Warnings: intense training, discussion of decommissioning, loss of squad members (OCs that I made to explain why Tech seems to carry multiple roles), resignation to a supposed death
Note: this fic is not clone shipping. Nothing I write is clone shipping.
Crosshair’s arms were getting sore from holding up the too large rifle. The weight of it was familiar, but it had been hours of holding it up; his arms were getting weaker.
“CT-9904,” the surly bounty hunter—who was now his instructor—growled. “How can you possibly expect to be a sniper if you can’t hold still?”
Crosshair knew it was a rhetorical question; he’d been punished for “speaking out of turn” when he’d answered before. He wouldn’t answer him this time, despite the resentment boiling in his gut. Instead he just rolled his eyes under the cover of his helmet.
“Run it again,” the instructor warned. “Do better this time.”
That all too familiar knot formed in Crosshair’s throat, but he swallowed it down. Soldiers didn’t get nervous, right?
The simulation began and he fell into a rapid rhythm, taking down training droids one by one.
Simulated sounds of war blared over the speakers; explosions all around him, screams of people being injured, never ending blasterfire. Then the rain started. Crosshair felt the temperature in the room drop. He hated the cold. His hands tightened on his rifle, but did not stop his rhythmic firing.
The rain grew colder and heavier until it would be nearly impossible for anyone to see clearly through it, but Crosshair wasn’t just anyone. His eyes adjusted rapidly, easily seeing through the sheets of freezing rain.
He’d been counting, of course. He only had 14 more targets and the simulation would be over. Maybe I can leave after this round, he thought, knowing that this was only the eighth time they’d been through this simulation today. Idly, he wondered how his brothers were fairing in their training today.
A noise behind him nearly startled him, breaking his concentration and his rhythm. He spun around just in time to see the blue circle of stun bolt about to hit him.
He woke up in a medical bay, head aching and eyes burning from the bright lights overhead.
A medical droid hovered next to him. “CT-9904, you are awake,” it told him. “I will alert the medic.”
Crosshair watched the droid go, irritated by its happy tone, then closed his aching eyes.
“Hey, Cross,” someone said. That voice was far too familiar.
“Hunter,” he replied simply.
“You okay?”
Crosshair didn’t answer, his brow furrowing into the deep scowl.
“Right, stupid question,” Hunter admitted. “Are you hurt?”
“Don’t think so,” Crosshair shrugged. “Head hurts. Lights are too bright.”
Hunter wasn’t sure what to say, but as the newly minted leader of their squad, he figured it ought to be something positive. “Don’t worry, Cross, you’ll get it next time.”
Crosshair sighed. “There won’t be a next time, Hunter.”
Hunter scowled at his slightly younger brother, even though the other couldn’t see him. “Don’t talk like that.”
“We should just accept it,” Crosshair shrugged. “I got lucky during the initial testing; I only outshot Tech by six points.”
“Crosshair, you were made to-”
“I hate that he’ll have to take my job when he’s already got Fixer and Bugg’s on top of his own.”
“Cross-”
“Maybe you could take on piloting, too,” he suggested, ignoring his brother and squad leader’s attempts at redirecting the conversation. “I know you scored higher than me and Wrecker.”
“Would you just-”
“Oh! And make sure you don’t tell Wrecker that 99 and I made Lula for him; I’ve got an image to maintain even after I’m dead.”
“You’re not gonna-”
“You gotta make sure Tech sleeps. I know he’ll be busy with four roles instead of three, but he’ll work himself to death before choosing to sleep. But if you wrap him up in a blanket like a tubie, he knocks right out.”
“Crosshair, please. Please stop.”
He did, unable to continue after hearing the desperation in Hunter’s words.
“You’re not getting decommissioned,” Hunter affirmed.
“Hunter-”
“No. I was too late to save Bugg and Fixer, but I’ll die before I let the long-necks take away another one of my brothers.”
The regret and guilt that permeated his voice stung. He knew Hunter blamed himself for not helping the others enough, but hearing him now, he realized that his older brother blamed himself entirely for the loss of their brothers.
