Working in the senate was a stressful shift, but a predictable one. They stood guard outside of meeting rooms and offices, both so that they were on hand in case of an emergency, and as an intimidation tactic for the visitors that the senators were meeting with. They would escort the senators to all of their different meetings, and then stand guard again.

It was dull work, but they couldn't afford to let their guard down. At any given time a stressed senator may come to them looking for someone to dominate and lord their authority over. They were expected to play the part of errand boys and punching bags, depending on how stressed the senators were. It wasn't exactly a frequent occurrence, but it was often enough that they had procedures in place for just that situation.

Dogma hadn't experienced that type of thing yet, where a senator wanted him or his buddy one-on-one, and they had no choice but to comply. But just because he hadn't seen it didn't mean that it was safe to assume that he never would. Every day that Dogma worked in the senate, he went in with the assumption that this would be the day where one of them was singled out, and he had to be ready for it.

He would need to let his buddy go without putting up a fuss and getting them both in trouble, or he would need to be strong and endure what he had to face alone. He wouldn't ever be fully prepared for it, but he did as much as he could.

Dogma had a bad feeling about today, and he knew that Thire felt similarly. The Commander continuously checked his comms, and whenever they had a moment of peace he would whisper reminders to Dogma about their procedures in a worst-case scenario. Dogma was already aware of what he needed to do, but he just nodded and said 'yes sir'.

Thire was concerned, and if he coped with it by taking care of Dogma, then he would play along. It wasn't as though the reminders could hurt.

They noticed that there were quite a few visitors to the senate building. They didn't look like military or political officials, but they carried themselves as though they ran the galaxy. Many of them had their own nat-born bodyguards with them, and none of them acknowledged the clones at all. It wasn't Dogma's place to guess, but he thought that these people might be aristocrats or celebrities. People who had money, and made a big deal about throwing it around.

Clones weren't supposed to gossip about the superiors, but sometimes it couldn't be helped. When Dogma and Thire allowed themselves a few minutes to breath and have some water they went to one of the clone's closets in the senate building. They could only spare two or three minutes. It could barely be called a break, but Dogma took that time to wonder out loud about something.

"Do you think there's a Demonstration today?" Dogma asked. Thire was just leaning against the wall, resting his eyes for a few moments. At Dogma's words his eyes shot open and he looked at him with alarm. Dogma stared blankly back, not sure what he had done wrong this time.

"How do you know about Demonstrations?" Thire asked. "Did Fox tell you? Is there something going on today that I wasn't told about." Thire checked his comms again.

"We had them on Kamino." Dogma said. Thire just looked confused, which just confused Dogma. "What?"

"What exactly were the Demonstrations you went through on Kamino?" Thire asked.

"Well, the tests and trials and such." Dogma said. "We run simulations to prove that we can follow orders." Thire relaxed slightly, but Dogma wasn't done. "Then there were the smaller Demonstrations for the investors, where the Kaminoans showed off their best specimens to show people that their money was being put to good use."

Thire looked slightly pale. "When did they start having Demonstrations on Kamino? The second type you mentioned, for the investors."

"I don't know." Dogma said. It was something that had always been there, as long as he'd been training.

"Why is this the first I'm hearing about it?" Thire asked himself more than he asked Dogma. "We were sure that the Guard were the only ones used for Demonstrations." He gave Dogma a concerned look. "Have you been used for these Demonstrations?" Dogma nodded. "How many?"

"Six, I think." Dogma said. He could usually keep track of this kind of thing, but he mentally blocked out the actual Demonstrations, and when he couldn't remember what happened, it was sometimes hard to remember that something had happened at all. "My first was when I was five standard."

Dogma didn't think it was a big deal. It was just something he'd gone through. It wasn't as though he was the only one. Thire looked slightly ill, and Dogma wondered if he had gotten something wrong. Why did the guard commanders keep on looking so alarmed about things that should be normal?

"Have you told Fox about these Demonstrations?" Thire asked. Dogma's stomach tightened and his head was pounding. He'd messed up. There was something he was supposed to have talked to his commander about, and he hadn't. Dogma hadn't known, but ignorance was not an excuse. The Kaminoans had made that clear.

He wanted to fold in on himself, but he'd been taught better than that. Instead Dogma stood up straight at attention, like he'd been taught to do. "No, Sir."

Thire sighed and rubbed his forehead. "No, Vod'ika, don't do that, I didn't mean-"

"Please don't call me that right now." Dogma said stiffly. He felt like he was going to break down all over again, and he didn't even know why. It wasn't as though Fox and the other commanders would get mad at him for not sharing information with them when he didn't know he was supposed to share it.

Maybe it was the talk about Demonstrations that made him feel uneasy. They were a stressful time for all clones involved, and Dogma felt like he was missing something. Something important.

