#424th

Reassignment Orders.

The words glared up at Naire from her datapad, taunting her as she just stared at them numbly. They taunted her as the pad glowed in the dim light of the passenger area of the transport. The same words kept her from resting as the soldiers around her sprawled in their seats, catching as much shuteye as they could.

They had learned the battlefield allowed for very little peace and quiet or the chance to rest in relative safety. The hum of the transport ship now was a soft lullaby in comparison. That same hum was a scream in her ears as the hyperdrive took her further and further from what she had considered her home, her family.

“So, where are you coming from?”

The cheery voice from above made Naire flinch and she scrambled to hold on to her pad as the same voice let out a quiet laugh. She looked up wide-eyed at the soldier standing next to her seat with a grin and blinked a few times before she could form words, “Excuse me?”

Mirth twinkled in his brown eyes as the soldier in bright white armor gestured towards her datapad.

“I saw the headline of your orders. Where are you being reassigned from?” he asked and Naire felt her fingertips try to dig into the hard plastic of the datapad. She glanced down at the words that had caused her world to spin out of control before turning the pad off entirely. No need to have the orders continue to mock her.

“Seventh Sky Corps. I served on the Venator Negotiator,” she answered quietly and winced as the soldier repeated the name of the ship loudly. A few of the other soldiers stirred nearby and the man beside her ducked his head sheepishly when they both spotted a few glares sent his way. A few grumbled, but quiet settled again quickly as the soldier took the free seat next to her with gleaming eyes.

“That’s the ship the 212th Attack Battalion uses!” he whispered and she smiled at the admiration on his unmarked face. Naire slipped her pad into her bag at her feet and tilted her head to continue listening. “I didn’t even know it was possible to switch between corps or even sector armies. I’m amazed you’d leave the 7th at all. I’ve heard many stories about my vode there.”

Naire’s fingertips lingered on the pad in her bag for a moment as she let his words make the ache in her chest sting sharply. Like an open wound where someone had poured a generous amount of salt. By the bucket.

“It happens. Not often, but reassignments between corps and armies do happen when they are necessary,” she said and sat up to lean back in her seat with a shrug. “And I didn’t have much say in the matter. Orders are orders.”

“Think I’d have a chance to get reassigned to the 212th?”

Naire laughed softly when he wiggled his eyebrows at her and she shook her head at his antics.

“Give your squad a chance and get some experience under your belt,” she murmured and then tapped a finger to his white shoulder pad. “Last I’d heard the 212th only rarely accepted troopers fresh off Kamino.”

His brows rose at her words and he placed a hand over his chest, the very picture of mock-offense, “Excuse you, I might just like my armor white? Why do you think I’m a shiny off Kamino?”

She smiled, drumming her fingers across her knee as she considered him.

“It doesn’t take much to make that guess. Your white armor and unmarked face alone would be a good hint, but I also know this transport made a rendezvous with a transport from Kamino to take all of you soldiers to Edar,” Naire sighed with a wave of her hand when he mockingly, but quietly, began to applaud me. “I wouldn’t be a very good intelligence officer if I couldn’t gather that much.”

The trooper whistled quietly.

“Intelligence officer, eh? What rank?”

It was a fair question. Naire knew she’d been sloppy with her headscarf and part of it was covering her rank designations. New rank designations that felt like they burned into her chest.

Unearned. Undeserving. A way to get her out, out, out.

Naire’s cheeks heated with shame and she hoped the soldier would misinterpret her guilty look as one of embarrassment.

“Lieutenant.”

The trooper straightened in his seat and whipped out a quick salute. Naire quickly raised her hands in a panic to stop him, but he said, “Apologies, lieutenant, that I did not recognize your rank sooner.”

“Shi, shu, sh, no!” Naire hissed, waving her hands, desperate for him to stop. “Please, don’t. I just got promoted and this really doesn’t feel real and I really, really wish they hadn’t. I can’t-.”

She paused when she noticed the way his mouth flattened and the corners of his lips trembled. Naire dropped her hands into her lap with an exasperated sigh and her companion slapped a hand over his mouth to keep himself from laughing too loudly while his brothers rested. She fiddled with her head covering to have it properly arranged while the soldier wheezed, composing himself again. Finally, he held out a hand with a grin.

"I'm CT-4251, but my brothers call me Solus."

"Naire Tadir," she replied, extending her own hand. She blinked when he reached out and grasped her entire lower arm in a firm grip. It always felt strange to have her arm held like that in a greeting. “Your brothers of the 7th Sky Corps called me Spoof though.”

His grin widened into a full smile as he quirked a brow at her.

“Spoof?”

Naire shrugged and pulled her arm from his grasp.

“I’m good at gaining intelligence through the holonet,” she said and then nodded back at him. “‘Solus’ though. That’s Mando’a for ‘one’ or ‘united’. Why that name?”

Solus hummed and reached for his rifle from where it leaned against his seat. He settled it across his lap and the extended barrel and silencer brushed her own knee. Naire leaned closer when she spotted a handful of words painted on the side.

“‘One shot, one kill’,” Solus read aloud, a finger tracing across the words. “I’m an excellent sniper which is what my new squad requested. My commander during training even admitted I was a half decent shot which is huge praise from him.”

Solus chuckled, shaking his head at a memory.

“Ruined his whole day and made us pay for it by having us run through the worst scenarios he could think of. Hated giving compliments.”

Naire squinted at him and asked, “That wouldn’t be Commander Alpha-17, would it?”

“The same! You know about Commander-,” Solus stopped himself when there was an annoyed hiss a few seats away. He ducked his head with a grin and then rolled his eyes. “Actually, never mind, silly question. Of course you’d know about him as an intelligence officer.”

