Hey everyone! We are back to see the results of Order 66! We'll be exploring the effects a little more beyond Rex and Ahsoka, though there will be plenty there.

OneLittleSpark 18: In that regard, yes. But honestly, Guilty gets happier faster than Fives Effect. Thanks so much for your consistent reviews!

Whooooo's ready for Rex to not take this well?

Mando'a and Ryl translations at the end!

Rex dreamed of Ahsoka. Not of their battles or times of pain, just a quiet moment. The sun was setting. She sat by his side and held his hands in hers. It was peaceful.

He wanted to stay there for as long as he could, but inevitably he felt the tug to wakefulness.

Deep, dark emotions met him as he woke. He remembered what had happened, what he had done. He remembered that Fives was still hanging on between life and death. He remembered that Cody had not escaped the control of the chip. He remembered looking Ahsoka in the eye and pulling the trigger.

And he remembered her tender touch as she eased the pain from his hands. He remembered the cool kiss she had pressed into his palm.

Was he imagining it, or was his hand still being held?

He opened his eyes. Ahsoka knelt at the bedside, fast asleep with her head on his bed. Her hand was curled around his. Warmth seemed to radiate from where their skin touched.

How could her touch be such a comfort? He could focus completely on it and for a moment forget the pain digging its claws into his chest.

He reached out with his other hand, fingers hovering over her face.

He didn't deserve it.

Rex jerked his hand from her grip.

He had no right to take comfort from her. He had no right to touch her in such a way. He had no right to the feelings that surged everytime she so much as looked his way.

He had betrayed her, and that stripped him of the right to love her.

Her eyes blinked open as he removed his hand.

"Rex?" She mumbled.

"I'm here." Rex said.

She focused on him. She must not have been keeping a close hold on her emotions, as he felt her genuine relief and pleasure at the sight of him. He also felt her pain, pain from the wound he had caused.

It made sense. There hadn't been enough time for it to heal much with how severe it had been. She must have fooled Kix about how she was feeling.

She reached for his hand, but he pulled it up to his chest. She blinked and then her brow furrowed.

"Is something wrong?" Rex asked, struggling to keep his voice neutral

"I thought- nevermind." Ahsoka said. "I guess I was wrong."

She studied him carefully.

"I apologize if I crossed any boundaries before." She said.

The place where she had kissed him seemed to tingle.

Rex didn't know how to respond. She hadn't, not really. He reciprocated the feelings she had displayed.

But he could not encourage her.

It was silent between them for a long time. Rex rubbed his only slightly aching hands.

"Thank you." He mumbled.

"Ne'entye." She replied.

No debt? Her unconditional love and trust burned at him. It should have been conditional. The condition should have been nearly killing her. And she was wrong. His debt to her was something he could never repay.

Nevertheless, he nodded at her response. He thought that maybe he could accept her trust. Never her love.

She relaxed a little.

"Do you want to go see Fives?" She asked him.

Rex hesitated. On one hand, he did not want to see what he had done to Fives, not to mention face his other brothers. On the other, it would be good to get an idea of Fives' condition.

"Come on." Ahsoka said. "I'm sure he'll be happy to have you there, even if he isn't awake."

Rex gave another short nod. Ahsoka got up and fetched Cettie, which Rex quickly reattached. He pulled on his gauntlets, quickly put on his armor, retrieved his blasters, and followed Ahsoka out the door.

He kept a stoic face as the clones they passed acknowledged them with a salute. They really shouldn't. He wasn't their Captain anymore and neither did he deserve to be.

Kix noticed them immediately when they entered the med bay. He approached them with a hesitant smile.

"Captain," Kix said. "How are you feeling?"

Rex pointedly ignored the question.

"How is Fives?" He asked.

He could see Jesse and Tup sitting next to Fives' prone figure.

Kix's face darkened.

"We need bacta." He said shortly.

Rex's stomach twisted.

"How about you, Commander?" Kix asked Ahsoka.

Ahsoka avoided his eye.

"I could use some pain meds." She admitted.

