Sea Shadow

Author's Note: Rex deserves better. Lol. But we have no regrets. This does border on horror, so you have been warned. ;)

This fic is for Superstary56 on ao3. :D Also, this fills the square "Horror" on the 501st bingo, and it's for Day 4 of Haunted Clone Week. :)

~ Amina Gila


"It would be best if you would speak to him yourself," Senator Amidala says, grimly, as General Skywalker slows the underwater speeder down, and it glides through the shields surrounding Gungan City.

It doesn't sound like anything other than a normal mission, so Rex doesn't know why he feels so on edge right now. Ever since the moment they went underwater on Naboo, he's had the creeps, and he has no idea why.

From the way his General, the Commander, and General Kenobi have been looking around, faces tensed in that way he's seen Jedi do when they're sensing something, Rex is pretty sure they sense something off.

"Be careful," Anakin warns, looking between Rex and the Commander, as they step out of the speeder, following Senator Amidala. "I sense something... wrong down here."

Rex frowns, an inexplicable chill running through him.

"I don't like it," Ahsoka agrees, narrowing her eyes as she scans the water surrounding them. It feels like something is out there watching them, even if the sensation doesn't make sense.

"There is a disturbance in the Force here," General Kenobi concurs, crossing his arms.

"Naboo never felt like this before," Anakin adds, as the Senator leads them into a nearby building, where a familiar Gungan is pacing back and forth, almost in a frenzy.

"Jar Jar?" Anakin asks, approaching him, and Rex can see his fear. He knows Anakin and Jar Jar are friends, even if Rex himself just finds the Gungan weird, and a little amusing. He's childish in a way that reminds Rex a little ridiculously of Fives. "What happened?"

"Theysa big monster!" Jar Jar exclaims, eyes wider than should be possible, "Issa attacking Gungan City. Issa still out there." He looks past them, to the doorway where they can clearly see the water beyond, and suddenly, shrieks loudly.

Rex jumps at the sound, whipping around.

"Issa right there!" he screams.

But there's... nothing there.

Rex flips down the visor on his helmet, scanning the water for any life forms, just in case there's something only Gungans can see – Togrutas see on a different frequency, and that's something that the boys never cease being fascinated with, so how would he know if Gungans are the same way? – but there's... nothing.

"Jar Jar," Anakin replies, touching his shoulders, pulling him away from the doorway, "There's nothing out there."

"He's been saying that every time he sees water," Senator Amidala speaks up, grimly.

"Yes, issa out there. Issa coming for us," he insists.

"What does it look like?" General Kenobi asks, frowning.

"Issa huge head. Bigger than goober fish. Look a Sando aqua monster, but issa bigger. And issa eyes sparkle in de darkness. Issa bombad strong, and issa – "

A strange cold feeling prickles around Rex, as he imagines what the creature probably looks like. The previous time he was on Naboo he looked up a little about the wildlife in case they needed to know, so he knows that a Sando aqua monster has tan scales covering its entire body, with clawed front feet and a long tail. But that's not quite what he's picturing now when hearing this description, and he has no idea why it floods him with a sudden, overwhelming fear.

"Jar Jar," Anakin interrupts, expression tight, "That's good enough. That should be all we need to know."

"It is?" Ahsoka objects, looking up at him, even if she looks just as skittish as Rex is feeling.

Anakin shakes his head, laying a hand on Jar Jar's shoulder again. "Stay inside and get some rest," he tells him, "We'll take care of it."

The Gungan gives in, a little reluctantly, and Anakin motions for them to go back outside.

"Something about this isn't... natural," Anakin begins, hesitantly, gaze lingering on General Kenobi, as though seeking his agreement. He does that sometimes; it's not something Rex really understands. "For some reason, the Force was warning against him finishing the description."

"I sensed it, too," he admits.

"Something seemed weird, when he was describing it. Like... something in the air," Ahsoka admits, nervously. "I thought it was just me." It makes something protective swell up inside of him, because she's their kid – his and Anakin's. He's tried to help Anakin take care of her, from the moment they first got her. And he... never had much of an idea what he was doing, but Anakin did, or at least... somewhat did, and it worked out eventually.

"It's not," Anakin replies, obviously on edge. And if the General is this on edge about an animal, Rex doesn't know what kind of creature this could even be.

"How are we supposed to locate it?" Rex objects. He doesn't understand these Force things, but he doesn't doubt Anakin knows what he's talking about.

"If it's already come back a couple times, we should prepare our defenses and wait for it to return," General Kenobi advises, crossing his arms. "It could be anywhere out there. We have no way of pinpointing its location."

It's... probably their best shot, even if Rex doesn't want to sit around when this creature is on the loose. "Should I call in the boys?" he asks.

A sudden feeling of dread washes over him, and he sees something moving out of the corner of his eye. Whipping around, he sees the monster itself looming right outside the town's shield, every bit the way Jar Jar described it. Its eyes are glittering purple, unnaturally so.

He whips out his blaster, about to fire, when it just as suddenly disappears.

