#hoth trooper

[atomic-chronoscaph]

Carrie Fisher and Treat Williams on the set of The Empire Strikes Back (1979)

[coaz-photography]

[shmooul]

and finally Fox w fox on the Hoth

12.04.2024

(i really love arts where Fox is covered in blood sorry it’s kinda ahhhhggggg)

[i-dont-know-anything-anymore]

White- part seven of rainbow sw mood board

[zs-starwars]

Me: Surely it hasn't been that long since I've played- oh.

[firehair12000]

My Instagram

[weixuldo]

Allow me// ch 14

Vader x Reader

a/n: so sorry for the delayyy rahhh i’ve been traveling for the holidays!! i’ve been cranking stuff out tho so dw!!! i’ve been working on enigma, allow me, and line cook ani pt 2 heheh also unconditionally epilogue// also words in font like this means vader is using the force to speak- not his normal voice

How much longer will it be before you hear from Lord Vader again? is he safe? is he alright?

warnings: cursing, angst, harm, medical procedures, cannon typical violence

_____________________

After what seemed like days of stumbling around fighting off any enemy he came against, Vader finally obtained a ship. It wasn’t much, but at least he was able to jump start it. As soon as he got the engine going- he set in coordinates for Hoth. 

He was absolutely exhausted in every way someone could be; mentally, physically, emotionally… Not only did his broken body ache, but his mind raced with thoughts of what his master would do next if he were to defy him. Would he really be replaced? 

As he flew the small ship towards the icy system, the failure of his suit became increasingly evident. After using so much energy and power from the force to fend off bounty hunters and fight opponents (all while his suit was damaged and with makeshift limbs), he was so completely exhausted that he could barely stay conscious as he drifted through space. 

The flesh parts of his legs throbbed uncomfortably- the makeshift prosthetics weren't made to cushion his walk so he was putting too much pressure on his poor stumps. He desperately wanted to put the ship on auto pilot but sadly, it did not have that feature.

So he begrudgingly adjusted himself in the pilot seat and desperately tried to stay awake. 

___________________________________

Your anxiety was through the roof the past few days; not only had you heard nothing from Vader or when he would return, but the Emperor seemed as if he were observing you much more closely now. 

Thankfully you had finished your main tasks for the day and retired to your quarters earlier than normal (not that that really meant anything special. You were still just going to overthink).

You laid down and observed the same ceiling you had been looking at for months, only this time you were worried about Vader. 

You pleaded with the force that he was ok and would return safely. You would rejoice once you knew he was safe and finally with you again. Would he feel the same about you?

____________________________________

The sight of his docked ship took an enormous weight off of Vader’s chest; he was back. He would no longer have to wonder how he’d get back or have to worry about conserving his energy. 

He landed the ship as best as he could, but it was a rough landing; he had to opt for a landing in the snow. Once the ship was powered off, he slowly pulled himself out of the cockpit. 

The freezing temperatures of the frigid planet whipped at his exposed skin and made his metal joints creaky. He was shutting down. His legs were barely able to hold his weight anymore- he was completely drained.

Even though he wanted so desperately to call to you through the force, he just couldn’t muster the energy. 

Before he knew it, his world went black and he was left lying, face down, in the thick layers of snow. 

Thankfully some stormtroopers saw his bumpy landing and came to check out the commotion. Without them he would not have made it back. 

“Uhhh- You might wanna take a look at this” one of the white armor clad men said to the other. 

“Lord Vader?!”

“Yea…. we should probably get him inside” another chimed in. 

“Right away! We need to get him to the med chamber”

_______________________________________

You had taken a stroll around the living quarters to try to get your mind off of things (it wasn’t working), sadly everything in the damn ship just screamed Vader- it was his ship, after all. 

As you walked the halls, a large group of troopers marched down the hall opposite to you.

They seemed rushed- their matters must have been important. 

You thought nothing of it initially (There was always some drill or task they were running around to complete), but you froze when you heard it. 

“Lord Vader is back”

“Really? Where is he?” a second asked. 

“We’re pretty sure he's in the med bay- probably being checked for wounds” the first added. 

You didn’t need to hear anymore, before you were off.

You rushed to the med bay where he was being held for assessment by the medical droids and Vanee.

You punched in the security code and swiped your card quicker than you ever had before and breathlessly entered the dark room. 

You didn’t expect to see a pillar of light in the middle of the pitch black room; once your eyes adjusted you realized the pillar was actually a large bacta tank… with a limbless figure strung up in the middle, a sight you had never seen. 

As you squinted you realized you recognized that face- it was Vader in there.

Was he injured so badly as to lose the rest of his limbs? No- you looked closer and his amputations seemed to be old wounds- you knew he had some prosthetics, but you didn’t realize he had lost all of them. 

He floated in the healing liquid, only suspended by a black harness. The slight movement of the water softly carried his body up and down.

You observed more and noticed how muscular he was, his shoulders were just as broad even outside the suit. As much as you wanted to linger your gaze on his body, you felt that it was not the time to marvel at his impressive physique.

You began to walk forward to get a better look at his injuries when a pale faced man ran at you; “Get out! Do not dare disturb the Lord as he heals!” the elder screamed at you, which caused Vader to weakly open an eye. 

Once he saw that it was you he panicked for a moment- he didn’t want you to see him like this… he wasn’t ready.

Surely you were frightened of him now, surely you couldn’t hold him in the same regard as you did before. 

A look of worry found itself onto your face as you saw Vader’s scared face, but soon the pale man started getting violent with you.

He pulled, pushed, and even began to scratch you with his long nails but you wouldn’t budge, you needed to make sure Vader was ok. 

Vanee, Stop.

What was that?

The pale man ceased his attack and stepped aside, “but my lord, she is-”

Let her be and leave us.

Vader was speaking through the force. 

Vanee nodded and scurried out of the dark room. 

Once it was just you and Vader left, you walked towards the glass tube and rested your palms against the cool surface. 

“V? Are you going to be ok?” you asked with a  small voice. 

I will be, i’m so sorry

both of his eyes were open now.

“Sorry for what V?” What was he talking about?

I didn’t want you to see me like this

You were no medic so all you could offer Vader was your company and support as he endured a painful recovery process.

“Oh, Vader… please do not worry about that- I want you to focus on healing” you said softly as you pressed a gentle hand on the glass of the tank. 

You felt a warm sensation wash over you and embraced the familiar force signature of the Sith; he was connecting with you the only way he could. 

Thank you

_____________________________

You stayed by Vader’s side until he was done with his soak; the two of you were silent for the most part- for you it was just comforting to be in his presence once more. 

Near the end he opened up about the past few days in small bits (you probably wouldn’t ever get the full story).

He briefly explained why his master sought to punish him and to you, it was an impossibly stupid reason. 

You were disgusted by the Emperor- he tortured Vader for teaming with someone he thought fit to be an ally. Then Palpatine went so far as to destroy Vader’s prosthetics and dump him back onto the shores that once scarred him all those years ago.

If Vader weren’t as strong as he is… he surely would have died. 

Palpatine is a cruel man. 

W-would you help me lie down?

“I would rather you help me than the droids,” he admitted in his modulated voice.

You nodded and walked closer to the glass.  

“Press that button and lift that switch” he guided you towards an operating panel that would drain his tank. 

Once you had that done you went to search for some towels to dry him off with. He was left hanging from his harness with an embarrassed feeling.

The glass tube retreated below the floor and he was gently lowered to the platform; you laid a soft towel down and had another in your hands as you received his tired body. 

You guided his body into your lap and held him in your arms once he was finally released from the suspending cords that attached to the harness around his torso.

He was so light in your arms compared to what you had expected; he was muscular, but the more you thought about it, he only had a torso, a head, and four stumps. 

He allowed you to assist him to the steel examination table in the next room over. You could tell he was ashamed of his body and inability to do basic tasks in his state, but you quietly reminded him that you only wanted to help. 

“Would you like me to unbuckle your harness? Or do you just want to keep it on, I assume you’ll be going back in the tank soon” You offered softly.

To your surprise, he shook his head- “No, my master won't allow me to soak again today until much later. Are you sure you would be comfortable touching… me?” He added the last part in pity. 

You scowled at his master’s instructions, but your eyes softened when you answered him, “Vader, I have pledged myself to you, have I not?”.

“Y-yes?” he replied softly.

“Then you have nothing to worry about- You have nothing to be ashamed of,” you said.

Your words seemed to relax him slightly and he exhaled shakily before shutting his eyes.

You stayed by his calming him, helping apply cooling creams to his new burns, and helping him with the oxygen mask.

It hurt to see the one you loved in such a crestfallen state, but at least he was alive. 

Once he was a bit more stable he spoke again.

“thank you, proceed”. 

The ends of his limbs had metal ports that looked warped; to your best knowledge they must have been welded to another type of metal and then had to be cut off. 

You jumped a little when you saw Vader begin to move his scarred legs from you; he refused to meet your gaze. 

“It’s alright- I’m just examining your ports- I may be able to design new ones for you since these ones definitely won’t be able to connect to your new legs” you said in an attempt to quell his worries. 

His eyes relaxed and he began to blink slowly again. 

Thank you

He was speaking through the force again; his energy must have been depleting. 

“No need to thank me V. I would do anything for you” you smiled softly before leaning in to kiss his temple. 