“I-” Hunter whispered, not daring to look at his brother. “I can’t lose you too.”
“You won’t,” Crosshair promised, reaching out to touch Hunter’s wrist. He looked up to see his brother’s signature smirk. “Can’t get rid of me that easily, ya know.” (I won’t leave you.)
Hunter chuckled as he wiped a stray tear onto his sleeve. A sense of normalcy crashed over him like a wave. “Yeah, well, first time you go off on your own during a training sim, I’m throwing you in the water.” (I won’t let you.)
Crosshair scoffed. “Osik’uram.” (I love you, brother.)
“Di’kut.” (I know, and I love you, too.)
Thanks for reading! - River
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Now this may not get a lot of notes but I worked really hard (over the course of several days and a lot of late nights) and I wanted to share this. I’m an amateur at best but i drew these with that one TikTok trend for my friend @dangraccoon (congrats on marriage!!) this is their OC Jaine Vale (go check them out!)
As I said, I’m not the best artist but I’m really proud of these :)
Tagging my friends so it can get at least four notes 😭 @sevdidntdie @janthesevenette @fionajames @will-is-silly @imconfusedbutok @hellhound5925
(The last picture is a picture of my own hand that I traced because I CANNOT figure out how to draw hands. I traced the first pic because I started crying when I tried freehanding the hands.)
Summary: As the Batch struggles with the loss of one of their own, Hunter tracks something the others can't see.
Warnings: discussion of major character death, grief, mention of torture and near death experiences
Author’s Note: Hope y'all don't hate me right now 😅 btw there’s going to be an epilogue 🤘
3 4?! chapters remain
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“‘How many time’s she’s’ what?” Hunter asked.
Sinya shook her head rapidly. “I said too much, I can’t-”
Hunter moved in close. “Tell us…now,” he growled.
The intimidation sunk into the twi’lek, and she appeared to become more uncomfortable by the second. She swallowed, her fingers fidgeting.
“How many times she’s died.”
“She- that’s not possible,” Echo muttered, eyes wide.
“It’s a curse,” Sinya shrugged. “It happened when she was young. She doesn’t like to-”
“Unless she was resuscitated, it would have been impossible for her to have died,” Tech interjected.
Crosshair shook his head. “But that blaster shot she took before she was assigned to us; she couldn’t have survived that, right?”
“I mean, she’s here, isn’t she?” Sinya replied. “Obi Wan told me about that one. It was pretty rough.”
“You can say that again; that shot knocked her out of the frontlines for six weeks,” Echo scowled.
“We’re still not sure what she lost that time,” she hummed, mouth pulling into a tight line. “She won’t go through the list with me, not that she’s added anything to it recently anyway.”
“Jainey loses stuff, too? I lose stuff all the time,” Wrecker chuckled nervously, earning a sharp look from Hunter.
“She doesn’t lose objects like that. She loses memories. Obi Wan told me that the first one she lost was of her first love.”
Tech cleared his throat. “Her-”
“That isn’t something I’ll tell you,” Sinya interrupted, her words forming a sharp edge. “That story is hers to tell if she wants.”
Wrecker shifted his weight between his feet, eyes trained at the floor. “What if she- will she forget us?”
“Wrecker-” Tech’s voice came, vague irritation along with it.
“I don’t know,” Sinya answered, the corners of her mouth coming up in a reassuring smile. “But I don’t think she could forget you boys if she tried.”
Wrecker nodded, a small grin matching hers.
The rest of the recording included Sinya saying her goodbyes and a brief squabble over taking watches.
“So it’s true then; she has to come back. She’s cursed to come back,” Crosshair rasped, his voice still shaky, as he combed Jaine’s hair away from her face, her head in his lap. “She has to come back.”
“Cuir’ika,” Tech said, his voice low. “We cannot begin to understand how this supposed curse works, or if it exists at all.”
“She has to come back,” Crosshair repeated, making it clear that he wasn’t listening to his twin any longer.