"Rex?" Anakin asks, appearing at his side.

"Didn't you see that, sir?" Rex demands, fingers clenched around his blaster. His heart is hammering, and he could swear there was something there, but now there's nothing. It just vanished, but it was there a moment ago, and he did see something.

"See what?" Ahsoka asks, frowning.

"There was nothing there, Rex," Anakin replies, his frown only growing.

And if there was, the others should've sensed it before him. Maybe he's just getting too jittery. He doesn't know, but he could swear there was something. "This place gives me the creeps," he admits, "Maybe that's all."

The worried look on Anakin's face doesn't leave.

"Ahsoka, call in the boys," he instructs, pulling Rex a few paces away. He can feel something warm prickle in the air around him, the way it usually does when Anakin's using the Force. It's only because of his sheer strength, probably, that Rex can even feel it at all. He's probably trying to sense something. "Are you sure you're alright, Rex?"

No, not really, even if he doesn't understand what's wrong. "Yes, sir." Because really, he ought to be, aside from being so spooked, and it's ridiculous.

"I think the creature might have some influence on minds," Anakin explains, "Jar Jar is... acting off, and after hearing its description..." He trails off, frowning. "Something is not right with it. The Force is tense here, and I can sense something... different about Jar Jar. I don't know what it means. It feels like there's something connected to his mind somehow. Some sort of Force bond, but not something I know anything about. Just... be careful."

"I will, sir," he assures, gaze darting to Ahsoka where she's speaking into her comm to call the boys.

She seems okay, so he doesn't know why he's not. He'll just... wait, until it's time for them to act. This can't be any worse than any other mission they've ever had. Right?

**w**

"Still no sign of anything," Ahsoka comments, bonking her foot loudly against the leg of her chair. She's sitting next to the General, with Rex across from them, in a waiting room in the capital of Gungan City. General Kenobi and the Senator aren't presently in the room with them.

From how she's acting, Rex can tell she's getting restless and impatient for something to happen. Before the creature even gets close, the General will be able to sense it coming. They won't have to risk it coming close enough to the city to actually cause damage again.

"For now," Anakin replies, "But something is... changing."

"Changing?" Ahsoka echoes.

Rex would interject, if he could shake this feeling, and it would help if every time he looked out at the ocean surrounding them, he didn't see the creature swimming around, watching them.

Even though literally nothing is there, because the others haven't noticed anything, and he's trying not to instinctively react again. Rex thought it was just him being jittery before, but now – the General mentioned an influence over minds, and Rex is beginning to get afraid that's exactly what's happening to him.

And it's more than scary because he's always been in control of his mind, at least. This feels like some kind of Jedi osik, that he is not remotely equipped to deal with, and he doesn't know what to do.

"I can sense it more strongly, but it's not nearby. Yet," Anakin explains.

That isn't unsettling or anything. But with the General here, nothing could go that wrong without them getting a forewarning, right?

Rex glances back down at his water bottle, ready to pick it up again when he sees those eyes staring up at him, from inside the bottle.

He jerks back, blinking, but the image of the creature doesn't disappear.

In all the?

Either this thing is actually making Rex lose his mind, or he needs to go to bed. It's only been days since the mission to Mon Cala, so that could be it, too. And he saw enough spooky underwater creatures for a lifetime there.

How in the galaxy is he supposed to survive, if he can't even drink? He wants to get out of here, as far away from this thing as possible, but they're here on a mission, and he can't just ditch it because he's scared.

"Why can't we go right to it?" Ahsoka asks, distracting Anakin, who Rex is pretty sure was about to say something to him. He's almost grateful to her for that, though, because he has no idea how to explain what's happening, or if there's even anything wrong at all, aside from his nerves. It's growing increasingly ridiculous.

"I considered it," Anakin replies, "I would go alone to track it with the Force, but Obi-Wan insisted. And he is right that, out there, we would have no way of controlling where the fight happens."

And the stupid, miniature version of the creature is still staring back at him, refusing to disappear.

Rex finally reaches for the water bottle, ignoring the strange feeling of dread washing over him, and touches it, picking it up to drink, ignoring the way the creature seems to be swimming up towards him. It's ridiculous. It's just an illusion. It can't hide in such tiny bodies of water, unless it can change size, and that's impossible.

Except, the moment the water touches his mouth, he feels something shifting in the air, almost staticky.

He's never felt any other Force users when they use the Force other than Anakin, but he can sense something like it now, except it's dark and sickening, instead of a strange, vibrating light.

And then, the next thing he knows, the world around him is twisting and spinning.

He hears Anakin yelling for him, but before he can respond, his surroundings blackout entirely.

And then he's –

Somewhere else?

Water surrounds him on all sides, light enough that he must be towards the surface, but he's still underwater. And he can't breathe.

He barely stops himself from inhaling a gulp of water, moving instinctively to swim for the surface, but he – he already knows he's too far under water.

And there's something right near him. Something enormous.

