#and if any of his brothers were taken to tantiss

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Crosshair is fuckin selfish, he knew how to get to Tantiss THE WHOLE TIME, but withholds it because of “trauma”, which is an awful excuse, he reveals that he knows how he their once OMEGA gets captured, showing that he only cares about his squad, not his other brothers, he could have told Echo all about Rampart, and Echo, Rex, Gregor, and Howzer could have ran the entire mission to get Rampart and get to Tantiss earlier

Crosshair never changed, he is still the selfish bully that was introduced to us on Anaxes

While I respect your opinion, I disagree with your take that Crosshair has never changed. He is a very complicated character who has been through a lot. And he has changed. He has learned that loyalty belongs to those who will reciprocate it and treat him with respect.

To your point about him not saying anything do to trauma, I argue that it isn't an awful excuse. The mind is a truly powerful thing and when you are in constant survival mode, you will do things that others will raise eyebrows at. Crosshair DOES NOT want to go back at any cost. He was badly hurt physically and psychologically. From his perspective, withholding information will protect both himself and his squad from going back there. As someone who has pretty bad anxiety at times, I sympathize with him. I don't say that lightly.

To your point about Omega, yes he only really goes back for her. Omega is the one person throughout the entire show who always tried to understand him. Crosshair is a character driven by his loyalty to others, especially his brothers and Omega. When the person who is the literal light of his life gets taken, it makes sense that goes back for her.

To your point about him being selfish, I do think he is. His one and true loyalty will always be to his squad. But that doesn't mean he hasn't learned to work alongside his fellow brothers. He literally risked his life to save Mayday. And I firmly don't believe that S3 Crosshair would say "he's just another reg." He's grown from that. You're right that he could've just told Echo and Rex and leave the rest to them. But at the same time, I think it's worth looking at things from his perspective. He wants to avoid Tantiss and anything to do with it. If that means not saying a peep, then that's what he'll do.

At the end of the day, Crosshair is a very nuanced character. Is he selfish? Yes. But I don't think it's fair to say that he has never changed. He has come a long way since we first met him on Anaxes.

[dindjarindiaries]

At Victory's End

summary: You help Hunter to recover from the lasting effects of Hemlock’s torture on Tantiss.

pairing: sergeant hunter (tbb) x reader

tags: season 3 finale spoilers, mentions of torture, trauma, hurt/comfort, angst, fluff

rating: T

word count: 3.051k

main masterlist • hunter masterlist

You paced the floor of the shuttle as you kept your gaze fixed on the opened hatch. You, Echo, and Wrecker had already gotten the clones settled, and now you were only waiting on Hunter, Crosshair, and Omega—assuming all had gone well.

It was a waiting game, and it felt like you were losing.

Until you finally saw the image of the three of them in the distance, with Omega walking in between the two brothers. Hunter and Crosshair were both hunched over as if they were in pain, a sight that instantly brought a fearful chill to your chest as you began to hurry down the ramp to meet them in the middle.

“Sunny!” Omega called out your nickname with sweet relief. She ran forward to meet you, and you instantly caught her in your embrace.

You closed your eyes as you cupped the back of her head and let out a relieved exhale. “It’s so good to have you back, sweet angel.” You gained the strength to pull away from her as you held her shoulders and gave her a quick once-over. “Are you okay?”

Omega nodded, gesturing with her head to the two men behind her. “Thanks to them.”

You smiled, though your lips instantly straightened in severity again when you took note of Hunter and Crosshair’s weary faces. Your voice lowered as you asked Omega another question. “How are they?”

Omega grimaced, and that was enough for your worry to spike even more than before. You had already been caught up to speed on Crosshair’s hand by Wrecker, but he had told you that he didn’t remember much else. All he might’ve heard was Hunter’s pained screaming, which had already had you seized by the most horrible feeling imaginable.

“Sunny,” Crosshair suddenly huffed out, as if it had taken him a great effort just to speak. Omega stepped aside to let you face him, and your heart fell straight into your stomach. Crosshair was nearly keeled over at the weight Hunter was placing on him—his deadweight. Hunter’s eyes were also fluttering closed in a way that made it seem like he might fall unconscious at any moment.

You recovered from your shock at the sight and took Hunter from Crosshair, wrapping one of his arms around your shoulders and letting your adrenaline take his heavy weight. He let out a half-hearted groan as his free hand gripped his side, and his head fell towards yours. Your voice was a haunted version of its usual self as you spoke. “What happened?”

Hunter couldn’t speak. Your throat tightened with worry as Crosshair offered an explanation. “Hemlock.” He let out a grunt of his own as Omega offered him support. “He… put us under the conditioning.”

Your brow shot up at that. “Conditioning?”

Crosshair exhaled and shook his head. “Torture. A shock treatment to encourage conditioning. And for Hunter…” He trailed off. He didn’t need to say it.

But you did. “His senses.”

The words barely made a sound as they left your tongue, and you were immediately hit with a rush of concern like never before. It stole your breath for a moment, but you caught yourself with a quick inhale and focused on Hunter. His head was almost fully leaning against yours, the small pieces of hair soaked by the rain still sticking to his forehead. His eyes had almost fully closed.

“Stay with me, love,” you murmured, willing all your strength to push the two of you ahead towards the shuttle. “You’re okay now. I’m here.”

After a few slow steps, Hunter tried to speak, and the sound sent a sharp jolt of relief to your heart. “Sun…”

You stopped for a moment and lifted a hand to his head, sweeping away some of the wet hair from his face. “Yeah. It’s me.” You ran your knuckles over his cheek and smiled at him the best you could.

Hunter’s eyes fluttered again as he tried to keep them open. His own relief still wasn’t lost on you. “She’s okay.”

You looked over his shoulder and saw Omega and Crosshair behind you, as if they were waiting to help you and Hunter if you needed it. You smiled even wider and nodded. “That’s right. You and Crosshair saved her.”

You began to push onwards again, slowly but surely closing the distance to the open hatch. Hunter had one more thing to say as you did so. “You’re okay?”

You nodded at him. “Yes, Hunter. I’m just fine.” You tightened your grasp on his arm around your shoulders. “Let’s just focus on you for once. Okay?”

Hunter huffed then groaned, his head resting against yours again as you got him on board. The obvious fight he was putting up gave you hope, but you still felt devastated just by the thought of what he’d gone through. That type of torture would be unbearable for anyone, but for someone with Hunter’s enhanced senses, you couldn’t even begin to imagine how painful it was.

The thought alone brought tears to your eyes that you swiftly fought away. Everything was okay, and he would be okay, too—even if it was hard to see him in such a state.

As you got the two of you onto the shuttle, you were immediately approached by Echo, who took Hunter’s other arm. “How is he?” Echo asked you.

“Responsive.” You looked over at Hunter and watched his eyes flutter again.

“That’s good.” Echo gestured with his head over to where Wrecker was sitting on the floor. “We’ve got Wrecker some med patches, and he’s in pretty good shape.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Your tone was genuine, despite the way your worried mind was still set on Hunter. “Crosshair seems like he’s doing all right, too.”

“Good.” Echo’s voice revealed his own relief. “I was worried when Wrecker told me about his hand.”

Your heart ached for Crosshair for a moment. “Yeah. Looks like they at least sealed it off for him.”

Echo gave you a quick glance, his gaze darting over to Hunter as he did so. “I can help you get him somewhere quiet. I think he needs that.”

You offered Echo an appreciative smile. “I agree.”

It was then that Hunter tried to speak up again. “I’m fine.”

You raised an eyebrow at him. “Sure.” Your hand on his arm lowered until his fingers were entwined with your own. “But you would still love to be somewhere quiet right now, wouldn’t you?”

Hunter closed his eyes and nodded, and for a moment, you feared that he had finally fallen under. You studied him until his eyes fluttered again, and you exhaled your fearful breath as Echo continued to lead the two of you up the lift and to a private corridor.

“Here.” Echo helped you set Hunter down, and groaned at the movement. Once he was settled, his hand still in yours, Echo stood back up. “I’ll get a medpac for you. Once I’m sure everyone’s on board, I’ll be taking us straight to Pabu.”

You could’ve cried at the sheer relief you felt that this nightmare was truly coming to an end, but your concern for Hunter’s current state overpowered it. “Thank you, Echo.”

Echo nodded, setting a reassuring hand on your shoulder before he disappeared from the corridor. You took a deep breath for composure as you focused on Hunter, whose eyes were closed once again as his head rested against the interior hull.

You were gentle as you released his hand to instead hold the sides of his face. “Hunter.” Your voice was so soft even you nearly missed it, your thumbs brushing under his eyes in another attempt to gain his attention. When he didn’t make a move or say a word, you let your concern get the best of you. “Hunter, please.”

His eyes at least opened at your desperation. You wished so badly you could stay as calm for him as he always did for you and everyone else, but with the way things had gone ever since Omega was taken on Pabu, it was truly an impossible task. Each minute that ticked away without him or the others near you made you expect the worst. To see him alive was a relief, but to see him so out of it was still terrifying.

Hunter tried to speak, but he quickly tightened his jaw as his expression contorted in pain. You watched him fight to keep his eyes open again, his teeth gritting in his effort to do so. Your brow knit together as you gave him a once-over, and quickly, you saw what was happening. His right hand shook just as Crosshair’s used to, but it was more violent in the immediate aftershocks of what had happened to him.

You took his trembling hand and lifted it to your face, loosening his fingers for him and splaying them across your cheek. Your gaze remained in his the entire time, and as you secured his hand to you, you watched the pain and fear slowly begin to leave his brown eyes. It filled you with a relief to potent that you were yet again brought to tears, but you still refused to shed them.

“There you go.” Your praise for him was another gentle whisper as you ran soothing circles over the back of his hand. “It’s okay. You’re okay now.”

Hunter’s eyes closed again, but that time, you could tell it was purely in his own relief. You pressed a gentle kiss to his gloved palm even as your worry began to exchange itself for an all-consuming rage.

Hemlock had done this to him. Not just him, either, but also Wrecker, Crosshair, and so many others. He had to be dead. You wouldn’t stand for it if he wasn’t.

As if sensing your thoughts, Hunter opened his eyes to look at you the best he could. “He’s gone.” He swallowed hard as his weak thumb ran over your cheek. You couldn’t help smiling at the sweet action. “We… made sure of it.”

“Good.” You held tight to his hand and wrist as you composed yourself with another breath. “We couldn’t leave him alive. Not after all he’s done.”

Before you or Hunter could say anything more, you heard Echo returning. You lowered Hunter’s hand from your face to look at him. Echo was carrying medpac as well as a blanket, both of which he handed to you with a sympathetic smile. “Here you go, Sunny.”

You set the supplies down to hold Echo’s hands between yours for a moment. “Thank you, Echo.”

Echo tilted his head at you. “You know you don’t have to thank me.” He nodded at you. “We’re family.”

That made your lips widen even more. “We are.”

Echo returned your smile before he stepped away, guaranteeing your and Hunter’s privacy for now. You set your focus on caring for him, beginning with the removal of his wet pieces of armor. He looked as if he was going to try to help you, but you stopped him, setting a firm hand on his chest until he relaxed once again. There was a small smile that tugged on his lips as you continued your work, not stopping until all the upper pieces of his armor had been set aside. You then set the blanket around his shoulders, pulling it close together under his neck.

You held on to the corners of the fabric and kept yourself close to him. Studying the flecks of his eyes that were still slightly dazed, you began to crumble as your adrenaline wore off. There were too many close calls. Hunter had been tortured, and you weren’t there to help him. He had to face down the man who had done it, not just to him but to many of your loved ones, and you weren’t there to support him.

It had been a long, terrifying mission, yet he was still here, and so were you.

Hunter was the one to act first. His hand rose to the side of your face as he encouraged you to rest your forehead against his. You remained gentle, still wary of his frayed senses as you touched him. “It’s okay.” Hunter’s voice was no more than a rasp, but it was still much stronger than it had been before. That gave you hope, a feeling so sweet that it only made the tears in your eyes even harder to resist. “Just like you said before.”

His other arm wrapped itself around you, encouraging you to fully relax into his side. His head was still resting against your own even as he cradled you against him. Hunter took the corner of the blanket on your side and lifted it so that the two of you were sharing its warmth.

You began to shake your head, the swirling emotions of the day—especially the guilt—beginning to swallow you whole. “I should be helping you.”

Hunter raised his brow at you. “You are helping me.” He closed his eyes and pressed his lips to your forehead, keeping them there even as he went on. “You were all I needed.”

The sweetness of his words nearly healed you in a single, softening blow, but another angle you took on them shattered that illusion in a heartbreaking way. “You needed me,” you nearly cried, “and I wasn’t there.”

Hunter lifted himself from your head, his gaze looking horrified as he realized exactly what you were going through. “No.” He shook his head and cupped the side of your face with his gloved hand. “No, no, no. That’s not what I meant.” His thumb caught one of your tears the moment it left your lashes. “I’m relieved you weren’t there. It was dangerous. I…” he paused, circling his jaw as he considered his words, “I snapped when I realized Omega was there, and that she was in danger. I even impaled one of the assassins.”

You blinked through your tears and tightened your jaw in hardly concealed anger for your enemies. “Good.”

Hunter huffed, clearly amused by your vengeful spirit as he went on. “What I meant was…” Hunter had to pause again. His expression began to fall in a worry so genuine that it made your chest ache all over again. “I didn’t know what had happened to you. After we got Hemlock and saved Omega, I knew that everyone was okay—except for you.” He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against yours again. “I needed to know.”

You set your hand over his, hoping to reassure him. “I’m okay.”

Hunter reopened his eyes and lifted the corner of his mouth. “Now I know. And, as you can see, it’s already helped me recover.” He ran his thumb over your cheek again as he nodded, minding your head against his own. “I’m okay, too.”

Still, the memory of Wrecker describing Hunter’s screams mixed with what you had already seen and inferred was too much for you to handle. Your vision began to blur again as you spoke through the knot in your throat. “I’m sorry this happened to you.” You closed your eyes and resisted the urge to tremble in your utter grief for him. “I’m so sorry.”

Hunter held you more closely, his hand moving from your cheek to your chin to gently tilt your head up more at him. It encouraged you to reopen your eyes and meet his warm, calming gaze. “You never have to apologize on behalf of our enemies.” His eyes lowered from yours for a moment before he raised them again. “It wasn’t easy, but we did it. We completed the mission.” Hunter’s lips began to stretch in a warm smile that you hadn’t seen in a long, long time. “We’re all free.”

As the truth of his words began to sink in, you returned his smile, relief finally pouring over you in uncontrollable waves. No longer was the sickening devastation of what he had been through; instead, all you could feel was the sweet, sweet feeling of a victory that was well-earned. “We did it.”

Hunter’s gaze glittered more as he watched you share in his joy. His thumb ran over your chin as he went on. “Now that we’re free…” his nose brushed yours, “how does a lifetime on Pabu sound?”

You could’ve sobbed right there at the idea of the dream you’d longed for actually coming true, but you were too caught up in your shared affection to give in to anything except for him. “That sounds perfect.”

With that, Hunter kissed you with all the strength he had left, each movement of his lips against yours a gentle promise of what was still to come. You were more than happy to lose yourself in him and the future that was finally in reach, even if all you had to grasp onto physically in that moment was his wet locks of hair. You took your time with him just as he did with you, knowing that at long last, it was finally on your side.

When you parted, you stayed close together, your hands braced upon his chest as you raised your brow at him. A genuine wave of concern washed over you as you spoke to him. “Was that too overwhelming for your senses?”

Hunter offered a reassuring smile in return. “Only in the best way.” He gave you a quick kiss before he encouraged you to lean fully against him, silently urging you to seek rest with him in a way he desperately needed. You obliged, your head resting upon the inside of his shoulder and chest as you closed your eyes in sweet relief.

It hadn’t been easy, and it sure as hell would still take lots of healing for everyone, but it was truly worth it. All of you were finally free, and you were going to take advantage of every sacrifice that made your freedom possible—starting with the time you and Hunter had been given to simply rest.

main masterlist • hunter masterlist

hunter tag list: @zenrobbins0021 @cw80831 @yunggoblin @maddiedrmr 

[green-alm0nd]

[Echo x gn!reader]: Lazy mornings

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Summary:

After Tantiss was destroyed, your significant other takes a few days of rest on Pabu before going back to working with Rex.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Tooth-rotting fluff, short and sweet. That's it. Not proofread.

Enjoy!

----

The early morning Sun bothered your eyes, yellow and orange rays making your face feel warm. The warmth bothered you, so you turned around. The breeze that gently moved the curtains reached your body, and made you stir.

Your eyes fluttered open, just to see a beautiful sight opposite you.

Echo, your significant other, peacefully sleeping next to you. It made you sigh. He had always had trouble sleeping because of his nightmares, but he seemed so relaxed and you could tell he felt safe.

Your hands crawled below his shirt, seeking for warmth. Echo let out a low grunt in response, letting out a sigh and slowly opening his eyes. He stared at you for a few seconds, before wrapping his arm around your back, pulling you closer to him.

"Go back to sleep." He grumbled.

You let out a small giggle, your hands hugging his waist.

"Weren't you supposed to be a clone trooper that got up early to do tasks?" You teased, in a quiet voice.

He grunted again in response, his lips gently pressing against your forehead.

"Tantiss has been destroyed. I've saved my brothers, I deserve one day of not worrying. At least two" He muttered lazily.

You leaned into his touch, smiling softly.

"Hey, I'm not complaining." You responded.

He stretched, and so did you. The morning sun didn't bother you anymore, thanks to your boyfriend. You pecked his lips, before yawning and sitting back up. You didn't leave the bed, and instead sat up again the bedframe.

