Rex keyed his comlink. "IR-2? Do you read me?"
"Yes, sir," the droid replied.
"I need you to get in close enough to scan for lifeforms within this facility, and then tell me their locations."
"I will be in position in approximately five minutes."
Rex and Howzer dodged into what appeared to be a supply closet.
Howzer chuckled dryly. "You know, when I joined you, it sounded so noble. Fighting for my brothers, rescuing them, helping senators work towards securing us rights. But it's not really all that different from fighting a war, is it?"
Rex sighed, willing his heart to slow and rest. "Not really. I mean, what would you do if you didn't have something to fight for, huh? We're soldiers. It's what we're made for."
Howzer snorted. "I wouldn't mind finding some forgotten world where I can go fishing once in a while."
Rex laughed. "Fishing?"
"Well, yeah. Or something like it. Just surviving, like normal people."
They were silent, both mulling over what that sort of life might entail.
"Naw," Rex said. "I don't think I could stand it for long. I'm sure I'd get sucked up into somebody's fight eventually."
Rex's comlink beeped. "Yes?"
IR-2's voice came through. "There are six lifeforms including yourself and Howzer within the facility. I will highlight their location on your HUD."
A tiny map of the facility appeared in the corner of Rex's helmet HUD. Six little glowing dots appeared on the map.
"That would have been nice to have a while ago," Howzer grumbled.
Rex ignored the other clone as he studied the map. His and Howzer's blue dots were labeled. Two other dots, glowing red, were a few rooms over. A third dot was one more room further. The last dot was on the landing pad. They must have left a trooper behind to guard the shuttle, Rex reasoned.
"He's gotta be one of those two just over there," Rex said, turning in the direction indicated on the map.
The two clones hurried down the hall, then slowed as they neared the room. Rex peered around the corner. Sure enough, two stormtroopers were pinned down behind a pile of crates by an autoturret. As he watched, Rex saw one of the stormtroopers take aim and fire at the autoturret.
The blaster emplacement crashed to the ground.
The stormtrooper's helmeted head snapped to the doorway. Catching sight of the two clones looking in, he dashed towards them.
Rex and Howzer scrambled out of the doorway and down the hallway they'd just came from. Behind him, Rex could hear the stormtrooper's boots slapping the cold metal decking.
Then the trooper stopped. Rex glanced over his shoulder and saw the trooper pull out a thermal detonator and lob it at the retreating clones.
"Kriff!" Rex shouted as he shoved Howzer into an adjoining room. The whole building shook as the thermal detonator exploded.
Blaster bolts immediately rained down on the clones' heads. They ducked to the side behind a cloning tank.
The stormtrooper dashed into the room and was met by the same blaster shots. He grunted as a bolt grazed his arm, but dove behind a crate on the far side of the room.
"Well, now what?" Howzer said. "We're stuck over here, and he's stuck over there."
An ominous beeping came from the other side of the room, cutting through the thunder of the autoturret. Another thermal detonator flew through the air and clanked down beside them.
"Oh, not good," Rex muttered.
Both clones leapt out of their hiding place and rolled, dodged, and slid out the door just as the room behind them exploded.
"He's mad!" Howzer shouted. "He's kriffing mad! He's going to kill himself to get us!"
The two clones pushed themselves as fast as they could go. Rex's lungs were on fire, but the sounds of boots running after them and the blaster bolts licking at his heels urged him on.
Another rhythmicly beeping detonator flew at them. They darted down another hallway just as it exploded. Howzer let loose a flood of verbal abuse at the reckless stormtrooper behind them. The irate clone took a deep breath, glared at the rubble now blocking the doorway, then turned to Rex.
"We got some data off that terminal," Howzer said. "Let's just blow this place up and go home."
"Can't do that," Rex reminded him.
"Blow up their shuttle, slow them down?" Howzer amended hopefully.
"Not until we get a sample of that trooper's DNA."
Howzer's voice was heavy with sarcasm. "And how do you propose to do that, sir?"
