#sull/a’den

[firewoodwander]

Mistletoe 18 (Prank) A'den/Sull

Mistletoe prompts

Somebody, overnight, has launched a holiday offensive on the Kyrimorut homestead. The whole karyai is wreathed in evergreen and shiny things, handmade flimsi decorations strung everywhere else.

A’den returned from Levet’s farm to find winter festivities in full swing—the whole residence preparing for midwinter with varing levels of enthusiasm.

To be quite honest, A’den has managed to steer clear of most of the mayhem so far. The morning was taken up with food preparation and the afternoon with even more decorating, but now the time has come for the feasting and the drinking and he can no longer rely on good humour and a few well-placed comments to keep himself out of the line of fire.

In fact, some scheming little menace seems to have been plotting, and successively pulling little tricks on each and every one of them. A’den has money on deceptively innocent Laseema and Corr, though, unfortunately, it seems like his time has run out.

In the doorway of the karyai, he walks nearly head-on into someone coming the other way, and finds himself nose-to-nose with the ever-wayward A-30.

Lashes speckled with melting ice-crystals, Sull is flushed with the cold and freshly returned from a trek through the snow. He smells like frost and veshok, this close, and his frown deepens as he eyes A’den with suspicion.

A’den smiles, easy, ignoring the whoops and whistles sounding off at his back.

“Welcome home, stranger. Somebody sure knows how to time an entrance just right. Or should I say exit?”

Sull continues frowning at him, gaze flicking briefly over his shoulder into the crowded living room. “This isn’t my home.”

“Of course it is,” A’den laughs. “You wouldn’t be able to get in, otherwise. Now come on, aren’t you going to kiss me? These harpies won’t let us go until you do.”

Sull rears back. “What in the seven hells are you talking about?” he demands, and the consternation on his face when he follows A’den’s attention up to the innocuous sprig of parasitic berry bush. “Is this a joke?”

“I do believe at our expense.”

“No cheating!” Mereel calls from somewhere. He sounds far too smug, and in need of toothpaste in his caff tomorrow morning.

But for now A’den is getting bored, so he reaches out and puts a hand on Sull’s shoulder.

“No big deal, right? Just a little fun.”

“Yeah,” Sull murmurs, although his eyes have dropped to stare at A’den’s mouth. “Whatever.”

And A’den only meant to tease a little, at first, but he finds it hard to think much other than the warmth of Sull’s lips with mouths pressed together, or the gentle puff of breath over chilled skin.

If A’den is thinking of anything, he’s coming to the quiet realisation that perhaps he was the fool in this story after all.

[trudemaethien]

Random word prompt: Sull/A'den – honey

xo Possum~

i see the beekeeper au is buzzing about 😁

🐝🐝🐝

uhhhhhh [hides] they decided to do all That instead of be sweet, but this did grow out of my thought of Sull calling A’den “honey” in the most poisonous way possible…i just couldn’t make it happen in this bit sryyy

“What the hell was that; I like it here?” A’den hissed over Sull’s taunting:

“Kama fashion or some such, that’s the best you got?”

“Seriously, Sull, what are you still doing here? You can’t stay. I know you’re smarter than that. Have you got a karking death wish?”

Sull looked away, no smart comeback for that.

“Oh, no you don’t,” A’den said, crowding him. “Tavo would have belted you one good if he heard you spouting that kind of osik. Tell me that’s not your aim.”

Sull looked at him then, expression turning ugly. Each word carried the weight of a wound. “Tavo’s not here.”

“I’m more than willing to play proxy,” A’den threatened, half raising his gauntleted hands.

Sull bristled a moment longer, then sighed, deflating. “You know…not really. I don’t want— I was just marking time. Playing civilian. Here wouldn’t have been such a bad place to die. Not like it’ll make much difference to my carcass where it lands.”

“Well, if it doesn’t matter to you, then there should be no problem for me to say: not here. You’re mucking up my operation.”

“Oh, your operation,” Sull mocked. “The one even I could see the massive gaping holes in the strategy and logic for?”

“We both know where this war’s going, only I have a team and a plan to ride it out.”

“You’re really confident you can make it out of this clusterkriff with your hide intact?” Sull’s sneer was just a verneer over how genuine his question actually was.

“Confident enough I’m willing to send you on ahead,” A’den said solidly. “Sull, you’ve always had a lot more backup in your corner than just your buddy. I am sorry to hear about 28, ner vod.”

He set his hand on Sull’s shoulder, fingers curling around the stiff-sewn collar of his leather coat. Sull’s eyes flickered across his familiar face, searching for something.

“I’ll see you again,” A’den found himself promising, “after everything, okay?”

Sull’s jaw worked as he chewed that idea over. “Okay,” he said finally, and then slowly, deliberately leaned in and pressed his mouth to A’den’s.

A’den stood firm and let him—take comfort, make that promise—then watched him as he retreated, with a different glint in his eyes.

“Be a few days, probably, before I can get my smuggler here for you,” A’den said, swallowing but with a tentative smile playing around his lips. “Plenty of time to …debrief.”

Sull ducked his head and blushed, but he was smirking too. “I’m going to have to keep acting like a dick to you, Sergeant, or your squad of Raw Cocksuckers out there might rub their collective braincell together and get suspicious.”

A’den snorted, then leaned in to murmur, “Likewise.”—a threat and a promise.

Leave Me Safe Away

read on AO3 🔒 https://archiveofourown.org/works/52082578

[canuckianhawkbi]

I am having way too much fun with these SW polls, here’s one more for the road:

[nocturius8015ficore]

Fanfiction #5: Trust

Nocturius: 5th Republic Commando fanfiction! Here a scene with some underrated Alpha ARCs trooper Sull and Spar!

Enjoy!

---

Title: Trust

Fandom: Star Wars Republic Commando books by Karen Traviss

Characters: Bardan Jusik, Fi Skirata, Sull and Spar

Rating: Family-friendly ** Fairly accessible to people who don’t know RepComm **

Topic: Friendship, loyalty

Pitch: The atmosphere is thick in the route from Mandalore to Coruscant as the two Alpha Arcs troopers are traveling with former Jedi Bardan Jusik...

---

Fews minutes after the Aggressor starfighter jumped in hyperdrive, Bardan Jusik, a former Jedi now a full-time Mandalorian warrior, was in command. He let out a brief sigh after making sure everything was safely on autopilot and let his legs rest on the co-pilot seat.

Jusik still felt not entirely sure about letting Fi coming with them on Coruscant but the lad was eager to get into new challenges.

Something about the Core planet preoccupied him too. The problem with the Force though, was that things were mostly feelings and not actual intel he could build something on.

He also felt burning eyes on the back of his head. Deserter Alpha ARC trooper Sull didn’t trust him. He knew though that he would do nothing against him. Not with Fi around watching his six and surely not now he knew that Kal Skirata was actively working to find a cure for aging clones. Jusik finally positioned himself as if he was about to take a nap, but discreetly entered in meditation state. Even out of the Order, Force’s skills were best kept sharp. In a little common room, Fi, Sull and Spar, another Alpha ARC deserter were in dead silence. Fi was usually the one to break a heavy mood but he had a lot on his mind already. Plus, talking fluently was still a complicated matter. He didn’t want to look diminished in front of the two Alpha ARCs, but since Fi punched Sull in the face two months ago, no one would ever think that. Surprisingly, Sull was the one who broke the ice.

‘’So… That’s true. You really are supposed to be dead. I sliced into the GAR’s medical reports. Things looked seriously bad. No tricks. How did you make it through?

‘’ Officially discharged dead, yeah. ‘’

Contrary to before his injury, Fi’s thoughts were running faster than his mouth, he wanted to express how he felt the GAR treated him like garbage. GAR-bage was actually a funny pun, but the tone didn’t feel right to say it out loud at the moment.

‘’ I got help from my vode and the girls. ‘Couldn’t do it alone. Being nice to people, having friends pay off, you know? ’’

‘’ Di’kut…’’

‘’Drop it.’’ said Spar, a hand on his shoulder. ‘’He is right though, it’s time for us to learn to stand together, the Mando way.’’