Echo closed his eyes, leaning on your chest, feeling your heartbeat. You were there, with him. You were alive, it wasn't a dream. It was real. You were real. Listening to your heart beating made him forget about the recent events that had taken place inside Tantiss, and the pressure, and the stress, and tye overwhelming sense of drowning finally coming to a rest.

You gazed at the warm Sun of Pabu, hearing the seagulls screech, yet not annoyed by it. The faint smell of sea salt invaded your nostrils, and you felt relaxed, calm. Hunter had been right when he suggested for Echo to stay on Pabu until Rex called him to go back to base. The clone, of course, happily obliged, and figured it was best to spend time with his family before he had to leave.

And yeah, it was disappointing to see that Echo would have to leave at some point, but you'd worry later. You wanted to focus on the future, on him being right there with you.

"Has Rex told you about when you have to go back to base?" You asked, softly.

Echo shook his head.

"Not yet, but probably in less than a week." He replied.

To this, you nodded, you had plenty of time to spend with him.

Eventually, you both decided to leave your shared bed, and went to the kitchen.

He made some caf for both of you, and handed you one mug. You muttered a small 'thanks', before gazing out the window.

The waves of the shore gently crashing against the sand, repeating the process over and over again. It was calming, and honestly pretty therapeutic.

Echo spun you around, mug still in hand, and pressed a soft kiss on your lips. You quickly reciprocated the kiss, leaving your own mug on a nearby table. His lips left a taste of caf in yours, one that you weren't against, and definitely not bothered by.

He pulled away, drinking from his mug and sighing in delight.

"So, any plans for today?" He asked.

"Uh- I think we need to meet up with the squad in a few minutes." You responded, suddenly remembering that you had promised to attend.

"It can wait." He shrugged, nonchalantly.

You laughed.

"Who are you and what have you done with Arc Trooper Echo?" You asked, raising a playful eyebrow.

Echo chuckled lightly.

"Hey, I didn't say we wouldn't meet up, I said it can wait. I'm not going to be here for a while and I want to spend more time with you." He responded.

You headed to the sink, to wash your mug.

"Alright, fine. But if we get called off, it's on you, mister." You remarked, joking.

He didn't answer, instead, he wrapped his arms around you. He hugged you from behind, making sure his scomp link wouldn't hurt you.

"I want to spend time with you. And I want to show you that you're important to me. You matter to me, and I haven't been the most...close to you recently since I was with Rex all the time. But I want to prove to you that you're important to me." He confessed.

"I know I don't usually get this sappy, but it's the truth. You matter to me. And I love you. More than anything." He added.

You blushed, and turned around, staring at his dark brown eyes. You pressed your lips against his.

"I love you too, Echo."

You pulled away, kissing his forehead.

"Let's hope you didn't say all of that just to convince me to go later to meet up with the squad." You joked.

He huffed, giving you a half-hearted smile.

"Trust me, I did." He joked back, playfully nudging you.

----

It's short, I wrote it really quickly, but life has been pretty crappy and I needed to write some heartwarming fluff to stop overthinking.

Reblogs and shares are highly appreciated!

My requests are still open!

[apocalyp-tech-a]

Season's greetings! This is my Clone XReader Life Day Exchange gift for @orbitalmirror for the @cloneficgiftexchange run by @ghostofskywalker!!! ❤️💚❤️

Prompts: “So for this Life Day thing, what do people do?” || “I’m not exactly inclined to trust clones.”

Words: 4625

Warnings: None except flirtation and some innocent kisses

Ao3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/61331332

A/N: I've only written Echo as a supporting character so I hope I did him justice and hope you, @orbitalmirror, enjoy the fic! (Sorry it's a little angsty at first!) ❤️💚❤️ Shout out to @eclec-tech for the impromptu brainstorming session in which she allowed me to use her refugee/Pabu twist on my Wookiee Life Day celebration premise. And thank you to @cloneficgiftexchange for running it!

A Wonderful Life Day 🎄 (Echo X Reader)

Ever since the clone troopers' hideout on Teth was compromised by a CX assassin, Echo and his renegade clone brothers had been on the run from the Empire and trying to find a new base of operations.  

The research facility on Tantiss and its head scientist were no longer a threat, but that didn't mean the Empire wouldn't be. Echo, Rex, Gregor, Howzer, and the other surviving clones that joined their band of brothers still had a lot of work to do. There were more clone troopers out there who needed their help and no time to stop and smell the roses.

Not only were clones in need of help, but many regular folks.  While Rex searched for a new base location, Echo continued to run missions on his ship, Remora. When picking up two clones who were deserting the Empire, he got more than he bargained for when the they insisted on bringing along a Wookiee family of seven members, a Twi'lek female, and two humans, one male, and one female: you.

You had been very iffy about taking refuge with the two clone troopers whom you had only met several weeks ago.   A Wookiee family had already taken refuge with you in your home after the crime of blowing up an Imperial credit exchange was pinned on them. You figured it to be an inside job so the true culprits could line their pockets and so the Empire could get some of the non-humans 'off world.'  

You were friends and worked with the matriarch of the family, Verbecca. Since you had grown a bond with the Wookiees and saw first hand what the Empire was up to, you felt the need to leave, too. You didn't mind leaving. The farther away you could get from the Empire, the better.  You didn't just want, but needed to see Verbecca and her family to safety.

You were not so sure the clones, Kent and Leviathan, or Levi for short, or their contact were trustworthy, however. They were as guarded as you when you talked to them to make sure everything would go according to plan, but overall they did seem willing to help. 

You boarded the ship with a satchel containing a few changes of clothes, a memory stick with photos and documents, your life savings, and some other odds and ends mementos. You didn't mind having your life packed into one bag that you could carry with you. There were many others who were not so lucky to have even that.

The other refugees all took seats in the main hold while you sat in a corner by yourself near the cockpit to see if you could get a peak at where you were heading. You were trying to have faith that the clones would hold to their promise and be ready for anything if they didn't. After all, you had seven Wookiees on your side and you were familiar with the old saying about how they were strong enough to pull an arm out of its socket.

The pilot of the ship, who introduced himself as Echo, was a clone trooper unlike any you had ever seen before. He had an implant that wrapped around his bald head and covered his ears and an interesting set of armor in rich autumn colors that juxtaposed against his pale skin yet somehow matched his serious demeanor. He stood in the doorway between the cockpit and the hold after the ship jumped to hyperspace. 

"Excuse me, Echo. Where are we going?" you ventured to ask.

Leaning against the door jam, he folded his arms, one which you only now noticed had a prosthetic scomp attachment on the end. You wondered if he had a run-in with a Wookiee...

"Somewhere safe," he said in a very deep and confident voice.

You could not help but be suspicious though as it was a somewhat purposely vague answer. "That hardly sounds comforting."

"I'm afraid you're just going to have to trust me."

"I'm not exactly inclined to trust clones." You didn't mean it to come out so bluntly, but your recent experience with the Empire wasn't in their favor.

"And I'm not exactly inclined to trust anyone but my brothers," he countered with a little bit of a stern and defensive stance.

On one hand you had seen the clone troopers basically transform overnight, from regular stationed soldiers under the Republic to the strict occupational forces of the Empire. The citizens they were once supposed to protect, were now subjected to a loss of freedoms, forced to have chain codes and curfews.

On the other hand, you remembered them once being honorable and chivalrous, and you knew how much the clone troopers suffered throughout the Clone Wars. Certainly Echo seemed to have suffered some sort of injury to have so many bionic implants and a prosthetic. You also heard hearsay about how they had been treated after. There was no helping the leaden feeling in your belly for being insensitive, especially to someone who so far did seem to be trying to help you and a cabin full of beings he never met before.

The thing that bothered you the most though was the change in his expression from just casual and conversational to really feeling offended. His grayish, hazel-brown eyes pierced through your sarcastic slip. Eyes that you knew had seen quite a bit more than yours, even though yours opened for the first time long before his.

Or maybe your eyes were just opening now as you suddenly truly saw the clone, no, man, for who he was. His chiseled features were paled by the rigors and misfortunes of war, but somehow that struck you even more. There was a story or two there and you wanted to know more about this mysterious trooper.

You could not apologize enough for your indiscretion. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to insinuate that you were untrustworthy. I- I-we,” you stammered and then sighed. “We've been through so much.  But I do appreciate everything you've done. Truly."

Echo relaxed some. Maybe he was a little harsh, maybe it was the duress of what happened on Teth, Tantiss, and the galaxy in general.  Always on the run since he was born and even when he was stuck in one place, in stasis, it was hardly restful. "It's all right. To be honest, clones aren't any different from anyone else. I've had my fair share of run-ins with certain untrustworthy clones, and a mess hall fight or two."

You appreciated his forgiving candor. "Mess hall fights? We called them food fights back in school. Hard to imagine you getting mixed up in one, let alone two,” you said with a little more levity trying to make him forget your earlier snarky attitude.

"Well, sometimes loyalty means more than not getting in trouble." Now it was Echo's turn to fondly remember all of his brothers and the shenanigans they had that Echo tried to stop but always somehow got stuck right in the thick of. A nostalgic smile spread across his lips.  

"So, you do smile," you remarked to him. It was nice to see. Up to now, he seemed all business.

"Once in a while.” He huffed a laugh. “I try not to make a habit of it. People might get the wrong idea.”

That was a puzzling statement and you wondered what he meant by it. There actually was a little disappointment in your demeanor as it seemed maybe the wrong idea was you entertaining the thought that he could like you, even as just a friend. But more and more as you gazed up at him, you couldn't help wondering if you could be more than that which was absurd considering you had just met him and never took any interest in any other clone that had been stationed on your homeworld.

The Wookiees vocalizing in conversation and whimpering caught your attention away from those spiraling thoughts.

Echo sighed as he observed the seven Wookiees he had not expected to be picking up. "Kind of wish Tech or Hunter were here."

"Well, looks like there's plenty of tech on the ship.” Your eyes wandered around to all of the blinking lights and machinery. “And I think the Wookiees had their fair share of run-ins with hunters."

“That sounds like something Tech would say,” Echo chuckled again. Or even Wrecker, but Echo kept that to himself so as not to confuse you more. "Tech and Hunter are my brothers,” Echo clarified. “Clones."

"Oooohhhh.... Of course. Oops." You laughed nervously.

Echo found himself enjoying talking to you, and to be honest, looking at you, so he gave a more detailed answer to prolong the conversation. "Tech has a translator on his helmet. And Hunter, well, he understands Shyriiwook. Just don't ask him to speak it."  He face contorted into a comical grimace which you found endearing.

You laughed. "I'll keep that in mind. Non-Wookiees attempting their language is certainly very entertaining. Don't ask me how I know.” You winked playfully. “I don't speak it, but I do understand them,” you said with a gesture of your head towards your Wookiee friends. "They hope they can celebrate Life Day wherever they're going." When Echo stared at you with a quizzical silence, you added, "It's a holiday.”

Echo nodded. "So, for this Life Day thing, what do they do?”

“They celebrate family, joy, and harmony. On Kashyyyk, they traveled to the World Tree which was decorated with glowing blue orbs and there is also a big feast and other festivities and traditions based on tribal affiliation."

"Oh, that one. Yeah, I've heard about it. Well, we can't take them to Kashyyyk. The Empire is active there, as well as Trandoshan hunters, speaking of those. It's not safe.”

"Maybe we can help them celebrate wherever it is you're taking us," you said as more of a personal, out loud brainstorming rather than a suggestion to Echo, but he seemed to have taken it to heart.

"Hmm,” Echo hummed thoughtfully. He didn't know why he had taken such an interest in you or the Wookiees' plight, but he had an idea. “Maybe. I'll comm ahead to our destination. They might be able to help."

You smiled and Echo couldn't help but feel a little relief that maybe you trusted him more than when the conversation began, and furthermore, he didn't know why it mattered so much to him, but he headed back to the cockpit a little lighter in his step.

*

When you arrived at your destination, you were surprised to see that you were on an island paradise surrounded by beautiful waters sparkling with sunshine. A swirly tower sat atop a huge labyrinth of smaller structures that consisted of homes and shops.  There was rugged, yet beautiful architecture and pretty flowers everywhere.  It looked like the vacation posters you would see in the city tram stations to destinations that you could never afford to go to, or have anyone to go with. No wonder Echo wanted to keep it on the down low.

A stray thought entered your mind, maybe Echo could walk on the beach with you...

You and the other passengers walked down the ramp and were greeted officially by the Mayor of the island, Shep Hazard.  He welcomed you all with a handshake as well as his daughter, Lyana, and a woman with purple hair, Phee Genoa. Phee walked off with one of Echo's brothers who stood out for the goggles he wore.  They escorted Kent and Levi to perform some surgical procedure from what you overheard.

“Will they be okay? I heard the word surgery,” you asked Echo with concern.  It didn't play very well into your trouble with trust.

“Yeah,” he sighed with a hint of relief. “Yeah. They'll be fine.”

You were still concerned, but couldn't ask any more questions because a little, blonde girl ran and gave Echo a big hug then whispered something near his ear. Echo nodded at you with the subtlest hint of smile and you knew that the secret she was telling him had something to do with a Life Day celebration. Since there were smiles and cheerful expressions among the island's other greeters, you figured it was good news and your distrust was once again unwarranted. You nodded and smiled with understanding and appreciation before being whisked off to your new lodgings along with the Wookiees who you were happy to find out would be your neighbors!

*

As the early afternoon passed, you found yourself thinking a lot of Echo, wondering if you would see him again, or if he would be off on another refugee pick-up.  But even so, he would come back eventually.  But you would also probably be spending all that time thinking about him as you did today.  There was just something about him.

When the sun was about to set, the little girl who had hugged Echo earlier came knocking on your door with Lyana.

“Hello. I'm Omega!” she said excitedly. “We're here to collect you for the celebration!”

“Come on!” they exclaimed in unison, skipping backward and encouraging you with a beckoning arm gesture.

Lyana clapped her hands with enthusiasm. “It's time to celebrate! Follow us!”

As they went about gathering the rest of the refugees, both old and new, you ran in to Kent and Levi, now with bandages on their heads. “Are you guys okay?” you asked them.

“Never been better,” Kent replied with a broad smile. “How's the Wook family doing?”

“They're great. They have a hovel right next to mine and they're relieved to be safe. I couldn't be happier for them.” You stopped and faced them. “I also couldn't be happier for you. I just wanted to apologize about any doubt I had.”

“We understand,” Levi said. “We had our own doubts about Echo to be honest. But sometimes you have to trust your gut.”

Your heart fluttered a little, almost as it was a sign telling you to do the same. “Yeah. That is very good advice,” hoping your smile didn't give away your friendly aspirations toward Echo.

“Come on!” Omega and Lyana continued to wrangle everyone up long and windy steps to the courtyard atop the island after they had gotten all of the new refugees. The Wookiee children roared with just as much excitement.

Many of Pabu's citizens were already gathered around the great Weeping Maya tree in the center of the courtyard decorated with lights and seashells painted blue to emulate the traditional glowing orbs.  Wearing what red clothing they could find, a shirt here, a scarf there, they did their best to emulate the red robes of the holiday on Kashyyyk,

Gryrrrwarcca, the patriarch of the Wookiee family, stood before the tree with Verbecca, their three children, his brother in law, and an old family friend. He and Verbecca began a ceremonial speech that few understood, but listened intently nonetheless.

One of those not understanding was Echo who when you turned your head to the right, was magically standing next to you. You gasped in surprise even though you were happy to see him, especially after wondering if you would. “You're here!?” you said with a bit of a questioning inflection mixed with excitement.

“Yeah. I figured you would be the best person to stand next to since you can translate,” he said a little sheepishly with his hand rubbing the back of his neck.

You translate what Gryrrrwarcca just vocalized: "He said: 'Oh great tree, we thank thee for your joyous blessings.'”

Verbecca spoke next. You translated again. “She said: 'For the life of every plant and creature, big and small, living in harmony.'"

Now all of the Wookiees and some in the crowd chanted as one.

"'We all are family.'"

Gryrrrwarcca held his arms up in a welcoming gesture  and roared a pleading prayer. Verbecca growled and roared a hopeful wish.

“He said: 'May the balance of life return' and she said: 'Happy Life Day to all, thank you for your generosity and hospitality.'”

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Shep followed with a closing speech. "We are all family, and we are grateful to welcome you to our island and hope you, and all refugees, flourish in this sanctuary.  Happy Life Day!"  Shep now mimicked Gryrrrwarcca's outstretched arm pose to be rewarded with a big hug that lifted him off the ground from the Wookiee patriarch.  Cheers from the gathered crowd followed.  Your eyes teared up because it was a lovely feeling to be part of an inclusive and compassionate society.  You only wished more galactic citizens could live like this and that there was more you could do to help them.  

When you looked up at Echo to smile at him because he helped make this possible, you couldn't tell if your eyes, blurry from your own tears, were tricking you or not.  But it looked like his eyes which looked at you so sternly on the ship, were now looking at you with equal emotion for the beautiful ceremony you both had just witnessed.

*

The feast was grand.  You got to meet Echo's family.  Tech was the name of the one with goggles and apparently he and Phee had something going on.  (Maybe there was hope for you yet.)  The other one whose name you heard before, Hunter, would not oblige you with a sample of his Shyriiwook, sadly.  Wrecker was the largest clone you had ever seen and had a heart to match; he hit it off very well with the Wookiees.  And there was one more, Crosshair, who didn't say too much unless sarcasm was involved, which you low key appreciated.

