Lean on Me
Chapter Three
You were sifting through your chest, taking a pair of extra clothes in case it turns into a multi-day mission, which you were hoping it wasn't.
From what Skywalker told you about them they were a reckless bunch, especially Wrecker. He tended to take things as they went rather than formulate a plan and a contingency plan. Although, Anakin was the same. If they were anything like Anakin on missions, gods help them.
You threw some clothes in your duffle bag, including the book you were going to give Omega. They were planning to leave soon, so you had to get a few things before you could give it to her.
Your hands brushed against your saber, thinking if you should take it with you or not.
No. I am more than capable of fighting without my saber to defeat my enemies. You closed your trunk and left it at that.
Walking to the bathroom you grab your toothbrush and toothpaste, along with some toiletries that the boys may not have.
Although you were dreading being stuck in close quarters with the clones, you also felt an obligation to Cid. Her friendship means a lot, and if you can help her with a few tasks on occasion, it was your duty to do so. That was what friends do.
———————————————————————
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
You turn the light off in the bathroom, checking the room over to make sure you had everything you need.You open the door to see Wrecker on the other side.
You may not know him well, but a sense of ease washed over you when you caught his eye. Like a calm breeze after a storm. His armor hugging his body. You knew he was a good man deep down, he was a good person in a crappy situation just like you and you truly enjoyed the banter between the two of you.
Did he ever take his armor off? You wondered.
"Hello mesh' la." He said with his cocky side grin.
You sigh as you look up to him, then turn around to lock the door.
"Stop calling me that, I don't know what that means." You spoke.
You were never one with languages, anytime on mission with other Jedi, they usually did the talking. You learned plenty of the basic languages you were expected to know due to heavy interaction, but that was it. You never had the patience, and the masters at the temple knew that it was a lost cause because eventually they let you sit out and pick another type of training to do during that time.
"Then why worry about me saying it?" He smirked.
You turn and look into his eyes, wondering what happened to him to cause such scarring and an injury that severe.
"You make it sound like an insult or something." You sling your duffle over your shoulder, walking with Wrecker to the docks where the Havoc Marauder sat.
"Trust me, it is the furthest from an insult." He said looking sideways at you.
"I'll take your word for it." You turn away starring towards the direction your walking in.
As you walk down the street in silence, you start smelling the wonderful scent of caramel in the air. Of course, with your luck, your stomach growled loud enough for not only wrecker to hear, but someone walking past you.
Your cheeks flush red as you avoid staring at a gawking Wrecker.
"What in the hell was that?" He laughs.
"The monster inside of me that wants to eat you." You bite.
As we approach the final carts along the road, Wrecker stops at the Mantell Mix stand and buys a bag full.
"Just put it on Cid's tab." He says to the vendor, while swallowing a few bites.
He held the bag out to you, offering you the Mantell Mix.You move your hand to grab the bag, your skin brushing with Wreckers.
"Thank you, Wrecker." You said genuinely.
He smiles and nods in your direction, the both of you continuing your walk towards the ship.
———————————————————————
The Havoc Marauder was a complete pigsty. How these guys flew in this thing like this, you had no idea. There were weapons laying out, oil rags and half eaten protein bars. They certainly lived like every other guy you knew.
Omega jumped from a viewing window to greet you.
"Hello (y/n)!" She said, smiling up at you with Lula in her arms.
You smile brightly down at the child and lower yourself to her eye level.
"Hi sweetie, I brought you something." You throw the duffle bag in front of you and pull out the book of fairytales.
"Now this book has the amazing ability to put a smile on your face even in the lowest of times, this I can promise you. I wanted to thank you for the delicious muffins you made for me." You smiled.
She flipped open the book, turning the pages gently, admiring the artwork on each page.
"Thank you so much (y/n)c but actually-" Wrecker clears his throat from behind you, causing Omega to look up and stop talking.
"Well thank you!" She smiled.
Before you could say anything, she jumped into your arms, hugging you tightly. You gave her an extra squeeze before separating.
"Come I want to show you my room!" She grabbed your hand leading you to the little window nook that was lit up and cozy. A smile lit up your face. It was hard to imagine this girl being in Kamino. She must have been lonely. You knew many of the younglings would become homesick, including yourself when you were that age. Your heart broke for her in a way. Wondering what types of activities she would miss out on at her young age.