Kix narrowed his eyes.

"Is that so?" Kix asked.

Ahsoka shrugged and gave him a sheepish smile. Kix heaved an enormous sigh and trotted off to get the meds, Rex assumed.

Rex took his chance to make his way to Fives' bedside. His brother was too pale. Rex was reminded harshly of the rotations after his leg surgery. Part of him was glad that Fives wasn't awake for this. He'd probably go mad.

"Has he woken up at all?" He asked Tup and Jesse.

"No." Jesse said with a sigh.

Rex swallowed.

I'm sorry, brother. He thought.

Another debt he could never repay. And if Fives died-

Kix had said they needed bacta. Rex combed his mind desperately for any plan to get the life saving substance.

"The Bad Batch." He said.

"What?" Jesse asked.

"They're in a much smaller ship than us and they're used to covert missions." Rex went on. "Maybe they'll be able to steal some bacta."

Tup nodded thoughtfully.

"That might work." He said. "Even better, they don't look that much like clones. They won't be able to trace them back to the GAR."

"We'll contact them as soon as we can." Ahsoka said as Checkup administered a hypo shot to her. "It's a good idea."

She paused, and her eyes brightened.

"Master Plo is here!" She said. "Rex, with me."

Rex didn't know why she needed him to meet General Plo, but he followed her obediently anyway.

Ahsoka must have alerted General Skywalker and General Kenobi as the two were waiting for them in the hangar.

"Rex!" General Skywalker said. "It's good to see you."

Rex gave him a nod.

"How are you feeling?" General Kenobi asked.

"I'm alive." Rex said shortly.

Ahsoka gave him a glance.

"It's been hard on all of us." She said.

"General Kenobi's expression hardened into one of deep concern. General Skywalker looked outright distressed.

Rex blinked as General Kenobi laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I would like to have a word with you later, if possible, Captain." He said.

Rex hesitated but nodded, though he was sure the General just wanted to pry at his emotional state. Rex wished they wouldn't do that.

Within moments a few transports came into view. Rex's heart sank. There could only be a couple hundred troopers at most. That was all that was left of the Wolf Pack?

Ahsoka was vibrating with anxiety next to him. Rex pushed down the urge to put a calming hand on her shoulder and instead let General Skywalker do it.

"It'll be okay, Snips." The General said. "What are you getting from him?"

"He's-he's unhurt." Ahsoka said. "But- you'll be able to tell when you see him."

Rex wondered what that meant.

The first shuttle landed. Within a few minutes the ramp came down. Only Wolffe came into view. He was gripping a blaster. He jerked his head around, surveying the landing bay. He seemed to relax ever so slightly as he caught sight of the Generals and Ahsoka.

"Your clones?" He said.

"No chips." General Skywalker said.

Wolffe relaxed a degree further.

"All clear." He called behind him.

"This was completely unnecessary, Wolffe." General Plo said as he joined his commander. "Little 'Soka would have alerted me if there was any danger."

"Master Plo!" Ahsoka cried.

She rushed forward and threw her arms around him.

"Koh-to-ya, Master." She said.

"Koh-to-ya, Little 'Soka. It is good to see that you are unharmed."

Rex felt a surge of guilt. If only the General knew.

The General seemed off. He was clinging to Ahsoka as if afraid to let go.

"I must thank you, Little 'Soka." He said. "I have been informed that it was your wisdom that caused my men to be spared from the chips."

"I wish it had been more." Ahsoka said, looking at the shuttles.

"There were more." General Plo muttered. "But-"

He seemed to age dozens of years before Rex's eyes. He drooped and his tiredness was evident despite his normally unreadable face.

"We had to fight our way out. Many of my men were killed in the attempt."

"Oh, Master." Ahsoka said. "I'm sorry."

General Plo didn't respond at first.

"As a result, we have many injured." He said.

"That's not good." General Skywalker said. "Our bacta's already stretched thin."

"We have some." General Plo said. "But not enough to treat all of our injured."