After that you got pulled away to the festivities.  Some young clone cadets handed out blue snowcones meant to represent the blue Life Day orbs. Gryrrrwarcca's children enjoyed those most and you translated that they politely requested seconds which they slurped up gratefully and insisted on being a new Life Day tradition.  There was a band that sang some old Life Day carols.  There were some games and competitions which involved sports balls painted blue and even some dancing.

You saw Echo talking to another woman. She was very attractive and you couldn't help feeling a little pang of jealousy.

After she walked away, you meandered casually over to him. "Who's that?" You asked trying to be as uninterested as possible.

"Emerie?" Echo asked completely aloof that it was out of a curiosity spurned by the ever slightest amount of jealousy. "She's a doctor. A science doctor. Doctor Emerie Carr."

"How do you know her? Is she a refugee like me?"  Once again you tried to sound as disinterested as possible, but you had a feeling that you were failing at that.

Echo wasn't as bad as Tech, but he knew his brothers would waste no time teasing him for not always being exactly aware of when he was being flirted with. Who could blame him? He knew he was very by the books to use an old turn of phrase. His cadet mates didn't tease him about reading the GAR regulation manual for nothing. But your interest in Dr. Carr coupled with questions about any relationship he might have with her finally tipped him off.

"She's a clone, like me. That makes her my sister, I guess." Echo paid attention to your facial features as you reacted and just as he suspected, there was a sense of relief in your eyes and the relaxation of the muscles around your mouth even betraying your own emotional caution when a subtle smile got past your defenses.  

"I didn't know there were female clones," you remarked with genuine curiosity.

Echo huffed a laugh. "Neither did we. Omega is our sister, too." He couldn't help but smile at you, he wanted to put you at ease, to let you know you could trust him, especially after what you said when you first met. Considering that you seemed to single him out for conversation, he had a feeling you did.

He continued. "Emerie helps us find more of our brothers and rescue them from the Empire."

Your mind did a brief calculation of all the times you tried to help others, like Verbecca and her family, checking in on your elder neighbors on your homeworld, even volunteering for various causes. You were no doctor like Emerie, but you knew you were capable and skilled in other areas that might be useful.  And you wanted to repay the kindness you had been shown, especially by Echo.  "Is there any way I can help?"

Echo had not expected you to offer, especially after just arriving to a safe haven that was also picturesque and peaceful. It was pleasant surprise though, because to be honest, they needed all the help they could get. Plus, he'd get to have more conversations with you.  And see you as well.  There was no denying he was attracted to you, and it wasn't like any attraction he ever felt before.  Without sounding too eager, he finally replied, "I'm sure we can find a way. You've already done so much for Grrocca."  

You could not stifle a giggle.

Echo furrowed his forehead. "What? What's so funny?"

"Gryrrrwarcca."

"That's what i said. Grrrreerocca."

With your hand covering your mouth, even though there was no way to hide it, you laughed again. "Close enough.” You smiled cheerfully, but soon became serious. “But that was you and the great people of Pabu here. Not me. I only translated."

"Not only translated. You took them in, protected them, escorted them offworld to make sure the Empire didn't get 'em, leaving behind your life on your homeworld. That's more than you think." Echo could not help but admire your selflessness.  He knew all too well what it was like to lose one's home.

Compliments were not something you took very well, and much to your chagrin, it was probably showing in your sheepish expression and body language.  You nervously glanced down at the water in the distance.  "I just like to help people."  You shrugged your shoulders then looked back at Echo.  "And I'd like to help you.  Any way I can."

"Just like I always say, we can use all the help we can get."  Echo watched as your gaze went back out to the ocean.  "You keep looking out to the ocean.  You're not thinking of going for a swim are you?  Apparently there's some pretty big fish out there.  With even bigger teeth."  

"I think I had enough fish at the feast."  You smirked sarcastically.  "I did think about taking a walk on the beach though," you said hoping Echo would get the hint that you wanted him to go, too.

Echo knew what you were asking and he replied in the same subtle manner.  "There's a lot of winding walkways and alleys, like a maze.  I wouldn't want you to get lost."  He started walking.  "Come on."

Echo was right, there were a lot of walkways and steps that had no particular pattern that you wouldn't be able to decipher without giving it much thought.  Finally, you reached the sand at the base of the huge island.  The sound of the waves lapping at the shore was music to your ears.  "This is the first time I've ever seen an ocean," you softly announce as you stare in wonder at the surf and sky of orange, pinks, and blues.

"Really?"  Echo was taken aback by that confession.  He had been too so many different worlds.  Sometimes he forgot some people never left their planet let alone their home town.

"Landlocked. Not even a lake nearby."  You don't know if it was the Life Day brew you drank, the emotions of the day turning out so perfect after worrying so much, of leaving your homeworld behind and seeing an ocean for the first time, or simply being in close proximity to someone you felt a real connection with, but you were overwhelmed with gratitude.  “Thank you for rescuing us and setting up Life Day for my friends.” Before you knew it you were on your tip toes to give Echo a kiss on the cheek. You gasped after doing it, knowing that you had made yet another indiscretion. “Oh, I'm sorry, that was a little forward, I just am so grateful for your help, and it's just so lovely here, and you're so lovely, and I just wanted to thank you.” You winced smacked your forehead at your gushing and rambling.

Echo meanwhile was quite amused by your explaining away of the little peck on his cheek. If he was being honest, he wouldn't mind if it were more than that. After a little chuckle at your expense which was only fair after you laughed at his rather poor Wookie name pronunciation, he placed a hand on your shoulder.  “It was my pleasure to help them, and you.” He then took your hand and brought it to his lips, giving it a little peck as you did to his cheek, but he had a hard time letting go of your hand and instead held on to it.  “You sure you want to leave behind the safety of this place. This view?” 

You couldn't deny, the transition from sunset to twilight sky over the water, the sound of the ocean waves, the balmy breeze, and smell of flowers, and salty sea air were enticing. But you needed to trust your gut, and your heart.  “I can think of a much nicer view than this.” You gestured with a flick of your hand towards the sea and then gazed up into those steely eyes, which seemed to soften the more you peered into them.

Echo brushed your hair from your face, admiring the features that made you, you. None so spectacular as your eyes that seemed to see what made him, him. The more he stared into your eyes, the more he understood the simple wish behind them. He tipped his head down, continuing to read your expression, relieved to understand that you welcomed his own forwardness, but he dare not forego being a gentleman. "May I?"

You were sure your eyes were twinkling as much as the stars appearing one by one in the sky as you let Echo know that you welcomed his affection and trusted him implicitly.  "Yes."  You smiled.

Echo leaned down and gave you a soft kiss on the cheek as you did to him, but let his lips linger a little longer than yours had.  It was the first time in a long time that he felt like he didn't have to rush or worry about anything.  "It's just that it's so lovely here, and you're so lovely."

It was a lovely moment, but you couldn't help a small laugh.  "It sounds like you're echo-ing what I said earlier."  You smirked with a raised eyebrow, even though you knew it was sincere and not teasing.  You just trusted he actually  meant it, because you knew he was one of the most trustworthy and honest men you'd ever met.

"Why do you think my name is Echo?" he quipped with a playful shrug of his shoulders.

Your smile was probably big and goofy, but you didn't care.  You squeezed his hand which was still holding yours affectionately.  "You know, I think it's fitting to celebrate Life Day here.  It's like we all get a second chance at life.  And other things," you said coyly.  

"And other things," Echo smiled, something he found himself doing more since meeting you.  "Couldn't have said it better myself.  Happy Life Day."

"Happy Life Day, Echo."

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

Out of His Depth

Summer of Bad Batch 2024 | Week 8 | Prompt: Swimming Lessons

Summary: Omega asks for advice in giving swimming lessons. Crosshair begrudgingly discovers a new talent. POV: Crosshair Rating: G (Word Count: 2847)

Read on Ao3

Notes: I can't help but think of Crosshair being the grumpy-uncle type who's adored by everyone on Pabu, especially the younger crowd (and he loves the kids too, but will never openly admit it, and will never understand why they like him so much). And I've been thinking a lot about what his early interactions might have been like with Jax, Eva, Sami, and Bayrn. And then the "swimming lesson" prompt popped up. Behold the result.

Also, I'm a huge Tech Lives believer, but this story takes place a month or two after the finale events on Tantiss, so in my headcanon Tech hasn't made it back to his family quite yet.

Omega walked wearily up to the group and plopped down on the warm sand with a sigh.

Crosshair eyed her questioningly. “What’s with you?”

“I don’t know what to do,” she mumbled as she rested her chin in her hand, staring out over the tranquil Pabu waters.

“About what?” Hunter asked, leaning toward Omega as Wrecker and Phee turned their attention to the conversation.

 “Helping Sami so she’s not afraid of the water,” Omega replied, nodding toward the tiny Pantoran who was currently sitting squarely in the middle of the nearby dock, waving to the boats passing by.

Phee had just returned to Pabu, and since it was Phee’s first time seeing Omega since the Batch’s return from Tantiss, it was decided that a beach day was in order. With Shep, Lyana, Mox, Deke, Stak, Jax, Eva, Sami, and Bayrn also joining the party, it had been a full and eventful day. Phee had been in her element for several hours regaling the younger crowd with tales of her exploits; given that Omega had excitedly requested several specific stories, it was clear the others had already heard about many of Phee’s adventures. Crosshair, meanwhile, had listened skeptically and wondered how often Tech had tried fact-checking these stories.

It wasn’t quite as painful to think of Tech now, not since Crosshair had finally convinced himself to visit the impromptu memorial Omega had set up for their brother in the Archeum. Still, Crosshair had found himself wishing more than once that Tech could have been here with them during this beach day – if only so Crosshair could have teased him relentlessly about his pirate girlfriend.

It had been later in the afternoon that Bayrn had been taken in for a nap, Shep and Lyana had taken Jax, Eva, and the former cadets out on the boat, and Sami had approached Omega to ask for swimming lessons. “Jax and Eva know how to swim,” Sami had said. “I’d like to try it.” And Omega had happily agreed, taking Sami to the relatively shallow natural pool at the far end of this stretch of beach, while the brothers filled Phee in more on what had happened since Tantiss and the slow progress being made toward finding the children’s families.

Given what Omega was now reporting, Crosshair would hazard a guess that Sami’s family had never made her enter a large body of water.

“Did she not know swimming involves getting in the water?” Crosshair asked Omega now.

Omega furrowed her brows in thought. “Oh, she knew, but I don’t think she really thought about putting her head in the water.” A pause, then “Or any part of her body above her knees. She doesn’t mind getting wet – I tried dumping some water over her head and she was fine with it - she’s just afraid of getting into a pool of water.”

“Just push her in,” Crosshair shrugged offhandedly. Realizing from the looks he was now receiving that the others thought he had been serious, he contrarily decided to defend his statement rather than explain he had been joking. “What? That’s what the trainers on Kamino did to me. And we were about the same age she is.”

“Well, that explains a lot,” Phee remarked drily as she gazed appraisingly at him.

“A lot about what??”

“About you.”

Oh, yes, Tech and Phee had to have gotten along great together, Crosshair groused internally, before Hunter spoke up again. “That’s how the trainers made you learn how to swim, Crosshair, and you are an excellent swimmer; but I don’t think it will help with our objective of making Sami less afraid of the water.” Turning back to Omega, who was still staring with no small amount of exasperation at Crosshair, Hunter continued, “What else have you tried?”

Still halfway tuned in to the conversation, Crosshair thought back to those earliest days on Kamino, when cadets began their swimming training when they were, developmentally speaking, seven or eight years old. There had been no time, sympathy, nor resources for individual attention, however; cadets were taught to swim in groups of twenty, and had to find a way to keep up or be dismissed from training. During their first class, Crosshair had only slightly hesitated when tasked with jumping into the training pool, and one breath later had found himself unexpectedly submerged in the water, gasping for air and frantically trying to stay afloat, having been shoved into the pool by the trainer who had shouted at him that he could either sink or swim.

Well, Crosshair had quickly learned how to swim, but had also discovered that he hated being in or near the water, despite having been surrounded by the ocean since birth, and approached swimming lessons with significant dread that was overpowered only by his stubborn determination to not be decommissioned. This loathing of large bodies of water had lasted for almost two months, until one night when he had been awoken by Hunter, who had told him in a whisper that the squad was “sneaking out.” They had never been so daring before, and Crosshair, excited by the prospect, had raised no objection – until he had discovered they were sneaking out to the training pools, the last place he ever wanted to be. Still, he had stayed quiet, and had been relieved when “sneaking out” didn’t involve actually swimming. Instead, he and Hunter and Wrecker and Tech had spent an hour just sitting at the side of the pool, kicking their feet quietly in the cool water, listening to Tech ramble on about the aquatic life on Kamino until Wrecker’s snores drowned out Tech’s lecture and Hunter suggested they all return to the barracks. These sporadic outings had continued for months –always spending time near water, always by the training pools until Tech figured out a route to a rarely-used landing platform built low near the water where they could sit and enjoy the salty air and crashing waves in closer proximity – until they had a close call with being discovered and had subsequently deferred sneaking out of the barracks for almost a year. Still, after just a few relaxed trips to the pools with his brothers, Crosshair had abruptly realized he no longer hated the water – actually, he rather enjoyed it, and swimming had gradually become an activity he looked forward to rather than feared.

He hadn’t thought about those times by the pools for years, and it was only now, sitting here on the Pabu beach listening to Omega’s troubles with Sami’s swimming lessons, that he suddenly suspected Hunter and his brothers had had ulterior motives for choosing the pools as their first destination for their rebellious outings.

And he had an idea.

“Have you tried holding Sami? You know, picking her up and, well, walking into the water with her?” Crosshair interjected into the ongoing brainstorming session.

Omega shook her head slowly. “I thought about that, but Sami didn’t want to try because she thinks she’s too big for me to hold her…”

“I can do it,” Wrecker promptly volunteered. “If she’s up for it, that is.”

Omega still hesitated. “The pool’s not very deep…”

Wrecker thought for a moment before nodding. “I can just sit in the water. We’ll figure it out.”

Omega suddenly broke out into a smile and rose to her feet before grabbing Wrecker’s hand. “Okay then, let’s go talk to Sami about it.” She took a few steps before looking back at the others. “You all coming?”

Hunter shrugged. “Why not,” he said, rising from his chair and whistling for Batcher to join them.

Crosshair, standing and preparing to follow, felt Phee’s eyes on him and turned to look at her. “What now?” he asked impatiently.

Phee chuckled a little as she shook her head. “Like I said, that explains a lot,” she said cryptically, before passing Crosshair to join Omega and Wrecker as they approached the docks where Sami still sat. 

******

Crosshair stepped onto the dock, waving only slightly awkwardly at Jun’s profuse thanks for his assistance in loading the boat, and made his way back toward the residential areas of Lower Pabu. 

He was fully aware of Sami standing a few feet away from the dock, holding Bayrn in her arms, but he had no idea the Pantoran was waiting for him until he had almost passed her and she suddenly spoke in a low voice that was nearly inaudible. 

“Mister Crosshair, sir?” 

He paused in bewilderment before turning to face her, and realized he must be scowling based on the apprehensive look on the young girl's face. Making an effort to relax his features - no need to intimidate her, after all - he elected to delay correcting her form of addressing him and instead cut straight to the point. 

“What do you want?”

She shrank back ever so slightly - hmmm, maybe his voice had come out a little sharper than he intended - but proceeded to make her request. 

“Would you hold Bayrn while Omega gives me a swimming lesson?”

Crosshair was far too nonplussed now to consider his expression or his tone.

“What?”

Sami gulped. “Uh, well, Omega's going to give me another swimming lesson now. Bayrn’s too little to swim, but I thought maybe he could get used to the water. It took me so long to stop being afraid, maybe it will be easier for Bayrn if he can be in the water now.”

The girl's full meaning finally dawned on Crosshair, and he looked at her aghast. 

“You… you want me to get into the water. And hold that kid. In the water?”

“Uh-huh,” Sami nodded, adjusting her hold on the baby. “It helped me a lot when Mister Wrecker held on to me. I would ask him, but him and Mister Hunter are out fishing and Mister Shep is busy and Mister Thom and Missus Hanti are getting dinner ready for us and…”

Peripherally noting that if Sami was persisting in calling even Wrecker “Mister,” he, Crosshair, would have to get used to being called by the same title, Crosshair cut her off. “I get the point. There's no one else. I'm glad you know I am a last resort. But I don't think I should be holding a kid.” And he frowned as he raised his arms in front of him, staring at his right stump. 

He hadn't gotten a prosthesis yet. He didn't even know if he wanted one. Echo had gone for years without one and had pulled off so many incredible feats Crosshair had often forgotten Echo was missing a hand. He doubted he'd ever reach Echo's level of skill, but he had been able to find new ways to accomplish more each day with just the one hand, and was growing rather accustomed to it. Still, holding a baby…

“Oh, you can hold Bayrn with one arm. It's easy. My dad does it all the time. He got his arm hurt bad in an accident so he had to hold my little brother like this, see?” And Sami shifted Bayrn to demonstrate. 

“You have a brother?” Crosshair asked as he observed Sami’s technique.

She had finally lost her apprehensive look, and now she actually smiled a little. “Yeah. I can't wait to see him again. I hope I can help him learn to swim too.” 

Sighing, Crosshair decided it was time to stop delaying the inevitable. He could come up with at least two dozen more reasons why he shouldn't accede to this request, but he knew that, no matter how much he may protest, he'd be in the pool holding the baby within the next few minutes. Might as well get this over with. 

“Fine. Let's go. No, wait,” he said as Sami started trotting off, “give me the kid now. I need to practice.” Before the kid becomes slippery as well as squirmy, he thought resignedly to himself. 