_______________________

You worked on crafting new ports for Vader’s prosthetics to attach as he rested; you offered to leave and work in the workshop, but he insisted (more like begged) you to stay with him.

You had the transport droid he gifted you, bringing up the materials and your toolkit so you could start working as you sat with him. 

Though, Vader did sense the surrounding area first to make sure Palpatine wouldn’t make a surprise visit- having you in his chambers would not be a good scene for the emperor to see. 

You knew if Palpatine was so cruel as to make Vader relive his past trauma and suffering, he would definitely have no problems involving you in a nefarious scheme to get Vader to react in a certain way. It was beyond fucked up.

Soon you had finished his arm’s ports and walked over to the bed you laid him on.

His eyes were closed and a few tubes carrying nutrients and oxygen peeked from under the covers you placed over him. 

You could hear his damaged throat rasping with every breath he took; you wanted nothing more than to take all of his pain away.

This was the longest you had ever seen him out of his suit and the only time you had ever seen his whole body. 

He was covered head to thigh in poorly healed scars and new burns from his most recent brush with the unforgiving lava planet.

His chest and back had a few unnatural ports for his suit to connect his life support to, but other than that he was flesh (except for his organs, of course). 

But sadly you would have to wake him from his slumber soon since he was supposed to be back to his duties in two days ...The Emperor heartlessly expected an impossibly speedy recovery- obviously that was just an outrageous request, but Vader couldn’t protest. 

You knew the wounds that littered his face had been “healed” for years, but as you went to brush his forehead you hesitated.

Should you be touching him without his permission?

Seeing him outside of his suit seemed like you were gazing upon something sacred. Something you shouldn't.

Gently you placed a gentle hand on his cheek and waited for him to open his eyes. You bit your lip before placing your other hand on his other cheek. 

“Vader,” you whispered.

Still nothing. 

Slowly and carefully, you leaned down to place a tender kiss on his scarred forehead- that woke him up. 

His yellow eyes opened abruptly-but when he felt it was you, he closed them once more. The next time he opened them, his eyes were the cerulean blue you had been chasing since the first time you saw them. 

He let his guard down when he was with you. 

You smiled at the man and gave him another peck. You pressurized the chamber so that he could be without the uncomfortable mask.

Gently you lifted his head and took the hard device off of his face.

“Vader, I have your arm ports and arms ready for you- The arm’s are just temporary, but I assumed you’d rather have some for now instead of none at all,” you explained softly. 

He gave you a long blink to indicate his agreement before his brow bone furrowed and looked towards the cold table that stood in the harsh lighting only a few feet away. 

“We do have to go there so that the doids can remove your warped ports” you said solemnly. 

You knew he hated procedures, but he also knew they were a necessity. His chest rose and fell before he indicated he was ready. 

“I could carry you over- or I can get the transpor-”

“Transport” his voice rang through the force. 

You figured so. 

He wasn’t quite comfortable being that vulnerable and you could understand that. You nodded, started up the pod, and left the room so he could complete the transfer in peace.

You felt the vibrations when he called for your return and promptly entered once more. 

Vader was now lying uncomfortably on the sterile silver table; only his boxers covered his lower half. You stepped into the light and took out the tools that would be used to remove his broken ports. 

This too had two options; you could take them off of him quicker than a droid could, but then you would be the one causing him pain- or it could take longer and hurt more, but a droid would be doing it.

Vader also knew this and could sense your dilemma. 

You.

You sucked in a breath- you really didn’t want to do this, but it would cause him less pain (even if it didn’t seem to). 

You shakily nodded and picked up the instrument that would be used to pry off his damaged port.

The process was simple, use a small beam to cut around the port to loosen it up and then use an instrument to pry the warped metal off.

The beam would be painful without numbing medicine (which Palpatine removed all of…), so Vader would have to endure the pain full throttle. Once again you cursed the pale man. 

Thankfully you had a spur of the moment idea- you called for a small droid to collect some snow and ice from the banks of Hoth (where you were still stationed).  

Vader looked at you curiously. 

“There’s no numbing cream here and I don’t want you to feel the sting so I’m going to numb your arm with ice water”. 

His eyes widened and he managed a small smile, “Thank you”

You nodded, “Of course, but it will be uncomfortable to put your arm in the water” you explained to which he simply nodded. 

Once the droid returned and you prepared the ice bath, you helped Vader to the edge of the table so that you could submerge his stump. 

“On three; one, two, three…” you counted before pushing his warped ligament into the freezing water. 

His body lurched and he gasped as the frigid sensation coarse through his arm. You bit your lip to steady yourself, his arm needed to stay completely submerged for the numbing to work. 

“I’m sorry V” you said as his muscles twitched all over his scarred body. 

Soon time was up and you quickly pulled out his arm, dried it off, and grabbed the precision laser. You put on some goggles and began to outline the end of his stump. As you rounded the port you could smell a mix of heated metal and flesh. 

Even so often you glanced up to see his face, thankfully he really had no reaction and nothing in his force signature indicated pain- your method was working. 

The port was completely cut and you began to pry it off. You hated the feeling of his skin being used as leverage to pull his cybernetic part off.

Once the metallic connector was off, his stump was simply irritated, scarred flesh with screw slots to hold his ports in place. 

His stump was warm to the touch so you decided to cool him in water once more (just to be safe).

In only a few more minutes his new port was secured and you helped put his temporary prosthetic on. 

He tested the limb with great relief. 

“Was that ok?” you asked worriedly. 

He nodded and caressed your cheek with his new arm; to which you leaned over the table to kiss him. 

________________________

You finished up the other arm before you stopped for the day- he didn’t really need his legs done until tomorrow and you weren’t going to be able to do those since they were literally welded into his flesh from how close he was to the lava. 

So once you cleaned everything up, and got him back into bed, you took your seat once more. Your eyes felt heavy as you sat back in the stiff chair; just as you were drifting off to sleep you heard a weak voice. 

Was that Vader?

No- it wasn’t the normal modulated voice you had come to love, but it also wasn’t the familiar voice of his force signature. 

“W-wil you…” 

There it was again! You promptly rose to your feet and surveyed the dark room.

“Who’s there?” you demanded.

Soon you felt a weak pull towards Vader’s bed… it was him- it was his voice. 

You knelt by his bedside and took a metallic hand in yours. Never had he sounded so weak.

His vocal chords were completely damaged, he could barely speak above a whisper, and it sounded painful to speak. 

“P-please..” he attempted before a coughing fit attacked him. 

You brushed his face and cooed, “shh-shh, Don’t speak- I’m right here. It’s ok”. 

He swallowed with great effort before conveying his request, “Lie with m-me… Please-”.

“Are you sure, I don’t wanna worsen your injuries-”

He shook his head and beckoned you once more. Looking at his desperate face, how could you refuse. Carefully you lifted the covers and entered the bed with caution; once you were under the covers he quickly pulled you closer to him, making you gasp. 

Once the shock wore off, you relaxed in his arms and began to drift off. 

_________________________

Vader’s burns stung with every movement, but nothing could stop him from hugging you close.

He wanted nothing more than to stay with you like this forever.

He was exhausted, but somehow having you here kept him invigorated. 

He found himself pressing his scarred lips to your temple as you dozed off in his mechanical arms. Once you were fast asleep, he couldn’t pull his gaze away from your beautiful face. 

Maker… What were you doing to him? 

He was falling in love-

No, he was in love. 

Everything about you lit up his world; your smile, your sweet voice, your soft touch, your intelligence, your passion… just you. 

He could imagine a future where you and him ruled the galaxy, side by side. 

Or

One where the two of you left everything behind and completely started over. 

Either way he knew he would be happy because he knew that as long as he was with you, everything would be alright. 

***

a/n: i love love love whump :) as u can see hahah- i hope this chapter was good and sorry again for the delay 😭 thanks for the support:)

taglist: @vadersassistant @sxoulohvn @khaleesihavilliard @kashasenpai @darling-murdock @beautifulbearpolice @salvatoresister1 @lune-de-miel-au-paradis @blueninjablade3 @jujuba096 @missmannequin @jellydodger @mirastark @wyvernthekriger r @duckyhowls @monada43 @lauriidoesstuff @vienettacream @ray-rook @itswhatever06 @ilovenielperry

[sadiecoocoo]

Hoth - tcw fanfiction

Relationships - CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo & CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives, CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives & Clone Trooper Hardcase, CT-7567 | Rex & Anakin Skywalker

Tags - Whump, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Blood and Injury, CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo Whump, CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo Needs a Hug, Hurt CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo, CT-21-0408 | CT-1409 | Echo & CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives are Twins, Hurt CT-27-5555 | Fives, CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives Whump, CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives is a Good Bro, Protective CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives, Humor, Blizzards & Snowstorms, Planet Hoth (Star Wars), CT-7567 | Rex is a Good Bro, Protective CT-7567 | Rex, Concussions, Avalanches

Summary - A small group of Torrent Company, including Fives, Echo, Hardcase, Rex, and Anakin, are sent down to the icy planet, Hoth, to distribute supplies for the new research facility there. Their stay is extended as they are informed that a scouting patrol went missing, likely from the cold and lack of supplies. The group splits up to scout out the area surrounding the base. The Domino Twins survey the mountain range alone, and of course, run into trouble as an avalanche is triggered. Echo is badly injured in the aftermath, and Fives is turned around with no idea of which way the base is. They must try to survive the icy plains until they are rescued.

