A/N: I am re-uploading this chapter. The formatting for the dialogue was lost toward the end of the chapter, melding Rex and Wolffe's dialogue together. Bizarre. I've fixed it now so there is no longer a weird Rex/Wolffe amalgamation.
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They were in trouble, and Rex couldn't help but curse under his breath. He wouldn't have taken this route if not for the insane orders given. For what seemed like the umpteenth time, though Rex had lost count long ago, he reached out mentally to his brothers, preparing to say his goodbyes. It was a habit, and before he joined his brothers who had already passed, he needed to reach out to make his mental goodbyes. Sometimes, if he concentrated hard enough, it felt as if he could feel his brothers. Wolffe felt especially close, as if he were nearby.
Rex whipped his head sharply to the horizon a second before the approaching thrum of LAATs reached his ears. "Wolffe," he called out over their secure comm channel.
"Rex, hold on. We're almost there," Wolffe's gravelly voice crackled back. "I've got a visual on you now."
The rest of Rex's men, precariously clinging to cables and tree branches, heard it too. Relief crashed over them at the prospect of a rescue. An enthusiastic trooper waved up at the incoming ships, barely visible through the battle haze. The innocent gesture wouldn't have mattered if they weren't teetering on the edge of a sinkhole.
Dread seized Rex's gut. "Hold still!" he shouted, too late.
The trooper slipped, his brothers grabbed for him, but the tree was already keeling sideways, roots ripped free. Cables snapped taut in a cacophony of shouts. Rex imagined he could feel his men's straining muscles as if they were his own.
Slowly, the great tree tilted until, with an explosive crack, the trunk splintered and broke free. Three men, cables lost, plunged toward the deadly shards below. ""No!" Rex's yell was futile.
But, they never hit the ground. Grey and white armor flashed by in a blur, jetpacks roaring. The 104th dove with precision, like birds of prey intent on a catch. They each scooped a man from mid-air before disappearing upwards into the smoky haze above the pit. Rex sagged against the tree, tension ebbing.
"Rex, down!" warned Hardcase, just as a new wave of troopers buzzed past.
One Wolfpack soldier looped up and around to flash them a cheeky thumbs up. He dove back into the fray, expertly snatching another 501st soldier from death's maw.
"Jetpacks..." Hardcase murmured in awe. "Rex, why don't we have jetpacks?"
"I don't think I haven't tried," Rex said, also mesmerized, watching the highly-trained troopers rescue his men with a speed that spoke of intense training and discipline.
"I'm going to talk to Skywalker," Hardcase said with the confidence of someone who didn't actually have to deal directly with the General. "Where is he anyway? Why isn't he back yet?"
"I don't know. Yes, he should be back," Rex replied, not believing in lying to his men. "This shab doesn't happen under Skywalker's watch... although, I'm not complaining about the rescue troopers."
Rex tuned out whatever it was Hardcase was saying next as his gut screamed a warning. The ever-widening maw of the sinkhole was ripping the trees loose one by one and the ground beneath them was trembling.
"Uh oh," Hardcase murmured before their refuge abruptly gave way. Hardcase grabbed at Rex again, still clinging to his cable, but the branch they were on broke free. The heavy weight acted like an anchor now dragging them both down. Before they could impact headfirst into an upturned tank, Rex was grabbed harshly around the waist and hoisted upwards.
"Let go off the farkin' cable!" someone yelled over the roar of a jetpack's engines pushed past their limits.
He knew the moment Hardcase let go as they abruptly shot upwards and then he was dumped unceremoniously on the floor of a hovering LAAT.
Before he could even get to his feet, the Wolfpack commander was towering over him, fury in his voice: "What the krek were you thinking, fighting near this sinkhole? We mapped this region."
Hardcase moved himself in front of Rex to defend him. "It wasn't his idea! He was just following orders."
Wolffe visibly startled. "Who ordered you into a sinkhole?!"
Rex pulled Hardcase back. He didn't have time to get into this now. "You tracked us here?"
"Warthog spotted your smoke and dropped a probe," Wolffe replied.
"Thank you," Rex called up the pilot. He briefly raised up a hand in acknowledgement, but his focus was on keeping the LAAT hovering in the perfect position.
Rex joined Wolffe at the door and stared down at his men being rescued by the 104th troopers. "I need a jetpack," he demanded.
"My men got this, Rex."
"It's more than the troopers hanging from the cables. I've got men down in that sinkhole."
"You don't know they're alive."
"I'm not leaving them."
Wolffe muttered choice words under his breath, but reached for a nearby rack of JT-11s. "Turn around." There was something incredibly satisfying about the 'thwack' of the pack as it settled against his shoulders and clamped into the accessory magnets built into his backplate. Hardcase scrambled to his feet, his determination evident in his stance.
"I suppose you're going, too? Why did we bother rescuing you, then?" Wolffe asked. He gestured for Hardcase to turn around and equipped him with a pack.
