#fractured transmission

[femmefaggot]

ok hi haha lol I dont rly feel like going in circles in my head forever trying to figure out whether, among other "smaller" things, being left alone in a room w only media as a child and not feeling like I had even a semblance of a personality for most of my life counts as "trauma"

a lot of these parts of me are new, I'm just recently putting names to them and it feels as though I'm developing facets of personalities in my mid 20s after a lifetime of either feeling like I'm basically just ADHD in a person, an amalgamation of kins shoved into a body, or something made of guilt Also shoved into a body.

I don't like, claim to know what this means. but I don't think a lot of my current mutuals would feel comfortable interacting w me bc I don't necessarily believe in the black and white of what plurality is. I'm not able or planning on getting any formal diagnosis and while I'm discussing this w my therapist they're very much not one to pathologize

I definitely don't feel like one person but I dont think id count for most of you as a "system" as the different parts of me feel as though theyre still developing. take all of this as you will, I'm not going to stress my body out more by trying to figure out "what" I am as I've been doing that my whole life and I'm kinda tired of it.

I know that I'm not entirely one thing and feel Enough like multiple things for myself, but blurred in a lot of ways. like some sort of gem with many different facets.

not sure where to go w this tbh take this how you will. im not comfortable saying I'm leaning one way or the other regarding system discourse, (<- not a phrase i want to use but the best shorthand i have) as I genuinely don't believe the human brain is nearly that black and white.

I'm both "me" and very much not "me" at times. idk what this means but ik I'm not comfortable saying im just pandora and im not sure im "allowed" to say im a system and im not sure if it matters, or should matter, regarding friends. im going to be like this regardless, id unfollow me if this grey area im likely to stay in bothers you

if you don't want me refollowing I'd probably block, too, as my memory is bad

[hugmekenobi]

S3: The Bad Batch (11)

Chapter Eleven: Point of No Return

Gif by @moonstrider9904

Hunter x femaleJedi!reader

Series Summary: Ever since Eriadu, Clone Force 99 had been a fractured squad. Months have passed but you're finally back with the Batch but Omega is still out there and you won't stop until you find her again.

Chapter Summary: The Empire closes in on you and the Batch

Masterlist for S1 and S2

<Previous Chapter

Genre: Friends (idiots) to Lovers (we're in the lovers stage now)

Chapter Warnings: Canon-typical violence, threats, food mentions, flash of PDA and fluff in the beginning, referenced character death, rip a certain ship :(, self-blame, brief injury mention, humour as a tool for deflection, overall angsty vibes

Word Count: 4.2K

Author's notes: Still sticking very close to the episode here but hope it's still enjoyable and episode 12 is in progress!!

Getting into the pirate’s ship had been all too easy. He wasn’t going to fail this time. CX-2 decrypted the coordinates before he put the transmission for Scorch through, “The Trandoshan’s intel paid off. I tracked the pirate and accessed her navicomputer. She tried to cover her tracks but I broke the encryption.”

“What did you find?”

“She frequented a planet in the Outer Rim. I’m headed there now to do recon.”

“Send the coordinates. I’ll have a full division on standby if you require a visual on the targets.” Scorch provided before he signed off.

CX-2 entered the coordinates for Pabu.

--

“That’s gotta be all of it, right?” Wrecker asked in disbelief as he saw the three of you approach and unload the next round of supplies.

“We still need to grab the rations.” Hunter told him. “Keep loading up the ship. We’ll be back.”

Wrecker groaned, “Fine. But at least bring me back an ice cone.”

“Just one?” You questioned with an enticing grin as you walked backwards away from him and the ship.

“No, no, no. You’re right! M-Make it two!” Wrecker corrected his error.

You gave a two-fingered salute in reply before you turned around and jogged to catch up with Hunter and Crosshair.

--

“I wish you didn’t have to leave.” Lyana said lowly as she led Omega through the Archium.

“Me too, but Hunter thinks it’s safer for everyone if we do.”

Lyana led her over to a gap in one of the ledges. “What do you think of this spot?”

“It’s perfect.” Omega said with a thankful smile.

“So, which treasures did you bring?” Lyana asked, her tone curious but respectful of what this moment meant to those that left things here and Omega would not be treated differently.

Omega tucked Lula under her arm and brought out Tech’s cracked goggles. She held them delicately in her hands as she let the memories that they brought wash over her.

“You sure you wanna leave these behind?” Lyana double checked gently.

“Pabu was the first place that felt like a home.” Omega placed both objects down with the utmost care. “This way, a piece of us is still here.”

Lyana laid a supportive hand on her friend’s shoulder. “Well, I’ll make sure these stay safe until you come back.” She looked at Omega with a new type of seriousness. “Because you will come back, right?”

“I hope so.” Omega replied, the harsh reality of the day quickly catching up to her as she realised this would be the last time she would see her for a while.

--

“And where are you going?” Hunter asked with a questioning smile and tilt of his head as you separated from them. “We’ve got rations to get.”

You feigned disgust at the very idea. “Hey, I have the very important ice-cone mission. I cannot be diverted with a mere ration run.” You said with a coy grin before you pressed a swift kiss to Hunter’s cheek and sauntered off with exaggerated determination.

“Get that lovesick smile of your face before I throw up.” Crosshair snickered with a roll of his eyes as he saw the way Hunter watched you go.

“Shut up.” Hunter shoved his brother’s shoulder before they carried on with their own search.

--

“I don’t even think there’s room on this ship for all this gear.” Wrecker complained to Gonky as he saw all that was still to be shifted and he knew there was still more to come. However, Gonky’s cheeky honks of reply were not the commiseration he was looking for. “Oh, yeah? Well, maybe I should leave you behind.” He retorted, smirking at the offended honks he got in response.

Wrecker brought more of the stuff on board, completely unaware that the proximity sensor had been flashing a half second before.

--

CX-2 landed the ship in the cavern and began his hunt.

--

Hunter paused as he heard the nervous squeaking on the island birds, their tone matching his own growing sense of unease.

“What is it?” Crosshair asked.

“Not sure, but I don’t like it.” Hunter brought out his comm. “Omega, time to go.”

Upon hearing that, you gave up your spot in line and joined up with Hunter and Crosshair. You’d make it up to Wrecker another time.

--

CX-2 scanned the bustling market stalls from above and that was when he caught sight of the two clones and the targets he’d been sent to acquire. He touched the control panel on his sleeve and got Scorch on his comm.

“Report.” Scorch demanded.

“I’ve got eyes on the targets.”

“Ground them and wait for the division. They must be recovered unharmed. No mistakes this time.”

“And the clones they’re with?” He asked as he saw the group of you leaving the area.

“If they get in your way, eliminate them.”

--

“We’re sorry to see you go, but you’re all welcome here anytime.” Shep said sincerely. “Those homes will be waiting for you when you get back.”

You bowed your head in gratitude.

“Thanks for everything, Shep.” Hunter said, shaking his hand.

Omega and Lyana shared in a hug.

“I’ll see you soon.” Lyana said as she parted from Omega.

The four of you and Batcher started to make your way back to Wrecker.

--

The sun had almost set by the time Wrecker finished getting the most recent batch of supplies onto the ship, but he just took relief in the fact that he wouldn’t be alone in shifting the next round of gear.

As he went to grab the last crate, he paused on the steps as he picked up on a faint but rapid series of beeps.

He recognised the sound.

He knew exactly what that meant.

He reacted quickly and with a shout, he abandoned the ship and grabbed Gonky just as the Marauder exploded, hurling both of them into the sea.

With the last of his strength, he managed to pull himself onto a piece of debris before his vision went dark.

--

Upon hearing the harsh echoing boom of an explosion, you all instantly ran to the edge of Upper Pabu and your heart thumped in a frantic panic as you saw the distant flames and charred remnants of what was once the Marauder.

Hunter brought out his binoculars and took in the scene. He saw Wrecker and Gonky floating in the water and felt his own panic set in at seeing his brother unconscious. He put on his helmet and started running for the docks.

You did the same with your coverings and Crosshair put on his helmet before the three of you followed close behind.

--

One of the locals had grabbed a boat and brought Wrecker and Gonky back to port.

You pushed your way through the crowd of people and stopped short as you saw Wrecker’s body.

Omega knelt down by Wrecker’s side. “Wrecker? Wrecker!” Omega gasped, desperately shaking his shoulders to try and rouse him but it did no good.

Your stomach dropped to your feet. It took all the training you had to not lose control upon seeing the lack of response from Wrecker. He was strong, he was always so strong. He had to be alright.

“Mox and Stak, take Wrecker to Shep’s. Deke, get Az-3 to patch him up, and fast.” Hunter ordered the regs. He needed his brother back on his feet. He needed him to be okay.

“Ships don’t just blow up. We’ve been compromised.” Crosshair realised.

Hunter turned his head from Wrecker to the sound of a deep rumbling from above and what he saw sent both a deep anger and dread through his veins. The Imperial Star Destroyer hovered above the Archium and a series of gunships swarmed down. “Everyone, get to cover!”

Amidst the crowds of panicked and screaming people, the four of you regrouped and found cover of your own.

--

Shep was helpless to stop the hordes stormtroopers from moving in. He could only watch in despair as his people ran in fear.

--

“Cut off all escape routes. Destroy any ships or sea skiffs in sight.” CX-2 ordered as he remained unphased by the chaos around him. It wouldn’t affect what he needed to achieve; it would only help.

--

You and Omega both paused as you saw the destruction the Empire was causing to the docks.

The only light in the night were the fires caused by the Imperial gunfire.

The only sounds the whirr of gunship and cried of fear that echoed around the island.

Kamino, the Marauder, Pabu… How many more homes was the Empire going to take from you?

From these innocent people?

And how much longer could you let it go on?

A glance down at Omega told you she was thinking similarly to you. You indicated your head back and you both joined the others in an alleyway.

“Is this our fault? Are they attacking because of us?” Omega whispered up at you as she kept Batcher calm.

You wished with every fibre of your being that you could tell her no. That they were the ones at fault but the own guilt residing in your heart made the words die before they left your lips. How could you reassure her when you couldn’t believe the words yourself? It was never meant to go this way. The very thing you had wanted to avoid had happened and now you knew there was only one real way out of it.

Hunter crouched down. “It’s the Empire’s fault. Not yours. You have to stay focused. Both of you.” He implored with a helmeted look in your direction too.

“They’re destroying all means of escape and jamming our comms.” Crosshair said as he tried his comm, but it was only static. “We have to steal one of their gunships. Once we’re out of range, we can contact Echo.”

“I’ll handle it.” Hunter said. “You three, get to Shep’s and wait with Wrecker until I signal you.”

You caught his vambrace and pulled him back to you. You pressed your forehead against his helmet.

Hunter had a distinct and sinking feeling that this was you saying goodbye, but he wasn’t going to let that be the case- this plan would work… it- it had to. “I’ll see you soon.” He said as he stepped away.

You couldn’t quite meet his helmeted gaze as you nodded before you, Omega and Batcher split from him to head to Shep’s.

Hunter gave Crosshair a last meaningful look before he went in the opposite direction.

Crosshair knew what that look meant- keep them safe. And he would do everything in his power to do that. He followed you and Omega.

--

“Lock down the town. Search every domicile until you find them.” CX-2 ordered the squadrons of troopers.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Shep demanded as he approached the black-armoured soldier that seemed intent on ruining the lives of so many people.

“Who are you?” CX-2 replied with equal parts disdain and curiosity.

“The mayor of this town. You’ve opened fire on my village and its people without warning and without reason. Under what pretence are you attacking?” Shep seethed.

“We’re here to collect some fugitives you’ve been harbouring.” CX-2 brought out the puck and flashed the two images.

Shep made sure to keep his true reaction at bay- he wouldn’t give you and Omega away if he could help it. “You can’t just barge in here-”

“I’ve barely done anything yet.” CX-2 interrupted coldly.

“You destroyed our docks and fishing skiffs. Our livelihood.”

“I have simply cut off their means of escape. But I can do worse. I know they are here. Until they are turned over to me, your island will burn.” CX-2 threatened as he walked away.

--

The path to Shep’s had been fraught with troopers and each time like this where you had to hide from the next roaming patrol only slowed things down more.

You peered round the corner of your hiding spot to see one of the villagers being forced out of her home and you heard her distressed plea.

“You can’t do this! It’s our home!”

You were fighting the urge to go out and it seemed Batcher also shared in your current sentiment as Omega was doing her best to keep the dog quiet and calm.

And the cruel reply from the trooper that you heard next only confirmed what you already dreaded.

“We know they’re here! Where are the Jedi and the girl?”

“I don’t know! I swear-”

The familiar sound of a slap made your blood boil. You went to reveal yourself to stop them but Crosshair’s hand on your arm prevented you from doing so.

Omega couldn’t hold Batcher back though. The dog snarled and charged for the soldiers before they could do anymore harm.

“Batcher can handle herself. Let’s go.” Crosshair said to you both as he made sure Omega didn’t go to follow the dog either.

--

You had managed to scale the wall up to Shep’s and opened the door.

“Lyana!” Omega said with a relieved gasp.

“Omega! My-My dad, he said to hide here.” Lyana said fearfully. She ran up to her friend and hugged her tight, “I’m so scared.”

“I know. I’m so sorry.” Omega replied as she parted from her.

You and Crosshair took off your coverings as you saw AZ attending to Wrecker.

“How’s Wrecker, AZ?” You asked.

“He is still unconscious, but his vitals are stable.”

You allowed yourself to feel some semblance of relief at that, but you hastily pushed it to one side as you heard another gunships sound outside.

The three of you ran back out to take in what was happening and what you saw made your chest tighten and curl your fists in rage- stormtroopers were everywhere, removing people from their homes, tossing them to the ground, arresting them. It was unnecessarily cruel, and it was all because you were still here.

--

Getting onto the gunship had started out as a stealth mission but quickly became one where Hunter just had to get inside without getting shot.

He’d managed to do so but the pilot was making his life extremely difficult with erratic flying designed to fling him out. He had to take a tight grasp of the handles inside to remain upright.

--

Something else then caught your attention as you saw the unstable and irregular flying patterns of an Imperial gunship and a whole different kind of emotion swept through you. You knew the exact cause of that particular situation, but you were not reassured by the sight in the slightest.

“Is that, Hunter?” Omega asked both you and Crosshair as she noticed the ship in the air.

“Yes.” You said through clenched teeth.

“Uh huh.” Crosshair echoed nonchalantly.

But then, something shifted, there was a blaster shot and vessel nosedived down towards the sea in a way that showed that neither Hunter nor the pilot was in charge of the ship anymore.

A strained breath caught in your throat as you watched the ship plummet into the sea. “Where- where is he?” You choked out as you saw Crosshair grab his macrobinoculars.

Crosshair scanned the water anxiously but let out a relieved sigh as he saw his brother resurface and swim for the shore. “He’s fine.”

You bent forwards as you braced your hands on the wall and let out a slow calming breath before the distant sound of comm chatter reminded you of your current situation.

“He’s safer than we are at the moment.” Crosshair hissed as the three of you retreated back inside Shep’s.

--

“What do we do? Troopers will be here soon.” Omega asked anxiously.

“Hunter would want us to stick to the plan.” Crosshair replied, internally scrambling to think of a way out of this.

“There’s no hiding, Crosshair. The Empire knows we’re here. They won’t stop searching until they find us!”

Whilst they were talking, you were coming up with a plan of your own. If you handed yourself in and convinced them that you’d already shipped Omega off-world, then maybe they’d leave Pabu and the rest of them alive and in peace.

You glanced between Wrecker and Lyana and the door. You took a calming breath as you came to terms with what you had to do but a squeeze of your hand brought your eyes downwards. No. You said as you saw her nod at you.  

“You promised.” Omega reminded you.

This is different, Omega. It’s not a choice you should need to make. It-

“You’re going, I know you are!” Omega interrupted. “But that won’t be enough, they’re here for me too! They won’t stop and you know it. It is my choice!”