Naire’s chest ached.

Her work wasn’t how she knew about Alpha-17. She’d heard enough stories about the commander that she felt she would recognize him instantly among a group of fellow clones. Remembering those that had told her those stories though… Made her ache.

“Attention.”

Naire flinched when the lights flickered to life in the passenger area and the captain’s voice echoed through the hold. The ship lurched slightly as it dropped out of hyperspace, jerking awake the last few sleeping. The dozing clones groaned and grumbled at the sudden change in light while Solus and Naire shielded their eyes to adjust.

“We will arrive on Edar in the capital Pleah in five minutes. Those joining the 42nd will disembark here.”

Solus straightened and quickly strapped himself in when the ship shuddered a little. The other clones were stirring to life and settling in their seats. They glanced at each other, rest from before abandoned and now brimming with excitement. The ship rumbled as it shook from turbulence and Solus glanced at Naire with a wry grin.

“I suppose you’ve flown a lot since you’re barely reacting to us entering the atmosphere?”

Naire grimaced and folded my hands in my lap.

“I was recruited into the GAR a year ago, so I’ve seen my fair share of flight,” she admitted as the shuddering eased a little. “However, while I have been serving on a starship, I didn’t go planetside very much.”

Solus chuckled and nudged Naire with an elbow.

“Still more than any shiny on this transport.”

The transport shuddered and Naire leaned back in her seat. A few of the soldiers tensed and held on to their straps, uneasy. Their tension bled out of them when the ship settled and the engine turned down to a low hum. A clone lieutenant with a shoulder pad stood up at the front and called, “Alright, everyone bound for the 42nd on your feet!”

Solus along with about four squads worth of clones jumped from their seats, gathering their gear and rushing forward to line up. Except Solus waited next to Naire as she unstrapped. She picked up her bag and slipped it across her shoulders with a smile his way, “Bound for the 42nd as well?”

He grinned as they joined the back of the waiting troopers before he put his white helmet on.

“424th. You?”

Naire’s smile widened in delight as she pulled her officer’s cap from her bag and pressed it firmly onto her head.

“424th as well. Good to know one trooper on the ground already.”

Solus raised a fist with a static laugh through his vocoder and Naire bumped hers against his as the ramp was lowered. She smiled at the sound of the wind whistling outside and the way some troopers tried to peer ahead at what lay outside. The clone lieutenant barked a marching order and they descended the ramp and out into the landing area. A few troopers stumbled at the sudden onslaught of harsh wind once they reached the outside. Even Solus swayed for a moment and mumbled, “Osik, how strong are the winds here?”

Naire leaned into the wind, finding her footing and she smiled. It had been years since she’d been on Edar and yet she found her current again so quickly. It really was something you never forgot.

“Wind speeds on a regular day range between fifty to sixty kph,” she answered just loud enough to be heard over the whistling of the wind as it whipped between the nearby buildings, powerlines and antennae. She glanced around as Solus made a choked sound of disbelief.

The republic base made Naire’s brows rise in surprise. It was more exposed to the elements than she had expected. Edari structures were hidden in protected valleys or tunneled straight into solid stone.

The capital Pleah was an example of both.

A lush green valley with structures nestled between the greenery and winding paths. The greenery petered out the higher up the valley it reached and the structures were carved out of the solid valley wall. Tall towers of stone carved out of the valley wall and everywhere streamers of bright cloth whipping in the wind.

It filled Naire with nostalgia and longing.

The republic base however was seated on a plateau at the top of the valley, fully exposed to the wind. A few streamers fluttered above the base, but those were the only Edari influence Naire could spot from where she stood.

A base that housed the 42nd Brigade.

The troopers and Naire came to a stop a few meters from the ramp in front of four clones in their full armor. Their armor stood in stark contrast to that of the clones fresh from Kamino. Black was the dominant color with splashes of dark blue and white. A commander stood flanked by two captains and a lieutenant. The commander nodded at the Kaminoan clone lieutenant and called, “Welcome to Edar, vode.”

A few of the troopers glanced at each other at the raspy voice that came from the vocoder. It came out strained and rough and Naire struggled to hear it over the wind. Everyone stiffened to attention when the commander continued, “I am Clone Battalion Commander Bes’bev of the 424th Battalion and here to welcome you in the place of Senior Commander Chaabar. Edar might be a Republic world, but it is not without its struggles. We need your fighting spirit and together we can help these people.”

Naire tensed at his words. She’d heard some news about Edar in the last year since the Separatists tried to cede from the Republic. Nothing too bad, but maybe there had been a recent development? Commander Bes’bev gestured towards the lieutenant and two captains next to him, pointing each one out as he gave his next orders, “Those of you joining the 422nd follow Lieutenant Maroon. Bound for the 423rd, you follow Captain Lem. Assigned to the 424th, follow Captain Chess.”

He paused for a moment and seemed to search the troopers gathered before him. Naire stiffened when the visor of his helmet settled on her in the back.

“Lieutenant Tadir will join me for her orders.”

Naire tried not to physically recoil at her new title. She hated it. She nearly missed when Commander Bes’bev dismissed the troopers and Solus tapped her forearm. The other troopers were hurrying to join their officer, but Solus waved and teased, “Catch you later, Lieutenant Spoof.”

Some of the tension drained from Naire’s shoulders and Solus dashed after his clone brothers to join Captain Chess. A captain that was giving orders while he stood next to Commander Bes’bev. A commander that was watching and waiting for her.