Tech sighed, pulling himself to his feet. Camp had been made here at the bank of the river, despite Tech pointing out that it was not an ideal place to set up, even for a short period of time. But there was no moving his brother.
Tech walked the short distance to the small shelter Hunter and Wrecker set up.
“Still won’t budge?” Hunter asked, already knowing the answer.
Tech gave a small nod. “His vitals show no sign of deterioration, even if he seems to be in shock.”
Hunter hummed an acknowledgment.
“Have Echo and Wrecker had any luck finding a signal?”
Hunter sighed. “Last he checked in, he was trying to find a tall tree to climb. We managed to get a partial message through to Cody, but it wasn’t much.”
Tech nodded. For the first time since- well, ever in his life, everything seemed still. The numerous sounds that always surrounded him, constantly pulling him in and whipping his brain into a faster pace, seemed to be somewhat quieter now. He could still hear them if he listened; the rush of the water flowing down the river, the leaves rustling as the wind shook their branches, Crosshair’s quiet, reassuring mantra.
“You look tired,” Hunter noted, having watched Tech’s eyes close as he concentrated on what he could hear. “You should rest.”
“I have the most training in field medical aid out of the rest of us,” Tech replied. “I should be alert if anything were to happen.”
“Tech-”
“I am fine, Hunter,” Tech asserted as he began to tap rapidly at his data pad.
Hunter sighed heavily. “Tech, don’t you think it’s time you stopped lying to me?”
“I am not-” Tech began, but was cut off by the tired incredulous look on Hunter’s face.
“We’ve never…lost one of our own,” Hunter lamented, his eyes focusing on Crosshair by the riverbank. “Years of testing and training and torture, hundreds of missions, too many close calls, but we made it through it all. But now…”
Tech watched as Hunter’s eyes squeezed closed, noticed the way his jaw and fists clenched, saw his shoulders slump almost imperceptibly, heard his breaths quicken. He always had to see the details- all of the details. He put it together in his head; it had been a long time since he had seen these tiny clues on his eldest brother. Hunter was scared- terrified, really.
“Sol’ika,” Tech whispered, knowing it would be loud enough for his brother to hear. “This is not your fault.”
Before Hunter could begin to respond, a small ping sounded from his vambrace, followed by a shout from Wrecker, not far away.
“It’s Cody,” he said, standing up.
“Sergeant,” Cody greeted, the sound of blaster fire and explosions in the background. “Heard you boys are out on Damussa, but you said this was urgent?”
“Yes, sir,” Hunter uttered. His heart had dropped into his boots and his mouth felt drier than the sands of Tatooine. “Commander, Is the General available? This message concerns both of you.”
“We’re a bit busy,” Cody hummed, his head snapping towards some sound that barely came through the static. “Can this possibly wait?”
“Commander, it’s-”
Another explosion sounded through the comm, followed by a crash and a loud grunt.
“Hello dear,” Obi Wan’s voice dripped like honey. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Sergeant Hunter, you’ve got your window now. Make it quick.”
Hunter tried to steady his breath. “General Kenobi, sir. It’s J-...I regret to inform you that Lieutenant Vale-”
The words choked in his throat, the air in his lungs seemed to turn to lead.
Through the static of the signal, the blaster fire, the bombs, Hunter could make out Kenobi’s faint voice. “Jainera?”
The line continued with simply the background noise of war.
“Thank you for informing us, Hunter,” Obi Wan finally answered, his voice a schooled calm, but lacking its usual character. “We are less remote and will have better luck getting a message through to Sinya on Coruscant. Stay safe, Sergeant.”
With that, the line cut, and Hunter sank back down onto the log he’d been occupying before, praying to gods he couldn’t believe in for…someone- anyone to guide him through this.
Starlight, a quiet voice hummed in his ears, causing his whole body to tense up. His hair stood on end as his eyes darted around.
“Hunter?” Tech questioned, but his voice seemed distant.
Relax, the voice called again.
