Radical - Part 1

It had been so quiet without the antics of Alpha Company to keep her entertained. It seemed after the successful defence of Kamino, the Jedi and Kaminoans wholly agreed to Zaiya's programs and the Alpha clones being deployed as specialist units to lead other teams in the GAR.

Moreover, after her little chat with Rex and Cody, word had quickly spread that she was the big sister of the entire army. She was sure that was just an exaggeration on Jax's part but she could not say she hated the name.

The aftermath of the battle had left Kamino scarred and scorched. Some of the damage was still being repaired. There had been a big debrief and she'd been reprimanded for killing the general, however it was a slap on the wrist considering the warning she'd given on the attack itself.

That too had been a sticking point. She'd been dragged into a meeting with Shaak Ti, Kenobi, Skywalker and the Jedi Council on a holo call to explain just how she had known about the attack. It was a question she'd been dreading but it was her fortune that the ways of the Nightsisters were not known to outsiders, and so they didn't need to know that her foresight was not as common as she suggested it to be. Zaiya did admit to not knowing specifics, only that the sense of danger made her act.

Perhaps they might think her as reckless but of all people it was Skywalker that had vouched for her to the others. Immediately she picked up that Skywalker didn't have as high standing when it came to some of the council members, which she found very interesting. She would have to look up much more about the Jedi when she had the chance.

After this meeting they seemed to deem her not a threat to the Republic, much to her relief. Though she would have to try and keep her head down for the remainder of her time on Kamino… if that were possible for her of course.

For the rest of the galaxy, fighting had increased and she was now training ARC cadets and a separate class of Trooper that had seen combat and was now slated for the ARC program. It seemed there were more of them pending for the program every week. The strategies and lessons she and Jango had designed together were successful and now even revered. Funny what a few combat situations could do.

She'd been getting the reports in to keep up to date with the most recent news and the current battle of great interest was the blockade of Crystophsis, though the information was spotty, being 'big sister' she had some perks. Getting information was one of them, and she found the chatter to be most interesting. The mention of a sith assassin had piqued her interest, especially the description, pale, tattoos, willowy frame. Even the name, Asajj Ventress, the latter similar to her own and the dossier on the woman made Zaiya shiver. If this woman was indeed a Nightsister, as Zaiya suspected, it meant things would become very difficult for the clones. Especially a Sith-trained one. It made her equally sickened to think - had Sidious chosen the other child - that could have been her. The idea of her striking down her own brothers… she dare not think of it.

Instead she found herself incredibly intrigued by the report of a clone traitor, one that had rebelled against the Republic and had given away movements and plans to the enemy. Rex had been the one to tell her about it, saying how he and Cody had managed to trick and apprehend Sergeant Slick and take him into custody. By the time Zaiya had heard about it, Slick was already on his way back to Kamino for decommission.

It didn't feel right.

Why had Slick turned on his brothers? Rex had only been vague, so she was determined to get to the bottom of it.

This felt important. The ship with the Sergeant on it was due to arrive in a few hours, she decided to get as much reading done on the reports filed, after a battle, the clone in question was caught after blowing up the weapons depot and several carrier ships.

It had been Rex and Cody that had managed to catch him, they credited some of their ARC training as their reasoning for being able to anticipate the Sergeant's movements. Some of the things said in the report were interesting, and once Crystophsis was clear, Slick had been on the first return ship to Kamino. There was too much there for her to ignore, so she decided to get to work, putting a little plan together of her own.


When Slick was dragged off the ship, Zaiya was waiting for him, beside her was one of the AZ droids and she escorted the traitor and the clones guarding him to one of the detention rooms. She hated this place, it was the coldest part of Tipoca City and one of the heaviest, the air itself felt thick, it was where clones were sent to be destroyed. Destroyed like they were objects, the whole thought of it disgusted her. She had to move quickly however, lest one of the Kaminoans decided to interfere.

The clone Sergeant sat opposite her and she dismissed everyone, ensuring there were no others to witness or record the conversation.

"I need to know something Sergeant," she began, his dark eyes looked back at her with contempt.

"You want to know why?" he sneered.

"Yes," she replied simply, "I read the reports, but I want to hear it from you,"

"So you can call me deficient too? I've had enough of it, just get this over with," he turned away. He projected anger and defiance, but she could feel that beyond it, beyond all of it… he was scared. She could not say she blamed him.

"If having an opinion makes one deficient then we all are," she replied calmly, "I know you will have mixed feelings about this, your brothers were hurt… but that's not why you did it, is it? You're not some heartless traitor, that doesn't care for your brothers-"

"No!" he spun in his chair to face her, "I love my brothers, they just don't understand!"

"No of course not, how could they?" she agreed, goading him to keep going.

"No, they - they have been brainwashed to fight - it's not even our war!" he retorted, getting caught up now and opening up a little. "The Jedi commissioned us, sent us to fight, they keep me and my brothers enslaved! The worst part is, my brothers don't see it! They don't see how we are just sent to our deaths! Loyal to a Republic that thinks of us as objects rather than flesh and blood!" Zaiya was stunned, hearing her own thoughts straight from a clone trooper's mouth.