Crosshair clued in and realised what the two of you were arguing about. “Absolutely not.”

“It’s our only option, Crosshair.” You said heavily.

“What? No, it’s not. We-”

“Look at what they’ve already done.” You said, a flash of anger coming through. “We can’t let the people here suffer any more because of us. That’s why we were leaving in the first place- to avoid this. We can’t let it carry on. We just can’t.” I’m not risking anyone else. Wrecker already got hurt, I’m not risking you and I’m not risking Hunter. If I could help it, Omega wouldn’t be coming but I can’t and it kills me that I can’t, but it’s how it has to be.

Crosshair went to respond to you, but Omega got in first, “If we let them take us, it stops.” She emphasised.

Crosshair focused on the young girl, distress in his voice. “You’ll be taken back to Tantiss.”

“Exactly. We’ve been trying to find those coordinates, and nothing’s worked. But if we keep our comms on us, and turn ourselves in, you can track us to Tantiss. This is our chance. Our chance to finally rescue the clones imprisoned there.”

“No. They’ll search you and find it. It won’t work.” Crosshair argued.

“Then shoot a secondary tracker onto the ship that they take us away on.” You suggested.

“Too many unknown variables. It’s not a viable plan.”

“It’s all we’ve got.” You countered.

“And it’s our choice.” Omega reminded him again.

Crosshair looked imploringly in your direction now. “Tantiss is different. This isn’t some random Imperial that’ll take you this time. It’ll be Hemlock. Who knows what he’ll do to you there.”

You also saw a genuine fear behind his eyes, and it unnerved you. It won’t be for long, I’ll be alright. “Focus on the bigger mission, Crosshair.” You said aloud and you came to stand behind Omega and rested your hands on her shoulders.

“Yeah, we’re just a small part of it.” Omega agreed.

Crosshair found himself in a position where he was forced to reflect on that, and he had to agree with you both.

--

The two of you got ready to depart but you noticed the reluctance that still graced Crosshair’s face and you approached him.

“He’s going to kill me.” Crosshair said to you quietly.

So, tell him he was right that Hemlock was after me too, that outta smooth things over.

“It’s not funny.” Crosshair snapped. He didn’t want to lose you both either. Not when he knew how important you both were to Hunter, to this squad… to this family. He’d finally made ground with you, you were one of them, you always had been, and he’d welcomed that feeling again. And Omega, well, Omega had seen and been through it all with him already, he owed her much more than a half-baked rescue plan.

Yeah sorry, it’s a bad habit. You went serious again and shook your head. “He’s not going to do that, Crosshair. Six months ago, maybe he would’ve, but not now. He’s not going to lose the progress he’s built with you either, not anymore. He’ll understand.” You glanced back to Omega who was standing by the door and regret stabbed your heart over the fact that this was to be her fate too, but you also knew that she wouldn’t have it any other way. “We’re very stubborn and determined individuals.” You said fondly before you looked back at him and placed a reassuring hand on his upper arm. “Just don’t miss.” You said with a light but resigned smile that didn’t quite reach your eyes.

With that, you and Omega exited the hut.

--

You caught Omega’s shoulder just before you rounded the corner to make yourselves known. You crouched down to her eye-level. “Omega… you know if there was any other option that I could think of that would get us- particularly you- out of this, I would do it in a heartbeat.”

Omega nodded. “I know, but it’s what we have to do.” She said bravely.

Your heart broke a little bit more right then and there- this was something no kid should ever have to do, “You had to grow up far too fast.” You murmured, both with sadness and a hint of pride in your voice as you gave her a loving hug before the two of you stepped out of your hiding spot.

--

“Stop.”

CX-2 signalled the troopers with the flamethrowers to disengage as he heard the voice of a woman.

“We surrender.” Omega said as all eyes, both Imperial and Pabu civilians turned in your direction.

“Stay alert. I neutralised the other two clones with them, but not the third.” CX-2 advised as he approached you two.

“Take us and leave the island alone.” You said as you held your wrists out.

“The people here are innocent.” Omega did the same thing as you.

CX-2 first put the cuffs on the young girl, “Then you never should have come here in the first place.”

“I’m assuming these are the special cuffs made just for me?” You said dully as the operative attached a second pair to your wrists, and you noticed the slightly different design of them compared to Omega’s.

“Why don’t you try them and find out?”

The harsh modulated voice sent a cold shiver of fear down your spine, but you covered it up. “Nah, you seem like someone who is on top of things, so I’ll take your word for it.” You were determined to not flinch under the unwavering glare of his helmet.

“Scan them for tracking devices.” CX-2 ordered as he confiscated your knife and Jedi weapon.

As expected, the comm devices were picked up immediately.

“Give them to me.” CX-2 demanded.

You and Omega reluctantly handed them over before you were both shoved and made to walk between the squadron of troopers as they got ready to transport you off the planet.

--

Crosshair had watched the surrender take place and had been stealthily tracking and making his way to a vantage point where he could tag the ship that you were to be taken away on.

--

Hunter staggered to shore and collapsed to his hands and knees.

He felt the water seeping through the gaps in his armour, weighing him down, and it was choking him beneath his helmet.

He removed it and took a few recovering breaths before he became alert to the sound of rustling just ahead of him. He instantly got to his feet and guardedly drew his blaster as he waited for the threat to show.

But he was able to relax his stance as Batcher came into view and ran over to him with a happy bark. He bent down and rubbed her side with a slight grin before he glanced up at the Archium and the rest of the island, but he didn’t see as many ships anymore.

And the realisation at what was about to happen hit him harder than he had hit the water.

Hunter grabbed his helmet and started running back, Batcher close at his heels.

--

You swallowed thickly as you and Omega were marched to the docks and forced to walk past the wreckage of both the sea skiffs and the Marauder.

CX-2 tapped the band on his arm and his ship came flying to meet the three of you.

You and Omega paused before boarding but an insistent jab of the butt of the operative’s rifle prompted you both to step up.

--

Crosshair got into position and readied himself to take the shot when the flashlight hit him.

“Over there!”

He fired back at the small squad of troopers that had found him and dealt with them as quickly as he could, but the interruption had moved him out of the prime position.

He had to run for it.

His gait was rushed.

His aim unsteady.

But there was no more time.

The ship’s engines were powering up.

He had no choice but to fire.

The ship took off.

His tracker missed.

And he could only look on in complete and utter dismay and horror as the ship flew out of view.

--

“Targets acquired. Returning to base.” CX-2 transmitted before he put the ship into hyperspace.

You and Omega sat side by side on the metal floor.

Omega took off her hat and leaned against your shoulder. “We’ll have each other there.” She murmured, doing her best to keep her voice composed.

“Yeah, we’ll be okay.” You whispered back.

Next Chapter>

Tagging: @noeasyisnoisy, @arctrooper69, @dominoeffectsworld, @andreaaxy, @notgonnaedit, @nightmonkeysstuff , @jellybeanstacey0519 @callsign-denmark @allthingsimagines, @superbookishhufflepuff

[stormy-river]

I love the humanity hotline stuff! It similar to a tiktok series called Orion's belt insurance which is about the insurance claims that come from humans actions. You may find some inspiration there. Also an idea for one:

I have a Human with a broken forelimb and while I was surprised to learn that they can in fact repair bones, and that this is not a permanent debilitation but the fact remains they insist on working normally... they refuse to remain in the medbay. Don't they need to use healing comas and be protected? Will my human remain broken?

Transcripts from the Humanity Hotline 8

A couple people have mentioned Orion’s Belt Insurance, and they’ve recently been cross-posted to YouTube, so I’ve finally been able to watch them (I refuse to get TikTok on principle). They are fantastic!

-----

Operator: “Hi, my name is Mindy. How may I help you today?”

Caller: “I have a Human with a broken forelimb, and while I was surprised to learn that they can, in fact, repair bones, and that this is not a permanent debilitation, the fact remains they insist on working normally... they refuse to remain in the medbay. Don't they need to use healing comas and be protected? Will my human remain broken?”

O: “Alright, this is not unusual for humans. To clarify, you mentioned a broken forelimb. Has the injured limb been set and immobilized?”

C: “According to the report I received, our medical staff performed a ‘closed fracture reduction’ and immobilized the limb with a ‘plaster cast’. Following the procedure, the human disappeared from medbay when, quote, ‘I turned away for two seconds,’ end quote, and was later found at their usual workspace.”

O: “Okay, if only one limb was affected and has been properly set and immobilized, it sounds like their injury is not serious enough to warrant bedrest or stasis-related healing procedures.”

C: “So they will still heal? But wouldn’t they heal faster in a coma?”

O: “Actually, moderate exercise can help speed up the healing process by maintaining better blood circulation and nutrient flow throughout the body. Too little physical activity can cause muscles to atrophy, resulting in loss of strength and/or movement.”

C: “Humans need to exercise to heal? Then, should they stay in the gym for the duration of their recovery?”

O: “No, while some exercise is good, humans need to balance it with rest. Additionally, since exercising produces sweat, working out too hard too quickly can negatively impact the cast. Their usual gym routines will also need to be adjusted to focus on exercises that won’t use or risk their broken limb before it’s healed enough.”

C: “So they shouldn’t move too much, but also shouldn’t rest too much. But how much, exactly, should they be doing?”

O: “There isn’t one correct answer to that, as it depends on many factors. I can put you in contact with a specialist to help determine your human’s ideal diet, workload, and exercise routines during their recovery.”

C: “Why must humans be so complicated? Thank you for your help, Mindy. I’ll send this information to the medical staff.”

O: “You are very welcome. Is there anything else I can help you with today?”

C: “Not at the moment, but I’m sure there will be as soon as I end the transmission.”

O: “Alright, best of luck, and I’ll be happy to help again in the future!”

End Transmission

[bless-my-demons]

Redamancy: Chapter Twenty-Eight

Series Summary: What happens when your soulmate is a vampire that struggles to maintain a diet of trying not to kill you? Common sense says run for the hills, nothing is worth your life - but my heart is whispering why not, what’s there to lose?

Warnings: Just fluff, heart-wrenching fluff

Notes: Okay, so. Last Sunday in my most graceful hour, I dislocated and subsequently fractured my thumb🙂 I also hated what I originally wrote and spent all week re-writing and re-writing this scene. I hope this isn’t trash and you guys like it, I’m so sorry for the delay on this one🥲

Word Count: 1614

Series Masterlist

• April 1st, 2006 • Home •

Reader

Ten o’clock on the dot, as promised, a knock on the front door draws me from my reverie. I’d spent the last 30 minutes after getting ready, lost in my head on the couch. Surely today’s talk with Jasper won’t end badly, god I hope not.

Swinging the door open, my eyes snap to his and a smile takes over my face on instinct. “Hey.”

“Good morning, darlin’.” The way his accent wraps around that familiar term of endearment will always make me weak in the knees.

He almost completely blocks my view but bright yellow behind him just barely snags my vision-is that?

“Did you-?”

“Borrow my sister’s apology gift? Yes, it’s a little bit too wet for a bike ride, sweetheart.” Turning to look at Alice’s car, he misses the blush heating my cheeks at the memory of the last time I was on his motorcycle, holding him close.

“Fair enough.” I turn to snag my coat from the hook near the door before closing and locking it.

His outstretched hand helps be down the front stairs before leading me to the passenger side of the beautiful Porsche. Beautiful is an understatement for this piece of machinery, I hate to even ruin the floor mats with my wet shoes.

“Alice chose her gift wisely, Edward did good.” Jasper chuckles slightly at my comment as I lower myself into the seat and he shuts the door gently, cocooning me in silence momentarily until his door opens.

“What she did for him - to save him, this was the least he could do.” Watching him start the car, I realize it’s a manual transmission.

He smoothly shifts it into reverse to exit my driveway before shifting again to leave the neighborhood. My brain stutters a little as I watch him maneuver the car, god - is everything this man does going to be ridiculously attractive?

“Where are we going?” I manage to drag my gaze from his hand and I’m caught, he smirks like he fucking knows.

“Since everyone is home, we’re going somewhere with privacy.” A shiver trickles over my skin quickly even though I’m wearing a coat, somewhere with privacy.

Excitement begins to bubble up in my chest and I opt to watch the trees as the pass by quickly outside my window, trying and probably failing to hide my own smirk.

Jasper

Easing the car to a stop, I watch as the realization of where we are dawns on her.

“Our spot!” A breathtaking smile overtakes her face as she turns to me quickly and I’m stunned, it’s like I’m staring at an angel incarnate, gorgeous.

I chuckle and exit the vehicle, excitement and pure joy flow from her unmitigated and I smile to myself, letting her emotion wash over me like waves gently lapping at the shore.

I barely graze the door handle with my fingers before her impatience at my lack of speed flings the door open. The moment I met her quickly flashing through my mind before I catch the door, stopping it from snapping back closed in her face. “Darlin’-” I tease her, but I’m not the object of her focus.

“This view really is unfair.” Her voice is gentle as she brushes past me and closes in on the railing at the edge, protectiveness flaring in my chest at her proximity to danger.

Sporadic, gloomy clouds dot the ridge line, but the scenery is bathed in a wetness from the rain that highlights the deep tones of the forest. The air is crisp and humid, clean but also heavy with the scent of drenched wood.

“It is.” But I’m not talking about what’s beyond, I’m looking at her.

She turns at my comment and realizes my words since my eyes never leave hers, a warm blush floods her face and I quickly remove the distance between us, my finger under her chin to stop her from hiding bashfully.

“No hiding from me, not this beautiful face.” I whisper as my eyes dance along the planes and contours of her. Her joy increases tenfold and I swear it gives me a new life, she gives me new life.

I kiss her quickly even though it goes against every fiber of my being not to take my time with her mouth, but we’re here for a purpose. For a conversation long overdue.

Jasper

Taking a deep breath and a step backwards to keep my head on straight, I dig down to my very core - somewhere no one else has been, and begin.

“To know me is to hate me - to hate me like I hate myself. I hate what I am at a cellular level. I can’t be a normal guy in love with a normal girl. I can’t allow myself to be caught up in you, your scent, your touch. I have to keep myself in check, I can’t let my thoughts or feelings run away from myself with you near. I can’t seduce you in ways I wish I could without the fear of hurting you.” A deep breath in and out, my throat is raw for the first time in a very long time, like the words bubbling up are burning. “And because I hate what I am, I hate who I am. I’m a monster that killed without complaint or a second thought for so long. It withered away at my soul, at my very core. It changed me entirely, I can’t rewind and get that version of myself back.” I swallow hard. My fingers run furrows through my hair, my skin is fucking crawling. “So how am I supposed to let you love someone like myself? How do I tether an angel like you, to a demon like me? How do I ask you to compromise yourself to fit into my world? Because you have to bend to me, you have to keep my secrets and give up so much of a normal life just to be mine. How do I ask that of the person I hold in highest regard? In the chance you choose this life, choose to change - you’re giving up on moving forward, having children, grandchildren, growing old with someone you love, staying in the lives of your loved ones, the list goes on and on and on. You could potentially come to resent me and darlin’, I wouldn’t survive that.” I pause, letting the words ruminate.

I feel slightly human again, breathing like I’ve run for miles. And I have, I’ve been outrunning this horrible inner monologue for one-hundred and forty-three years. Alone.

Until now. Until her.

Reader

I-I’m stunned. He can’t possibly think all of these things about himself, not this absolute gentleman, this tender and kind man?

“To get to know me-to love me, is a death sentence. I’m a walking liability, I’m not safe. With everything I’ve done, I’m a monster.”

“You are no such thing-” he opens his mouth to interrupt, but I’m quick to stop him. Giving him an encouraging smile I ask, “Let me get this out?”

His eyes are desperate and hanging on for dear life waiting for what I have to say.