"This is so cool Omega; did you make this yourself?" You ask, very much impressed with this girl's creation.
"Oh no, Wrecker built it for me, so I had my own space to enjoy." She beamed squeezing Lula a bit tighter.
Wrecker really was a sweetheart, which was surprising considering he looks like a big tough guy. You never imagined he would have a soft side. Interesting.
"(y/n) we have a bunk cleared out for you in the back." Hunter said coming up behind you.
You bend down to pick up your duffle and follow Hunter to the back of the ship.
You wondered how long these guys have been working together , they seemed close like they were brothers.
During your time working with your clones, they seemed more controlled, more disciplined. These guys seem to run on their emotions, they don't think about consequences until after they have already done what they intend to do. It was nice to see such a friendship among them, one you were jealous of.
Hunter stops abruptly and turns to face you.
"Thank you for that, giving Omega that gift. She hasn't exactly had a normal life." He says, turning to walk further.
"It is no problem, I use to read to a lot of the younglings at the temple, help them escape from their studies and have a sense of normalcy for even just a little while." You said as you observed your surroundings.
Once you got to the living area on the ship, it really wasn't too bad, clean even.
Hunter stops at the last bunk on the ship.
"This one is yours. I know its nothing special, but it'll be more comfortable than the floor." He shrugged.
"I'm not picky, thank you Hunter." Hunter turns when Tech calls him to the front for something.
"I will let you get settled." He says before he walks off to the control center.
Hunters footsteps hit the metal floor away from you, you sigh and stare ahead at your bunk.
You throw your duffle on top of the bunk, and shake your head that you are in this situation. The guys weren't bad, they were nice enough. You just didn't know how to move passed everything that happen the day the Order fell. It continues to haunt you night and day, you don't see that changing anytime soon.
You don't see them as the enemy, you know that much is certain. The fact that they had chips installed inside of them was heartbreaking enough.
"Hello roomy!" Wrecker yells as he throws himself on your bunk, setting the duffle bag on his body.
"Get off my bed." You say flatly.
Wrecker puts his arm behind his head, snuggling himself into your bunk. His body was so big that he barely fit on the bunk to begin with. That coupled with his armor and he looked absolutely ridiculous.
"Why do you constantly antagonize me, don't you have anything better to do?" You seethed.
Wrecker thought about that for a moment before shaking his head. His eyes looking in your direction, staring you down head to toe.
Fine, he wants to play games.
You call the force to you, imagining your hand around his throat. You don't apply a lot of pressure, just enough to spook him. As you concentrate on his throat he slowly begins to cough, trying to talk.
You release him as he gasps for air, rubbing at his neck.
You smirk not making eye contact.
Maybe being on this ship won't be so bad after all. You laughed to yourself. Even through he was built and large, he was still attractive, not that you would ever admit it.
Nope. You wouldn’t admit shit.
"Oh Mesh' la, you really shouldn't have done that." He stands on his feet closing the distance between the two of you. You try to back up, but your body hits a wall. You try to go left but he puts his arm up blocking your path. You try to go right, again he blocks.
Your bodies are so close you can feel the heat rolling off him, his scent mixing with yours.
"Where are those fangs princess?" He whispers in your ear.
You can't speak. You try to form words, but he is so close to you, you can't seem to come up with the right ones. Your body was warming at the thought of his touch, his strong arms holding you hostage.
Did I like this? You ask yourself.
"Move." You said, barely whispering.
You look up into his eyes then down at his lips. You licked yours instinctively, which he absolutely noticed. You were surprised your knees didn’t give out. Your stubborn self would never allow that. You would be the one to win this little game.
"What was that? I didn't quite hear ya'." He smiles while closing the distance even more, making your stomach do backflips.
Your were mere inches away from each others face, him staring down at your wet lips.
No! you thought. This could not happen. You would not let it. You force shove him a little to break his contact on the wall.
"I said move." You smiled and walked away to the control center.
Leaving Wrecker chuckling behind you.
"There are those fangs mesh'la." Low enough that only you could hear.
Your stomach doing backflips at his words. You didn't turn around to address him. You continued toward the control center, your nails digging into your fists.
——————————————————
"We are closing in on our destination." Tech says from the co-pilot seat.