He may have reservations about holding the baby, but Bayrn’s own sense of self-preservation was obviously seriously impaired, for the baby cooed and smiled as he was passed over to the nervously scowling clone. If Crosshair wondered if maybe he was holding the baby too tightly for fear of dropping him, the baby didn't seem to mind, happily clapping before turning his attention toward examining his new holder. 

By the time they found Omega, Bayrn had thankfully released his death grip on Crosshair's ear and stopped his high-pitched excited squealing, and had settled into happily patting Crosshair's face. Omega, turning at Sami’s greeting, waved at them and impressively showed no sign of surprise or alarm at her sniper brother holding a baby. Instead, she called out cheerfully, “Crosshair! What are you doing here?”

He shrugged awkwardly, reactively adjusting his hold on Bayrn when the kid tipped forward while reaching out toward Omega. 

“Swimming lessons,” he said. 

“Oh?”

“I don't want Bayrn to be scared of the water, like I was,” Sami explained. “Mister Crosshair said he'd help.”

“Oh!” Omega nodded solemnly at Sami, but grinned so brightly at Crosshair he started to feel even more embarrassed than he already was. Letting out a slightly grumpy hmph, he stepped ahead of the girls into the pool, quickly finding an area of suitable depth where he could sit just about chest deep in the pleasantly cool water, and squinting as Bayrn squealed in delight and began splashing his little arms in the water. 

This was his punishment for ever poking fun at Hunter’s skills with children. At least Hunter wasn't around to witness Crosshair's humiliation in person, though Crosshair had no doubt Hunter and Wrecker and everyone else on this overly-friendly island would know about this event by sundown. 

“I don't think the kid is scared at all of the water,” he said to Sami while frowning at Bayrn's antics.

“Oh good! Yay Bayrn!” Sami smiled, clinging to Omega's hand as she cautiously stepped into the water herself. 

This was not exactly the response Crosshair had been angling for.

“You picked a great place to sit, Crosshair,” Omega said, pre-empting Crosshair's plea to somehow get out of this. “You can watch and tell me if I'm teaching Sami alright.”

“Oh goodie,” he deadpanned, though he smiled a little when Sami took a deep, nervous breath before plunging her head into the water and emerging looking rather pleased with herself. 

“Good, Sami. You're getting much better,” Omega smiled. “I think it’s time to show you how to not hold your breath all the time.”

“But I can’t breathe underwater,” Sami said.

“That’s right,” Omega said patiently. “You breathe in the air when your head is above water, and then breathe out when your head is in the water.”  

“Try blowing bubbles,” Crosshair blurted before thinking. At Sami’s questioning stare, he added in a tone completely devoid of enthusiasm, “It's fun.” 

For some reason, Sami took him at his word, nodding at him and watching Omega demonstrate before gamely trying it herself, giggling when she straightened. “That is fun,” she declared before, unprompted, repeating the task. 

“NOT you,” Crosshair warned Bayrn, who, having watched the display with interest, abruptly tried ducking his head toward the water to mimic the girls. Bayrn, obviously a bit put out, huffed for a few moments before suddenly smiling and resuming his splashing. 

By the time Thom and Hanti arrived to take Sami and Bayrn back home for dinner, Omega had started Sami on basic flutter kicks, with Crosshair – finding himself significantly interested in the proceedings in spite of himself – offering a few suggestions for improvement. His left arm felt like it was about to fall off from holding Bayrn for so long, even as he had daringly switched the baby to his right arm and discovered to his own pleasant surprise that this was quite manageable; and, to his own dismay, had found himself pondering how to best position Bayrn to help the kid get used to floating, so the arrival of the volunteer guardians couldn't have come at a better time. Still, he couldn’t hold back a sigh as he handed Bayrn over to Thom – yep, within an hour EVERYONE would know he had held a baby.

Omega playfully shouldered him as they trailed behind the children and their guardians on the way back to Upper Pabu, and Crosshair braced himself for what he knew she was going to say, even as he realized he had been rather hoping she would say it.

“You know, Crosshair, you'd make a really good swimming teacher.”

“Ha.”

“Provided you don't push any kids into the water.”

“Don't tempt me.”

“No, I mean it! You should start giving lessons.”

“Never gonna happen.”

******

Surprising to no one except, perhaps, Crosshair, it happened.

A few days later, Crosshair found himself confronted by Jax.

“Do you know how to dive?” the young Mirialan asked.

“Yes,” Crosshair answered shortly.

“Can you teach me?”

“No.”

Within a week, Crosshair had given Jax his first two diving lessons.

Within a year, Crosshair had become the go-to instructor on Pabu for swimming lessons.

The end. 

@summer-of-bad-batch

[phantom-of-the-501st]

Thoughts on the Batch's Ending

Ooookay. This is going to be a long one. (Little note from Steph who just finished writing this: it’s nearly 3000 words…)

Tagging @saturn-sends-hugs @inkstainedhandswithrings and @eriexplosion because I value their thoughts (but I'm also not demanding that you read 3000 words of waffle)

I’ve had a lot of thoughts about the finale of The Bad Batch and honestly, my mind is a bit of a mess right now. One of the things I just want to try and tackle is how I feel about the ending of each Batch member individually, because while I can look at it and say “The Batch got a happy ending!”, I feel like that doesn’t really give me much of an idea of whether or not each character got an ending that I feel is fitting for their story arc.

So, this post is basically just going to be me unpicking the ending for each of the Batchers and working out how I feel about it (aka me trying to unscramble the mass load of thoughts going on in my head right now). 

Omega

Overall, I’m very happy with where Omega ended up. When you look back on how she was when we first met her, you realise just how much she has grown over the last few seasons. She didn’t just learn to be a part of the squad, she also learned how to look after herself. It isn’t just a development of her skillset, it’s also a growth in maturity, which allows her to have a clearer head and more rational decisions in the field. While Omega trusted her brothers to come and rescue her, she didn’t just sit around and wait for them, she hatched her own plan to not only get her and the other children out, but also help the Batch when they arrive at Tantiss.

Like Echo, she strongly believes in helping people and I love that that has carried through into her ending. While it would have been nice for her to live a quiet life, free of any more troubles, it makes complete sense for her to want to join the Rebellion. And I think it was at a good time as well. Omega got to spend the rest of her childhood being raised in a more peaceful, safe environment, before making the decision a few years down the line to go her own way. This is her leaving the nest and I think it was tackled incredibly well. You can see how she has taken on attributes from all of her brothers, and judging by her style choice, Phee as well. We see Omega using the support of her brothers to carve her own path and I love that.

Personally, I can’t really see a more fitting development in her story than this. And I’m reluctant to actually call it an ending because for her, this feels more like the beginning of a new chapter. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if we saw her again later down the road.

Hunter

Now those who follow me may be aware that Hunter was never my favourite member of the Batch. I didn’t dislike him, but I never really connected with him in the same way that I connected with all of the other characters. Saying that, it doesn’t mean I haven’t given a lot of thought to him and his character.

Hunter always had a lot on his shoulders. He was the leader of the Batch and that meant keeping a rag-tag group of defective clones in line, but it also left him with the belief that if anything were to happen to his squad, it would be his responsibility. So, with Crosshair and Omega stuck with the Empire, and Tech dead, Hunter had a lot to carry. At the beginning of Season 3 we saw that he had become more reckless and irrational, not really thinking about plans and wanting to jump straight into things. It was Wrecker who had to step in and make sure Hunter didn’t do anything stupid. Hunter felt like he lost control and that took a lot out of him, especially since this is something I think he could feel creeping up on him throughout Season 2, even if he tried to fight it. The Batch had started to make decisions without him, and Omega was forming close attachments to other people, which was digging a knife into Hunter’s fear of losing his squad. So S3 saw him trying everything he could to reunite the Batch, because he couldn’t bear to lose anyone else.

And he achieved that. But what I also deeply appreciate is that we see Hunter accepting that Omega wants to go her own way. This was something he didn’t want happening for a long time, but once he accepted that she was capable of looking after herself, and once he accepted that he could never keep her tied in place forever, he supported Omega in her decision to join the Rebellion. Yes, he will always worry about her. He even tells her that she will always be their kid. But he knows that it’s time for her to carve her own path, and that means for him, finally letting go and accepting that Clone Force 99 will never be what it once was. 

Wrecker

Wrecker is an interesting one for me because he’s one of the few characters where I can’t really see a big step for his character in the final episode. For many of the others there is some form of acceptance, or big step in their lives, but for Wrecker I don’t really see that. And unfortunately, I think that comes from Wrecker never really being the focus of any strong character development throughout the history of the show. That’s not to say there wasn’t any growth at all, but when we look at how far everyone else has come in their stories, Wrecker always feels like he never got the same treatment in this show. The biggest growth I saw was when he stepped in to help Hunter when he could see the sergeant was spiralling.

So, while I’m happy he lived and has gone on to enjoy a longer, more peaceful life than we ever expected for the Batch, it makes me sad that we never really saw anything big for Wrecker in this ending. No big acceptance, no huge sacrifice. We don’t even get to see him say goodbye to Omega when she leaves. I love that Wrecker got a happy ending, but I always wish that we had gotten the opportunity to see more of a character arc with him over the course of the entire show.

Crosshair

I accepted a while ago that if any of the Batch members were to survive, Crosshair would be one of them because I didn’t expect the writers to kill him off after everything that he had been through. And thankfully they didn’t! I love that after everything, Crosshair has managed to find peace. Maybe not completely, but enough that he has the chance to live a life that doesn’t involve him being a soldier. 

Throughout S2 and S3 we saw Crosshair come to terms with the fact that he was disposable to the Empire and that they didn’t care about him as much as he had made himself believe. And one of the things Crosshair fought with the most was his own identity as a soldier. For so long, he believed that that was all he was, all he could be, so that’s why it has been so amazing finally seeing Crosshair acknowledge that he doesn’t need to be a soldier to still live a life he deserves; his purpose is and always has been more than that.

Saying that, I want to address the hand thing because I am still unsure of where I sit with it. Following his escape from Tantiss, we see Crosshair has developed hand tremors as a result of his PTSD, and a decent chunk of the season has been dedicated to him learning how to live with them. The biggest reason for this affecting Crosshair so much was that it impacted his ability to be a sniper, which is what Crosshair believed to be his main purpose: he didn’t know what to do without the ability to use his hand. And we were given some incredibly sweet scenes between him and Omega as she helped him work out the best way to manage the tremors, for example, them meditating together.

But then that brings me onto my main issue, which is, why remove the hand? One of the reasons I keep seeing is that it removes Crosshair’s ability to be a sniper, but we had already seen that. That’s the issue that the tremors were causing. Crosshair had already been struggling with that ability as a result of what happened to him on Tantiss, so cutting his hand off as a way of preventing his sniping ability seems a bit unnecessary. Now admittedly, the soldier who cut his hand off didn’t know that he had hand tremors, so logistically it makes sense, but as a story tool it seems a bit bizarre to me. Personally, I think it would’ve been more interesting to pursue the idea of Crosshair learning to manage his tremors through meditation etc. and adapting to a life that has less of a focus on sniping. 

Another reason I have seen for the hand is that it symbolises Crosshair finally becoming free from the Empire and what they did to him on Tantiss. Him no longer having the tremors indicates that he is no longer burdened by the Empire and his time there. But that doesn’t really work for me either. For one, Crosshair will never truly be separated from what happened to him there; even if he lost the shaking, he would still have a number of psychological issues as a result of what he went though, so I can’t see it as a way of symbolising a true separation. Which is once again why I think that following the story beat of him managing the tremors would have been a more interesting path for them to go down with his character.

Saying that, I’m still happy with where Crosshair’s story went. He is arguably the most complex character in the Batch and I’m so glad we have been able to see him develop the way he has. Him living a long, quiet life is something that I’m happy he has gotten, and I truly don’t think that him dying would have brought nearly as satisfying a conclusion as Crosshair finally finding a new place in the world.

Tech

Oh boy… this is going to be an interesting chunk of this essay. So errm… it turns out Tech is actually dead, which is… kinda shit. 

Back when we saw him fall at the end of S2, I said that one of the reasons that I didn’t believe that Tech was really dead was because if he was, I would’ve found the writing kinda cheap. I said repeatedly throughout that season that I didn’t want all of his character development to simply be an emotional manipulation tactic to make us even more sad when he died… which is what it turned out to be. It doesn’t surprise me that Tech sacrificed himself, but it makes me mad that ultimately his death never really had any real impact on anything. I mean, they hardly even addressed it in the final season!

I get that animated Star Wars is known for rarely addressing characters after their deaths, but The Clone Wars focuses on so many characters that if we gave that much attention to every character that died, then we would never progress the plot. However, unlike TCW, The Bad Batch primarily focuses on a smaller group of clones and therefore not only has the space to explore the impacts that death would have on the squad, but really should find it a necessary part of the storytelling. The lack of attention given to Tech throughout this season has been beyond frustrating to me. He deserved better.

And I can’t write a section about Tech’s ending without addressing the CX-2 situation. Were we all delusional for believing that Tech was alive? No. Now before people come at me for saying that, I want to explain why that is the conclusion I have come to. You would have every right to label us delusional if there was absolutely no proof behind the claims that we made, but when the writers give us a character that both speaks and acts like Tech, what did they expect us to think? There were too many parallels between Tech and CX-2 for it to be coincidental and I still stand by the fact that we had reason to believe that they were the same person.

Now, looking at the other CX soldiers we see in the finale, they all seem to parallel the OG members of the Batch: there’s a larger one who primarily focuses on hand-to-hand combat, someone who favours blades, a sniper, and a more tech-savvy one. And I’m sure there is a reason for that, symbolically or practically, but if the fact that they all resemble the Batch is important, then why was so much focus put primarily on CX-2? There was no way we weren’t going to think that they would reveal him to be Tech.

Overall, I’m annoyed. Tech was such a brilliant character and I am so frustrated that not only did he get a death that I felt was kind of cheap, but he didn’t get nearly the respect he should have been given in the final season. Now, I’m not using this as a way to bash the writers, and I definitely don’t think that anyone should use it as an excuse to be bullies, but unfortunately, I can’t be satisfied with the way Tech’s story ended, and I’m not sure I ever will.

Echo

Last but certainly not least, Echo. To say that Echo means a lot to me is an understatement, and I was genuinely terrified that I might have to say goodbye to one of my comfort characters. But thankfully, our boy made it!

Following Season 1, we all wanted for Echo to get some more development. It never felt like he had truly been used to his full potential. And thankfully, Season 2 began to give us that. Yes, we ended up saying goodbye to Echo for half a season, but we saw some incredible growth in his character, and him choosing to join the rebellion made too much sense not to happen. Unfortunately, this also meant that we didn’t get to see Echo for the majority of the final season, but I am beyond grateful that what they gave us in these last few episodes has been some of the best Echo content that we have ever seen. Watching him grow and find where he belongs has been a pleasure to watch, He really is an ARC trooper through and through. Particularly in these last few episodes, seeing how much he has grown to be like Fives, and watching him carry on his brother’s legacy, has been so incredible, No matter what anyone says, I believe that he truly is one of the greatest, and most important characters that we’ve ever gotten out of animated Star Wars.

However, I do have one gripe with Echo’s ending, and it’s the fact that it doesn’t actually feel like a conclusion. If anything, I have more questions about Echo now than I did before the last episode. Echo going to the Rebellion is an absolute given; he still has stuff to help Rex with. But the fact that there is absolutely no mention of him in the epilogue has just made me wonder where he is. Omega mentions Crosshair and Wrecker, and we only see Hunter, so we know that Echo isn’t with them. But we also know that at that point in the story, Echo also isn’t with Rex (assuming we’re in Rebels era). So where is he? What is he doing? Is he actually dead at that point??? I really hope we see more of Echo in the future because if this really is the last time we see his character, it’s too open ended for me to really be satisfied with it.

But if I’m being honest, I really don’t think that this is the last time that we are going to see him. And especially with Omega joining the Rebellion, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw another clone-centric show following these characters in the future.

Concluding Thoughts

All in all, my thoughts are still a bit jumbled. I still don’t know how I truly feel about everything, but hopefully this post at least gives some insight into how I think each character’s endings were handled. Will I change my mind at some point? Probably. But for now, this is where I stand.

At its core, I think the ending we got makes sense for a lot of the characters, and I’m glad that they didn’t all just die at the end. Sure, there are choices that I’m not happy with, but seeing that some of the Batch go on to live long lives is something that I’m very happy to see. It doesn’t happen enough in animated SW, so I’m glad we got to experience it.

[lifblogs]

Alive

@summer-of-bad-batch Week 12 Alt. Prompt: Radio Silence Rating: General Audiences Word Count: 2025 Summary: After Eriadu, Echo leaves messages on Tech's comm channel, feeling like he's talking to his brother again. READ ON AO3

“Hey… Tech,” Echo said into the comm. “It’s been a few rotations since… well, you know.”

He looked around, suddenly feeling ridiculous now that his voice was coming out of him. Night had swiftly fallen, and the lights of the landing pad he currently sat on, legs dangling over the side, were all that lit it. A ship was there—one of Rex’s ships.

Echo… missed the Marauder, but he knew he could help more from here. And… after so much loss, he couldn’t… well, he couldn’t handle it at all. It was like his foundation he’d built with his new family had been ripped right out from under him, and he couldn’t stay, not without anything to stand on.

Hunter’s face had been carved with pained, but he had said he knew Echo had to do this, and also mentioned he could do more work to search for Omega, for Tantiss, than he could if they stayed together.

Wrecker had hugged him so tightly he had worried an implant was going to embed deeper into him, or the controls on his legs would shatter.

Wrecker wasn’t angry, like Hunter was to some degree. He was sad. They all were.

It was more than that though.