"If you're going down, you'll need me," Coric said, emerging from the shadows of the LAAT.
"Next time, I'm leaving you all down there," Wolffe growled, securing a pack onto Coric's back, and verifying that the fittings were secure. "Don't ruin my jetpacks, and don't get in my way."
He was the first to go, launching backward from the LAAT in a spectacular freefall that left the others watching in stunned silence. Even the pilot, Warthog, whistled in appreciation, his helmet tipping slightly as he watched the commander plunge toward the ground.
"So cool," Hardcase murmured, before mimicking Wolffe's daring leap. Coric, in contrast, executed a textbook-standard jetpack leap from the open LAAT door. Rex, always up for a challenge, opted for maximum speed, gaining a running start, and freefalling before igniting his pack.
As he swooped by, he saw Hardcase diving into the sinkhole, taking out any remaining droids. Rex wasn't one for showboating, but even he had to admit it was a spectacular sight.
"Jetpacks, Captain," Hardcase communicated to him over the comm, his voice filled with exhilaration. Rex found himself grinning despite himself.
He landed heavily on a Separatist tank and belatedly remembered to cut his rockets. His backplate felt hot from the heat. He was rusty with pack usage, but he liked the sensation it gave him. The jetpack allowed him the freedom to move quickly and the power to strike hard.
"Hey," protested a B-1, pushing up the hatch. Rex tossed a droid popper into the hatch and moved on. It was a disaster area down here. Thick smoke, debris everywhere. He sensed more than saw the movement of a commando droid rising up to challenge him. It crawled forward on a single attached limb.
"Fekkin' commando droids," he murmured, eliminating it with a single shot to the head.
"Nice shot, Captain," came a weak voice from below him, punctuated by coughing and the strained tone of someone who had inhaled too much smoke.
"Keep talking," Rex activated his headlamp, scouring the smoke.
"You're almost... right on...top of me. Found me."
Juno, one of his gunners, grinned up at him, despite his face being pallid with pain. His arm was hanging awkwardly at his side, and his bare head was slowly bleeding from a head wound. Juno struggled to his feet with Rex's assistance.
"I'll fly us out of here, but you'll need to cover our retreat." Rex handed over one of his prized DC-17s and slid his other arm around the injured trooper.
Holding the blaster with his uninjured limb, Juno grinned. "I'm going to want that back. Don't get attached to it."
"I just can't wait to tell my squad mates-"
Juno's voice was cut off over the roar of the rockets as Rex propelled them back up to the LAAT. He had no idea which ship was designated for injured men, so he chose the nearest one. It was already nearly full, so he made a mental note to choose a different ship on the next run.
Rex could sense they were running out of time. Not bothering to retrieve his blaster, he dove back into the chaos, hoisting up men who were injured but still alive. He lost count of the number of men he saved. He no longer relied solely on his sight to find them. He could feel them, perhaps that was because he was so close to his men.
Suddenly, Wolffe's voice blared through the comms, "Rex, retreat! We have to get out of here. There's a tibanna tank about to explode!"
"No! There are still men alive down here."
"And, we'll lose everyone if we don't clear the area!" Wolffe retorted. "Get your shebs on a ship! That whole pit is a ticking time bomb."
There. He plunged deep into the pit one last time, extracting an unconscious tank driver from the wreckage. He wasn't even sure how he accomplished it, only that he was suddenly being pulled into a ship and the blast door was sealing. Someone slapped the back of his jetpack to extinguish the engines. An explosion shook the ship. The LAAT's engines labored to lift them out of the blast zone. Secondary explosions succeeded the primary explosion as all of the munitions in the area ignited.
As Rex entered the brimming main rescue LAAT, Wolffe slapped the back of his jetpack, extinguishing the engines and pushed him inside, shutting the blast doors forcefully.
"He's in! Get us out of here!"
"Did all of our ships make it out?" Wolffe demanded. The crowded shipful of troopers fell silent as everyone waited for the pilot to answer.
Warthog hesitated. The ensuing silence was gut-wrenching for Rex.
Finally, Warthog inclined his head, receiving confirmation. "Yes, Rescue Six will need a new paint job, but we're all clear."
Wolffe sagged visibly with relief, before turning on Rex. He moved the unconscious trooper aside and handed him over to a waiting medic.
Rex braced himself as Wolffe's relief morphed into anger. His brother grabbed him, cursing, and for a moment, Rex thought he was going to slam him into the blast doors. But, Wolffe was always full of surprises. He crushed Rex to his chest for the briefest of moments before pushing him away. "What were you thinking?!"
"I'm sorry. I know I cut it close."
"You- your-" Wolffe sputtered. "You nearly cost me all my ships!" Rex stayed silent, clenching his jaw as he let his brother work out his frustration. He'd acted in desperation to save one more trooper and he'd almost gotten all of them killed. He accepted Wolffe's anger, fully aware that he had made a tough call.
