Revised: July 11, 2019
Chapter 11
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Cody took a deep breath as he watched the final countdown.
"Countdown clock for hyperspace drop has begun," Hawk announced from his post at the nav station. The combat pilot was completely at ease with the Kaz'harian controls and it showed in his fluidity at the controls. The nav station could be handled by a single clone, but for the nav station, like the rest of the bridge, was fully staffed, and had a back-up crew member for consult purposes. Troopers had been pulled in from the second and third shift. But, even if he hadn't ordered these troopers to the bridge for the final stage of their approach to Coruscant, he knew they would've been there anyway if nothing else to have front row viewing for the last stage of their return voyage home. He had no doubt clones were occupying the observation decks throughout the ship.
Cody looked over to the Engineering team, Zinc, Tucker, Jamie and strangely enough, Trapper, who seemed to fit right in with the bunch, huddled in with the bunch. They made last-minute checks of their data before Jamie looked up with a satisfied nod. "Cloaking device ready to engage, Commander. Ready when you are."
The two Jedi commanders entered the bridge. Cody glanced back at them. They were late. Commander Tano's presence was mandatory. Barriss' presence was... fek... she was a distraction he didn't need. As the two Jedi settled in on either side of him, he shot Barriss a look, hoping she would excuse herself and leave. She ignored him.
Fek it all.
He gritted his teeth and focused on addressing the bridge crew. "Timing will be critical. You all know what to do. I have every confidence in all of you. It's been a long journey home, but whatever happens, we take this final step together."
They all met his eyes, every one of them trusting him as their commander.
Fek. Let us not blow ourselves up. Or, get blown up.
They'd been through this drill a dozen times already and planned for every known contingency. But, it was always the unknown that worried him. Cody absent-mindedly stretched out his neck, trying to work out muscles grown stiff from tension and being on duty too many hours already. He had a slight ache at the base of his skull, a lingering reminder of the last time things had gone very badly.
Barriss leaned in slightly. She didn't say anything but must have done some healer thing as his pain immediately eased slightly. Her scent hit him like a charged ion cannon.
He didn't look at her or make eye contact, although he wished Ord Cestus had never happened. But, that was the past. He would think of it again.
"Approaching coordinates 000. Preparing to drop out of hyperspace," Hawk said, operating the nav controls with ease.
As one, they watched the countdown.
Hawk counted the final ten seconds out loud, and Cody held his breath. The high-speed drive engine smoothly kicked in the deaccelerator compensators and the powerful engines switched over to impulse, the massive warship dropped out of orbit directly above Coruscant. In front of them, they could see several massive Republic cruisers in protective orbit around the planet.
"Raise shields," Cody ordered.
"Shields up," said Denal.
Cody turned to the engineering team. "Engage cloak."
"Cloak engaged," Winder acknowledged, the ship shuddered slightly as the extensive power cell array engaged.
"We're off sensors," Rex confirmed
"Get us hidden," Cody responded. "Take us behind the fourth moon."
"Course laid in," said Hawk. His eyes were shining, and there was a definite sense the pilot was enjoying flying the massive warbird.
As they moved past the fleet, the Republic cruisers immediately reacted searching for the hidden threat.
GAR Command would assume the worst scenario had come to pass; an invasion of Coruscant.
Cody would never understand why Coruscant didn't have a planetary shield. Maybe if they let the clones run the war. But, then the war would have won long ago. It was as if they wanted the war to drag on. It made no sense. Peacemakers in charge of a war. Civilians running battle. It was madness.
Rex leaned in over the sensor station. "Cruisers have raised shields and charged weapons." The 501st Captain sounded calm, but Cody had been through enough battles with him to know despite their cloak, this was an 'oh shit' moment. The entire bridge crackled with tension. They all knew this was the way this would play out when they popped out in orbit above Coruscant in a massive warship. But, it was still surreal.
"There's the Resolute and the Negotiator," Trapper pointed out from his post at the auxiliary portside sensors. His voice was indignant as he pointed out the obvious: "Our own ships are hunting us."
"Cut the chatter," Ko said sharply, from his position posted slightly to Cody's right, watching over the bridge crew.
Cody nodded to his second. "Open a channel."
"Channel open. We're broadcasting on all last known valid GAR frequencies. Visual and audio."
He gave a crisp nod to Commander Tano.
