~1 week later~
Hunters P.O.V.
It's been about a week since Val left to meet up with Rex. We've not heard anything from her since she left but that was to be expected. I was right when I said it'd be weird without her being here, she brought warmth to the group.
Anyway, we're currently en route to a job for Cid. Tech and Echo are at the ship's control. Wrecker is checking our weapons inventory. Omega is doing some more maintenance on Gonky and I'm sitting next to her spinning my knife around my hand completely in a world of my own. Only when something caught my eye did I snap out of my trance. I looked beside me and saw Omega trying to copy my actions using the spanner in her hand. I was about to say something when Echos voice echoed through the ship
"We're being hailed. It's... Rex"
Putting my knife in its sheath I got up and followed the others into the main cabin just as Echo answered the call.
" Hello, boys. Sorry to cut right to it, but I could use your help"
"What do you need, Captain?"
"I received a distress signal from a clone trooper, but I'm a bit tied up at the moment to retrieve him"
"You want us to recover a reg?"
"He's an old friend, and he's in trouble. I need you to get him out."
"Out of what exactly? " We could hear faint alarms in the background just before Val ran into frame with both lightsabers in hand, She then spoke
"Times up we gotta move!" I locked eyes with Val briefly before she disappeared out of view. Rex then quickly said
"Can't talk right now. Sending you his signal. I'll be in touch"
When the hologram faded Techs data pad beeped and Wrecker said
"What was that about?" Tech brought up the information on his pad and said
"The distress signal sent by CC-5576 is originating from Daro, a terrestrial planet in the Outer Rim with no known settlements or installations" I folded my arms and said
"What's he doing all the way out there?" Echo turned in his chair and said
"Well, does it matter?"
"We've gone on missions before without much intel. But this would be stretching it"
"Rex wouldn't ask us for help if it wasn't urgent" Wrecker pointed at Echo and said
"Echo's got a point" Tech then spoke
"May I remind you that we are in the middle of a job for Cid. If we deviate, we will not be compensated. No money means no food"
"Oh, yeah. Tech's got a point" Omega looked up at me and said
"But Rex's friend is in trouble. That's more important than getting paid"
"Well, the kid's got a point" I thought about it for a second before saying
"Fine. We'll check things out. But...I don't like it"
"We are approaching Daro's atmosphere. I'll bring us in low to avoid any possible tracking scanners" As we entered the planet's atmosphere I said
"We're banking a lot on a clone we don't even know" Echo pressed a couple of buttons whilst saying
"Rex trusts him. And I trust Rex"
When we landed amongst some trees we grabbed our gear and exited the ship.
Tech held his data pad up and said
"The signal is coming from that direction" We followed him through the trees in a formation in which Omega was in the middle of us. A short walk later Tech spoke
"The beacon should be right ahead" Omega jogged ahead and found the beacon amongst some bushes.
"Found it" Wrecker looked around and said
"So, where's this reg?" That's when I noticed marks in the dirt. I took in a deep breath and said
"We're already too late" I crouched down and ran my hand over some scuff marks
"The clone was being hunted. He was dragged. That way" without hesitation we ran through the trees in the direction the clone was dragged.
We came to a stop at the base of the mountain… That's when I felt some weird electrical frequency
"Hang on" I crouched down and placed my hand in the dirt. I could feel the vibrations coming from the mountain.
"There's something here, inside that mountain" I stood up as Tech came up beside me tapping away on the datapad
"I believe you are right. My scans are being jammed" Wrecker then spoke
"You said there was nothing on this planet"
"That data appears to be inaccurate" I looked back at Wrecker and said
"Wrecker, you and Omega wait on the ship" Omega's head shot up as she said
"Wait, why can't…" I looked at her and said
"Coming here was up for debate. This isn't. We don't know what's here. Go back to the ship and wait" Her face dropped as Wrecker put his hand on her shoulder and said
"Come on, Kid"
As they disappeared into the trees, I crouched down beside a scorch mark. Echo stood beside me and said
"What is it?"