Word Count - 3,913

Read on AO3

Notes: This is for the 2024 Star Wars Prequels Big Bang! @swprequels-big-bang I worked with @thingskorokhasdrawn for the art and @battlekilt as my beta! tysm to both of you, I had sm fun working on this <3 anyways, I promised a while ago on my Tumblr that I'd make some Echo and Fives centric whump, so here it is! please enjoy <3

Echo loaded another crate onto the shuttle. He dropped it with a huff, then went back into the hangar to grab another. A few paces away, Fives chatted with Hardcase.

“Hey, you two mind helping at all?” Echo asked snarkily, though it held no malice. The two other clones turned to him, Fives sticking out his tongue at his twin. Echo mimicked the action.

“Only because you asked so nicely,” Hardcase quipped as he leaned down to grab a crate of supplies.

Fives, being outvoted, did the same. With their combined efforts, they finished the task fairly quickly, just in time for when Rex and the General arrived.

“Alright, boys,” General Skywalker started. “This is a quick in-and-out. We drop off supplies to help get the set-up of a new facility, then we get back to where it’s warm,” he explained. Echo was grateful to know that the group wouldn’t have to spend a night on the ice-flats of Hoth.

“Let’s load up,” Rex ordered, causing the group to board the shuttle and the pilot to get in the cockpit. 

“Thank the force we won’t have to be there long,” Echo murmured to his ori’vod .

“I’m sure something will go wrong,” Fives said with a grin as he punched Echo playfully.

“Have a little optimism, vod ,” Echo continued their banter, wrapping an arm around his vod’s shoulder.

The group dissolved into silence, save for the occasional remark from Hardcase, as the ship descended into the atmosphere of the ice planet. They all could hear the harsh wind whipping against the ship’s hull. Echo shuddered at the thought of having to feel the blunt force of that wind.

Soon enough, the shuttle touched down and opened its doors to the harsh cold. Echo frowned as snow flew into the ship. He shook his head and followed the rest of the squad. The ARC trooper rubbed his hands together before grabbing one of the crates.

“Are we sure this is the best place to have a facility?” Fives yelled over the wind.

Echo shrugged in response before Rex answered, “There already is a facility.” The Captain started, “It was a Separatist base, but a squad took out the clankers, and now some scientists in the Republic want to use it.” He explained. 

“If this is just a supply drop-off,” Echo said as he carefully put down the crate he had been holding. “Why is the General here?” He asked.

The aforementioned General had gone off to speak with one of the scientists that had taken residence at the base.

“To get a chance to spend some time with his lover,” Fives muttered to him with a nudge. Echo chuckled as he glanced at the Captain, wondering if he may have heard Fives’ remark.

“Or to get away from his other one.” Hardcase joined in with a loud guffaw.

“I can’t take you boys anywhere,” Rex mumbled with a shake of his head, though there was humor evident in his tone.

The troublemakers laughed as they continued to work for several more minutes. Not too long later, they had unloaded all the supplies and were resting.

Echo shivered as a particularly cold gust of wind assaulted him. Flakes of snow had stuck to his armor and melted, leaving small stains on the durasteel.

“When do you think the General will be done?” Fives asked, leaning back against a crate.

“Dunno,” Echo answered with a shrug. “But I doubt there’s much a scientist would need to tell a Jedi,” he guessed. Fives mumbled something about being cold and this taking too long. Echo patted his vod’s shoulder. 

“Change of plans!” Echo jumped at the General’s voice. He stood at attention, waiting for whatever miserable news Skywalker had to share. “We’re gonna have to scout out the area around the facility,” he explained. The entire squad’s mood seemed to sink at that; the cold was bad enough already, and there were heaters all around the base. It’d be ten times worse out there.

“What happened?” Rex asked.

“Some troops already stationed here had sent out a scouting party, but they never returned,” he answered with a shake of his head. “It might have just been the cold, or it might have been hostiles. They don’t have enough people to send another scout party, so they left that up to us,” he finished with a frown.

Fives and Echo exchanged a glance.

“Well,” Rex said with a sigh, “Let’s get moving.”

Fives dismounted the tauntaun he had been given and walked over to the edge of the snowy cliff. Over the snowy plains, he searched for some kind of threat; there was nothing; the planet was desolate and empty. “See anything?” Echo called, still mounted. Fives didn’t blame him; the tauntauns gave them a little bit of warmth.

“Just more snow,” Fives replied miserably. He mounted back onto his tauntaun and continued up the mountain. Echo followed. 

The squad had split up: Rex with Hardcase and General Skywalker, and Fives with Echo. Echo and Fives were tasked with searching the mountain, then the plains surrounding it. The other group would venture in the opposite direction and search the snow plains there.

Fives rubbed his hands together as he urged his tauntaun to move a bit faster. The sooner they got this done, the better.

“What do you say we take a rest up there?” Echo yelled over the wind, pointing to a ledge not too far from them. Fives gave him a thumbs up, then rode his tauntaun over to said ledge before dismounting. 

Echo did the same, then grabbed a metal spike from the satchel on his tauntaun. He plunged it into the ground, then tied the reins around it. Fives got his own and did similarly to his vod .

Fives grabbed a ration bar from his pack and sat down in the snow with it. He took off his helmet and started eating the flavorless meal. Echo sat down next to him, a bit closer to the ledge.

“This sucks,” Fives mumbled between bites. Echo grunted in agreement before looking out over the plains below.

“It’s kind of pretty though, if you ignore the cold.” He said optimistically. Fives rolled his eyes in response.

“Only you could call an empty snow plain pretty.” He muttered snarkily. Echo mimicked him in a high-pitched voice, causing the twins to laugh.

Suddenly, the tauntauns seemed to get anxious. They both started struggling from the spikes, trying to jump away. Fives got up to try to calm his.

“Whoah,” He said soothingly, “Easy girl.” He rubbed the tauntaun’s neck fur, though it did little to calm it. He was about to turn to ask his vod what he thought might be wrong. It seemed like some of the obscure information that he might know, but then he heard a deep rumbling in the ground, followed by the cracking of ice.

“Echo,” He started before the sound got louder. His brother stumbled on the ledge, eyes growing wide as large cracks formed in the ice. Fives jumped towards his brother just as the ledge crumbled, causing both clones to fall down the cliffside.

Fives awoke with a painful cough, followed by a groan of pain. There was pressure on him, like he was buried in something. He kicked out on the small layer of snow that covered half his body, then dragged himself a few feet away.

He curled in on himself, shivering violently. Snow had gotten in his armor, making the insulation useless in keeping him warm. He had no idea where his bucket was, so there was no way to keep his face warm either.

“Echo,” He mumbled, half aware of why he felt the urge to call out for his brother. Then, he seemed to wake up a bit more, and he jolted upright. He didn’t have many injuries, but he felt sore, and the abrupt action sent a jolt of pain through his body.

“Echo!” he yelled, trying to crawl back to the pile of snow he had emerged from. He started clawing at the snow, moving large junks out of the way. “Echo, where are you!” He yelled desperately. 

Fives scanned the area around him, hoping to see a hint of durasteel glinting in the snow. He caught a glimpse of something dark a little ways away, and he quickly stumbled towards it.

There was a red stain in the snow, and right next to it, he saw a bit of durasteel armor that hadn’t been covered by the blizzard. “Echo,” he called, digging into the snow until he could feel his brother and drag him out.

He pulled him out by the armpits. His brother was limp in his arms. Echo’s head lulled to the side, eyes closed. Fives feared the worst as he dragged his brother away from the aftermath of the avalanche.

He laid Echo down in the snow. Fives tried to wipe some of the blood off of Echo’s face, but he had a head injury. He shakily felt for his vod’s pulse. It felt weak, but it was there.

Fives shook his vod’ika to try to rouse him awake. He wouldn’t move. He placed pressure on the head injury, trying his best to stop the bleeding.

“ Eyayah , wake up,” He begged, moving to try chest compressions. He didn’t know if that would help, and after a few minutes of it not doing anything, he went back to trying to shake him awake. He fumbled to try and find a stim in his pack, but most of its contents had fallen out during the avalanche.

“ Eyayah… ” Fives’ voice shook as he leaned down and rested his head on his vod’ika’s chest. He felt the rise and fall of his cuirass, which at least meant he was breathing.

Fives sat back up, solidifying his resolve as he decided that if he couldn’t resuscitate his vod , then he would get him back to the base. He whistled for his tauntaun, but got nothing in return. He hadn’t really been expecting anything either.

He looked around through the blizzard. Fives didn’t know which way was to the base, he didn’t even know which side of the mountain they had fallen off of. Finally remembering that he had it, he tried his com-link.

He was only answered by static; the blizzard wouldn’t let the signal through. He tried Echo’s as well but got the same result.

“Kriff,” He muttered, then to Echo, “I’ll get us out of this, vod’ika . Ni oritsir. ” Fives vowed.

He carefully stood, the wind trying to force him back into the snow. He leaned back down and put a hand under Echo’s back, making him sit up. Fives grabbed Echo’s middle and hoisted him onto his shoulder, stumbling slightly from the added weight. He tried not to think about Echo being completely limp in his hold.

Making a guess from the little amount of sunlight he could see through the blizzard, Fives picked a direction, then started trekking through the snow.

