Death's Choice

By Ammie Hawk

Disclaimer: Need I say more…

AN: Well, I did it, I managed to complete this chapter in time to post it for my birthday. Happy Birthday to me! On another note, please note that the rating on this fic did change. There is no actual sex in here, but there are implications, and lots of talk about it. So, you have been warned. Anyway, onward and upward.

Chapter 25: Finally!

Rex leaned against the wall of the shower as he allowed the water to cascade over him. It was a rare occurrence when he had the showers to himself, and rarer still when he actually allowed himself to relax and enjoy it. But it was late, and most everyone was already bunked down for the night, well, except the night shift of course. And he felt he needed, and deserved, the moment of peace and quiet.

Things had been tense around Tipoca City for the last month or so, ever since Prime had gone off on the mission with the Jedi. He knew most everyone was on edge that Prime, their newly appointed leader, had assigned himself to the mission, but he wasn't exactly sure why. They had a Council for a reason after all. It wasn't like everything would crumble just because he had gone off planet. Besides, Kote had been put in charge while he was gone, so everything would be fine.

No, his main concern was that Kom'rk had also been assigned to the mission. And while logically he knew and understood that they would be going to separate fronts in this war, they each had their own specialties after all, it was a bit harder to accept in practice. It also didn't help that he was being left behind. He always just assumed they would be sent out almost simultaneously. If he had his own orders and objectives, he wouldn't be able to focus on the fact that his buir was out there on his own with very little backup.

And then Prime had had the gall to show back up with just the Jedi in tow. He had barely managed to wait until their guest had left before he laid into the older male. What had followed was an intense hour of him alternating between yelling and punching at his progenitor. Finally, though, Prime had obviously had enough and easily laid him flat on his back. The jackass had then leaned down and told him he should have more faith in his buir. Kom'rk had apparently had a separate mission of his own and should be back soon. He had then gotten up, humiliated and properly chastised, and had stormed off. Luckily, the rest of the Nulls were there to usher him off to their quarters so he could lick his wounds and injured pride in peace.

His hand clenched into a fist against the stall wall. He needed to not think about that right now. It was over and done with. He shook his head and turned off the water. He blindly reached for the towel he had placed safely away from the spray of water and secured it around his waist.

It was well and truly over because Kom'rk had returned two days later, and the stalemate between him and Prime had finally ended. When he had received word that his buir's ship was inbound he had dropped everything to run out to greet him. The ramp had barely descended before he was practically launching himself at the older male. Kom'rk had laughed as he caught him, claiming that if that was the kind of greeting he could expect he would have to leave more often. Rex had punched him for that.

A smile flitted across his features at the memory as he made his way over to where he had stashed his clothes. Now, if only he could get his son back his life would be complete. Well, mostly complete, but that was neither here nor there. And since that was unlikely to ever happen, he would take what he could get, right?

He had just finished drying off and slipped his pants on when he felt more than heard someone come up behind him. He whirled around, ready to defend himself, if necessary, only to meet the amused gaze of his buir.

"Kom'rk, what are you doing here?" he shook his head as he turned back to grab his shirt.

"Picking you up," he could hear the smirk in the other's voice. "You're late."

"Late?" incredulous brown eyes turned to the older male. "For what? You know what? Don't answer that. Look, Kom'rk, it's late and I'm heading to bed. Whatever this is can wait until morning."

"Actually, no it can't," the Null shook his head and took hold of his arm, leading him toward the exit. "Ordo has gone to a lot of trouble to set this up, so you're going."

"I don't care if Ordo painted the entire training hall blue," he wrenched himself free and went back to finish getting dressed. "It can wait until morning."

"No can do, it's time sensitive," Kom'rk countered. "So, you're going. Don't make me have to carry you, Rex'ika."

"I'm done playing, Kom'rk," he sighed heavily. "I'm tired. Tell Ordo I'm sorry, but I'm going to bed."

