Kyrimorut, Mandalore.

A'den was in his favourite place, the spot he had sort of claimed as his. He wiped his hand down his face in frustration and tiredness; it was a habit he had picked up from Kal early on. There had been no more sightings of her after three days, despite having better facial recognition parameters based on Raxus.

Given the size of the galaxy, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. The Empire could have secret installations anywhere. Kamino was secret for ten years, or more.

"Hi, A'den."

Well! That was a voice he wasn't expecting.

"Jilka? You okay?"

"That's my line — the 'are you okay' part. Are you?"

"I'm getting there." He was suspicious. He had hardly said a word to her since she was brought here against her will and he thought she was with Corr. Ny had mentioned seeing them together a lot.

"Good."

Jilka sat next to him. He felt the heat radiating from her thigh, where it was pressed against his. He had nowhere to move to.

"I never wanted to come here, I had no choice and I was angry with Besany, at first."

"I'm sorry. It was either that or kill you."

"Any one of you would have, if I had caused trouble, am I right?"

He nodded, "It wouldn't have been personal though."

"Good to know." She giggled, girlishly.

"Did Bes'ika send you to check on me?"

"No, just thought you might need some company."

"I'm fine thank you."

"It must be really difficult for you."

"It's difficult for all of us."

The pressure from her thigh increased, and moved.

"No, I mean your wife. Missing her."

He turned to look directly at her.

"Yes. I miss her but we will do everything we can to get her back. We will be together, I know it."

Her hand landed on his thigh, gently squeezing.

"Yes, of course."

She squeezed again.

"But what if Besany's …..no, no."

"What do you mean? What has she been saying?"

"It was just in passing. Nothing really."

"What?"

"She just wondered if Ryssa, it is what your wife prefers to be called, isn't it? Besany just wondered, if she had been turned, and really supports the Empire now."

"Never. She never would. She's just doing what she can to survive."

"Yes, of course. Stupid of me to say anything. I just overheard them talking, in passing. Her and Ordo."

He stood up, abruptly, her hand dropped from his thigh. She followed him. Her hand on his arm now.

"Although I didn't want to come here. I can see the attractions now." Her hand trailed down his forearm before she turned, her hand remaining a little too long on his arm.

No she was wrong. Ryssa would never turn.

.

L'leth propped Casey on her hip; he was getting heavier and she had seen how A'den was getting more stressed over Ryssa. She thought perhaps, she and Casey, could cheer him up a little. She owed Ryssa everything, thinking she would probably have not survived Coruscant, had it not been for her, and Jaing. But it looked as if someone had got to him first; she saw the woman walk past, with an odd smile on her face. She wasn't particularly fond of Jilka, there was something about her, that made her lek curl. She walked around to the fallen log. It was chilly but Casey was well wrapped up.

"L'leth!" A'den sounded pleased to see her. "And how's my nephew."

L'leth loved it that he said that; Casey held out his arms to be picked up, he could just do that. A'den took him, swinging him up above his head. Casey giggled, it was the first time she had seen him do that.

A'den and his family had accepted her on Ryssa's say so and it was good that he had known Hardcase. He could tell his son all about him one day.

"Don't listen to that Jilka. She doesn't know anything." L'leth didn't know what they had been talking about. So she left it especially vague.

"She had said something about Ryssa, defecting to the Empire."

"No. She wouldn't do that. She loves you. She just needs help getting back."

"Thanks, L'leth. You and Casey were just what I needed." He swung the baby up again, delighting in the giggle he received, then walked back to the house with them.

.

Raxus

Ryssa finally woke from the stun, to see Captain Bragg also attempting to stand, as chaos reigned in the capital's streets. She pulled herself up with the aid of EmDee, chest aching and winded, and headed towards the Ops Room where the Security Camera feed was housed.

"Any info EmDee?"

"The soldiers with the Senator are Clone Force 99, Deserters."

"And?" Ryssa asked sarcastically.

Ryssa watched the feed intently. She had known who was responsible before EmDee confirmed it for her; she saw the familiar black and red armoured soldiers wreaking havoc amongst the Stormtroopers.

The Bad Batch— it can only be them. Echo's with them. I didn't know they'd deserted. If they had, then possibly others could.

She watched as the tank they had control of, lumbered through the streets; pursued by equally lumbering Imperial tanks.

"This isn't going to end well EmDee. They're out numbered."

"I have been reviewing their missions. Do not underestimate them. They are creative."