"A shuttle landed here… Recently" I stood up brushing the shoot off my hand as Echo said
"What exactly is in that mountain?" We turned to face the mountain as I sighed and said
"Only one way to find out"
Cautiously we made our way up the side of the mountain.
When we reached the top we found a large opening that led down into a large structure
"This looks like some sort of military base"
" Not one that I've ever heard of" Seconds later we heard a ship approaching from behind so without hesitation we dropped down low into the dirt. As the ship began its descent into the structure below we jumped back up and I said
"Come on. Let's get a closer look"
Slowly and carefully we made our way closer to the structure.
Once at the edge we could see where that ship had just landed. Echo pulled out is binoculars and said
"I'm clocking a couple of commandos and squads of clone troopers. And they've updated their armour"
"Let me see" He handed them over to me and he was right. They've changed their armour. Any traces of former republic armour was gone. Tech looked at his datapad again and said
"The mountain's natural composition makes this base well-fortified and nearly impenetrable" I handed the binoculars back as I said
"This is no longer just a simple extraction. Let's get back to the Marauder and leave word for Rex"
Tech and I got to our feet and started walking away but stopped when Echo spoke
"But what about the mission?" We turned to face him as Tech replied
"We do not know for certain if CC-5576 is even in there... or if he is still alive" I then said
"We'd be going in blind without any reinforcements" Echo got to his feet and said
"You did that on Skako Minor when you rescued me. I'd still be trapped in that place if you hadn't. If there's a chance that trooper's being held against his will, we have to try to get him out"
~Meanwhile on Corellia~
Valkyries P.O.V.
I shot up gasping for breath, but then a surge of pain hit me. Someone then said
"Woah, take it easy. We're safe" I looked over and saw Rex sitting beside me in front of a small fire. I pushed myself into a sitting position and said
"What happened?" He moved to grab some water and I noticed the bandages across my chest and around my left shoulder and upper arm. He handed me the water and said
"You got shot because you seized up and blacked out… You said it had stopped?" I sighed and replied
"It did. For a very short period," I ran my hand through my hair and said
"Hunter was right, it's getting worse"
"Do you know what's causing it?" I pulled one of my knees up and said
"Back in the early days of the war when I was first brought to Coruscant I learnt a lot about the Shadow Walkers and about myself. I'm… I'm one of a kind" he scoffed and said
"See now what does that mean?"
I held onto the crystal around my neck before continuing
"I'm not just the last of my kind… I'm the first and last of my kind. Just before the end of the war, the Last time I was with the other Jedi we found out that despite being force-sensitive, the shadow walkers never actually used it. Well not everyone. Those that did use it had to make a choice" His face dropped slightly as he said
"What kind of choice?"
"They had to choose if they wanted to continue using the force or their shadow walker abilities"
"Meaning?" I made eye contact with him for the first time before saying
"Meaning I'm going to have to make a choice, and I'm going to have to do it sometime soon or…Or I'm not gonna last much longer using my powers," Cid said
"Well just stop using them, easy as that!" I looked at him and said
"Not that easy Rex. Sometimes It's just like breathing. Half the time I don't even know I'm doing it. I can't just stop at the snap of my fingers. Right now my body is at war with itself and with everything going on… People need me right now Rex"
"What about Senator Bail Organa?" I sighed and said
"Look when things die down, I'll contact him but until then I just need to be more cautious"
Hunters P.O.V.
As we approached the cell block we heard voices
"Hey, newbie, how about you be useful? Get me some food."
"Quiet, traitor!"
"That's Captain Traitor. Insubordinate plebe" The door the cell block opened revealing a trooper. I wasted no time by punching him in the head knocking him out. As I dragged him to one side Echo moved to stand in front of the cell
"Are you CC-5576?"
"That depends. Who's askin'?" Tech got to work on the keypad as I said
"Rex sent us" He laughed before standing and saying
"In that case, the name's Gregor" The ray shield then opened. He exited the cell whilst saying
"Now let's move out"
Slowly and carefully we headed back the way we came. Although this time there were more troopers around.