Naire walked towards them and tried to take a moment to study their armor. She’d have to learn to recognize them quickly. Captain Chess had a pattern of black and white squares on his kama while parts of his armor alternated between black and white. As if someone had taken a mirror down his middle and inverted the colors. Commander Bes’bev was all smooth lines and curves. Nearly entirely black with flashes of rounded white curves. Then Naire saw what looked like sharp white teeth painted along the jaws of his helmet. Both soldiers had small pieces of dark blue material peeking through.

And both of their visors were fixated slightly above her until she got close.

“Lieutenant Tadir,” Commander Bes’bev greeted her once she was close enough. Naire smiled nervously as he extended his hand towards her and she held her own out, expecting another handshake like she had with Solus. To her delight he brushed his fingers against the inside of her palm in the Edari equivalent of a handshake. “It feels odd to welcome a native of the Edari system back to their own homeworld.”

Any delight Naire had been feeling until then evaporated. She tried to keep up her smile though.

“I appreciate the sentiment anyway, commander,” she answered and then fiddled with the strap of her bag with one hand. “Thank you for having me here.”

Commander Bes’bev nodded and then whistled. Naire flinched at the sound coming from his vocoder, but Captain Chess had stopped giving orders and stepped closer to stand beside Commander Bes’bev. The latter placed a hand on the former’s shoulder and declared, “This is Captain Chess. He’s in charge of the Ne’tra Gi Company and the squadron you will be attached to. Anything you need done, you can approach him.”

“A pleasure to have you, Lieutenant Tadir,” Captain Chess greeted Naire with a respectful nod and he extended his hand as well. Naire repeated the Edari handshake and smiled nervously. She needed them to stop using that rank and name.

“The pleasure is mine, captain,” she said and glanced between the two. Her fingers tightened on the strap of her bag as she tried to swallow her nerves. “And, ah, well, I don’t really use my family name much. My friends in the 7th called me Spoof and I have grown fond of the name. If it isn’t too much trouble, ah, would it be possible to…?”

The two looked at each other as Naire’s sentence petered out. She wished she could see their faces. She wouldn’t be such an anxious mess if she could get a better feel for them. Her shoulders slumped in relief when Chess turned back to her with clear amusement in his voice, “Of course. I’ll make sure the vode know to call you by your chosen name.”

The smile Naire shot him was probably the first sincere one since she’d landed here. Chess glanced back at the waiting troopers and drawled, “I’d better get these shinies settled and broken in.”

Commander Bes’bev gave him a nod and Chess walked back to the troopers that had been watching and trying to listen in. The commander waved at Naire to follow and they walked towards what she assumed was the command center while he said, “We are glad to have you here. Chess and his squad have been covering your predecessor's work until we could get a new intelligence officer.”

Aaah work. That she could handle. They paused at the door of the command center and Commander Bes’bev entered his codes so they could enter. He pulled a small datachip from a pouch once they’d passed the doors and held it out to Naire. She blinked as she took it, staring at a sharp metal pipe attached to his belt next to the pouch. What-?

“This contains your code for the base and the layout of the base which you can upload to your datapad,” Commander Bes’bev explained once she’d slipped the datachip into her breast pocket. The sterile gray hall echoed with our footsteps and Naire winced a little when she could still hear the wind outside. Definitely not constructed by Edari. “The command center is next to the barracks for the nat-borns, but I’ll have someone take you on a tour later this evening.”

Then they stepped into the actual command center.

The circular room had a large console in the middle that currently displayed a map of the planet with several locations marked. People sat before their own smaller consoles around the room on the ground floor. The large, center console was on an elevated platform and was being surveyed by two people. A clone commander in armor that was nearly entirely black, helmet tucked under one arm and an elderly lasat in off-white robes, a lightsaber attached to their belt.

A Jedi?

Naire was so busy looking around she nearly missed it when Commander Bes’bev removed his helmet with a quiet sigh. He brushed back some of the curls that had come loose from his ponytail and tucked his helmet under his arm like the commander above before glancing at Naire. He nodded up towards the commander and lasat and in a hoarse voice drawled, “Let’s introduce you to Commander Chaabar and General Su.”

A pang of anxiety swept through her, but Naire took a deep breath and nodded. Commander Bes’bev walked towards the center console and her hand clenched around the strap of her bag. She could do this. She’d done it before, she could do it again.

Commander Bes’bev paused at the bottom of the steps and glancing back at Naire, mumbled, “The general uses they/them pronouns.”

Naire nodded stiffly and then they ascended the stairs. The general was the first to notice them and their amber eyes lit up at the sight with delight. They smiled warmly as Commander Bes’bev and Naire climbed the few steps up and they exclaimed, “Bes’bev, you are a wonderful sight for these old eyes of mine! Who have you brought me today?”

Naire could have sworn Commander Bes’bev’s lips twitched into the shape of a smile for a heartbeat. Next thing she knew, he’d saluted the lasat and gestured towards her, “General, the intelligence officer you requested has arrived.”

The general turned their brilliant smile onto Naire and their expression softened as if they could feel her nerves. They extended a hand and crooned, “Welcome to our base, lieutenant. I am Sulavo Kad, please call me Su.”

Naire brushed her fingers along their four fingered palm with a tight smile.

“Thank you, Master Su. My name is Naire Tadir, but I would prefer the name Spoof,” Naire returned and their pointed ears twitched with open curiosity. She withdrew her hand again and asked, “I did not realize the situation on Edar had deteriorated so far that the Jedi Council had gotten involved.”

Master Su sighed heavily and waved a hand at the projection of Edar in front of them.