It didn’t take long for him to not be able to feel his fingers anymore. He was stumbling through the snow, almost falling several times. The wind did little to help, making it impossible to walk in a straight line.

“I-I’m sure we’re almost there, Eyayah .” He said to his unconscious brother. He had tried talking to him at different intervals, hoping that something would wake him up, or at least comfort him. He was starting to think that he was doing it more for himself than for Echo. It had started to feel like a lifeline.

Fives’ legs buckled from underneath him. He fell face first into the snow, dropping his vod. He just barely heard the sharp intake of a breath as Echo hit the ground. Fives sprung up at the noise.

“Echo?” He asked, trying to shake his brother awake again. The ARC trooper’s face was scrunched up in pain, and he let out a tight groan. “Oh, thank the Force!” Fives said with relief. He knew that a groan of pain wasn’t too reassuring, but it was another confirmation that Echo was alive.

“...Fives?” Echo mumbled with a hoarse voice. Fives laughed hysterically in relief. He was cut short when he noticed the red on Echo’s teeth. He frowned as he remembered their situation.

“I’m right here, Eyayah ,” he said, gently grabbing his brother’s face. He rubbed his thumbs over Echo’s cheeks. His vod leaned into the touch.

“Wha… happened?” He forced out. He was slurring his words, and his eyes were unfocused; it looked like Echo wasn’t even seeing fives.

“Th-there was an avalanche,” He explained, getting up to try and carry Echo again. “I’m trying to get us back to base.” He made the same movements as before to hoist him over his shoulder, but this time, Echo let out a pained sound.

Fives immediately rested his brother back into the snow. He quickly looked over his pained expression, holding his hands up, not sure of what to do.

“What’s wrong, vod ?” He said quickly. Fives ghosted his hands over Echo’s chest after too long without an answer. Echo took in a sharp inhale as Fives touched his side.

“Sith spit.” He muttered. He put pressure on Echo’s side, stopping immediately as Echo let out a pained sound. Echo tried to push him away, his arms flailing weakly.

Fives cooed at him softly, trying to calm his half-conscious brother. “It’s alright, Eyayah , we’re gonna get you back to base.” He promised.

The ARC likely had a broken rib. Fives cursed their luck. How did he end up unscathed while Echo was littered with injuries?

He gently grabbed his brother’s hand and squeezed it. Echo’s eyes were shut tightly in a grimace.

Fives looked around, his vision blocked by the snowy winds. He could just barely make out the outline of a ridge. Fives turned back to Echo.

“This is gon-gonna hurt a lot.” He warned as he grabbed his brother’s arms. He started dragging Echo behind him, leaving a scar in the snow as they went.

His legs gave out again when he made it to the ridge. He fell against it, leaning his head back for a moment. He shivered and hugged his stomach as he curled up.

After he had recovered enough to move again, he pulled Echo close to him. Fives wrapped his arms around his vod , providing as much warmth as he could.

He tucked Echo’s head under his chin, pressing down on his dark curls. He watched as Echo’s breath came out in white puffs. He was still breathing. He was still alive.

“W-we’ll be okay-okay, Eyayah .” He mumbled weakly as he closed his eyes. The two of them were shivering wildly, their bodies trying to warm them up.

He hugged Echo tighter, as tight as his strength allowed. Echo’s head lolled onto Fives’ chest.

“We’ll be okay.”

Fives stumbled again, almost falling. He carried Echo piggy-back style, his arms under his legs to support him. Echo’s head rested on his shoulder.

The sun had broken through the tormenting storm. Fives had found the strength to climb up the ridge they took shelter against and tried to scout out where the base was.

It was far, but he could see it in the distance. Fives cursed himself as he realized he had been going the complete opposite way. He had started the long trek as soon as he felt strong enough to carry his vod’ika .

The cold seeped into his bones, making him shaky and weak. He couldn’t feel his hands when he didn’t move them, and when he did, it was extremely painful. Pins and needles assaulted him with every step he took. His legs were beginning to cramp.

Fives fell again into the snow. Flakes of it shook off of his hair and joined the white desert. Echo was on top of him, and Fives didn’t feel like he had the strength to push him off and get up.

He tried, placing his hands under him and pushing against the ground. He fell back down, his face becoming buried in the snow. He heard Echo’s faint breathing next to his ear.

Fives suppressed a sob. Everything either hurt or he couldn’t feel it. He was impossibly cold. Snow covered his armor and face, freezing on his skin.

Fives reached back and grabbed Echo’s hand. He squeezed it tightly. Fives let his face fall into the snow. He let out a shaky breath. He closed his eyes; he didn’t have the strength to keep going.

“M’sorry,” he said, barely audible even to him.

Rex kicked at his tauntaun, urging it to go faster. His heart was beating a mile a minute. His breathing was shallow and quick.

When they had returned from their own patrol, Fives and Echo hadn’t checked in. He had hoped that maybe they just weren’t at a good place or that their signal was interrupted by the storm.

Then it got dark as the combination of night and the storm blocked out the light of the stars. Rex had worried a bit more, but he trusted his ARCs.

Then, one of their tauntauns came back. Alone. One tauntaun and no rider returning from a patrol of two. Anakin had to physically hold him back from going out into the blizzard to find his ARCs.

He didn’t sleep last night, worry and fear making him too nauseous to keep his eyes closed. He left as soon as the blizzard stopped a bit before sunrise. He guessed the General would be pissed, but there were bigger things to worry about at the moment.

His tauntaun made a noise of protest as he once again urged it to go faster. He thought he saw something out in the distance. He wouldn’t risk being too late because his tauntaun was complaining. 

“Fives! Echo!” He tried. His voice was hoarse from yelling out into the snowy planes. He clicked the tauntaun’s side again, whipping the reins.

Rex saw it again. A glint of something blue in the snow. He jumped off his tauntaun, not bothering to bring the creature to a full stop. He stumbled through the snow before regaining his balance, then ran towards that bit of blue he saw.

He fell to his knees as he slid to a stop. He clawed through the snow until he revealed Echo’s face, blood drying on his forehead. He pulled the obviously injured ARC out, then continued to dig for his brother.

Both of them were unconscious. Fives didn’t seem injured, but the cold had exhausted him.

“General!” Rex yelled into his comm, “I found them- I need a medic!” He said frantically. He searched for both of their pulses, Echo’s first. There was a light thumping under his fingers, far too slow.

“ We’ll bring a transport, ” Skywalker said through the comms. Rex didn’t bother answering, too busy making sure his ad’ike were still alive. He moved over to Fives. The ARC looked fairly uninjured, but with the cold, that wouldn't really matter.

Fives mumbled something that Rex couldn’t hear. He turned his attention to him as he cupped his cheek. His eyes were half-lidded, looking vacant.

“Fives-“ Rex’s voice broke, “Fives can you hear me?” He tried. Fives groaned. His eyes fluttered shut as he leaned his head into Rex’s hand.

“ Buir… ” he mumbled weakly, barely above a whisper.

“I’m here, it’s gonna be okay.” Rex assured. He grabbed Fives’ bicep and squeezed it comfortingly, doing similarly to Echo.

“You’re both gonna be okay.” He promised, praying to the Force that it’d be true. Where is that damned transport?

There was a constant beeping in the background. Echo’s sleep-addled brain barely comprehended it. He scrunched up his nose and groaned at the noise, turning over in the sheets so his face was pushed into the pillow.

The beeping persisted, and he begrudgingly opened his eyes. Bright fluorescent lighting made him push further into the pillow, though this time he took his annoyance quietly. He tried again, this time opening his eyes much more slowly.

He was on a medical bed, and there were several blankets piled on top of him. He blinked in confusion, trying to wash away the last of the sleep. It wasn’t standard for any trooper to have so many blankets in the medbay; surely there was someone else who needed them.

He looked around the room. When he tried to sit up, he only collapsed once again as a wave of dizziness made black spots dance across his vision. He shivered, feeling a wave of cold.

He lay facing the ceiling for what felt like an eternity, waiting for this dizzy spell to leave him alone. Once he felt confident enough to sit up again, he fully took in the medbay. No one but him was in the room, though he thought he could hear muffled talking from behind the door.

There was a shuffling next to him; then someone grabbed his bandaged hand. He jumped as he looked down at the surprise person. His face relaxed into a relieved smile at the sight of his brother.

“Go back to sleep, Eyayah .” Fives muttered softly. Echo obliged, laying back down comfortably. However, he only looked over his brother, searching for any injuries he may have had in whatever mission that got Echo sent to the medbay.

“What-” He coughed several times, his dry throat scraping. “What happened?” He asked once he had regained his voice. The ARC slumped into the pillow, content to let the massing heap of blankets weigh him down.

“There was an avalanche when we were scouting.” Fives said, he sounded sad. Echo wished he could squeeze his hand, but the bandaging held his fingers in place. “You got knocked out, I got all turned around. We spent a night out in the cold.” He was starting to sound distant, nothing at all like his chipper self.

“You get hurt?” Echo asked, his voice coming out in a hoarse whisper. Fives only shrugged, turning his face to cover his nose and mouth with one of the wool covers. Echo moved his free hand to rest on top of Five’s head.

“‘M okay now, vod ,” Echo said softly. He tried to fight the urge to sleep again, trying to blink less often once he noticed each blink lasted longer and felt heavier.