Rex paced back and forth, thinking. Then he had an idea.
"Come on. Follow me." He bolted out the opposite door.
CX-2 emerged from his own hiding place behind a concrete wall that jutted out from the hallway. He blasted some of the rubble out of the doorway and clambered into the room beyond. Most of the lab had disintegrated, including another of those pesky autoturrets.
Unfortunately, there was no sign of the two clones.
CX-2 thumbed his comm. "Ferrus, do you have eyes on the clones?"
"Eyes, no. Ears? Maybe. Was that them blowing things up?"
"No, that was me."
"Oh. Well, then, no."
Dahl's voice came over the comm. "Sensors on the ship are working just fine, if anyone was wondering."
CX-2 stared at his comlink. There was a long silence as the other stormtroopers worked through their own shock.
Finally, Kirgard started swearing. "Why didn't you say so an hour ago?"
"They weren't working an hour ago," Dahl said defensively. "I've had my own problems here, you know. That monster came back and tried to eat the sensor array. Bent it all out of shape. I just now got it fixed."
Kirgard growled. "Where are the clones?"
"Are they the only two that are together?"
"Yeah," Kirgard said.
"They're in a room to Reboot's left, about twenty meters. They're standing still." Dahl paused. "Uh, sorry, CX-2. Guess Ferrus's nickname kind of stuck.
CX-2 rolled his eyes. "I suspect I will survive the offense."
He ran into the room that Dahl had indicated, but drew up short. There was no one in the room. It looked like most of the other labs, complete with cloning tanks and terminals. A hole in the ceiling where some of the heavy stone had collapsed let in a bit of light and fog. He clicked his comlink.
"Which room did you say they were in, Dahl?" CX-2 asked, eyeing the hole in the ceiling. Perhaps they had gone out that way–
"The same one as you," Dahl replied. "You're standing right next to them."
CX-2 cocked his head. "There is no one in the room with me. I only see a handful of data terminals and three cloning tanks–"
Two of the cloning tanks exploded outward, sending glass and slime in every direction and knocking CX-2 off his feet. CX-2 saw two shadowy figures leap out of the tanks towards him. One of them knelt down beside him.
CX-2 felt a white-hot jab slide across his ribs and a tug at the pouch at his waist. He grunted and swung a fist, but the clone easily batted it away. The two clones, now covered from head to toe in green slime, bolted out the door. As they ran, one of them tossed something metallic gray and round at CX-2.
A thermal detonator.
CX-2 scrambled backwards to his feet, then leapt up into the air, activating his jetpack and soaring through the hole in the ceiling just as the thermal detonator turned the lab to rubble.
It took everything Rex had to stay on his feet as his slime-coated boots tried to break contact with the floor. He held out his knife in front of him so that the blood now coating it wouldn't mix with the slime coating him.
"For the record, Rex, I hate your ideas," Howzer huffed beside him. "Now that we got your precious stormtrooper blood, can we go now?"
"Yep."
They darted out into the sporadic sunlight onto an outside platform–right into the sights of the stormtroopers' shuttle.
Thankfully, the trooper at the helm was as surprised to see them as they were to see the shuttle, and it took a moment for him to find the turbolasers.
"Inside!" Rex roared.
They darted back into the relative safety of the facility just as the shuttle opened fire. A blast flew through the open door, slamming into the wall behind them and turning it to rubble. Debris blocked the hallway.
"Guess we're not going back that way," Rex muttered.
"I got 'em pinned down on the landing pad," Dahl reported.
Kirgard's voice was jubilant. "All units, to the landing pad."
CX-2 turned and flew towards the shuttle. To his right, he saw both Ferrus and Kirgard rise from the facility and head that direction as well.
"Glad we brought the jetpacks," Ferrus said.
The three stormtroopers alighted in the shadow of the shuttle.
Kirgard turned to CX-2. "Finish the job, soldier. We'll cover you."