The massive hole in Echo’s chest that he’d worked on filling and healing with his family, now made it so any reminders of them was too much. Hunter was too much. Wrecker was too much. Because around them it was easy to see who wasn’t there.

With Rex and Howzer and the boys, there was none of that, really. Though, every time he looked at Rex he thought of Fives.

No Fives.

Now no Tech, and no… no Omega.

“I don’t know if anyone’s told you,” he went on, “but… Omega was taken. By—by Hemlock. I know that’s not what you want to hear, maybe I shouldn’t even be telling you since we failed to find Tantiss, and save Crosshair, but…

“I don’t know what to do, Tech,” he went on, voice rough, tight. Tears welled in his eyes, and he let them, let his world blur around him.

“I feel so lost,” he admitted. “I… I remember when I first saw you. You were the first person I’d seen since… Anyway, I was scared. I was, but when I saw you, seeing you knew exactly what you were doing to save me, I wasn’t scared anymore. I didn’t even know you yet, and I trusted you. You were so human, so real. It was like… It was like…” Echo found himself at a loss for words, not sure how to describe what it had felt to see a human again, to see someone saving him, not torturing him, not using him, but saving him.

“Well, imagine being afraid, more afraid than you’ve ever been, and then seeing human eyes, eyes you almost recognize. I felt… home. You did that for me, Tech. And when you unhooked me, when you carried me… I decided if I ever got through that—and of course I did because I had you—that I would carry you too.

“Maybe not in a real sense—unless it was needed—but in a sense that I’d be there for you.”

Tears fell, throat so tight he barely got his next words out: “That I’d save you.”

Silence seemed to swallow him, even amongst the night noises of the creatures in the jungle.

“And I couldn’t. I’m sorry.”

Echo switched off the comm, and placed it against his forehead, hunching in on himself, sobbing.

He didn’t know how long he was out there—maybe hours—but that was how Rex found him.

He didn’t say anything, just put a hand on his shoulder, and it was enough.

“Hey, Tech,” Echo said from the cockpit of one of Rex’s ships. He wasn’t exactly flying it given the one hand situation, but he was keeping an eye on things while everyone else rested. The comm chanel was still live, but as usual there was nothing on the other end. Radio silence. Still— “Sorry it’s bee awhile,” he said. “Been pretty busy, looking for Tantiss, for Omega. I miss her.”

He sighed. “I miss you. I wish you could come home to us, you know? I knew what Plan Ninety-Nine was. Hunter had briefed me on it, but I never thought…”

His words cut off, a million thoughts clouding the space in his head. There was a fierce ache in his chest, and fear, betrayal, greater than he’d ever known, was trying to rip him apart.

He was a traitor to his friend, his family, because…

“Sometimes I hate you for it,” he finally got out, words tight, crawling out of the barbed wire in his chest, the electric frisson that had tried to keep it locked in tight.

And now that the words had been said, they hurt.

Echo nearly choked on a gasp, and he put his hand to his chest, curled in a fist. He hunched in over it, shaking, tears falling freely down his face, sobs catching in his chest, a pained growl leaving him.

“You left us,” he said. “You left us. What are we supposed to do with that? You made sure we didn’t all die, but… you didn’t put yourself into those calculations. You died. Did you even care? Did you think you mattered, or was it just us? We cared about you too, you know! We cared about— We still do.

“Omega got hurt,” he went on. “We all did. And then… well, without you… Hemlock took her. I know—I know I already told you that, but you weren’t there. You weren’t there, Tech! What am I supposed to do now? You were the first person I saw. The first person! And now…”

Echo sighed. “Whatever.” He switched off the comm.

“Tech, you’re never gonna believe this,” Echo said, grinning wide, the hole in his chest smaller for once, filled in with brilliant light. He was tweaking the energy crossbow he was planning on giving to Omega as soon as he saw her. “Omega’s back. She escaped, and guess who was with her? Crosshair. I know! She really did it. She saved herself. She saved him.

“I haven’t seen her yet, but Hunter did warn me she looks a bit older. I know that when I do see her I’ll think about the time I missed with her, and I know it’ll hurt, but it’s okay because she’s back. She’s safe now.

“Crosshair’s safe now,” he added. “Heard he’s as thorny as ever.” Echo grinned thinking of it, and thinking of Crosshair’s grudging acceptance of Echo which had turned into a bond with trust, that trust stronger with all the hard edges. “But she did it, Tech. She finished your mission! I know there’s still the Empire, that Tantiss is still out there, and Hemlock is, but I just thought I’d let you know. For once in almost six months, I’m finally happy. And I think… I think you would be too.”

Echo couldn’t sleep, as usual, and he was lying around in his rack, Gregor snoring beneath him.

With a deep sigh, he pulled out his comlink, dialing it to the frequency that never responded, and never would again.

“Hi, Tech. It’s me. Echo.” His words seemed too loud, and he rolled out of his rack, landing neatly on the deck.

He made his way over to the lounge that was on this massive ship, and sat back in the booth by the table. Only the ship’s hum met him now, the lights dim.

“I don’t know why I’m still doing this,” he admitted. “I know you’re… you’re gone. But I have so much to tell you, so much to say. It’s still weird not having you here. I always turn around thinking I’ll see you, I find my eyes searching every room I enter, and sometimes when I haven’t slept for days I imagine I see you out of the corner of my eye, coming to tell me some crazy fact. And I’d listen. Oh, I’d listen. What I wouldn’t give to have you telling me about some animal or language right about now. You could tell me about the history of the comlink and I’d listen. I’d listen to you talk about the galaxy, about other life-forms, about what you ate for breakfast. About everything.”

Echo had to pause, all choked up.

He didn’t know why he kept doing this to himself, kept tearing at his open wound instead of letting it heal.

But if it healed would he forget? Would he forget all the wonders that had made Tech such an amazing life-form? Would he forget his smile, his startled laugh when he actually found a joke funny, the sound of his voice, the way he spoke, his eyes? Would he forget it all?

Echo knew that wasn’t quite how it worked, and yet he kept doing this, kept letting himself bleed.

He had half a mind to let himself bleed until the Empire was nothing but dust.

“I’m sorry.”

He switched the comm off, and let the silence invade all the dark spaces in his mind, let it play with the nightmares.

Echo leaned back, looking up at the deck above him, not taking in any of the details, not even the color.

Everything was drab, and gray, and dark. Cold, and silent. So cold, like when he had been nothing but a tool for the Separatists.

Echo didn’t welcome it, but it was there. Without Tech, it crept in every day, and maybe would until Echo was gone too.

“I’m sorry to tell you this,” Echo said, “but the Empire found Pabu. I wasn’t there. I’m actually on my way to pick up the others now, but I thought you should know. Phee is safe. But Omega—she gave herself up to save everyone.

“I’d be proud if… if it didn’t hurt so much. I know you’d be proud. In a way, I think she learned it from you—sacrifice. You meant so much to her, to me, to everyone. So I thought I’d let you know, we’re heading to Tantiss. We’re destroying that place, and we will not stop until Omega is free, until the clones are free. I just wish you could stand by my side after we win.

“Hell, sorry for all the bravado. I’m… scared. I could always tell you when I was afraid. I think sometimes you’d find it silly, but then you’d realize it wasn’t silly to me, that it was real. And talking to you about it—it was like you unhooking me from that machine all over again, saving me.

“I’d save you if I could. I would have. But now all I can do is save her.”

Echo swallowed hard, looking out at the blue-white of hyperspace streaking past.

“Tech… thank you.”

Echo switched the comm off, telling himself this was the last time. If he could save Omega—and he would—he’d let his wound heal. Maybe finally it could heal.

Echo had abandoned his armor, his comm, feeling like he was losing part of himself for this, giving himself up to save Omega, so he never got the message that came through as he landed at Tantiss. He would know, would learn who this was, would even have help from him as he turned on the other CXs, but he never heard the high, frightened voice that said, “Echo, it’s me. It’s Tech. I don’t know how, but… I’m alive.”

And with the Marauder in ruins, no one else in Clone Force 99 heard that voice. If they had Crosshair wouldn’t have been so afraid, wouldn’t have thought Clone Force 99 had died, after all; Wrecker wouldn’t have lied, wouldn’t have pushed himself too hard; Hunter wouldn’t have been ready to give up all he was for his little girl, would have known he wasn’t alone. They would have been a family in that tense moment in the jungle, and would have known that Clone Force 99 was very. Much. Alive.

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

Hello Mimi!!!! Me again!!!!! 9 and 11 from your amazing prompts please! 👉🏻👈🏻 For Hunter? 😁

@dragonrider9905 girl thank you for choosing these amazing prompts.

9. “Once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, and her laughter was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering.” — Nicole Krauss, The History of Love

11. “You forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget.” — Cormac McCarthy, The Road

I hope you love what I did with your request. It’s fluffy and sweetish.

Love oo

By My Side

Warnings: Concern for a sibling, unrequited love (somewhat), discussion of emotions, hesitation, fear, mentions of deserving better, angst-ish, fluff, fear of cognitive issues, reassurance of love, kissing. I think that’s it, if I miss any please let me know.

Main Master List   |   AO3 Link | Quote Roulette

“You okay?” 

You called out to Hunter as he sat on the boulder of the hidden docking port, your eyes noticing that Omega had taken the shuttle and left, you gently sat beside him while he pet Batcher loving, almost methodically. 

“Hmm” he grunted in response. 

“She’ll be okay.” You gently pressed your hand on his shoulder, you knew him well enough to know he didn’t like being babied over when he was emotional. 

“Hmm.”

You let out a sigh, as you stood, “Alright, well if you want to talk … you know where to find me.” You began to walk away when his hand gripped your wrist; you turned to look at him, his eyes barely looking at yours. 

“Please … stay.” His voice was low barely above a whisper, but it conveyed more in that second than anything else before. You gently took your seat again, surprised when his hand slid down and intertwined your fingers.

There had always been a longing and desire between the two of you, something unspoken, but between being on the run, trying to get Crosshair back, losing Tech, and then rescuing Omega and the clones from Tantiss, there never seemed to be a time to discuss it. Then when peace finally allowed you all to breathe and live, Hunter became hyper focused on Omega and his brothers. You couldn’t blame him, and you eventually gave up all hope of there being anything more between you than friendship. Yet, in this moment, something felt different. 

“What is it?”

He turned to look at you, “I’m sorry.”

You furrowed your brow in confusion, “For Omega leaving? That’s not your fault. Why would you apologize for that?”

“No. Not for that … for …” he let out a sigh as he gently rubbed the back of your hand, “for so many things. For hiding and not … not being honest about what I felt.”

There was a silence that filled the space between you two, you gently rested your head on his shoulder, “Honestly, I thought it had all been in my head… that you moved on… before we even … were anything.”

Hunter shook his head pressing a gentle kiss to the top of your head, “No, cyare, I’ve always wanted you, I just …” he let out a sigh as he rested his cheek on the top of your head, “I couldn’t imagine that life; you … you’ve deserved a better life than you’ve had. You deserve to have a home with plenty of farm, for your herbs and farming that you always try to get going.”

“Why do you think I want something different? All I’ve ever wanted is this” you wrapped your arms around him, holding him close as you nuzzled closer.

He let out a sigh, wrapping his arms tight around you, “We should’ve done this sooner.”

“Yeah, we should’ve.”

Silence fell between the two of you as Hunter gently ran his thumb on your back drawing tiny concentric patterns, holding you almost impossibly close. “Promise me, you’ll remind me of all our moments, if I ever forget them.” His voice was low and soft as he spoke, afraid that what he feared most would come true. 

You shifted looking at him, as you cupped his cheek, “Hunter, I’ll never let you forget. Are you afraid that might actually happen?”

His head tilted further into your hand wanting and needing to feel your soft touch against his skin, “I … yes. I’m afraid, you forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget.” He looked into your eyes, “I’m afraid I’ll forget you.”

You pulled him close, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, shifting as his hands gripped your hips guiding you to his lap as he tilted his head to look into your eyes. 

“Hunter, I will never let you forget. Even if it means I have to remind you who I am 50 times a day; even if it means you don’t remember the first time we met. I’ll just tell you the story of us over and over again. I’ll start it by saying, ‘Once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, and her laughter was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering.’ And I’ll tell you about our first argument. First time, you called me your friend. All the times you made me laugh on purpose just to hear my laugh, or you made sure I was looked after.” You pressed your forehead against his, “I’ll tell you all about our adventures, and every time our hands accidentally brushed and made my heart skip a beat. Or the times when you would tuck a strand of hair behind my ear when you were trying to convey what you felt without actually saying it. I’ll tell you everything, over and over again.”

Tears welled up in Hunter’s eyes as he realized the depth of your love for him. All he could think about was how much of a fool he was to have wasted so much precious time with you. All the nights he could’ve been holding you in his arms. All the moments he could’ve kissed you but didn’t. All the missed opportunities to tell you how much he loved you. All those moments he let slip away. 

He resolved within himself, he wasn’t going to let one more second pass, not one more moment will slip away. His hand went to the back of your head as he gently leaned in, pressing his lips to yours, “Stay by my side, for as long as you’ll have me.”

“No. For much longer than that.” You pressed your lips against his holding him tight as years of desire and want melted away in the first kiss you two ever shared. 

Main Master List   |   AO3 Link | Quote Roulette

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[stars-n-spice]

Hi, I've been meaning to ask you for a long time. And how did Crosshair meet Tay after Tantiss? Well, provided they had their last meeting in a bar before that episode with Mayday. It will be interesting to read about this post or a small comic (I really like your drawing style).

Howdy! Thank you so much for this honestly, hearing that you like my drawing style made my week! 🩵🩵

As for your question, I honestly haven't thought much about how Tay and Crosshair would reunite on Pabu after their initial meetings prior to everything that happens after Mayday. I want to keep my Silly Squad AU as close to canon as possible, with stuff with them happening in between the episodes sorta "off-screen," so while Crosshair is dealing with being on Barton IV with Mayday and then being on Tantiss with Hemlock, in my mind, Tay is having to deal with some of the consequences of his actions and his past with Black Sun coming to bite him in the ass.

Before that they were meeting on and off and had a bit of a situationship going on, but as soon as they start to figure things out, that's kinda when Crosshair gets shipped off to Barton IV and things just go downhill from there.

Tay finds out about this transfer and does everything he can to try and find Crosshair. Of course, he hits a dead end eventually because nobody knows where the fuck Tantiss is, but he doesn't give up and eventually gets a tip-off that leads him to Pabu sometime after the events of S3.

I could see maybe Tay arriving at Pabu and is kinda at the end of his rope because he's been looking for months now with little to no success in getting any closer to Crosshair. He's not ready to give up yet, but he's slowly losing hope. Then he finally sees him. Tay makes his way up to the marketplace, and through the crowd, he's finally met with the sight he'd been longing to see all these months. It's Crosshair. Crosshair, laughing and smiling at something Omega said, walking through the marketplace with Batcher, looking happy and alive. It's better than Tay could've ever imagined.

After months of searching, they're finally reunited and can pick up where they left off. Of course, Tay is taken aback and horrified to hear everything that had happened to Crosshair, and in turn, Crosshair is completely touched and taken aback by the fact that Tay was actively looking for him and trying to get him back. Something his brothers didn't even try to do. And it's that latter fact that gives Crosshair reason to give Tay a second chance and let him back into his life so they can shoot their shot at being a normal couple.

Of course, there's angst in the reunion though as when they last saw each other, they were both working for the Empire so Crosshair is sent into a panic thinking Tay's still with the Empire and has come to take him back or something, but that's far from the case.

Or something like that, I'm not too sure yet. Hopefully that answered your question though! And thank you again for your ask and lovely words 🩵💫

[ledbytheunknown]

Pro Memoria

Summary: Crosshair alone in his cell on Mount Tantiss reflects on his life, his choices and all that brought him to that point.

Word count: 1590

Warnings: There is talk of pain, angst, medical issues and contemplation of death. Thoughts or regret and sadness

A/N: Written for @swprequels-big-bang The art is amazing and I just know you will al love it as much as I do when you see it.

it can be found here

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

" Don't you forget about dying

Don't you forget about your friend death

Don't you forget that you will die "

Crosshair sat alone in the cell on Mount Tantiss, no natural light reached this far in. The garish industrial lights often hurt his eyes, making his head fill with the pain of a migraine. He’d lost count of the days, everyone being the same monotonous routine. Wake a morning serving of sustenance that made the old republic rations look like a gourmet meal on Canto Bight. Guards moving him to a lab samples taken from his right hand, the repeated jabs left his hand feeling weak and at times it had a tremor. 

In the beginning he would be taken to a chamber much like the one Rampart and Tarkin used on him back on Kamino and his mind was probed and shocked as Hemlock tried to twist him and it to make him a perfect super soldier.

The gas Hemlock had used on him when he had tried to get a message to his brothers to protect Omega left his throat damaged and his voice even more gravely than before. It had all been for nothing. Omega was still found and brought here.

She visited almost everyday. Talked about planning and getting out. Crosshair fully believed that she should try, but that she should go alone. Leave him to his karma, his punishment, his prison.

He was not innocent. He blindly followed all the orders he was given by the empire for a long time. There were times when he closed his eyes he could see the faces of every single person he killed for the empire. He could also see the faces of those he knew die around him.

The rebels on Onderon, they honestly did not know where Saw Gerrera was, majority on that transport were civilians and Crosshair had led his squad in opening fire on them and cut them all down. Man woman and child. 

