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happydragon · 6 months ago

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Finally Safe

Stak does not trust natborns. They only help you if they need things, which he knew from experience. Sometimes they take without giving. This is why he absolutely did not trust Eden even if his brothers naively did. So he decided to prepare for when they would inevitably have to leave. If only Eden would just stop being nice and prove him right.

Ao3

Rating: Teen to be safe

Word Count: 3,926

Disclaimer: While it is only hinted at, there is a reference to abuse in this fic. I promise you there are no actual scenes where the abuse happens. Stak does have trauma because of it and reacts in certain ways. While I have personally dealt with panic attacks, I know not everyone experiences them the same way and Stak doesn't even experience the same way I do. If you don't think you can read this fic that's ok. Take care of yourself first.

Otherwise, enjoy the fic

@summer-of-bad-batch

A cool breeze blew over the island, the lack of the sun made the air almost freezing. Stak slightly regretted not wearing warmer clothes, but that didn’t matter right now. He needed to get away from there. The house, the island, everything. It all felt too good to be true, that there surely was a price to pay. No one was that nice without ulterior motives. He and his brothers learned the hard way.

So he began to save some of the food the togrutan woman who had volunteered to take in him and his brothers. She seemed nice, but natborns always acted nice before taking what they wanted. Deke was too naive to see that and Mox slowly began to agree with him. Stak knew it wouldn’t end well, which led to him sneaking down to the caves where he hid his getaway stash. There was enough food and clothes for him and his brothers for at least a month. They could easily hunt and forage for more food when they needed to. All he needed left to do was to build a raft to take them to a neighboring island. There wasn’t much light now, so he would have to wait until morning to gather the supplies, but he could start work on the raft probably in a day or two.

“So this what you’ve been doing with the food.”

Stak spun ready to strike, only to find Mox and Deke standing at the mouth of the cave, with the latter holding a lantern at his side.

“What’s going on, Stak?” Deke asked concern coated his voice, “Why are you stashing food?”

Stak could do two things. He could lie and tell them it was for some other reason, but he was never a good liar. If he told the truth they would try to convince him he was worried over nothing. That they really were safe. He knew they wouldn’t see to reason if he tried to explain.

“He’s preparing to leave,” Mox answered, his eyes never leaving Stak’s. Kriff. He forgot how perspective Mox could be. He probably was the first one to notice Stak not eating the food.

“Leave?” Deke echoed, “But why would he want to leave? Eden has given us plenty of food and shelter. She’s been good to us.”

“That’s what she wants you to think,” Stak retorted, frustrated with his brother’s naivety, “Soon she’ll want something in return for all we’ve done and it won’t be a price I’m willing to pay. So I gathered enough supplies to last a month for when we had to eventually leave. Hunter and Wrecker were nice but they’re too busy looking for their own. We have to look after ourselves.”

“But everyone here has been kind to us,” Deke argued, “Even if Eden were to do something, which she won’t, then we could stay with them.”

“How can you be sure? How do you know they won’t listen to whatever lie she’ll tell them?”

“She wouldn’t do that!”

“How can you be sure?!”

“Enough!”

Deke's face turned guilty at the thought of getting in trouble. Stak on the other hand turned his head to glare at the ground. While he was angry that Deke wouldn’t see to reason, he was angrier at Eden for manipulating his brother so well.

“I understand your fears, Stak,” Mox began, “But Deke is right. Eden would never hurt us.” Stak opened his mouth to argue but Mox interrupted, “I’ll make you a deal. If she reveals her true colors like you said, we’ll leave and it’ll be just the three of us again. But if she isn’t you’ll apologize for stealing her food. Deal?”

“It’s not stealing if you’re given it,” Stak mumbled.

“Do we have a deal Stak?” Mox pressed, his eyes telling Stak that Mox heard him. Eventually, Stak grumbled but nodded. He hated that he had to sit and wait for her to make a mistake, but at least he’d be able to gather more supplies in the meantime. He just had to be patient.

************************************************************************

That turned out to be a lot harder than he thought. Eden was frustratingly good at pretending. No matter what he did, Stak could not get her to slip up. Every time he thought he got her for sure, she would just react normally. Like to her it really was an accident when he dropped the cup or she really did misplace her work gloves after she spent all morning looking for them, thus making her late for work. Mox nearly strangled Stak for that. He felt a little guilty after that incident.

Although, he thought he finally had his proof after dinner one evening when she came into the room he shared with the others. She knocked before entering and asked to talk to him. He sat cross-legged on his bed, studying maps of the nearby islands. He wanted to make sure they chose a good one when he and his brothers left.

When she walked in, she didn’t ask to sit on the bed with him, but instead pulled the chair from the small desk in the room and placed it next to his bed.