“Seperatist sympathizers have grown more vocal and violent in the last months. Especially here in the capital,” they explained and Naire frowned in concern. Vocal she could see. Even understand. But violent? The Edari? Master Su waved at the second commander though, interrupting her thoughts. The commander had a frown almost permanently etched into his face as Master Su said, “However, I should introduce our dear commander to you. This is Clone Senior Commander Chaabar of the 42nd Battalion.”

“Spoof, was it?” Commander Chaabar asked in a low growl as he extended his hand towards her. Naire tried not to flinch at how much deeper his voice sounded and just nodded as she returned the handshake. He scoffed lightly and narrowed his brown eyes at her. “Think I’ve heard about you from the 212th Battalion and 501st Company. Seemed too fond of you to just give you up so easily.”

The air was sucked out of her lungs. Naire was dimly aware of Master Su suddenly straightening to their full towering height and glancing between Naire and Commander Chaabar as she struggled to remain composed. Naire took a deep breath and murmured, “Orders are orders.”

There. No tremble. No break. No tears. Only the too perceptive eyes of a Jedi master on her. Eyes that wandered over her before flicking between the two commanders with an easy smile.

“I will escort the lieutenant the rest of the way, Bes’bev,” they declared and held out an arm out to Naire. She lightly placed her hand on their arm and Master Su smiled. “Bes’bev, you discussed codes and will give her a tour later?”

“Yes, General Su.”

“Excellent. Then carry on.”

Naire managed a quick nod and smile for the two clones before Master Su escorted her down the steps from the elevated platform. Once the two of them had turned away from the main console, she became aware of eyes on them. The people in the room were trying to be subtle, but the way they quickly turned back to their own consoles betrayed where their focus had been. She lowered her own gaze to avoid them until they’d reached a new hallway. Master Su pointed out the door to their office and a few more doors further down Naire’s own office.

Her own office. Naire felt a heavy weight settle in her stomach. Back in the 7th Corps she’d never had her own office. She didn’t have the rank for it. Now she was the highest ranked intelligence officer on the planet. That warranted her own office and she hated the responsibility that came with it.

“I didn’t realize things had become so dire on Edar that the Jedi Council would involve itself,” she repeated softly as they continued down the hallway. Master Su stopped walking, forcing Naire to stop as well and she looked up at them. They frowned, staring ahead with a distant look in their eyes.

“I will be honest with you,” they stated in a hushed voice and slowly turned their gaze onto Naire. “The Separatists on Edar have grown bold. There are droids on Edar, holding small areas. They sent a bomb to this base that killed many of our soldiers here and have targeted our patrols and those that support the Republic. The people of Edar are withdrawn, afraid to draw the ire of the Seperatist sympathizers.”

Naire felt the blood drain from her face. A bombing? Why hadn’t she heard anything about that? She shook her head as Master Su slowly continued to walk. She could look into it more closely later and she had more pressing questions before that, “I know the Edari are more secretive and withdrawn than other people, but I thought Lord Coldo had invited the GAR to come to Edar. I would have thought he would encourage the people to cooperate with you?”

Master Su chuckled, patting Naire’s hand resting on their forearm.

“Lord Coldo did invite us, yes,” they answered and then sighed heavily. “Unfortunately, his father Monarch Melaron has spoken against siding with either the Republic or the Separatists. Despite stepping back from most of his roles as Monarch of Edar, Monarch Melaron is still loved by the Edari and so his opinion holds sway over many.”

Naire couldn’t help the groan of disappointment. Of course, Monarch Melaron would speak against taking a side.

“He’s always been a traditionalist, advocating that the Edari system remain neutral and withdrawn from the rest of the galaxy.”

“I hear his son is of a different opinion which is why we have had as much support as we do,” Master Su said with a smile and Naire couldn’t help but smile in return, pride filling her. Lord Coldo had always advocated against his father’s tendency for isolation. “Still, it made sense to request an Edari intelligence officer if there was one available.”

Available. Any pride Naire had felt turned to ice at the word. She hadn’t been. She’d been wrapped up in a few projects that she had hastily transferred to her colleagues on the Venator Negotiator. Master Su hummed as if they could sense her turmoil through Naire’s hand resting on their forearm. They probably could through the force.

At this point they’d stepped out of the command center and stood before one of the smaller buildings of the base. Master Su entered their code and escorted Naire inside. They stopped in front of one of the doors and declared, “This is your room on the base. It was Lieutenant Wor Ospilt’s before you.”

The door slid open with a quiet hiss with a press from Master Su and they gestured for Naire to step inside. It was sparse with a bunk, desk and a door to a private fresher. She set her bag on the bunk and glanced at the desk that had a stack of datapads on it.

“Lieutenant Ospilt’s projects,” Master Su explained and Naire picked up the one at the top. Only to be met with a locked screen. “The datachip from Bes’bev should unlock the datapads for you.”

Naire nodded and set the pad down again as Master Su clasped their hands behind their back with a smile.

“I will let you settle in. You have traveled far to come here. Besides, you will have a tour of the facilities later from one of Bes’bev’s men,” they added and began to step back through the open door. They paused when Naire raised a hand quickly.

“What happened to my predecessor? Lieutenant Ospilt? It wasn’t mentioned in my orders.”

Just from what they’d said so far, Naire had an inkling, but… She felt my gut clench when Master Su grimaced.

“The Separatist Sympathizers killed him.”

A chime at Naire’s door ripped her from the lines of code she was staring at on her datapad. She blinked at the door a few times, trying to orient herself as the numbers still drifted in front of her. The chime sounded again and she called, “Come in!”