But before CX-2 even took a step, a powerful blast from above sent the three stormtroopers flying. CX-2 looked up and saw another shuttle, an older Omicron-class attack shuttle, diving towards the landing pad, guns blazing. He dodged again as another volley slammed into the pad. This time, the Omicron's blasts connected with the stormtrooper's shuttle, shearing its wings off.
"Dahl! You okay?" Ferrus yelled.
Coughing came over the comms. The shuttle's door opened and Dahl stumbled out. Ferrus and Kirgard ran to help Dahl away from the burning ship. Emboldened, the two clones hiding in the shadow of the facility unleashed a torrent of blaster fire upon the stormtroopers.
CX-2 staggered backwards, seeking shelter, returning fire as he did so.
But the Omicron wasn't finished. CX-2 heard the whine of its engines as it came in for another pass.
Kirgard's voice cut through the chaos. "CX-2! Finish off those clones! Follow your orders!"
Laserbolts slammed into the ground near the clone, making CX-2 lose his footing. He tripped, stumbled backwards, and then fell off the edge of the platform. As he did so, he heard his own voice ring through his mind, as loud and clear as if he were speaking now:
When have we ever followed orders?
He wasn't on Bora Vio anymore. He was falling, staring up through the slatted window of a falling skyrail car, into the faces of his brother, Wrecker, and his sister, Omega—knowing this would be his last view of them—
The clouds swallowed them up.
He was hurling towards the ground, the broken rail car barrelling down on top of him.
I need to focus, Tech thought. My odds of survival are slim enough as it is.
He spread out his arms and legs to slow his descent, then angled his body slightly to catch the wind. The maneuver slowed him down and moved him just enough to the side of the falling rail car, so that as it passed, he was able to grab at the ladder and haul himself on top of it. He ducked as a broken piece of track hurled past him, nearly decapitating the clone.
Tech braced his boots against the falling rail car, then crouched.
I need to time this perfectly. Even then…this is going to hurt.
He watched as the forest flew up, calculations whirring through his brain even as he counted the seconds. Then, at the last acceptable second, Tech leapt up with every ounce of remaining strength he had.
Below him, the rail car crashed into a backup generator on the ground. The pressure of compaction ignited the fuel cells, sending a fireball and an invisible pressure wave careening towards the falling clone. The force of the pressure wave shoved him up and away like an angry giant tossing a ball.
He wasn't the only thing pushed away from the flaming wreckage. Superheated shrapnel zipped towards Tech. Some of it ricocheted off his armor. But others bit into his exposed flesh at the joints. He screamed as first his right foot was severed, then his forearm at the elbow, and finally his other leg at the knee.
Then he crashed into a tree and clattered down its length until he finally landed back-first on a log.
Tech blacked out.
"His jetpack's not firing!" Kirgard yelled as he looked over the platform's edge at the falling stormtrooper. He squeezed off another pair of shots at the rogue clones, making them duck back down.
"On it." Ferrus sprinted towards the edge of the platform, then dove off it.
Wind howled past her helmet. She could barely see CX-2's inert form ahead of her. Clamping her arms to her sides and her feet together, she hurled towards him.
"CX-2!" she yelled into her comlink. "Come on! Respond, Reboot!"
Ferrus broke through the bottom layer of clouds. Below her stretched a gray-green bog from horizon to horizon, dotted with twisted trees.
Ferrus was gaining on the clone. As she did so, she could see that CX-2 was limp, his arms and legs flailing in the wind.
She finally got close enough and grabbed him, pulling him close to her. She fired her jetpack, slowing their descent. But with the clone's added weight, they were still sinking towards the sodden ground at an alarming rate.
"Reboot! Wake up!" Ferrus shook him. His helmet flopped side to side.
Panicking, Ferrus reached around to his controls and mashed the ignition. The rocket flared. Their momentum slowed, and for a moment, Ferrus thought it had worked.
Then they plunged into the swamp.
Tech woke slowly. The world seemed…not right. Like he was drunk. The burning hulk of the crashed skyrail car flickered and waved as though he were drunk. So tired…
Concussion , he thought sluggishly. A bad one.