"GAR Fleet, this is Commander Ashoka Tano. I am here onboard a stolen Separatist warship, along with the Legions of the 501st and the 212th. We have many severely injured who need immediate evacuation for their injuries, including Generals Skywalker, Kenobi and Unduli, and many injured troopers. Timing is critical for our injured." She took a deep breath and waited.
There was no response.
A tense silence took over the bridge. No one spoke. Ahsoka rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet. As previously decided, they left the line open as they waited. They wanted to give everyone out there in the fleet, at GAR Command and the High Council a chance to study them, in case they had any doubt as to their identity. Commando droids could try to fake clone mannerisms, but they could never pull it off for more than a few seconds at a time.
"Did they receive the transmission?" Ahsoka asked Commander Cody quietly.
Cody looked over at Boil at the comms station, and he nodded: "Our codes are out-of-date, but the transmission went out to the fleet, GAR High Command and the Council."
Ahsoka glanced around the bridge at the others. It was agreed Rex would stay out of sight and comms range. Matters were complicated enough for this first contact, without dealing with the issue of why Rex wasn't dead.
The seconds passed and the tension mounted. "What if they don't answer?" Ahsoka hissed to Cody under her breath, crossing her arms across her chest. Cody chose not to respond. It had been less than a minute. He'd gained a new respect for Skywalker's padawan in recent months, but she had none of Barriss' serenity.
More long seconds passed. Ahsoka fidgeted impatiently. "Are we sure the transmission went through? What if they didn't hear us?"
A visual finally popped up on the front vid screen, capturing the attention of the entire bridge crew, and likely the entire GAR fleet captivated by the drama.
"Heard you we did, Padawan Tano," Master Yoda said, his wizened head cocking slightly to the side as he spoke.
"You took us by surprise," admitted Master Plo Koon, with a slight chuckle. "It is good to see you, little one."
"Quite the entrance, Padawan," said Master Fisto, appearing by hologram.
Ahsoka smiled broadly. "Hello Masters!" She looked around at all the other faces of the Council, unable to contain her excitement. "It is so good to see you! We made it back! Do we have permission to land? We have some badly wounded and need to-"
The Council looked back and forth, Mace and Yoda taking a long time in silent deliberation before Mace finally replied. "Regretfully, Padawan Tano, no."
Ahsoka's face fell. "But, my Master is badly hurt. We need to get him back to the Temple and we have many other injured onboard."
"We are sympathetic to your situation," the senior Jedi said in his usual grim serious manner, "however, considering you have been out-of-contact and in the hands of the enemy for months, certain precautions must be taken. In addition, you are in the company of several troopers who went AWOL from the Ord Cestus Medical Station."
Cody rose up from his chair and nodded crisply to Ahsoka, indicating he would take it from here. "General, as I'm sure you are aware, I am one of the troopers from 'Cestus. I'm prepared to answer for my actions. But, first I must see to the welfare of my men."
Windu looked off to the side, and then back at Cody. "Why can't we detect you on our scanners?"
"We have cloaked our ship," Cody said. He tried to deliver his report in the most factual manner possible, but they'd pulled off a fekkin' miracle. They'd cloaked a warbird. No ship that size had a cloakin' device. Yet, they did it. Rex and his team deserved medals. They'd never get it. But, they certainly deserved it.
The Jedi General took a minute to digest this information and there was no mistaking the ripple of surprise which passed through the Council. "Why?"
Cody quirked up his eyebrow, the action stretching out his scar. Sometimes it seemed Jedi didn't get war tactics. He answered it with all the diplomacy he'd learned from his General. "To prevent you from blowing us up, General Windu, sir."
Across the bridge, Rex cut his external mic so he could enjoy a snort of laughter. If he were a shinie, Cody would make him swab the deck with the tiniest brush he could find. As it was, Cody wasn't unsympathetic the thought of an unknown enemy warship was making the Council nervous. But, his views of clones and Jedi had changed.
"Decloak your ship," Mace Windu ordered, his voice even edgier than before.
Cody knew he was on dangerous ground, but he refused to back down. "I request amnesty for the troopers from Ord Cestus."
The senior Jedi's eyes narrowed. "You are in no position to make any demands, Commander."
"Respectfully, sir, I am in a warship with a cloaking device and with 12,000 troopers. And, I'm delighted to report, sir, using this warbird we destroyed an entire Separatist facility. Easily."