“I just wanted to see how you were adjusting,” she began calmly, “Been almost a month and a half since you and your brothers arrived here.”

He shrugged and played with the hem of his pant leg. This was probably some ploy to get him to lower his guard. Fat chance.

“Yeah, your brothers said you probably wouldn’t say much, but that’s alright. I wasn’t much of a talker when I first came here either. I was a little older than Mox actually. Well, sorta.”

For the first time since she came into the room, he finally looked up. Her dark mustard yellow face had a far off look with her mouth turned into a small smile as she reminisced when she first came to Pabu. Unlike what little he remembered of General Shaak Ti, Eden had less white markings on her face and a light mud brown colored most lekku and montrals. She was dressed out of her work clothes and into a simple blouse and pants.

“I’m an orphan,” she eventually went on, “Was raised by my aunt for a few years, but she was a horrible nasty woman. Ran away from home after I found she was going to send me away.”

Stak would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious now but he definitely wasn’t going to admit it.

“Hopped from ship to ship, picked up a couple of tricks until Shep and his dad, the previous chief, found me. They took me to Pabu and gave me a home. Some of the locals were kind enough to take me in. They gave me a fresh start and now I get to do the same.”

When she finished, she looked back at Stak with a kind and sincere smile and he knew his brothers were right. Eden would never hurt them. She was just like them. The guilt of all he had done immediately began to drown him. Eden had shown him nothing but kindness and he’s been nothing but trouble.

“Enough about that,” she interrupted his spiraling mind, “I didn’t come in here to talk about myself. I wanted to ask if there was something you wanted to get.”

He cocked his head confused. Get something?

“This is your home now too. It’s only fair you get some sort of say in it. Of course, I’d prefer not to have certain things like a machine blaster, but I can work a compromise.”

“I’d have to think about it,” he said honestly after a moment.

“I can work with that. Find me when you do think of something though okay?”

Stak nodded and she sent a smile his way, which he found easy to return. She then returned the chair back to its place and left the room.

From then on, things began to look up. Stak realized Eden was actually kinda cool and she would teach him and his brothers loads of things that weren’t taught before like silly games and such. One stormy evening she was showing Deke how to dance while Deke and Stak helped prepare the night’s dinner.

Stak didn’t know where it went wrong, but he knew it was his fault. One moment he was laughing at the sight of Mox as he stumbled his way as Eden tried to show him how to dance, the next Stak was panting, Eden’s holding her upper arm tight as blood dripped down her arm, and Mox and Deke were staring at Stak with wide eyes. He finally looked down at his hand and found the knife he had been using to cut vegetables. The knife he used to hurt Eden. He hurt Eden. It was his fault.

Immediately he dropped the knife like it burned him and looked back in horror at Eden.

“I’m alright, Stak,” Eden stuttered as she tried to approach him, “I know it was an accident. I’m not going to do anything I promise. You won’t get in trouble.”

He shook his head as he slowly backed away. He didn’t believe her. He ruined everything. Because of his stupid fear, he hurt one of the few people that cared about him.

Eden took another step forward, but Stak couldn’t let her get hurt again. So he spun and ran out and into the pouring rain. They cried out his name but he didn’t turn back. He couldn’t stay here anymore. He was too much of a danger.

His feet carried him to the cave where he hid his supplies and a half-built raft. Luckily the cave had yet to be flooded by the rising ocean but that could change. He needed to leave soon. It would be crazy if Stak tried to use the raft in the storm, but he had already caused enough hurt, so stealing a boat was out of the question. The raft wasn’t perfect but it would do the job.

He worked quickly, trying to balance the supplies on the raft so it wouldn’t tip over when he got on. Just as he was about to step on, a voice called out, “Wait!”

Whipping his head around, he found Deke running toward him.

“I’m not going back!” Stak yelled over the storm as he turned back to his task at hand, “I can’t! Not after what I’ve done!”

“I wasn’t going to stop you! I’m coming with you!”

Stak froze, not believing his ears. He must have misheard his brother. That had to be it.

“Did you really think you're going without me?” Deke continued, “Not going to happen. You're my brother. We stick together.”

“But you’re happy here. Why would you want to leave?” Especially with me Stak thought but left unsaid.

“If you left I wouldn’t be. You and Mox are my home. I love living here, but I can’t lose you.”

“You belong here with her. I don’t. I’ll only hurt her.”

For a moment, Deke said nothing and Stak thought his brother had left, but when Stak looked up, Deke had come closer and reached to place a hand on his brother’s shoulder.

“I know it was an accident,” Deke began, “And I know why you did it. You tried to hide it, but I remember the way Dr. Glint looked at you. She hurt you, didn’t she?”

Stak could barely bring himself to nod. He tried not to think about her and it was easy since they weren’t on Setron anymore, but it didn’t stop his instincts. Instincts that hurt Eden, who would never do that kind of stuff to him or his brothers.