We came to a stop at the end of the hall because just around the corner was a commando and a small squad of troopers. Gregor came up beside me and said
"They're gathered for inspection. There's no way past 'em" Echo then said
"If we can't reach the lifts, we can't get out of here" Tech turned on his heels and said
"I can redirect them" We followed him back through the corridor to a control pannel.
As he linked up to it, Gregor said
"Armour like that, I take it you're CCs like me?" I looked at him and said
"CT-99s"
"Defective clones?..." He laughed before continuing
"If you ask me, it's the ones who want to stay here who are really defective" Echo turned to face him as he said
"What was your assignment?"
"I was an instructor…" Gregor was cut off by an alarm. I immediately turned to tech and said
"What's going on, Tech?"
"I keyed a Code-16 to redirect their forces. I don't know what happened" Gregor then spoke
"Clone codes don't work here. You just triggered a security alert"
Before anyone said anything else a squad of troopers came around the corner nad began firing at us.
"Intruders on level six!"
We took cover and returned fire until Tech threw a smoke bomb.
Using the smoke as cover Gregor and I took out the squad with ease.
I swiped a key card from the commando before looking at Gregor and saying
"Is there another way off this base?"
"Only one way out. Up" He picked up a blaster as Tech spoke
"Look at this" We turned to see him couch beside one of the troopers. He rolled the trooper onto their back and their helmet fell off
"These are not clone troopers" Gregor scoffed before saying
"That's what I've been trying to tell you. These are our replacements. If you can believe that"
With the base now aware of our presence we had to rely on Gregor to lead us out of here.
Every turn we took we were met by more troopers and my god was their aim terrible. Taking them out was easy.
As we ran down one of the halls Tech came up beside Gregor and asked
"Are you sure you know where you're going?"
"Hey, I'm the one who escaped here before"
"And you were captured"
"After I made it out" we took out a handful of toppers before coming to a junction between the corridors where a lift access port was. When we came to a stop I looked at Gregor and said
"I thought you said you trained these guys?"
"I didn't teach them everything. That wouldn't be very smart, would it?"
Just after he said that the access port opened and without hesitation, we fired on the two troopers in there. After we dragged them out we filed into the lift. Tech immediately went to the control panel and said
"We need an authorization code." I took the key card from my belt and said
"Got it" Within seconds of handing it to him we were on the move.
All we could do was stand and wait until we reached the top. As we waiting Echo spoke
"These new troopers, what do you mean they're our replacements?"Gregor responded
"Well, we clones are soldiers of a Republic that doesn't exist. These recruits come from all over the galaxy. They swear loyalty to the Empire. They're not as skilled, but there's an endless supply of 'em" I then said
"Numbers aren't everything" As soon as I said that the doors opened bringing us face-to-face with a large squad. Before they could fire we pushed them back. Gregor lunged to the controls just as they managed to get a few shots at us.
As the lift moved back down the way it came Techsaid
"You were saying?" Gregor replied
"We'll, uh, take a detour"
Our detour took us to a level that was crawling with troopers.
We got pinned down when Tech called
"Hunter!" He threw me another smoke bomb giving us cover to take down the troopers firing at us.
However, when the smoke cleared more troopers appeared. We once more began running down the hall but when we turned a corner we were met by a commando who proceeded to fire on Gregor. Shooting him multiple times in the chest took a few shots but we were able to stun the commando but where then backed into a small control room by even more troopers.
As Tech shot at the door controls, sealing us in the room I looked at Gregor and said
"How bad?" with his hand on his chest he looked at me and said
"Ha! Don't worry about me. This is nothing. I got blown up once and survived. I can survive this" Echo scomped into the control panel and said( groans )
"They have all access points to the central ring blocked off" Tech then point to a vent shaft and said
"There. Those pipes are reactor conduits" I looked at him and said
"And?"
"Well, they should lead to the main reactor's external exhaust port. That is our path to the outside"
"The exhaust vent's halfway up the mountain. We can't survive that jump"
"No, but we would be able to signal our ship"
A short crawl through the vents led us out into a larger exhaust tunnel. Large enough for us to actually stand up in. As Echo supported some of Gregors weight he asked
"How did you even end up in this place?"