Thire grimaced. "What do you want me to call you?" And Dogma didn't know. He just wanted to give his designation, because being Dogma was exhausting, and some days he didn't even know what it meant. But if he just gave his numbers, it would make Thire panic even more.

"I don't know." Dogma admitted. He just really didn't feel like a vod right now, and he couldn't even say why.

Thire looked like he wanted to say more, but his comm went out. He gave Dogma a concerned look before he answered. Dogma could hear the message coming through.

"Commander Thire, a Jedi General is requesting to see the commander on duty." A clone's voice came through. Thire and Dogma both stiffened at those words. The Jedi didn't work with the guard except in very special cases that usually meant nothing good. They hadn't heard of an attack or other emergency, which meant this was something else.

"I'm on my way." Thire said. He was given a location, and then he signed off. Thire looked far too stressed. He sighed and put his helmet back on. Dogma started to do the same, but Thire put a hand on his arm and stilled him. "Stay here, Kid."

It was an order, but Dogma didn't feel compelled to follow it, because it went against Fox'. Fox probably wouldn't have called it an order when he had told Dogma to keep an eye on Thire, but he could easily take it as such, and he was doing so now.

Dogma didn't know what a Jedi General was doing at the senate building, but he didn't have a good feeling about it happening at the same time as these rich people were coming in. His theory about there being a Demonstration was still just a guess, but it was one he was almost sure about, and he was going to act as though it was a fact.

Dogma couldn't remember his Demonstrations, but he knew that he'd gone through many of them alone, and it had hurt. He didn't want that for Thire, or any of the guards.

"Fox said we need to stick together unless a senator or Jedi directly tells us otherwise." Dogma said. The comm hadn't said if the Jedi General had wanted just Commander Thire. It was likely the case, and they would send Dogma on his way when they saw him trailing behind Thire, but until he was given the order, he was going to do what he had been told. What he knew was right.

Thire obviously wanted to argue, but that would take time, and keeping a Jedi waiting when you were asked for by name was never a good idea.

Thire made a low sound of frustration as he brushed some non-existent dust off of Dogma's armor. "Don't say a word to the Jedi unless they address you directly. If the General asks for me and me alone, you're not to put up a fight. You're to let me go, and you're to return to the barracks immediately. Do you understand?"

Dogma didn't like it, but he did understand. He nodded and put on his helmet. They left the closet and quickly but calmly walked down the halls until they saw the Jedi that was impatiently waiting. He had two lightsabers clipped to his belt, which wasn't surprising considering the four arms he had.

"General." Thire saluted, and Dogma followed his lead. The Besalisk eyed the two of them, and his slight sneer was a clear indication that he was unimpressed.

"Commander Thire." The General said. His tone was a clear indicator that he was one of those people who thought that clones having names was pointless. They weren't men to him, they were just soldiers. Despite this his gaze shifted to Dogma and he raised an eyebrow at him. "What's your name?"

Even if Dogma felt comfortable with the nickname Vod'ika right now, he wasn't about to tell that to the General. But sharing his real name felt even worse. Dogma compromised and said what he thought would please the General.

"CT-6922." Dogma said. The General bared his teeth and took a step towards him. Dogma saw Thire flinch, like he wanted to step in the way and protect Dogma from the Jedi's wrath. Thire didn't move, and Dogma kept himself from flinching, because they weren't allowed.

"If I wanted your designation, I would have asked for it." The General growled. He leaned closer to Dogma, looming over him. "Now tell me your name."

He really didn't want to, but Dogma had no choice. He swallowed thickly and stiffened so much that it was painful.

"Dogma, Sir." He said. He was relieved that his voice didn't shake at all with emotion or fear. It was even and professional, and that was one less thing that the General would get mad at him for.

"Dogma." The General backed off with a slight chuckle, and Dogma hated the sound of his name from the Jedi. It was worse than the way that Jesse and Fives said it. They said his name with cruel teasing. The General said it similarly to the Kaminoans, as though he approved of it. Dogma had felt good to have his name be accepted by the Kaminoans, but it felt horrible from the General and he didn't know why.

"Is it an appropriate name?" The General asked, and Dogma knew what he meant. He was asking if Dogma followed orders to the letter.

"Yes, Sir." Dogma said. The General looked intrigued, and it scared Dogma, though he wasn't the only one.

"What did you want to discuss with me, Sir?" Thire asked roughly. His tone was just shy of disrespectful, and Dogma was sure that the Jedi would notice it. That was the point. Thire was surely doing this on purpose because he wanted to redirect the General's attention back to him.

The General glared at Thire, but he didn't strike him down where he stood like Dogma was half worried he would. "My name is General Pong Krell." He said. "I serve on the front-lines, and I've noticed a certain amount of disrespect and insubordination in my men. Everybody knows that the Coruscant Guard are more disciplined. I don't know what extra training you've been put through, and I don't care. All I care about is getting that same training for the frontlines, where it's actually needed."