‘’…With that shabla Jetii…’’ Sull muttered.

‘’ I thought we agreed he is my vod. Our vod. You better change that attitude. Him and Parja are the ones who put me back on my feet. Bard’ika literally quit the Order to nurse me for a big fat month ‘’

‘’… A month you said? ’’

‘’ More than that, but a month daily, multiple hours on my side. Fixing my brain cell by cell or something. I don't remember the early days. Ordo and A’den were there. We are a year and a half later and he was still doing his magic tricks on me the other day. Burning itself doing it. ‘’

Fi paused and looked at his friend in the pilot seat. He was able to say complete sentences when he concentrated enough but felt a bit mentally exhausted. Shab, his body was about fine now but there was still a lot of stuff to get right.

‘’ It’s not like the legends then, is it? Healing an open wound, laying-on-of-hands style in a few minutes with the power of love and friendship or some osik. ‘’ said Sull, one eyebrow left.

‘’ He basically gave you one of his metaphysical kidneys? ’’ add Spar, looking in the direction of the cockpit.

Jusik stretched his arms and did an almost theatrical yawn before joining the conversation.

‘’ More like part of my metaphysical liver, it will regrow over time. Time is what I have P for Plenty as Kal’buir would say. I can’t buy the sins of the Order, but I can share some of my privileges with you. Might have get few gray hairs doing it, but I don’t regret it in the slightest and would I do it again if needed. I was prepared to do it for the rest of my life, actually. Fi recovery is a little miracle even by Jedi standards.

‘’ I wouldn't be there without you. ‘’ said Fi, his chin down and suddenly very emotional. ’’ Parja… She gave me so much hope, she filled the void in my life. She was way more than a nurse. I’m so glad we are married now. ‘’

‘’ You did a lot of the work by yourself too, look at those arms! ‘’ Jusik wink at him as he pressed his shoulder vigorously, who was not quite as large as the two other clones.

They all laughed while Fi, with a sad smile, wiped the corner of his eyes discreetly.

‘’ Congrats by the way. ‘’ said Spar cheerfully. ‘’Did you choose a godfather for the future kid you’ll get?

The mood was definitely lighter. Fi looked at Bardan who was making a jug of caf for everyone.

‘’ Mando'ade doesn’t have godfather traditions. We are Aliit, we care for each other, but I know who I trust and would do anything for.’’ Fi slowly lifted his mug and salute his non-clone brother.

[clonewarslover55]

Republic Commando Masterlist

Find my masterlist of links here! 

Non-Repcomm clone masterlist here!

Began: originally  6/16/20

Updated: 3/19/23

Walon Vau and Mird 

(Find my works with him and my OC on my AO3 or on their own masterlist here!)

Walon Vau’s early life story

Walon Vau’s homeworld, Irmenu.

Walon Vau weapon headcanons

How Jango and Vau bonded //Working on now//

How Vau joined the Mandalorians //Working on now//

Walon Vau taking care of Kad 

Reasons why I love Vau 

Even Strill’s throw hissy fits 

Walon Vau face claim //Maybe//

How Tall is Vau?

Vau’s eyes 

Walon Vau’s cock headcanons //NSFW//

Another lesson from Sergeant Vau

Warming you up. Walon Vau X Fem!Reader //SMUT//

Mandalorians don’t fight fairly

A cold grab on Kal and Walon

Drunken fun with Walon and Kal 

Walon Vau and Kal Skirata hate sex //NSFW obv//

Kal Skirata 

Kal Skirata face claim

Kal Skirata height discussion 

Kal Skirata’s cock headcanons //NSFW//

Spending the day with Kal Skirata  Kal X Reader //Fluff//

Kal Skirata wears glasses

Kal Skirata and his IKEA foldable stool //Six parts all linked//

Mandalorians don’t fight fairly

A cold grab on Kal and Walon

Drunken fun with Walon and Kal

Walon Vau and Kal Skirata hate sex //NSFW obv//

Delta Squad and Advisor 

Advisor relationship headcanons //NSFW and SFW//

Delta squad relationship headcanons //NSFW and SFW//

Delta squad personalities explained 

What the Delta Squad looks like headcanons

The Delta Squad Boys as fathers headcanons

Delta Squad chaos: Lord Mirdalin

Delta Squad Chaos: Gossip

Tales around the fire with the Delta’s, Omega’s and Null’s  //Adult content//

Snow day snuggles with Scorch

The curious young Delta’s

Sev’s first time being pegged //NSFW//Sev X Fem!Reader

Fixer’s first time being pegged //NSFW// Fixer X Fem!Reader 

Boss’s first time being pegged //NSFW// Boss X Fem!Reader

Scorch’s first time being pegged (Currently being discussed)

Fingering Boss. Boss X GN!Reader //NSFW//

Rescue mission

Another lesson from Sergeant Vau

Calming Sev down while he’s having a panic attack //FLUFF//

Sev asking for more babies

Boss’s punishment //NSFW//’

Having a secret marriage with Scorch headcanons

Dad!Sev Headcanons

Fixer X Fem!Reader  //SMUT//

Boss X Fem!Reader !NSFW! //Part two// //Part three//

Fixer X Reader

Fixer is sweet and awkard //Fixer X Reader//

Fixer X Fem!Reader !!NSFW!!

Fluffy Sev X reader 

Scorch X Fem!Reader !NSFW!

Sev X Curvy!Busty!Fem!Reader !NSFW!

Scorch Angst

Delta Squads biggest fans. Part one 

Omega Squad 

Omega squad relationship headcanons

Omega Squad personalities explained

Fi comforting the reader after a horrible week

Oral sex and pillow talk with Fi //NSFW and FLUFF//

Story time with Darman Skirata

Kids are chaotic! Darman and Etain fluff

Stress relief. Niner X Fem!Reader //SMUT//

Null ARC’s 

Null realtionship headcanons //NSFW and SFW//

The Null’s with kids Headcanons

Breakfast with the Null’s

Null Chaos! Starring petty brother things

Null Chaos! Starring Jaing’s new gloves

Null Chaos! starring A’den

Welcome home sex with A'den. A'den X Fem!Reader //SMUT//

Teaching Ordo. Captain Ordo X Fem!Reader //SMUT//

Sleepy Kom’rk cuddles

Hooking up with Mereel //SMUT//

Kom’rk blurb

Being Marked up by Mereel //SMUT//

A teasing game with Mereel //NSFW//

Singing with A’den

Mereel X Non!Mando Trans!Fem reader!!

Alpha Arc’s from the books 

Sull(Alpha-30) Relationship and general headcanons

Captain Maze general headcanons

Maze and his new baby

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

The Reunion - Part 33

Summary: Tech learns some valuable intel; Rex meets an old friend; Wolffe is forced to rest; Crosshair and Oleander have a much needed conversation.

A/N: Hello Lovelies,

YEAH!!! I was able to actually write! I’m sooooo happy. I hope this plot line makes up for the two week delay, now that I’m getting use to the routine, it shouldn’t be that long of a wait, hopefully. 

I’m gonna start working on Sins of the Father, Gym Membership and Upside Down, in the next few days. Therefore, I beg of you all to just bear with for the time being. 

LOVE OO.

Italics - flashback

Warning: Mentions of MIA clones, whining, being followed, drunk person, hiding in the shadows, secret rendezvous, discussions of being left behind, secrets kept, held captive, rescued, mention of alcohol, anger, protests, demonstrations, bomb, explosion, argument, feelings of being ditched, relationship issues, angst, fluff, I think that’s it. If I miss any, please let me know.

AO3 Link |   Words: 5,068  |   Previous -> Next

Main Master List   |   The Reunion Master List

TECH POV

Jaz had been working non-stop since we arrived on Alderaan, it was beginning to worry me a little, ner rid’ika was looking exhausted by the time she made it to our room on the third day. In fact everyone seemed to have relegated themselves to being swamped with work. Wolffe was tirelessly looking over every scrap of information I could find for him, and anything Lady Cora had been able to find with regard to what happened on Coruscant the weeks after Order 66. 