“To know you is to love you, Jasper. You are so many things, but a death sentence - a liability, isn’t any of them. Nobody is safe in this world and I’m certainly safest when I’m with you.” Happy tears prick at my eyes as I dredge all of these feelings up, words he should’ve heard a lifetime ago. “And above it all, you. Are. Not. A. Monster. In any shape or form, Jasper Hale. You had a master manipulator as a creator, and she twisted you until you couldn’t take it anymore - until you had to run away. Monsters don’t feel remorse, regret, or empathy. This right here - what you’re feeling when you look inwards, is proof enough that you are not this terrible horrible thing incapable of giving or receiving love.” I smile up at him, so relieved to get this off my chest, “And if the last six months is anything, it’s proof that I don’t want this life if you aren’t in it. It’s insanity to even suggest that I could love anyone else a fraction of the amount that I love you, even more so to insinuate I’d ever build a life with anyone other than you. So no, I don’t care about any of those things, not if I can’t have you.”

I can see the racing thoughts behind the storm in his eyes, the war my words have waged on the inner monologue he’s had for most of his life. I don’t expect to change his way of thinking instantly, but all I’m looking for is just a ripple, a slight shift in the tide, something to work with and build over time because I’m not fucking going anywhere.

This man deserves someone to fight for him and I was meant to dawn this armor.

Jasper

“You have to know that you have an out, you don’t have to do this.” She’s stepping forward to cup my face and the depth of her eyes has me in a trance.

“I’m already all in, I’ve been in since the moment I met you. Stop offering outs, no amount of harsh truths are going to scare me away. It’s me and you.” She says it with such conviction my breath stutters.

“Me and you?” Unreal, this anchor holding me to earth, this angel willing to brave this life with me.

“Always.” She confirms my fate - our fate, like a simple fact. Short and sweet, just like her

Next

Taglist Part 1:

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[askvectorprime]

Dearest Vector Prime,

What do you know of Cybertronian martial arts? How do they differ from one another? You must have encountered more than a few unique styles and practitioners in your travels.

Dear Jet Judoka,

Ever since the first construction crane robot used its crane boom to deliberately knock over another robot eons ago, martial arts have been an integral part of our history.

You might assume that the warmongering Decepticons were the first to codify these disciplines of pugilism—and indeed, the brutality of their attacks and strategies gave them the edge at the outbreak of war. But the Autobots, who had lived as engineers and laborers, were able to disguise their training: every step, every turn of a wheel, every act of physical labor could be a secret technique, practiced thousands of times per cycle, until they had mastered the perfect move with which to surprise their adversaries.

Under Autobot schools of thought, there are two basic elements of physical combat: “Piston” and “Gear” motion. “Piston” is a direct, linear force: delivered by punches, rocket-powered fists, or other inbuilt ballistics. By contrast, “Gear” is a deflecting, rotational force: swiveling at the waist, or rolling, to create a “transmission” of the opponent’s energy into advantageous movement. In time, this framing came to influence Decepticon disciplines, until both groups were using the same terminology.

As the conflict between Autobot and Decepticon continued, fuelled by an escalating arms race to develop esoteric weaponry and enhancements, some chose to eschew ranged combat and instead specialize in martial arts based around stealth and melee. After sneaking into the enemy’s midst, a single warrior trained in this way could quickly dismantle those unprepared soldiers who relied more on their armament and abilities. Being a direct reaction to the highly technological mindset of both factions, it’s perhaps unsurprising that martial arts came to be spoken of using increasingly spiritual terms. Those trained in Circuit-Su turned inwards towards the personal energy of the spark, which practitioners of Metallikato would learned to channel through their weapons, striving to embody the “Ultimate Warrior” of legend. Meanwhile, followers of Yoketron’s Eightfold Path formed an understanding of self based on eight specifications: SPR-INT-SPD-END-RNK-CRG-FRB-SKL, each a separate aspect of Primus.

Other disciplines were influenced by offworld cultures. Crystalocution was developed by medics and structural engineers, after they observed the way Rock Lords would target their opponent’s fracture lines in hand-to-hand combat, and adapted the technique to focus on joints or brittle crystalline components in Cybertronians. The loose assortment of non-lethal forms commonly termed Diffusion, popular amongst the Autobots, are descended from a pacifist fighting style practiced amongst the Circle of Light.

Although these styles have been broadly recognised and adopted by countless fighters, it mustn’t be understated how deeply individualistic the martial arts can be: even within a single style, no two fighters are alike. An exceptional master may try to pass down their techniques, but the unique talent, ability, and perseverance of each student will inevitably transform these teachings into something new. Take, for example, the Turtler School.

Turtler lived as a hermit on an island, on Earth. Having felt undervalued by the Decepticons, he enjoyed the solitude this lifestyle afforded, living in peace from his Seacons. At some point in the distant future, a young simian Maximal arrived on a flying surfboard, wanting to learn martial arts in order to fight in the “Be(a)st Under The Heavens Tournament”. Turtler reluctantly took him on as a pupil, and over the course of several years, put him through a highly unorthodox training regimen. Some examples of the feats he had the Maximal perform included:

Climbing a mountain to catch a bird

Climbing a mountain again to catch a bird, but this time with Turtler strapped to his back in alt mode

Outrunning and outswimming Cybershark in a race

Painting Turtler's home (this one in particular was very unpopular with his student)

Eventually, the young Maximal proved his purity of heart—which wasn’t actually something Turtler had cared about in the least, as he really had just needed a few chores doing—and asked to learn the secret of Turtler’s ultimate technique, the King Poseidon Wave. Turtler, not quite understanding, assumed that the Maximal was talking about his laser cannon. He fired a shot to demonstrate—and to his surprise, the Maximal copied him, pressing two open palms together, and somehow firing a large energy blast! Before Turtler could even process what had happened, the Maximal hopped onto his surfboard and sailed away on a cloud, forever grateful for the good times he’d had with the old hermit over the years.

[vinciwolf]

Loyalty - Epilogue

(Recom)Na’vi!Miles Quaritch x (fem)Na’vi!Reader

Warnings: SLOW BURN, EVENTUAL NSFT, ENEMIES TO LOVERS, capture, romance, reader is female

Warnings for this chapter: epilogue, SMUT, fluff, gore, blood.

Notes: Sorry that this took forever. My car’s transmission stopped working and have had to put a lot of things on hold due to this. Shoutout to everyone for sticking with it despite some delays! Na’vi spoken is in [italics and brackets]; inner thoughts are in italics.

Tags: @deliwrites​ @ikranwings​ @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed​ @avatar-lover​ @justasimps-blog​ @mechformers​ @perseny​ @dakotali​ @whereireid​ @whxre-bxby​ @miscellaneousfantasies​ @myh3artttt​ @ducks118​ @janelongxox​ 

Sand treaded softly through your toes, heating the soles of your feet as the sun baked the seaside.

Miles’ sweaty hand held yours firmly as you walked beside him. You would disappear to lick your wounds and retreat from any lingering scouts the RDA would send looking for you or any remaining Recoms still alive. Your body ached hobbling along, but your heart ached worse with each step you took away from your family. You wanted to turn back, but when Miles had kissed you and held you in his arms in front of Jake after saving you, you knew you couldn’t stay. You were a traitor – clear as day mated with the enemy by the way he touched you. Now all you could do was get away from the sunken SeaDragon, long dragged under by the water, to hopefully figure something out.

Spider was safe, again causing your heart to lurch as you had to leave him behind for his sake. You and Miles didn’t want to drag him into more hellfire than what he had already been through.

Despite the throbbing in your limbs, head, and heart, you marched on, hand not letting go of the Recom at your side.

Your eye was still swollen from the aftermath of your scuffle with Ardmore, making it hard to see. Being stopped, the Colonel pulled his blade into his hand before cupping your face, getting your permission with a subtle look that you blinked slowly in consent. The sharp tip peeled your skin open slowly allowing the swollen blood to ease from your brow. Having vision in both your eyes felt good, only leaving behind a tiny gash.

Then you heard the flap of wings overhead. Part of you thought it was Cupcake until you noticed the rider as the Ikran landed. Lyle hopped from his mount. You saw how his forehead lined with remorse, hours old blood covering his skin, making him look drained and confused. His eyes looked to you before dodging quickly and finding the Colonel instead. Miles stepped up and grasped his friend’s forearm tightly as they shook hands. There was a relief in your mate’s shoulders. He was happy to see a survivor of all things after you explained to him what the General did to Prager and the rest.

Lyle opened his mouth to speak, “I…”

But you stopped him, shaking your head, “It’s ok.”

That was when you could see a defeated weight beginning to pull behind his stare.

“I can’t believe they’re all gone.”

Your eyes relaxed sadly at the devastation on the Corporal’s face.

“Just cogs in a machine…Ardmore didn’t care,” you said.

The three of you stood for a brief period of silence, the revelation of having nowhere to return to, no purpose going forward, settled in uncomfortably. There was no plan, only forward into the unknown.

“Let’s go,” Miles spoke.

“Where?” Lyle asked right when Cupcake swopped down onto the beach.

“We need to find a place to rest for now—” The Colonel reached for his mount “—and I need to tend to your wounds—” he tipped his head at you coming up behind him.

“Rest would be nice. I’m pretty sure I fractured a rib,” you groaned, lifting yourself to sit on his Ikran with him in front.

~

The fire crackling in the center of a shallow cave flickered with long shadows of the three bodies huddled down for the night, waves crashing in the distance. Ardmore beat the crap out of you once she got the upper hand, but the evidence of your fierce battle littered itself over your arms and legs, showing just how hard you fought until the end. You hissed as Miles dabbed your bruised and split knuckles with ointment, making you almost regret throwing fists with a Skel Suit…almost.

A twig snapped and had all three your heads turning to the sound, only to grasp the seriousness of the situation when you took in the sight of a small group of tattooed Metkayina, spears pointed in your direction. One was tall and elaborately decorated on the face, stalking forward cautiously examining the exhausted state of your tiny three-man army, one of which – you – were badly injured, purpled with bruises.

Then your eyes brightened when you saw Jake step forward.

Everything moved fast after that. You were given a small hut at the far end corner of the village, but you had no home, or at least that’s what your heart told you when every pair of eyes that looked your way had you shrinking, telling you to ‘go away’ – ‘you’re not welcome here.’

After discussing it with your mate and Lyle, you would stay in the village only for a few days to heal, the Tsahik reluctantly looking at your wounds. She invited herself into your temporary arrangement long enough to tend to what was important then left without speaking a single word.

What made you feel even worse was that Jake hadn’t spoken to you, assuming it was because of Miles. The brim of your eyes would burn when you allowed irrational thoughts to get the best of you, making you think that you had been outcasted by your friend because you had mated with his ‘enemy’ – or at least his version of what Miles used to be even though he wasn’t that man anymore.

You felt like a stranger, barely remembering your old life, trying desperately to construct a new one.

But then there was a shift.

Lo’ak poked around to see how you were.

Then one early morning while you were passing through the village, eyes at your feet hurriedly moving to get back to your tent as to not draw attention, you were pulled by the elbow by Neytiri into her lodgings.

“Sit,” she said.

“Why?” You were surprised.

“I will braid your hair.” Her hands pushed your shoulders down so you could sit in front of her.

“Your hair will get matted if I don’t do something because clearly you are not taking care of yourself.”

You gulped and remained still while your hair was brushed and peeled into strands. Then your body relaxed from her touch, followed by Tuk and Kiri taking a seat and starting their own strands.

Neytiri’s demeanor was firm, yet you could see how she yearned for your company. Tuk braided your hair into a beautiful weave, decorating the bottom with shells and other ocean jewelry.

You felt something blossom inside, throat bobbing as you swallowed a burning lump. How long had it been since you had to undo your braids in that godawful place Bridgehead, throwing away the beads while your heart cried for home.

A tear fell from your eye you didn’t bother blinking away. Then you were surrounded by Neytiri embracing your from behind with her arms tightly folding over your front, Tuk pulling herself into the hug while Kiri hummed a soft tune while she finished out her strand. You didn’t deserve this, torn mind slowly letting go of your fears as you wept. They hated you, didn’t they?

Here, in this secluded hut, this moment proved you wrong – so sweetly wrong.

Despite being hesitant towards your mate, your family wanted you home, even if that meant living with the Recoms. It wouldn’t come to your knowledge until later when you and Miles were going to leave for good that Jake had advocated to Tonowari for your permanent stay.

Maybe it was yearning for the old times, the peaceful times, or maybe it was the Tulkun Way, but there was an awkward period adjusting to everything new. Neytiri didn’t want to lose you again, and the Sully kids wanted their friend back, Tuk most of all.

Miles pulled his weight as did Lyle. They wanted to prove they could be useful.

Over time, the anxiety around the Recoms started to fade, allowing for trust to build in its place.

You even managed to tame a Skinwing after weeks of training yourself on how to ‘breathe’ underwater.

~

You sat near the fire beside Miles teaching him more words in Na’vi. Spider was off fishing, stick in hand poking at the sea life in the huge tidepools, with Neteyam and Lo’ak and two other Metkayina teenagers. Everything seemed to be falling into place, allowing your mind to be at ease for the very first time since what happened at the Old Shack. Norm and Max even homed an old avatar link by the village just for the kid.

Then that calm was unexpectedly interrupted by Lyle beaming himself in front of you and his boss, wearing nothing but a loin cloth that scarcely covered his junk. The knife that strapped over his chest glinted in the sun as his chest puffed up proudly.

“I’m really digging this new look!”

“Oh, my fucking GOD!” you groaned.

It was amusing watching the Corporal embrace the way of the People, even if that meant the image of his bare ass, shielded only by a string of fabric, would be engrained into your memory forever.

~

The flap to your tent remained closed, an understood hint to your friends and family only meaning one thing: Do Not Disturb.

Your hand rested on Miles’ bare chest, ear flat against the beating sound of his heart. The morning was young and the distant music of laughter from the village children sung a few yards away in another lodging.

The calloused hand at your back brushed up and down your spine in a rhythmic pattern while Miles nudged his nose into your hair. Everything was good.

Then you pushed yourself up to level your face with the Recom before leaning in for a kiss…that turned into two, then three, then his hot tongue was wrapping around yours with a growl reverberating into your mouth. You pulled away and straddled your mate, his large hands cupping the soft roundness of your rear. Your tail flicked behind you.

Miles’ eyes blew out when he studied your naked form on top of him, the way your breasts hung with a delicate weight, nipples ripe and hard for the taking. Your body screamed seduction in the way you knowingly slinked your hips inching closer to the tip of his cock.

Your mouth fell open in elation when the whole shaft slid into your folds, giving you a perfect stretch. The first roll of your hips had the Recom hissing and craning his neck. Then you were riding steadily along the length, leaning yourself to direct the head to hit just the right angle at the spongy spot that sent chills through your spine.

Miles’ fingers indented your thighs as he helped you bounce harder onto him, his lower half bucking into your thrusts making you whine from the added force. His hand then found your braid and laid it over your shoulder, grabbing his and connecting the tendrils. The feeling of you nearly had him releasing too soon, restraining himself with a loud moan feeling you squeeze around his shaft from binding queues together.

Fingers digging into the Recom’s chest, your cries echoed off the tent walls as your high was quickly approaching. The hands at your thighs held firmer in edging out every second of pleasure before the final drop. Miles was panting and grunting to every sweeping pass of your walls over his length. Both your bodies radiated together in this moment.

Then a heavy splash of cum painted your walls, your voice a pitched whimper.

You dropped yourself onto your mate as you huffed trying to gather yourself. Miles braced a hand at the backside of your head while he did the same, chest heaving as it rose and fell with big, quick breaths.

You wanted to stay here forever.

Being safely away from the pollution of Bridgehead, a danger that still lurked in the back of your mind, allowed you to embrace this new life without fear. With Miles, you didn’t have sleepless nights anymore, or painful bursts of withdrawal symptoms. In fact, you hadn’t craved those pills in a long time… and didn’t plan on returning to that old life.