Dogma didn't really know what extra training General Krell was talking about, and he didn't know if Thire did either. But it wasn't as though they could say so.

General Krell put his hands behind his back as he paced in front of them. "I've received permission from the council to appeal to some investors to get the funds necessary for that extra training. To get their approval, I need to show them that the guard truly is more loyal and obedient, and that's where you come in."

Dogma felt both more nervous and more at ease at his words. So there was, indeed, a Demonstration today. He didn't know what kind of orders Krell would give to Thire, but it surely wasn't going to be anything good.

Thire nodded. "Whatever your orders are, Sir, I'll follow them."

"Yes, you will." General Krell's gaze moved from Thire to Dogma. "You both will."

Dogma stiffened and he saw Thire flinch. "General, I'm more than capable of this Demonstration on my own. This shiny hasn't been with us for very long. He's still learning." That was a stretching of the truth, and they both knew it.

"If you can follow orders, then you'll follow this one." General Krell snarled. "You will both join me, and if I hear another word of insubordination then I'll have you court-martialed." Even though Thire was the one that argued against his orders, Dogma knew that he'd be dragged into the punishment as well, and so did Thire. They were stuck. They couldn't go against the General.

Dogma and Thire followed General Krell down the halls and into a meeting room. He gestured for them to stand to the side, and they knew better than to talk. They just stood and waited as the rich people and a few senators came into the room. General Krell went to talk to them for a bit, and Dogma and Thire were left to wait anxiously.

Dogma saw the commander glance his way every once and awhile, but he didn't turn towards him or try to silently communicate. Dogma stood as straight as he could, ready for his orders. Part of his mind was racing desperately as he mentally panicked at the pain or humiliation that was sure to come. That part was hidden away by his composure and the professional shield that the Kaminoans had drilled into him.

He was already blocking out the Demonstration that hadn't even happened yet.

Eventually General Krell started to address the people in the room. Dogma didn't really hear what he had to say. He knew he should listen to every word that came out of the General's mouth, but he couldn't even if he wanted to. All of his focus went into keeping calm and preparing for his orders. He couldn't do more than that.

Though his mind drifted, it immediately snapped back to attention when General Krell turned towards them. The Demonstration was beginning.

"Commander, stand over there." General Krell said, gesturing to a spot that was in plain view of all the investors. Thire didn't hesitate to obey, though he turned slightly towards Dogma, looking at him and surely giving him a concerned glance as he walked past him. When Thire was in place General Krell turned his attention to Dogma.

"I know how much you clones cling to each other." General Krell said, and the disgust in his tone was clear. "Many under my command put their so-called brothers ahead of their orders, and we can't win a war with soldiers like that. So, show me that you won't falter. Show me your loyalty to the Republic."

Dogma was internally screaming, because he hated this, and he didn't want to be here, but he harshly shoved that part down. General Krell was looking for that weakness, and he would punish them both if he found it.

Besides, Krell was a Jedi General, acting for the good of the Republic. He was harsh and cold right now, but he saw the flaws in the structure that Dogma himself was all too aware of. He knew how easily the GAR disregarded the rules. It had been an annoyance with the 501st, because General Skywalker had that same disregard. General Krell didn't, and the clones that served under him should meet his standard.

These Demonstrations weren't just pointless shows of torture and humiliation to make nat-borns feel better about themselves. They had a purpose. They had to, because the Kaminoans did them, and they didn't do things without a good reason.

"What do you want me to do, Sir?" Dogma asked. His voice sounded far away. He didn't even recognize himself. He sounded emotionless. Uncaring.

So much like the meat-droid that his brothers accused him of and he sometimes wished he could actually be.

General Krell grabbed Dogma harshly by the shoulder and pulled him harshly away from the wall, bringing him into view of their audience. Dogma was oblivious of their gaze. The only one he could see was Thire, and all he could hear was Krell.

"Take your blaster." The General said, and Dogma did. He'd been given an order.

"Take it off of stun." General Krell said. His tone wasn't harsh or cruel. It was just matter-of-factly and calm. He truly didn't consider what he was doing torture. It was just a Demonstration.

Dogma hesitated for just a brief moment. Not even a second. But Krell noticed.

"Now, soldier." General Krell hissed, and Dogma obeyed, because he was a soldier. "Take aim at your Commander."

He didn't want to. He really didn't want to. But he had his orders, and he was a loyal soldier. And good soldiers follow orders. He raised the blaster, and it was a miracle his hands didn't shake. He couldn't afford to freeze up right now, as much as his mind might want to. He had a job to do, and he wasn't going to jeopardize the safety of one of his brothers by letting his emotions get the better of him. He wasn't going to freeze up. Not again.

Dogma was not given the chance to reflect or change his mind. As soon as he had a steady aim on Thire General Krell gave the order for him to 'Fire!'. And without thinking, without hesitating, without whispering a mental apology for the horrible thing he was about to do, Dogma did as he was told, because that was all he was good for.