“Rex said the General would let us name the base,” Fives cut in, trying to fill the silence. Echo let out a soft hum, having lost the battle of keeping his eyes open. He still felt cold, and just wanted to snuggle up under all the covers. Though, he wished the beeping would stop, even if it was just a heart monitor.

“I was thinking we could name it Echo Base.” Fives said, utilizing a teasing tone. Echo frowned, peeking one eye open as he gave Fives an unimpressed look.

“There’re way cooler names than just calling it Echo Base .” Echo grumbled, scrunching up his nose. Fives snorted as he lightly bumped Echo’s elbow.

“Too late, I already told them.” Echo didn’t need to open his eyes to see the shit-eating grin on his brother’s face. He let out a huff.

“Can’t wait to get a transfer away from you.” He drawled sarcastically. It elicited a mock-offended gasp from his brother. He smiled softly as he let himself sink further into the pillow.

End Notes: Mando'a Translations Vod - sibling/brother vod'ika/vod'ike - little brother/little brothers ori'vod - older brother eyayah - Echo Ni oritsir - I promise (not exact translation) buir - parent/father again, I really enjoyed working on the big bang, it was my first ever event! I hoped everyone enjoyed and that you all have a lovely day <3

[questforgalas]

Thank you for coming back

Notes: So once again, @zaana's incredible art lived rent free in my head until I put it down on paper. So here's a delightful AU where Crosshair doesn't get sent to Tantiss because guess who gets to him first? Chose to do a rescue from Barton IV because Cross is in his imperial armor in the art, and I thought "Hey, let's maybe give him a break and not make him go through torture before he's rescued?" Neat idea, right? Let's tell Jen and Brad

WC: 3K (lol this was going to be a drabble)

Characters: The Bad Batch (all of them!)

Tags: Wrecker POV (he deserves all the Crosshair reunion energy), angst at the end (Crosshair is going through it ok), hurt/comfort, giant family group hug, Crosshair and Wrecker cry, Hunter is emotional, canon typical violence, implied mistreatment by the Empire (did I mention Crosshair is going through it?), family reunion, all the family fluff I could fit into 3k words

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The sound of blaster fire was becoming permanent in Wrecker’s ears. Hunkered down behind a duracrete barrier, he kept his DC-17 trained on the Imps attempting to advance on his position, blaster bolts streaming past his head. 

“Seriously, who trained these guys to shoot,” he thought to himself, needing to only dodge a few bolts from the barrage while his targets fell with each pull of his trigger. 

The landing platform at the depot on Barton IV was looking more like a true battlefield and less like a remote outpost with every passing minute. Two T-4 shuttles lay in smoking ruins - the first thanks to Hunter’s skill on the Marauder’s rear gun and the second thanks to an excellent detonator throw by Wrecker - and stormtrooper bodies lay scattered across the duracrete ground. So far, Wrecker and Hunter were executing their part of the plan perfectly, but when it came to creating distractions, there wasn’t much guess work as to Wrecker’s success rate. 

The Batch’s intel told them that the depot, located on a desolate, frozen planet that rivaled Hoth’s  icy temperatures, normally operated as a blip on the Empire’s priority list. In fact, blip might have been giving it too much credit. The small clone trooper squad that was assigned to protection detail put in requests for equipment, supplies, and reinforcements throughout their year of service, and every request fell on deaf imperial ears. Gathered from the information Tech found during his hacking, Commander Mayday of the squad put in a request for reinforcements 40 rotations ago, citing that only five members of his squad remained alive at the time the request went in, but Tech couldn’t find any log of a response anywhere in the records. Complete silence from the Empire. 

Until 4 rotations ago. The call went out for a platoon of stormtroopers to ready for deployment to Barton IV with orders to transport cargo of high importance to the Empire from the depot to the military base on Coruscant. Prior to the platoon’s arrival, a small squad of clone troopers was sent to scout and ready the depot for the cargo transfer. The squad consisted of two standard troopers and one specialized. One prickly, stubborn, unyielding specialized trooper who Wrecker couldn’t wait to see again. 

When Tech caught chatter that a clone trooper shot a commanding imperial officer in broad daylight in front of an imperial depot, he initially intended to send the intel directly to Captain Rex, informing him of another defecting clone who would be in need of assistance, but after he scanned the information log, he didn’t register his datapad falling from his hands, thudding on the floor, only able to to focus on activating the comm on his vambrace, urging Hunter to get to the Marauder as quickly as possible. Because there in front of him, written across the Marauder’s main computer, was CT-9904: Defector. Charged with the murder of Lieutenant Nolan. In custody on Barton IV. Scheduled for armed transfer in two rotations. 

The discussion was short - Hunter the only one remaining cautious until Tech confirmed the lack of security at the depot, even with the stormtrooper platoon coming in - and the Batch set their course to Barton IV less than two hours after the message was intercepted. The plan was easy, one the Batch could nearly execute in their sleep, even with their newer blonde addition. Create a distraction to draw the majority of security out into the open which Hunter and Wrecker would engage while Omega provided cover from the Marauder. Meanwhile, Tech and Echo skirt along the edge of the chaos, slip into the depot undetected, locate Crosshair’s location, and extract him while neutralizing any remaining threats if necessary. 

Plans 5, 4, and 21. The Batch specialty. 

“Wrecker, incoming! Northwest!” Hunter’s smokey voice called over the commotion. 

The far gate of the depot opened, ten stormtroopers running out to join the fight. “Yeah, I see ‘em, Sarge,” Wrecker confirmed. “They look excited to see us.” 

Hunter took cover behind his barrier, and turned his head in Wrecker’s direction.

“How about you give our hosts a warm greeting?” Hunter suggested, cocking his head to the side. Wrecker could feel the smug smirk under that helmet.

“Gladly,” Wrecker responded gleefully. 

Reaching into the pack on his back, he grabbed two thermal detonators, clicked them live, and chucked. They arced into the air, curving in opposite directions, landing right in the middle of the oncoming troopers, and Wrecker watched as all ten stormtroopers disappeared into a beautiful burst of orange, red, and black. 

“Direct hit,” Wrecker yelled, pumping his DC-17 in triumph. 

Across the way, Hunter gave a quick thumbs up and popped his head above his barrier. Wrecker did the same, confirming that the landing platform was clear of imps for the moment, but they knew more troopers would arrive soon. They’d only taken out about 30 of them so far. 

“Agh, where are they,” Hunter wondered, helmet trained on the door they expected to see their brothers emerge from. 

“Give ‘em a few more minutes, Sarge. I doubt the Empire just left Crosshair in a set of binders on a crate.” 

“They’re dumb enough to,” Hunter said. A soft chuckle came through his modulator, “Wonder how long he’d humor them until he took them all out with his hands still bound.” 

“Knowing Crosshair? They wouldn’t even get the binders on him,” Wrecker laughed. 

Hunter went quiet, helmet still pointed at the door. Then his shoulders fell like he was bowing to a weight Wrecker couldn’t see. “We’ll have to be patient. He’s…” Hunter paused. “He’s probably not the Crosshair we remember. There are going to be some … invisible wounds.” 

Wrecker released his own shuttered breath. He looked down at the ground for a moment, and then looked back up to find Hunter looking back at him. “Doesn’t matter how long it takes. We’ll help patch those up too.” 

Hunter remained still for a breath and then nodded. 

The silence was interrupted by a chime on Hunter’s comm. “What’ve you got, Omega?” he asked as he activated the connection. 

“I’m picking up multiple heat signatures heading our way. Looks like our little break is over,” Omega’s voice chirped over the comm. 

“Copy that,” Hunter responded.

Wrecker brought his own comm up to his mouth. “What’s your count, kid?” he asked playfully. 

“I’m at 4,” Omega answered, a smug tone floating through. 

“Only 4? You’re falling behind. I’m at 18,” Wrecker said. 

“I don’t think the thermal detonators should count,” Hunter interjected. 

“What?! Did you see how perfectly those landed? Probably my best yet! Not even Tech could pull that off.” 

“It’s hardly fair when I’m all the way back here on the Marauder!” Omega argued. 

“Excuses excuses, kid,” Wrecker teased. Their debate came to a quick halt when the remaining hangar doors of the depot opened, revealing the last wave of the platoon. “Alright, break time’s over. Shoot good, kid.” 

The platform became engulfed in battle once again. Blaster bolts peppered the air. Thermal detonators flew. Line after line of stormtroopers tried to take the advantage on the two ground soldiers and their coverage, but Hunter, Wrecker, and Omega held them back with ease. Wrecker heard General Skywalker speaking to Hunter about something called meditation once - a staple Jedi practice of centering one’s mind and connecting with the force through quiet sitting - and while Wrecker wasn’t sure this would meet the Jedi standard, he imagined this was the closest to meditation he would ever come. Surrounded by the sounds of battle. Adrenaline pumping in his veins. He’d hit a point of focus that drowned everything else out, his mission the only thought in his mind. And he was dam good at it, too. 

His DC-17 sang, and he let out a jovial laugh as he took down another line of troopers. As he focused on the enemies in front of him, the squad’s comm channel chimed in his helmet, and the only thing in the galaxy that could divert his attention from the battle in front of him called through the speakers.

“Hunter. Wrecker. We’ve got him. We’re approaching the exit. What’s the status of the platform?” Echo’s voice came through. 

For a second, Wrecker and Hunter turned towards each other, both chests rising rapidly with fast breaths not caused by the battle in front of them, and Wrecker knew if he could see Hunter’s eyes, they’d reflect the same bottomless relief he was feeling. 