You didn't go back to your room the rest of the flight there, who knows what would have happened if you stayed there. He was very good at dominating the situation, but the fact was that you could have pushed him away if you really wanted to.
So, what does that mean? You questioned.
You shove the thought down, trying to pay attention to the task at hand.
"What is it that Cid wants us to grab?" You turn to Hunter curiously.
"A Tactical Droid, apparently their intel is very valuable." He says not turning his head away from the screen.
"Wonder what she needs it for..." You say more to yourself than anyone else.
"She did not give us a reason, although it could help fight the Empire." Tech suggested rolling his neck.
You didn't say anything. Who knows what the Empire has in store for the galaxy. The fact that they took down the Republic and pretty much brought the Jedi to extinction, didn't suggest anything good.
Whoever was behind the plot to take down the Jedi, was smart. It was planned and executed perfectly. The eradication of the Jedi alone was a bold move than no enemy before has executed.
"Alright mesh' la, time to gear up." Wrecker comes behind you and drops a bucket in your lap.
"What is this for?" You ask looking up at him.
"To avoid anyone seeing your face, you're going to wear the armor." You had to admit it wasn't a bad idea.
You look at the helmet, the dark paint making it even more menacing. The site over the right eye was intriguing as you moved your fingers down the design.
"Whose gear is this?" You ask, standing up.
The room went silent, before Echo spoke up.
"It is Crosshair's extra suit." Again, silence.
Clearly Crosshair was of importance to them, maybe he died.
You stare up at Wrecker, his eyes staring down at the helmet in your hands. Eyes full of sadness.
You did not particularly like this look on Wrecker. You much preferred his smile.
Sucking in a breath, you turn back to the helmet in your hands...You would ask him about it later, you didn't want them going onto a mission with other things on their mind. Going into battle with a stress on your mind is what could lead to your demise and that of your team.
You left and went in back to change into the armor. A couple spots were a little too big, but it wasn't something worth complaining about. This would shield my identity in case any surprises came up.
A part of you felt like you looked ridiculous, but when you looked into the mirror, you couldn't help but enjoy what you saw. You looked like a soldier. It was different for you as a General. You had armor but rarely ever wore it, it was only used if you were on a mission that was predicted to have a large body count.
You walk up to the doorway where the guys and Omega stood. They were all looking at you with mixed emotions on their faces.
Your heart hurt for them; you knew this pain all too well. A pain of losing a loved one. The look on Wreckers face alone made you want to go in back and take the armor off and just hope for the best out there, but it wasn't wise and could draw more attention if you weren't wearing it. This way at least you looked like a full team, minus the kid obviously.
You put on the helmet, adjusting to the lighting.
You tighten the gloves on your hands and look back up to the boys who are waiting for you.
You could do this, you would honor whoever wore this armor before you. You would fight alongside their brothers and protect them.
"Let's do this boys." They can't see your face under the helmet, but you were smiling at each of them.
Wrecker, looking at you with a smirk, winks in your direction and slips on his helmet.
Why did this guy have such a effect on you. You thought about how close he was to you earlier, heating your core, making your body become covered in goosebumps.
It wasn't just the fact that he was incredibly handsome, he was also extremely good to Omega from what you could tell, they all were.
As you walk up to the boys, wrecker hands you a rifle. Your guess was that it was also Crosshair's.
You grab the gun from his hand and nod to the rest of them. Luckily you knew weapon systems well. You didn't want to only rely on your saber during battles, you wanted to familiarize with other forms of protection so you were never in a situation that you couldn't protect yourself.
"Based on my intel there should be a way to slip through a blind spot, into the facility undetected." Tech said as he touched the screen in front of him.
Single file you exit the Marauder running towards the facility, Omega between you and Wrecker. The facility itself looked run down, like no one could possibly be working here. You pass through the blind spot seemingly undetected, so far so good.
The sky was becoming dark as the sun was beginning to set. The sun illuminating the rusted corners of the buildings.
You come up to a ladder, leading to the area Tech had us aiming for. Hunter and Tech begin the ascent, Echo following close behind.
Wrecker hesitates before looking back at me.
"Wrecker, come on move." You say urgently.
He huffs out a sigh and climbs the ladder behind Echo. Me and Omega following close behind Wrecker.