"Then you didn't care for the credits," she urged and Slick scoffed.

"I only needed enough to start a life outside of the army, to get out from under the heel of the Republic… but it was the Freedom I wanted! The sooner the war is over, the less of my brothers die and the sooner we have a chance to be free!" His fist slammed into the durasteel table and the Nightsister stared at him. She hadn't fully made up her mind before this moment, but now she had spoken to him, she understood.

"What would you do with it?" she asked, lacing her gloved fingers together on the table in front of her. Her usual all-black attire made her rather imposing, though that was its purpose. Slick looked back at her a little confused.

"What?"

"Your freedom. If you were not a soldier, what would you do?"

"I… I would want to work for myself, be able to choose what I do, whether I served someone or not, it would be my choice who I was loyal to… and… and maybe I would have the chance to have a real life, a family of my own…" he trailed off and his carob coloured eyes shifted to the table between them, there was a wistful sorrow in his voice. "But it doesn't matter, does it? I'm never going to get that chance and I am not going to be free…"

"Never say never, soldier," she told him and raised her comm to speak into it, "AZI, did you complete the task I assigned you?" she asked.

[Yes, Lieutenant-General, the decommission report is complete.]

"And the armour?"

[I have it in the adjoining room,] the droid replied, she may have tampered with the droid's functions just a little to make it more compliant. Zaiya stood and looked Slick over who sat there astonished. They'd stripped him of his rank and armour, and he would attract attention in just his body glove. Slick stared at her in confusion.

"What's going on?" he asked. Zaiya faced him as she stood.

"Do you want your chance at freedom?" she asked him in a serious tone.

"What…?" he seemed to be in disbelief but she didn't have time for him to catch up.

"Yes or no, soldier, what will it be?" she urged.

"Ye-yes of course, yes I want freedom,"

"Then I will need you to do everything I tell you without question going forward," she told him and gestured for him to stand. He was understandably wary but seemed more compliant once she unlocked his binders. "Come on," she urged, "we don't have much time." Slick nodded, his expression baffled but he followed her to the next room where the armour awaited. "Put it on, quickly." The Nightsister returned to her comm, "is the leave form submitted AZI?" she asked.

[Yes, mistress,] the droid affirmed.

"Backdated?"

[To one month ago, as requested, Lieutenant-General,] it replied.

"Good," she nodded.

A few minutes later, Slick was ready and she gave him a quick once over before informing him to stay close.

"You're my personal escort to my ship, I need you to act natural until we get there, can you do that soldier?" she asked.

"Why are you doing this?" he blurted, "everyone says I'm a traitor… I sent intel to the seppies… so- why?" He spoke so emotionally she could not help but answer.

"Because, Slick, you are right," she said gently, looking into his visor. There was an understanding that seemed to pass through him and he saluted.

"After you, Ver'alor."

"Oh you heard that name, did you?" she chuckled as she left the room, Slick a step behind.

"I heard some of the ARCs and commanders mention it, I don't think I understood why, until now." There was a warmth in his voice that was not there previously.

"I hope I am worthy of it someday," she replied with a smirk, leading him back down the corridor.

To anyone watching, it was just another clone. According to the records, Slick had been successfully decommissioned ten minutes ago. Still, they were not free yet, she still had to make it out to the hangar.

There were soldiers everywhere, an inspection of some kind. Usually these events did not affect her. It would be troublesome if she were stopped though, and the ones conducting the audit wanted Slick's details, it would not be easy to simply lie if they were doing head counts. She had to hope that they just ignored her for now because of her rank. As much as she detested the fact Slick's actions caused the death of his brothers, she had to remember, the war would have killed them either way.

"Trooper! Stop there!" It was a voice she didn't recognise, likely one of the inspection team. Zaiya kept her eyes forward and trusted Slick to do as he promised and follow her lead. "Trooper!" called the voice again when they didn't stop. It was only once the inspection officer caught up to them and blocked their path that she had to halt.

"Is there a problem?" Zaiya asked in her most irritated tone. The Officer - a 'nattie' as Alpha referred to them - in an administrator's uniform - almost jumped, having only just realised she was there… apparently he had just focused on Slick and been blind to her presence.

"I am required to catalogue this Trooper, I need to take down his rank and-"

"I don't care," she snapped back. "This trooper is busy."

"It will only take five minut-"

"I do not have five minutes, officer, now step aside before I have to move you myself." Zaiya was about the same height as the male but with her commanding aura she somehow seemed to loom over him.

"I happen to be one of the Republic's finest officers! Hand-picked for this-"

"You're going to be the Republic's finest wall ornament if you don't step aside in the next five seconds," she threatened. The pompous idiot seemed to have picked up finally, that he had made an error and started to deflate.

"You- do you know who I am!?" he began but it didn't have the same bravado behind it. Zaiya leaned in close to the mor'orn and smiled. An icy threatening smile.