Wrecker forced himself back to the present and provided cover fire while Hunter responded. 

“You’re clear to exit. A few imps left but nothing we can’t handle. Wrecker and I will provide cover fire while you cross the platform. Go directly to the Marauder,” Hunter ordered. 

Wrecker’s breath caught in his throat when a low, raspy voice could be heard in the background. “No, we thought we’d take a hike in the mountains.”

A hitched breath came through, and in his peripheral, Wrecker noticed Hunter lean his helmet back against the duracrete barrier, shoulders shaking. 

“I never thought I’d miss his attitude,” Omega piped in. 

That broke the tension building in Wrecker’s head, and a laugh barreled out from his chest. Brain clear and ready to act again, he focused on the remaining stormtroopers trying to hold their ground. 

“Omega, get the engines running. We’re getting off this hunk of ice as soon as we’re all onboard,” Hunter finished relaying the orders. 

“One more thing,” Tech’s voice came through this time. “I did the scan. The inhibitor chip has indeed been removed, but only after the encounter on Bracca. Crosshair did remove it voluntarily unbeknownst to the Empire.”

“Tech kind of refused to leave the holding cells until he was able to confirm it all. Hacked records and everything here on the depot. That’s what took us so long,” Echo supplied.

“Thank the Maker for Tech, and his stubborn need for knowledge,” Hunter mumbled. He went back on the comm, “Glad to hear it. Now get out here.”

Hunter turned to Wrecker. “Let’s take out as many as we can before they get here. Once they emerge, you lay down cover fire, and I’ll take overwatch.” 

“Copy that,” Wrecker replied, and they went to work. 

Time that had been passing at light speed slowed to the flow of Mustafar lava. Only ten stormtroopers remained posted across the platform, and Wrecker was determined to clear as many as he could before his brothers emerged. 

Another minute passed. Another. Then another. Time was taunting him.  

A whoosh floated over the blasterfire. The blasted door to the depot finally opened, and there in the doorway were three bent over figures - two supporting the weight of the third in between them - hobbling onto the landing deck. Wrecker allowed himself one glance hoping it would calm his running mind. Echo took most of the middle figure’s weight, flesh arm wrapped around their waist and scomp arm securing the arm wrapped across Echo’s back dangling over his shoulder, while Tech kept one arm around the figure’s waist and kept his blaster at the ready in the other. 

As Wrecker glanced at them,  it wasn’t the figure’s distinct all black armor - the armor of the imperial special forces - that identified him to Wrecker. No, it was the tattoo around their right eye. The tattoo Wrecker sat and watched as Tech gave it to them when they were still just cadets. The tattoo that represented their pride in their skill. The tattoo that told everyone exactly which batch he belonged to, front and center for all to see. The crosshair. 

Flanking from behind, Tech easily took down three stormtroopers before they made their way down the stairs. The remaining seven stormtroopers barked out orders to fall back, trying to regroup due to the new arrivals, and Wrecker used their confusion to his advantage, taking out another three in one go. Realizing they were outnumbered and outmatched, the remaining four stormtroopers fell back to the hangar, shooting wildly at any target they could see. 

Slower than Wrecker would like, his three brothers made their way to his and Hunter’s position across the platform. As soon as they crossed the threshold of their barriers, Hunter stood from his coverage, falling in step to provide cover directly at their backs. 

“Alright, Wrecker. Let’s keep these guys pinned as we head to the ship,” Hunter said. 

Jumping into position, Wrecker kept a steady pace back to the Marauder without breaking his fire on the remaining stormtroopers. Hunter hit one more as they walked, and Wrecker had his finger on the trigger to take down another when a streak of pink flew over his head and directly into the helmet of his target. 

He glanced over his shoulder. 

“Final count: 12,” Omega beamed down at him from the top of the ramp into the Marauder. 

“Aha! Nice shot, kid! Now let’s get out of here,” Wrecker said, barreling up the ramp into the ship. 

The ramp closed up as the ship made its way into the air, and the energy within immediately went still. Tech sat in the cockpit, taking over the controls from Omega once on board, but Hunter, Wrecker, Echo, Omega, and Crosshair remained in the hold. 

Crosshair sat in the chair in front of the computer, slumped over, one hand on the armrest propping him while an elbow rested on a knee like that was all the energy he could muster. He was breathing heavy, chest rising and falling as if he’d just finished a training sprint back on Kamino. Wrecker quickly gave his body a once over. Crosshair had always been lithe, by far the smallest body mass of the Bad Batch, but there had been muscle underneath those long limbs that gave any regular clone trooper a run for his money. Now, Wrecker clocked only bones showing underneath the exposed areas his armor didn’t cover, and his cheekbones were sharp above the hollowness of his cheeks. Purple blotched under his eyes, and it was impossible not to notice the deep scar that covered the right side on the back of his head. The scar he received when he took the full heat of a Venator ion engine. 

The same engine he tried to trap his brothers in. 

“Thank you…for coming for me. I…I wouldn’t have blamed you if you didn’t,” Crosshair drawled, head bent down. Whether he was unable to lift it from lack of strength or not being able to face the current scene, Wrecker wasn’t sure. His own heart was thudding in his chest, threatening to burst out. He called on every ounce of discipline and self-restraint he learned in his years as a soldier and remained rooted in place, holding his breath. The rest of the Batch stood as still as statues, four sets of eyes on their silver-haired brother. 

“You can drop me off at the closest port. You can pick. Doesn’t matter to me,” Crosshair said to the floor. Still, no one else spoke. He raised his head, glancing at each of them. His gaze settled on Hunter. “I…I’d understand if that’s what you want to do. It’s what you should do.” 

The five of them felt the Marauder lurch into hyperspace, but still, Echo, Omega, Hunter, and Wrecker didn’t budge. Footsteps approached from the cockpit, and soon, Tech joined them, choosing to sit in the chair across from Crosshair. The silence grew, and Wrecked noticed the crease between the sniper’s eyebrows deepen while his eyes darted around the group.

“Well, aren’t any of you going to say something?” Crosshair asked, frustration creeping into his voice. He glanced around one more time, and finally stood up from the chair, a growl coming from his throat, back hunched like he was ready to pounce, and his gaze locked on Hunter, a finger pointed at the sergeant. “Listen, I didn’t ask you to come get me. I was ready to die on that platform after I shot the lieutenant, and I was ready to die in whatever maker-forsaken place they were going to send me. You hear me? I didn’t ask for this.” He gestured around the room, around the Batch. 

“So don’t make me a burden you don’t want. Drop me anywhere. Leave me. It’s what I deserve - oof!” 

Wrecker couldn’t take it anymore, and as he watched Crosshair teeter on the precipice of self-destruction, he took two strides towards his brother, and engulfed him in his arms. 

Crosshair stiffened, his arms frozen mid-gesture to the side. Wrecker stood there, arms firmly wrapped around Crosshair’s back and shoulders, head dipping to rest on top of Crosshair’s head, and he waited. Eventually, Crosshair’s arms fell to his sides, but his body remained stiff like he wasn’t actually registering what was happening. Then, after a few breaths, his arms slowly rose, one wrapping under Wrecker’s arm and the other circling over his shoulder. 

“Why did you come for me?” Wrecker heard muffled into his chestplate. 

“We don’t leave our own behind,” Wrecker answered simply. 

Wrecker felt the shaking first, then he heard the soft sobs. Tightening his arms, he held his once-lost brother as if challenging the galaxy to try and separate them again. When he felt Crosshair crumble into his chest, he released the grip he’d been holding on his own emotions, and the tears flowed freely. Tears of sorrow for what Crosshair endured. Tears of rage at the Empire. Tears of sweet relief at his family being whole again. 

Wrecker felt a pair of arms sneak between his waist and Crosshair’s chest, and when he looked up, he saw Hunter wrapped around Crosshair’s back, arms crushing the sniper into the sergeant’s chest. “We’ve got you, Cross,” Hunter murmured. 

One-by-one, Tech, Echo, and Omega joined in, the last squeezing herself into the middle, wrapping her arms around Crosshair’s leg, and even when the sobs quieted, they remained that way. There was a lot to talk about. A long road of trust to regain. They were about to navigate rough terrain. And the past will resurface, in old wounds, physical and not. But none of that mattered right now. In the middle of their home, a family reunited. Unsure what the future would bring them, but ready to face it all together.

[lbibliophile-sw]

First Time Reuinion

Also on AO3 [600w] @corrieweek - day 3: "you shouldn't be here" @ailesswhumptober - day 10: "you don't have to earn this" @clonefandomevents - CG Bingo: batch mates, 212th Bingo: awful first meetings

“So, you’re CT-3937 now?”

The voice is perfectly neutral, but Clarry still has to supress a flinch as she nervously turns to face the vode in blue and gold armour.

“That would be me.”

She has never met the troopers before, but she knows exactly who they are. CT-3936 and CT-3939. Keys and Flick. CT-3937’s batchmates. This is just another one of countless awkward reunions as GAR troopers finally come to check on their Guard batchmates, only to find that the numbers they are looking for no longer belong to the person they left behind.

“How does this work? Do we call you Zip too, or…?”

“No! No.” She shudders. “We reuse the numbers, but the names remain unless absolutely required.”

“Ok. That… makes this easier.” She watches as some of the tension drains out of them, the vod with gold accents stepping forward from their place at their partner’s shoulder.