“I’m not safe,” Stak whispered, “I’ll just hurt her.”

“What if there was a way you could learn not to? I overheard someone ask Eden if she would take us to a mind healer. Eden said she wouldn’t make us if we didn’t want to.”

“And they could fix me? The mind healer?”

“I don’t know but you can give it a shot, right? But that would mean you’d have to stay here. If you still want to leave, I’m coming with you.”

“What about Mox? You said he was your home too.”

“He could catch up with us later. So what are we doing?”

Stak turned over every word. If he could be fixed he wouldn’t have to leave. He could stay with Eden and his brothers. The question was if Eden still wanted him, even after everything. Only one way to find out.

He nodded and let his brother take his hand as Deke led them back to Eden’s house. Thankfully the storm had dissipated, allowing the cadets a clear path home. As they approached the house, they heard yelling, causing Stak to momentarily panic. Was that his fault too? If Deke noticed Stak’s hesitance, he said nothing and continued forward. When they got closer, Stak could make out Eden and Hunter’s voices. The older clone had just gotten back a few days from a mission. A few weeks ago he and Wrecker came back to Pabu with not only Omega but another clone named Crosshair. Stak hadn’t met him yet, but he’d see the solitary clone walking around sometimes.

“Eden listen,” Hunter began calmly, but was interrupted by a furious-sounding Eden.

“No, you listen Hunter! You’re not the one who’s been watching after him for the past three and a half months! You’re not the one who helped discover Deke’s love for robotics or taught Mox how to cook something other than roasting whatever he could catch! You’re not the karking one who watched as Stak finally realized he had a home here and no one would hurt him, not even those karking Imperial scientists! So I don’t kriffing care if you think it would be better if just clones looked for him, I am looking for him with or without your help!”

Stak barely had a moment to process her words before Deke pulled the two of them into the house and startled the occupants. Eden stood head to head with Hunter, who had his hands up in surrender, and immediately whipped her head toward the door Stak and Deke came from. Apparently, they weren’t the only ones in the house, as Stak spotted Crosshair leaning against the kitchen countertop, Wrecker standing next to Hunter and Omega huddled with Mox in a different corner where they seemed to have been talking before Stak and Deke walked in. Mox reacted the quickest, sprinted toward Stak, and tackled him, nearly sending him to the ground. After a moment, Stak overcame his shock and hugged his brother in return.

“Please never do that again,” Mox whispered into Stak’s shoulder as the former buried his head and hugged tighter. Stak said nothing as he buried his head into Mox’s neck and nodded. It felt amazing to be in his big brother’s arms. He was safe and protected.

“Looks like we don’t have to find him after all!” Wrecker cheered. Stakk briefly looked up and saw Wrecker make his way over to the two cadets and rustle Stak’s head. The gesture made Stak smile, if only for a moment.

“Looks like we’re not needed here anymore,” Hunter said, which caused Stak to fully raise his head, “It’s late and we should head back.”

Eden nodded, then said after she cleared her throat, “Thank you for offering to help. I’m sure the boys appreciated it.”

Hunter nodded then turned to Stak and said, “Try not to pull any more stunts like this again.”

Stak nodded and then one by one each of the Bad Batch filed out with Omega bringing up the rear as she beamed a smile and waved at him and Mox. Eden showed them out and made sure to shut the door behind them before she turned to Stak and Mox who were still in each other's arms. She didn’t approach, instead asked if Stak was hurt anywhere. When he shook his head, she nodded, then told him he and Deke should change out of their wet clothes and asked Mox to get a blanket from the chest in her room while she prepared something warm for them.

Mox and Deke nodded, so Stak reluctantly let go of his brother to head to the bedroom. Deke volunteered to change in the bathroom and let Stak change in their room. After Stak changed, he turned to leave the room but hesitated. The realization finally struck Stak that Eden knew. She knew about what happened to him. Did she know everything? Did she pity him? Was she disgusted? All she did was ask if he was hurt and barely acknowledged him. Was she more upset than she said she was when he attacked her? Maybe it would be best if he stayed in his room. He would cause less trouble that way.

Slowly, he backed away from the door and instead buried himself under his covers. It had been a long night anyway. He was tired, wet, and not even hungry despite what his stomach said. As he lay there he didn’t know if it was hours or minutes, but he knew he couldn’t fall asleep despite his exhaustion. For the first time since Sentro, he was terrified to close his eyes and see her again.

Suddenly a knock sounded from the door. It took everything in him to not let his voice crack as he answered, “I’m not hungry. I was just going to go to bed.”

There was silence so he assumed whoever it was they just left.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?” Eden called for a moment. If he said no, she would probably leave him alone. He should say no and just try to sleep. A part of him wanted to say no. Another smaller part of him wanted to let her in. If only to not think about Sentro.