"Do you know who I am?" she snarled and he got the point, sheepishly stepping back, she flicked a look to Slick. "Come on, Trooper."

"Yes Lieutenant-General," Slick replied sharply and she noticed the Officer stiffen out of the corner of her eye.

She waited til they were out of earshot before speaking.

"Nice touch," she smirked.

"Was rather satisfying, wasn't it?" he snickered. Luckily they had no further interruptions as she made her way to the small ship she had been assigned. Thanks to the efforts of the appropriated droid, her trip would not seem unusual were anyone to check on the records.

They embarked and Zaiya quickly set about running the checks and took off once permission was granted. It was not until they had cleared the planet and hit the hyperspace lane that the two relaxed.

"I can't believe it…" Slick whispered, finally taking his helmet off. "I-I'm alive…!"

"It's up to you to keep it that way, from here on out," she told him and leaned back in her seat for a moment. She let herself breathe a sigh of relief before forcing herself up again. "You'll need a few more things before we get to Ord Mantell," she explained and led him to the small spot in the back where he would be able to change. On one of the tables was a pile of fabric.

"You'll need to get rid of anything that can be recognised as belonging to the Republic," she began and gestured to the pile. She didn't have much, but there was at least a poncho, and spare clothing Jango had not taken with him that she'd managed to procure. "Once we arrive, we can get you some armour and weapons and everything else you'll need, I have an associate meeting us there," she nodded and turned away to give him privacy but he stopped her.

"What happens once we get there?" he asked, Zaiya paused, the man was understandably nervous, but she didn't want to overwhelm him.

"Get dressed, it'll be more comfortable than the armour, and we can discuss everything then," she assured him and petted his pauldron. He glanced at her hand as she withdrew it.

The Nightsister left him to get dressed and organise his thoughts… up until half an hour ago he likely thought he was going to be decommissioned. They used such a soft sounding word. They planned on executing him. Just outright killing him. She ran a gloved hand over her face. What was she doing? She was putting her mission in danger to save a clone slated for eradication.

She shouldn't do this.

She couldn't… she had to think of her own tasks and focus. She couldn't save them. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't save all of these men from death. But she could save this one. Did it matter? The other clones wouldn't know, it didn't change their mindset, it didn't fix the problem. Her gaze returned to the rushing blue streaks of hyperspace.

Perhaps she didn't need to, perhaps just one would be enough for now. She was roused from her internal debate eventually as she heard footsteps approach. Slick, now in casual wear and a poncho slid into the copilot seat. She turned to look at him, her elbow resting on her propped up knee.

"So…" he started.

"So," she nodded, giving him the time to ask questions.

"You said I was right, what did you mean?"

"What you said about the Jedi enslaving your brothers. I agree with you, when your choices are to serve or die… how is that freedom?" she said and his eyes widened, as though she was the only one to listen to him in the last few days.

"What happens to me now?"

"As I said, we will stop at Ord Mantell, I have an associate that has agreed to help you work, get your own credits to give you a decent start. We will have new documents made, and you will have a new name. Keep the nickname of course, but this is your best chance at a life."

"Why are you doing this for me?"

"Because you have seen the light, as it were, you can see the truth beyond what you were brainwashed to believe… and… you're family." She rested her chin on her hand.

"So what they say about you being a sister to us…?"

"More of a cousin," she shrugged and Slick cocked his head, confused, "Jango was a close friend of my father. He is family, and so are you." He seemed stunned and she just shrugged, perhaps it was her own lack of familial bonding, or that she saw the Nightbrothers in these clones, or even her own time on Zygerria had changed her outlook. Maybe it was all of that. She didn't delude herself into thinking she felt she needed to stand up for injustice… She knew she was selfish. She would not deny it, even to herself.

"So your associate…?

"A bounty hunter, Mandalorian," she nodded, "if you do well, he can help you get more jobs, once you have done one or two, then you can either keep going, or find work elsewhere, you have a choice now, you don't have to fight if you don't want to." Slick leaned back in his chair… a laugh forced its way out of him and he devolved into relieved laughter, holding his head. She remained quiet, it would be a big change for him, and take some time to get used to. She didn't know if he would be able to access the credits the Separatists had given him so she'd had to think of something. In the meantime, she let him process, waiting for him to calm down on his own time.


Notes:

Hello! There was one of you that guessed Slick and ding ding ding! You were correct! Very clever! On one of my rewatches I was contemplating how Slick was treated and while he did wrong... well I thought Zaiya would be the nosey type in this situation.

As always I loooove the comments, the feedback, it gives me life to read them every week! Thank you so much! I had a suggestion recently to split this into another part, is that something you guys would be interested in? Or would you prefer it to be all in one place like it is now?

My crime/modern AU fic (Sins of the Father) is also out and I am going to release another chapter later this week! It's the same characters from APOD because I just love writing Zaiya. So if you like Zaiya, then you can read more of her over there!

Next week we meet up with Adaji and we have some Adaji POV! Zaiya delivers a heartfelt confession and gets a call for help! Be sure to come back for that! Hope you are all safe and well! 3