Her soft snores filled the room, as I looked over some more data Lady Cora had provided me. It was early in the evening, but my poor cyar’ika just couldn’t keep her eyes open. I sat on the couch, keeping Jaz company while she slept peacefully. We’d heard from Rex and the guys they had arrived on Ord Mantell, they were keeping us apprised of the situation, things were getting … difficult there, apparently anyone and everyone who shared valuable information with the representative of the Empire earned some credits. 

Walking around Ord Mantell was about to get a lot more difficult. How were Wolffe and Fives going to make it to Rex’s ship? For that matter, how were the guys going to make it off Ord Mantell?

We’d need to find support and a way to stop the Empire and soon, if things that are happening on Ord Mantell are happening elsewhere, no planet or moon will be safe, everyone will turn on each other for credits. 

I was perusing the list of MIA when I came across our names, it made me chuckle. If they only knew what we were really up to, they would prioritize looking for us.

 My hand stopped when I came across the following clone numbers.

A-17 (Alpha)

A-26 (Maze)

A-30 (Sull)

A-66 (Muzzle)

CC-5108/8843 (Corr)

N-5 (Prudii)

N-6 (Kom’rk)

N-7 (Mereel)

N-10 (Jaing)

N-11 (Ordo)

N-12 (A’den)

RC-1207 (Sev)

RC-3222 (Atin)

RC-8015 (Fi)

The Nulls and Alphas had been some of the fiercest clones in Kamino, the fact they were all MIA was surprising and hardly coincidental. 

“Tech?” 

I glanced over to Jaz, who’s face was buried in her pillow, “Yes rid’ika?”

“When you coming to bed?”

I couldn’t help smirking, “Can’t sleep without me, mesh’la?”

“No” her muffled sleepy voice was quite endearing, “I need to hug you to sleep”

“There’s my pillow, cyar’ika”

“Techhhh” Jaz whined, I couldn’t help chuckling as I walked over to the bed, placing the datapad on the table, as soon as I laid down beside her, her arms wrapped around me faster than a speeder on Tatooine. For a minute I thought I was being attacked by a rathtar, a very tiny, lovable and completely smitten rathtar. I wrapped my arms around her pulling her closer to me.

“Is this better?” I mumbled into her ear, she nodded as her head rested against my chest. Feeling her breath even out, relaxed me completely. I closed my eyes, knowing this will probably be the last time we could actually rest, once we leave Alderaan things were going to be very different. Especially, if we could somehow find those missing Alphas, Nulls, and Commandos.

- - - - - - - - - - -

REX POV

The dark at least afforded me the cover I so desperately needed, I needed to be able to meet with my contact and getting to hangar B-0774 was becoming difficult on it’s own. Everyone was on alert, and watching everyone’s movements. It was almost as though they were all itching to earn a few credits. Ironic really, seeing as how everyone hated the Empire, yet it was the Empire that was putting money into their pockets. 

The closer I got to the hangar, the greater the chances were I was going to be seen. We needed to get out of this city, and to get in touch with the guys. I pulled the hoodie further down hiding as much of my face as possible. 

“Hey!”

Damn it! I shifted towards a darker ally, slipping into the shadows, slowly and silently, hoping it would throw off whoever called out. A dark figure lingered in the entrance of the alleyway, as I hid behind a sewer pipe. 

“Where did ya go?” The person seemed to sway from side to side, clearly drunk. There was a time to fight and there was a time to stay still. This was the latter. If I could have them pass me by, I could sneak out of the alleyway back on my way to the hangar bay. 

“Did you fly away?” They stood peering up into the sky, there was something oddly familiar about the voice, “Fly … fly … fly away” It sounded wilty, “Just like a moth flying away only to be caught by the spider.” They turned looking into my direction, I could feel my pulse racing, if it weren’t for the shadow completely incapsulating me, I have no doubt they would’ve found me. They let out a long sigh, crouching on the ground, their features were completely covered, making it difficult to make out their face, yet something about their manners seemed familiar. 

Eventually, they stood looking into the darkness where I hid for a moment longer, before heading out of the alleyway. I closed my eyes, letting out a deep breath of anxiety I had been holding in. I didn’t know who that was, frankly I didn’t want to know. I inched further and further out, there was no one around, and I didn’t have time to waste anymore. I had to meet my contact. 

I entered the hangar, making sure no one had followed me.

“Even though there’s no more rank, I technically still outrank you, right?”

I let out a chuckle, “In my book, experience outranks everything, Commander Tano”

Ahsoka simply smiled before walking over and giving me a hug, “Long time Rex”

“Glad to see you’re safe, sorry about bringing you here, vod’ika” She patted my back before motioning me over to a bench, “You here by yourself?”

“No. Trace and Rafa had to make a delivery, so it worked out. When I hadn’t heard from you in a while, I got a little worried”

“I understand, sorry about that. We were … in hiding.”

“We?”

“Yeah, there’s a fair bit I need to tell you about, so I suggest getting comfy …” It felt oddly comforting telling Ahsoka about it all.

“Tala… hmm, her codename was Halcyon correct?”

“Yeah that’s her.”

“I had no idea she was force sensitive; however, it makes sense there are fewer of us now. Those who are in touch with the force no doubt feel the imbalance.”

“I’m sorry this is probably not helping”

“Knowledge whether good or bad always helps, Rex. I’m glad to hear that Fives and Echo are doing well and have found each other again. I’m also quite happy to hear that you have rescued both Wolffe and Cody. Though knowing you, you would’ve found a way to save them regardless.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence”

“Always. Tell me in your travels, have either you or your companions learned of anything that we can use to unite those fighting against the Empire?”

“Not necessarily unite, however, we have learned there is a new trusted advisor.”

“Who?”

“A Chiss named Thrawn, we’ve learned he’s become a Vice-Admiral just recently.”

“I see. There has to be some way to unify all the different factions.”

I smirked thinking back to our time on Onderon, “What if you contacted only the leaders of each group, through an assumed identity.”

“Would that be trustworthy? Some have had a very hard time with trusting one another.”

“Only way to build trust is with time and experience.”

Ahsoka had a soft smile on her face as she looked up to the night sky of Ord Mantell, “It’s been a long time since we sat side-by-side planning missions and coming up with different battle strategies.”

I followed her gaze as the stars began littering the night sky, somewhere out there was Vane on the same ship as Thrawn, I couldn’t help but think back to our last conversation before we rescued that pompous prick. 

“Rex, you know if we had met … if we had a different life…” her hand caressed my face, I closed my eyes trying to remember that warmth, “Everything I ever told you was true, I love you, Rex. More than you can possibly know.”

“I just don’t understand why you didn’t tell me, why you didn’t just explain …”

“Explain what? That I had found out the truth about what Order 66 meant, that the Chancellor was really behind it all …” she sat on the bed of the motel rubbing her forehead, I could still hear Cody and Gregor talking to each other they weren’t loud enough for me to make out what exactly they were saying, however, it was the only noise that filled the room, while she sat there contemplating what to tell me. “Rex, you have to understand, I had no idea what command would have triggered you, what if I said the wrong thing and it caused you to turn on me? Or what if I accidentally triggered Order 66 in you and you went to kill all the Jedi? I … I know I should’ve told you the truth, I should’ve persuaded you to leave with me. Then I could’ve found that chip in your head, but you didn’t want to leave.”

“How could I leave my vode when you weren’t telling me anything?” I ran my fingers through my hair, as I took the seat beside her, “Why not just admit the truth, Vane” I turned to look in her eyes, there were tears brimming her eyelashes.

“What do you mean?”

“You were scared of me, scared of what I could’ve done to you”

She shook her head from side-to-side, “That’s not true!”

“Then why not tell me?” I felt a tear escape down my cheek, I quickly wiped it and turned away from her face, “You told me you loved me, but if you couldn’t even trust me enough to know I would never harm you, regardless of what any chip tried to tell me to do …”

“You don’t know that, you can’t say for sure”

“Actually, I can” my hand clenched against the bedding as I thought back to when the chip kept telling me to kill Ahsoka, but no matter how hard it tried to order me to kill all the Jedi, I couldn’t pull the trigger, not on my vod’ika. I slowly told Vane about what happened onboard that Venator, and despite how hard I tried, I still pulled the trigger. 