"Okay, you asked for it," his buir grabbed him and tossed him over his shoulder. "You'll thank me for this in the morning."

"Kom'rk put me down!" he snapped.

"You better shut up, Rex, or I'm gonna have to gag you," the older male threatened.

A mulish expression crossed the blond's features, but he did keep his mouth closed, knowing the other would follow through on his threat. Instead, he decided to track their progress, planning to escape as soon as it was feasibly possible. It didn't take long, however, before they came to a stop in a deserted corridor.

He frowned as he took in their destination. If he was remembering right, this hallway was used for nothing but storage. What would Ordo have planned for him here?

His thoughts were derailed when he heard the distinct sound of a keypad lock being disengaged. Before he could even think to question what his buir was doing, he was unceremoniously dump inside the room. He didn't even have a chance to get a good look around before the door was sliding closed behind him.

"Don't let it… Damn it!" a new voice cursed as the loud click of the lock reengaging filled the room.

Wait, he knew that voice.

"Kote?" he frowned as his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting.

"Rex?" the other sounded just as confused as he felt.

"Kote, what's going…" he was cut off as a pair of lips claimed his own.

His brain seemed to short circuit at the contact. Kote was kissing him! Never in his wildest dreams had he thought something like this would actually happen. Sure, he wanted it, more than anything, but reality hardly ever lined up with fantasy.

Luckily, it didn't seem he really needed higher brain functions as he felt himself responding to the kiss. His arms wrapped around the brunet's shoulders, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss, his hand tangling in the short dark strands of the other's hair. In that moment, he realized it was everything he ever wanted.

After several long moments, the CC pulled back. A small, unhappy sound escaped his throat as Kote rested his forehead against his own.

"Rex, we should…" the other began, a bit breathlessly.

"Kote, don't," he closed his eyes, not wanting to see the rejection that was most likely in the brunet's gaze.

He knew Kote had a point. They should stop and at least talk, but he didn't want to. He didn't want to be logical or rational at this point. For once in his life, he wanted to be selfish. Was that so wrong? Was it so wrong that he wanted this moment for himself, even if nothing else ever came of it? And it wasn't like he was forcing the other. Hell, Kote had started it. And godsdamnit, he was going to fucking finish it.

"Don't stop. Please."

A soft groan left the other as their lips crashed together again. Very carefully, and without trying to break the kiss, Kote lowered them both to the floor.

888888

The Senate Rotunda was an immense building located on Coruscant that served as the seat of the Senate of the Galactic Republic. It was a large domed structure with colossal statues outside the building commemorating the Republic's ancient founders. Sentients of all sizes and species were coming and going in droves, among them a small group of Jedi Initiates and their two guardians.

Masters Feemor and Ali-Alann were taking the two clans, Thranta and Dragon, on a joint trip to the Senate so the younglings could get a glimpse of how the government worked. It was a standard trip the Initiates made yearly as part of their core classes. The clans that went together were never the same as they tried to pair a group of older Initiates with younger ones. This had the added benefit of pairing each of the younger children with an older one, using a buddy system to help keep the group mostly together. However, should someone accidentally get separated, the younglings were not left fully on their own.

Cal Kestis, a member of Dragon clan, stood near the back of the group with his charge for the day, a little raven-haired human from Thranta clan named Harry. He didn't know the younger boy well, having just met him recently, during a joint training lesson between the two clans.

It was a common practice in the Temple for older and younger Initiates to practice their katas and saber forms together, and sometimes have heavily supervised spars. This, they claimed, gave the younglings a chance to test their newly developing skills, and the older ones a lesson in restraint and control. As a youngling, he remembered looking forward to those lessons. But now, being one of the older and, therefore, more responsible ones, it sucked. Not that he could voice that thought too loudly, or the instructors would force him to be one of the first to 'volunteer.'

As soon as the two clans had come together in the training room, the younger boy had made a beeline for Caleb, one of Cal's fellow clan members and also one of his close friends. Apparently, the two of them had met in the Archives, of all places, and were now pretty good friends. He actually thought he was a pretty interesting kid, all things considered.