Tightness grew in his chest as the many memories flooded in. Shortly after Onderon there was a mission to Naboo to bring in again so-called insurgents who were not separatists but members of the galactic republic who were resisting the Empire's new rule.  The whole settlement was wiped out again man woman or child it didn’t matter they were gone in under a half hour and their bodies disintegrated leaving no trace. It was like that for a long time and Crosshair could always shut out what he did. Block his mind from remembering.  But now their faces were all he could see. Hundreds and hundreds of people who he was directly responsible for their deaths. Either by giving orders to the troops or by his own hand.

His hand, the right one, had started to tremble shortly after his attempt at contacting his brothers to tell them to keep Omega safe.  The tremors now were more frequent. Any time he thought about what he had done it started to shake. He reached across and held it steady with his left hand taking a deep breath and it started to settle.

Crosshair looked through the bars of his cell down into the stark utilitarian prison corridors that went in every direction. Almost every stall was occupied by former clone troopers, all ones who refused to serve the empire, all were tested and some experimented on but for what purpose He did not know. He often saw Nala Se in the halls and lab. She was his creator, not just in that he was a clone but it was her project that gave him and his brothers of Clone Force 99 their desired mutations. He saw sadness in her eyes when she looked at him and disappointment. It hurt him as he didn’t know if that was disappointment in his situation or in him and his actions.

He put his head back against the wall on his cell and closed his eyes again, this time his mind took him to Bracca, the place he almost burned to death in the fire of an ion engine. That was the start of his downfall, where his troops in the elite squad questioned his actions. It got worse on Ryloth.

Ryloth, it was all a flawed plan by Rampart to fully take over. To frame the hero of Ryloth Cham Syndulla of the murder of Twi'lek senator Orn Free Taa, but it didn’t go as planned and Cross hair was forced to arrest many clone troopers. Some fought back and for that they were killed.

But he survived. He survived the fall of Kamino and spent thirty-two rotations stranded there alone. He chose to stay, he could have left with the others on the Marauder but he chose to stay. But he questioned himself if he did it because he believed the Empire would find him or if he did it to die, to atone for all he did.  The Empire did find him and after making a full recovery it was back to fighting back to killing, though he didn’t do much of the latter on the first mission with Cody. Commander Cody, where was he now? Was he safe? They said he left, that he defected, but in the Empire that could mean anything, that he went to the budding rebellion or that he disappeared to live in peace or that he had been killed. Maybe he was here in the halls in one of the many cells. 

He sighed thinking of how badly he hurt his brothers, not just his batch mates but the clone troopers as a whole. Those who had stood against the empire how he treated them. Capturing them like he had Howzer and his troops or killing some of the 981st that had defected in the time between Ryloth and Daro. 

How he had hunted Tech, Wrecker, Echo, and Hunter. He had been so close to them and now they only seemed like distant memories.

One of the times Hemlock and Nala Se worked on their experiments Hemlock informed him of Tech’s fall and subsequent death. It made Crosshair’s stomach and chest ache. They had been trying to find him, they had been trying to rescue him and now Tech was dead, and it was all Crosshair's fault.  Just as Mayday’s death was on him as well.

He should have been able to save Mayday. He should have been able to get him back to base sooner so that there would be a chance of survival instead of dying in agony on the ground just beyond the walls of the base. He should have taken out more than just the lieutenant; he should have gunned down that whole base. But he was too weak.

Always now too weak to be of use, with a trembling shooting hand and headaches that would come and go but when they came they would stay, it would linger and pulse and beat away at his head, his brain throbbing as if trying to escape his skull. 

He grabbed his head in his hands as he felt another of the headaches coming on he could feel the tremor of his hand against his head. This would be a fitting way to go, he had survived practically being incinerated, and being left to fend for himself on a dead planet but to have that pain in his head kill him make him atone for all he had done that would be perfect. 

He tried to pry his eyes open to survey his surroundings one last time. In the hall beyond the ray shielded door of his cell he could see them. It was scary, bittersweet and calming all in one as his brothers lined the halls, Tech closest then MAyday and so many others, there were non-clone faces there as well, faces he recognized all too clearly as his victims. But they did not look mad, they looked sad or was that more looks of empathy, of pity? They were waiting for him. To escort him to hell no doubt it is what he deserved.

" We focus on your death,

We focus on your death.

You share not the blood of ours,

thus we focus on your death "

The words echoed through his head so many voices in unison. Calling him to his end. So he had taken their lives or failed to prevent their deaths, it was only fitting they beckoned him to his own.

The intensity of the pain grew, his eyes squeezing shut as if to try and stop the growing throb and the searing burning pain that filled his skull. He felt his breath catch in his lungs. Then calm, darkness and silence. 

.

.

.

Beep……..Beep………Beep

Crosshair felt his consciousness leaving the void. The soft sounds around him, this was not hell, it was too calm, and smelled too clean. Way to clean.

“Ah I see you are finally waking up” a familiar voice said from a distance away.

Footsteps came closer

“We almost lost you there CT-9904, that would be unfortunate as you still have so much to give in our experiments”

Crosshair opened his eyes. He was alive but he had been wrong; he was in hell. The living hell of Mount Tantiss, and staring down at him as he was strapped to the medical table, the devil incarnate. Dr. Royce Hemlock. Crosshair looked around the room, the voices were gone as were the apparitions. So once again he would be left alone with his thoughts and his guilt. 

[leapingbadger]

Decisions - Chapter 2 - Crosshair

I wanted to post a chapter each day because each of Omega's beloved brothers deserves the spotlight. Today it's Crosshair's turn.

Will our favorite grumpy sniper agree with Omega's desire to join the rebellion?

All five Chapters are up on AO3.

Omega was reluctant to seek out her brothers after her conversation with Hunter hadn’t gone so well. She assumed like any good Sergeant he would relay the details of his conversation to his brothers, and she didn’t like the idea of already being on the defensive.

The warm sunlight was creeping towards the horizon as she made her way to the cliff. It looked the same as it had the first time she came here with Crosshair all those years ago. She smiled as she recognized the slim frame of his silhouette against the setting sun.

“Thought I’d find you here,” she said quietly as she listened to his calm, rhythmic breathing.

He didn’t answer right away, taking another deep breath and letting it out slowly. She sat down beside him, the ground warm beneath her as the waves crashed loudly against the side of the rock of the island below.

The light linen clothes he wore gave him the air of a spiritual nomad. She had thought he looked strange the first time she saw him in island garb but now she couldn’t picture what he looked like without it. The idea of him in armor was absurd.

“You’re a regular tracker,” he said with a smile as she settled in beside him, her hands upturned on her knees and eyes closed.

Crosshair took another deep breath in and out before finally turning to look at her. She could feel his eyes on her, even though hers were closed.

“Hunter told you, didn’t he?” she asked, letting a deep breath out and opening her eyes, gazing resolutely at the horizon instead of her little brother.

“He didn’t have to. Wrecker and I overheard. You’re not as stealthy as you think,” he said in his usual sarcastic tone.

Omega opened her eyes and turned to her brother. He had a wry smile on his lips.  She laughed before sighing heavily, “Do you think it’s a mistake?” she asked.

His mouth twitched, “I can’t answer that for you. You have to make your own decisions.” He said straightforwardly, his brow furrowed, giving away that something else was going on beneath the simplicity of his statement.

She turned to face him in frustration. His eyes widened in surprise, but it didn’t last for long, his face falling back into the ever-present scowl that usually occupied it. He had a few more lines on his face these days, his grey hair had grown into a short crop but was unable to cover the scar on the right side of his head. At least she knew she wasn’t the cause of his grey hair. He had a spatter of grey stubble on his chin that refused to grow into a full beard, much to Hunter’s amusement.

“It’s the right thing to do, Crosshair. You know that. How can I…” she looked out to sea, grasping for the right word, “…hide here while others are laying down their lives for this fight?”

“You’re not hiding. You’re living. Sometimes in war that’s the bravest thing you can do.”

 Omega stifled an eye roll although she was sure Crosshair could sense it. “The empire isn’t going to get smaller, Crosshair, eventually it will come here. We have to stop it before it does.”

“The empire has already been here, Omega. They realized there is nothing of value here as long as they had you. You need to remember that.”

She wasn’t sure why but her head moved as if he had slapped her. She huffed and crossed her arms, but Crosshair’s expression remained wholly unapologetic for what he had said.

The invasion of Pabu in search of her was one of the things that had stuck with her long after the ships had left the island, and long after her final escape from Tantiss too. She saw Wrecker’s unconscious body whenever she visited the docks, always paused outside the home the troopers were set to burn and lingered too long as the spot where she was taken away from her home.

She shook her head to rid herself of the unwelcome memories. This conversation wasn’t going the way she thought it would. Crosshair was usually on her side when she and Hunter disagreed.

“That was years ago. They haven’t shown any interest since. They don’t even know I exist.”

“That you know of,” Crosshair interjected.

Omega huffed again, “You sound like Hunter.”

“He was the sergeant for a reason, Omega. He could gather all the intel, listen to the experts and decide on a safe way forward that would protect the squad. Don’t mistake his reluctance as overprotectiveness alone, it’s strategic as well.”

“So, you agree with him? I should just stay here, become a teacher like Lyana, marry a local and settle down?”

Crosshair rolled his eyes, “no one is trying to tell you how to live your life. We just want you to be safe so you can have the life you want.”

Omega felt herself soften as she looked at her battle-hardened brother, his left hand absentmindedly playing with the fingers of his prosthetic right hand.  “You have kept me safe, Crosshair. All of you. You gave me a childhood I never thought I’d have. You gave me a home, peace, love, and a life where I didn’t want for anything. But don’t you think it’s my turn to pay that forward? To give that to another scared kid who doesn’t have a family and has no one to protect them?”

“And who’s going to protect you? You think I didn’t notice that carbon scoring on the ship? You barely got out of whatever skirmish you were in. You really want to do that on a daily basis? There’s a reason the rebellion needs pilots, Omega. They keep dying.”

Omega winced and nodded, of course his eagle eyes had noticed the damage when she’d arrived home. “I can take care of myself, Crosshair. I have everything I learned from you, Hunter, Wrecker, Tech, Echo, Phee and all the other people I have met along the way. I can do this.”

Crosshair sighed deeply as he kept his eyes on his hands, “Omega, the empire has been successful because it is insidious. I know more than anyone that the people who work within it are driven by their need for power and there are a great many people like that in the galaxy. I got caught up in it, for a while. Even if the rebellion is successful one day, and that’s a big if, the vacuum imperial destruction would create would just bring another power-hungry leader to the forefront. This isn’t a fight that is easily won.”

Omega paused thoughtfully, “Even so, we have to try.” she said determinedly.

Crosshair sighed again, “I see I’m not going to win this argument today.” He said, settling back into position, his legs crossed, palms facing upwards on his knees.

“I guess not,” Omega said sadly.

“Then can we get back to it? I’m gunna need a long session to recover from this conversation.”

Omega laughed, “Sure thing, little brother.”

She watched the corner of his mouth tick up as the sun continued to dip below the horizon. The warm sea breeze was blowing Omega’s hair as they sat in comfortable silence. With the last moments of fading warmth, Pabu’s light show began, illuminating the entire island from lower Pabu to the weeping maya tree and Archium above.  

[whos-orion]

Risk (3/4)

Summary: Omega and Hemlock are stranded in the middle of the Weyland jungle, and there’s only one way out. Work together. As Hunter and the rest of the Batch try to work through Omega’s loss, Omega discovers something truly, truly terrifying.

Word Count: 1861

Notes: haha guess what it’s not the last part!!! Maybe pt 4 will be the end maybe not I don’t really know!! Enjoy!! Also let me know in a reblog/reply if you would like to be on the tag list for pt 4!

Tag List: @twinsunstars @luzfeather

Part 1 Part 2

This was strange.

Omega was sitting in the middle of the Weyland Jungle, having survived a fall from the top of a mountain, next to Royce Hemlock. He was tending to his wounds, using a small medkit he kept on his person at all times. Of course he did. He was a doctor. An evil scientist, but a doctor nonetheless. He was applying bandages around the spot where Omega had shot him earlier. He finished and sighed, wincing as he turned his head towards Omega.

“…are you certain you don’t want me to take care of your leg?”

“Yes.” Omega replied firmly. Her left leg hurt badly, more so than everything else at least. But she didn’t want to give any kind of trust to Hemlock.

“It would be wise to let me do so. You appear to have landed on it. It is most likely broken—“

“Shut up.” Omega snapped. She didn’t feel like talking with him right now. Or ever, for that matter. Right now, she needed to figure out a way to get out of the jungle. Make it back to the mountain. There may still be a ship there for her to steal. Hemlock said a ship left shortly before she woke up, and that it was most likely her brothers. She didn’t trust him, but also wondered what reason he would have to lie. He probably wanted to live, too. Probably.

Omega sighed and moved some hair out of her face. She didn’t know what she was going to do. She couldn’t go anywhere at the moment, at least not without Hemlock. She grumbled and spoke to him.

“…do you have anything in that kit that could take these cuffs off?” She asked. Hemlock turned to her, his expression easing up a bit.

“No, I don’t. Even if I did, what makes you think I’d take them off? You’d run off and leave me to die.”

“I’d have a better chance of surviving. Both of us would.” She said, disdain in her voice. She didn’t want to work with him. She hated the very idea of it.

“Maybe so. But, at the moment, we must combine our efforts if we are to survive. This jungle is dangerous.” Hemlock said, overacting his surroundings. He was clearly worried about whatever was out there. Omega remembered her first escape from Tantiss, and the giant creature that had nearly attacked her and Crosshair. They were only able to get away because the Lurca hounds fended it off.

Omega didn’t like this. She didn’t like this at all. But…Hemlock, for once, was right. They couldn’t make it out of here alive in this state. Unless they worked together. Omega sighed and turned to look at Hemlock again.

“Do you…have any suggestions?” She was clearly unhappy to be asking him. But he had no reason to hurt her, at the moment.

“We need to cover ground. If we get back to the mountain, we can access my communicator and call for help.”

“You can call for help. I’m getting a ship and leaving.” Omega said. Hemlock grumbled and rubbed his temples.

“Your friends will have destroyed the rest of the ships. Or taken them all. Governor Tarkin is already on his way here, anyways. If we get to the mountain, we can wait for him there.” Hemlock said. He sighed and looked at Omega.

“You really think I’m going to let that happen? Let you take me back there when Imperials will be swarming the place? There’s bound to be another ship there, they can’t have taken them all.” She reasoned. There had to be a ship there. She was really hoping a ship was there. Otherwise…she didn’t know how she was going to get out.

“Fine,” Hemlock said firmly. “We can talk about that later. Right now, we need to get moving. If we wait any longer, it will be night before we get there, and then this place will be far more dangerous.” He moved to stand, then stopped. That strange look of concern was back on his face. “Can you walk?”

“Why do you care?” Omega gruffly asked. She pushed herself up and winced in pain as she felt her leg light up in agony. She nearly fell back down, but Hemlock caught her. She pushed away from him and stood on her own, putting most of her weight on her right leg.

“Because I don’t want you dying.” He replied plainly.

“Why? Because you don’t want to carry around my corpse?” Omega retorted. Hemlock rolled his eyes and sighed.

“It should be obvious enough by now, Omega. Use your senses.”

“Hmph. You think the Empire will let you continue with your work after this? You’re to blame for this destruction.”

“Your friends are to blame. I am indispensable. The Emperor will do anything to make sure his project is complete. As long as both of us are alive, I will be the most important man in the Empire. Besides the Emperor, of course.” Hemlock said. He stood up tall and looked towards the direction the mountain was in. “Let’s get moving.”

Hunter sat on the deck of his little hut on Pabu. He was looking out as the midday sun made the water shine. He sighed and leaned back on the bench. It had only been one rotation. One rotation since Tantiss. One rotation since the catwalk. One rotation since…Omega. Losing Omega. It hurt just to think about it. Wrecker had woken up just a few hours ago. Hunter hadn’t told him yet, but Wrecker was beginning to suspect something. It wasn’t that Hunter didn’t want him to know. He just couldn’t bring himself to say it. That would be admitting it, accepting it, knowing it. That she was gone. Gone. Dead. Hunter held his head in his hands, breathing deeply. She was gone.

Omega and Hemlock were making good time. They were nearly to the Lurca hound kennels, where they deemed the easiest access point was. Hemlock had explained the power was cut, so the ray shields shouldn’t be up. They could get in from there. Omega limped next to Hemlock as they walked through the thick jungle. Hemlock glanced over at her.

“…are you sure that—“

“Yes. Stop asking.” Omega quickly replied. She did not want his help. She wanted her brothers. She wanted to go home.

They walked a little further to a familiar clearing. Omega recognized it as the place where she and Crosshair had ended up on their first escape. She saw the tunnel where they had exited from as she and Hemlock approached it. Hemlock took the hand cuffed together with Omega and removed a panel from the outside structure. He fiddled with the wires for a moment, and the tunnel opened. He turned to her, his expression steely as ever.

“Omega. For once in your life, I’d like you to comply with my requests. We are going to head inside. We are going to head to my office. We are going to contact the Empire for help if Governor Tarkin has not already arrived. If there are ships left here, you are not going to take them. If you do escape, remember that I know how to find you. I know where you and your friends hide, and I will find you.” He spoke calmly, yet coldly. His eyes narrowed at Omega as she stood in silence. She nodded. She wasn’t going to do as he said, obviously, but she needed to get inside. And right now, the only way to do that was with him. The second she was separated from him, she would make her run for it. There had to be a ship. There had to be.

Hemlock and Omega entered the tunnel, crouching through the small space. Hemlock had been right, the ray shields were deactivated. They made it through with little to no problems. Though, Omega noticed several more concerned looks at her leg. It was still hurting badly. But she could make it out. She knew she could.