The door slid open and a clone trooper peered inside. His helmet was tucked under one arm, so Naire took a quick look at it to memorize the pattern painted there: Mostly black with the shape of a white bird and its wings reaching across the face. Most notable about his armor was the red cross of a medic on his shoulder pad and chest.

“Lieutenant… Spoof?” the trooper asked with a frown, bringing the lightning tattoos over his brows closer together. Naire hurried to stand up when she realized she’d just been blinking up at him from her desk for several seconds now.

“Yes, sorry, just lost in thought,” Naire apologized, feeling her cheeks heat with embarrassment. She held out her hand to the medic and tried not to flinch when he gripped her hand to give it a shake. “How can I help you, trooper?”

He gave her a small grin and reached up to brush a hand through his short, dark curls with a chuckle.

“Actually, I believe I am supposed to be helping you, lieutenant. Commander Bes’bev asked that one of us give you a tour of the base.”

Naire glanced back at her desk where she’d left the datapads running their decryption programs. She had been able to unlock most of the pads to her code, but a few had locks on them that her predecessor had added for extra security. Nothing too difficult, it would just take time. Naire snatched up her original datapad that she had connected to the rest and her hat and stepped towards the door.

“Of course, thank you…”

“CT-2921 or Henny,” he supplied, stepping back to let me out. Naire sealed the door behind her and started to put her hat on when he held up a hand with a grimace. “I wouldn’t bother with the hat, lieutenant. The winds here will rip it off the moment we step outside. Maker knows how the locals keep theirs on.”

Naire laughed softly and lowered her hat, holding it out for him to see two almost invisible metal circles stuck to the inside seam. Henny blinked in surprise and Naire tapped the side of my headscarf with a smile.

“Magnets. That’s how,” Naire said and put on her hat in a way that Henny could see one side click into place. “It won’t stop my hat from being ripped off entirely in very bad winds, but they help.”

Henny chortled, holding up a hand to hide his obvious amusement. His shoulders visibly shook as a pair of officers entered the barracks looking very windswept. They took a moment to comb their hair back into place and then put on their hats. As if nothing was amiss. Naire nodded politely as they passed them and Henny wheezed when they stepped out of the barracks.

“Maker, my brothers and I have been guessing for months on how the locals do it,” Henny gasped, wiping at his eyes before slipping his helmet on. As the wind buffeted her face, Naire wished she had a helmet herself. Henny’s helmet turned down to look at her and she could hear the grin in his voice. “Please, do not tell anyone. I want to hold it over them for a while first.”

Naire laughed, shaking her head.

“I can do that. Just let me know when it is alright to reveal the secret.”

Henny promised he would as the two of them began to walk across the base. A darkened base. It had been three hours since Master Su had left Naire in her quarters and since then the sun had disappeared behind the clouds and mountain ranges. Lights illuminated the base and she had heard vehicles returning from and setting out for their patrols. The compound was busy and Henny and Naire stood on the edge of it.

“Here on the northern side we have the command center and the two barracks,” Henny pointed out, gesturing to the buildings. “The clone barracks take up more space, so the garages are over on our side, the western side. The estern side has the clone barracks, the medbay, the mess and storage.”

Naire nodded along and Henny waved at her to follow him. They walked along the western side toward the garages and she peered inside as they watched a Juggernaut slowly roll back into the garage. Henny waved down the row of garages and said, “Because of the winds we have twenty HAVw A6 Juggernauts deployed on Edar and only five LAAT. We don’t have many pilots that can manage these winds.”

“Even among the Edari, pilots that can navigate these winds are valued highly,” Naire added softly and Henny glanced down at her.

“Our clone pilots have had a few close calls and command would rather not risk us or our equipment on risky maneuvers when we can use the Juggernauts instead.”

He waved at a few troopers that climbed out of the Juggernaut and called out to him before continuing our tour. The southern end of the base had a gate and gatehouse for the Juggernauts to drive through and Naire stared out over the rolling hills and mountains beyond the base while a trooper at the gatehouse greeted Henny. Or the hills and mountains she knew to be out there in the dark.

They crossed the dark landing area and passed the storage areas to step into the medbay. Henny’s shoulders seemed to relax a little once he stepped inside and he removed his helmet with a sigh. He grinned down at her and said, “This is the medbay where I hope I never have to find you.”

A clone captain called for Henny and the latter glanced between Naire and the captain with a frown. She nodded for him to go and followed slowly. He obviously knew most of the clones they had seen. It didn’t surprise her. As a medic, he would get to know more clones than just his immediate squad.

The captain and Henny were looking over a datapad with frowns and when Naire stepped closer they both looked up. They straightened and Henny cleared his throat, gesturing towards her.

“Captain, this is our new intelligence officer, Lieutenant Spoof.”

“And I’m Iason,” the captain introduced himself, holding out his hand. Naire smiled even when he shook her hand and Iason sighed down at the datapad. “My apologies for stealing Henny from you for your tour. I swear, the Ne’tra Gi Company does their best to frustrate me with their medical reports.”

Naire tilted her head at the unfamiliar Mando’a word. She could remember it from earlier as well, but she hadn’t had the chance to ask about it then.

“Ne’tra Gi?”

“‘Black fish’” Iason and Henny translated at the same time. They glanced at each other before Iason continued, “Commander Bes’bev chose the name for the company after his first battle on a planet that had these sea mammals that whistled like he and his instrument do.”

Naire’s brows rose in surprise and she mimed the shape of the sharp metal pipe she had seen on his belt.

“That pipe on his belt is an instrument?”