"They're clones." She replied, as their tank was hit by ordnance from another. She jerked forward in response. Luckily Bragg was concentrating on the holofeed.

"Watch!" EmDee spoke through her ear bud that she wore permanently now; no one had commented on it.

"I am." She muttered through gritted teeth. EmDee was right, they were creative, as they fought to regain control of their tank. They took out another one and then finally lumbered on, turning into a dead end; they came to an abrupt halt along side a building, then the security feed went blank.

"What's happening?"

"They're boxed in. We've got them now." A stormtrooper replied.

By the time the pursuing Stormtroopers had reached them, they were long gone.

.

Stormtroopers still flooded the city, searching for the Senator, looking amongst some of the ruined buildings from the little skirmish that the Bad Batch had caused, although they were now almost certain he had escaped the planet, as a shuttle had been tracked leaving the planet shortly after he escaped from custody but it had been lost in hyperspace.

Ryssa felt some kind of satisfaction that Clone Force 99 or whatever they were calling themselves now, had survived outside the system and rescued the Senator. She didn't know yet if they were freelance and being paid or for what they did or they were part of the small rebellion that was gradually starting against the Empire; nothing officially acknowledged of course but there were rumours. Somebody had contacted them, so maybe she could get hold of them.

The Nulls had talked about Bounty Hunting after the war, and with Commandos, retrieval was part of their expertise. She was gratified the Senator had escaped and now realised what the Empire was doing, trying to manipulate her loyalty using her mother's death. Ryssa watched as the Stormtroopers herded the people away for the curfew but she didn't get any satisfaction from these actions. She didn't blame the Separatists for her Mother's death, not these Separatists. These were just ordinary people living their lives the best way they could. If the Empire thought they were going to convince her further of how 'right' the Empire was, they were going about it the wrong way by trying to blame these people for her mother's death .

.

Rampart had arrived on the planet long after the Senator had escaped and asked Bragg for a detailed report; she squirmed under his gaze and Ryssa made to leave the room.

"No Doctor, stay."

Ryssa stood back, listened and watched as Bragg explained how the Bad Batch had escaped with the Senator through unknown tunnels and into the woods, when they had finally been tracked to where they had landed their shuttle.

"I do believe you're enjoying this." EmDee's voice popped into her ear. She didn't react. Her facial expression didn't change nor did she answer because she had to admit to herself that she was really enjoying this part with Bragg being metaphorically torn off a strip by Rampart. He never raised his voice once but the ice was there together with a rod of durasteel. She wasn't listening to the words, it was just the tone of his voice that expressed his intense displeasure and anger.

I'd better keep on his good side for the moment. Until I can find a way off here but right now this place is locked down.

His ultimate deterrent was a threatened transfer to Vader's Fist. Imperial officers didn't seem to last long with him, so the rumours said.

"Dismiss." His voice still not raised.

Ryssa turned again to leave.

"No Doctor. Not you. Sit." Rampart leaned back in his chair, "I am sorry you had to hear that but the Empire cannot afford to have incompetent people. We can all learn and be trained but it is how you do that which is relevant. Experience is great teacher and experience can be passed on. Don't you think?"

Memories of Captain Rex came to mind, something Coric had once said about him. Rex was great believer in experience.

"Most good teachers are simply passing on the theory together with their own experience." She replied toeing the party line on this one, and hoping EmDee was doing the scans she had asked him to. He was being very quiet.

"Exactly. You do understand what I mean." He looked at his datapad. "The Empire is changing how we do things and the first will be the army."

Ryssa was listening intently now.

Is this why he had kept asking about Clones?

"The Clones are rapidly ageing and, Ko Sai, the main cloner who developed the double ageing of the cloning process is now dead. It cannot be reversed for any of the clones."

Ryssa tried to keep the dismay out of her voice.

"Is there no one else? What about the new ones?"

"The only one who has the necessary expertise to get anywhere near was a scientist from Gibad, but she's disappeared, broken out from a high security prison on Imperial City and her planet is now being stubborn regarding their allegiance to the Empire. The Emperor has a plan to deal with them."

"The new clones…."

"Ah. You've noticed the difference. Cloned from second generation DNA, using a faster process but still the same result. We don't expect them to last as long as the Kaminoan ones."

"Grown to maturity in a year does seem a little short."

"They were needed to back up the older ones. As long as they could hold a blaster and obey orders. That was all that was required of them."

They really were just cannon fodder. And she really needed to get out of here.