Eventually, the smaller part of him won out and allowed her to come in. He didn’t get out of bed but he sat up as she walked in. Her face was unreadable as carried a single mug of something steaming. It smelled delicious.

“I figured you might want something for your stomach, even if you're not hungry.”

As he reached out to take it, a thank you on his tongue, his eyes caught the bright white bandage on her arm. The same arm where he cut her. Suddenly the drink didn’t seem so appetizing anymore. He lowered his hands and head and mumbled “No thank you,” as he tried to look anywhere but her. In a need to feel small, he pulled his knees up and wrapped his arms around his legs, while he rested his head on top of his knees.

Stak heard Eden sigh and placed the mug on his nightstand. She would probably leave now since she was probably too tired to deal with him. He would.

“I’m sorry, Stak.”

Of all the words he expected her to say, those were nowhere on the list. His head snapped so fast as she looked at him with a sorrowful expression.

“I should have asked before touching you like that and I’m sorry that I made you feel unsafe. That is the last thing I ever wanted to do. This deserves to be your safe space just as much as it is mine and your brothers. If you would rather go live with Hunter and them, I won’t stop you-”

“No!” he exclaimed, startling both himself and Eden.

“I-I mean I don’t want to leave,” he continued more softly as he turned his head away again and picked at his blanket, “I like it here and so do my brothers. Earlier wasn’t your fault anyway.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched her crouch down and place a hand on the edge of the bed as far from him as possible.

“It wasn’t yours either,” she said in a soft voice, “I don’t know what happened to you or your brothers, but I do know no one deserves to go through what you boys went through. When I let you into my home, I wanted to give you what I had when I was brought here and I failed that. If you’d allow me, I would love to try again.”

He lifted his head to meet her eyes, and whispered, “What if I hurt you again?”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there, but I can promise you, I’ll still want you here even then. I wanted to run after you so bad, but Mox convinced me to get my arm wrapped up and get reinforcements. Once the storm had finally cleared up, well, I’m sure you heard the rest.”

He nodded as he looked down again. Hunter must have said something really bad that made her upset. She’d never been like that with him or his brothers. Technically, Hunter and the others were his brothers too but it wasn’t the same.

“So what do you say?” Eden hummed, gently pulling him from his thoughts like he was a hurt loth kitten. If it were anyone but her, he would have snapped at them, but Eden was different. A good different.

“I want to stay with you,” he answered as he turned his head toward her again, “I want to get fixed.”

Her face shifted into a sad smile, immediately making his hackles rise. She noticed this and held her hand up in a stop motion.

“I’m willing to do anything to help,” she began slowly, “But I want to know I would still want you even if you’re broken.”

Oh. She couldn’t possibly mean that. Dr. Glint had said no one would want a broken clone like him. But Dr. Glint enjoyed taunting and lying to Stak, just to get a raise out of him so she could punish him. Eden on the other hand had never lied to him. At least that he knew of. Even if she did, he trusted her more than Dr. Glint.

He hadn’t even realized he was crying until Eden held a tissue to his face, not wiping the tears herself because she didn’t want to touch him unless he wanted to. He ignored the tissue and leaped straight for her. She fell back from the weight of him and Stak almost immediately pulled away, scared he hurt her again. Then he felt her arms wrap around him as she squeezed him tight. Soon he heard the door open, causing both of him to lift their heads to find Mox and Deke, out of breath and staring at Stak and Eden with worried expressions.

“We heard a thud,” Mox explained.

“We thought Stak tried to run again,” Deke added, fear evident in his voice.

Eden said nothing as she held a hand out to his brothers. Deke took the invasion first and dropped to the floor as Eden pulled him close to her side. Stak gently placed his own hand arm around his brother as Mox walked to the other side of Eden. As he knelt to the ground, she wrapped her free arm around him and pulled him close as well, now surrounded on three sides. Stak cozied close to his brothers while Eden rested her cheek on his head. For what felt like the first time, there was no other place Stak wanted to be.

Disclaimer: Stak sees himself as broke and unworthy and believes everything will be fixed after he sees a therapist. I do not share that opinion and know healing and recovering from trauma can take a long time depending on the person.

If there is anything I need to add to the tags please let me know. I hope you enjoyed the fic and I didn't offend anyone.

Would love to hear y'all's thoughts!!!