Shortly thereafter, Master Drallig called the lesson to start and had immediately paired Harry with Cal for a spar. The redhead had expected a clumsy fumbling of a match, where he would have to hold himself back more than anything, so he didn't hurt the kid. Only, Harry was good. Not in the traditional forms, no. What he did was something else entirely. Half the time it seemed the little raven forgot he even had a lightsaber at all, but he still managed to keep Cal on his toes. He had had to call on all his training to not only not hurt the youngling but keep himself from getting hurt as well. Finally, Masters Feemor, Alann, and Drallig had to step in and put a stop to it.

After that, Cal had practically begged Caleb to take him with him the next time he met up with Harry. There just hadn't been an opportunity yet. He couldn't help it though, he was really intrigued by the youngling, and he wanted to get to know him better.

Maybe that could happen here. Master Ali-Alann had paired him up with the little raven after all, not Caleb. Though, that may have been more for sanity's sake than anything else. When those two got together they seemed to get lost in their own little world and got distracted by everything.

He was brought back to the present as the group came to as stop just outside and to the side of the main entrance. Master Ali-Alann was going over the rules one more time as Master Feemor's gaze drifted over the group, probably taking a head count. They then made their way inside, the Master's tone shifting to that of a lecture as he explained the history of the Republic and the duties of the Senate.

Cal let the speech flow over him without really listening to a word of it, having heard it several times already in his young life. Instead, he let his gaze travel over their surroundings. The Senate building, as always, was an amazing display of diversity and character, both in its design and the sentients who populated it, and it never ceased to captivate the redhead. Though, there was something different about this trip, something off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what.

It was as they walked further into the building that he noticed several of the pairs in front of him pointing and whispering as they went. His gaze followed where one of the younglings was pointing and it was then that he noticed several figures in white armor stationed all around the room. Those must be the new soldiers for the army they had heard rumors about. He had to admit they were kind of intimidating.

A soft gasp sounded from beside him and he glanced down at the little raven. Wide green eyes were locked on a point across the room where five troopers were turning to head down a hallway. He couldn't really make out much about them, except that there were red accents along their armor. That didn't seem to deter Harry, though, as he took off in that direction without a word.

"Harry!" he hissed as he raced after the younger boy.

It didn't seem to matter, though. The other wasn't listening as he nimbly darted through the crowd. It was all Cal could do to keep eyes on the boy. Luckily, the hallway was mostly deserted, and the redhead's longer legs were able to close the distance between them. He had just managed to grab hold of the other as the troopers were rounding a corner.

"Fox!" Harry called after them, struggling desperately against the older boy.

All five of the troopers froze. The one in the front's head turned so fast Cal worried for the poor being's neck. They just stood there for several long moments with their helmets trained on the two Initiates. The redhead just stared back, not daring to move under the intensity of those gazes. The younger boy, however, was still trying his hardest to break free.

It felt like an eternity passed before the leader finally broke the stare off. He took a hesitant step forward, and then another, before breaking out into a jog toward them. He dropped to his knees as he came to a stop in front of them. He reached out with one arm and wrapped it around the little raven while his other hand reached up and ripped the helmet from his head.

"Fox," Harry practically sobbed into the man's neck.

"Hey," the now identified Fox pulled back slightly so he could look in the boy's eyes. "And here I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"Uh-huh," the little head bobbed once in affirmation.

Cal watched the scene unfolding in front of him in mounting confusion. Yeah, he had heard of the clones, and how they were now the Grand Army of the Republic, but as far as he knew only the older Jedi had actually met them. And that was only because they were now Generals and Commanders in the war effort or had been in the battle of Geonosis. It made no sense for Harry, who was younger than he was, to be so familiar with a random trooper.

"So, how've you been, kid?" the trooper asked, once all the tears had stopped. "You been good?"