"I was meaning to speak to you about that, sir." Rex said, forcing an air professionalism over himself. "If we contact the Bad Batch, they might be able to procure us some."

General Skywalker and General Kenobi took on thoughtful looks.

"They do have the reputation of achieving the impossible." General Kenobi said. "And Cody-"

He faltered. Rex's heart twisted. Wolffe looked up sharply at General Kenobi's hesitation.

"Cody always spoke highly of them." General Kenobi finished.

"We'll see if we can contact them." General Skywalker said. "In the meantime, Master Plo, would you like to rest first, or be briefed on the situation?"

"Sir, you haven't slept since before it happened." Wolffe interrupted before General Plo could say anything. "I must insist that you get some rest."

"I see the choice has been made for me." General Plo said.

"General, you're welcome to stay in my quarters." Rex said.

"I would not like to oust you from your room, Captain." General Plo said.

"It's no trouble, sir." Rex said.

He couldn't push down the thought that General Plo deserved the bed far more than he did.

"My men-" General Plo started.

"We will take care of your men, Master Plo." General Kenobi said.

"Come on, Master." Ahsoka prompted.

General Plo drooped further and allowed Ahsoka to lead him from the bay.

"Rex." Wolffe said. "A word."

Rex followed his brother a ways away from the shuttles and streams of men coming from them.

"Cody." Wolffe demanded. "Where is he?"

Rex closed his eyes for a moment and pain spiked his heart.

"He didn't get his chip out." Rex said.

Wolffe's eyes widened and then narrowed.

"That di'kut!" He growled. "I told him. I told him over and over to get it out!"

"Why didn't he?" Rex asked.

Wolffe shook his head. Rex's pain was reflected in his eyes.

"He kept saying that he didn't have the time. That he couldn't afford it if it went wrong."

Rex shook his head. For once, Cody had paid for his caution.

"I hate this!" Wolffe snarled. "Our brothers don't know what they're doing!"

"They know." Rex said. "They just can't do anything about it."

Wolffe blinked at Rex.

"How-"

"I didn't get mine out until it was too late." Rex said. "I- shot Fives. And Commander Tano. I tried to kill them."

Wolffe's nostrils flared and his gaze turned steely. He pulled his lips away from his teeth in a snarl.

It wasn't much of a shock when Wolffe backhanded Rex. The strength of it made Rex stumble, but he managed to stay on his feet.

Wolffe stared at Rex, wide eyed. Rex didn't say anything. He knew it was likely just a knee jerk reaction. And there was a part of him that felt he deserved the punishment.

"Why didn't you get it out?" Wolffe demanded.

"I didn't know." Rex said quietly. "And when I did, we didn't have the chance to get it out."

Wolffe shook his head, distressed.

"I thought-" He muttered. "If anyone could keep from trying to kill their brothers and Commander, it'd be you."

"You don't know what it's like." Rex said. "It is not something you can control."

He had tried. He had tried so hard to not murder two of the people he held most dear. He had agreed with Wolffe. He thought that his love for Ahsoka and his brothers could protect them. But the chip- it had wrapped its tentacles around him and used him as a puppet.

Rex inputted the Bad Batch's frequency. He thanked the stars that they had contacted the Defiant earlier and had passed their frequency on. Otherwise the ability to contact them would have been lost with Cody.

Cody. His poor brother. General Kenobi had made it sound like Cody himself had attacked him. Rex knew Cody would rather die than harm his General. And now he was stuck in his own head.

Rex shook himself. It was not the time to dwell on that. He waited patiently as the comm beeped. No response.

Rex wasn't too worried. Cody had said sometimes the Batch were difficult to get a hold of. He had been trying for the last few hours to contact them to no avail.

Rex was at least glad to have something to do, though it was infuriating that they wouldn't answer. It gave him a purpose, as well as a reason to stay away from Ahsoka. She herself was with the wounded, comforting and soothing them.

Rex could feel that she was still in pain, still exhausted, but she wouldn't let herself rest. She was dedicated so wholeheartedly to putting his brothers first. Despite his best efforts, it made him love her all the more.