The first challenge was before us, a guard with his back towards us walking towards the catwalk where Hunter was leading us. Wrecker breaks ranks, coming up behind the guard and putting him in a choke hold, waiting for the man to go limp before throwing him to the ground.
You walk along the catwalk, looking at the conveyors below. The moving belts carrying broken down pieces of droids. Omega uses her binoculars to look down at the pieces, searching for the specific droid we came for.
"Wrecker, Omega, (y/n) you stay on the catwalk, we are going to head down to the lower level to search for the droid." Hunter says through the comms system in the helmets.
"Seriously?" Wrecker complains.
Hunter gives him a pointed stare causing Wrecker to sigh and shake his head.
Hunter and the others take off down the staircase to their left.
Omega scans the conveyors for a couple minutes while the boys make their way down to the first level, taking down guards in their way.
"I see it! But the droid is already in pieces." Omega says.
"WAIT! Someone is taking the droids head!" Omega yells.
You catch sight of the person running with the head. You jump from the catwalk above down to the first floor, slowing your speed with the force to avoid injury. You block the persons exit point, Hunter blocking from her rear.
"Nice moves." Hunter compliments. Your smile under your helmet your cheeks flushing.
The girl looks between you and hunter, she was wise to choose to try and take out hunter before you.
She manages to get past Hunter, as I try to go after her the alarms sound in the facility.
"You guys I think we have been made!" Wrecker yells through the comms.
Your eyes shoot to the girl with the helmet, then at the droids coming through the doors, the doors closing and sealing behind them.
"Ill get the girl, you figure out how to get those doors open!" You yell to hunter.
You start your run after the girl, dodging droids left and right. Shooting the ones at a decent distance.
"We reached the controls, the doors won't open without someone turning the system on, on the upper deck control panel tower" Tech says.
"Tell me what I need to do." Wrecker says with urgency.
"You need to jump from the catwalk over to the control panel and pull the lever." Tech says hesitantly.
You hear Wrecker running above you and stop at the edge of the catwalk.
Three police droids coming behind him, I aim the rifle blaster at the droids taken them out with single shots. Wrecker turning to me briefly before looking back at the panel.
"We need you to hurry wrecker we are outnumbered." Tech said worriedly.
You spy Wrecker walking back and run and jump onto the platform pulling the lever moments later. The facility turns on, conveyors continue rapidly like they had never stopped.
"HUNTER! I need your help! I am stuck on the conveyor heading towards the Melter!" Omega yells through her comm radio.
You panic, fear evident in your eyes as you search the moving conveyors for Omega. You spot her, and another person trying to get to her. Hunter not far behind.
You breathe a sigh of relief when you see hunter with the other two people who seemed to be helping Hunter pull Omega loose from whatever was holding her down.
But no Wrecker.
You look back up to the control tower and see Wrecker lying on the ground. Fear sliced through you like butter. You run and jump on crates easing your way up onto the catwalk. You run and leap over to the control tower, sliding next to Wrecker. You rip your helmet off.
"Wrecker!?" You shake him gently.
No this could not be happening
you turn Wrecker over with some difficulty, taking off his helmet. You see his eyes are closed, fear nearly causing a panic attack.
"Wrecker wake up!" you slam your hands down on his chest. He rouses awake, groggy and grabbing at the side of his head.
"By the maker, are you okay? I thought you were dead!" You ask, fear in your eyes.
"Glad to see you care." He grumbles. He rubs his head over a small knot that had formed.
You hug him tightly at that, he rubs your back in response. His body smelled like gun powder and eucalyptus. You pull away slightly, looking into Wreckers eyes to see him staring right back at you.
"Hey, we need your help down here guys."
You smile and put your helmets on. You jumped from the platform, spinning on your way down, landing with ease at the bottom.
"Such a showoff, Mesh' la." Wrecker says. Amusement laced in his words.
"What can I say, I am a winner." You laugh in response.
You make your way towards the rest of the group and the two girls fighting alongside them. You aim your rifle, shooting any droids you can spot. One came from your left, as you fire one more round at a distant droid you spin around coming up behind the droid trying to sneak attack, ripping his head clean off using an extra pull from the force radiating through your body.