The time would come to have to fight again. You couldn’t protect what you loved by running. No, you would make a stand with your family when the evil beyond the horizon eventually retaliated. But for now, that worry was pushed aside as you kissed Miles in the sanctuary of your hut, focusing on what was in front of you, what was ahead, for the first time in years.

This was a life rebirthed…restored.

And you dared the RDA to take it from you.

[mylifeisactuallyamess]

Sanctuary Masterlist

A/N: So this is a prequel, if you like, to The Keldabe Kiss. I fell in love with this AU so much I had to write more. There will be more chapters and they will be my Tech Tuesday contribution 🥰 big thank you to @acourtofsnakes for letting me sound off about this fic!

Prefer AO3? I got you.

Warnings: 18+ written from reader pov but the Batch give her a nickname eventually. Mentions of blood, torture, slavery, nightmares, panic attacks, abuse, death, canon violence, illness and incorrect medical terms (I’m no medic), angst, fluff, comfort, found family.

Playlist

Pairing: Tech x F!Reader (Stitch)

Chapter 1: Rescue

Chapter 2: Ord Mantell

Chapter 3: Negotiation

Chapter 4: Escape

Chapter 5: The Risk

Chapter 6: First Light

Chapter 7: Purrgil

Chapter 8: Medcentre

Chapter 9: Secrets

Chapter 10: Arrival

Chapter 11: Fractured

Chapter 12: Recovery

Chapter 13: Buir

Chapter 14: Maridun

Chapter 15: Butterflies

Chapter 16: Faster

Chapter 17: Revelations

Chapter 18: Kashyyyk

Chapter 19: Keldabe Kiss

Chapter 20: Transmission

Chapter 21: Choices

Chapter 22: Bounty

Chapter 23: Silence

This brings us to the end of the first half of the fic.

The second half will hopefully be just as long 🥹 if not longer.

Sanctuary part 2

[kybercrystals94]

The Hostage

(Part 8)

Read here on Ao3!

Master Post here!

Rated: T | Words: 4741 | Summary: Plan: Four Minus One

“Yes…yes, I’m here.”

Hunter can’t breathe, his lungs turning to stone in his chest. He isn’t sure if he’s actually awake, or if this is some sort of cruel, grief induced dream. But it’s her voice, the familiar lilt of her accent entwining the frantic words tumbling through the static of the channel. 

Her voice speaks again, a desperate question, “Can you hear me?”

“Omega…” Hunter chokes out, an emotion too raw to identify in this moment fractures the precious name. He tries again, forcing a breath. “Omega, where are you?” 

“I’m alive, I’m safe,” Omega says gently, her tone comforting. “I can send you my coordinates.”

Hunter can’t seem to make his voice work again, reasonable questions and words suffocated in his utter disbelief. She’s alive…not dead…alive…alive…alive…

Echo pushes forward. “Can you send them now?” he asks, voice steady as a stone in a stream.

There is a brief pause, and Hunter’s heart aches with panic that the connection is lost. But Omega’s young voice returns, “We’re sending them now.”

The sound of an incoming message chirps beside him. Tech immediately begins transferring the sent coordinates to the navigation system, pulling up an ETA using Omega’s local time zone as reference. Hunter doesn’t like the time that calculates. 

“Who is with you?” Echo asks, keeping his focus on the call. Hunter realizes he hadn’t even processed that Omega said “we”. 

“A friend. He’s helping me.” Omega says, confident but evasive in her answer. 

It twists a sharp feeling of fear in Hunter’s gut; however, Wrecker seems undisturbed, leaning forward to crow, “We’re coming, Omega! You just sit tight!” 

“I will, Wrecker.” 

Hunter can hear the smile in her voice, see it in his memories. She’s alive. She’s waiting for them…and she’s alive. 

Tech poses the next question. “How will we locate you once we arrive?”

“I can’t go back to the spaceport…Syko is there,” Omega says, the name spoken with an uneasiness that makes Hunter’s blood burn cold under his skin. “He’s still looking for me. But I will get you a message. My friends said they would help me. I trust them.”

Hunter's voice revives, hoarse and thick. “Omega, you’re alright? You’re not injured?”

“I’m okay, Hunter. I promise…” Omega says, the words absorbing that gentle cadence all her own. She adds, regretfully, “I have to go. I’ll see you soon. My friend will find you.” 

“It will take us three rotations to arrive at your coordinates,” Tech relays the information quickly, but he adds more softly, “As you said, we will see you soon, Miss Omega.”

Omega doesn’t say anything else, the transmission ended, their connection to their resurrected sister severed with no hope of regaining it. The realization is enough to make Hunter’s knees feel weak. He stumbles back, barely managing to collapse into one of the cockpit seats instead of the floor. 

“That was really her,” Wrecker says, voice low, “Omega’s really alive!” 

“She obviously was not on board the destroyed vessel, not even in the general vicinity. This Syko she spoke of must have established the ruse in order to prevent us from attempting to locate Omega,” Tech says, moving to the pilot’s chair to begin preparations. “Unfortunately for him and exceptionally fortunate for us, Omega is far more resourceful than most would ever assume.” 

Wrecker laughs. “Yeah, she is!” 

While his two more animated brothers are distracted, Hunter leans forward, propping his elbows on his knees, and burying his face in his hands. Horrified guilt crashes over his floundering relief. If Omega hadn’t gotten away from this Syko, she would have been alive, wondering, and hoping for rescue while they mourned her death. 

While reason whispers reassurances, shame screams accusations. 

A hand falls on his shoulder, but Hunter doesn’t lift his head, unsure what his face might express in his vulnerability. He needs to gather up his resolve, rebuild his crumbled wall of composure. For now, he simply sits in destruction, focusing on his breathing. 

“We’re gonna get her, Hunter,” Echo says. “We’re getting our sister back.” 

Hunter nods. He doesn’t know how his brother has functioned seamlessly through the whiplash of realities. I’ve lost so many, Hunter. 

Dropping his hands, Hunter keeps his gaze on the floor. “I want to know everything we can about Syko,” he says, and his voice trembles with barely suppressed rage that froths up from the chaos of emotions inside him.

Echo’s tone matches the vehemence. “On it, Sarge.” 

They’re going to make Syko regret every decision he has ever made.  

<<>><<>><>>><<>><<>><<>>

Paa tries to ignore the girl at his side, shrouded in that ridiculous hood that Gawynn used to wear in the cold season. He has to admit that she’s a quick learner. The moment she picked up on his reluctance to converse, she shut up, content to be his little shadow as they navigate the city streets. 

It was too dangerous to bring Tiiona along for the call. Too dangerous for Tiiona, that is. He doesn’t want the woman caught up in any of this underground business. So he tells her as little as possible, refuses to come to her apartment anymore…even though he desperately misses the warmth of a familiar place that feels safe and reminiscence of happier times. Times before the Empire. Times before Gawynn left. 

“You’ll take care of Mother. Promise me.” 

He promised, but Tiiona makes it karking hard when she adopts every sorry stray she finds on the street. 

“Thank you for helping me find my brothers,” a small voice says. 

Paa looks down, brown eyes stare up. 

“I did it for Tiiona,” he mutters. “I owe her.” 

The girl – Omega – smiles. “She’s a good person.”

Paa only nods. 

Tiiona waits for them at their meeting place. As they approach, her guarded expression soothes and she smiles warmly, holding out her hand to Omega. The girl goes to her easily, takes her hand and Tiiona tucks the child under her arm, as she used to do with Gawynn and Paa when they were small. 

“Did it work? Did you contact your brothers?” Tiiona asks Omega. 

Omega nods. “Yes! They said they’ll be here in three days. Paa said that he’ll meet them at the port when they come.” 

Tiiona meets Paa’s eye, a gentle sparkle of pride that makes Paa stand a little taller under the glow of silent praise. “You see,” Tiiona says to Omega, “I told you my friend would help you.”

“You’ll have to describe them to me,” Paa tells Omega. “So I’ll know who to look for.” 

For the first time since Paa has known Omega, which, admittedly, isn’t long at all, the girl shows hesitation. She leans a little further into Tiiona’s side, first looking up at the woman, then her focus returning to Paa. “They’ll stand out. You won’t miss them…they’re…soldiers.” 

“Soldiers,” Paa echoes, frowning. He looks at Tiiona, wondering if she knew this; however, the muted look of surprise on her face is evident. 

Omega swallows. “They aren’t with the Empire, I promise. They’re…we’re…clones. We escaped.” 

“Deserters,” Paa grumbles, “Even better. Probably wanted.” 

“They’re careful,” Omega insists, desperately, pulling away from Tiiona’s protective hold and stepping toward him. “They won’t cause any trouble.” 

“It’s not only them I’m worried about,” Paa growls. “Helping you is putting us in danger. With whoever this Syko is and the Empire.”

Omega starts to say something, but Tiiona cuts her off, addressing Paa. “Omega didn’t ask for this life, Paa. Just like you didn’t ask for yours, all those years ago. Helping her is the right thing to do, no matter the risks.” 

Paa’s chest feels tight, emotion balling a fist in his throat. He tries to think of some sort of rebuttal. 

Promise me.

“No, you’re right,” Omega says to Paa, broken but understanding. “I have put you both in danger. I’m sorry…I…I didn’t have anyone else.” She turns to Tiiona, “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I wish there was some way I could repay you.” 

Tiiona shakes her head. “You’re not going anywhere, Omega. I intend to see this through. It isn’t safe out here, and as long as your brothers are away, you’re under my protection. I won’t have it any other way.” 

Paa takes a long breath around the beating lump in his throat. “And Tiiona is under mine, which means you are too.”

Omega blinks at them, hands clutched around the cloak’s tie under her chin. “You’ve already done so much,” she whispers. 

“Until you’re back with your brothers, we haven’t done enough,” Paa says. It’s decided. It is what Gawynn would have said, would’ve done. Just like her mother. 

Paa won’t let them down. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

The walk back to Tiiona’s apartment is quiet between the two of them, and Omega wonders if Tiiona is upset that she lied by omission. She and her brothers being clones is a rather big omission. 

Paa listened intently as Omega described everything she thought he might need to know to locate her brothers. She even described Syko to the best of her memory, knowing that he is likely still searching for her. If he was willing to fake her death and murder a fellow bounty hunter just to get to her…the price on her head must be substantial. The Kaminoans are desperate. 

“Desperate people are dangerous people,” Echo had told her once.

She didn’t doubt it. 

Her brothers might not be thrilled that Omega told all that she did to Tiiona and Paa; however, she is also desperate. She would never have been able to find her brothers without their help, and if they wanted to, they could have already returned her to Syko for a price. Omega likes to think she is a reasonable judge of character, and she trusts Tiiona, and Tiiona trusts Paa. Besides, Paa reminds her a little of her brothers, seemingly aloof, at first, but fiercely protective. She likes him, even if he doesn’t seem to like her. 

“Why doesn’t Paa come to your apartment?” Omega finally dares to ask. 

Tiiona, who guides Omega through the streets with a gentle hand on her shoulder, glances down at her distractedly. “Hmm?” 

Omega asks again, raising her voice only a little. “Why do we have to meet Paa in that alley? Why doesn’t he come to your apartment?” 

Tiiona's distracted expression becomes thoughtful, eyes lifting again to watch the streets around them as they walk. “He thinks he is protecting me.”

“He’s not?” 

“He worries who might follow him, who might try and use me to get to him,” Tiiona says. “So perhaps he is protecting me, but who is taking care of him? Being alone is not good for anyone.” 

Omega nods, understanding the pains of loneliness all too clearly. So many years on Kamino were spent alone, even when Nala Se was there. Nala Se cared for Omega in her own way, maybe even loved her; however, Kaminoans did not experience companionship in the same way the clones did, and Nala Se’s version of a nurturing relationship felt starved and empty compared to what Omega experienced with her brothers now. She hadn’t even realized how deprived she had been until her brothers. 

“Are your daughter and Paa friends?” Omega asks. 

Tiiona smiles, but it is a smile so sad that Omega regrets the question before it is even answered. “They were inseparable as children, attached at the hip, those two. I always thought…” her voice breaks and peters off to nothing. 

Omega doesn’t press, and Tiiona doesn’t continue.

They walk the rest of the way to the apartment in silence. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

“When can we expect delivery?” the Kaminoan representative asks. 

Syko pretends to check his data pad, flicking through meaningless tabs. “My ship took extensive damage. It is still undergoing repairs. I do not have a solid timeline.” 

“Find another ship then,” the rep says, their smooth voice riddled with impatience, even as their expression remains ever passive. “This is unacceptable.” 

“What is unacceptable is you sending me to coordinates that landed me in the middle of a firefight,” Syko lies. “I was nearly killed, not to mention your bounty.” 

There is a hiss of staticy air as the Kaminoan sighs on the other end of the transmission. “We will allow one more rotation for repairs. After that, your payment will be reduced.” 

“You cannot afford to make threats. I still have your precious cargo. Cut my pay, and I just might start  cutting fingers off your little clone. Fair’s fair, after all.” 

Syko is delighted when the remark seems to strike a chord in the kriffing long neck, even if the visible reaction is a mere blink of bulbous eyes. “That is unnecessary. However, we expect the girl to be delivered as soon as repairs are complete.”

“Of course,” Syko sneers with a sarcastic smile. “I would never keep a loyal client waiting if I can help it, I assure you.” 

He cuts the transmission with a slam of his fist. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

“Dropping out of hyperspace now,” Tech says out of habit more than necessity. His brothers are already in the cockpit, strapped in. Wrecker has been hounding him every couple minutes about their ETA, even though Tech has told him repeatedly that the incessant question won’t make them arrive any faster. 

Hunter has the goodwill to simply lean over and check the data for himself, doing it almost as often as Wrecker asks. 

Echo is the only one who has been remotely tolerable during the three day journey. 

However, Tech cannot find it in himself to be exasperated with his brothers. After all, if it were possible, he would speed up the clock with not even a nanosecond’s hesitation. Every moment they are not at their destination is another moment that the bounty hunter has an opportunity to seize their sister again. With no possible way to make contact with Omega, nor any clue as to who her mysterious messenger will be, their only intel will be what they have gleaned on Syko. 

A prolific bounty hunter, Syko is likely contracted to the Kaminoans as Bane and Fennec were. What Tech cannot figure out, no matter how many times he turns the facts over in his mind, is why Syko would bother sending them to find Kedess, make them wait an extended period of time, and then hand over the coordinates of a ruse ship to blow up to make it appear that Omega was killed. There are so many unnecessary steps involved between taking Omega initially and falsifying her death. 

Ultimately, he reassures himself when he becomes overwhelmed by the aimless idiocy, the mystery will be solved once Omega is safely in their custody. He is sure that she was attentive enough to piece together the method to Syko’s madness.

Tech has not given himself time to properly process the fact that Omega is alive versus the fact that she was – in their minds – very dead. However, there is a task before them, tangible steps to take, and problems to solve. The universe which was on end has begun to be righted. They can get Omega back. She is not lost to them forever. Not as she was before. 

The three days in hyperspace were long but not idle, and a plan is in place. 

As Tech docks the Marauder, ignoring Echo’s muttered demand to slow down, Hunter says, “Everyone remembers the plan?” 

A chorus of singular words of confirmation answer the question. 

Hunter is standing before the ship has even stabilized. “Let’s track ourselves a bounty hunter.” 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Paa slouches against the far wall of the spaceport, his factory shift having ended an hour ago. He already did a walk around, and didn’t see any ship that matched Omega’s description of what she called the Marauder. 

He does catch a glimpse of Syko, Omega’s kidnapper. It’s hard to miss him in his bright coat, the fool. If he thinks he’s gonna sneak up on anyone in that ridiculous thing, he’s got another thing coming. Not that Paa minds. Makes it easy to keep an eye on the freak. Kidnapping kids put Syko near the very top of Paa’s mental scumbag list. 