He blinked slowly, trying to clear his vision. Then he realized that there were spidery cracks in his goggles where small bits of shrapnel had cracked them.
At least they stayed on and did not damage my eyes, he thought. His helmet had kept the goggles' wraparound strap in place despite everything he'd just been through.
I survived.
The relief he felt was short-lived, though.
I am not in nearly enough pain, Tech realized with a sinking feeling. He glanced down at the rest of his body. Some parts were missing. What remained of his legs and arms were all bent in the wrong directions. Everything that hadn't been shielded by his armor was charred. He could smell the burns.
But he felt little beyond an ache in his skull and neck.
He tried to move. He tried to will his arms and legs to provide even the tiniest motion. But nothing happened.
He let out a groan that was fueled less by pain and more by fear. He was paralyzed, alone, and vulnerable.
Actually, no, I did not survive. I am merely not dead yet.
Tech closed his eyes. He wanted to believe that his death would be swift, but he knew it couldn't be. The burns had cauterized the bleeding. It might take days for him to die out here of dehydration. Perhaps he'd become a victim to the native animals before then. He cringed at the thought of being eaten alive.
At least the others should have been able to get away. That is something.
Tech listened to the sounds of the crackling fires from the wreck mingling with the haunting calls of some unseen avian in the forest.
He let his mind drift back to Pabu. If he had any regrets about his life, it was that he'd left behind a certain dark-haired pirate without saying good-bye. He hated good-byes; but strangely, even though his body was mangled and he was waiting to die, all Tech could think about was how he wished he'd given Phee a proper farewell.
His thoughts were interrupted by the crunch of footsteps behind him. Tech's blood froze.
A face hove into view over him. Hemlock.
The doctor's coal-black eyes took in the clone's wounds, cataloging each one, analyzing.
"For a fall like that, I'd have expected you to be far more damaged. This is…entirely manageable." Hemlock nodded, a ghost of a smile playing across his lips. "Once I repair your body, you'll be the perfect specimen for my CX program. My elite soldiers," he clarified.
Hemlock knelt down beside the mangled clone. He pried Tech's helmet off and tossed it to a nearby trooper, then turned back to Tech. He reached down and pulled Tech's goggles off of his head.
"I wonder how your friends will react to the news of your death." He looked dispassionately down at the cracked goggles in his hand. "Oh, don't look at me like that. It is far kinder for them to think you dead than to know what I'm about to do to you."
Tech glared defiantly at Hemlock. "I will never serve you."
Hemlock chuckled quietly.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that, my friend." He turned to a blue-visored trooper beside him. "Stun him."
Blue stun energy engulfed Tech, plunging him into darkness.
CX-2 woke, sputtering. His helmet was off, he realized, and his mouth was full of foul-tasting water. He gagged, then coughed. He rolled over and retched.
Gasping, he looked up and saw that he was lying on a tiny island of slightly drier mud than the surrounding swamp. Beside him, Ferrus had her helmet off as well. Her hair was dripping with swamp water, and she looked exhausted.
CX-2 looked up at the thick cloud cover.
"You almost cashed it in," Ferrus said. "What happened? Did you pass out?"
CX-2's head was throbbing, so he set it back down on the sticky ground and stared up at the gray sky.
"Flashback," he said. He turned his head to the side and spat out a wad of swamp goo. "I believe the flashback was of a day when I nearly died. Judging by the extensive damage I sustained that day, it would explain why I have all this hardware."
He held up his droid hand and wiggled his prosthetic feet. He didn't mention that he'd seen Hemlock. His stomach twisted at the memory of the Imperial scientist's smooth, uncaring voice.
Ferrus looked worried. "You need to talk to Pare about this. You nearly died today because of that flashback."
CX-2 didn't immediately answer. He agreed with Ferrus, on one level, but on another, he was terrified of ending up back in the medbay. And deep down, he wanted these flashbacks to continue. He needed to know more.