Wrecker running past you he smashes right into the two droids trying to pull another sneak attack behind me. He grabs the last droid by the head and rips it off.
"Now that is what I call a winner." He says breathing heavily through the comms in his helmet.
You couldn't help but to laugh in response.
Everyone heads back to the Marauder including the two females who helped hunter and a male who was working with them.
Turns out they needed the droid in a plan to fight against the Empire, Hunter made the decision to give them the droid head. Saying they would be doing good with it.
You couldn't help but be extremely proud of Hunter in that moment, but also realizing that these clones are nothing like the regular clones that turned on your brothers and sisters. They were on the right side of this fight.
As hard as it may be with the memories of that day, you knew in your bones that these guys could be trusted. That because of their defects, it effected the chips programming enough that they would still have a mind and decisions they could make on their own.
——————————————————-
As you sat on watch as the crew slept, you kicked back your feet with a book in hand.
Wrecker came back to the ship with one hell of a headache, everyone agreed he needed to sleep it off. Omega was snuggled up in her nook, book laying across her chest and Lula snuggled next to her.
She really was adorable. It was sad to think that she never had the opportunity to experience a real childhood. You would make it your mission to give her a piece of one, for as long as you weren't working alongside her brothers. She deserved it. Just like the younglings did.
"You did good today." You hear Hunter coming up behind you. His footsteps much quieter.
"Thank you. I'm just doing my part for Cid." You say closing the book around a bookmark. You grab the blanket draped around your body and wrap it tighter around you.
"How is Wrecker?" You asked Hunter nervously.
He smiled slightly and took a seat in the seat across from you.
"Tech said he is going to be okay, just needs some rest." He says putting his arms behind his head.
Silence fills the room before you decide to speak up.
"Who is Crosshair?" You ask Hunter intently.
You made sure it was in a soft tone, the pained expressions on their faces earlier today told me you had to tread carefully with this topic, and rightfully so.
Hunter looked at you, thinking of how to respond and how much to tell you. You could see that a part of him wasn't willing to trust you just yet, just like you had been doing with them.
"He was in our squad, our brother...His chip was activated, and he turned on us." Hunter says, his eyes turning from yours.
Even though Crosshair was still alive, you could understand the pain he was in. This was his brother in arms, his comrade. Him turning on them was like a slap to the face, and like a death in a way.
Your heart broke learning your men were now hunting you. They were the closest thing to family that you knew, so you understood Hunters pain, all of their pain.
A wave of affection washed over you thinking of them, thinking of the struggle they also went through during that time, even now for that matter.
"I lost a lot of people the day Order 66 took effect, many of the younglings that I cared for at the temple died that day, or so the rumor is." You said in a low voice, zoning out.
You realized in this moment that you want them to trust you, you went them to know that they have nothing to fear from you. Maybe even form a friendship with them.
"I am sorry for your loss." He looks down not wanting to look you in the eye.
"It is not your fault, and honestly it is not the fault of the clones either. Someone planned this, they wanted to dismantle the Republic and the Jedi Order." You say flatly.
"Doesn't make it any less painful that innocent children died." Hunter said, now looking at you.
The water was building up in your eyes. The thought of the younglings dying in fear ripped a hole right through your chest. You wish you would have been there for them, to protect them.
The fact was you could not change the past, you could only work towards the future, the future that was now intertwined with Clone Force 99.
"I am sorry about Crosshair." You spoke.
Hunter nodded in understanding.
"Well, I can't sleep anymore, why don't you go hit the bunk ill take over watch." Hunter says breaking the silence.
You sit up and dust off your pants, and pull the blanket around your body, feeling the warmth surround you.
"Sounds like a plan to me, thank you." You smile kindly at him before turning away.
You walk a couple steps before halting and turning back to Hunter. The question eating at you for a while now.
"Hunter? What does mesh' la mean?" You question.
Hunter turns his head to look over his shoulder, a smile on his face.
"It means 'beautiful.'" He turns back to the window without another word.
You walk up to the bunks; you see wrecker on the bottom below you his eyes closed and hands behind his head.
You take off your tunic, leaving your tank top on. You climb into your bunk and get settled in, placing your book at the end of the bed by your feet.
"Goodnight mesh' la" You hear Wrecker say quietly.
You close your eyes with a smile on your face and no anxiety in site.