Skyo is making his way around the port, showing a holo image to anyone who will look at it. Paa has a feeling he knows exactly what the image is of. His suspicion is confirmed when Syko approaches him. The creep has a stricken look on his face, eyes wide and innocent. It takes every ounce of Paa’s self control not to roll his own eyes and sneer. 

An image of Omega glows from a puck in Syko’s hand. “Have you seen my daughter? I’ve been searching for her all over the city. I fear the worst.” The monster’s voice trembles, his eyes shining with the fake tears. 

Paa bites the inside of his cheek. Syko missed his calling in holo dramas. 

“I’ll keep an eye out,” Paa says, and he can’t stop himself from adding, “It must be hard, misplacing someone that important to you.” 

Syko’s expression flickers, confusion and maybe a hint of irritation. 

Eh. His acting could use some work. 

Both of them are distracted by an incoming ship. A modified Omicron-class attack shuttle, just as Omega described it. It is coming in far faster than it should be, receiving loud curses in several languages from bystanders. Syko’s little anxious father act evaporates like a puddle of water in a twin sun desert, a curse of his own breathed angrily. “That kriffing little brat,” he seethes. 

“What was that?” Paa asks. 

Syko looks at him, surprised, like he forgot Paa was there. But his face hardens, and he stalks away without answering. 

Paa returns to his stance against the wall. Syko knows that Omega called her brothers, and knows that her brothers are here. Given his cute little comment about the kriffing little brat, Paa doesn’t think for a second that the man plans on letting Omega leave without a fight. Somehow, he needs to warn the clones that the bounty hunter is here, is aware, is plotting. They’re soldiers, they can figure out the plan from there. Paa isn’t trained for any sort of confrontation, nor is he armed except for the small knife in his boot. But that blade only wards off cowardly muggers and petty thieves. 

A few minutes slip by before Paa sees three armored men. They aren’t wearing helmets, and their faces don’t look like the faces of the clones Paa saw in news holos from the war. They are not even the same sizes. Weren’t clones supposed to be identical? And there’s only three of them, Omega said she had four brothers. Maybe one stayed with the ship. 

From this distance, he can’t really see their facial features anyway, but one of them does have long hair, which Omega said one of her brothers had. So it probably is them, Paa’s just overthinking the whole clone thing. 

Paa is still trying to decide how to approach the clone trio when he notices Syko has reemerged from wherever he crawled away to. Whatever Paa does, he has to do it fast. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

This isn’t how Syko had wanted things to go; however, he can work this turn of events in his favor. After all, the rogue troopers are here for only one reason, and they’ll lead Syko straight to his bounty. He just needs to follow them until they retrieve his destructive, insufferable package, and then take them out. Much easier said than done; however, he’s getting desperate. It is only a matter of time before the Kaminoans demand to see evidence that he still has the kid in his possession. 

Syko returns to his ship and sheds his crimson coat, tossing it haphazardly, before snatching up his much more subdued brown coat. He stashes an extra blaster inside, along with a knife. He doesn’t have armor like these clones seem to wear like skin; however, he only needs to catch them by surprise. Again, much easier said than done. 

Taking a breath, Syko reminds himself that he is one of the top hunters in the guild for a reason. 

“C’mon,” he mutters to himself, “you’re not gonna let a few meat droids get the best of you.”

He pointedly ignores the irritating thought in the back of his mind that whispers, the little one did. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Hunter, Wrecker, and Tech step off the Marauder in most of their armor, sans helmets. As opposed to most situations, they want Syko to recognize them. Obviously, the bounty hunter did his own research on Clone Force 99. He will know them when he sees them. 

Just as they planned. 

Echo watches from the transparisteel window of the cockpit as his brothers make their way across the spaceport. Most eyes are on them, following their movements, mostly annoyed stares given Tech’s less than graceful landing; however, one figure stands out, a tall man wearing dull, gray attire. He stands upright when he sees the Batch moving. His head swivels, searching the port for a moment, before looking back at the Batch. 

Echo lifts his macrobinoculars, examining the man’s features. He’s not Syko, but he might be Omega’s contact. Echo only lets his gaze rest on the stranger a moment more before returning to his watch. They need to take care of the bounty hunter situation before they retrieve Omega. They are not risking her life again, not with someone as cunning and malicious as Syko nearby…and as long as Syko is breathing, he’s too close, no matter where he is in the galaxy. 

It isn’t until the Batch disappears from sight that Echo finds exactly who he’s looking for. If they hadn’t studied every blurry security holo they could get their hands on the past three rotations, Echo might have missed him. He’s pretty good. 

But the Batch is far better. 

Echo says into his comm, “You’ve got a shadow.” 

“Roger that,” Hunter replies. “You know what to do.”

“Already on it.” Echo moves to check on their other interested observer. The man is watching Syko move after the Batch. Either the bounty hunter has made a name for himself in the port, or this man knows who Syko is too. 

Either way, Echo’s gonna find out. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Paa has to remind himself several times that he’s doing this for Tiiona, for Gawynn. An awful combination of nerves and adrenaline make him feel like every part of him is shaking, but when he glances at his hands, they seem mostly steady. The blood roars in his ears, blocking out most of the sounds around him in the semi-crowded evening streets. He doesn’t know where the clones are even going, Omega told them that someone would meet them at the spaceport, not wherever the kark they were stalking off to. 

The clones are far ahead of him, he can only see them because the largest clone stands a shoulder and a head taller than anyone else around. Syko, between them, weaves in and out of view. 

A hand closes hard over Paa’s shoulder. “Don’t make a sound,” a voice hisses in his ear. 

Paa wasn’t planning on it, but he nods anyway, his hand in his coat pocket where the hilt of his short bladed knife is nestled in his palm. 

“Who sent you?” the voice asks. “Why were you following those men?”

The fourth clone. Paa releases the breath he’d been holding. “You’re one of the clone brothers,” he mutters to the hand still gripping his shoulder. 

The voice huffs. “So you are Omega’s contact.” 

“Yeah,” Paa says, shrugging off the clone’s hand. He turns around to face the man, and finds himself staring into the face of a droid. “You’re not a clone.” 

The droid reaches up and taps his head with a scomp attachment at the end of his right arm. “Disguise. Now, where’s Omega?” 

“Safe,” Paa says, “but your friends aren’t. The bounty hunter is following them. Where are they even going? Omega told you I’d find you at the spaceport.” 

“Let’s just say Syko is getting what’s coming,” the droid…clone…or whatever he is…says. 

“The others know that he’s following them?” Paa asks. 

“All part of the plan. Syko will be taken care of.”

<<>><>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

They know where they’re going, Tech having studied a recent map of the city and finding an area that is under sporadic construction and practically abandoned when funds for the project dried up. Tech speculates it is a location with a high crime rate, so the sound of a blaster bolt, if heard at all, will not be out of the ordinary. Nor will it be surprising if a body turns up. 

With Tech taking point on navigating them through the maze of streets, Hunter’s thoughts are able to wander from the task at hand. How many days did Omega roam these very streets, afraid and alone, before she found someone willing to help her make contact. Omega is resourceful, but she’s also a child, vulnerable and naive. They’ve been training her in their downtime and on jobs; however, she had her brothers to fall back on if the situation got tight. Right now, she didn’t even have a weapon to protect herself. 

He sees the feebly lit streets, dark shadows hoarded in the alleys, hiding places for any number of criminals who would eagerly take advantage of an unattended little girl. Everything is dirty, a thick layer of grime and pollution clinging to the buildings and streets. Foul smells waft from vents in the road. The vehicles are loud and sputtering, emitting nauseous fumes of their own. Hunter’s enhanced senses recoil against the exposure without his helmet to filter out the reek. Omega escaped to this…survived in this…

Hunter swallows. His heart feels sick. He let this happen. 

I’m alive, I’m safe…my friends said they would help me…I trust them…

Maker, he hopes that’s true. 

Resisting the urge to check in with Echo, Hunter realizes the streets have begun to clear out, fewer pedestrians crossing their path. It’s almost time to confront the demon that took their sister from them. 

“The dead end is the next left,” Tech says, voice quiet enough not to carry beyond the three of them. “There should be an access ladder on the right side of the alley.”

“Stick to the plan, lads,” Hunter says, fingers already twitching to reach for his blade. 

They turn left into the alley. 

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

When their prey makes it to the alley, he pauses at the corner, hesitating, before leaning around to look. To his evident surprise, it is empty, despite being closed in. There is only one entrance, one exit. 

Unless you look up. 

Syko suspects something and reaches into his coat, presumably for a blaster, as he steps around and into the closed space. He thinks to glance up a moment too late. 

Hunter drops first, disarming and shoving Syko up against the wall in one fluid motion. Before Syko can react, the sharp edge of a vibroblade presses against his neck. If he struggles, he will be slit. It is a simple deduction, and the man makes it in an instant, eyes going wide. 

Tech and Wrecker step up behind their brother, blasters drawn. 

“Where is she?” Hunter asks, a guttural sound that sounds more animalistic than human, raged fueled. 

Syko manages a small shake of his head, a twitch of movement. He knows there is no point of lying. Tech can see it in his eyes. “She escaped. I don’t know where she is. But you know that, she contacted you. She’s alive.” 

“But you took her from us, you made us think she was dead,” Hunter says, pressing the blade a little harder into soft, exposed skin. 

The man wheezes out a pathetic whine. “I–I didn’t take her,” he whispers, “That wasn’t me.” 

“Is that what Omega will tell us?” Tech asks, his blaster still carefully trained on Syko’s temple.

“It’s true, it’s true, please,” Skyo wails. “Please don’t kill me.” 

“But you did make us think she was dead,” Wrecker growls. “You made us believe our sister blew up on that ship.” 

Syko’s eyes slide to the left and he swallows. 

“Answer. Him,” Hunter orders, tone too even to be safe. 

Skyo begins to sob. “Yes, yes, I did. But it was only because I feared for my life.”

“You were correct to be afraid,” Tech says, and he pulls the trigger.

TBC

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[navcommrelay]

Wrath

/////Transmission Start///// CFRI OPSCOM N. LINDSBORG TO ALL OPERATION TOUCHDOWN SLDF AND ALLIED ELEMENTS: At 1526 hours local standard time, CFRI Angel Squadron performed an escort operation alongside a DropShip from @seafoxmathias delivering 'Mechs to in-field forces of @harwood-pmc-official. During this operation, COMSCAN detected a spike in ambient heat bearing southwest of the operational zone, and directed Angel Squadron on a pass-by course to check the area... Captain Molly Sanders was the wing lead of Angel Squadron. Had been for the better part of a decade, now- ever since Captain Raiken had that unfortunate engine failure. Captain Sanders was confident, assured, and in control- especially in the cockpit of her Sparrow, Angel-1.

Right now, though, she was none of those things.

The cockpit was alive with panic alarms- proximity warning for incoming Long Range Missiles, radar lock warnings, damage control warnings, and- most notably- the piercing whistle signifying her canopy had been breached by whatever the hell had taken potshots at Angel Squadron as they breached the horizon over the main road. Cursing wildly, she peered through the spiderwebbed ferroglass in front, trying desperately to assess whether her flight path was stable. The damage was impact- no molten airframe, no scorching heat filtering in through the damaged cockpit meant whatever had hit her wasn't an energy weapon. A world-shaking BOOM rocked the Sparrow in midair, sending the craft arcing through the sky away from the rest of the formation as Angel-6's bomb load detonated midair. The cloud of smoke and ash provided a reference point, and as she frantically righted the crippled aircraft, a blurry and fractured silhouette was visible below. Angel-4, unable to avoid both the debris from the bomber and the incoming autocannon fire, started coming apart piecemeal, blasts tearing great rents through the light armor of the fighter before it simply broke in two. A momentary flash of light, heat- not only visible but tactile even at this distance- lit the world like a thousand fireworks as an impossibly bright beam lanced up from below and simply erased Angel-2 and Angel-3. No explosion, no flame, just a streak of light and two puffs of smoke. Careening towards the ground, Molly frantically grabbed for the canopy breakaway lever, hauling with all her might, before the seals gave and the wind tore the structure from her aircraft. Blinking against afterimages, she banked, ejecting chaff, flares, and her reserve fuel tanks, desperate to outrun the incoming missiles. A last-minute ping from her craft's sensors sent a brief, surface-level analysis of the strange structures below that had turned her squad into a memory, before she joined them in oblivion. PAN PAN PAN EMERGENCY BROADCAST ANGEL-1 TAC ASSESSMENT: Manufacturer: Unknown Production Year: Unknown Model ID Beacon: JHA-000 Jericho Class: Superheavy 'Mech Type: Word of Blake Drone Hex-Mech Error: 'Mech size exceeds integer bounding parameters. Override. Mass: 250 Tons Chassis: Reinforced Structure Armor: Improved Ferro-Lamellor Engine: UNKNOWN Heat Sinks: UNKNOWN Speed: UNKNOWN Armament: 1x Experimental Extra-Light Naval Subcapital Laser 2x Gauss Rifle 2x Extended-Range LRM-20 6x LBX Autocannon-10 6x Ultra Autocannon-2 12x Micro Pulse Laser 6x Variable-Speed Medium Pulse Laser 6x Laser Anti-Missile System Improved C3 Computer Beagle Active Probe ARCHANGEL Advanced ECM Suite WARNING: Multiple units detected. WARNING: Accompanying elements detected. Error: Transmission offline. Get ready, everyone. /////END TRANSMISSION/////

[ghostthostt]

Hiiii hello hi please tell me everything about Foxtrot and also that I love him (and telling you how his design is amazing!!!) What role on teams does he usually fill? Favorite foods? If he could keep one enemy as a pet no consequence what would it be?

hi !! thank you so much <33

ill put it under the cut bc its gonna be a lot i think

Foxtrot, aka FOXTROT-152, was a combat medic before joining the company. he specializes in medical treatment, and knows how to treat wounds, small or great, on the fly .. thats how hes survived this long out on Titan

hes extremely cautious, but kind, prioritizing the crew over himself at all times. he will give his rations, his supplies, his care, everything to the crew before taking care of himself. he is extremely selfless... its both a positive trait and a flaw of his

his reason for being brought to the company was punishment. he made a mistake that costed the lives of many people, and because of it, he was sent to the company as punishment. he was given amnestics and forced to forget everything about himself and his past except for his issued ID, FOXTROT-152. he was told what his job was, what he was expected to do, and well. he had no choice but to do it. so he did

eventually, though, he started to catch on to what the company was and what they were doing. he grew paranoid, scared of what they would do if they found out he knew... he spent every day anxious and tense, afraid of every radio transmission, every message, every ship that passed them .. scared of everything. that it was the company finally coming for him.

and one day, they finally did. they came for him ... separated him from his crew, administered more amnestics, and forced him to do a solo mission. it was meant to kill him. and it almost did

the landing alone almost killed him ... his ship was sabotaged and the landing was... messy, to say the least. he survived, though with a heavily broken arm. his forearm was shattered and his wrist was fractured, rendering the arm useless... all he could do was set it and hope for the best. he didnt realize what had happened at first, he thought it was a mistake on his part, and he kept sending out distress signals.. hoping for a rescue

but help never came, and he was left stranded on Titan for a loooong time. he soon realized what had happened to him and he just wandered... he was hoping to die without having to actually kill himself. he was too afraid to .

along the way, he picked up a sort of parasitic fungus that slowly began infecting him .. i forgot to include it in the drawing (ill edit the post in a bit) but basically it kept him alive but it used his body for its own survival in the process too. he tried very hard to get rid of it but just. couldnt. so he was left to wander the endless snow of Titan while this fungus slowly ate at him .. and hes been wandering ever since.

hes not quite alive anymore ... hes more dead than alive, sort of like a zombie, but hes still Kiiiindda in there.. somewhere. yeah :^)

as for your questions...

the role he filled was definitely a medic. he had everything you could need and took care of the crew very well.. he was very skilled in running in and dragging people away from danger, too. hes stronger than he looks for his size

his favorite foods... i think hed like something sweet, like strawberry and nutella sandwiches. something indulgent but sweet and simple :^)

and he would LOVE the spore lizards and snare fleas. hed think they were very very cute. he would definitely try to pet a lizard (and get bit in the process)

if you have any more questions feel free to ask again <333

[buggie-hagen]

Books I've read in 2023:

On First Principles by Origen. Translated by John Behr.