It's that creature, and its front hand closes around him suddenly. Rex kicks at it, but he can't put up more of a fight than that when he can't breathe and he's out of air and he can't –

And then, it's suddenly swimming upwards towards the surface. The monster surfaces above the water seconds later, and Rex desperately gasps for air, finally taking a moment to look around.

The creature looks every bit the way Jar Jar described it, except it's certainly not a natural species. If it was before, it... isn't anymore. It's far larger than the Sando aqua monsters are ever supposed to be. It's bigger than the Zillo beast, and the splashing as it swims through the water is practically deafening. And he has genuinely never been this terrified in his life.

He can't even see the main shore from here. There's nothing except water surrounding him on all sides, except for a small island of some kind, which the creature clamors onto, its front leg still holding him tightly. Twisting around, Rex draws his blasters, firing at the creature. The shots harmlessly deflect off its scales, not even damaging them.

What?

Twisting upward, Rex fires at its eyes, but misses entirely. The creature snarls at him, knocking the blasters from his hand with its other enormous front leg as it trots across the island, towards a central... something, where the land slopes down sharply, dropping fast enough that it almost looks like it must go deep within the planet's surface.

The creature bends low into the cavern, and then it's tight grasp on him lightens, and it just... drops him. Rex scrambles to catch onto the grassy covered slope as he falls, finally rolling until he hits a rock, which slows his fall. The land down here is slightly flatter at least – and he pushes himself upright, looking around.

The monster – which apparently can breathe out of water, and that's even more disturbing – is gone now, leaving him down here alone.

The place surrounding him almost looks like a forest of sorts underground, with a strange glow surrounding him, a source of light that isn't coming from the surface. But his... comm is broken, and he's stranded on an island or something in the middle of nowhere – what does that thing want with him anyway? – and he has no idea what to do now.

**w**

"Rex!" Anakin calls, jerking forwards, except he's already gone. He just... disappeared.

He's never felt the Force twist with such a sense of wrongness before, and he has no idea what just happened. But Rex is gone, and –

"What?" Ahsoka squeaks, staring at the place he was seconds ago, eyes wide.

"It was that... creature," Anakin replies, still staring fixedly at the now empty seat, focusing with the Force to see what he can sense. From the moment he came to Naboo, the Force has felt wrong. Any time he senses the creature, the Force literally feels confused, as though whatever this thing is certainly shouldn't exist. So, it's definitely no normal sea monster, though how it took Rex without even physically touching him, Anakin can't quite imagine. He felt the way the Force twisted suddenly around the captain, as though opening a hole in space itself, before Rex was suddenly ripped through, and the hole just as quickly closed.

"How's that possible?" she protests, jumping to her feet.

"I don't know, Ahsoka," he replies, moving for the door, "We need to find Obi-Wan. I can still sense Rex on-planet. We might be able to –"

"What's going on?" Obi-Wan asks, running right into them first.

"That thing took Rex," Ahsoka explains, hastily.

"What? How?" he demands.

"I don't know. He just vanished!"

"Vanished?" Obi-Wan repeats, dubiously.

Anakin nods, heart pounding. "Yes. He's still on-planet, but he's in danger." Every single day on the battlefield, he knows something could happen to Rex, but this is the first time he's ever come so close to losing him. And he cares about every single one of his boys, and it... hurts in its own way whenever he loses any of them – especially the ones he's bonded with closely – but Rex is by the far the closest to him From the moment Anakin first became a General, they've always been at each other's sides.

It was Rex who helped him get comfortable with the role as a General in the first place, Rex who helped him raise Ahsoka in the middle of a battlefield, all the time. Neither are things Anakin could have done alone, and he'll do anything he can to protect him, keep him safe. But now he just lost him. (Ever since he left Tatooine, Rex is the first person at the... same level as him, who helped him in much the way Kitster did, long ago.)

His bond with Rex feels strangely hazed over, as though he's drifting to unconsciousness while still feeling entirely awake, whatever that means. What is the thing doing to him? Why would a sea creature take someone for anything aside from eating them? "We have to find him before it's too late."

Anakin can't really pinpoint when he first noticed it, but he sensed something on Jar Jar that he was just starting to feel on Rex, too. He can't understand it, but it was almost like... they were connected to something unnatural. Like a Force-bond, except instead of being quiet and hidden, it's active and pulsing with something like dark energy that shouldn't even be there.

And Anakin has no idea what it means.

When he reaches out, he can sense it all over in the city – it must be connected to the creature somehow.

"How would you track him?" Obi-Wan objects.

"The same way I intended to before. I have to go." He's not waiting until it's too late. He's seen so many of the clones die throughout the war, in these dark days, and he's not going to let Rex be another.

**w**

Rex really wishes he had his blasters right now, but they should still be lying on the island up above. He just has to find some way to climb up the very steep slope and get them. But from there, he has no idea what to do, because he can't signal anyone.

Unless there's something else down here he could use?

Turning, he scans the cavern. How are trees growing down here, when there's no sunlight? Maybe it has something to do with the strange, soft glow lighting everything. Whatever this island is, he doesn't think it's something created by that monster – just something it's choosing to use as its hiding spot.