#clone cadet stak #clone cadet mox #clone cadet deke #togruta oc #the bad batch #tbb #tbb crosshair #tbb omega #tbb hunter #tbb wrecker #summerofbadbatch2024 #week 4 #cadets #You really think you're going without me? Not going to happen."#mentioned past abuse #tw past abuse #panic attack #tw panic attack #to live again au

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spacemagicandlaserswords · 10 months ago

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2 of the clone cadets showed up! I can't remember which ones but they got to enjoy a happy life for 0.0001 microseconds before it all went to shit again T_T

#the bad batch #tbb #star wars #tbb s3 spoilers #clone cadet stak #clone cadet mox #clone cadet deke

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badbatchenthusiast · 1 year ago

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need to rewatch 3x02 to get the personalities of the clone cadets nailed down for all my fanfiction writing needs. will be posting headcanons be prepared.

#star wars #the bad batch #tbb #tbb mox #tbb deke #tbb stak #clone cadets #clone cadet mox #clone cadet stak #clone cadet deke #bad batch #tbb season 3 spoilers #tbb season 3

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cupcake-hearts · 1 year ago

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S3 BAD BATCH- it was good, but do you know how much episode 2 stressed me out?😫😵😬!!!

Anytime they introduce a 'reg' i get stress acne. Thanks Star Wars.

#star wars #tbb spoilers #the bad batch #tbb s3 #clone troopers #clone cadets #leave my baby alone #leave my babies alone #clone cadet deke

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sashketter · 10 months ago

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Preparing for Tantiss

Summary: While the Bad Batch acquire the coordinates to Tantiss, Rex prepares a ragtag team of familiar faces to follow him to the Imperial base.

Word count: 1.3K

Warnings: A hint of Rexiyo; a smidge, a sampling, an infinitesimal iota, if you will 😊

Notes: I’ve been saying for awhile that the "cavalry" in The Bad Batch finale might not just be clones, but it occurred to me only today to write it tf down, the last two episodes be damned lol This takes place during season 3 episode 13 of The Bad Batch, "Into the Breach." Look to the tags for the “familiar faces” - the cast is too long to list here. I wrote this in a rush, but it builds off some ideas I'm using for a series about Riyo Chuchi and the Clone Underground, specifically using Orto Plutonia as a base and the working relationship between Rex and Riyo.

“Careful with those proton torpedoes!”

“Don’t scratch my ship! I don’t care how well the Republic—"

“Father! Can I show Jek ze fighters?”

The small airbase on Orto Plutonia had proven more useful than Rex could have imagined. Clearing an area large enough to host more than half a dozen starships was a challenge, but the clones and the Talz braved extreme snowstorms in record time. Fortune seemed to smile on them today as the sky cleared and the wind calmed to a whisper. Ready the fleet, the breeze seemed to say. All the ships had spilled out of the hangar and into the open air, everyone enjoying the rare bout of good weather. Rex watches the fruits of his quick and dangerous labor from the edge of the field.

“Transmission from Pantora, sir.” A clone hands Rex a holoprojector, and Riyo Chuchi flickers in his palm.

“How are preparations coming along, captain?” Riyo learned to dispense with pleasantries when it came to Rex and his missions.

“Very well, senator.” Rex learned to keep his reports short when it came to Riyo and her transmissions. “It’s a tight fit with all the aircraft, but we’ll be ready in half a rotation. Hopefully by then, Echo will have transmitted the coordinates.”

Riyo nods, but can’t hide her concern. “Be careful, Rex. I can hold off the Senate for awhile, but not long. If Tantiss is as secretive and well-guarded as you say, people will want to know everything if something,” she searches for the right word, “explosive happens.”

“Understood.” Rex nods. “You be careful yourself.” It’s an earnest warning, but he looks around and finds no one within earshot. He smirks and tries his luck. “Try not to attract any more bombs while I’m busy.”

She huffs, looks around, and counters, “Try not to blow up any more bases.”

Rex returns her smile. She nods, and in an instant, she’s gone. Rex tucks the holoprojector in his belt.

“Uncle Rex!” Shaeeh calls and tugs at his arm. Rex’s heart thumps hard in his chest, taken off-guard by the surprise attack. “Can I come?”

Suu tiptoes from behind and grabs her daughter by the waist and off the ground. “Ay, no, we need someone to watch ze base while we are gone.” She nuzzles Shaeeh on the cheek before putting the child down.

“They’re ready for inspection,” Howzer announces, gesturing towards the noisy airfield. The captains fall into step.

First up are two Y wings parked across from each other. Cham Syndulla climbs down from the cockpit of one while Cut Lawquane stands up from the wheels of the other. Their kids play in the space between.

“Ready and operational, Rex,” Cut reports, wiping his hands with an oil-ridden rag.

“As iz ours,” Cham adds. “Eleni iz ‘aving some trouble with ze turret, but—”

“All fixed!” The men look up in time to see a wrench fly in the air and land with a loud clink on the ground. Eleni appears from the turret, smiling and wiping her forehead. Hera laughs as Chopper rolls loudly, arms flailing, to pick up the wrench.