Hunter scowled as he stood up, eyes searching the area. He couldn’t see anyone - or anything - that could be calling to him like this. He was vaguely aware of Tech vying for his attention, asking if he was okay or what he was hearing, but right now he could hear a threat and he needed to gather information.
I’m no threat, Starlight.
Hunter just about growled, somewhat startling Tech.
“Hunter,” he repeated, placing his hand on his brother’s shoulder, following his line of sight towards Crosshair and Jaine.
“There,” Hunter breathed, slowly approaching the riverbank. The unshakable focus in his expression and the way his stance adjusted reminded Tech of a predator stalking some prey, and not for the first time.
Warnings: loss of consciousness, major character death, discussion of inhibitor chips and mind control experiments, reference to past child abuse, grief and loss, imprisonment, torture, The Girls Are Fighting
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“The Empire is looking for us,” Crosshair rasped, tears dripping down his face more freely than Tech had seen them in a long time. He clung to Tech’s arm as if he were a lifeboat. “Th-they’re killing her to get to us. Mar'eyir kaysh, Tad’ika.” [Find her, Little Two.]
Runi had taken up a place at his side once he passed out, keeping a check on his vitals with Wrecker keeping a watch over both. Tech had noted Sinya pulling Hunter by the arm into the medbay. The doors hadn’t opened since and Tech decided he wasn’t going to risk opening them.
Echo had offered to help him sort through the data he’d been pulling from the Empire’s databanks. Fives and Omega had offered their assistance as well, but had fallen asleep about an hour ago, Omega leaning against her newfound brother.
Echo had just thrown a blanket over the pair when the console chirped.
“Has the new set finished decrypting?” he asked, coming to look over Tech’s shoulder.
Tech nodded, fingers dancing across the buttons and eyes scanning the information rapidly.
Tech was starting to believe this set wouldn’t have her information either when Echo nearly shouted “there”.
Tech opened her personnel file, her image attached at the top. She looked so tired. Her eyes were cold and empty, seemingly half-lidded permanently. The white streak in her hair was stark against the rest. Her mouth was fixed in a straight line, missing all hint of the pull upwards it used to have. The image sent a shiver down Tech’s spine.
He read down into the file. It showed him the missions she’d been assigned, locations, dates, objectives. And at the very bottom was a report from an Imperial Officer.
Tech opened the report, both he and Echo letting out little gasp at the words written across the top.
“Status: Killed in Action”
“Kriff,” Echo cursed behind him, hand running over the short thatch of curls that had finally begun to regrow over his scalp.
Tech scowled at the report. Hadn’t the Chromira shown Crosshair that Jaine was alive? It wouldn’t make sense to show him images of the past.
“What about the curse? She could still be alive, couldn’t she?” Echo and Tech’s heads turned quickly toward Omega, who was removing herself from the tight embrace of Fives.
“How do you know about that?” Echo asked, kneeling down next to her.
“It was in a report someone gave Nala Se,” she shrugged. “It came in after you all left for Felucia.”
Echo and Tech exchanged a look.
“Nala Se read the report and then asked the Prime Minister for an urgent meeting. Then once Jaine woke up, Nala Se ordered…”
“Ordered what, ‘Mega?” Echo asked.
Omega’s hands were shaking slightly. “They did a– an experiment on her,” she mumbled, her expression turning to a mix of fear and anger. “They put a chip in.”
“A chip?” Echo repeated, nervously glancing at Fives, thankful that he was still asleep. “Like the inhibitor chips?”
Omega nodded and Echo let out a breath he didn’t know he’d be holding. “It didn’t work right at first, so they had to condition her. That’s where she got those scars and why her hair turned white.”
Tech felt sick, guilt twisting his stomach into knots. Behind his eyes he saw flashes of his own ‘conditioning’, but he pushed the foul memories to the side. He couldn’t shut down now.
“It wasn’t her?” Echo whispered, his widened eyes finding Tech. “None of it was her.”