“A Mandoan bes’bev. It’s a wind instrument from Mandalore that he was given back during training on Kamino,” Henny explained and then paused when Iason shot him a look. Naire glanced between the two when Henny fidgeted with a nervous cough. “A-anyway, shall we move on to the mess? It’s almost dinner time.”

“Sure. It was a pleasure, Captain Iason.”

They stepped out of the medbay and moved towards the mess hall. Even from the outside and with the wind Naire could hear the loud noise of a large group of troopers inside. Henny and Naire stepped inside and she sucked in a breath as the full force of the noise hit her.

“How many troopers are stationed at this base?” Naire asked, leaning closer to Henny so he could hear her over the noise of his brothers. Henny fiddled with his helmet with a thoughtful frown.

“The 424th is permanently based here while other companies come and go as necessary,” he answered, waving at a few troopers that passed with their trays of food. “Part of the 421st is here at the moment, but will be shipping out again in a few days. I’d say we’re just shy of seven hundred.”

Naire felt more than she heard her stomach rumble and glanced at the line for food. It wasn’t too bad at the moment. Maybe she could ask Henny to eat with her while she asked him-.

Her eyes widened in surprise when a trooper raised his arm and waved at her from the line. Was that Solus? He was in full white armor and had the same crew cut as a few other troopers around. In front and behind him in the line were his black, white and blue armored brothers who were glancing between him and Naire.

“Spoof!”

That confirmed it. That was definitely Solus.

“You know the shiny?” Henny asked with a small frown and Naire waved back tentatively. Solus’ smile widened and he turned to the trooper in front of him to say something. The trooper shook his head, but Solus argued.

“If it’s the trooper I’m thinking of, I met him on the transport here.”

Henny hummed as Solus left the line and jogged towards Henny and Naire. He was almost vibrating with excitement as he grinned at her and exclaimed, “There you are! Have you been settling in?”

The sheer energy radiating off of him was almost overwhelming. Still, he was being nice. Naire held up her datapad that flashed with the different progress bars of her decryption programs running and chuckled, “Got straight to work. How about you?”

Solus laughed loudly and shook his head at her.

“Familiarizing myself with my squad and battalion. Layouts, orders, strategies, the likes,” he rattled off with a wave of his hand. “Nothing too big.”

Naire heard Henny make a sound from the back of his throat and looked up to see him frowning.

“That ‘nothing’ could save not only your life but that of your brothers,” Henny scolded Solus in a worried tone. “Make sure you memorize everything or the Seppies will be the least of your concerns.”

Solus began to shrug when another clone appeared behind him. This trooper’s curls were cut close to his scalp and he had a tattoo of two pincers appearing on either side of his neck. Naire briefly wondered what was on the back of his neck, but his angry scowl made her flinch as he grabbed the back of Solus' plastoid armor and shook him.

“Your sergeant didn’t give you permission to leave the line, ik’aad,” the trooper snapped as he gave Solus another good shake, causing him to yelp. Naire’s ears twitched at the Mando’a word. Ik’aad. Baby or a child under three. She flinched again when his narrowed brown eyes found her. “Apologies, lieutenant.”

Naire’s new title dripped with sarcasm when he said it. She gulped even as Henny raised a placating hand and hissed, “Crab, please-.”

‘Crab’ silenced Henny with a glare. His attention was removed from Solus long enough for the new trooper to focus on Naire again. He grinned, unbothered by Crab’s grip on him and said, “Spoof, you should join us for dinner. Chess said-.”

Solus yelped again when Crab let go of his armor to smack the back of his head.

“Did they teach you no respect on Kamino, ik’aad?” Crab demanded in an angry snarl. He sneered down at Naire and grabbed the back of Solus' armor again. “Ignore him, lieutenant. We won’t bother you with-.”

She shouldn’t. She really shouldn’t. Crab obviously didn’t want to be anywhere near her. Yet Solus' crestfallen look…

“I don’t mind,” Naire interrupted with a nervous laugh. She glanced towards the line to avoid their looks. “It would be good to meet the squad.”

Naire yelped when Solus suddenly grabbed her shoulders and began pushing her towards the line with a delighted whoop. She looked back to see him grinning and behind him a seething Crab and concerned Henny.

“Great! I’ll introduce you to the others!” Solus exclaimed and shoved them both into the line where he had been. The trooper in front sighed, rubbing a hand over his bearded face and glared at Solus while Crab and Henny inserted themselves in the line behind Solus. Naire could hear Henny apologizing to the troopers behind them and she tried to shrink. She already disappeared in a crowd of clone troopers since she only reached the top of their shoulders. She wished she was even smaller now.

“I told you to leave the lieutenant be,” the clone sergeant in front of Naire scolded Solus. He had the same curly crewcut as Solus, but a well-kept beard across his face that rounded out his face even as he frowned with his hands on his hips.

“It’s Spoof’s first day on the base too. She should sit with us,” Solus argued and the sergeant curled his lips in a silent sneer. Naire’s eyes flickered down when she saw his gloved fingers trace over the handle of one of three knives on his utility belt. Two more blades than she had ever seen on a trooper. He moved forward with the line and just shook his head, causing Solus to slightly tighten his grip on Naire’s shoulders with a lighthearted chuckle. “Spoof, meet Sergeant Kad’la of Atin Squadron.”

“And ik’aad’s new babysitter,” Kad’la drawled and smirked when Solus began to protest. He took the tray he was offered with the set meal and glanced between the next tray and Solus. “Since you insisted on dragging Lieutenant Spoof here, you can carry her tray for her and bring it to our table.”