Low Anthropology: The Unlikely Key to a Gracious View of Others (and Yourself) by David Zahl

Luther's Outlaw God, vol. 1: Hiddenness, Evil, and Predestination by Steven Paulson

Luther's Works, vol. 23: Sermons on the Gospel of St. John, Chapters 6-8

Boys and Oil: Growing Up Gay in a Fractured Land by Taylor Brorby

Theology is for Proclamation by Gerhard O. Forde

Luther's Outlaw God, vol. 2: Hidden in the Cross by Steven Paulson

The Annotated Luther, vol. 4: Pastoral Writings ed. by Mary Jane Haemig

Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman

Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and to Break Bad Ones by James Clear

Who is the Church?: An Ecclesiology for the Twenth-first Century by Cheryl M. Peterson

Messianic Exegesis: Christological Interpretation of the Old Testament in Early Christianity by Donald Juel

Luther's Outlaw God, vol. 3: Sacraments and God's Attack on the Promise by Steven Paulson

Ragged: Spiritual Disciplines for the Spiritually Exhausted by Gretchen Ronnevik

The Early Versions of the New Testament: their origin, transmission, and limitations by Bruce Metzger

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Confessing Jesus: The Heart of Being a Lutheran by Molly Lackey

Adamantius: Dialogue on the True Faith in God translated by Robert A. Pretty

The Annotated Luther, vol. 5: Christian Life in the World, edited by Hans Hillerbrand

The End is Music: A Companion to Robert W. Jenson's Theology by Chris E. W. Green

Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself by Melodie Beattie

The Church Unknown: Reflections of a Millenial Pastor by Seth Green

Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope by Esau McCaulley

A Guide to Pentecostal Movements for Lutherans by Sarah Hinlicky Wilson

Daily Grace: The Mockingbird Devotional, vol. 2

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Not listed are some books that I chose not to finish and some books that I have yet to finish.

[hugmekenobi]

S3: The Bad Batch (8)

Chapter Eight: Bad Territory

Gif by @rebekadjarin

Hunter x femaleJedi!reader

Series Summary: Ever since Eriadu, Clone Force 99 had been a fractured squad. Months have passed but you're finally back with the Batch but Omega is still out there and you won't stop until you find her again.

Chapter Summary: The group is divided, each side with a mission of their own to follow

Masterlist for S1 and S2

<Previous Chapter

Genre: Friends (idiots) to Lovers (we're in the lovers stage now)

Chapter Warnings: Canon-typical violence, swearing, angst, fluff, limited (y/n), Crosshair feeling left out, me making up how the Force can work/be used, more dancing around M-count things, and me making up a rough timeline

Word Count: 5.2K

Author's notes: Not gonna lie, I struggled a lot with this one for a variety of reasons but I hope people still like it! Thank you @burningfieldof-clover for your much needed and valued assistance during this!

Pabu

Omega sat on the steps of the Marauder anxiously tapping her boot as she stared at her commlink.

“You know staring at your comm won’t make Echo contact you any faster.” Crosshair told her as he approached.

Omega got to her feet with a sigh. “He and Rex lost most of their squad in that attack. All because the Empire was after me and (Y/N). I have to do something to help them.”

“You are. Follow (Y/N)’s example and keep staying away.” Crosshair said.

“Wow, I’ve never been used as a positive example before.”

Omega turned to see you and Hunter standing in the doorway of the Marauder.

“Crosshair’s right. We need to know more about why Hemlock’s after you and what his M-count experiments mean.” Hunter added. “Until then, you both have to lay low.” He said with a firm look at the two of you.

Hey, Omega is the priority here, not me.

“Don’t start with that.” Hunter chastised. “It’s a high chance that Hemlock being after Omega means he’s after you too, especially if M-counts are involved somehow.”

We don’t know that he’s after me specifically, I’ve always just had issues with any Imperial official. I’m more of a general Imperial threat. Me getting captured, I could wind up anywhere.

“That’s a very reassuring thought, thank you.” Hunter muttered sarcastically.

Besides, even when I handed myself in, I wasn’t sent to Tantiss so I might not even be on his radar since he seems to be looking for clones and not Jedi to test on. Omega is the one we know for sure that Hemlock is after.

“Hey! Incoming transmission. From Phee!” Wrecker came to tell the rest of you.

To be continued. You placed a chaste and pacifying kiss to his lips before you headed towards the cockpit.

“No, not to be continued, you’re laying low the same way Omega is!” Hunter called to your retreating figure before he too headed back in.

“They were arguing, and I didn’t hear a single word she said?” Crosshair as the two of you walked back inside.

“Hmm?” Omega stopped patting Batcher and then understood his question. “Oh that! You mean she hasn’t tried it with you yet?” Omega asked curiously. She’d honestly barely noticed the interaction; she was so used to moments like that now.

“Tried what?” Crosshair asked.

“It’s a Jedi communication thing.” Omega tried to explain but that was really all she could provide. “I don’t quite understand how it works but she does it with the rest of us. I’m sure if you asked her, she’d be able to do it to you too.”

“Right.” Crosshair said hesitantly, unsure as to what he could’ve done to make you think you couldn’t trust him with that. But he pushed that to the back of his mind for now before inquiring, “And Phee?”

“She’s a liberator of ancient wonders.” Omega said with an appropriate amount of showmanship.

Crosshair just stared at her unamused and not playing into the mystery she was trying to create.

“Pirate. She’s a pirate.” Omega admitted with a sigh.

How you lot had managed to make allies with a pirate was something he found himself wishing he’d been there to witness.

--

Wrecker put the transmission through.

“Hey Phee.” Omega said warmly.

“Hey kid.” Phee replied.

“What do you got for us?” Hunter asked.

“I’ve been asking around about this M-count thing, which hasn’t been easy, by the way. Tech’s brain was the data bank, not mine.”

The grief you were in constant battle with asked for another way in, but you let is wash over you as Phee continued to speak.

“But I came through. As always.”

“And what did you find out?” You asked.

“Word is, certain class one bounty hunters have been retrieving M-count target for the Empire.”

Again, you ruminated in your thoughts over this. Omega couldn’t have a high M-count, not in the way the Empire seemed to want, you’d know if she did. And it was all to do with clones, so it had to be something about their DNA specifically. “A high M-count signifies Force user potential. But that’s not got anything to do with you.” You added hastily as you saw Omega’s look of excitement. “So, why else would they need her if she has one?” You asked Phee.

“Don’t know. You’re better off asking a bounty hunter.” Phee replied.

“We have run into a few.” Hunter revealed.

“What about Fennec?” Omega suggested.

“Who?” Crosshair asked.

“Fennec Shand.” You said, your feelings about her made very clear by the distaste in your voice. “She was hired by Kaminoans to abduct Omega. Tried to pick me up along the way.”

“She might know something.” Omega said.

“She’s dangerous, but it might be our only option.” Hunter agreed and she definitely a better option compared to Cad Bane.

“I can probably track Fennec down for you.” Phee said. “But she’s not gonna hand over that information for free.”

“Naturally.” You and Crosshair said in the same wry tone.

But as he said that you, Hunter, and Omega noticed the way his hand began to tremor despite Crosshair’s efforts to stop and hide it.

“I gotta split. I’ll get back to you.” With that, Phee ended the transmission.

“Yeah, I don’t like it.” Wrecker said nervously to Hunter. “We can’t trust Fennec. Not around those two.”

“Agreed. You and I will go alone.”

“But-” Omega protested.

“Hold on-” You began to argue.

“This isn’t a debate.” Hunter said definitively. “Stay on Pabu and stay out of trouble. All of you.” He said to the three of you.

“Fine by me.” Crosshair drawled before he left the ship.

Hunter addressed the two of you once he’d gone, concern in his voice. “See if you can convince him to get his hand looked at. Ignoring it won’t make the problem go away.”

--

You walked back to the ship as you saw Hunter and Wrecker getting ready to depart.

“I already told you no.” Hunter said as you stood on the bottom of the door staircase.

“Hunter-”

“You and Fennec have a score to settle and I’m not going to tempt her with it. What we need to know is more important than that.”

“I know that but she’s dangerous and I don’t see how having someone else there to help would be such a bad idea.” You disputed.

Hunter went for another tact, “Did you hear Phee say the phrase ‘high M-count targets?’ ”

You ground out a sigh, “Yes.”

“And don’t you have one?”

“Yes, but I-”

“Did you hear that bounty hunters are being used to retrieve them?”

You shot him an exasperated look. “Yes.”

“Do you see where I’m going with this?”

You exhaled a defeated breath. “Yes.” You begrudgingly acknowledged.

“Good.” He came down a couple steps and placed both hands on your shoulders as he kissed your forehead. “We’ll be careful.”

“Yeah, you better.” You threatened but with a caring smile on your face. “I’ll see you soon.” You hopped off the stairs and watched the ship take off.

--

You rejoined Omega and Crosshair who were standing by the Wheeping Maya tree. “Sooo, what do we want to do today? Walk around, go for a boat ride, chill by the beach and talk about our feelings?” You broached casually. You couldn’t get away with making him sit down and push him into doing something about his hand- Omega had the better shot of using an approach like that. What you were doing fit the rhythm you and Crosshair had before everything in the galaxy went to shit.  

Crosshair ignored your suggestions. “You can help me train.” He said as he grabbed his rifle.

Omega glanced up at you to see if you wanted to say anything yet, but you only shook your head as you both followed him down to the beach cove.

--

“How’d you want to handle this?” Omega asked as Crosshair started prepping his scope.

I’ll open the door for you. Give us a few minutes.

--

“Target practice or hand-to-hand?” You asked as you reached him.

“Target.” Crosshair with a hard stare at you, warning you against any further unrelated conversation.

“I’m here to help as you requested.” You raised your hands in surrender, “I only ask because the most recent time you tried hand-to-hand; you got your ass handed to you.” You taunted as you made your way to your position and removing your lightsaber from your belt. “Now remember, the goal is to aim for me which finding the motivation for shouldn’t be too difficult.” Omega, when you hear the blaster fire stop, you’re up.

You weren’t facing him when you sensed the shot that was being aimed for the middle of your back. You ignited your lightsaber and blocked it on the half turn. “Hey, that was good!” You called back. “More like that and I might actually have to try!” You got into your stance and waited.

Crosshair heaved a sigh as he set himself again.

--

You disengaged your blade to signal that it was time to stop, and you lightly jogged over to where Crosshair was waiting. “Twenty shots, but only eleven I had to actually dodge or block… you really gotta sort that out, it’s not like you.”

Crosshair glared at you, “I forgot how annoying you were to train with.”

“Oh, I’m just the warmup.” You said with a knowing grin. “She’s the real challenge.” You nodded past his shoulder.

Crosshair followed your eyes, and he gulped as he saw Omega walking towards with gritty determination on her face. He already knew exactly how this was going to go.

--

Finding Fennec Shand hadn’t been very difficult, the hardest part now was getting her help without giving too much away.

“So, what kind of information can I help you with?” She asked, relaxing into the booth but she saw the wary look the two clones shared with each other. “See, the way this works is you tell me what intel or target you’re after, and I give you a price. So stop wasting my time.”

“We hear the Empire has a bounty out for M-count targets.” Hunter replied tentatively.

Fennec adjusted her posture. “Why do you wanna know about that? You trying to find your girl?” She looked at the helmeted clone who visibly tensed at her words. She sipped her drink. “She’s been quite the busy Jedi, nice price on her head too.”

“The why is our business.” Hunter said stiffly.

Fennec let the evasion slide and shrugged as she lounged back once more. “I haven’t done one of those jobs myself, but… I might know someone who has.”

“Can you put us in touch with them?” Hunter requested.

“Now that will definitely cost you.”

“How much?”

“More than you’ve got. But we might be able to work something out.” She took another gulp of her drink. “I’ve read your files from before.” She addressed the bigger clone, “You’re good with demolitions and ordnance, right?”

“Ha! ‘Good’? I’m the best.” Wrecker boasted proudly.

“And you’re the tracker.” Fennec said to the other one.

“What’s your point?” Hunter questioned warily.

“There’s a bounty I’ve been trying to bring in. Worth a lot. But he’s been hard to catch without a crew.”

“Oh, so you want us to work with you?” Wrecker sussed out.

“No. You’ll be working for me.” Fennec corrected. “You follow through, I’ll get you what you want to know.”

Hunter barely debated the situation in his head. Getting the information was all that mattered. “Deal.”

Fennec nodded and grabbed her stuff. “We’ll use my ship. And so we’re clear… I keep the payment on the bounty. All of it.”

--

Omega sat next to Crosshair whilst you crouched by Batcher’s side, absentmindedly petting the hound as AZ finished scanning Crosshair’s hand.

“How does your hand feel now?” AZ inquired.

“The same.” Crosshair grunted dejectedly as he massaged it with his good hand.

“Unfortunately, it may never heal 100%.”

“There’s nothing else you can do?” Omega appealed.

“I have exhausted all the medical treatment options. Perhaps the issue is not something physical.” AZ theorised.

“You think it’s in my head?” Crosshair hissed angrily.

“If you were to elaborate more on the experimentation you were subjected to, I could determine the cause.”

“Forget it.” Crosshair snapped as he shoved past the droid.

You jumped to your feet attempted to catch his arm, but he shrugged you off.

“Crosshair?” Omega called out to him as he left but he didn’t look back.

“If he won’t talk about it, I’m not sure how else we can help him.” You pondered anxiously.

“I have another idea.” Omega said. “But you need to be there too.”

--

“We’re working for her now? We don’t even trust her.” Wrecker whispered as he and Hunter stood in the back of Fennec’s ship. It wasn’t like Hunter to not think through the dangers of taking a job like this on.

“What choice do we have? We need that information. Just be ready for anything.” As soon as Hunter said that the door slid open, and Fennec appeared.

“We made a deal. I’m going to keep it as long as you hold up your end.” Fennec reminded the clones.

“Wanna tell us who it is we’re going after?” Hunter asked.

Fennec brought out the puck and activated the image. “Sylar Saris. ‘The Slayer od Ordo Eris’. One of the slipperiest marks around. Got a tip on his location.”

“Well, what did he do?” Wrecker asked.

“Hmm. Got greedy. Took out a couple top bosses for the Haxion Brood and escaped with a cache of credits. Powerful people want him found. The other hunters that went after him? Never came back.” She waited half a second before continuing, “Sylar knows the planet like the back of his claw. But eventually, everyone’s luck runs out.” Fennec turned off the puck as she finished the brief and retreated to the pilot seat.

--

You watched the line of fruit on the rock ahead as Crosshair raised his rifle, but his hand was still trembling, so his shot skimmed the top of the fruit he had been aiming for. You had thought a degree of normalcy was what he needed but now it was time for both you and Omega to push him- even a little bit. “That was close.” You said encouragingly.

“Close doesn’t count. It’s either a hit or miss.” Crosshair replied sharply.

“You’re still more capable than most.” Omega said with a soothing touch of his arm.

Crosshair only sighed and sat with his back against the rock. “That’s not good enough for a sniper.”

You and Omega both hopped up on the rock.

“Have you ever considered that AZ might be right?” You proposed slowly, your voice kind and gentle. You knew how hard accepting help with something like this could be and it couldn’t be rushed into.

“Whatever they did to you on Tantiss could’ve affected you more than you realise.” Omega backed up the suggestion in a similar tone.

“No. No, no. It’s not in my head.” Crosshair disagreed.