Away from the opening, the top of the cavern is a little higher, and it's rocky, but the trees are growing up towards it as though it's the sky, even if none of them are that tall.

He's walking a little deeper into the undergrowth, when he suddenly hears a branch snap.

He's not alone.

There's something else down here, whether an animal or person, he doesn't know. Now he really wishes he still had his blasters, but whatever it is, it can't be worse than that sea monster, right?

But now that he's actually looking, he... can see movement. There are literally dozens of eyes looking out from the trees at him.

How many people are down here?

"Who are you?" Rex asks.

No one answers. No one moves.

He takes a wary step closer. "I'm trapped here like you," he offers, "You can... come out."

Still nothing.

Can they even hear him? Are they themselves? Rex doesn't understand anything about this, much less how he got here in the first place.

In the back of his mind, he feels a prickle of that dark energy again. It must be something that the sea monster is doing – considering that it somehow teleported him out here?

For a moment, he suddenly wonders if he should try to get out of here. It's nice here, and it's –

What is he even thinking? Of course, he needs to try getting out of here! (Does he?)

He makes his way between the trees, to where the people are standing. None of them even respond when he approaches. They don't even look like they're seeing him or each other. Or anything at all.

But from how many of them are Gungans, it must be the other people reported missing. The monster was taking them all here, but for what? It must have done something to their minds, or there's no reason they wouldn't be responding.

Which means, he'll still have to figure this out entirely alone.

He really wishes the General was here right now. If he was, they'd be able to figure something out together. If only the General had been taken along with him. Maybe Rex could find a way to bring here, and –

Wait.

What is he even thinking?

It's a good thing Anakin isn't here, so why does it feel like it's not? The creature must be doing something to him, but he doesn't know what, because he feels entirely like himself. Aside from a strange numbness and desire to do absolutely nothing.

It's definitely influencing him somehow, and he needs to get out of here, but he doesn't know where to start. It would help if Anakin was here. And if he could shake the notion from mind that he really wants to stay here.

**w**

It's nighttime now, moonlight glistening on the water as they fly low over it. Ahsoka's flying, because Anakin needs to keep all his focus on tracking the creature. He can sense the sheer wrongness getting stronger the further they go. They're far from shore in every direction now, except for a small island right up ahead, and the sensation is only getting stronger.

It seems to be centered very near to the island, actually. The water surrounding it is mostly still, but that doesn't mean much. It could be far below the surface.

"If Rex is... here, he can't be in the water," Ahsoka points out, bluntly, as they circle around.

"Then perhaps he's on the island," Anakin muses, though why the creature would leave him there, he doesn't understand.

"Why would it leave him there?"

"It wants something with him." But what, he has no idea. All he does know is that the wrongness in the Force is growing, which means the thing must be swimming closer. Their window of opportunity to save Rex is closing, and they need to move.

Going in when they're entirely alone is a risk, but maybe they can get in and out before it realizes they're up to something.

"Are you ready, Ahsoka?" Anakin asks.

She nods, determinedly. Not that she would say otherwise, but he has to know, because this is going to be dangerous. A lot more so than just fighting droids.

He takes over piloting the ship anyway, just in case they need a fast escape, as he flies in low over the island. No one's on the surface, but the center of it drops down, to something out of sight. If he's here, he must be down there.

Which means they'll be trapped with no fast way of escaping, but they'll have to go through with this. For Rex.

Anakin brings the ship down through the opening, blinking in surprise at the strange surroundings, even if that's not what matters right now. It's dark up on the surface, but there's a glow down here entirely irrelevant to the moonlight above.

He lands in a small clearing a little away from the opening, somewhere the ship is somewhat concealed, before he and Ahsoka climb out, looking around.

They don't have to look far. Rex is standing in the trees only a few paces away, but he's just staring at them.

His mind feels oddly blank, almost like he's mostly unconscious, and when Anakin reaches out to lightly nudge it with the Force, he senses something else. He... has a very strong Force bond with that thing. It feels dark and twisted, like it shouldn't exist, and really, it shouldn't, because there's no way they should've formed a bond so quickly.

"Rex?" Anakin calls, approaching him cautiously.

There's movement in the trees behind him, and several Gungans step forwards, something glazed over in their eyes, as they start towards him.

The Force is twinging with warning now. Coming here was a mistake, but leaving Rex and all the other people here would have been worse.

"We're here to rescue you," Ahsoka calls, but Anakin motions for her to wait, before approaching them. Something's wrong.

"General," Rex says. The tone he's speaking in sounds all wrong, though. "You can stay here. We don't need to be rescued."

Force.

What has it done to him?

He exchanges a look with an equally desperate, confused looking Ahsoka. It's reminding him so much of Mortis suddenly, of when the Son was controlling her, and she attacked him. He doesn't want to have to face that from Rex, too, only months later. Everything that happened there still haunts him sometimes.