"Always," the youngling muttered, still clinging to the man.

"I'll believe that when I see it," the brunet scoffed.

"You're an ass," green eyes rolled in fond annoyance. "Is my daddy here?"

"Oh, I see how it is," the man clutched at his heart as if wounded. "You have no love for you Uncle Fox."

"Nope," a soft giggle escaped the boy as he shook his head.

"Well, at least you're honest," Fox laughed. "Anyway, the answer is no, your dads aren't here."

"Oh," the little head drooped dejectedly.

"Though," the trooper tapped his chin in thought, "if you and your little friend want to come to my office, I'm sure we could comm them."

"Really?" hopeful green eyes rose to lock with brown.

"Harry, we really should get back to the others," the redhead interjected. "Master Ali-Alann is probably already looking for us."

"You can go," Harry turned to him. "Thire will take you back so you're not alone. I'm gonna stay with Fox. I wanna talk to my dads."

"But Harry…"

"He's right, kid," Fox pushed to his feet, the younger boy still secured against his chest. "Thire can take you back," he motioned to one of the others, who stepped forward, "but Harry's coming with me."

"I can't leave him," Cal frowned in indecision. "He's my responsibility."

"Alright then," the man nodded and started off down the hallway. "Come along then."

888888

Kote lay on the floor of the storage room, one arm under his head while the other was wrapped around his current companion, his hand tracing idle patterns on the other's arm. The blond's head rested on his chest as they both came down from their post coital high.

How he had ended up in this predicament had been sheer stupidity on his part. He had foolishly followed Ordo when he had said he wanted to talk with him privately. He knew better than to trust that sadistic bastard. Once they had reached a deserted corridor, the bastard had shoved him in the closet and locked the door from the outside.

And he couldn't even attempt to get out, not that he didn't try, but there were no overrides on the inside, an oversight he was personally going to look into when he got out. As if the asshole had intended just that, he had been caught preparing to bunk down for the night, so his armor, with all its added accoutrements, had been removed and stored away. He hadn't even grabbed his comm since he hadn't been expecting his fellow Council member to pull something like this. Though, with how sadistic the Null batch was, he wasn't actually surprised by the development.

He wasn't sure, however, what the older male hoped to accomplish with it. Oh, he knew why brothers locked each other in the closets. There were the usual bickering and pranks, though those usually resulted in the loser or victim shoved in a fresher stall or locker, sometimes locked in their sleep pods. Closets and storerooms were usually reserved for the idiots who were too stubborn to get their heads out of their asses and admit they had feelings for one another.

He himself had helped facilitate that exact thing for Wolffe and Fox. Not that that had worked how anyone had expected. Those two had not come out of there as an exclusive couple. No, they had gone from being assholes almost exclusively to each other to teaming up to be even bigger assholes together, and no one was spared.

There were, however, others who had actually used the opportunity to get together. Rex had told him about how they had done so for Waxer and his partner, now dubbed Boil, and they had been together for almost a year now.

The surprise had been when Rex had been shoved in there with him. He had expected something like this in the past, especially from his own squad, what with the rumors going around about the two of them. But that didn't explain Ordo's involvement. The Nulls were assholes on a good day, even more than the Alphas, but they became complete and utter bastards when it came to something they perceived as theirs. And as loathe as he was to admit it, ever since the return from Geonosis that included the blond. And it had only gotten worse after Kom'rk had returned from the mission with Prime and the Jedi.

"Kote," speak of the devil, Rex shifted slightly so he was now looking at his face, "not that I'm complaining, cause I'm really, really not, but what the hell was that about?"

"It was just sex, Rex," he let out a slow breath, trying to keep his voice even.

He didn't want the other to know he was lying. It wasn't just sex to him. He hadn't planned for them to have sex, but as soon as he realized it was Rex who had been thrown in there with him, he knew he had to do something. He had to take the chance while he had it, even if the other had completely rejected him. He just had to know, one way or the other. Because at the end of the day, all he wanted was for Rex to be happy, even if it wasn't with him.