“I’m sorry, Rex. I should have taken you with me, I should’ve …”

“It’s in the past, now. Nothing we can do about it.” It was true no matter how hard I wanted to fight with her, tell her she should never have left my side, she made her decision and I couldn’t stop her. “Why did you join back up again?”

I felt her finger trail closer to my hand, I turned to look at her, her eyes were focused on our hands that lay beside each other without shifting to reach out to one another, there was clearly too much anger and pain between the two of us. Despite the fact, I still loved her, I couldn’t be as close to her as I was before, no matter how much my heart thumped in my chest ready to break out. 

“When I ran, I found myself …” she chuckled shaking her head, “I found myself stuck”

“What do you mean?”

“The ship I was on was attacked by pirates, we were saved by another ship, a crew of men and women I had never seen before.”

“What do you mean?”

“Have you ever heard of the Chiss?” I shook my head, no, “They come from the unknown regions of space, they’re a warrior type group of people, intelligent, methodical … anyway one of the men, Mitth’raw’nuruodo, wanted to learn more about the Republic. He was looking for a strong alliance to help his people, when the Republic reorganized itself into the Galactic Empire, he offered his allegiance to Palpatine, hoping it would be beneficial to his people in the end. Anyway, as part of my thanks for his rescue, I helped him join the Royal Imperial Academy, part of his agreement to be of benefit to the Emperor, he asked for me to be a part of the Empire and for my defect to be pardoned. Anyway, before long we …” She cleared her throat, she’s right I didn’t need to more about that, “Once I got my status back, one of the first things I did was look up your name, when I saw your name on a KIA list it broke me. I vowed to bring down the Empire for you, and then when we ran into each again … I couldn’t let you go.”

“I know, I felt the same.”

She let out a deep sigh, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Rex” tears streamed down her cheek, I wrapped my arms around her pulling her closer to me, I closed my eyes feeling her weight against my chest, feeling her warmth in my arms. Maker! I missed her.

“Listen, we should get out of here before someone reports you missing”

“I know. Can we just stay like this for a minute longer?”

“Sure” Silence filled the room, my heart was beating loudly in my ears, I didn’t want to let her go, “I still love you, Vane. Though, we’re not together and can’t be together anymore, I … I still need you to be safe.”

“Me too” she pulled her head away looking into my eyes, “I need you safe Rex” her hand cupped my cheek, there was so much being said in her eyes, the way they bore into mine, occasionally flicking down to look at my lips. The air was heavy with tension, when a beeping from her comm interrupted us. I pulled away, putting on my helmet, calling the guys to the back of the building. Our time was up, whether we would ever have a chance to meet again was up in the air, whether either of us would survive was also up in the air. I stared out the window to the streets below, lost in thought, when I felt her hand on my back. 

“Here, take this”

I turned to face her, as she pressed a data-coder into my hand, “What’s this?”

“A list of clones that are still alive, living between life and death on the front lines of the Empire, if anyone would be willing to help your cause, it’ll be them. I’ll try and get you any kind of information I can, when I can. If only there was a way I could send you information without alerting the world.”

“We’ll find a way. We always do … right?”

“We’ll find a way”

“Come on, Gregor and Cody are waiting for us”

“Wait … Gregor and Cody?”

“Come on, I’ll explain a bit more”

“You ran into Vane didn’t you?”

I turned to look at Ahsoka, a smile on her lips, “What’s make you think that?”

“You always had that goofy smile when you thought of her, or talked to her, or saw her” she smirked. “Was it a good or bad meeting?”

“It was a good meeting on one hand and a bad one on the other”

“I understand. Relationships are …”

“Complicated”

“Very”

I chuckled as I bumped her shoulder, “It was good to see you. Hopefully, this will help you” I passed her the data-coder Vane had given to me, all those weeks ago.

“What is it?”

“According to Vane, it’s a list of clones that might be looking for a chance to fight back”

“Well then, let’s see what we can do to give them that chance”

I stood from my seat, looking at the ship belonging to Trace and Rafta, “I can’t believe that bucket of bolts is able to get off the ground”

“Don’t let them hear you say that, they’re very attached to their bucket of bolts”

I chuckled, nodding, “I can understand that” I turned to look at my vod’ika, hugging her one last time, “Until the next time, Commander”

“Until the next time, Captain”

- - - - - - - - - - 

CID POV

“About time you made it back” my eyes narrowed on the blonde clone that finally entered the parlour again, “You were longer than you said.” My eyes glanced to the chrono on the wall, as I walked past him, I made sure to walk his calf with my stick. 

“Sorry” he mumbled as he winced from the pain, “I was almost discovered.”

“What do you mean?”

“Someone spotted me and followed me into an alley”

“What happened?” Rex took his time explaining what happened and the strangeness of their appearance and actions, as he spoke he followed me to the counter, as I poured him a drink. “Hmmm” I leaned against the bar behind me, “That’s not the first time I heard something similar.”

“What do you mean?” He glanced up from his drink.

“A few days ago, one of my other hunters came in telling me something similar happened to them, someone called out to them, when they ignore the call it appears a drunken fool seems to follow them for a short term and then disappears.”

“Who do you think it could be?”

I shook my head, “Don’t know, could just be a drunken fool for all we know”

“True”

He seemed solemn, almost depressed “Something else happened though, didn’t it?”

“No” he mumbled as he finished his drink, “I’m gonna head up”

“Hmmm, alright. You’ll have to be up in a few hours to clean this place.”

Rex simply huffed and shook his head, “Always grateful you’re there to lend a listening ear, Cid” he stood heading towards the stairs leading up to their apartment. 

“Hey” he stopped at the foot of the stairs turning back to look at me, “Pay attention cause I’m only going to say this once” I stepped closer lowering my voice, “I’m not here to be your shoulder to cry on, I’m here to make sure Tala, the light of my life is safe. However, that doesn’t mean I’m as cold hearted as I appear to be. Whatever is going on with you is your business, if you want to talk about then I’m here to listen, alright there sunshine”

“Sunshine?”

“You got a problem with that?”

He chuckled rubbing his forehead, “Not at all”

“Well, then sleep well” I turned heading to my office, thinking about the drunken fool. This was the fourth occurrence I heard, it’s definitely something to talk about with the other shop keepers. I headed towards the back room, that was one issue solved, now for the next one. The door slid open, as my guest stood there, “Thank you for waiting.”

“Having trouble with your in-house guests” she motioned towards the direction Rex walked up. 

“Not at all, just had to confirm some information. Anyways, Fennec, tell me what brings you here.” A smile graced her lips as she pulled out a puck, tossing it on to my desk as the image appeared, I couldn’t believe my eyes, “What’s this?” I motioned my head to the image.

“Someone’s looking for her”

“Who?”

“Does it matter”

“Kind of does”

Fennec sighed, “All I know is it’s someone with rank”

“Rank? Empire rank?” She simply nodded “But why Kambie, of all people for them to look for, why her? It’s not like she has any special abilities.”

“Maybe it’s not her abilities”

“What do you mean?”

“If I was looking for someone, I wouldn’t necessarily look for them, but for their associates”

“You saying they’re targeting her to get to the others” Fennec simply shrugged, standing from her seat, grabbing the puck and putting it in her pocket.

“Listen only reason I’m telling you this, is because I admire the kid. When I had her with me, she didn’t whine or complain, or even beg, she simply sat there and waited to be handed over. Even the way they all looked after her when we met up - -  anyway, point is give them a heads up.”

“Will do”

Fennec nodded and headed out, I sat down in my chair letting out a deep sigh. Another thing to deal with, first dealing with the three pets upstairs, the drunken fool, and now this. I deserve a vacation after this, or at the very least somewhere I don’t have to deal with all this ridiculousness. 

- - - - - - - - - - - -

WOLFFE POV

“… As you can see behind me, Olim, the sheer amount of demonstrators and protestors marching along Coruscant’s main pathway towards the Senate buildings is slightly overwhelming. The Coruscanti Guards are standing by, waiting and watching for the slightest provocation. According to one anonymous Senator Guard, they were given an express order from the Emperor himself to allow the demonstration to happen, as long as march remains peaceful, no one will intervene.”