"Rex, it's doing something to you," he says, "Remember what I said about it influencing minds?"

Rex blinks, staring at him. "Yes. But it's not here. This is..."

One of the Gungans yowls and jumps at them, half-blindly. It hits Ahsoka, and they tumble to the ground, rolling through the grass.

Why is he attacking her?

What's happening to them? It's like they're all being mind-controlled, and he doesn't know what to do, to stop it. Probably, they have to kill that thing.

Anakin yanks the Gungan off her with the Force, sprinting over to position himself between them and her. They'll never be able to take everyone with them, either way. They'll have to take Rex now, and come back for the others, as much as he doesn't want to leave anyone else behind. There's no choice. That doesn't make him loath it any less how it feels like he's abandoning all the rest to their fates.

"Rex, come, we need to go," Anakin urges. Distantly, he can hear loud splashing. This is bad. The creature must be coming. "We have to leave now."

"I can't do that, sir," he objects, though he takes a few steps closer.

They don't have time to wait. If they don't get out now, they won't. And he doesn't want to get Rex to the ship like this, but there's no other choice. He picks him up with the Force, pulling him closer, setting him down lightly in the back, before he and Ahsoka Force-jump after – she obviously picked up on the same level of urgency.

The Gungans are snarling in noises that Gungans shouldn't even be able to make, starting towards them.

A shadow falls over them, and looking up, Anakin can see the creature's glowing purple eyes right above the opening. It really is enormous, and going up past it is their only way out.

He scrambles into the pilot's seat, reaching for the creature's mind as he flies upwards. It's risky, but he's not going to wait until it tries to block the opening.

Its mind is violent and wild, the same way many angry, wild animals are, but there's something almost unnaturally furious about this one. Now that he realizes it, it's in a way very similar to that of the Gungans down below, but whatever's affecting their minds is actually in this sea monster.

Its mind refuses to quiet, no matter how hard he tries to connect with it.

Fine.

He'll just have to focus on flying out of here, then.

Rex tries to stand up, protesting something about them leaving, and Ahsoka pushes him back into his seat.

Rex isn't in his right mind, clearly, and Anakin doesn't know what to think about that, or what to do about it. Now that he's here, he can feel a very clear, twisted Force-bond connecting Rex to the thing. No doubt, that's what it was using to control him. It's the same as what he sensed in Jar Jar, now fully solidified, and a clear sign in and of itself that something's wrong.

The creature's glowing eyes stand out against the moonlight as it swings a front leg for them, the moment they fly out the opening. It reminds him of trying to escape the Zillo Beast, and he swerves between its limbs, up into the sky.

It feels wrong in the Force, and Anakin is entirely certain the thing isn't supposed to exist.

It swings for them again, and Anakin narrowly manages to direct the ship around it, before flying away from the island far enough up into the sky that it shouldn't be able to follow them.

But for some reason, he has the feeling it's not going to be quite that simple.

**w**

Now that Rex isn't in that cavern anymore, his mind feels far clearer. That dark sensation that's been pulsing at the back of his mind constantly doesn't feel quite so strong anymore, and he... has no idea why he was trying to convince Anakin and Ahsoka that they needed to stay.

Well, yes, he does, but it feels ridiculous in retrospect. "Sorry about that, General," he supplies, a little lamely.

"Don't worry about it, Rex," Anakin assures, though he doesn't glance back, too focused on flying them out, "It was doing something to everyone down there."

"What do we do now, sir?" he inquires. Obviously, they're going to have to go back for the others, and still find some way to kill the creature. "Its scales are impenetrable to blaster fire. I suspect it may have a similar durability to the Zillo Beast."

"What knocked out the Zillo beast may work on this, as well," he says, consideringly.

"We... have a problem?!" Ahsoka suddenly yelps – she's been watching the scanners. "That thing is following us!"

"Following us?" Rex repeats, leaning forwards. He could swear he sees the thing in the water down below, but that's probably just a hallucination. Based on the scanners, the real creature is coming up from behind them.

In space.

It's flying through the air.

What?!

Is this real, or is it a hallucination?! "How is it following us?" He echoes everyone's thoughts. Right now, he'd really rather be fighting clankers. At least that makes sense.

"I don't know," Anakin replies, voice strained as he increases speed, flying higher for the atmosphere, "But we have to stay away from the cities."

"Maybe it will die in space," Ahsoka volunteers, hopefully.

For some reason, he has the feeling they aren't going to be that lucky. It's slowly gaining ground on them as they get higher and higher, until they finally make it out of the atmosphere.

It shouldn't be able to breathe out here, but that doesn't seem to be affecting it. It swerves around their ship, coming straight at them from the front, mouth gaping open. Rex scrambles for the guns, firing at it, but sure enough, the shots deflect harmlessly off its scales.

The Cruiser they brought out here is orbiting Naboo, and Rex leans forwards to the controls, sending them a transmission.

Jesse picks up the call immediately, "We see the target," he replies, "Should we fire?"

"Yes, but prepare to jump to hyperspace if it tries to pursue you," Anakin answers for him.