"No, Kote," the blond propped himself up on his elbow, causing Kote's hand to slip to his back but he refused to actually remove it, "you don't get to use that on me. I'm the one that lectured you on it the first time you had sex with Wolffe."

He barely managed to keep himself from blanching at the reminder. What Rex didn't know about that, and he wasn't inclined to share either, was that that hadn't just been his first time with Wolffe, it had been his first time having sex period. Another thing he was unwilling to admit to was that he, unlike the majority of the Vod'e, wasn't that cavalier about sex. Yes, he'd had sex since, but it wasn't a common occurrence, only when his own hand wouldn't quite cut I, and usually only with a select few vod'e, namely members of his squad. So, no, for him it wasn't just sex, especially not with Rex. But if that was what the other needed it to be, then that was what it would be.

"Maybe you should take it up with the Nulls," he bit out, more harshly than he intended. "They're the ones that locked us in here."

He finally released the blond and made to get up. He couldn't do this. He had indulged in the fantasy that he could actually have what he wanted, but reality was starting to creep back in. And when that door finally opened, things would go back to the way they were before. Rex would return to those he had chosen, and he would be nothing more than his friend, and now one time fuck. And he was just going to have to live with that.

Before he even managed to sit up, the blond moved. Strong legs bracketed his hips as hands pressed his shoulders back to the floor. It wasn't an overly strong hold, and one he could easily break if he wanted to. But maybe he wasn't quite ready for the dream to end just yet.

"Oh, I'll deal with Ordo and Kom'rk as soon as we get out of here," Rex's eyes flashed dangerously in the low lighting. "Right now, you're going to answer my fucking question. That was some of the best sex I've had. But up until I walked into this room you have never, not once in all the years I've known you, shown any sign of being interested. So, what the fuck is going on? You owe me that much at least."

"You've never shown any interest either," he snapped irritably.

"I literally crawled into your sleep pod naked, Kote," the blond leveled him with an unimpressed stare.

"You have never come to my bed naked," he countered, he would've remembered that.

"Okay, so it was mostly naked," brown eyes rolled in annoyance. "It was still less than I ever wore around you outside the showers or lockers. And you just told me to go to sleep."

Right, he did remember that. It had been almost a year before Harry had shown up. The blond joining him had not been an uncommon occurrence, though the state of undress had been rather jarring. But given the elevated heartrate and slightly heavy breathing, he figured something had upset the other and had done what he'd always done. He had wrapped his arms around the younger male and urged him to go back to sleep.

"Rex," he shook his head, "you have been coming to my bed since we first met as cadets. And I know you prefer not to wear the regulation sleepwear if you can get away with it. I thought you had a nightmare. But none of that… this… matters. You've already made your choice."

"What do you mean none of it matters?" a frown marred the other's features as his brows drew together in confusion. "What choice are you fucking talking about?"

With a faint growl, Kote pushed himself into a sitting position. He wasn't going to have this conversation lying on his back. He didn't want to have this conversation at all, but apparently that wasn't an option. Especially since the stubborn blond refused to remove himself from his lap.

"It doesn't matter because as soon as that door opens, you'll go back to the Nulls," he snapped bitterly. "And I'll just be another notch on your bedpost."

"What?" Rex's scowl deepened. "Why are you so hung up on the Nulls? You do realize they are the ones that locked us in here, right?"

"Feigned ignorance isn't a good look for you, Rex," he snorted. "The Nulls don't like anyone but each other. Yet, now, you're always with them. And they're always dragging you off places. And touching you. Especially Kom'rk."

"Wait, are you jealous, Kote? Of Kom'rk?" an incredulous laugh escaped the other's lips. "Gods, Kote, there's no need…"

"Everyone sees it, Rex," his eyes narrowed, he didn't appreciate being laughed at. "It's all anyone talks about."