"Your work with and understanding of clone …..psychology will be invaluable. We are currently in the process of training replacement Stormtroopers. They need to be as focused as the Clones, with no individuality but we cannot afford to wait ten years."

"Replacements?"

"Human conscripts who are already loyal to the Empire. That loyalty just needs to be built on."

"I see."

"And there is the additional problem of the inhibitor chips; obviously we can't yet implant them in the fully naturally grown humans."

"Inhibitor chips?"

"Ah yes, it was not common knowledge, even among the clones that they were implanted in the early stages of growth to inhibit the more independent nature of the donor."

She immediately thought of Fives.

Had he found out? And Kix said he was going to investigate before he disappeared. It would have needed to be highly secret in order to get the surprise they needed. The Jedi didn't know.

She voiced her thoughts.

"But they did more?"

Rampart watched her closely. "It's an obvious deduction."

She continued, "Execute Order 66?"

"Exactly."

She wanted to ask on whose authority but thought that was a step too far as she already knew who would have gained the most? The Emperor. So he had planned everything in advance. She couldn't show her dismay.

"So what now."

"Some of the clones' chips didn't activate, or could overridden. We need to find out why. And we're starting at Ryloth. Your knowledge will be invaluable."

She nodded. EmDee still hadn't finished his scan and she couldn't push this meeting on any longer without it seeming odd.

"We leave tomorrow after we sort this sorry state out. Dismiss."

Ryssa reluctantly left the office, EmDee following obediently.

"Did you get anything?"

"Very little. Everything was highly encrypted. I would need much longer to break down the firewalls." He beeped, adding. "I am sorry."

.

Kyrimorut, Mandalore.

A'den rubbed his eyes, he hated just staring at the screens, despite them needing to do this. Apart from Niner and Darman, and the help from Gaib and TK-01 Inc., they were in the dark here and he hated that even more. He thought they should be doing more, more off Mandalore. He headed to the kitchen to get yet more caf, and perhaps some thing to eat, then he would have to hit the gym tonight.

The kitchen was its normal hive of activity with more clones in there helping, than normal he pushed his head down trying to avoid seeing Corr with Jilka. He still wasn't sure about her but then the pair headed outside, hand in hand. He was glad, it all just reminded him of what he was missing. He poured himself a caf, it was barely warm.

"Let me make another one for you." The crisp tones of Besany cut into his thoughts; it was the last voice he needed to hear.

"Nayc." His tone terse.

She looked at Ordo, who was attached to her waist.

"There was no need to be rude, vod."

At the moment A'den didn't want to be brotherly. He saw Besany whisper something into his brothers ear. Some advice by the looks of it. His anger threatened to take over.

"Just because you managed to get The Treasury Agent out for yourself doesn't mean everyone is okay." He was on a roll once the lid on his anger was lifted. "And what use is she going to be, except to sooth your ruffled brow, when you think you've upset Buir. At least Ryssa is a Doctor. We'll need as many of those as we can get. Anyone can make caf."

The room had gone silent, in his periphery, he saw Laseema take Kad outside, as Kal came towards him but Ordo got there first.

"I think an apology is in order, ner vod." Ordo was barely keeping it under control himself now.

"Nayc." A'den wasn't in apologising mood. "You made every effort was made to get her out." He pointed at Besany but looked at Kal.

Ordo moved between them.

"Perhaps she doesn't want to get out. She could have been turned by now; it's …..." Ordo got no further, as A'den's forehead hit his nose and they went down, in a jumble of well matched clone muscle and fighting expertise.

Besany moved a step forward.

"Don't." Kal put an arm across her. As much as it hurt him to see this, they needed to get this out of their system. He watched, as Ny stood open mouthed while the fight spilled out onto the courtyard. All the clones followed them but for the moment they simply left them to it. Finally, when Ordo had at least a broken nose, possibly a cheek bone and A'den was holding his chest, struggling to breathe, the other Nulls intervened to pull the two apart. A'den stormed off, whilst Besany headed straight for Ordo.

Ny moved to go after A'den.

"Leave him Ny. It's been brewing for a while. They needed to get it out of their system and part of it's my fault. I need to talk to him first." Kal followed his son.

.

Raxus.

Ryssa lay in her bunk, the information she received from her meeting with Rampart and EmDee's failure to get any more intel depressed her. It was taking too long. She was no further forward in getting away from the Empire and was on a planet locked down and potentially going an even worse one. She had met no one other than Echo who could have helped her and even he had stunned her. Her hand went to her necklace, she got a certain level of solace from it.