Wolffe took several long deep gasping breaths, finally succeeding in calming himself down. "And, where the fek are all your tanks? Did you lose all of them?" Rex gave a curt nod. "Unfortunately, yes."
"That's a lot of equipment, Rex."
Wolffe was right, and Rex hadn't lost that much equipment in one battle since Teth. He still hadn't even taken the fort yet. When and if Skywalker ever returned, he would likely be furious about losing nearly all their tanks. "We can discuss this later. I need you to rejoin the rest of my men. Warthog, can you set us down a half klick south southeast of the fort?"
"Commander?" Warthog looked to Wolffe. "The sooner we get these boys off our ships, the better. Change course and advise the other ships to do the same." Wolffe handed Rex a pouch of water and removed his own helmet so they could talk quietly face-to-face. "What do you mean the rest of your men?"
"Fives is leading the main assault on the fort."
"You knowingly went into the sinkhole as a diversion?!"
"Yes, as a diversion. General Krell ordered us to-"
Both Rex and Wolffe rounded on Hardcase, and he immediately backed off.
"Let them talk, brother," Denal whispered to Hardcase, pulling him toward the back of the ship. The rest of the 501st troopers followed on his heels, but Rex knew they'd still be listening to their conversation. Wolffe tracked Hardcase with his eye and then turned back to Rex. "What's he talking about?"
Rex shook his head, not wanting to get into it now.
But, Wolffe wasn't willing to drop it. He leaned in close, nearly nose-to-nose. "When this is over," he murmured, "you and I need to talk... with General Plo present. He needs to hear what happened." Rex kept his voice low as he responded. "Will he even believe me, Wolffe? Krell is one of them."
"One of them?" Wolffe whispered back. "Yeah, I suppose he is. But General Plo... he's different. He's a good man." He pulled back, giving Rex a supportive squeeze on the shoulder. "You'd better reassure your men that we're not actually fighting." He gestured toward the cluster of 501st troopers standing in a flying V-formation toward the back of the ship, still watching them intently.
Rex turned to them. "We're not fighting. Now, check your weapons. We'll be landing soon to backup Lieutenant Fives."
Wolffe nodded to one of his troopers who opened an overhead cabinet and started handing out spare blaster cartridges to the surrounding men. "You promoted Fives?" he whispered out of the side of his mouth to Rex.
"He's an exemplary trooper."
"He's a loose canon."
"No more so than your boys."
"Point taken, but I haven't promoted any of them to Lieutenant."
"Tell me more about Cody. You wouldn't be here if you hadn't gotten him out."
"I only saw him briefly, Rex, I don't know much."
"Tell me what you do know."
"Badly concussed. General Windu was trying to keep him awake. Multiple fractures. One of his legs is broken, and the other one is shattered. That's all I know."
"Will he... recover?"
Wolffe sighed heavily. "They have him in the RIMSU. Medics are doing their best."
"Krek, it's been a rough year for him."
"Just for him?" Wolffe scoffed.
Rex sighed and inadvertently leaned in toward Wolffe.
His brother returned the gesture, briefly leaning into him. "We'll figure this out, okay?" He stared Rex down. "Don't you dare do something like this to me again. I'm not rescuing you twice in one day."
"Noted. I owe you one, brother. Next time, it'll be me coming to your rescue."
Wolffe snorted. "Doubt it. Rescues are what I do."
Rex pulled out his DC-17, realizing then he was missing one.
Wolffe noticed, too, and tugged out one of his own blasters to give to Rex. He paused as he was handing it over. "Be careful, Rex. I don't know what's going on between you and Krell, but it doesn't sound good."
Rex nodded, not bothering to comment further. He didn't have time now for thoughts of Krell. He had a fort to take. He finished going through the motions of checking the charges. It was a soothing ritual and helped get him into the proper mindset before heading into battle.
"Commander, there's active fire down there. I can safely put us down on the ridge."
"Alright, Warthog, set us down, dump these boys in blue, and then immediately take off again. Advise the other ships to follow suit."
Rex's adrenaline kicked up again, already running strategies and tactics of how he could best use his men to support Fives' battle group. As the doors opened up and his men spilled out, Rex reached back to detach the jetpack.
Wolffe's gloved hand reached out, halting his motion. "Keep it. I have a feeling you may need it."
Hardcase froze, mid-motion, as he was also removing his pack. "Commander, does that mean..." His voice was filled with hope.
"Fine, you can keep your pack, too," Wolffe grumbled, his voice rough with feigned irritation. "Next, you'll all be wanting to join the Wolfpack."
Hardcase straightened up and saluted sharply. Rex didn't even know Hardcase could follow such perfect protocol. "Thank you for the pack, Commander Wolffe, sir!"
He jumped out of the ship, following his brothers.
"And for the record, he is NOT joining the Wolfpack." Wolffe's stern voice echoed in Rex's ear as he leapt out the door.
Rex leapt out of the LAAT and ran after his men, intent on reaching Fives and the active firefight just beyond the hill.
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