“In that case, what is your name? We’re Flick and Keys, both he/him, but I guess you already knew that?”

“I’m Clarry, she/they. Originally Claret, for the red,” she gestures at her armour, “but then there was an incident a couple of weeks after I arrived and everyone started calling me Clarion instead.”

“What sort of an incident? If you don’t mind saying.” She blushes.

“It’s kinda embarrassing, but, well. I was in the freshers after my shift, indulging in my water ration before catching the end of latemeal, and the pipe breaks. So I’m standing there in just my skin, being blasted by absolutely freezing water, and swearing up a storm, loud enough-”

“-to be heard in the messhall. I remember Zip telling us about that.”

“Oh! So you’re ‘colder than a Hutt’s hind on Hoth’. The story went around just before the 501st had a pass through Mygeeto, and the phrasing caught on.”

“Really? I can’t believe… Anyway, just as I was winding up, Commander Thorn stuck his head in, complimented me on my diction and use of acoustics, and offered me a place on one of his riot squads. I couldn’t decide whether to be more flattered or mortified! The jokes lasted for weeks, but I decided to keep the nickname even if I mostly end up shortening it.”

Laughter rolls through the little group, and Clarry feels some of her own tension leaving. It is nice to know that she is not entirely new to them, that even gone, Zip is helping to smooth their first meeting.

She watches as the other two look at each other, a twinge of jealousy striking as an entire conversation is held in aborted gestures and flickers of expression. After a brief back and forth, the vod in blue, Keys, turns back to face her. 

“Look. …oh Force this is awkward. But here goes. We knowyou’re not Zip, and you won’t ever be Zip – no-one can truly replace him. But according to all the records you are CT-3937. So that means that technically we’re batchmates. If… if you want to be?”

Clarry thinks about her own batchmates, lost even before CT-9845 ‘died’. She thinks about her inherited comm, with its group chat that she never quite had the heart to block; the way that watching Flick and Keys banter was a balm after a long shift, the way they still addressed the occasional comment to Zip even as she refused to message them in his stead. She thinks about how this is supposed to be a time of new beginnings and celebrating their survival.

“I’d like to try.”

[coaz-photography]

Heroes of the Resistance

[echoedcrosshairs]

Unseen Scars

Summary: Female Jedi survived order 66 hides out in the underground of Ord Mantell. Hiding out in Cid's parlor keeping your head down you see Rex's face and get sent backward in time. (Gif by @dreamswithghosts)

Warning: Order 66 Jedi Trauma, Feeling Haunted, Soft Rex, Angsty and Love

Word count: 2.7

(part two)

Masterlist

The costs of war can never be truly accounted for, you spun the disgusting bottom shelf liquid around your glass pondering Master Yoda's saying noting how right it was. Your head swam back to when the order was given, feeling all the death and pain through the force. The betrayal on the deepest level, soldiers we fought beside for years trusted with our lives killing us like discarded bantha fodder. We never saw it coming, we speculated something was coming but we never dreamed that our dearest allies would turn on us. You wondered if anyone had made it and if they too lived like womp rats hiding in darkness.

One must let go of the past to hold on to the future. The saying twisted in your guts like a knife, how does one even move past something like that? How could I even think of the future? Your mind wandered to your closest... friend and confidant then the rage seethed like it normally did when you envision his face knowing it was one of countless who gunned down Jedi. You slammed the drink back. Looking up you saw another hooded stranger walking sitting in the other dark corner. Your mind went blank at this presence, body screaming at you to run... it didn't take long to find out why. Frozen to your seat like the ice of Hoth itself held you down forcing you to watch the scene unfolds. In the commotion your hood most have fallen back, the four men and him stared at you you didn't hear a word that was said before that your ears rang and your mind fell blank. Puzzled looks fell on the four men's faces as he softly said "Commander..." The title use to make your heart flutter everytime he called it out but now it just filled you with terror. Any minute now he was going to shoot, your heart pounded and your feet finally started moving.

Rex fell to unabashedly to his knees for a moment watching you flee from him, she's not dead, the relief flooded him followed by agonizing truth that you were horrified of him, why wouldn't you be? Why didn't you hear that his chip was gone? His hand wiped the revolution that trickled from his eyes. Rex's head was spinning but he pulled himself up one leg at a time. He looked at Echo who was staring at the door before turning to him gripping his shoulder, "We'll find her, Captain."

"Who was that, Rex?" Hunter asked.

"A Jedi," Echo whispered, "a very dear friend of ours."

Hunter waited staring at Rex knowing there was more to the story, "Found her," Tech said interrupting the silence.

"Where is she," Echo said taking the data pad from Tech, "She's on the move-" finally noticing the wetness he wiped from his face.

"Girlfriend, wasn't she?" Tech said filling in the unspoken blanks.

"Soldier's can't have relations with the Jedi-" Rex stated.

"The Republic is gone and to the Empire you are dead," Tech said flatly.

"We have to go, Captain," Echo urged, Rex nodded and the Five of them started running.

What is lost is often found. Ord Mantell had become your darkness, a sliver of peace and privacy in the blossoming chaos of the Empire spreading through out the galaxy. A chance to fade into the shadows as a relic of an era that was over. Now this home had to be abandon just like everything else. Your feet kept running and the hair on back of your neck stood up. You looked back, nearly tripping noticing the four's armor. Commando's, the deadliest troopers, designed differently and raised to endure. They probably have everything mapped out in their hands, it's like shooting a rancor in a cage. Not even with my saber do I stand a chance against four... Although one seems familiar... You looked back noticing the one with a stomp, "Echo... Clone Force 99," you ducked sideways into the nearest building. Crosshair has to be up above some where waiting for his trap to spring.

You cut through the building hopefully buying yourself time to think. Running out of breath you rested for a second against the wall. You mentally listed Hunter's, Tech's and Wrecker's enhancements. Anyone but Wrecker even with his strength I doubt it would be quick... Then again with Crosshairs temperament I doubt he would be either. You hit your head back against the wall before taking off again. Turning your head again you saw Hunter catching up, you stopped for a second using the force to rip a door and shoved it in his direction, but you knew it was to late his hunters sense of smell and hearing... If I could just get to the nightclub... I could use that against him- You're body collided with a solid mass and tumbled back, Echo. You scrambled back to your feet defensively reaching for the lightsaber that was no longer there.

"I'm putting down my blaster," Echo said eyeing you like a rapid animal waiting to lounge, "Commander, you're safe. None of us are going to hurt you nor to turn you in."

"The clones betrayed us," you gritted out slowly backing out of the room.

"Not all of us, Commander," Rex said behind you and his arms come around you. Feeling you thrash against him, "Mesh'la..." he got out pained softly whispering your name, "You're safe," he felt your legs buckle slowly took both of you to the ground holding you against him wrapping his arms around you tighter hearing the sobs start. He gave Echo a weary look as he sat looking at the two of you.

"Commander, I'm glad you made it. Both of you," Echo said taking off his helmet setting it off to the side, "The three of us together again," he added quietly with a small chuckle.

"Say something..." Rex whispered, "anything..."

"Let me go.." as you finished the sentence Rex's arm came off, always the loyal solider following orders. Pathetically you crawled away from both of them curling your knees to your body. You looked at them resting your head on your knee, "Is this some sick trick?" You whispered.

Rex's fingers went to the scar on the side of his head, "It's gone," he paused reaching out his hand, "Ask me again."

Anxiously you took his hand and asked again feeling the truth in the answer and Echo did the same, "The others need to get their chips out but they haven't activated, I promise."

Finally you genuinely looked at Rex, the fine buzzed blonde hair, the poncho hiding his 501st armor and earthy tones eyes staring back at you. You stared at him the red veins in his eyes, you wiped the tears from your own looking up out the windows. There was no imperial ships above waiting because they would have been here by now. Glancing down you found your hand visibly shaking you pulled your arms into your lap handing them. You looked back at Rex as much as you wanted to see him your mind kept slipping backwards seeing the troopers fire at you and the others fleeing. Shutting your eyes you buried your head in your lap.

"So... why are they just sitting there?" Wrecker asked.

"Given the last time she was around regs they tried to terminate her per Order 66," Tech offered, "If she around them when the order was given which I am assuming she was given her behavior."

"Shouldn't we be in there because we're not regs?"

"No, we still have our chips however deviant we are if what Captain Rex says to be true, the three of us are the dangerous ones. I would leave them be."

"Commander..." Rex said softly.

"The war is over, you don't need to call me that," you said lifting your head to your knees. Rex whispered your name softly and you forced yourself to look at him, "What?" you whispered.

"I'm glad you're still here."

You reminded silent for a moment, How do I even answer that? I'm not. "Thank you," you decided to be polite.

"Do you want me to give you two a couple minutes?" Echo asked softly.

No, "Yes," forced its way out through your strained vocals.

Echo looked at Rex hesitantly before prying himself off the hard ground heading outside to meet up with his squad, finding the anxious look on their faces discussing what had compelled Rex to cry given it was next to impossible for a clone. Everyone in the had 501st gossiped about what was going between them but neither of them had every winded any truth to it, Echo aired that curiosity to them which silenced them in understanding.