—
Crosshair woke up with his head pounding and his entire body sore. He sat up and looked around. He definitely wasn’t on the Marauder. No, this place was too cold, literally and figuratively. A shiver ran down his back. Instinctively he wrapped his arms around his body. He could feel his hands shaking. Wait, his hands? No, these were someone else’s hands.
He realized a moment later that he wasn’t in control of this body; he was merely a passenger.
The person reached up to massage their neck at the point that was hurting most. Crosshair noted the knots of scar tissue beneath their touch.
They sighed, reaching up to pull their hair forward, beginning to braid some of the long crimson hair. Crosshair could feel something emanating deep within their soul; an intense pleading for help.
The pieces came together. Red hair, blaster scar on the neck. This was Jaine’s body he was in.
“Up,” a stormtrooper ordered, opening the laser gate. Despite the resentment that boiled in her chest, she stood without hesitation, holding her arms out for the binders.
The pair of troopers led her through the facility past numerous cells of clones. He could feel her guilt at not being able to help them. She glanced up at one cell in particular as they approached it.
“Wait,” she whispered, her movement stilling as her heart dropped into her gut. “Where’s Fluke?”
One of the stormtroopers hit her shoulder with the butt of his gun. “Keep walking.”
She turned to face him. “Where’s CT-5121?” she growled.
“Went last night,” rasped the clone - Sig, she remembered - in the cell across from the one that used to hold Fluke.
Crosshair could feel the deep sorrow in Jaine’s heart and the tear that fell down her cheek.
“Good morning, Jaine,” that woman, Doctor Karr, said as the gate opened. “How are you feeling today?”
Jaine didn’t answer. Merely allowing herself to be pushed onto the table and secured in place.
“I’d like to offer you an opportunity,” Karr said, looking up from her datapad. “Answer the question and we don’t have to go through any of the pain.”
Jaine swallowed, her throat dry. “What question?”
“How do we find Clone Force 99?”
Crosshair felt her hesitation, before she finally answered.
“Who?”
—
Hunter wasn’t sure exactly what was happening if he were to be completely honest. He probably should be anxious and on edge. He probably should be worried sick about Crosshair. He probably should have some kind of feelings about the possibility that Jaine wasn’t truly in control of herself when she’d attacked them.
But he didn’t really feel any of that. He was a little nervous, concerned for his brother, and a little more compassionate for their former medic, but none of that was at the forefront, and wasn’t even really what he was focused on at the moment. No, he was focused on the woman sitting in front of him. He’d lost track of what she was talking about a few minutes ago, but he smiled and nodded when it seemed appropriate. He did note there was an odd… heat in his chest.
“Hunter?” Sinya said, tapping his arm. “You okay?”
He shook his head a little, trying desperately to ignore the buzz of electricity that flooded his body, originating from her hand. “Sorry, could you repeat that?”
Sinya giggled. “It didn’t matter.”
She smiled at him and he realized he’d probably do anything if it just meant he’d get to see that smile again. Her smile reminded him of the first time he’d seen starlight.
A sharp pang hit his heart.
Did I make Jaine feel like this? He thought. Is that why she called me ‘Starlight’?
“Hunter,” Tech called from the suddenly open door of the medbay.
Hunter hoped Tech didn’t notice the way he and Sinya sprung away from each other. He hadn’t realized they’d been so close.
“What is it, Tech?”
Tech eyed him suspiciously. Of course he noticed. “Crosshair is awake. He would like to speak with us.”
Hunter nodded, turning to give an apology to Sinya, who shooed him off with a “go”.
By the time Hunter arrived in the bunk rooms, Crosshair was sitting up on the edge of the bunk and Runi was still fussing over his vitals, despite the annoyance written plainly on his face. After another moment she gave up with a huff, rolling her eyes when she saw the smug look on his face. She muttered something violent about that expression as she passed him.
Omega ran into the room, practically launching herself at Crosshair. “You’re okay!”
“I told you he would be,” Tech pointed out. “And I am seldom wrong.”
Crosshair and Omega rolled their eyes in unison.
“What’s going on, Crosshair?” Echo said, trying to hide a smirk.