Rex scrubbed at his eyes. He needed to stop letting her invade his thoughts. He wondered briefly if there was a way to sever their bond. But no, she would never agree to that.

He inputted the Batch's frequency once more. The comm chirped for a minute or so. Rex was about to shut it off and try again in ten minutes when the holo activated.

Hunter appeared before Rex in shimmering blue.

"Captain." Hunter said. The sergeant looked exhausted. "I am talking to the real Rex, correct?"

Rex nodded stiffly.

"Rex?" Echo's voice came from somewhere off the holo. Rex's brother came stumbling into view. "Rex, are you all right? Is Fives-"

"Fives is alive." Rex said flatly.

He could see the fear in Echo's eyes even through the holo.

"Is Commander Tano okay?" Echo asked.

"She's recovering from some- injuries." Rex said. "But she'll be fine."

Did he know? Did he know what Rex had done?

"What is it you need, Captain?" Hunter asked.

Rex brought himself back into the present and looked into Hunter's eyes.

"We need your help."

Rex quickly reported to the Generals that the Batch were willing to help. Relief sparked in both of their eyes as he shared the news.

"Thank the Force." General Skywalker muttered. "Finally, some good news."

"Did something else happen?" Rex asked, alarmed.

"Just that Palpatine is tightening his control over the galaxy." General Skywalker said, drawing a hand over his face. "He's already introducing a bunch of new laws. He's having people register themselves and switch out their currency to imperial credits."

"Which is unfortunate for us." General Kenobi said. "Any credits we had are now useless."

Rex swallowed and nodded. He had been so focused on his brothers, he had almost forgotten the galaxy as a whole.

"Any sign of Senator Amidala, sir?" Rex asked.

"I've seen Padme during some of the Senate broadcasts." General Skywalker said. "But that's all."

"At least she is alive, Anakin." General Kenobi said, placing his hand on General Skywalker's shoulder. Then he turned his gaze to Rex. "Captain, could we have that word now?"

Rex almost said no, but General Kenobi would bother him until he relented. He gave a short nod and followed General Kenobi to a nearby briefing room.

Rex stood at parade rest as General Kenobi appraised him quietly. He stared forward, avoiding General Kenobi's eyes. He wasn't looking forward to the prying and prodding the General would make him endure.

General Kenobi looked at Rex for a long time, his hand at his chin.

"You blame yourself for what happened." The General finally said.

Rex tightened his mouth and gave a short nod. Now he would have to deal with General Kenobi lecturing him about his guilt.

"I'm not going to tell you whether or not you should." General Kenobi said. "It is clear that you do regardless."

Rex blinked in surprise and finally looked at the General.

"Rex, what is important is that you cannot let your guilt get in the way of your duty." General Kenobi said.

"I haven't, sir." Rex protested.

"As of yet, no." General Kenobi said. "But what if we need you to work with Ahsoka? Or lead your men?"

Rex flinched just at the thought. General Kenobi's eyes shone with sympathy.

"If I could, I would give you time to heal, but as things are, we need everyone to be able to do what is needed of them." He said.

"Yes, sir." Rex said, and then, before he could stop himself, "But how?"

General Kenobi's eyes grew far away.

"You must focus on the now." He said. "There is nothing you can do to change the past."

"I'll- try sir." Rex said.

General Kenobi put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know you will."

Then his eyes darkened and he looked away.

"Count your blessings, Captain." A hint of bitterness had come into General Kenobi's voice. "At least she still lives."

Ahsoka walked among the injured troopers. The med bay was full near to bursting. Ahsoka wanted to speak to Kix about maybe moving some to a cargo bay, just so the troopers had more room. As for now, she soothed them. There was so much fear and uncertainty saturating the air, more than in times before. These men had to watch their brothers turn on them and their General, and now had no idea what their future held.

She was glad now for her enhanced abilities. Before, she could help only a few troopers at a time. Now she was helping dozens. The pain burning at the back of her head was a price she was willing to pay. She took a clone's hand once in a while. The men of the Wolf Pack were familiar to her and they seemed comforted by the gesture.