“Good work.” Rex nods at the men before moving on.

Several meters away is a Nebula-class freighter. An astromech speeds from under its chassis towards Rex, stopping too late and bumping into his shins. He grunts in pain but otherwise ignores the collision. He rubs the droid’s dome.

“Hey, R7. Where’s Rafa?”

“You can’t bank at that speed, Trace!” Rafa’s voice turns the captains’ attention to the left. “The motivators will—”

“You watch! The Silver Angel can handle anything I throw at her.” Trace sees the captains watching her and her sister argue for the umpteenth time. “Oh, hey, captains.” She gives a short salute.

Howzer crosses his arms and shakes his head, but Rex is amused. It reminds him of the first time they met, right after Padmé’s--

“Whoa, Wookiee alert!” Rafa stops Rex’s train of thought. He turns to see three adult Wookiees approach from the right.

Howzer still can’t contain his shock at their ship. “How did they get their hands on a gunship?”

Rex sometimes forgets Howzer had been stationed far from most of the action of the Clone Wars. “General Tarfful fought in the Battle of Kashyyyk,” he gestures towards the heavily-armored Wookiee, “with Master Yoda. And lucky for us, he’s no friend of the Empire.”

A protocol droid ambles from behind the Wookiee general and ahead to the clone captains. “Hello, I am C3-LT, protocol droid for General Tarfful.”

Rex nods. “Please thank the general for his help. We’re well aware of the trouble on Kashyyyk and know that the Wookiees can’t spare much in the way of arms and soldiers.”

The droid turns to the Wookiee retinue and belts out a mountain of Shyriiwook. Tarfful answers in turn, and the droid translates.

“The general says that he is happy to help the clones liberate their people. He says the clones are brave warriors who will always have the Wookiees’ help whenever they ask.”

Howzer continues to be surprised, his eyes wide at the show of loyalty. Rex nods, and Tarfful drops a heavy hand on his shoulder, shaking the captain and roaring in what the clone assumes is a battle cry. The Wookiees turn around and return to their ship.

Rex starts towards the clones’ fighters at the far end of the field when a freighter lands just outside the perimeter. Everyone stops to watch. The snow settles before the ship’s pilot descends from its platform.

“Afternoon, boys,” Phee greets the approaching clones. She stops at the end of the ramp when she sees blasters aimed in her direction. “Hey now, is that any way to welcome Tech’s—”

Rex sighs and lowers a clone’s blaster with his hand, signaling everyone to stand down. “Easy, men. Echo comm’d us about this.”

Phee walks up to Rex. “Name’s Genoa. Phee Genoa.” They shake hands cautiously. “You must be the one in charge.”

“The name’s Rex. Howzer here will catch you up.” He peers behind her and up into her ship. “Where are the cadets?”

Phee smiles and calls out, “It’s alright, boys. Time to play.”

Three clone cadets appear from the belly of Phee’s ship, running in a line down the platform and stopping in a line next to Phee. “Reporting for duty, sir,” one of them announces before saluting.

Rex kneels down on one knee and addresses the boys. “Alright, troopers.” The cadets snap to attention. “Can I count on you to make sure each ship is supplied with its maximum amount of fuel before sunset?”

“Sir, yes, sir!” They chant and salute in unison before running towards the hangar.

Phee chuckles as Rex stands back up. “Is that what you did when you were a cadet? Fill up fuel tanks and clean starships?”

Rex smirks but holds off on telling her stories of caustic chemicals and hazing rituals on Kamino. Instead, he offers, “You’d be surprised what a clone cadet can do at that age.”

Phee puts a hand on his arm and presses, “Are you sure this will work?” Her concern is genuine.

Rex seems to consider her question seriously for a moment before he shrugs. “It has to.” He gestures for her to follow Howzer.

Rex turns around and gazes into the distance. The sun is beginning to hide behind a line of mountain peaks to the west. The air starts to chill. Gregor will have dinner ready soon, and Rex knows that for some, it will be their last meal. But when he turns back to the airfield, all he can see and hear are smiles and laughter, determined faces turning into friendly ones and idle conversations turning into detailed ones. Rex smiles. For now, hope is still on the horizon.

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jedi-lothwolf · 11 months ago

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Whump: The Musical Day 7: The Last Five Years (I will not lose because you can not win.")

Fandom: The Batch Batch

Warning: Cannon typical violence

Summary: When Hemlock invades Pabu, the batch has to fight for their lives as well as the lives of the citizens of the peaceful Island.

Ao3 link

Today was supposed to be an ordinary day. When Hunter had woken up, he was dragged down to the beach by Omega and Deke. They wanted to show him that they had learned how to surf. Even if he wouldn't admit it, Hunter was proud of the clones for learning how to be children.