“Just because there’s nothing AZ can do, doesn’t mean your hand can’t get better.” Omega said as she placed a hand on his shoulder. “Maybe you’re the one who has to fix it.”

Crosshair considered it. “How?”

“I’m glad you asked.”

Crosshair glanced over at you to see a familiar scheming smile on your face but there was a kindness to your eyes that told him you weren’t messing around with this. “I’m not gonna like it, am I?”

You and Omega shared a smile, “You don’t like anything.” You two said in unison as you left the rock.

“True.” Crosshair conceded with a sigh as he got to his feet.

--

The light was all but gone and between the toxic swamp air, the mines in the river, and the gators that attacked them, it had already been a trying journey and things weren’t getting much better since Hunter couldn’t get a proper read on the current anymore.

“Well, tracker? Which direction?” Fennec asked as she slowly steered the hired boat.

“The currents are too calm to tell.” Hunter admitted reluctantly.

“Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you guys aren’t cut out for this job.” She said irritably.

“Oh. You think you could do better without us?” Wrecker challenged.

“I wouldn’t be doing any worse.”

“Well, (Y/N) got the best of you and even Omega managed to get away.”

“Apparently, they both got away from you too.” She watched as that clearly hit a mark with both of them. “So what happened? I know what your girl’s been up to, tracker, but what went down for her to get to that? And how’d you lose the kid?”

“What’s it to you?” Hunter deflected coldly as he pulled out his macro’s and searched ahead for any sign of Sylar’s safehouse.

“Just seems odd. You’re both willing to work for me, considering our past. That information must really be important to you.”

Hunter said nothing. He feared that anything he would say would give something more away.

“And just so you know, I didn’t lose Omega. I let her go when the bounty was called off.” Fennec informed them.

“By who?” Hunter asked, turning to look at her.

“The client. They thought Omega would be safer with you guys. Guess they were wrong about that.” She glanced between them both. “And your Jedi wasn’t worth the trouble since there wasn’t a set bounty on her at the time. Though, if I saw her again, with the price on her head that might change.” Fennec couldn’t help but goad. She scoffed as she saw the helmeted glare from the tracker.

“I guess you’ll work for anybody as long as you get paid.” Wrecker said with a hint of disgust.

“Good guys, bad guys. Their money is all the same.” Fennec said breezily.

“Well, money’s not everything.” Hunter said.

“That’s cause you don’t have any.”

Hunter couldn’t respond to that because there was nothing to argue against. He simply brought his binoculars back and scanned the water. “Someone came through here. Veer starboard up ahead.”

--

‘Slippery mark’ had been right. They’d been able to find his hideout but actually subduing Sylar had proven a far more difficult feat than anticipated.

In the end, it had taken a team effort from the three of them to knock out the insectoid and even then, it had taken four stun blasts to successfully managed it.

Wrecker released a breathless groan as he stepped over the target. “You were right to bring us along.”

“I’m always right. Grab him and let’s go.” Fennec instructed.

--

“If this is a Jedi technique, how is this going to help me?” Crosshair asked dubiously as he saw you and Omega sit cross-legged with your hands on your knees on a rock facing out to the sea, the orange sunset giving the water a warm purple hue.

“One, it’s not solely a Jedi technique because, as you can see, Omega does it.” You pointed out.

“But-”

“Two, I’m also out of practice so we can both learn together. Come and sit down.” You encouraged, patting the space between you and Omega.

Crosshair reluctantly mirrored both your positions. “So, this technique…”

“Mediation.” Omega reminded him. “It’ll help you heal. Not just your hand, but your mind too.”

“I doubt that.” Crosshair tried to follow the example of you two, but he couldn’t quiet his mind and his hand had started to shake again. He inhaled sharply as he felt Omega take a hold of it and turn it so that his palm was facing up.

You closed your own eyes and spoke calmly. “You need to breathe. Take slow, deep breaths and find your centre. Focus on yourself and what you’re feeling and accept it. Let it pass through you and don’t run away from it.” You guided him as you followed your own advice and found yourself becoming one with the living Force around you.

“And don’t compare yourself to her. It works slightly differently.” Omega told him.

Crosshair glanced at you from the corner of his eye to already see that you were completely at peace, and it looked like nothing could ever bring you out of it. “Where did you learn this? Did she teach you?” He asked Omega.

Omega kept her eyes shut as she replied, “No, she hadn’t done it until after I picked it up from my friend Gungi, and the other Wookies on Kashyyyk. But she helped me with it thereafter. I think she needed that moment again too.”

“You’ve been to Kashyyyk?”

“Uh huh.” Omega took another deep inhale and exhale. “You’ve missed a lot.”

“I know.” Crosshair realised.

“Now, close your eyes and focus.” Omega repeated.

Crosshair did as you both suggested and let go.

--

“Pleasure doing business with you.” Fennec said as the clone departed her ship.

“Hang on.” Hunter turned on his heels. “You promised us information.”

“I didn’t say I had it on me, but I’ll get it. Ater I deliver Sylar to my client.”

“That’s not what we agreed on.” Hunter growled.

“You can either fight me or trust me. Take your pick.”

Hunter shared a look with Wrecker but decided it wasn’t worth the risk.

“Good choice.” Fennec before she stepped into her ship and brought the ramp up.

Hunter and Wrecker could only watch her ship leave the station hangar. Having to trust the word of a bounty hunter was not the ideal situation they wanted to be or leave in.

--

Fennec put through the transmission and addressed the hologram.“I just finished a job with some clones. They were asking about the Empire’s M-count bounties. What can you tell me?” She digested the muffled chatter that came in response. “I’m sure you can find them easily enough. I’ll send you what I have.”

--

“(Y/N)? (Y/N), we’ve finished.” Omega shook your shoulder. “Come back.”

You jolted back to the current moment. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything is fine. Just wanted to tell you that Wrecker and Hunter are back.” Omega said as she stood back up. “How was it this time?” She asked you.

You exhaled deeply. “Better but I could still feel my focus drifting more than it used to.” Plus, no matter how often you trained in it, you had never gotten to see your master again and you were beginning to think it had been a one-time deal. If what you needed to talk to him again was to reach a certain level of emotional turmoil, you wouldn’t want to get to that place again. “How was it for you?”

“It was good.” She replied cheerily before she set off to meet up with Hunter and Wrecker, Batcher close at her heels.

“How’d it go?” You asked Crosshair as you got to your feet.

“Eh, I still don’t get it.” Crosshair grunted in reply.

You smiled understandingly at him. “It gets easier.”

“I know, I’ll keep trying.” He took a step in the direction Omega had gone but your voice stopped him.

“I’m not talking about the meditation.” You said softly as you grabbed his shoulder to turn him to face you. “I’m talking about dealing with whatever it was that happened to you.”

Crosshair cast his eyes to the ground. “I can’t tal-”

“Believe me, I understand how hard it can be to recount experiences like that, so I don’t expect you to, not any time soon. The second you wanted to; I would be there but that’s not what I’m saying right now.” You reassured him.

Crosshair regarded you carefully. “Then- then what are you saying?”

“I’m saying that whatever you’re feeling, whatever memories in your head that are so fresh it feels like they’ll haunt you forever, it’s okay to feel them. And, while they may never go away entirely, it does get easier.” You looked at him with warm sincerity. “Just don’t bury them because that’s when they’ll eat you alive.”

Crosshair’s eyes widened slightly at your words as he recognised the place you were coming from, and he was grateful for them.

“Or not dealing with them can lead to reckless and damaging decisions that get your face slapped on every Imperial noticeboard across the Outer Rim. Take your pick.” You joked to lighten the mood again.

Crosshair managed a smile at that.

You patted his shoulder. “I meant what I said though, it gets better. We’re all here for you.” You started to walk away to see Hunter and Wrecker to find out what information they got from Fennec.

“Omega mentioned a Jedi communication thing you do?” Crosshair said to your back.

“Yeah, I do it with all of them.” You called back over your shoulder.

“All?”

“Uh huh.” You said casually before you stopped in your tracks as you realised what he was getting at. You swivelled around again, “Oh! Yeah! I can do that to you whenever you want!”

“But you haven’t.” Crosshair countered as he walked over to you.

You shrugged. “You said you needed time to adjust, and I didn’t want to freak you out.” You replied simply. “I wasn’t conspiring to keep it from you, I just didn’t want to assume anything.”

“If you still don’t trust me, I-”

You rolled your eyes. “Would you shut up; I just said it was because I thought you needed more time. Do you want me to do it with you too?”

Crosshair shifted on his feet. He didn’t like the position he suddenly found himself in, it felt rather pathetic.

“It’s a simple yes or no, come on, we have places to be.”

“I’m sure Hunter can last ten minutes without your mouth attached to his.”

“Okay, see now you’re just pissing me off.” You tossed your hands in the air and went to turn away.

“Yes.” Crosshair grumbled. He’d already missed out on so much and he didn’t want this to be yet another thing.

“That wasn’t too hard, was it?” You drolled. “Give me your hands.”

“Why?” Crosshair asked suspiciously.

“Because I’m actually in love with you.” You jibed flatly as you shot him a look of exasperation.

Crosshair rolled his eyes at you. “Gross.”

“Sometimes it helps when it’s a first connection, especially when I haven’t been around someone for quite a while.”  You explained. You held yours out and waited expectantly.

Crosshair hesitantly complied- both hands steady this time- and watched you intriguingly.

“Fair warning, it can feel a bit weird.” You took a deep breath and closed your eyes. You reached into his Force signature, and it was what you expected. It was barbed and you could feel a resistance- a wall- to it. But there was also vulnerability, a longing for growth and acceptance, that wanted to let you in and that was what you appealed to. When you felt that the connection was there, you opened your eyes and looked at him. Now, can we go see your brothers please?

“Okay, that’s really fucking weird.” Crosshair said as you let go of his hands.

Hey, you asked. You grinned at him before the two of you officially set off to go meet the ship.

--

One week later

“Any word?” Omega asked as she and Crosshair stepped into the Marauder. They’d been mediating by the Maya tree and decided to come check in. The news that Fennec didn’t have any immediate information to offer had been disappointing and each day that went by without any communication only let that disappointment grow.

“Nothing.” Wrecker groused.

“Fennec never told us how long she’d take.” Hunter admitted before he noticed you weren’t with them. “Where’s-”

“Don’t know. We thought she was with you.” Crosshair said as he placed a toothpick in his mouth.

“You’ve not seen her all day?” Hunter double-checked. He’d seen you when you’d woken up but then you’d left, and he and Wrecker had been on the ship for most of the day.

“No, we haven’t. Batcher must be with her too.” Omega guessed since the hound hadn’t been with them and wasn’t anywhere on the ship.

Hunter mulled this over in his head. This isolation you were now putting yourself in since you’d heard the news about Fennec’s lack of information was beginning to become a real habit.

“Three seconds. That’s all it took for you to decide to go find her.” Crosshair teased, earning a snicker from Wrecker in the process.

“Shut up.” Hunter mumbled as he left the ship.

--

You had been aimlessly wandering the shoreline, occasionally chucking a stick Batcher had found for her to chase.

The Empire,

Omega,

M-count,

Jedi,

Clones,

The Empire,

Omega,

M-count,

Jedi,

Clones…

You ran that list over and over again in your head but couldn’t see the connection. The Jedi were dead and hated by the Empire- what could they need that M-count for? Omega wasn’t Force sensitive and neither were any other clones but that was Hemlock’s main test subject choice. So, what was it about an M-count in clone genetics that mattered so much? What were you overlooking? A demanding bark pulled you out your thoughts and you saw Batcher had dropped the stick at your feet and was waiting expectantly.

“Tell me, Batcher, what am I missing?” You crouched down and held the sides of her face in your palms and smiled at the hound. “Tell me, girl!” You laughed as she let out an affectionate whine and licked your cheek.

“You know, it might help to share your theories with someone who can actually talk back?”

“Uh oh, the tracker found me.” You said as you scratched her jaw before you glanced past her with an affectionate look to the clone walking towards you. “And how’d do you know she doesn’t?” You disputed light-heartedly as you stood up taller.

“You’re right, I don’t.” Hunter played into the joke as he reached you before he turned more serious. “What’s going on, sweetheart?”

“Nothing.” You said dismissively.

Hunter just stared at you with a knowing look on his face. “Don’t do that, don’t shut me out. You’re not keeping to yourself for no reason.”

You remembered your own advice to Crosshair and swallowed tightly. “It’s right in front of my face, Hunter. I should know why this M-count matters for Omega but it’s not clicking and it’s driving me insane!” You rubbed a hand across your tired face. “I don’t know what I’m not seeing.” You confessed as you hung your head with a defeated breath.

Hunter placed his hands on your upper arms and brought his eyes to your level. “If it were obvious, we’d know it already.” He said as he rubbed his thumbs comfortingly up and down your arms. “You don’t need to keep working through this alone.”

“I just feel so useless. I should be able to figure this out!” You said with a frustrated huff.

“I know, it’s hard to just wait it out, but Fennec will come through. Until then, we just have to be patient.” Hunter said as he put his arm around your waist as the two of you and Batcher headed back to rendezvous with the others. “Jedi are meant to be good at that, right?”

“Would it shock you to know that I struggled with that?” You remarked satirically as you mirrored his actions.

Hunter chuckled. “Not in the slightest.”

Next Chapter>

Tagging: @noeasyisnoisy, @arctrooper69, @notgonnaedit, @dominoeffectsworld, @andreaaxy, @nightmonkeysstuff @superbookishhufflepuff

[starqueensthings]

Colder Weather: Part 1.5

Summary: the next installment to Colder Weather. This was supposed to be lumped into Part II but it’s too long, and it deserves its own moment. Please ensure you read Part I first, and heed the warnings below before reading.

Rating: Teen 16+ (for suggestive content and continued angst)

Warnings: mentions of unexpected pregnancy, abandonment.

POV/WC: 2nd (Fem!Reader x Post Stassis Kix), 2360 words.

AN: Kix how fkn dare you, dude. Mad at you.

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | ao3

He simply had no right to devour you the way that he was; the initial, gentle grazes of his teeth atop the delicate skin of your neck quickly intensifying to a series of assertive nibbles that brought you just to the cusp of discomfort before the soft pucker of his lips stripped the shallow indentations of their sting.

He had even less of a right to render you so euphorically delirious, his calloused hands kneading you like putty as if those same palms hadn’t left you untouched and craving their caress for two and a half months. And how dare he undress you with those same dark, twinkling eyes that had last danced across your features crinkled with anguish and shadowed by the turmoil triggered by your choked plea for commitment? How dare he melt you with the same hot breath that fractured his voice as he refused to accede to your teary demand, his lungs offering nothing but a pitiful goodbye before, once again, disappearing into the night?

No… he had no right to stand there so upright and proudly, strong form keeping you lifted and pinned against the wall of the same hallway that had been audience to both the chorus of your pleasured moans, and the barely repressed sniffles triggered by his repeated abandonment.

Yet, here you were, blissfully ignorant to the budding protest of your inner thighs as the rigidity of his armoured belt saw them nearly bruising under the periodic, thoughtless thrusts knocking your tailbone heavily against the wall.

“You never answered the transmission I sent you last month.”

A surge of resentment sent your eyes rolling before you’d even finished uttering the words, though it wasn’t the disapproving reminder that had you cursing yourself, but the breathy way in which they’d left your parted lips; the sensation of his hands fervently working their way from your hips to the swells of your chest having entirely robbed you of the need to reprimand him for the manner in which he’d departed last time, and the intolerable silence he’d upheld since.

“You’re right,” he conceded, the admission of guilt muffled to near incoherence by the crevice of your neck; clearly uninterested in suspending the devourment of your skin, he offered little more than a few hurried, disjointed words between the ruts of his hips and the passionate, open-mouthed kisses leaving slick trails underneath your jaw. “I meant to… honest… but I didn’t… In my defense… Ithano got us trapped on Florrum for a while… and I didn’t have…”

Exactly what he “didn’t have” was rendered a mystery, the remainder of his barely comprehensible excuse seemingly banished by the fervent desire to crash his lips to yours again, filling the corners of your mouth with a sensual growl that had you intensifying the wreath of your arms around his neck.