Hunter was standing outside of Shep’s house. Wrecker, Crosshair, Echo, and Shep were inside. He’d just told Wrecker what happened. Sort of. Either way, he wasn’t taking it well. Hunter had begun to speak, trying to get the words out, when he was interrupted. Crosshair had interjected before Hunter could say what happened, and he didn’t put what happened lightly.

“She’s dead.” He blurted out. “She’s dead and gone.” His voice broke as he spoke. Wrecker was silent for a moment, then began trying to deny it through tears. Hunter stood there silent as Wrecker practically begged for it to not be true. Crosshair was yelling at him, sobbing as well. Hunter had then left the house, standing outside where he was now. He could still hear Crosshair. Echo and Shep were trying to calm things down. Hunter stood outside, trying desperately to hold back tears. He had to be strong now. He had to keep the squad together. That was his job. That had always been his job. And he’d failed.

He had failed.

Omega and Hemlock walked through the deserted halls of Tantiss, now littered with the bodies of Stormtroopers and Clones alike. The two came to Hemlock’s office, which was dark and desolate. The doors whirred closed behind them and Hemlock locked them. The lights in the room were dim. There wasn’t much in the room. A small desk and chair, a raised table for examination, and a strange capsule on the wall to the right of the entrance. Omega couldn’t see what was in it.

Hemlock dragged Omega to the desk where he pulled out a small tool. He picked at the binders with it for a moment, and then they came loose.

“The door is locked. The vents are bolted to the wall. Do not try to escape, or you will face the consequences.” Hemlock said, not even looking at her. He placed the binders down on the desk and walked around to his chair. He sat down and booted up his communications device. Omega observed the room. It really was a sad little place. She walked over to the capsule on the wall. A small console was on the side of it. Omega checked to make sure Hemlock wasn’t looking at her. He was laser-focused on the comm. She turned back to the console and pressed the buttons to open it. The capsule front hissed air out, as it opened. Hemlock looked up as he noticed the noise. Omega waited for him to get up and scold her, drag her off, do something. He just softly smirked and turned back to the device. Something was wrong. Omega walked to the front of the capsule as it fully opened. Red lights lit up what was in it. Or rather who. Omega’s eyes widened in horror as she stared at the person inside, hooked up to wires and tubes. A heart monitor was attached to him, making that soft beeping noise that indicated a heartbeat. That indicated life. Omega felt a tear roll down her cheek as Tech slowly stirred and woke up.

Part 4

[amberskyyking]

-sliding into another week on my unapologetic bullshit like-

HAPPY BAD BATCH DAY!!!!! Chapter 7 is UP, Tech is ALIVE, I have a PLOT and a CHAPTER COUNT now (it’s gonna be 14, probably, but hey, famous last words), and there are Wrecker-sized FEEEEELLLLIIIINNNNGSSSS!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Implications Of Being Alive

Chapter 7: New Last Memories (And Hugs For The Whole Family)

Wrecker never faced that CX trooper head on in their fights, but for a long time, he wished that he had.

Whenever he caught Crosshair messing with his wrist, or Omega woke up with a nightmare about being taken, or Echo got all quiet at a mention of a brother they lost on Teth, Wrecker regretted that he never got the chance to take on that trooper himself. He woulda crushed him if it came down to it, even if he didn’t wanna kill him. It was still a clone in there, he knew it wasn’t really their fault, he remembered how awful it felt to be controlled by the chip and no one deserved something like that. But Wrecker woulda stopped him, even if killing him was what it took to do it. He wouldn’t have let his family get hurt if he could help it, not for nothing.

He didn’t wish that anymore.

The realization when Omega gave them the news had hit harder than the monster on Tantiss. Wrecker curled in on himself, clutching at his middle with one hand and reaching into thin air with the other, like he had when Tech fell from their railcar, and his hand found Hunters shoulder as the memory pressed in.

He had begged Tech not to do it. It wasn’t an option, Tech was right there and they just needed to get him on the railcar, just needed a little more time, but Tech had known better. Wrecker had watched him come to the conclusion as if in slow motion, the way his eyes went steady before he took aim and said those rebellious last words, but… But Wrecker couldn’t take that! He couldn’t lose him! He screamed for his vod, lunging out of the railcar with an outstretched arm even though it was useless, just some instinct in him that couldn’t let go, just his own willpower versus gravity like a damn Jedi, and Tech fell. Wrecker couldn’t look away, and neither did Tech, both keeping their eyes locked on their family as long as they could in those last moments until the car caught the tracks and ripped them apart.

Tech’s plan had worked, and Wrecker could only ever hope he knew it in the end, hope he knew that his sacrifice wasn’t in vain. Even if it hurt. Even if it had never stopped hurting. It was the last ever memory Wrecker had of his brother, the last memory any of them had, since Wrecker had been the one to see it happen, who couldn’t stop it… Until now.

They were going to get to make new memories again. Tech was coming home…

And if Wrecker had ever gotten the chance to face that CX trooper a decade ago, he might not be.

The sun beating down on the top of his head would have usually felt good, especially out on the water, with salty mist spraying up in the air and the thrill of catching nice fat fish. But today, waiting on solid dry land for the Havoc Zillo to appear in the sky, it was only making him sweat.

“You okay, Wrecker?” Hunter’s voice mumbled quietly at his side.

Wrecker ran a hand over his bald head and tried to let go of his thoughts with a shaky huff. “Nah... But you’re no better. I don’t need to hear heartbeats to tell that.”

“Neither do I,” Hunter said dryly, shifting his weight and exhaling hard. They sat in silence a few seconds more, craning their necks and squinting up at the air. Crosshair’s toothpick snapped in his mouth.

“What do we even say to ‘im?” Wrecker turned back to his brothers. “After all this time-”

“Depends,” Crosshair spat. “We don’t even know what he’ll be like. He might try to kill us again.”

“Don’t say that, he’s our brother-”

“I’m only being realistic, Wrecker.”

“Well I’M just being-”

“Enough,” Hunter cut them both off at once, his head snapping back towards the sky. “They’re here.”

Wrecker gasped and turned his good eye back to the sky above, searching for the little dot that was Omega and Echo and Tech coming home. It took him a second to find it but his heart leapt when he did, and Wrecker’s face split into a huge grin. There wasn’t a doubt in the galaxy that Tech would be okay, somehow, after everything. He had his brothers to help him again! They would make sure it turned out just fine, of course they would.

By the time the ship swung around Wrecker was bouncing on the balls of his feet in anticipation, and as soon as it hit the ground, he broke free of the others and ran to it!

“OMEGA!” He bellowed, waving an arm as Batcher bounded at his heels. “ECHO! WHERE’S TECH?!”

It didn’t even matter that the engines were just powering down and the ramp hadn’t lowered yet, he knew they could hear him! And Tech was in there!

“MEGA!” He called again just as Hunter and Crosshair caught up, and finally, the ramp let out a hiss and began to lower, slowly revealing the other half of their family at the top.

Tech was there, he was really there, and Wrecker suddenly couldn’t speak. His brother, who he missed so much, stood in the middle of the other two, with Echo’s arm around his waist and Omega’s hand clutched tight his own. He regarded the three of them on the ground with a thoughtful expression that Wrecker knew, even all these years later. It knocked whatever words he was going to say right out of his throat. Wrecker feel dizzy all of the sudden, he wobbled on the spot as tears blurred his vision and ragged breaths were torn from his lungs, and Crosshair caught him lightly by the arm.

“T-Tech?” Hunter said at his side in a voice that sounded fragile.

“See?” He heard Omega speaking softly. “I said I’d bring you home, didn’t I?”

Tech still hadn’t made any move to come down the ramp. For a second everyone was quiet as the engines finished winding down, and even Batcher paused her cheerful circles, as Echo and Omega tugged at his arms but his feet didn’t budge.

“And… They want to see me?”

Hunter eeked out a wounded sounding whimper and Wreckers bursting heart broke at the words.

“C-Course we do!” Wrecker found his voice again, scrubbing hard at his good eye to try and see his brother better. “Never a question, Tech! Come ‘ere, it’s… It’s been too long…”

Hunter sniffed hard and nodded at his side and Echo muttered something reassuring in his ear, and finally, Tech let himself be led down off the ramp. He looked at each one of them in turn, almost as if he was in a daze, once his feet hit solid ground, but the second Tech’s eyes met his own Wrecker was gone. The last time he locked eyes with his brother had been a goodbye, but now he was alive, he was back, that hadn’t been their last moments, he could hardly believe it! After ten long years he threw his arms around Tech’s shoulders and pulled him into a hug, cradling him gently against his chest and resting his cheek against the top of his brother’s head, like he would have years ago if he had just been able to reach him in time and pull him to safety.

Tech let out a surprised little gasp and went stiff, but after a moments hesitation, Wrecker felt him relax and wrap his arms gingerly around Wrecker’s sides in return.

“Y-You’re back,” Wrecker stammered out. “I missed ya, I really did…”

“I… I too have missed this,” Tech said in a small voice. “Though if you could loosen your grip just slightly it would be appreciated, this arrangement is impeding my ability to breathe.”

“Sorry…” Wrecker sniffed. “I know you’re not a big hugger, just, it’s been so long…”

“I do not mind it, actually,” Tech whispered, staying very still against Wrecker’s chest. Then Hunter was at their side, sliding his hand along Tech’s back too with tears streaming down his own face, and Wrecker lifted an arm to let him in, gesturing for Crosshair to get over here too. Their youngest brother could act prickly as much as he wanted but Wrecker knew how he really felt, and sure enough, Crosshair let out a small huff before crossing stiffly over to them and letting Wrecker drag him into the hug.

“I’m sorry,” Hunter was rasping out between full body sobs. “I’m sorry Tech, I’m so sorry-”

“As I told Echo. There is nothing to apologize for,” Tech said softly. “There was nothing for you to do differently and no viable way to determine whether or not I had survived.” He paused for a second, and Wrecker felt a small shudder course through his body. “I, on the other hand…”

“Whatever you did doesn’t matter,” Wrecker cut him off before he could put himself down or try apologizing. “Not to us. It wasn’t you, Tech.”

“We know you better than that,” Hunter agreed through his tears.

Echo and Omega joined in the hug pile from the outside and Wrecker loosened his other arm to make room for them, too. Even once he didn’t have Tech in his own grip his big brother stayed nestled close to his chest as Wreckers massive arms stretched out to encircle his family, his full family, all at once. He… He hadn’t ever gotten to hug them all at once before! After the war, when they went back for Omega, Crosshair was left behind, and no one was really in the mood for hugging when they were trapped together on a sunken Kamino. Then by the time they got Crosshair back, Tech was…

But Tech was here now. They all were, every single one of them was safe in his arms, after all this time.

Wrecker never wanted to let any of them go again.

They stayed like that for a while, much longer than Crosshair would have usually tolerated, and maybe it was because the others realized that too and felt the same. But of course, eventually, he had to, they couldn’t stay like that forever. When they started growing fidgety Wrecker reluctantly loosened his grip to let them go, but even once they all broke apart, he stood protectively close to Tech. Tech didn’t seem to mind. If anything he was hovering a little closer than usual too.

“Well… Come on,” Hunter said in a hoarse voice. “You’re probably hungry, Tech, and tired... I know it’s been a long trip. For all of you.”

Tech nodded compliantly and at Wrecker’s gentle urging he began to follow after Hunter, who turned back every few steps to make sure they were all still there, even though Wrecker knew he could have counted their heartbeats or footsteps or something instead. Wrecker could hardly even see the path back up to their little house, or… or Domicile? That was the neat sounding word Tech used to use for a house, wasn’t it? He somehow smiled even bigger at the thought. Not all of Tech’s vocabulary had stuck in his head, but there had always been a few unique words like that that that he remembered, and whenever he heard them anywhere else he thought of his brother.

Wrecker hoped that Tech still used those words. He hoped Tech still did a lot of the things he used to do, that the Empire hadn’t been able to crush a single ounce of who Tech was over the last decade they spent apart because his brother was too damn good for that. But if they did, Wrecker would remind him. They all would, and Wrecker couldn’t wait to show him the beaches the next morning! He was ready to walk with Tech anywhere he wanted, lift him up to see inside the little holes in the rocks where some fancy looking crabs nested, carry whatever sort of crazy recording equipment Tech cobbled together for his research without complaint, maybe even bring him out on the boat so he could talk to them all day about the different fish they caught. And he would never get sick of it, it wouldn’t be possible. He hadn’t realized how much he missed his brothers constant chatter until it was gone.

As the night went on, though, Wrecker started to have just a few worries. Tech wasn’t quite his old self. It wasn’t really fair to expect him to be though, at least not so quickly, was it? Maybe his memory was a little off, or maybe it was just the hyperspace-lag, or the ten whole years they missed out on that was making Tech act so much more quiet and subdued than he used to be. He still asked a few questions about the sushi they were eating, he showed interest in Wrecker’s tale of catching the fish that the sushi came from, he even said he dreamed a couple of times about eating this exact food while he was with the Empire. Those all had to be good signs… Weren’t they?

But Wrecker’s gut told him there was still something off.

Omega and Hunter encouraged Tech to turn in to bed early, and he put up a fight about it for a minute, but Echo got involved and he settled down. That didn’t quite strike Wrecker as right either. Tech had acted afraid, but he trusted Echo and Omega, they’d been with Tech again for a few days more than he had and it seemed like they had done this before. The thought made Wrecker uneasy. Who knew what sort of osik the Empire put his brother through? There were all sorts of things that could cause fears like that and it made Wrecker’s blood boil to think of any of them happening to Tech.

Crosshair began clearing the dishes in a huff the second the others made their way towards bed, and Wrecker dutifully carried plates over to the sink to be washed as they waited for their brothers to re-emerge.

“He’s not right,” Crosshair hissed as Wrecker brought him an armful of plates and began scraping the scraps into a compost bin. “He might be acting fine for now, but he isn’t.”

“I… I know,” Wrecker admitted. His grip tightened on a plate as he did and it cracked under his thumb.

“Wrecker!”

“Sorry!” He muttered, swiveling around to drop the whole plate in the garbage before he could cut himself on it, but it slipped and sliced the side of his finger anyways. “Damn.”

“Clean it,” Crosshair said with a sigh, stepping away from the sink and drying his hands on a towel.

Wrecker did as he was told, even if he grumbled about it, stuffing the injury under running water. It wasn’t even all that big, but Crosshair was already fumbling around for the first aid kit, and he knew better than to contradict him. Tech had been their medic before, but Crosshair had taken it upon himself to learn the basics once he returned, and hardly anything pissed off their littlest brother more than not taking care of an injury these days, no matter how small.

Just as he turned off the faucet and gave his hand to Crosshair for bandaging, Hunter, Echo and Omega came back from the room, with Hunter looking pale.

“...Something you two want to tell us?” Crosshair said in a dangerous tone, barely looking up from Wrecker’s hand.

Echo and Omega exchanged a dark look at that, and Wrecker’s gut twisted.

“Yes,” Omega said heavily. “I’m sorry but we really needed to wait to discuss it until Tech was asleep and I wanted to tell you in person.”

“Out with it, ‘Mega,” Hunter bristled.

Wrecker barely noticed Crosshair finish dressing the cut and give him back his hand. Whatever this was, it wasn’t going to be good news, he could tell. The energy in the room had shifted, and he should have known. Even if Hunter was the one with enhanced senses, Crosshair and Wrecker’s combined intuition was rarely wrong…

But nothing they learned now could be as bad as the idea of Tech being gone forever.

Echo squeezed Omegas shoulder, and she let out a deep sigh. “There’s… I don’t really know how to tell you this, we haven’t completely figured out the details of what he’s thinking yet but… Tech doesn’t think this is real.”

Wrecker blinked at her in confusion. That… That didn’t make sense.

“Not real?” Hunter repeated incredulously.

Omega gave him a solemn nod. “He thinks he’s dreaming… At least most of the time.”

Dreaming? Now Wrecker’s heart began to race. Tech didn’t know they were together again? He didn’t think he was home? That this was all just… Wishful thinking? All in his head? Fake?

Wrecker growled under his breath at the idea. How dare the Empire do that to him?! How DARE they hurt his big brother SO BADLY that he didn’t even KNOW-

“What do you mean by most of the time?” Crosshair hissed.

“I mean he’s confused,” Omega pleaded. “He acts like himself sometimes, like the way things used to be, then other times he talks like he’s still with the Empire and this is all a vision! He thinks he needs to return to his commanding officer, he thinks he’s going to be decommissioned-”

“DECOMMISSIONED?” Wrecker roared in horror. “NOBODY’s gonna decom him an’ - and if they EVER come back for him I’ll KILL ‘EM”

“Easy Wrecker. You’ll wake him,” Echo chided, but his voice was just as venomous as Wreckers, and Wrecker scoffed. “The Empire is like that,” Echo continued. “He told us it was common practice, and my intel says he’s right.”

Wrecker’s head was spinning. More things about what Tech had said before were starting to make sense, and they made him feel sick. How long had Tech held on to them during that hug, like he didn’t want it to end? There was that comment about dreaming of sushi, and his strange silence like he wasn’t fully there, and that thing he said about his own family not wanting him-

“So is he going to try to return to the Empire on us?” Crosshair interrupted Wreckers thoughts in a clipped tone, placing a steadying hand on Wrecker’s arm again.

“I don’t think so. Not right now anyways, he… He thinks he needs to wake up somehow to do that,” Omega explained. “But he’s afraid to go to sleep because he doesn’t want to wake up with the Empire again. We have to keep promising him we’ll still be here when he does, not them…”

“This… Could be a serious problem,” Hunter mused, rubbing his fingers hard against his own temples with his eyes closed in thought. “Once he figures out this is real…”

“If he figures out this is real,” Crosshair corrected, and Wrecker wheeled on him like he’d just suggested Pabu was covered in snow.