Crosshair glanced briefly at Omega before looking at the rest of them. “Jaine… won’t be telling the Empire how to find us,” he sighed, hating the way his voice shook. The air in the ship seemed to still.
“That’s a good thing, right?” Omega asked, looking worriedly up at Crosshair.
“Yeah,” Wrecker nodded. “If she doesn’t tell ‘em anything about us then we can surprise ‘em when we go rescue her!”
Hunter’s eyes narrowed on his youngest brother. He could hear Crosshair’s rapid heartbeat, despite the measured breaths he was taking. “What aren’t you saying?”
His intense gaze locked onto Hunter’s. “She can’t tell the Empire about us because she doesn’t remember who we are.”
The room went still as the weight of Crosshair’s statement settled over the squad.
“How could she just forget us?” Omega asked, her eyes welling up. “After everything that’s happened…”
Tech knelt down next to her. “It is not her fault, Omega,” he said. “Part of her curse is that she forgets things that are important to her each time she comes back. More often than not, it is people she cares about.”
“That- that’s not fair,” Omega whispered.
“You’re right,” Crosshair assured her. “But that’s why she had people like Sinya to help her remember.”
Omega scowled, but looked up at Hunter. “We have Sinya with us. We can go and save her and then Sinya can help her remember, right?”
Hunter sighed. His chest felt heavy. “It’s not that simple,” he explained. “Breaking someone out of Imperial custody would be tricky and we don’t even know where she’s being held, not to mention that we’d be walking right into the hands of the Empire.”
“But–”
“No, Omega. We can’t go after her; it’s too risky.”
Omega scowled up at him before storming out of the room.
“She would do it for us,” Crosshair hissed. “We always said we’d never leave our own behind.”
“And we haven’t,” Hunter growled. “She spent months trying to kill us–”
“That was not her fault,” Tech interjected. “We have learned that there was a chip implanted in her brain when she was on Kamino without us, after which she was put through intense conditioning.”
Hunter didn’t listen. He couldn’t. “Chip or not, she doesn’t even know who we are! For all we know she could hate all clones now and try to kill us the moment she sees us anyway.”
Crosshair spoke up. “She doesn’t. I don’t know who he was or what he meant to her, but she just grieved one called Fluke.”
“How do you know that?” Echo asked.
Crosshair glanced between Hunter and Tech. “I-I could feel it. It was like I was in her body. It was… strange. I didn’t hear the Chromira-”
“The who?” Echo and Wrecker asked simultaneously.
“And it didn’t feel like when she talked to me before,” he finished, crossing his arms. “It almost felt like- like it was Jaine who was reaching out to me.”
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Thanks for reading! - River
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Warnings: anxiety, PTSD (Order 66 related), injuries (blaster grazes and hit, cuts, burn), impending awkward relationship conversation, medical care (stitches, bacta application), Echo and Fives are both lovesick puppies over the same woman, Tech just straight up telling it like it is
Fun fact:
This description - "Echo said, his hand reaching up to rub that spot of his neck that always knotted up when he got stressed." - is based on what my mother refers to as her "mom knot".
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Hunter’s mind was still racing as Sinya scrambled to her feet, frantically looking around as she backed away from him. She watched him, her silvery eyes a depth of fear he’d rarely seen, then darted away in the direction of Movri’s stand.
“Wrecker!” he called as he got to his feet, pointing at the fleeing woman.
Wrecker noticed the woman running and stepped in front of her, blocking her path into the small alleyway.
“St-stay back,” she warned as Hunter got closer. He could just barely hear the soft hum of a vibroblade behind her cloak.
Hunter held his hands up, free of any weapons. “Take it easy, Sinya,” he spoke gently. “We’re not gonna hurt you.”
Sinya scowled, eyes darting back and forth between him and Wrecker. Hunter could hear her heart pounding.
“It’s okay,” he assured. “Can you put the knife away? We just want to talk.”
“You- you’re not going to- to attack me?” she whimpered, her tone wrapping around Hunter’s heart, constricting.