That... is probably a wise choice.

Rex watches, feeling increasingly tense, as after a few moments the Cruiser turns to fire on the creature, which is rapidly gaining ground on their ship.

The laser shots start raining down on the thing moments later, but it only snarls, and then barrels right towards the Cruiser. Probably, with every intention of ripping it apart. Of all the things they've faced, and all the things Rex trained for, he was never prepared for this.

The Cruiser promptly jumps to hyperspace to avoid it, like Anakin warned them to, but then, it turns on them instead, and it's moving far faster in space than it was on the ground. They can't outrun it in the ship.

All they can do is jump to hyperspace, which they do, and Rex barely dares to breathe a sigh of relief once they're safely away from it.

They still have to go back. This isn't over yet.

**w**

They stay in hyperspace long enough to call for reinforcements, which are going to be a while in getting here because the kind of ships used on the Zillo beasts aren't really something that can show up on extremely short notice.

"I'd still like to know how that thing can breathe in space," Ahsoka says finally, glancing between them.

"Never heard of anything like it," Rex offers, lamely because they all know that.

"With how strong it is in the Dark Side, I suspect the Sith may have done something to it," Anakin says, slowly, "For what end, I do not understand."

"Maybe we'll never have to find out," Ahsoka replies, hopefully, reaching for a water bottle behind them.

And then, she jumps back with a startled yelp.

"What's wrong?" Anakin asks, instantly tense.

"That!" she squeaks, "Why do I see that thing in my water?!"

"Don't touch it," Rex warns, standing instantly. He doesn't even want to look again, but against his better judgment, he follows her gaze, and sure enough, a miniature version of the thing is swimming around in the bottle. "I saw something like that, right before I... was transported."

But if it's influencing Ahsoka too now, that's bad. How does he know how much longer any of them will be able to act remotely level-headed?

"Seeing it does something to everyone," Anakin responds grimly, "I am forming a Force bond with it. I expect this is part of how it manipulates our minds." That isn't ominous or anything. It sends a chill through Rex, just thinking about having a connection with this thing, even if it's in a way he doesn't really understand.

Ahsoka makes a face. "Me too. It feels so dark and... I don't know, dirty."

Anakin nods, sighing. "Do not touch anything you see it in, right now. We should return to Naboo, to see where it is now."

Rex really doesn't want to do that, with how jittery the thing is making him feel, but it's ridiculous to want to hide from a twisted sea monster, when he fought Dooku's assassin head-on, right at the beginning of the war. So, he has no idea why this creature is far scarier.

Anakin flips the controls, pulling them out of hyperspace, and Rex holds his breath, waiting. There's nothing there, except the Cruiser.

It's gone.

Did it go back to the surface? He dares to hope, for a moment at least. Maybe they can wait for the reinforcements to arrive, and –

The scanners suddenly beep.

"Something's coming out of hyperspace," Anakin reports, expression twitching in a way Rex can tell means that whatever he's sensing, it isn't anything good.

"And it's massive," Ahsoka agrees, warily.

Maybe the reinforcements are already here. Or maybe it's just a passing Cruiser –

But what suddenly appears only a short distance away isn't any ship. It's that thing.

What?!

For a moment, everyone just gapes at it.

"How can it go into hyperspace?!" Rex asks, a little incredulously. Yes, there's rumors of ancient creatures that live in space which can do that, but none that have the kind of capabilities this creature does.

"Explains how it got to Naboo," Anakin points out, accelerating away from the creature as it promptly gives chase.

"I think we've made it very angry," Ahsoka yelps, and Rex doesn't miss the underlying fear in her voice.

"That might be an understatement," Rex huffs, though what it's so upset about, he has no idea.

But there's a furious glint in its eyes as it chases them down through space, and it's rapidly gaining on them again because it can move far faster in space than their ship again. They need to get out of here, and fast, before something much worse happens.

"We'll have to jump again," Anakin decides, rapidly flipping the controls. The creature is only meters behind them now, mouth gaping open as it swoops closer.

The ship jolts into hyperspace barely in time, or Rex is certain they would have been history by now. Assuming it's trying to kill them, not return them to its island.

Now, they'll just have to try staying one step ahead of it, while waiting for the reinforcements to get Naboo. And hope they either lose the creature somewhere on the way, or that they don't run out of fuel first. If that happens, they'll be dead in space, and the creature will be free to do whatever exactly it is that it wants to do to them. That's not a thought he much cares for. Especially not anymore.

**w**

As it turns out, with General Kenobi pressuring the Council for immediate action, and Senator Amidala opting to speak directly with the Chancellor about the importance of having this dealt with immediately before it gets worse, the reinforcements they're waiting for show up before long.

But barely in time, because their ship is almost out of fuel, and somehow, the creature has managed to follow every hyperspace jump they've made, almost like it has a tracking beacon on them.

They do have a mental link to it, so that's probably part of it. Rex just really, really misses shooting droids right now. That was so much easier, and at least it made sense.