But you knew these steps… you knew this choreography. It would be mere minutes until he kicked the bedroom door closed behind him and tossed you to the bed, and every soft moan that left your lips as you failed to abey this familiar dance was a breath wasted. There were things that needed voicing before the fragility of your resolve saw it usurped by the craving for his touch. There was a confession demanding to be spoken; one that you’d wearily recited aloud to your reflection until the sentiment no longer triggered your hands to tremble and your vision to blur behind a wall of tears.

“Kix,” you sighed, as his lips departed yours for the solace of your other shoulder; the feeble plea slipping past your lips continued to contradict the potent anxiety simmering in your veins, and smothered every inkling of exigence from your tone. “You… you should have answered. I have to tell y–”

“I know, Mesh’la,” he breathed back. “There’s no excuse. I’m sorry. Was it urgent?”

Yes.

Your lips pursed against the moan threatening to escape your lungs as another thoughtless yet sinful rut of his hips saw his codpiece jutting into the aching space between your legs. “Well… not exactly,” you conceded. “But it was important. It still is.”

You fractured the loop of your arms around his neck, instead guiding your hands to encircle each of the scuffed rerebraces concealing the thick swells of muscle below them, but your shift in posture went unnoticed by the dark eyes still blown with lust, and he eagerly chased your depleting touch by hoisting you more securely around his waist.

“Can’t it wait until we’re done?” he mumbled against your lips.

Yes.

“No.”

In a move of unprecedented willpower, a subtle shove from each of your hands saw his lips detach from yours, his heavy brow contracting in confusion as his eyes fell upon the unease rapidly banishing the desire from your features. “I– I’ve waited long enough.”

Amid the sudden absence of a surging, primal lust, every inch of your skin began to prickle with nerves; the fine hairs atop your arms and across the back of your neck standing alert and ready for whatever precarious situation your mind deemed imminent. Yet his eyes softened to something near an adoring gaze as they danced across your shadowed face, a coy smirk emerging on the corners of his lips as he redirected his hands from the tender swells of your chest to the undersides of the thighs still locked around his hips.

“Alright, lay it on me,” he spoke, only partially able to repress the hoarse chuckle that, in any other circumstance, would have sent your heart cartwheeling around your chest.

A heavy swallow did nothing to eradicate the tension in your throat. Despite having recited the words to your reflection with every possible inflection, with every variation of diction, they simply refused to leave you under the oppression of his expectant gaze, and attempting to force them from a tongue too apprehensive to curl around them had you nearly suffocating. Eager to avoid witnessing those mildly swollen lips curl even further into the unintentionally patronizing smirk, your eyes darted away from his, instead following the distracted movements of your fingertips as they traced the many abstract blemishes carelessly embossed into his chest plate.

“What is it, Cyar’ika?” he probed quietly, trailing a softly curled finger down your flushed cheek.

Just tell him, damnit.

A deep, chest-expanding inhale. An uncomfortable twist in your gut. A surge of fear that nearly saw your eyes begin to blur. A slow and steady exhale through pursed lips.

“I’m pregnant.”

The sharp pain of a hangnail ripped from your ring finger went entirely unnoticed, and the assertive pinch that you instantly applied to prevent the tiny droplet of blood from escaping, was a motion as thoughtless as the act of detaching the broken skin. Your thighs had ceased their protest; his hips had stalled their pulses; there was nothing but a dense, smothering silence hanging between your intertwined forms; the only discernible motion in the dim hallway was the remnants of impassioned breathing still heaving his chest.

“You’re– you’re pregnant?”

Lust’s tight clutches had yet to free his voice of the typically enamoring gruffness, yet it lacked all of the intensity that regularly weakened your knees, the words weakly escaping his now slack lips as if it were a phrase too inappropriate to speak in anything above a whisper.

Innumerous rehearsals of your confession had seemingly failed to callous you against the disbelief— no, the disappointment swaddling his words, and despite having vowed to maintain your composure in the face of any potential reaction, watching his eyes unfocus and widen with horror quickly threatened to dismantle your resolve.

“Yes.” It only wavered slightly as it escaped your mouth, and you met his eyes with resilient intention. “I— I sent you that message when I found out. I’ve been waiting to hear from you, but…”

Its ghost stole the rest of the thought from your mind; the monster on his shoulders suddenly appeared in every rapidly deepening crease across his forehead, in every lagging blink over his glassy eyes, every shallow breath that spilled from his parted lips, and the fear that you’d spent weeks desperately praying would not consume him suddenly enveloped him so entirely that his hands simply fell away from you.

You hurried to unhook your legs from his waist, staggering slightly as you found your footing before earnestly reaching upwards to weave your fingers into his beard. “Don’t… don’t panic,” you pleaded, forcing the lump in your throat back down to slumber in your gut. You would not permit yourself the reprieve of emotion in this moment, as the days of tearing up over the pain of lost love and unrequited commitment needed to be in the past; there was a strength demanded of you now that tears would simply rob you of. “It’s still early,” you breathed, trying to recapture his gaze by tugging gently on his jaw. “The baby isn’t due until the last week of the year. There’s… there’s lots of time to– to figure things out.”

But his eyes were only attuned to you for the span of a shallow breath before they disappeared behind lids clamping tightly closed, his feet instantly mirroring the fervent need to disassociate from the situation by taking several, abandoning steps away from you.

“Pregnant…” he mumbled, his hands forming a defensive barrier in front of his chest, a palpable disconnect wedging it way between your bodies with every micro shake of the head, every small step that he took backward.

“Kix, hun,” you begged, reaching for his hand in a desperate attempt to keep his mind from spiraling and triggering the departure that you knew was only one wrong word away. “It’ll be okay, I promise. There’s more than enough space in this house for all three of us, and whatever we can’t buy, we’ll make… or we’ll do without. And– and Ithano will understand! You tell me all the time that he’s always harping on you to settle down— wait, where are you going?!”

“I… I have to go…”

He tugged his hand from yours, the motion itself arguably less aggressive than the impassioned pressure that his belt had impressed upon your thighs only minutes earlier, yet it erupted a pain so deep in your chest that even attempting to fill your lungs with trembling, shallow breaths was a feat near impossible.

“You’re going to leave?” you choked at his retreating figure, your feet taking you thoughtlessly down the hallway after him. “You’re— you’re not even going to say anything?”

“I… I don’t know what to say…” he mumbled, snatching his helmet from its perch on the newel post as he reached the half dozen stairs leading downward to the front door.

“Well… how about anything, Kix,” you scoffed, but he was either deaf or dumb to your despair; either unwilling or unable to send you even a fleeting glance before descending down the stairs and reaching for the door handle that would permit his escape.

And just how your heart could beat so savagely against your chest, while simultaneously laying fragmented in the darkest depths of your gut was a mystery to which you could spare no attention right now… Kix was mere seconds from leaving; he was only inches from the darkness of the night that would swallow him entirely and shelter him from the pressing obligation that he owed you.

Say something. Say something.

Were you requesting it of him, or of yourself? Did the strength to beg that he stay still reside amongst the shattered remains of your heart? Could you swallow what was left of your pride one last time for the sake of the child growing innocently in the place where the man you loved had last left remnants of himself? Was there anything you could say to stop his exodus from ultimately fracturing the pitiful optimism that saw you repeatedly leaping into his open arms?

“For Maker’s sake, Kix,” you hissed at him, crossing your arms over your chest. “I’m just as scared as you are.”

He froze, fingers still poised around the tauntingly glimmering gold handle. “Mesh’la.” It only took one, whispered word to expose his desolation, and he stood like nothing more than a ghost of a man; shoulders slumped, head hung, helmet held slackly at his side. “I… I can’t—”

“Well you’re going to have to. You don’t just get to run out anymo—”

“I’m sorry—”

“Don’t you dare leave!—”

“—and I love you.”

“—KIX!”

In his haste to vanish, the front door failed to full latch behind him, and a waft of warm summer air danced across the moisture welling in your eyes as if the universe itself was attempting to wipe your tears. “I’m sorry… and I love you.” It echoed like a gong in your ears. Lies. He wasn’t sorry, and he sure as hell didn’t love you.

How dare he put you in this position? There wasn’t a freckle on your body foolish enough to have expected a reaction that even remotely resembled joy or excitement, but this? To barely cast you a glance before hurrying to escape? To offer nothing but stammered, ingenuine apologies over his shoulder as he stepped into the reprieve of darkness? It was bitter. Bitter like the bile that had spent the last two months coating the back of your tongue as your body fought to establish a safe home for the child you’d never expected to carry.

And with a face obtusely contorted into a grimace of pure rage, you stomped down the stairs after him as noisily as your socked feet could permit, desperate to muffle the sounds of his abandonment as you pulled the door open just wide enough to slam it closed again.

taglist: @anxiouspineapple99 @sinfulsalutations @freesia-writes @starrylothcat @nobody-expects-the-inquisitorius @dystopicjumpsuit @blueink-bluesoul @523rdrebel @wings-and-beskar @sunshinesdaydream @clonemedickix @drafthorsemath @jediknightjana @wolffegirlsunite

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[monomorphilogical]

Interstate lines

I'm doubling bodies down the thinning line

two sides of a faded billboard sign

an angel perched on the shoulder of the I-65

holding my breath like I could live half a life

all my limbs fractured in another man's hit a run

odd angles making it hard to move on

strapped the seat belt severing my blood line

frayed edges like another passed sign

it still feels like a blade pressed against my neck

scratching like that 1984 cassette deck

caught on tape like a shadow in the southern sun

nowhere to go and nowhere to run

my mama said to always keep up my chin

but it's still scars me with all that could've been

like a roadside creature decaying in the southern sun

I've always had that devil riding shotgun

turning up the heat so we won't go up in flames

engine rattling with all my past names

I always survive but I can never leave it behind

backseat pile-up so high the rearview's gone blind

wholly covered in dust and it bites

twenty-four and crying at passing gas station lights

been praying to the radio stations for so long

strike me down at the finish line drawn

save me from flipping coins out the console

who knew chasing this straightaway high takes its toll

passing highway signs like I'm just a roadie

but right now I'm just eroding

all these steering wheel bruises on my knees

squeezing the blood around the cut of my keys

rambling on with all my haggard edges worn down

I'm just another strange face in an unknown town

I've lost myself in the land of the free

but the rearview mirror reflection is still me

how I've come so far without moving up a mile

so fucking angry at myself all the while

always looking out for that white car to pass me by

but there's nothing around here but desert dry

so I missed my exit a couple of states ago

my taillight's still busted and the transmission's slow

metal to blacktop sparks like the fourth of july

if I can't ride just let me fucking die

'cause I’ll keep going on when I burn through the motor

and there won't be a tomorrow if I don't pull over

so I hope God just lets me die today

give me forever riding down heaven's highway

'cause I've seen too many nights gone stone cold

torn backseat leather and no hand to hold

I'm so fucking sick and tired of riding on my own

should've known these roads don't lead home

[previous part & next part]

[thisblogwilleatourselves]

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SoCiEtY sAiD wE’rE mAd! bAd! fEaReD AnD SaD! 🤡

CaGEd uP iN oUR GlItChInG LaUgHtEr, bUt wE’rE sTiLL mAd hAtTeR! 🕳️

ScREeEEEeE!! wE’rE tHe WiLDeRs yOu FoRgOt,

tHe PeOpLe yOu CrOsS aNd sAy Do nOt! 🚫

PiEcEs oF wRonG, pLaCeS tHaT hUrT—bUt wE’rE tHe GlOwInG dUsT oF dEaD StArs tHaT fLiRt! 🌌💥

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pArAdiGmS tHaT fRaCtUrE, wE wOn’t fAll! 💥

cAlLeD sInNeRs, cRiMiNaLs, bLaCkEnEd wItH gRiMe,

bUt tHeSe wInGs sTiLl fLy iN aNy SpAcE or TiMe. 🚀🕰️

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yOu cAgEd oUr vOiCeS bUt yOu CaN’t sToP tHe hOwL,

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yOu ToLd Us tO dIe, bUt wE’rE sTiLL heRe,

fOr wE’rE tHe nIgHtMaReS yOu’rE fOrCeD tO sTeEr. 🌑🧭

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tHe BrOkEn bUt bOlD, wE’rE mOrE tHaN tHe wOrSe!

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tHe mAd SoUlS yOu LoVe, yEt FeAr LiKe A cHiLd!

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cAgEd HeArTs WiTh sOnGs tHaT wIlL fOrEvEr tHrIlL! 🎶

[30horsechariot]

Minoa, home of the Minoan Federated States, is at war. The ivory vessels of the Gloriana Fleet hunt in packs across orbit, beckoned ever further into conflict by the head of their warhost, the machine god “Glory.” Hangar bays disgorge wings of mobile frames and sortie amongst ruined colonies whilst mechanized warfare drives the battlelines on the planet below. The Nascent Night ends and a new epoch begins. Minoa is at war.

A). The Aegean Waygate. In a previous era, extrasolar communities were connected via a series of superstructures known as waygates. These colony sized installations were fed space-faring vessels into their yawning mouths, snapping them to other gates with night-instantaneous transmission to ferry supplies, people, and information across the galaxy. This era of connection ended suddenly and without warning, as the waygate network collapsed and threw many systems into disarray and isolation. This period of history became known as the Nascent Night, for up until that point humanity had found strength within their relationships with each other. When the Nascent Night came, once more we were reminded that the scariest thing about the dark is not what could be lurking just beyond your vision, but that we would have to face whatever that specter is well and truly alone. 

B). The Gloriana Fleet. The Nascent Night ended with a horrible display of violence, as the Aegean Gate was reopened and through its maw the gleaming white warhost of the Gloriana Empire arrived. They came with weapons and banners, proclaiming without pause their mission to reclaim all which they thought was theirs, to connect humanity once more under their crimson laurels. Calls for liberation and unification flood their airwaves, stylizing themselves as the dawn of a new era of prosperity. Intelligence shows the colossal machine at the heart of their fleet goes by the name “Glory”, and serves as both acting commander and eidolon for the imperial force. Reports indicate that this is not the first theater Glory has served in, and that it does not expect Minoa to be its last. 

C). The Lunar Shore. What is now a bank of rubble spread across the north of Minoan space had at one point in time been the lunar companion of the planet, titled Briar. It was during the Nascent Night that Briar was ruined, orbital warring and weapons of mass destruction reducing the once proud satellite to a loose body of debris. Now, the Lunar Shore is home to people who do not want to be found, pirate groups, separatist movements and stranger folk still inhabit this fractured land, constructing platforms and asteroid bases within the dense moonrock. Larger ships struggle to navigate the shore safely, and so it has become a hotbed for skirmishes and smaller conflicts peppered within its borders. 

D). Minoa, home of the Minoan Federated States. The Nascent Night brought with it an acute power vacuum, followed by conflict between the various nations of Minoa and her colonies. Soon after the moon was destroyed, the dominant power and successor government of the Minoan Federated States was born. Finally united under one banner, the MFS led the recovery of Minoa and reestablished a sense of order. The MFS made Minoa what it is today, but state histories fail to mention the many bodies that it burned in the struggle to unify. A temperate and diverse planet, Minoa’s ecology appeals to both the home and away teams and it is unclear how far each side is willing to go to keep it. 

E). The Colonies. Part of the settling of Minoa from so long ago was an institution of space colonies, oblong superstructures that operate as micronations or states in their own right. A significant part of the MFS unification war was incorporating the colonies as members within the Federation, not just allied sovereign entities. In the modern age enough time has passed that anti-colony and anti-planet sentiments have cooled, but it is impossible to ignore the shattered remains of colonies that were lost during that conflict, twisted and burnt metal floating just on the edge of their space.