Rex moved closer to you watching you flinch moving his hands under his poncho watching you tense up as he took it off. He slowly took off his armor laying it to him revealing the plain civvies underneath, "Just me," he whispered watching you relax a bit. He cautiously scoot forward waiting to see if you would move away when you didn't he came a hands width away. He looked at the ponchow with an idea putting it over both of your heads surrounding both of you in completed darkness to keep the reminders of his face at bay but also privacy, "Just us."

"Why did you chase after me?"

"I always protect my Jedi, I'll always protect you."

"Why did you send 99 after me... it was horrifying."

"That wasn't my idea albeit it was a good plan to get around you sensing me if you were distracted," Rex admitted, "It worked in my favor, albeit to well." Weakly Rex let his finger tips touch your knee waiting to see if you'd jerk away but you didn't and he slide his palm on your knee resting it there. He gave it a gentle squeeze, "I'm sorry."

Shakily you put your hand on top of it and squeezed it back. The familiar warmth radiated off him, "Rex," the name rolled from your tongue like a distant pleasant memory, "it's getting hot under here." He laid one hand on top yours and used the other to cast aside the poncho to the ground, "Better" you whispered.

"Do you want me to leave you alone?" it pained him to think about finding you again and losing you again but it comforted him that you had survived. He smiled watching the emotions coast through your face, you'd always been so good at hiding them but now they were as plain to see as the stars in a clear night.

Your mind screamed yes but the familiar warmth in your heart said no. Staring at the scar on his head, you shook your head Rex isn't a threat, Rex isn't a threat, Rex isn't a threat. Your stomach turned but you allowed yourself to reach out to him through the force finding the familiar honesty, courage, loyalty, the secret in his heart that did his best to hide from the outside world was so blatantly on display with his touch. You watch pain on his face slowly relieving.

You felt him slowly weave his fingers through yours, "Is that okay?" he asked.

"I can feel Echo's contentment and laughter from here," you weakly laughed.

"They did speculate about what was going on between us," Rex smiled looking up at Echo laughing in the window giving him a thumbs up hearing him faintly say 'Called it'. Rex groaned still smiling, "Will you allow this humble man to walk you back to the parlor?"

"Yeah... I need a drink... or a dozen," you said prying yourself up with him still holding your hand as he stood up himself temporarily letting go to reaffix his armor and poncho.

"When did you take up drinking?" he asked arching an eyebrow relacing his fingers through yours noting you wouldn't look at him to long but the expression said enough as to why. His thumb traced the reminiscent intimate skin of his love, each swipe solidifying that you were alive and there not just some figment of his imagination holding him to the past, "I've missed you with each breath of life my soul expels."

Your face flames at his words, "When did you become a poet?" you jested.

"To many late nights wondering what happened to you."

Echo rejoined the two of you but everyone else gave you breathing room. Even with his fingers gripping to yours he still brought his other hand across his body holding onto your arm for dear life. You looked up at him almost crying again, even before all of this you never publicly got to walk down the street with him or show any interest in him.

"What is it?" he whispered, "My fabulous hair getting in your eye?" he attempted to crack a joke.

"That was horrible, Captain," Echo chuckled.

You squeezed his hand, "Never got to do this before... walk down the street just as me and you."

"It's a different time," he offered.

"So Comm-" Echo caught the title switching to your name instead, "How long," he said motioning his finger between the two of you."

Rex looked at you a bright scarlet sweeping his face, "Well... somewhere between the whole time and now," he offered.

Echo gave him a flabbergasted look, "What."

"Help?" Rex choked out taking his extra hand off your arm to rub his head awkwardly which got an even more expressive reaction from Echo,

"Tibrin," you offered back smirking at the unspoken about mission.

Echo groaned knowing the answer was going to get him no where. He looked at both of you smiling, "Everything in the galaxy has changed but I'm glad something stayed the same."

"I didn't think it would," Rex said flatly staring at the ground for a couple minutes before looking back up.

You stopped as much as the anxiety about the clones put you on edge, that comment stung worse, "Commander?" he asked staring at you. Even Echo had stopped.

"To love, is to trust. To trust is to believe. Do you believe I would so easily changeable?"

"We change everyday to adapt to this new world. Who we are now is not who we were when we met."

You dropped his hand continued walking, "Cyare," he groaned wrapping his arms around you pulling you to him, "You didn't let me finish. We as people change but in no galaxy, nor time apart nor in death will my heart ever beat for anyone else. Looks at me Mesh'la," Rex swallowed although his mouth and throat were parched, "Let me kiss you to prove it."

You looked up at him, Rex had never been one for public affection even so much as holding his hands behind his back and side stepping if he was even within a foot of you even in moments of privacy outside of a confined bedroom. He peeled his gloves off sticking them in his pocket, "It's only ever been you," he said lightly touching your face with one hand waiting before bringing the other to your face caressing you pull you close to him lowering himself to you waiting and when you didn't move he took your bottom lip between his.

It was like thrusters coming online, an inferno blazing between the both of you. Every feeling of love, pain, lost and aching of the soul. Somewhere in the distant you heard Echo laughing and calling the two of you cute. Your fingers shakily found the side of his feeling the familiar cut of his cheeks and strength of his jaw. Then up to the scar flinching you pulled away. There was a temporary look of disappointment on his face followed by understanding. He grilled your fingers tighter, “I’ll spend the rest of life protecting you from the unseen scars with my love.” Rex pulled you closed, “I love you.”

Maybe a part two?

[cuddles-with-dragons]

Time travel AU?

Imagine this:

It's 12 years after the Clone Wars. You're Din Djarin, a relatively new member of the Bounty Hunters Guild. You were raised by deserters of Death Watch, a group calling themselves the Nite Owls. You pick up a job on Hoth.

You find a strange sword hilt of some sort. You pick it up, and all of a sudden you're surrounded by clone troopers and battle droids.

You've gone from 7BBY to 22BBY. The first year of the Clone Wars.

A blaster bolt flies right in front of your face, hitting a B2 droid that was about to attack you. It came from an angle that not even you can make. It's a tricky shot.

You look in the direction of the shot that was fired, and it came from a clone trooper -at least you think it's a clone trooper- with armor painted dark gray and red, a stark contrast to the white and gold of the others.

There's three other troopers wearing those colors.

Your training kicks in.

You take out at least two dozen droids. You're panting heavily and you realize that everyone's staring at you.

A bearded man wearing slightly familiar robes and holding some sort of laser sword approaches you.

"What in the blazes is a Mandalorian doing here?"

[vephyrus]

my Bad Batch season 3 predictions

so. from a fan perspective, i want everyone to live. Bad Batch is my comfort show, i am grossly obsessed with this show.

from a writer’s perspective, here’s what i think.

the only ones with plot armor are Rex, Wolffe, and Gregor.

Tech is alive. he’ll either get Echo’d, or will become a dark trooper. Hemlock is a cruel man, and i have no doubt that he would create the dark troopers - considering they were cyborg clones.

Hunter may sacrifice himself for the Bad Batch. we already know he’s a good brother. he’s their leader, and a good leader puts others needs above his own.

Omega will become an experiment in a tube. (this one i’m unsure about, because considering she’s a Star Wars kid, she should be safe.) i think about that scene from S1E9, when she approached the Kaminoan in the tube, and it played a slow version of ‘Omegas Theme’. it could be pointing to her past, or a foreshadow. she may go off to live on Pabu and have her happy ending.

i’m not sure about Echo. we know that there’s a base on Hoth called Echo Base. i really hope that he gets his happy ending, because he deserves it after everything. but i can’t help but wonder why the base is named after him.

i feel like Crosshair will sacrifice himself for Omega. if not Hunter, then Cross. ‘hating’ Omega and his brothers, then eventually sacrificing himself will be the ultimate development for Cross.

i’m not sure about Wrecker.

an alternative is that they all live their life out happily on Pabu :) if Pabu is on Scarrif, then their story will end in Rogue One.

otherwise, i want our boys (and Omega) to have the life they deserve. i just don’t know how likely that is :(

[uwingdispatch]

Hi friends! I’ve extended my sale through Tuesday Nov 5! So if y’all had your eye on something or want to get some shopping done early, now’s the time! I also upped the discount to 25% off most things in the shop: hair accessories, jewelry, pouches, keychains and lanyards!

I know it’s been a hard year and especially stressful these last few months heading into the election. Shop is here. 💜

Also one of my suppliers accidentally sent me a bunch of snow troopers….so I made these. Just in time for Hoth weather. (Unless like me you live in Texas and it’s still 80-90 degrees every day 😰)

I have some fun new things coming soon so keep an eye out! Love y’all.

[heroineimages]

Lady Warrior Art Poll!

Hey, so one of my artist friends is doing commissions for her Patreon followers, and I was thinking of doing a meme of sorts. I was thinking of having done a portrait of some brutal, gnarly, angry-looking lady warrior eyeing the viewer with a caption that reads:

"That which does not kill me... should RUN."

But I can't decide what kind of lady warrior, so I thought I'd put it to my readers in a poll. I decided to toss in options from both history and fiction/fantasy, and depending on what gets picked, I may have a follow-up poll to narrow it further. (I'd also love to make it a week-long poll, but I want to give the artist plenty of time to prep!)

I considered several other possibilities for the list, but decided to narrow it to just eight. For the rebel trooper, lady knight, and pirate queen, I may also let pollsters pick what race to make her (ie, Star Wars or D&D race). And if anyone wants to offer suggestions about their choice in the comments or tags, feel free!