“Whadda’ya mean if?” Wrecker piped up. “He’s gotta know!”

“Why?” Crosshair snapped. “He’s here, isn’t he? He’s said he doesn’t want this dream to end and he’s less dangerous like this.”

“But that’s not right!” Wrecker cried, pulling his arm away from Crosshair. “We can’t all just lie to ‘im! He deserves better than that, he’s our brother!”

“You don’t know what he’s capable of! None of us do! Except maybe Omega!”

“Well if anything happens we’ll handle it! But it shouldn’t take trickin’ ‘im to keep ‘im around. That’s… Isn’t that what the Empire was doing?”

There were a couple sharp inhales at that. Wrecker looked around at each of them in turn before landing his gaze back on Crosshair, trying to understand why they would even think of handling this any other way.

“That’s part of what we need to talk about,” Echo said evenly. “Crosshair does make a point. Tech has been a CX-trooper for ten years. That influence doesn’t just go away.”

Omega nodded. “I barely made it out of my own fight with him… He was relentless. He fought with lethal force even when he was badly injured, I got lucky. If he didn’t get distracted at the end…”

Hunter made a choked sounding noise and immediately pulled Omega into his arms, as if to protect her from the very idea that she could get hurt like that or worse, and Omega chuckled into his hair just a little.

“I’m alright Hunter,” She said affectionately. “I really am, but I just mean to say… You really can’t underestimate him.”

“But Wrecker is right too,” Echo said darkly. “Lying to him is Empire osik, and we’re better than that. He deserves better than that.”

Wrecker let out a long breath. “It’s just… We can’t force him to believe anything, can we? Just cause we say this is real, it doesn’t mean he’ll believe us. But it’s still on us to be honest with him, and if it that causes a problem, we’ll deal with it then. He’s our brother. We gotta protect him but… We wouldn’t be doin’ a good job of that without being honest and showing him he’s loved. An’ lying wouldn’t be very loving.”

“I agree,” Hunter said. “We’ll have to be prepared for if he does… Wake up… But I think Wrecker’s right. We can’t just lie to him forever, not if we really want him back.”

Echo and Omega both nodded, and all eyes fell on Crosshair.

“Well it looks like I’m outvoted anyways,” He said snidely.

“Come on, Cross-”

“I think this is a bad idea,” Crosshair snapped. “I think you’re not taking the danger here seriously. But if you want to try and draw him back out so you can fight all his demons, fine. Have kriffing fun.”

With that Crosshair stalked out of the kitchen. Wrecker took a couple steps to follow, but a door slammed, and he stopped, torn.

“Let him go,” Hunter said tiredly. “You know how he gets. He just needs some time.”

“He hasn’t gotten like that in… In a while, Hunter,” Wrecker moaned. “I don’t want him to be upset all alone.”

Hunter let out a sigh. “I know. But… trust me.”

Wrecker hesitated a minute longer, but finally, he nodded, letting his shoulders drop.

A few minutes later they decided it would be better if they all went to bed early, all except Hunter, who took the first shift at Tech’s bedside just in case he woke up confused, to make sure they kept their promise. They had just set up the fourth bed in their shared room earlier this morning. Shep had brought it over for them as a gift, to make sure Tech was comfortable back home, at long last. Echo settled into Hunter’s bed to get some rest before taking second watch, and Wrecker crawled into his own with his eyes resting on Tech and the gentle rising and falling of his chest in the dim moonlight that streamed in through the windows.

He could have stayed awake the whole night like that, reminding himself Tech was here. Wrecker was going to remember everything about this best he could, so his last memory about Tech would be fresh and new every day from now on. But sleep hit him like an unexpectedly huge ocean wave and knocked him out in minutes, and the last thing he saw before succumbing to it was Tech roll over, looking peaceful in his sleep.

A good memory.

Partway through the night, Wrecker awoke to the sound of snoring, and he blinked a couple of times in the darkness of the room. The sound was coming from Crosshairs bed, and he could vaguely see the shape of his brother laying there.

Good. He made it back home.

Hunter seemed to be asleep in his own bed again, too, and Echo sat awake at Tech’s bedside. Wrecker met Echo’s eyes, and Echo gave him a tired, joyful smile, glancing down to where Tech was holding his hand in his sleep.

Yeah. It was all going to be okay.

They had so many new memories to make.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

OK BUT SOFT WRECKER HAS MY HEART IN A CHOKEHOLD SEND HELP 🥹😭

Please leave me fic fuel (comments and shit) cause I’m having a blast with this but it’s WAY more fun to carjack canon with *friends*!!! Lemme know if you wanna join the tag list!!!! @floofyroro @vimse @norraexploradora

Full I-Said-I-Would-Fix-It-And-I-Did Work: Implications Of Being Alive

[kybercrystals94]

Sacrifice and Loyalty

Read here on Ao3!

Angstpril 2024 | Day 12 | Prompt 12: A Little Too Late

Rated: G | Words: 561 | Summary: Missing scene between episodes 3x11 and 3x12. | Character Focus: Crosshair, Hunter

Spoilers for Season 3 Episodes 11 & 12

The moment Hunter slips through the door, he knows something is desperately wrong. The needled talons of dread claw up his throat from the pit of his stomach. He tries to swallow it back, but it lodges tightly just behind his tongue. 

Hunter takes in the occupants of the space. Wrecker, still unconscious, and Crosshair, sitting next to him with his rifle propped at the ready against his thigh. Their sister’s absence is cavernous. 

“Where’s Omega?” Hunter asks. 

Crosshair’s shoulders rise and fall as he takes a deep breath. He stands, leaning his rifle against the wall, and turns to face Hunter head on.   

“Omega turned herself in.” Crosshair states it, voice pressed flat of emotion. His hand trembles at his side, unchecked, as Crosshair looks anywhere but Hunter’s face. “She…” his dull voice catches, “She did it to save Pabu. They wouldn’t have stopped searching until they found her. It was only a matter of time.” He glances down, notices his hand and grips it in the other. “I tried to reason with her. She knew the risks.

“But I failed to protect her,” Crosshair continues. “I was supposed to get a tracker on the ship, but I missed. I missed, and she doesn’t know. She trusted me to make the shot, and I missed.” He fists his trembling hand. “I’m sorry, Hunter.”

The initial, reactive twist of Hunter’s features as the news settles is hidden behind his helmet. They just got her back, and the Empire snatched her away again. Righteous anger burns deep, and it takes every piece of Hunter’s exhausted resolve not to become violent, to throw something, break something, destroy something. It isn’t fair, what this galaxy has taken from them, has done to them, over and over again. 

Hunter takes a staggered step forward, and Crosshair flinches. It is subtle, almost imperceptible. But Hunter sees it, and his heart fractures further. His anger does not extend to Crosshair. How could it, when he sees his own turmoil and regret reflected in his little brother’s averted eyes? Hunter puts his anger away, thrusts it into the darkest corner of his mind to fester, and reaches up to take off his helmet. Crosshair’s gaze slides over to meet his as soon as his face is exposed. 

“I know you did everything you could,” Hunter says. He swallows. There is no comfort in the truth, just the reality. “Omega would have gone with or without you backing her up.” 

Hunter remembers seeing his sister after he and Wrecker were captured, small and fierce, energy bow drawn, refusing to hide away if there was any possibility of saving her brothers. Omega isn’t a soldier, but loyalty and sacrifice are saturated in her blood. Just like Tech. 

Naked surprise twitches Crosshair’s expression before settling back into careful neutral. He nods stiffly, looking away. “She put the people of Pabu before herself, risked everything so that we might find Tantiss. I was ambushed by troopers when I was lining up the shot for the tracker. I…I couldn’t recover my position in time…”

Hunter rests a hand on Crosshair’s pauldron. “Omega won’t blame you, Cross. I don’t blame you. We’ll find her again.” 

Crosshair swallows visibly and steadies himself before looking Hunter in the eye again. A small, despondent smile quirks the edge of his lips. “Not if she finds us first.” 

END

Heading into the next third of our prompts! Make sure you check out all of @the-little-moment and @just-here-with-my-thoughts contributions to Angstpril! They are amazing!! Here's an easy list of our first 10 prompt fills!

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Tag List: @followthepurrgil @isthereanechoinhere96 @amorfista @mooncommlink @arctrooper69 @nagyanna424 @proteatook @ezras-left-thumb @merkitty49

[oh-three]

TBB S3E5:

Omg, Echo's in the thumbnail. Yay!

It's so satisfying to see Omega sleeping with Lula in her arms at long last.

Not Omega looking after Crosshair and trying to help him adjust 😭

Ayyy, AZI.

The familiarcy in which Crosshair's talking to Omega. The way he trusts her enough to tell her that he knows the others don't trust him, and the way she knows him well enough to know it bothers him 😭

Echo !!

"What? No hug for me?" Lmao. Echo made him smile, omg.

WHY DIDN'T WE GET TO SEE CROSS FIND OUT ABOUT TECH.

WE'RE GOING BACK TO BARTON IV.

"Don't hold it against him. He's only worried about you." Damn, never thought I'd hear Crosshair say that.

SHE CALLED HIM LITTLE BROTHER.

Barton IV 😭

Crosshair looking good in his old armor 😭 ❤

STOP INTERROGATING CROSS ABOUT BARTON IV.

"He started it." Lmao. True though.

The helmets are all still there 😭😭

Ice vulture theme reprise. I hear you.

Hunter backing off when he realizes Crosshair's behavior is grief is everything to me. Our man misses Mayday as much as the rest of us.

Something tells me they shouldn't have powered down those censors.

Avalanche?

HUNTER, CALM DOWN.

"I tried to warn you, Hunter. I risked everything to send you that message. You ignored it. You let Omega be taken to Tantiss. She went through what she did because you failed. You're angry because she escaped with my help, not yours." Honestly, if Hunter's gonna go at him, Crosshair deserved to get a couple jabs in there himself. Even if he is wrong.

Oooh, a checks notes wyrm.

Hunter still agreeing to work with Crosshair on getting the wyrm out despite the argument they just had. My man's already taken it all personally (because there's no way he's not blamed himself before) and shoved it aside.

All those posts about Batcher following Crosshair around were so right.

Wrecker is giving me Jurassic Park vibes restoring the power the way he is. Been a while since I've watched JP.

"You'll try?" / "Glad you heard me properly." 😂

JUMP.

Whoever built that outpost, whether it be Republic or Empire, knew what they were doing with those perimeter beacons Lmao. I wonder if Mayday knew about the wyrm.

The way Hunter looked at Crosshair after realizing that he saved his life without qualm. The way he's realized that Crosshair really did come back to them.

"And I don't even see any blood this time?" Damnnn, do they usually get into fights???? Checks out.

Echo praising Omega and telling her exactly what she needed to hear. That he, who's been saving all the clones, doesn't blame her for getting out while she could. That he doesn't blame her for leaving them.

"All we can do is keep trying to be better." 😭

The episode ending on the ice vulture music makes me wanna cry.

[sergeantgoggles]

Hello! For the kiss prompts, can I ask for Howzer/Rex with 💖?

This definitely grew legs, but I felt it was important to really set up the scene for the emotions.

Enjoy, friend!

.

Several emotions and thoughts circled through Howzer’s mind as he and several other clone prisoners were bound and escorted onto a transport ship, destination unknown. The name “Tantiss” had been thrown around, but it wasn’t a planet he’d ever heard of. He thought about his men, how so many of them had died at the hands of the Empire defending what they believed in, and he thought about his time on Ryloth, about Cham and Eleni, and of Hera.

He thought about Crosshair, oddly enough, and hoped that one day he would wake up and realize that the Empire wasn’t what he thought it was. They didn’t care about clones, and they were going to discard him the way the rest of them had been. Howzer hoped that he was able to find his way back to his squad.

As the door to the transport closed and his fate seemed sealed, he took solace in knowing that someone would be waiting for him, so they could march on together.

Howzer let himself stare at seemingly nothing, but behind his eyes were images of Rex, his contagious smile, his warm eyes. If he closed his eyes and blocked out the noise around him, he could feel Rex’s lips, hear his laughter, his voice in his ear making promises after the war. Dangerous thing, those promises, and a shame that he never got to keep them, because he would have. Rex had always been a man of his word.

At least, Howzer figured, Rex would be there on the other side, and he wouldn’t have to wonder anymore how he was supposed to keep fighting when the one he was fighting for had gone on ahead.

Commotion outside the door drew him from his thoughts, and he readied himself to fight. He owed it to Rex to at least try to live on, even if his situation looked more dire with each passing day. When the door hissed open, his eyes widened, and his veins were filled with something he dare didn’t call hope.

“Fireball?”

“Good to see you, Sir,” the trooper greeted and motioned for them, Howzer and the other clones with him, to follow.

Once they were to safety, Howzer confronted the other clone he’d recognized, the one from Crosshair’s old squad. “Quite the operation you’ve got going on here.”

The trooper, no, this one was an ARC, if the tan kama were any indication. He gave Howzer a charming smile and put a hand on his hip. “We’ve been at this for a little while, but once we saw your name on the manifest, your rescue became our top priority.”

Howzer blinked in surprise. “We’ve met, but I doubt I left that kind of impression on you…”

“Echo,” the ARC supplied, “and it wasn’t my decision, but I’ll always fight to save a brother who stood up for what was right.”

“Then whose decision was it?” Howzer questioned, brow raised, and arms crossed.

Echo laughed a little and turned back to the console to look out over the stars as they flew through hyperspace. “You’ll see soon enough. Once we’re back on Coruscant it’ll all be explained.”

Howzer wasn’t happy with that answer, but it was clear that was the only one that he was going to get for now. He sighed and took a seat. Might as well wait. At least he was with brothers and not in the hands of the Empire.

Upon landing on Coruscant, he was greeted by several other troopers that had taken refuge there, along with the Senator from Pantora, who he’d heard was taking a stand for clone rights. They chatted for a little while, and Howzer offered her any information that he could. Anything to help the cause.

He’d caught Echo as he was about to leave, off to find someone to hack into the data he’d managed to extract from the ship before they had to leave. “Say, Echo, you were in Crosshair’s squad, right? Did he…ever make it back to you?”

Echo paused, then shook his head. “It’s complicated, but no, he didn’t.”

“I see,” Howzer frowned, “but, where are the rest of them? Why are you here without them?”

“I…chose a different path,” Echo answered vaguely. “Clone Force 99 took me in after I was rescued from Skako Minor, but they want to keep a low profile. When I heard my former Captain was organizing a rebellion, well, I couldn’t just sit back and let him have all the fun, right?”

They shared a laugh, then Howzer asked, “Who was your old Captain? Anyone I know?”

A mischievous glint glittered in Echo’s eyes then, but before he could answer, another voice joined the conversation. “You might know him.”

Howzer froze. He knew that voice better than he knew his own, and Echo’s knowing smirk told him that if he turned around, his suspicions would be right, but he didn’t dare move.

“I’ll leave you to it,” Echo dismissed himself and boarded his ship, leaving him alone with the ghost approaching his back.

“Howzer—"

“You’re dead,” Howzer whispered. “It was all over the comm channels. Your name was among the ones that perished with the 332nd when they crashed into that moon.”

He could feel breath on the back of his neck, hands timidly settling at his hips, could smell the same aftershave that Rex insisted on using because the GAR issued one didn’t smell right. Howzer gasped as lips brushed his ear, and he slammed his eyes shut to will the hot sting of tears away.

“Howzer, look at me.”

Slowly, Howzer turned, eyes downcast, terrified that he would see someone else. Strong fingers cupped his chin and drew his gaze up, and Howzer felt the air leave his lungs.

“Rex—”

“I saw your name on that manifest, and you became my top priority,” Rex explained softly, “I told you if you ever needed me that I would come for you, Howzer. I’m…sorry that it took so—”

Howzer surged forward, slotting their lips together and wrapping his arms around Rex’s neck. Rex was alive, he was here, flesh and bone and breathing, and his lips still tasted sweet like a fine wine. Once Rex’s brain caught up, his arms moved around Howzer, pulling him impossibly close, hands roaming his sides, then into his hair, deepening the kiss. Before Howzer knew it they were moving, Rex guiding him backwards on the platform until his back hit the wall. The soft groan that rolled from his tongue gave Rex the opportunity to to enter, licking the inside of his mouth, reminding Howzer of that equisite taste that he could never get enough of during the war.

“I’m sorry,” Rex murmured hotly between increasingly feverish kisses, “I should have found you sooner.”

“Don’t,” Howzer gasped, giving in to Rex trailing hot, open mouth kisses across his cheek then down along his jaw, then his neck. Everything was too hot, too much. Rex was alive and kissing him breathless and Howzer had half a mind to question if he had died on that transport because this was too perfect to be real. “Rex…”

“I missed you,” Rex breathed, coming up for air for only a moment before diving in to kiss his lips again. “I missed you so much.”

Howzer moaned, even as his emotions overwhelmed him and tears tracked down his cheeks. He needed more, needed Rex to make him believe this was real.

“I need to feel you, Rex,” he exhaled, “Please—”

“I have all night,” Rex replied with a promise and another searing kiss. “I’m not going anywhere, not without you, not anymore.”

Howzer’s hands slid into short blonde hair as their foreheads came to rest against the other’s, and Rex’s thumbs wiped away the tears that were staining Howzer’s cheeks. From batchmates to lovers, Howzer had never expected that even when the galaxy was against them that Rex would still be right here, holding him up and pushing him to be the best he could be.

“Rex?”

“Yeah?”

Howzer smiled, really smiled for the first time in what felt like centuries. He found Rex’s hands, still on his hips, and laced their fingers together. “I missed you, too.”