Windu's eyes narrowed. "Are you threatening me?"
Cody walked over to standby at Hunter and leaned one hand down on the weapons station. "I would never presume such a thing, General. Just delivering good news. Amnesty for my men from Ord Cestus. They were not AWOL. They showed initiative and went on a rescue mission. A very successful rescue mission, because we now have two Legions, several commandos and a number of Jedi Generals back in service for the Republic."
There was silence while General Windu and General Yoda had an entire 'conversation' back and forth in their silent Jedi way of communicating. He waited patiently, still gazing directly at the vidscreen.
"Very well," Windu finally replied. "Amnesty for your men. I am coming up to inspect your ship," General Windu said. "I am bringing Healers for Masters Kenobi, Skywalker and Unduli. I will also be bringing a medical transport for the injured clones. You will de-cloak, stand down and prepare for my arrival."
"Amnesty for every trooper onboard," Cody clarified strongly, meeting the Jedi's eye.
The Jedi shook his head. "Every trooper, except for you."
Cody nodded. "Understood, sir. We will await your arrival." His response said it all. It was what he'd been expecting.
After all, he'd essentially threatened a Jedi General.
He gestured off-screen toward Rex and the Engineering team. "De-cloaking now on the count of five." He spoke slowly and deliberately. He didn't want anyone in the GAR fleet to get trigger happy when their warship appeared again on their scopes.
"Disengaging cloaking device now, sir," Winder said from the engineering station. "We are visible again on scopes."
"Commander Cody, we have you on our scopes. Welcome back sir."
Cody cocked his head to the side, as he tried to discern the individual clone voice. "Gree, is that you?"
The 41st Elite Commander popped up on the vid-screen, and acknowledged Commander Cody with a respectful nod. "Yes, sir. Commander Offee, welcome back. What is General Unduli's condition?"
Cody looked over at Barriss, since this was her field of specialty. He left the two of them to their conversation, after all, they worked together. Fek.
The reality of it started to hit him. They were back and Barriss would be headed back to the 41st Elite. It was truly all over.
"Commander Cody?" Gree asked, "can the 41st Elite provide you with any assistance?"
He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Uh..." Fek. He had no idea. His mind was completely wiped out from the conversation with the Jedi Council. "We'll be in touch, Gree. Thank you. Good to hear from you."
"You, too, Cody."
Gree nodded and ended the transmission.
All the other fleet commanders contacted him to welcome them back and offer assistance. The two commanders on board the Resolute and the Negotiator were new to him. But, at the rate they were losing clones in the field, commanders were being promoted at a frighteningly fast clip. New commanders like Appo were rising through the ranks without ever going to command school. Some were ready. Others seemed to be hasty decisions made to fill openings. He quickly accepted all of the comms, taking the last several calls en-route to the hangar bay to meet General Windu.
The two Jedi Commanders, and Ko, accompanied him to meet the Jedi General. He left Rex behind to watch the bridge.
General Windu.
This should be an interesting meeting.
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Revision notes:
7/14/19 Revised the dialogue with Windu significantly to make it less hostile. Cody's use of the weapons is now implied, but not overt. There is less Barriss/Cody in this chapter. I may delete even more if it in future revisions. Their fate remains to be seen.
7/10/19. Moved a scene from Chapter 10 to Chapter 11 based on feedback from a reader I have too many cliffhangers. I may not implement all reader feedback, but I read all of it. Since all of Rex II is getting an overhaul, some feedback from readers has been easy to work seamlessly into the story.
5/23/19. Revised the dialogue once again between Cody and Windu. Been a tough scene to get right, but trying to reflect who Cody is now after his experiences in Rex I.
6/3/15. Tweaked Cody's inner monologue re: Barriss. I received feedback that Cody and Barriss' relationship seemed to be based more on physical attraction without the same basis in a deep-rooted friendship as Rex/Ahsoka. A valid criticism, so I'm working on giving their relationship more depth. Although, I would like to remind that reader that Cody and Barriss also bonded over shared laughter and emotional healing which they shared during their time at Ord Cestus, and not just a strong physical attraction.
Revised 1/10/16. Continued the rewrite of Cody's inner-monologue to give him even more depth and (gasp) even make him a bit of a romantic. (Gasp) Yes, shoot me. But, it works for him.