Wolffe was watching her. The Commander hadn't left the med bay since he'd made sure that Master Plo was resting. Now he stood with arms crossed tightly across his chest. His eyes flickered from her to the men around her.

Ahsoka was somewhat surprised when Wolffe suddenly strode towards her. She had just managed to lull one of the more injured clones, Slinger, to sleep.

"Shh." Ahsoka said as Wolffe opened his mouth.

Wolffe's ever present scowl deepened. Ahsoka just rolled her eyes. She had never been afraid of Wolffe, even when Master Plo had introduced her to him soon after she was apprenticed. Wolffe had always been somewhat grumpy, but Ahsoka knew his heart was as true as any other clone.

He jerked his head to the side and Ahsoka followed him away from the sleeping clone. Ahsoka frowned as Wolffe just stared at her for a moment.

"You okay?" He finally growled.

Ahsoka blinked in surprise.

"I'm fine." She said.

He narrowed his eyes.

"Rex told me what happened." He said. "Are you even supposed to be walking around right now?"

"Do you think Kix would let me if I wasn't?" Ahsoka countered.

Wolffe snorted and looked away.

"You're like the General." He muttered. "You don't take care of yourselves."

"Yeah? I could say the same about command clones." Ahsoka said.

Wolffe ignored the jibe and looked back at her.

"Take care of yourself." He said the words as if they were a threat. "I've lost enough vod'e."

"What-?" Ahsoka started, but Wolffe had already turned around and headed towards the other side of the med bay.

Ahsoka stared at him as he once again began surveying the injured men. She'd always known Wolffe had had a bit of a soft spot concerning her, but to consider her one of his vod'e?

Her thoughts were interrupted by her comm chirping.

"Ahsoka." It was Anakin. "Master Aayla is arriving."

Ahsoka was horrified to see a singular Jedi starfighter begin its descent into the hanger. Where were the rest of the ships? Was Aayla the only one who had survived? No- there were two lifeforms stuffed into the cockpit, though it was very clearly only made for one. One was Aayla and the other was a very weak Bly.

Seconds after the starfighter landed, the cockpit flew open. Aayla struggled out, lifting a battered Bly. Anakin quickly ran forward and took Bly from her.

"Master Secura, what happened?" Ahsoka asked, following close behind. "Bly can't have been the only one to have his chip removed."

"He wasn't." Aayla said, panting. "But please, he is badly injured. He needs medical attention now."

Anakin was already moving towards the exit.

"Many of my men had their chips removed." Aayla whispered as she and Ahsoka followed. "But it was not enough."

Ahsoka looked sharply at Aayla.

"You and Bly were the only survivors?" She asked.

Aayla nodded. Her eyes were sparkling with unshed tears.

"The clones with chips destroyed all of the escape pods and had begun destroying the transports. When we arrived at the hangar, only my fighter and transports in need of repair were left."

Aayla's eyes were fixed on Bly's limp form.

"My men- they insisted that Bly and I escape." She said. "I- do not know what happened to them when we left."

"It's possible that they were taken prisoner." Ahsoka said.

She didn't quite believe herself. She knew that the chipped clones considered their unchipped brothers to be traitors and dealt with them as such.

Aayla nodded vaguely.

"Force willing." She said.

The lines of stress in Kix's face deepened when he saw Bly in Anakin's arms.

"Here." He said, gesturing to a free cot. "What happened to him?"

"Two shots to the shoulder." Aayla said as Anakin deposited Bly in the bed. "Possible internal damage and wounds from shrapnel in his abdomen. He was caught in an explosion."

Kix nodded and summoned two other medics with a wave of his hand. Bly's eyes cracked open and he let out a sharp, gasping noise. His hands grasped the air where his blasters would have been and struggled to sit up.

Aayla was immediately at his side, clutching his hand.

"Be calm, my Bly." She murmured.

Bly blinked and half raised a hand.

"A'la" He mumbled. "Safe?"