Wrecker had forced Crosshair down to the beach as well. The warm sand and pleasant smell should help him to relax the man thought. So the three brothers sat on a red towel and started to talk. It wasn't much, but it was somewhere to start.

Mox and Stak joined them shortly and started to work on a sand castle. Some clouds covered the sunny sky. But when Hunter looked up, they weren't clouds. Imperial vessels blocked the sun.

This couldn't be happening. Pabu was supposed to be safe. It wasn't meant for invasions. So many of the people spent too long running just to have to up their whole lives again. Hunter looked back down.

Looking at Crosshair, he spoke. "Get Omega and the boys to the ship. Be ready to leave. Call Echo and tell him we need help, immediately."

In truth, Hunter knew why he chose Crosshair. With his hand, even if he hadn't told them yet, he knew that he'd be the one whose help they need the least. Now if he could still hit any mark, that could have been a different story.

But there was more to that. Wrecker had a history with Pabu. He would protect it fiercely. The island was his home, the people were his family.

As Deke rode a wave in, Hunter stood. The father ran out to two of his youngest that were in the water. "Go over to Crosshair" he told them. They nodded before Hunter went to Mox and Stak and pulled them up from the sand.

"What's going on?" Mox asked. Nervousness was written all over his face.

"The empire-"

"We could tell" Stak interrupted.

"Go with your siblings." It was the first time he had outright called their siblings to their faces. If it had been any other time, Hunter would have said more. For now, it would have to wait."

As Hunter walked the other two over with the rest of the group, Omega started to talk. "We can help!"

"I know, but it's you they want and the boys haven't finished their training. It's safer this way."

"And someone needs to watch Cross." Wrecker tried to add some humor to the situation.

Phee joined them on the beach, knowing that it was Clone Force 99 who had unfortunately brought the Empire to Pabu. Hunter walked over to her before she met the rest of the group. "Make sure Omega gets out of here. They want her and we wouldn't let her get taken again."

"Okay." She looked past the Sargent, "come on kids, let's get you to safety!"

Sighing, Crosshair grabbed Omega and picked her up. "Come on."

"Put me down!" Omega fought Crosshair all the way up the beach.

"Now what?" Wrecker asked.

"We fight."

At the Mauradur, Crosshair was quick to make the decision to leave. Batcher awoke from her nap and laid with Omega to help keep her calm. The boys mostly sat with her or talked to Crosshair as they left the atmosphere and headed to Coruscant to meet with Echo.

As the days passed, the battle of Pabu seemed to be more and more helpless. Civilians were dying, some who had fought and some who had not.

When the bad batch had settled on Pabu, they taught Shep how to shoot. The mayor had agreed to ease their minds, never thinking he would need to use this new skill. Unfortunately it was only a matter of time. Lyana stayed near her father when she could. Mostly she was hidden with other children.

When the invasion began, Hunter had suddenly become a Sargent again. It had been a long time since he played that role. Civilians who had fought in wars, civil or intergalactical, had taken up their old military rank. It was strange.

The invasion had lasted days. Hemlock wouldn't give up until he found Omega, unaware she had been taken off world. Pabu was being torn apart, lives crumbled to the ground and while some knew why the empire had attacked, most didn't. For the people who did, they couldn't and wouldn't be mad at Clone Force 99 for trying to live peaceful lives and for trying to protect their daughter and little girl.

It had been four days into the fighting when Hemlock showed his face. When Hunter met Hemlock for the second time, injured and tired, he knew meeting the scientist twice was three times too many.

"Hello CT-9901, or should I say Hunter?" Hemlock spoke.

Startled and out of breath, Hunter didn't answer. It had been so long since he heard his CT number, he had almost forgotten it. Still, he knew the malice behind it.

"This can all end, just give me the girl."

"Never." Hunter moved behind a counter. He sank to the floor for a moment.

"I figured as much. I truly am impressed that you are capable of forming such a bond with her. A parental role appears to come so easily to you."

The words made Hunter's skin crawl. Why would he be unable to form a bond with her? Omega was his daughter, nothing could change that. Was it because he was a clone? Was that why he was deemed unable to love a child, to have children he felt were his own?

"The safest option for your men and the civilians of this island, is to stop the fighting. You cannot win this battle, Sargent."

"I will not lose because you can not win."

Silents filled the room. They stood in a ruined kitchen. The checkered floors were stained with blood and glass. The cabinets had been torn open by both the empire and the citizens of Pabu. They needed food and they needed wood. The empire hadn't taken their time to bring out flame throwers to scorch the island and its people.

"You, won't win this." Hunter reinforced the idea. "You can't. I won't let you. " Pulling his knife from its sheath, he tried to find a clear shot at Hemlock.