"I was sent here with other commandos...and quickly realized I wanted out. It turns out the Empire doesn't take too kindly to desertion"
"Yeah, no kidding"
Eventually we reached the opening to the exhaust port and our coms were back online
Wrecker, Omega, come in!"
"We read you, Hunter"
"We have the target, but we ran into some trouble. We need a pickup"
"On our way! On our way!"
"We are on approach! We see you" The Marauder swung around and the hatch opened revealing Wrecker.
" Little closer! Come on!" Echo and I began laying down cover fire as Tech helped Gregor across. Once Wrecker had a secure grip on Gregors' arm he pulled him into the ship closely followed by Tech. However, as soon as Tech was on the ship some fighters came around the corner, firing on the Marauder. Causing it to move away from the ledge before Echo and I could get on. All we could do was watch as the Marauder was pursued through the sky.
As we were returning fire to the troopers in the tunnel, Techs voice came over the comms
"We're coming back around. Be ready!" Seconds later the Marauder came into view. As it came to a stop, the hatch opened and Omega was standing there
"Jump!" Omega reached out and grabbed Echo's arm as he jumped across to the ship. However, the blaster fire from the patrolling shuttles caused Tech to manoeuvre to Marauder slightly just as I jumped across. My foot slipped off the bottom causing me to fall
"Hunter!"
A few hours later
Omegas P. O. V.
Eventually, we landed back on Ord Mantell. We didn't speak to each other on the journey back as we were all still in shock about Hunter. I was the first to disembark from the ship and when I looked up, I was overwhelmed by emotions. I ran down the steps as fast as I could with Echo calling out
"Omega, wait!" I didn't listen. I just ran.
I ran into her knocking her off balance slightly as I wrapped my arms tightly around her waist. She put her hand in my hair and said
"Hey Kid, what's wrong?" I didn't respond, I just hugged her tighter. She then said
"What? What's happened?... Where's Hunter?" No one replied. She stepped away from me, crouched down in front of me and with both hands on my shoulders said
"Omega, where is Hunter?"
"I didn't want to. We didn't want to but he told us to go. He ordered us to go. Valkyrie…" she cut me off as tears fell down my face by pulling me into a hug and saying
"Okay, you don't have to go on" She ran her hand through the back of my hair and said
"We'll get him back. Okay, we'll get him back"
Vals P.O.V.
It took some time but I managed to calm Omega down enough so that she could get some sleep. As she slept in one of the booths in the parlour, I stepped away and looked over at CID who immediately said
"I'll watch the kid" I nodded before looking at the other three. With a simple gesture from me, they got up and followed me back.
I walked to the centre of the courtyard and as soon as the door closed behind Wrecker I said
"What happened on Daro? I know that Rex asked you to get Gregor out but I'd have thought that would have been a simple snatch-and-grab extraction. So what happened?" Echo was the first to speak
"We didn't anticipate the level of imperial presence on the planet. They had this huge base in a mountain and it was full of commando troopers and TK troopers"
"TK troopers?"
"Our replacements apparently. The empire has recruited people to become the next generation of soldiers. The commandos were there to train them" Tech then said
"Our clone access codes didn't work on the systems and set off some alarms. We made our escape through the ventilation ducts where Wrecker and Omega met us with the ship" Wrecker then said
"We couldn't get close enough to the ledge so they had to jump whilst trying to avoid blaster fire. Hunter slipped and fell. He told us to go" I looked at the expressions on their faces and said
"He knew what he was doing. He was putting you first no matter the risk. He was protecting you and Omega"
I ran my hand across my face before saying
"Look, we need to think realistically here. The empire has Hunter that we know for sure. What we don't know is if Crosshair is involved or will be very soon. Do I need to do this on my own or can you keep level heads?" They all hesitated for a minute before Echo said
"He's our Sargent" Tech then said
"Our brother" Wrecker then said
"He'd do the same for us" I smiled at the three of them before saying
"That's all I needed to hear. Let's go get our guy back"