides off the Stone, stretching, tugging at his new armor with an expression of distaste before he smooths it away, reaching for her. She lets him take her hand and pull her to her feet. "C'mon," he says, "Let's go meet Rex and Echo again. And I should like to know more about the Bad Batch, too."
There's a note of amusement in his voice, and Anika can't help but grin, even as she dreads the chaos that is to come. Everything is not alright, not by a longshot, with the clones still being wiped out and with an Empire reigning supreme, but they have Fives back. That counts for something. And when Rex sees them coming and calls to the others that it's been done, when he and Echo crowd around them, hugging Fives – and her, with gratitude – Anika knows that Fives is right.
They have each other. They're together. It will be okay.
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