At least with the Clone Wars, he knew what he was doing. It wasn't about some... Force-shenanigans that are far beyond what even his own General can understand, and his General always knows what's happening, even when Rex is lost. Anakin always knows what to do. He's always the one with the answers, no matter how difficult the circumstances are.

But he doesn't have all the answers now, and it leaves Rex feeling more lost than he ever has in his life.

It doesn't help that they haven't been able to drink anything from the moment this all started, because no matter where they see water, they all constantly see that thing in it. Even Anakin is starting to have the same issue, though not quite as seriously, and Rex cannot wait for this to be over, even if he's afraid it won't be that simple.

"How are we supposed to survive if we can't drink?" Ahsoka gripes, crossing her arms.

"Drink something else," Anakin suggests.

"Do you think we'd still see it if we put caf powder in our water?" Rex asks dryly.

"I wanna drink water!" she whines.

Rex doesn't even suggest she close her eyes, because he has no idea if that'd work, and he's not going to risk his Commander doing something so stupidly reckless.

They come out of hyperspace over Naboo again, where the cannons are already positioned on the surface, and the creature comes out after them moments later, instantly diving right for their ship.

The shuttle doesn't have enough fuel to jump again, so this better work. If it doesn't, everything will be over, and there is no way they're going to die in space from an animal.

The 501st has faced off some of the craziest things there are. Rex can't imagine dying from something like that. That's not a way to go down.

Anakin brings their shuttle downwards towards the surface. Keeping distance between the creature basically means having to drop into free-fall, accelerating straight down towards the planet's surface, and Rex just doesn't watch, because it's getting too unnerving.

The most he can do is fire at the creature to slow it down or shake it off course, but it's rapidly gaining ground on them.

He trusts his General with anything, but that makes the situation no less unnerving.

Anakin takes the shuttle down to the surface, skimming across the ground towards the waiting tanks.

The moment the creature comes in range, they start firing electric beams of energy at it.

He can hear its ferocious snarl even inside the ship. It whips around, swinging a limb at them, and they immediately start backing up.

"Did that with the Zillo beast, too," Anakin says, turning the ship around to watch. They don't land, because it'd take too long to take off.

The beams keep on hitting it anyway, as it starts moving through the air towards those ships instead.

From the sudden, slow way it's moving, and the way its eyes are drooping slightly, the electricity obviously is having an effect, but he doesn't know if it's going to be fast enough. If the thing makes it over to the tanks to outright attack them, it's going to destroy the energy beams almost instantly. And then, there won't be any more hope of stopping it.

From the assessing way Anakin's watching it, Rex can tell he already reached the same conclusion.

"Keep the ship under control," he instructs, and Rex moves forwards instantly to keep it steady and away from the creature.

Anakin raises his hands towards the cockpit window, and the creature suddenly stops moving. It opens its mouth again furiously, as it flails its tail and flippers, trying to break away from the unseen force stopping it from moving any closer.

The energy beams keep on hitting it, and Rex can't tear his gaze away from the scene, half expecting the creature to find some way of fighting itself free from them again. What if it jumped to hyperspace now? What if it –

Anything could happen, so long as it's still alive.

It could get away and keep hurting people, keep causing chaos, and they can't let it get away.

But then, it starts weakening further, its efforts at flailing to get away starting to weaken before it finally goes entirely still.

It's unconscious.

For now. He hardly dares to even believe this might finally be over. It's too surreal to be real.

"What are they gonna do with it?" Ahsoka asks, no less wary.

Rex glances at the water bottles out of the corner of his eye, quickly looking away when he sees the miniature creatures still reflected inside of it. Even weak and unconscious, the thing is still haunting them. Probably, the connection isn't going to break until it's dead.

"We have orders to dispose of it," comes the reply, from one of the Coruscanti Guard operating the machine.

He might feel a little bit bad about how they finally settle for getting rid of it – by throwing it into Naboo's sun since they don't know of any other way for something to get through its scales – if it actually seemed like an innocent, hungry animal. But it's far more than that, and right now, he can only be grateful that it's going to be dead before it has the chance to wake up again.

Which it... is.

He watches as it disappears near the flaming ball of the sun, and it feels like something's shifting in the air. And primarily, in him.

His mind suddenly feels far clearer, and some of that overwhelming dread that's been encompassing him non-stop is gone. To be fair, it's also just relief that the creature is finally gone, but there's more to it than that.

And that strange, dark energy he kept feeling in the back of his mind is gone, too, and he's never been quite so relieved about that.

It's over. Finally.

**w**

It's beyond relieving to return to Naboo's surface and sense the planet's normal peacefulness, instead of the wrongness in the Force it's been feeling until now. Anakin can't say how relieved he is that the creature is gone, but the way it so spontaneously came into existence is still concerning, and getting rid of it like that doesn't give them much insight on where it came from or what to do if something like this happens again. Or, on who caused this, because a normal sea creature could never have entirely lost its mind like that.