“What exactly is the protest, Adik?”

“It seems the original group were protesting against Clones’ Rights. Despite the promise from the Senate, the Jedi and the ex-Chancellor, now Emperor Palpatine, of providing Rights to these clones who have fought for the Republic since the start of the Clone Wars, nothing has been forthcoming. Just recently there was a statement passed through the Senate stating that as the Clones demonstrated their loyalty under the Republic, the Empire is unable to provide them Rights, as they have not shown any loyalty to the Empire as yet. It is quite the controversial topic, Olim. 

As I said that was the original group, now it seems various other groups, Anti-Empire groups, Anti-Emperor groups, groups that are both pro and anti clone production, are all seeming to congregate here along the march. 

Needless to say, it’s a volatile environment where the slightest provocation could erupt …OH MY MAKER!!! Something … someone … we … escape … bomb …”

Olim blinked a few times as the camera focused back on him, “Adik? Adik are you there? It appears there has been some sort of explosion … hold on … yes! We are getting reports there is quite a large fire … yes, it appears a bomb has exploded in the downtown core … I … Ladies and Gentlemen, please bear with us as we …”

“Wolffe!” 

I pressed pause on the newsfeed from the days following Order 66. Looking at Fives who was standing there watching me, “What do you want?”

“Vod, you have to give yourself a break”

“A break? A break?” I threw the datapad down on the table in front of me, “She was there! I can see her clear as day, third row, holding the sign saying ‘Clone Rights now!’ She wasn’t near the explosion. The explosion happened in the middle of the crowd. How can I give up, when this is the first time …”

Fives held up his hands, “Okay, Wolffe. Okay. I’m just saying there’s no point running yourself ragged is there, we know things got hectic the days following Order 66. All I’m saying is, if she’s managed to stay off the Empire’s watchlist, that’s a good thing right? It means she has help. Just don’t kill yourself …”

“What would you do if it was Shaak Ti? Would you go easy? Would you give up?”

He took the seat in front of me, letting out a breath, “No, of course not. However, Cora did bring out a point last night after … um …” he shook his head, “The point I’m trying to make is, if you run yourself ragged, how will you be able to help her if you’re dead?”

I let out a disgruntled growl, leaning back in my chair, “Alright, you got a point.”

“I know I do” he smirked, I shook my head, rolling my eyes. “Listen, what if I look at some of the footage for you, you’ve been up for nearly seventy hours now, let me take over for a little bit, at least until you feel rested enough to continue.” He held out his hand waiting for me to handover the datapad, I cleared my throat, annoyed by all the mixed emotions I was feeling in my chest. At times like this I really missed Plo’buir, he always had this way of helping me figure out what I was feeling. 

“Fine. Here.” I grabbed the datapad and shoved it into his hand, probably a lot harder than I needed to, seeing as how Fives winced a little. What a weakling. 

“Good, now go get some rest. I’ll mark all the timestamps where …” His expression went blank, I couldn’t help laugh at how scared he looked knowing he forgot her name.

“Chagri. Her name is Chagri”

“Right, I’ll make sure to mark all the timestamps where Chagri appears”

“Fine, but if you miss one, I’ll make sure to leave your body here for Cora to weep over.” I stood from my seat heading to my room, I couldn’t help but grin as I closed the door behind me. 

I threw myself down on the bed, looking up at the ceiling, I let out a deep sigh, deeper than anything I let out before, “Chagri, I’ll find you. I promise. Alive or dead, I’ll find you” please dear Maker, please let her be alive.  

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

CROSSHAIR POV

“I thought you weren’t talking to me” I glanced over to Oly as she sat on the bed, while I put my armour on the stand Fives had made me before he took off with Tech and Wolffe. 

“I realized the fight was as much my fault as it was yours, and we need to talk things out”

I let out a sigh, as I laid down in the bed, my arm draped over my eyes, “Fine. Talk.”

“Not like that, I want you to sit up, look me in the eye and hold a proper conversation with me.”

I let out a huff as I sat up and turned to look at her, “Alright, I’m looking at you. Better?”

“Yeah.” She sat there playing with the blanket, before she looked at me, “You can’t take off willy-nilly and expect me to be okay with that.”

“It wasn’t willy-nilly, there were some very odd tracks that we needed to figure out.”

“Fine, I get that, but you should’ve at least told one of us. No one knew where you went for a day and a half! Do you know how freaked out I was? I thought you had fallen somewhere or broken something, not to mention you didn’t answer you maker-forsaken comm. Hunter had to fly over the planet looking for you, while Tala and Echo walked around trying to sense you with the force, or whatever the hell she does.”

“Don’t take it out on Tala”

“I’m not taking it out on her, but it’s interesting how you automatically protect her.”

“We’re not having this argument again” I let out frustratedly, standing and pacing near my armour. 

“We’ve never finished this argument! When are you going to wake up and realize she’s not yours! She’ll never be yours, and to stop treating me like I’m some secondary prize that you’re stuck with!”

I stopped at turned to look at her, I couldn’t believe she actually said that, “Is that what you think? That I’m stuck with you?”

“Well the way you dote on her, run to her side, ask her for advice, how could I not! Do you know what it’s like to be standing right beside her, and know that out of the two of us, you would probably save her. What’s worse is I can’t even be mad at her, because she does her very best to remain distant from you!”

I leaned against the wall behind me, propping my head looking up at the ceiling, “That’s far from the truth …” I glanced down to look at her, “Lea, you are … “ I moved to kneel in front of her, taking her hands in mine, “I’m sorry for making you feel that way, it’s so far from the truth I can’t even … yes, I do still have feelings for Tala. I’m sorry about that. No matter, how hard I try, I can’t shake it. However, it doesn’t mean I’m going to act on those feelings, especially when I know it would never work. She’s in love with Echo, and I’m … I’m in love with you. I do admire and respect her, but I am enamoured and wholeheartedly devoted to you. Only you.”

My hand reached up, cupping her cheek, “I’m not good with words, you know that, I’m not good with action either. What I am good with is my rifle, there are times when I have to ask Tala questions on how to handle or deal with something in our relationship, but it doesn’t mean I’m trying to spend time with her. I’ve even made a conscience effort to stop calling her the name you hate. I am so sorry Lea, for making you feel second rate. I am doing the best I can and clearly my best isn’t good enough for you.”

“Don’t do that”

“Do what?”

“Gaslight me, try to make it seem as though I’m the one with the problem. If you respected and were as devoted to me as you said, why wouldn’t you have sent a message telling me you were taking off for a day and a half. Why wouldn’t you have answered our calls?”

“Lea, I couldn’t answer because those stupid Fathiers stomped my comm. I didn’t tell anyone about taking off, because I hadn’t expected to be gone for as long as I was. Honestly, Lea, if I had even thought it would’ve taken me that long, I would’ve told someone. Definitely would’ve told you.”

“Cross, I just don’t know …”

“My Queen, if you want to end this …”

“Oh no. No. If you want to end this, you’ll have to be the one to do it. I’m not going to make it easy for you.”

“Alright, my Queen.” I smirked, “Just know, I’m not ending this either. I love you, and I am sorry for everything.”

“How sorry?” She smirked back

“How sorry do you want me to be?”

“Hand over your rifle for a week”

“Are you insane?”

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[stuffedeggplants]

Darman’s arc in True Colors

I thought about the conversation he had with Niner on Gaftikar, the one after Niner’s argument with A’den, and realized that there’s kind of a broad ‘arc’ for Darman that spans the entire book, one that every member of his squad plays a part in.

Darman’s relationship with Etain puts him one foot into another world where he can have a life he chooses for himself, then he has to physically step foot into a civilian world like that in Eyat with Atin. He can see himself as somebody who might live there, “overidentifying” with the place (as A’den terms it.) When Atin spies Sull through a cafe window, he initially mistakes it for his own reflection, and in a sense Sull is a reflection of not just Atin, but especially of Darman. It’s especially thematically appropriate for those two to have seen Sull; they’re the ones in relationships that can serve as a bridge into a world where that reflection of Sull--as somebody who has left the military behind and is now forging a new life for himself--could turn into their reality. But Sull is also alone, and the only brothers of his who come to visit are from Covert Ops and are there to kill him.