Holding his tray with one hand, he gestured for Naire to follow him and she slipped out of Solus' grasp. The younger trooper complained until she heard a whack and a yelp. A quick look behind her showed Solus ducking his head to take two trays while Crab glowered behind him. Kad’la led Naire away from the line and towards a table with four troopers already seated. He set his tray down and she gulped when four pairs of eyes focused on her.

“Lieutenant Spoof, this is the rest of Atin Squadron,” Kad’la introduced them and he narrowed his eyes at the four troopers. “A squadron I hope will that behave themselves better than their new ik’aad.”

Two troopers with short curls tried to hide their chuckles and Naire thanked her lucky stars that their armor was different, they looked to be nearly identical otherwise. One had lines coming from a central point on his sternum, while the other had a pattern of circles of varying sizes. Kad’la waved at them and said, “Those two schoolgirls are Chase and Pebbles. Our pilot and mechanic respectively.”

“And sometimes co-pilot,” the one Naire assumed was Chase piped up, nudging Pebbles who flashed a shy smile even as she wondered about the dark circles under his eyes. The third trooper snorted and shook his head at Chase’s comment and then grinned up at her. She had at first thought he had a beard like Kad’la, but he had triangle tattoos along his jaw and chin, mimicking the sharp jaws of a carnivore.

“The triangle fool is Edee.”

“Hey!”

Chase laughed at Edee’s shout of protest at his description and Edee swatted his hands aside when he tried to poke at him. The final trooper whose armor was nearly entirely black with white snowflakes didn’t even look up from his food. He only looked up with an annoyed frown when Chase nudged him.

“And finally, Gaht’yc.”

“A pleasure to meet all of you,” Naire said with a small smile and tried not to wring her hands. Luckily, Solus appeared with Crab and Henny and everyone hurried to sit down. Solus complained when Naire was pulled down to sit between Kad’la and Henny, but was silenced with a withering look from Crab and Gaht’yc.

“You’ve bothered the lieutenant enough,” Chase scolded Solus with a smile to soften his tone. He then turned his grin onto Naire and she picked at her spoon nervously. “Besides, we haven’t had a chance to speak with our new lieutenant yet.”

“Kaysh mirsh solus.”

Naire glanced over at Crab at his muttered words and he glowered down at his food as he ate between Gaht’yc and Solus. Chase took the opportunity to point his spoon at her and asked, “So, they’re having you investigate Ospilt’s assassination?”

Naire nudged the porridge sludge that was dinner with her spoon and grimaced.

“Officially, I don’t know what my exact assignment will be until tomorrow,” she admitted carefully and sighed. “I was rushed over here from the Venator Negotiator and Master Su just told me about Ospilt’s death a few hours ago.”

“The Negotiator! That’s the flagship of the 7th Sky Corps.”

“I bet she flies like a dream.”

Naire snorted a laugh at Chase’s and Edee’s dreamy tone and shook her head.

“I’ve heard pilots complain about how slow the Negotiator is to maneuver.”

Edee and Chase shot Naire identical grins and the latter sighed, “But she’d pack a harder punch than any of our LAAT here on the base. Easier to wipe out Separatist bases with more firepower.”

“True. The pilots I’ve heard prefer smaller and speedier aircrafts for quick maneuvers.”

“What about you, lieutenant?” Edee asked, leaning around Henny to wink at Naire. “Do you prefer a powerful assault or a quick flyby?”

His tone and wink had Naire’s face heating even as Henny smacked him. Kad’la growled a low warning and Edee raised his hands with an unrepentant grin. Naire mumbled some sounds and started to actually eat to keep herself from answering that loaded question. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop the others from asking their own questions.

“Where are you from?”

“How did you get assigned here?”

Pebbles’ and Chase’s questions overlapped and Naire swallowed the nearly flavorless paste down with a grimace. The rest of the squadron was wolfing their food down and she silently wished she could do the same without choking. The less time it spent near her taste buds, the better.

“My family is from the Edari system,” Naire answered after taking a sip from her cup. She glanced at Henny when he got up and left, but returned her focus to the squad when he waved at her to stay seated. “I grew up and lived on the moon Ruus and here on Edar. If I were to take a guess, I would say they wanted an intelligence officer from the system.”

“I didn’t know the GAR could use their braincell,” Gaht’yc drawled which earned him a snort of agreement from Crab and a few chuckles from Edee, Pebbles and Chase. Solus glanced around the table, cheeks stuffed with food and obviously curious, but a shake of his head from Kad’la had Solus focusing on his food again.

“Lieutenant Ospilt was from Coruscant,” Kad’la said with a sigh. His fingers drummed against the table surface after he pushed his nearly empty tray away. “He mentioned not making much progress because the Edari are isolationists. Your presence should make things run more smoothly.”

Naire tried to keep her expression neutral as she hummed at his words. If they didn’t know, her objections to this posting mustn’t be public knowledge for whatever reason. Most of them seemed friendly enough. She didn’t want their smiles to turn away from her just yet.

“Ha! It wouldn’t be hard to make more progress than Ospilt ever did,” Gaht’yc laughed with an icy smile. “The man couldn’t stand anyone different than him.”

“Gaht’yc…” Kad’la warned and Naire glanced nervously between the two. She jumped when Henny appeared at her other side and set down two steaming cups.

“Gaht’yc is right, Kad’la,” Henny said with a shrug. He pushed one of the two cups towards Naire before taking a sip out of his own. “Ospilt was brilliant, but he could never see beyond his own experiences. He didn’t like adapting to Edari customs. He didn’t understand why they weren’t embracing the galactic community more.”

Crab scoffed and pushed his half full tray back.

“The di’kutla shabuir hated anyone that was different from him.”