"I always wanted to come down here," Ahsoka comments, as they fly back to Gungan City yet again, to make sure everything is alright down there before leaving, "But I can't look at it quite the same way anymore."

He knows she and Rex are both extremely shaken up by the incident, and maybe some time off before the next mission would help, if he can arrange that. "Are you sure there's no more of them?" Rex agrees, and Anakin can feel his nervousness, as he looks out into the waters.

"I don't sense anything," he assures, "You're not... seeing it anymore, are you?"

"Not anymore, sir," he replies, and he sounds unimaginably relieved about that, though he still seems a little too wary to drink anything. Not that that's any shock.

Anakin lands in Gungan City, where Jar Jar, Padme, and Obi-Wan are all already waiting for them.

"Ani!" Jar Jar exclaims eagerly, practically bouncing up to him.

The twisted Force bond he sensed when he was last near the Gungan is gone now, and he seems to be back to himself. He can't say how relieved he is to see that; he was so afraid that whatever it did to Jar Jar would be somehow permanent. "Are you alright?" Anakin asks, just to be sure.

"Oh, yessa!" he assures, "Mesa felt bombad monster begone. Yousa saved Naboo again!"

He can't help smiling at the words, though the praise is hardly earned. He's not the one who did most of it. "It wasn't just me," Anakin starts, but Jar Jar is already jumping in, ears flapping as he crushes him in a hug. Anakin returns it just as fiercely, grateful that at least the Gungan is okay.

"I can't believe this is over," Padme sighs, relief and exhaustion evident on her face, once Jar Jar steps away, leaving the rest of them alone.

There's so much more he wants to say to her, but now isn't the time when they have an audience.

"It's still a mystery what that was," Obi-Wan comments, crossing his arms, clearly unhappy.

"You don't think something like it could come back, do you?" Padme asks, warily.

"Unlikely, but it isn't impossible," he replies.

"At least this time, we will be ready for it," Anakin volunteers, as cheerfully as he can really manage, given the circumstances.

"You're alright from that chase all over the galaxy?" she inquires, turning back to him.

He nods. "It was coming close, but we're fine."

"Only you could have a sea creature chasing you through hyperspace, all over the galaxy," Obi-Wan says, dryly.

"Evidently, it thought we were the tastiest meal," Anakin replies. It has to make him wonder, though. Was the creature just so bent on chasing them down because they found its hideout, or was there something more to it? More personal?

It's obviously more than just an animal, after all, so he can't help wondering. Probably – hopefully – they'll never have a reason to know the answer to that.

**w**

"Unless you both want to leave Naboo as soon as possible, we may be able to spend a few more days here before leaving back to the fronts," Anakin comments, seated between Rex and Ahsoka.

A few day break after what happened? Rex is more than grateful for that. He's still shaken up from all that, and it's going to take a while to fade. He keeps expecting to see the creature haunting him, keeps fearing that he's going to suddenly find himself in the middle of the ocean again, or stranded on that island.

"So long as it's not down here," Ahsoka replies.

"I am inclined to agree, sir," he adds, dryly, "But if there is time, I would not be opposed to staying here longer." Even if there are things he needs to be taking care of, and they don't have time to sit around. It's not what they were made to do, as clones. It would probably help Ahsoka, though.

"You've had to deal with more than enough sea life lately," Anakin agrees, "But I could take you to Theed."

"Sure," Ahsoka concurs, hopefully, "I always wanted to be here for something other than fighting." Last time, it was to stop the Blue Shadow Virus from spreading, and Rex nearly died here again. So, he can't say he's terribly fond of the planet, but he can tell Anakin is. From the little he's heard, it's the first place he went to after leaving Tatooine, aside from the Jedi Temple.

It's not as if it's the planet that's bad, anyway. Just what people keep doing here. Having a chance to look around when they're not fighting for their lives would be relaxing, at least for a little bit.

"We can invite the rest of the boys, too," Anakin adds.

"All of them?" Rex repeats, amused, "We would probably be banned from the capital if we brought them all there." Not because of the number, so much as the chaos. Watching over them is a full-time job, especially when the General and Commander are more inclined to join in on the chaos than try to prevent it. (Even if he'll admit to finding the mischief they get into a little funny... sometimes.)

"If they didn't all come, how would they pick who would or wouldn't?" Ahsoka points out lightly.

That's a fair question, though. There aren't any of the boys who wouldn't be happy to come if they had the choice.

"Perhaps we should go alone for now," Rex suggests finally, even if he'd really like if some of them could come along, too, because they do deserve it, but he's pretty sure they'd spent the entire time babysitting them, and Rex would find that very much not relaxing. Though, he does feel a little bad about them not getting to come at all. "Or we can call them down if there is somewhere other than the city they can go."

"There may be," Anakin muses, obviously considering something already.

Probably, they won't have enough time on Naboo to spend freely for long, but Rex hopes they'll have at least a day. It's going to take far longer than that to forget what happened with the creature. It'll haunt him for a long time to come, but they'll be fine. They'll pull through this, as they do everything.

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