That part of the arc shows Darman something that he wants, something he might be able to have. The next asks Darman to think about whether, having seen that what he wants is possible, he would actually go for it. It also prompts him to start thinking about what that decision would actually mean if he were to take it, what the consequences of that would be.

When Niner asks Darman if he would leave the squad, Darman avoids giving him a straight answer. He seems genuinely confused and conflicted and almost isn’t even sure where to go with the question in his mind. He’s seen bits and pieces of a life that he could have, has seen a reflection in Sull who actually went out to go claim that life for himself, but as Darman tells us, he doesn’t even know who he is or might be without/outside the military, and leaving the squad would mean leaving Fi, Atin, and Niner behind.

It’s significant that Niner, out of all of Omega squad, is the one asking Darman this question--would you leave the squad behind? Let’s go back to the beginning of Hard Contact.

“Got it,” Atin said. “But there has to be a point where we consider him dead.”

“Without a body, that’ll be when Geonosis freezes over,” Niner said, still angry and not knowing why. “Until then, we’re going to sweat our guts out to find him, provided it doesn’t blow the mission. Now let’s see if we can sling this gear between some poles or something. We’ll never keep this pace up for tens of kilometers unless we find a better way of transporting it.”

Niner set his helmet comlink to receive long-range anyway. There was no harm in listening. If Darman was out there, Niner wasn’t planning on abandoning him.

Niner refuses to leave Darman behind or to believe that he’s out of range of Omega’s aid unless they get definitive proof that he is dead. This section is in Niner’s POV, and from a few paragraphs prior, we know that he’s feeling concern and sorrow for Darman, and has to contend with this being his responsibility. (”I shouldn’t have let that happen,” i.e. Darman should never have been able to shove Niner out of the craft--Niner should’ve been the last one off after ensuring all his men got off first.) 

Niner has been given the option to leave Darman behind and categorically refused it, feeling that refusal at a visceral level. (The few times we see Niner angry, it’s because of something that has significant weight for his character.) Now Darman is being presented with the hypothetical scenario of leaving Niner behind, and he may not know what that feels like to face that scenario for real when the chips are down, but the thought of it twists his gut up and make him uncomfortable. Even so, he can’t give Niner a yes-or-no answer because he genuinely doesn’t know how to pull apart all his thoughts and feelings and work out who he actually is and what he actually believes/would do here. Darman himself may not know the details of what Niner said back on Qiilura or what was going through his head, but we do, and that makes the fact that Niner poses this question to Darman all the more meaningful.

It’s also important to remember again that Sull was living on Eyat alone. Even if Darman has Etain with him, that’s still a significant image that colors how he thinks about Niner’s question and gets down to the core of what it would really mean if he were to desert and run off with Etain.

In the next part of Darman’s arc, he comes face to face with the very real possibility (which may even feel like an eventuality or a foregone conclusion) of losing Fi. We can see how strongly he’s affected by this when he goes to visit Fi in the medbay, and then in a later chapter he nearly breaks down sobbing. He also faces the uncertainty of what Fi is going through and worries a lot about him being stuck in a kind of limbo in his head, one parallel to the medical administrative limbo he’s stuck in by virtue of being a Defense Department clone trooper asset past its use-by date. Fi is stuck between consciousness and unconsciousness, life and death, personhood and not-personhood, and Omega refuses to let him definitively slip into those latter categories if there is anything they can do about it.

I think facing the scariness, uncertainty, and grief that came with Fi’s injuries crystallizes something for Darman in terms of really understanding what Fi, Atin, and Niner mean to him, and what their absence would mean to him. This is when he knows his answer to Niner’s question at a deep level, but he isn’t able to articulate it to himself yet and won’t until the second to last chapter.

This was his family—his sergeant, his brothers—and however much he wanted to be with Etain, he needed them, too. So Niner had his answer.

Darman sits with his family (absent Fi), including the child he doesn’t know he has, having learned enough about himself that he’s able to inwardly speak an answer to Niner’s question. (Going back to the Sull thing, he’s not alone when he has this realization.) He goes through the stages of seeing what he might have, being asked if he actually wants to go for it, then having to seriously consider what that might mean. He has to consider what he finds meaningful and what he wants, and work out how all those pieces meet each other, discovering what’s ultimately the thing that he values most. 

[padawanlost]

What do you think would have happened to the clones if the war ended in favour to the republic? Like if somehow palpatine was found out and Anakin wasn't turned. Disregarding all the complications of THAT... what would the clones do? They have no families to go back to, and there would still be a butt load of em. Would some of them stay the same way countries have armies or would they be discharged? If they were discharged, what the heck would they do for jobs?

Nothing good. The clones weren’t citizens, they were property so before anything could happen the government would have to change legislation to regulate their situation. For that to happen, they would have to invest time and resources on studies about the economical and social impact of absorbing 1 billion adult beings with shortened lifespan into the economy. On top of that, they would have to face the public opinion. Legislation, specially when it involves social change, is done much faster with public support. However, in the case of the GFFA, the public had little interest in the clones’ welfare.

So they would have to convince a society ravaged by a civil war, facing a serious economic crisis, to make sacrifices to embraces being considered outsiders, different and ‘less than human’. Judging by our own world, I don’t see that happening smoothly (or quickly).

Even if the were to be absorbed by the judicial branch they would still have to considering the ‘inconvenience’ of paying them. Slavery is profitable because you don’t have to worry about paying your workforce, paying taxes, retirement, healthy insurance, etc. so it’s one thing to keep one billion slaves, it’s quite another to keep one billion employees.  

Still, before they even think about things like employment they would have to consider things like housing and basic needs. They would need a place to live and money to buy basic necessities like clothes, food, medications, etc.  they alone could cause a huge dent in the economy which, in turn, would make the public opinion even less interested in supporting the ‘clone agenda’.

To make the matter even more dire to the clones, they would have to deal with the shortened lifespan. Because the GFFA wouldn’t be simply investing in one billion adult men, they would be investing in one billion men that very soon would grow old and sick. This issue alone could very easily turn the public against them. Most people pay 30+ years to have a less than adequate pension fund. The clones would contribute, at best, half of that, before reaching retirement age. So they would contribute less and require more.

In a perfect society everyone would make sacrifices and demand change to provide everyone a fair solution. In a capitalist, deeply corrupted society…people would fuck them over. Sadly, the GFFA was as far as it gets from a perfect society.

Realistically, the answer to your question, would probably be crime. They would be forced to exist in the fringes of society. There’s no way the government could absorbe all of them. sure, some would find good employment and happy futures but there’s no way the government would be able to find a solution that would satisfy everyone at the same time it provided the clones the future they deserved.

And here lies the billion of Palpatine. they were made with shortened lifespans for a reason. Once the Empire was created, he wouldn’t want to deal with this problem for long.

“No, chum, you’ve got it wrong,” said A’den. “This isn’t punishment. Is it, Sull?” All the fight seemed to have drained out of the ARC. Maybe he was just waiting to die. “No, because punishment is a deterrent. And to deter anyone, they have to know what’ll happen to them. But nobody gets told about ARCs who are executed.” “Killed because they know too much?” Atin asked. “Killed because they’re nek battle dogs.” A’den ran the tip of his vibroblade under his nails and inspected the manicure. “Once they’re too old to fight, they can’t be tamed as house pets. Dangerous, savage things. They have to be put down. Don’t they, Sull’ika?” “You can shove your Mando camaraderie,” Sull said, “but you’ve got it about right. And they’ll come for you, too, when you can’t—or won’t—fight any longer, Null boy. Nobody leaves the Grand Army. What do you think they had in mind for us when we weren’t any more use, putting us out to stud?” “Well, I was sort of hoping …,” Fi said wistfully. “We’re not even any special use as a DNA bank. We’re second-generation Jango. They might as well get fresh material from troopers. They’re less trouble.” Darman didn’t want to look at his squad comrades. He knew what was going through their minds. It had to be the same dread: that this limited life was all there would ever be for them.