"Yeah," the blond scoffed. "Well, last I heard you and I being together was main scuttlebutt. But we both know that's not true. So why would you listen to fucking rumors instead of just talking to me?"

Kote looked away, unable to meet Rex's gaze. He didn't have a good answer for that. He had, over the years, gotten pretty good about ignoring the rumor mill, or at least adequately parsing out the facts from fiction. But this one had gotten under his skin, and he hadn't even tried to refute it.

"And for your information," the other continued, a slight bite to his tone. "Kom'rk adopted me. And I have been taking the opportunity to get to know my new family, whether I really want to or not, cause they're pushy ass bastards."

"Wait, he… adopted you?" a frown marred his features as his eyes snapped back to his companion. "But… but Prime adopted us."

"A bit underhandly at that, too," Rex snorted. "Kal keeps trying to get me to declare him dar'buir, but I haven't decided yet. And as Kom'rk pointed out when he offered, most sentients in the galaxy have more than one parent."

"But why didn't you tell me before?" he shook his head. "We never kept secrets from each other before."

"Right," the blond reached up and rubbed his hand over his close-cropped hair. "That was actually A'den's idea. He thought it'd be hilarious to see how long it would take everyone to figure it out. The others agreed, and I kinda just went along with it."

"In other words," Kote snorted, "you've been taking a page out of Harry's book and just been soaking up the attention."

"Don't bad mouth my son that way," the other pulled a face.

"He's our son," he countered fondly. "And I wasn't bad mouthing him, I was calling you a tubie."

"Kote," gold eyes narrowed into a glare, "stop changing the subject."

"I'm not changing the subject," he shook his head. "If anything, you are."

"No, I'm not," the blond snapped. "You are dodging my question. Effectively, yes. But still dodging. So, tell me, Kote, what the fuck this," he motioned between them, "is about. And don't bring up the Nulls again. They may have locked us in here but they're not the ones who had sex with me. I'm starting to think I'm just another notch on your bedpost."

"I don't have notches on my bedpost," he snapped indignantly. "Besides, you're the one who told me not to stop."

"Of course I wasn't going to let you stop, Kote," Rex countered. "I've only been dreaming about that since we first found out what sex was. All you had to do was ask. Hell, any hint that that's what you wanted, and I would've been there."

Kote's lips cut the other off as he brought them together in a demanding kiss. The blond groaned as he returned the kiss with equal fervor.

"Be mine," it was more of an order than a request, but he really couldn't bring himself to care at this point. "No one else's, just mine."

"Gods, yes," Rex agreed on a moan. "But you still haven't answered my question."

"Because you drive me crazy, Rex," he began trailing biting kisses down the other's neck, intending to leave as many visible marks as he could. "You make me lose any sense of control I ever had. And the thought of losing you to those bastards before I even got to say anything was unacceptable."

"Jealous bastard," the blond chuckled, bringing him back up for another kiss as his hips began grinding down.

Before he could do more than wrap his arms around the other and pull him closer, the door hissed open, and the room was flooded with bright light. They both turned to glare at the intruder but refused to actually break apart. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust and when they did Kote recognized the other as Sinker.

"Go away," he growled, returning his attention back to the man in his arms. "We're busy."

"Sorry, sir," the newcomer shook his head, "but a call just came in from Coruscant. It's Commander Fox, sir."

"Get Wolffe to handle it," he said through clenched teeth.

"He's the one that sent me, sir," Sinker countered, clearly unaffected by his tone. "He said there's a tooka situation, sir."

He didn't have a chance to respond before Rex was moving. The blond was almost out the door when Kote managed to catch his arm.

"At least put your pants on, Rex," he shook his head fondly as he started pulling on his own clothes. "Tell Wolffe we'll be right there, Sinker."

Ammie: Okay, so these two idiots are finally, finally together. They fought me hard on this, but it happened. And Harry has now been reunited with the clones, maybe not his dads yet, but still, it's a start. Anyway, please let me know what you think.