"I am safe. We are safe." Aayla said. "Lie still, ma sareen. You can trust your brothers again."

Aayla let go of his hand and let Kix and the other medics swarm him. Ahsoka didn't miss the tears Aayla wiped away or the pained look on Anakin's face.

"Now, Skywalker." Aayla turned to Anakin. "Tell me what has happened."

As Anakin explained the situation, Ahsoka decided to go find Rex. He deserved to know what was happening with Bly. And- she wanted to see him. She knew he was avoiding her. Normally she would respect his wishes and leave him be, but she was scared for him.

His actions under the chip had broken a part of him. He truly hated himself now. But that wasn't the only thing that terrified Ahsoka. What if this made him sink back into the darkness he had been trapped in on the medical station? What if she lost him to it for good?

Rex was still mostly blocking her from his mind, but she was still able to find him easily. He was sitting in a briefing room, studying a datapad.

He looked up as she entered. He was doing well at keeping his emotions under wraps at the moment. He almost seemed normal.

"Commander." He said.

Ahsoka nearly protested the title. He had been using her name for months. The only time he'd switched back was during the dark period during his recovery.

"General Secura and Bly have arrived."

Rex blinked at her.

"Just Bly?" He asked.

Ahsoka quickly told him what Aayla had told her. A flicker of distress danced across his face.

"Only Bly." He muttered. "Of the whole legion."

Ahsoka took a step towards him. He immediately stood. The message was clear. He did not want her near him.

"He'll be okay." Ahsoka assured him. "You said the Bad Batch will be here soon?"

"Within the rotation." Rex said. "And then we can get the bacta."

"I've talked to Anakin." Ahsoka said. "He says we both can go along."

Rex's hands twitched at her words.

"You, sir?" He asked.

"Yes." Ahsoka said. "I've worked with the Batch before, and it's best to have a Force user."

"I- I see." Rex said.

Even though she knew it was because of some stupid self sacrificing desire to punish himself, it still hurt that he did not want to be around her. She wanted to be near him and have him as the steady rock he'd been throughout the war for her.

"Rex," She said. She would get it through his thick head that she was there for him now. "I'm here if you need to talk."

He nodded at the table.

"Yes, sir."

Ryl:

Ma sareen: my sweet

Mando'a:

Ne'entye: no debt. an original response to the traditional Mandalorian thank you, vor entye, which is I accept the debt

di'kut: idiot

vod'e: brothers/sisters

Rex NEARLY accepted that Ahsoka loves him and that he loves her too. NEARLY. But unfortunately nearly killing the person you love (plus a close brother) causes extreme self-worth and worthiness issues.

We kinda bounce around this chapter, just getting some more characters in play. Plo may or may not have been irreparably traumatized by this whole event. I don't know if he personally had to kill any of his sons, but even watching them kill each other was extremely damaging to him.

Wolffe hitting Rex is just knee-jerk and not completely directed at Rex. Wolffe is just stressed outta his gourd. (plus Rex welcomes any punishment atm)

Rex, deciding he can't be in love with Ahsoka, proceeds to fall more in love with Ahsoka. I like to imagine that Echo shoulder bashed Hunter out of frame to talk to Rex.

I figured Obi Wan would understand Rex's predicament. He was basically the one who caused Satine's death and had to carry on. His is the first telling Rex off that will help Rex get over himself. (also a bit of bitter Obi Wan as a treat)

Wolffe 100 percent sees Ahsoka as a younger sister and is pissed that she's been hurt and then not resting. Wolffe is pissed by the whole situation.

Aayla and Bly basically had an Ahsoka and Rex experience, except they had more support. I love the idea of Aayla's men knowing of her and Bly's love and wanting to protect it. I haven't decided if her unchipped men are dead or not. I also just headcanon that Aayla's pet name for Bly is just 'my Bly.' His for her is just 'ner Aayla', or my Aayla in Mando'a. I dunno it's really cute to me.

And Ahsoka is never going to give up on Rex, no matter how dumb he's being.

Welp, wear your masks, remember to review, and see you next week for the Fives Effect!