EmDee made a curious humming sound.

"What?" She had started keeping EmDee in her quarters but sometimes the noises that it made irritated her.

"You should discard the necklace, it could incriminate you. "

"In what?"

"In having lied."

"Sa Cuis accepted me and he was force sensitive."

He hummed again, as she held her necklace, twisting it around her fingers. This would be the last thing they took off her. If ever.

"I have been scanning for where Clone Force 99 have been seen. It would appear that they are doing some retrieval operations and they are usually against the Empire."

"So definitely deserters. Can you work out if they have a base?"

"No. There is insufficient information for that."

"Are coms off world being blocked still?"

"Yes."

She couldn't think of anything else at the moment, perhaps Ryloth would be better.

.

Kyrimorut, Mandalore.

He'd come out here to calm down, still. His heart was still racing and he was breathing hard and painfully. He really shouldn't have said what he did. He regretted the words and the fight. He would apologise, to everyone. When he was no longer angry. He sat, quietly, planning.

He heard his Father approach.

"It should have been me you shouted at and me you hit." Kal stated.

"It should have been no one. It served no purpose. I'll apologise to them both. I shouldn't have taken out my frustration on them."

Kal sat next to his son, dwarfed by him, and pulled his head by the neck to him. "Not been the best married life so far, has it?"

"I just want her back so we can get on with it, with our plans. And I don't believe she's been turned."

"Neither do I lad."

Kal's Com pinged. "Mij and Vau are on their way back from liberating some tech for us."

"You can go back, if you want. I just want to sit quietly for a while."

"Okay lad." Another quick hug and he left.

It had turned into another clear night and A'den could just make out the moon where the Tribunal had crashed landed just after Order 66. They'd picked up the chatter on the Coms just before they deserted, which they were no longer able to access; a few calculations meant it had to be that one. A whole ship full of clones lost, and only clones apart from Maul. The moon only appeared in the night sky every twenty years.

He missed Ryssa. Her attempts at Mandoa when she, according to Kal, tortured the language. But she tried. Her cooking was getting better. Ordo especially liked the cookies. He didn't care if she could cook or not. It was overrated, you could always heat up a ration pack or get takeout. He just appreciated that she tried. All he wanted to do was wake up in the morning with her next to him, safe.

He heard familiar footsteps.

"You missed dinner and dessert. And I made it specially. You need to tell me that it tastes okay because I'm not sure Kal will tell me the truth about it. "

"Thanks Ny." His stomach rumbled, as he took the large slice of Uj cake from her, she had placed it with a chunk of the sharp cheese both he and Kal liked. The other Nulls weren't so keen on the combination but he thought they went together well. "I'm sorry, about back then."

She waved it away.

"How's Buir?" He still felt he needed to apologise to him as well.

"It's what happens in families. But you do need to apologise to Bes." She watched as he ate. "Kal was telling me how, when you were small, you used to follow him around copying what he did."

"We all did."

"He mentioned you in particular."

"Yes." He gave small chuckle, so they had been talking.

"Ruu said she always thought of him as her hero, and then there he was, he rescued her." Ny continued trying to help him relax.

"There's no word for hero in Mandoa."

"Doesn't mean to say you can't be one, even if it is an Aruetii word, it's the idea that counts."

"If I was aruetii, then yes, I knew he was a hero, as soon as he saved us and I had to be just like him."

He may have started out as a training Sergeant to these boys but he really was a Father to them now. And she liked that about him…. too much.

"Eat your cake."

"Elek, Buir."

Ny shook her head, she knew what that meant. They sat watching the skies, it had become a habit when she saw he was struggling, but now clouds were floating over amd obscuring the stars.

"You'll find her. You'll be together."

"Yes, I know."

"You planning something?" She knew the look on his face.

"We can't get the Intel from here, I need to get out there."

"Have you told Kal?" The look on his face said no. "Ordo?" she pressed him. He hadn't confided in his brother either. "You need to discuss this with them."

"I haven't decided when or where yet." He studied the cake piece of cake before he ate it. "I like a bit more fruit in mine, so it's darker."

Ny nodded as she replied, "Noted."

"Don't tell them will you? Promise?."

Now he looked like the very young man he was, scared to upset his family any further but equally drawn to searching for his wife. Ny knew she wouldn't say anything, as soon as he asked her to make that promise.

"Promise."