The statement was loaded with so much unspoken rage. The entire table fell silent as the rest picked at what remained of their food. Naire looked down at the cup of steaming liquid Henny had brought her and cupped it between both hands.

She could remember arriving on Coruscant. She remembered how much her parents and brother struggled to adjust. How herself and her sister had done their best to adapt. They had all resented the change. They had all found their own coping mechanisms. Some were healthier than others.

Naire took a sip from her cup and felt some of the tension drain out of her as the heat traveled down. Henny cleared his throat and leaning closer, murmured, “Tea. Should help you sleep later.”

Henny turned his focus onto Crab and Kad’la as Naire blinked up at him a few times and he urged them to eat more of their meals. Kad’la sighed before picking at his food again while Crab just glared at the medic. Gaht’yc and Edee joined Henny in a goading and playful manner of encouraging the grumpy trooper to eat. She smiled at Henny’s thoughtful gesture. Her sleeping rhythm was going to be off for a while, but hopefully-.

“Lieutenant Tadir?”

The table fell eerily silent and Naire looked up to see two officers standing behind her. Not clone troopers, but natural born humans in the sharp, gray uniform of the Republic. The taller of the two with the sergeant insignia smiled at her and declared, “Chros Gremate and Kaed Thegon. I wanted to formally welcome you to our humble base on Edar.”

He extended his hand towards her and Naire quickly set her cup down. She twitched when his hand enveloped hers in a firmer shake than she had expected. She tried to smile back and said, “Thank you. I-.”

“I also thought I should inform you,” he continued, releasing her hand and Naire flinched at the interruption. Out of the corner of my eye she saw Kad’la narrow his eyes and tense. Gremate didn’t seem to notice as he kept his smiling focus on Naire and waved at the tables around them. “These tables are used by the clones, not us.”

Naire dug the tips of her fingers into the fabric of her gray pants as she felt the palms of her hands become clammy.

“We are not allowed to eat in the mess hall?”

Gremate and his companion, Thegon, laughed at Naire’s question and she used the chance to glance at Henny. The medic’s eyes were wide with worry, but they weren’t focused on herself or the two officers in front of her. His attention was on the other side of the table.

“No, of course we can,” Gremate chortled and gestured towards a table in a corner near the food dispensary. It was empty of clones, but a handful of officers sat there. “That table is reserved for us for every meal. No clones sit there as we don’t need to bore them with what we’re doing in the command center.”

“Yes, please spare us clones with your important work.”

Crab’s growl made Naire’s shoulders jerk up as it dripped with enough sarcasm and resentment to flood Tatooine. Gremate’s pleasant expression turned bored while his companion sneered. Naire risked a look over her shoulder to see Gaht’yc holding Crab’s shoulder and growling something into his ear. Crab however just scowled up at Gremate.

“I apologize if you felt I had invited you to be part of this private conversation, trooper,” Gremate said with a slow blink that looked utterly condescending. “Perhaps next time wait until you are spoken to.”

“Sorry, I’m not born smart like you are. I don’t understand your nuanced nattie social cues.”

Gremate’s companion took a step forward, opening his mouth to say something. Naire flinched when she heard the benches scrape as nearly the entire squadron stood up as well. She tried to become smaller than she already was as she noticed the conversations around them had died. The mess hall that had been loud as people came to eat had fallen silent and were watching them.

Gremate’s companion stopped in his tracks when six clones stood up. Whatever he’d been planning on saying died as he raised a fist to surreptitiously clear his throat instead. The majority of Atin Squad wasn’t even paying attention to him. Ghat’yc, Chase and Pebbles were hovering around a glaring Crab while Solus stared at them from his seat with wide eyes. Henny had grabbed a scowling Edee’s arm while Kad’la had stepped in Crab’s line of sight to block Gremate and his companion.

“I wonder sometimes where all our funding is going,” Gremate finally said with a fake smile directed Naire’s way. He crossed his arms and tapped a finger against his sleeve. “Perhaps we should ask the Kaminoans to review their programming, if cannon fodder is all the clones are good for.”

Naire heard the rattle of plastoid armor around her while she felt her mouth fall open in shock. She dimly heard a hissed warning from Kad’la directed at Crab, but her mind was lightyears away. Her family back on the Negotiator was cannon fodder to Gremate. Even-.

Naire’s datapad chimed loudly in the heavy silence and she jumped as if a blaster had gone off right next to her ear. She grabbed her datapad and saw the notification that one of Ospilt’s datapads had been decrypted. She quickly stood up and her fingers tightened on her datapad when Gremate and his companion didn’t step back to make room. Naire swallowed and murmured, “Thank you for welcoming me, sergeant. The gesture is appreciated, if unnecessary.”

Her hands were trembling. She held her datapad close to her and before Gremate could answer, Naire turned to Atin Squad. She shot them a shaky smile and said, “Thank you for the tour and letting me join you for dinner. I look forward to working together.”

Heart thundering in her ears with nerves, Naire grabbed her nearly empty tray and slipped away. It continued to roar in her ears after she’d dropped off her tray and rushed out of the mess hall. It was only when the doors of her quarters closed behind her that she dropped to the floor, gasping for air. Tears blurred her vision and she whimpered softly as her heart ached.

Cannon fodder.

Gremate said they were just cannon fodder. That they were expendable. Implied that it didn’t matter if they died.

Naire’s datapad chimed again and she sniffled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. Her fingers shook as she tapped the screen and saw the new notification. A fresh wave of tears rolled down her cheeks when she saw the message was from the Negotiator. Naire turned off the screen and pushed the datapad away from her.