Truth is, there was no plan for what would happen to the plans once the war was over. Of course, Palpatine didn’t need a plan because he already knew he was going to win but the fact no one bothered to think of this �� not the politicians, not the jedi, not the public – is deeply disturbing. It only serves to show how little concern there was for the well being of the clones beyond their ability to win battles.

[Darman]’d once asked Etain what would happen to the clone troops when the war was over—when they won. He couldn’t think about losing. Where would they go? How would they be rewarded? She didn’t know. The fact that he didn’t know, either, fed a growing uneasiness. [Karen Traviss. True Colors]

So, no, nothing good would happen to the clones because no one in charge, no one with a modiculum of power and influence, bothered to think of what would happned to them. that’s the sad truth. Because they were never view as people, no one prepared for them to have a future *as people*.

I don’t feel like a Republic citizen, because none of us are, in case you hadn’t noticed. We don’t exist. No vote, no identification docs, no rights. [Karen Traviss. True Colors]

[tanadidreamer]

The Eldest, the Protector and the Soldier

Prime snarled as his brothers reported back in regards of the success of locating Boba so far., nothing but negatives and stupid Kaminoans who thought they knew better then not letting the Alphas check in on their unaltered baby brother on occassion.

“Jango is so going to kill us.” Jaster muttered as he and Maze appeared next to Prime. “I checked with Bralor, Rau, Gilamar and Vizsla. They don’t have them but they’re going to help, the Vizsla and Bralor cadets are already checking the regs’ area of the complex.”.

“Did you check with Skirata?” Prime asked patiently as he looked towards his little brothers who simply stared at him as if he were an idiot. The elder Alpha sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Right, forget I asked that.”.

“The Nulls have been unusually quiet.” Sull pointed out from his spot with Seventeen, which was met by total silence before somebody muttered: “Oh shit”.

“Six extra rations say the little brat was running his mouth again.” Spar chimed in as he turned his attention away from 74. 

“Spar, take a team and track the Jaing, A’den, Kom’rk and Prudii down.” Prime said as he turned his attention to Jaster and Maze. “You two, with me. We’re going hunting.”.

“Yes, sir.” The two younger Alphas replied in unison.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing!?” Jaing turned his attention away from his brother and the brat to find three Alphas standing by the door.

“Nothin’, Prime.” Jaing answered the speaker who sneered at him as Jaster and Maze exchanged looks of disbelief. “Boba’s just being mouthy again.”.

Prime jerked his head at Jaing while he marched over to Ordo which caused Mereel to start to intervene

“Ah, ah, ah, I don’t think so.” Jaster says as he intercepted Jaing shoving him towards Maze. “Regardless if Boba is being a brat, he’s still our baby brother. It wouldn’t kill you Nulls to pick on somebody who can fight back properly.”.

Prime quietly approached Ordo from behind and grabbed the slightly older ARC by the collar of his uniform and pulled him away from Boba and tossed him on the ‘fresher floor. 

“Ordo, how many times must we discuss this, hmm?” Prime inquired as he stared down at his Null brother who glared at him. “If Boba’s being a little shit, you come get an Alpha. You don’t react like a child and do this.”.

Ordo picked himself up. “Maybe you should teach him to keep his trap shut.”.

“Boba, what has Jango said about being near the Nulls?” Prime asked as he looked towards the poor kid, who actually did look a bit guilty. “Well?”.

“Not to?” Boba answered.

“What have I said about running your mouth?”.

“Expect to get my ass kicked?”.

“Exactly, now what have you learned?” Prime asked patiently as he turned his attention to Ordo, and kept an eye on his brothers who were dealing with the psychotic Null. And Jaster already had a black eye, that was fast.

“To listen to you and Dad?”.

“Good.” Prime said as he turned his attention to Ordo. “As for you.”.

With that statement, he proceed to deck the Null then grabbed Boba by his shoulder roughly and shoved him towards the door and winced slightly as Jaster headbutted Jaing with enough force to cause the Null to stumble away from him.

“We’re leaving.” Prime announces as he grabbed Jaster’s shoulder before the fight could escalate, and cast one last glare at the Nulls. “Do something like this again and I won’t be as nice.” .

With that, Prime picked Boba up and set him on Maze’s back for an impromptu piggyback ride as they left the refresher. 

[wardensantoineandevka]

Hello! I feel as if most of the RepComm fandom forgets A'den exists, do you have any idea why?

Really, I’m not overly sure why A’den is often overlooked. I can tell you that, personally, it’s because I fixate on Ordo, who has a very particular archetype and narrative place that I am always drawn to like moth to flame.

To speculate, I think it’s because he’s not Ordo, Mereel, nor Jaing, the most fully developed of the Nulls, with fuller highly specific aspirations, motivations, fears, and unique traits. And I think it’s also because he’s not Kom’rk, who generally elicits sympathy for barely existing.

A’den (and Prudii, whom I have to mention to h/t all six) exists in this weird space, I guess. We see A’den enough to get a good sense of who he is, but he still manages to lack a lot of specifics, in my feeling anyway. (Not that lack of specifics has ever discouraged fandom from taking a hyper keen interest in a character. But, then, A’den isn’t white, so that could explain several things.)

A’den also ends up trapped almost solely in service to other storylines. He is a vehicle for Sull’s storyline and for Omega’s misadventures on Gaftikar. He is the reason Ny enters the story. In many ways, A’den serves more as a plot device—there for people to enter the story and to explain things so that story could happen.

That’s really a disservice to A’den, but I think that’s more a feeling out of how he occupies this halfway space. A’den often seems to be in service to a plot. We see him a lot, but like we don’t overly much about him specifically, I guess? Arguably?

A’den, in a way, is the among least flashy (narratively speaking) of the Nulls. He could be overlooked because he’s overshadowed by others. Ironic, considering that reflects in many ways the dynamic in Clan Skirata…

It might also be that A’den appears to most consciously emulate Kal. A’den holds the rank of sergeant specifically because it’s the rank Kal holds: “I preferred to be an NCO. If it’s good enough for Kal’buir, it’s good enough for me.” This, in its way, serves to easily write off A’den. He is Sgt. Skirata, Jr., and there is a perceived feeling that that’s the whole of it. The ability to easily box a character in tends to decrease interest in a character, in my experience of fandom.

[stuffedeggplants]

Nobody uses shab in Hard Contact, but it becomes more prevalent as the series goes on. It appears in some form about 100 times in the final two books, and is a great gauge of how much stress the characters are under, especially for Niner because he doesn’t usually curse at all.

Niner almost always curses because he’s stressed. He drops a real fuck-you in with A’den in True Colors where he’s mentally/emotionally put on edge by the Sull situation, curses a lot (along with everyone else) when Omega is holding off the rebels on Haurgab, and repeatedly curses at Darman when he’s furiously urging the guy to leave him behind and go to Mandalore with his kid in the chaos of Order 66 and Darman won’t do it. Those are some notable instances.

But in 501st? Niner curses plenty. Shab pops up on a routine basis in his inner monologue, and he freely uses it and other Mando’a vulgarities when he’s with Darman much more often than he used to. The last time we got Niner’s POV was in the first book, and when we get it again, he’s cursing more than he ever really has before and in a seemingly more ‘casual’ way, only it’s not really casual at all. 