A light cruiser flew in close, sending ripples through the swamp around the two stormtroopers. It turned and presented the gangplank, upon which Kirgard stood beside Dahl and a clone trooper with gray markings that CX-2 didn't recognize. Ferrus helped CX-2 to his feet.
"Hey, kids," the clone trooper said, reaching out a hand and hoisting CX-2 aboard. "Hear you needed a pickup."
The clone trooper handed CX-2 over to Kirgard, then turned to help Ferrus.
They followed the trooper inside the ship, the gangplank lifting behind them. The trooper pulled off his helmet and turned, revealing a clone with a white cybernetic eye bisecting a long scar that ran the length of his face.
"Commander Wolffe," Kirgard said, "This is Sergeant Ferrus and CX-2."
The two sodden stormtroopers saluted.
"Thanks for the assist," Kirgard said. "Our ship was destroyed by some rogue clones."
Wolffe frowned. "You didn't happen to get a look at their armor, did you?"
"I didn't, but I think CX-2 did." Kirgard turned to the clone.
"The blue markings and jaig eyes are consistent with Captain Rex's armor," CX-2 said.
Wolffe sighed. "I thought so. He's been popping up all over the galaxy recently, causing trouble."
Kirgard nodded. "We actually ran into him a few weeks back. Slippery devil."
Wolffe chuckled. "That he is." The older commander sobered up. "If Rex is on your tail, it's only a matter of time before he catches you. I've never met a clone commander with more ingenuity and tenacity."
As they walked, CX-2 felt strength returning to his legs. He indicated this to Kirgard, who dropped his supporting arm but kept an eye on the clone as they followed after Wolffe.
"Sir, what happened to the clones?" CX-2 asked.
"Got away," Kirgard growled.
Wolffe said, "They escaped on their shuttle. We saw them break orbit right before we entered the atmosphere."
When Vulture Squad had a minute alone, Kirgard turned to CX-2.
"What happened, soldier? Why didn't you fire your jetpack?"
CX-2 exchanged a look with Ferrus. He was fairly certain she wouldn't tell his secret.
Ferrus's helmet twitched downward ever so slightly in a barely perceptible nod. Some of the tension went out of CX-2's shoulders. He turned back to Kirgard.
"Stunned by a stray shot from one of the clones, sir," CX-2 said.
Kirgard placed a hand on CX-2's shoulder. "Nothing to be ashamed of, soldier. You did well out there."
"The clones survived."
Kirgard face was grim. "I'm going to speak with Moff Tarkin about that. Those clones are more than a nuisance. They need to be dealt with properly."
Rex carefully slipped the blood-stained knife into a case and sealed it.
He placed it into a storage compartment, then wandered back to the cockpit, where Howzer was staring out the viewport at the swirling vortex of hyperspace. The clone looked up at Rex as the captain sat down in the copilot's chair.
"I hope this was worth it," Howzer said.
Rex let out a sigh and allowed himself to relax into the chair. "Even if it's not Tech, at least we'll know for certain. That peace of mind will be worth it."
"And if it is Tech?"
"Then we'll try to rescue him, same as everyone else."
Howzer frowned. "I dunno, Rex. The way he went after us…I'd swear he's one that doesn't want to be rescued. There are some, you know."
Rex rubbed his temples, willing the beginnings of a headache to go away. "Let's worry about that when we get there. We still don't know if it's actually him."
Howzer nodded, then went back to staring out the viewport.
I'm not really sure whether I want it to be Tech or not, Rex realized. The thought made him sick.
CX-2 wandered away in search of some privacy to mull over what he'd seen in his flashback. He found himself on a quiet lower deck, staring out a viewport.
The images from the flashback played through his mind like a holorecording on a loop. Falling, jumping free of the wreckage, the injuries. Hemlock. Then around again, as though his mind were desperately trying to etch the memory into his consciousness, lest it be forgotten again.
He took off his stormtrooper helmet and stared at his reflection in the transparisteel.
My name is Tech.
And I do have a family.