The scientist couldn't win. In the end, he would round up every single citizen and kill them off. With Wrecker taking part in the fight, he needed his to be okay. With everything Tech had sacrificed to save them, they couldn't die here. Crosshair and his kids would be alone. It hurt knowing that Omega would blame herself for the slaughter of the people of Pabu. Echo would wish he arrived earlier and would blame himself for not being there to save them.

They needed saving. They couldn't do it alone. The Sargent only had one shot at killing Hemlock. Blood pooled under Hunter from his injuries. With broken ribs, multiple deep lacerations on his legs as well as his arms and one close to his neck, a few broken toes, and a large amount of bruising, the man was unsure how he had stayed alive this long. He could feel blood on the side of his face but he wasn't sure if it came from his left ear (since he couldn't hear from it) or from his head.

The vibro-knife shook in his hand. It almost felt foreign. Standing slowly, yet staying out of view, Hunter grabbed a piece of glass from behind the mahogany counter. Looking at it for a moment, he sighed. They couldn't afford to lose. Not anymore. Losing meant dying and for the first time in so long, Hunter had something to live for. His brothers and children and family he had made on Padu and his pets (Gonky included) all meant the world to him. No one else needed to die.

However, If he had to give all of that up to save them, to win the battle of Pabu, the battle for his family, he would.

Throwing the glass, Hunter hoped that it would distract Hemlock and his guards. When it did, the man stood fully and threw his knife. As soon as he saw it plunge deep into his skull, he felt a weight be lifted off of his chest. The weight was replaced with a bullet.

The tile cracked when he fell. There wasn't much Hunter could think about. The sound of ships overhead relieved Hunter. It had to be Echo. If not, the empire would take the island in a matter of hours.

Hunter's entire body hurt. The warm feeling of blood tangled with his hair. The glass had cut any exposed skin. The guards grabbed Hemlock's body and went to leave. Hunter listened to the footsteps as they faded. His mind was so foggy that evening and nothing made his sense. But Hemlock was dead. If that was Echo, which it had to be, Pabu would rebuild. The coppery smell of blood filled Hunter's nose.

Dying, Hunter tried to reach for his comm. Hitting it, the world started to fade. His hand rested on the communication device long enough for Echo to notice the soft noise of fire and gunshots that played over his headset. Then his hand slipped off the button and the comm channel went silent.

The man had never expected to wake up again. But when he saw a white roof, he knew something was different. Everything hurt too damn much for him to be dead. There was a steady, high pitched beeping that hurt his ears; or at least the one he could still hear out of.

Had they won? Was everyone safe? Where was his family, his kids?

"Hunter!" Omega yelled, answering one of his questions. "He's awake" she shook Echo awake.

"Hunter?" Echo grounded as he sat up. Then he pinched himself.

"You actually woke up." Crosshair stood up. "It's been a week."

"Leave him alone. He needed his beauty rest" Wrecker joked. The boys and Batcher sat in the corner of the room, still half asleep.

"Is everyone, okay?" Hunter finally said, struggling to speak.

"We're okay."

"Pa-Pabu."

"In shambles. We were about to leave to help with the rebuilding and attend a few funerals. We'll send you regards. They people were rooting for you." Echo told him.

"We're lucky you came in when you did. You saved us." Nudging Echo, Wrecker walked over to wake up the boys.

"Where-"

"Alderaan. Rex has some allies here. We couldn't help you on our own, the damage done to you, it was too extensive." Walking beside Hunter, Echo stood next to him.

"Dad!" Deke yelled, excited. He ran over to him and just about toppled Echo.

"You're actually alive" Stak added.

"Hey." Mox was the last to stand as he was trying to not disturb Batcher.

Hemlock's words about his parental instincts ran through Hunter's head. However, that didn't matter. He was their father. Just because he was a clone didn't mean he didn't form bonds with people he cared dearly for.

"We can stay for a little but Hunter needs to rest, we need to get back to Pabu." Walking to the door, Echo went to tell the nurses that Hunter had woken up.

Omega clung to Hunter's arm, determined to never let go. Crosshair and Wrecker sat at the end of the bed. Wrecker looked rough but that was to be expected.

"Tell me everything later" the Sargent whispered.

"We will." After a few hours, Echo decided it was time to go. Omega and Batcher stayed with Hunter while the rest left for Pabu. Knowing that Hemlock couldn't hurt her, made breathing just a little bit easier. So did knowing that most everyone he cared about was safe; though by now someone would have told him if Phee, Shep, or Lyana had died.

Everything would be okay. It had to be. Now that Hemlock was out of the way, maybe the batch could live a peaceful life. Even if Hunter knew they would end up in the fight, it was a nice thought. But the clone knew his place was fighting for peace. After all, if he wanted Omega and his boys to be safe, he needed to make a safer galaxy. And that was okay with him. If he needed to fight he would. For his children.

@whumpthemusical

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