After Order 66, the governmental and societal transition to Empire hits the ground running, hard. Niner quickly picks up on the fact that men like he and Darman with deep, extraneous cultural loyalties (and an off-leash operational history too?) are no longer trusted. When Vader speaks to the commandos in 501st, he tells them that the government is fully aware of how loyal the commandos have been to some of the names on the Empire’s kill list. Niner, Darman, Bry, and Ennen immediately get their first job as Squad 40, and they’re literally briefed on who their target is and given their maps minutes before they board their transport. This means that the transport’s crew had their own brief and that everyone made sure the ship was ready to go--both mechanically speaking and that it was stuffed with the necessary equipment--before Squad 40 had been told any details about what their job was. To top it off, the guy briefing Squad 40 is a Force-sensitive spook all but said to be working in Palpatine’s direct interest, and he didn’t brief Niner and the others in some 2-3 hour before-flight format or even like 45 minutes ahead of time. It was more like 5 minutes, and it’s not an accident that Bry and Ennen speculate that this unusual last-minute timing is only because they’re being treated like potential security leaks. Niner’s like “weird but okay” about it and Darman doesn’t have a problem, saying it’s completely justified. And Darman isn’t wrong. The Empire’s kill list contains names of their friends-- being ordered to go after Camas is one thing, but what if they’d been sent to kill Ordo? (Though I think they intentionally were not sent to kill anyone they knew...)

But then it becomes a problem when the suspicion does not stop. It does not let up, and Niner becomes more and more aware that he lives in a surveillance state. He feels under siege even before he consciously realizes that he’s living “behind enemy lines,” and no longer finds a sense of comfort or belonging in the army. It becomes him and Darman against the world, so much so that he’s almost disturbed to realize that he can’t even bond with fellow RCs like Bry and Ennen anymore. Niner is stressed, and he knows it. He also won’t fully trust himself, won’t believe he isn’t just being paranoid and overly worried, until he finally gets proof of his surveillance suspicions when meeting Jaller Obrim. Then the fact that even Melusar has checked his office for bugs and is bringing Darman and Niner in on his own covert plans just underscores the extent to which nobody is trusted, everyone is being watched, and to which privacy no longer exists. 

Meanwhile Niner also has to very carefully support Darman who’s going through a hell of an awful time, coordinate desertion with the Nulls, and do right by Bry, Ennen, and then Rede (who went from single-celled to biologically 20 and ‘ready’ for war in the space of a year.) While this is all going on, Niner also consciously downplays his Mandalorian heritage/identity to reduce his radar signature as much as possible while the Empire constantly scans for anyone with unacceptable loyalties. Niner has to be focused, alert, and on guard for both himself and Darman. He has to appear to the world as though everything is normal, but it very much is not. He’s pulled taught, on edge, and cannot afford to relax, so Niner curses, and he does so in the two places he has privacy-- inside his own head, and in private conversation with Darman, the last two places he really has a home in where he doesn’t have to hide anything and there are no threats to watch for.

The only time Niner maybe uses Mando'a with Ennen (the dialogue tags are unclear and it may even be Darman's line) is when he's shouting for Ennen to open the bathroom stall door after that scene... Apart from Niner's other reasons not to use Mando'a, I think he doesn't want to use it with Bry and Ennen either because they'd just perceive it as slightly exclusionary or just a reminder of how different they are. Niner is worried it won't help everyone meld together, or that it could be isolating (especially at this time when Bry and Ennen just lost two of their brothers.) But when Niner and Darman hear the gunshot, Niner's usual concerns about Mando'a are eclipsed by a worry that just spikes out of him, and he uses Mando'a on instinct. (Actually the more I think about it, the line could definitely be Darman's, but this is a decent justification for it being Niner's?)

[padawanlost]

Clone Assassination Plot

I was planning on writing this after i finished the book (Republic Commando: True Colors by Karen Traviss) but i just read something mind-blowing and I need to share it with you all. I’ve been posting some bits and I’ll keep doing that but there are a couple of thing i’ve been saving because I want to talk about them now:

Context

The story is set between AOTC and ROTS (less than 2 years after the Battle of Geonosis). The main characters are clones and a couple of Jedi and Mandalorians working for the GAR.  

Clone Assassination Plot

A few clones ( A'den, Niner, Darman, Atin and Fi) are sent to find a missing trooper (ARC trooper Sull, deserter) . When they find him, they talk about another clone (Tavo) who was executed by the Chancellor’s orders and a plot to assassinate clones is uncovered:

“The Republic sent someone after him to kill him.”

 “Sure?”

 “Sure. They didn’t get him, but my buddy Tavo decided to make a run for it a few months ago, and they caught him. Then they blew his brains out.”

 “They.”

 “Republic Intelligence agents. The Chancellor’s hit men.” Sull didn’t seem preoccupied with escape now. His mind was on events, and he looked past A’den as if there were someone standing to one side of him. He saw ghosts; Darman and every commando who’d lost close brothers saw them, too. “We’re not the only hired help in town.”

 […]

 Darman realized he’d done what most civvies seemed to. He’d drawn a line beyond which someone else was less than him, just as citizens thought all clones were flesh machines, wet droids as Skirata used to call them, things sent to die because they weren’t like real people and so it was okay. If that’s how easy it is to think that way …

 Niner risked a comment. “So that’s the punishment for going over the wall. I’m not sure we should be surprised.”

“No, chum, you’ve got it wrong,” said A’den. “This isn’t punishment. Is it, Sull?”

 All the fight seemed to have drained out of the ARC. Maybe he was just waiting to die. “No, because punishment is a deterrent. And to deter anyone, they have to know what’ll happen to them. But nobody gets told about ARCs who are executed.”

 “Killed because they know too much?” Atin asked.

 “Killed because they’re nek battle dogs.” A’den ran the tip of his vibroblade under his nails and inspected the manicure. “Once they’re too old to fight, they can’t be tamed as house pets. Dangerous, savage things. They have to be put down. Don’t they, Sull’ika?”

 “You can shove your Mando camaraderie,” Sull said, “but you’ve got it about right. And they’ll come for you, too, when you can’t—or won’t—fight any longer, Null boy. Nobody leaves the Grand Army. What do you think they had in mind for us when we weren’t any more use, putting us out to stud?”

 “Well, I was sort of hoping …,” Fi said wistfully.

 “We’re not even any special use as a DNA bank. We’re second-generation Jango. They might as well get fresh material from troopers. They’re less trouble.”

Darman didn’t want to look at his squad comrades. He knew what was going through their minds. It had to be the same dread: that this limited life was all there would ever be for them.

I haven’t found any evidence of any Jedi being aware of this. So it appears it was all on Palpatine.

Coming soon: Clone Medical (lack of) Care, the Holo News propaganda and The ownership problem

[clonewarslover55]

Alright here we go!! I actually really enjoyed this ask. You’re getting a ramble. If you want a more specific thing on a certain boy or for me to elaborate just ask ;)

So I have a lot of clone favorites, and all of them are clones who don’t get enough love. 

Now I do love me some handsome famous lads like Cody and Rex, but they aren’t favorites. 

Any clone from the Republic Commando books are instantly on my love list. The Null Troopers are for SURE on there. Ordo, Mereel, Jaing, Prudii, Kom’rk, A’den are the best Null boys ever. The Omega Squad and Delta Squad as well, such good commando boys!! I Also love the Alpha clones we see in the books like Maze and Sull. (I think I have written for every single clone I just mentioned in here, check my Masterlist)

I just think these clones are fucking amazing. They were all trained by real Mandalorians which is one of the many reasons why I love these funky little badasses. I could ramble about any of the boys from the repcomm novels for DAYS, so I just suggest you check out my masterlist unless you want that as a ramble. 

I just love every single ARC Trooper and Alpha Trooper. They’re highly trained badasses and TEACHERS!! That’s so cool. They’re the best big bros, even if most are hardasses on the outside, they have a soft gooey center. Rancor battalion(Colt, Hammer, Blitz, and Havoc) are defiantly some of my favorites. I just think they’re very pretty and super badasses. 

Some other boys that don’t get enough love include Doom, Trauma, Jet, Bacara, Neyo, Blackout, Keeli, Fordo, and Monnk. Along with sooo many others! (Side boys like Boost, Spark, Hound, Wooly, etc) I have written for almost all of these boys listed, but that doesn't even begin to express how much I love them. 

Doom, Trauma, Bacara and Neyo are all hardasses who don’t show too much emotion. But they are all their own characters and have different personalities. I just love them all so much. Something about a hardass that can be a sweetie on the inside drives me wild. 

hey I think you should tell me more about your favorite clones that I know nothing about 😏😁

I would be Happy to!!!!!

But one question!

In a fic way or a rambling way?? Or both??