“We won’t,” he said. “I promise.”
“Hunter,” Wrecker whispered. Hunter followed his gaze to his own shirt, stained with a deep indigo.
Sinya coughed hard, the same indigo spattering from her lips. Her breathing was labored as she seemed to fight to stay on her feet.
Hunter hazarding a step forward. “Sinya-”
Sinya's eyes rolled back in her head as her body went limp. Hunter barely caught her before she hit the ground.
—
“I still can’t believe you’re really,” Echo breathed. He hadn’t taken his eyes off Runi in almost an hour.
“So you’ve said,” she smiled.
Fives snorted. “Yeah, Echo’s repeating things. How out of character.”
Echo rolled his eyes, but went quiet.
“We should probably talk about the bantha in the room,” Runi mumbled.
Fives shifted uncomfortably in his seat. She looked to Echo and saw a flash of confusion cross his features.
Echo’s comm pinged, but he pressed a button to ignore it.
“What bantha-”
The comm pinged again and Echo growled in frustration, tapping it. “What?”
“Echo, where are you?” Hunter asked.
“I’m with-” he faltered. “I’m with Fives.”
“Get back to the ship. We’ve got a guest and we don’t know if she had anyone following her.”
Echo shook his head. “‘Guest’? Hunter-”
The comm pinged again, signaling Hunter’s comm disconnecting.
“I hate it when he does that,” Echo grumbled.
“It sounds like there could be trouble,” Fives said warily.
“Maybe,” Echo agreed.
Runi tapped his hand. “Go,” she nodded. “We’ll still be here.”
Echo sighed. “Please come with me.”
“What-”
“Runi, I’m scared that if I let you out of my sight, you’ll disappear and this will have all been another dream.”
His golden eyes bore into her soul. “Okay,” she whispered.
The three of them made their way through Ord Mantell City, Echo’s hand never leaving Runi’s. Fives followed behind them, his nerves bundling deep in his gut as he watched the reunited couple.
“What’s the emergency?” Echo asked as he walked into the ship. He didn’t see anyone immediately, so he motioned for Runi and Fives to wait there. He listened carefully, following the hushed voices of his squad to the medbay.
The door was open and he peered in. His brothers were gathered, talking quietly to the side of the exam table. Omega was sitting in a chair next to it. There was someone laying on the table, but he couldn’t make out who.
Omega noticed him first, smiling and walking over to him.
He kneeled. “Hey, kid,” he gave her a small nod. “What’s going on?”
“Hunter and Wrecker were on the supply run and they found someone they know,” she informed him, glancing back at the person on the table. “But she’s hurt pretty badly.”
Echo nodded again, standing and walking over to the table. He felt his jaw go slack as he took in the sight before him. Sinya Bey was laid out on the table, unconscious, with bandages wrapped around her torso.
He felt like his brain was going to short circuit. “What-”
“She just about ran me over in the market,” Hunter informed him, coming to stand at his side. “She was… scared. Seemed like someone was chasing her.”
Echo scowled. “What the hell is she doing on Ord Mantell?”
“Don’t know. She barely got a few words out before she passed out, but she recognized us.”
Echo crossed his arms.
“Echo, she-” Hunter started before glancing back at the other group. His voice dropped to nearly a whisper. “She reminded me of the kid on Kaller; terrified, always checking over her shoulder.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Echo muttered back. “Sinya’s not a Jedi.”
Hunter sighed, running his hand over his face. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t like it. What if she’s bait?”
Echo’s eyes shut as he took a deep breath.
“Echo?” Fives called from the doorway.
Everyone’s heads turned to look at him.
“Right,” Echo nodded. He walked out to talk to him and Runi.
“What’s going on?” Runi asked.
“The woman in there… she’s a friend of-” Echo sighed. “Maybe was a friend of our old squadmate.”
Fives scowled. “The one that tried to kill you and was sent to hunt you all down?”
Echo nodded.
“Wait, what?” Runi sputtered.
“It’s a long story,” Echo said, his hand reaching up to rub that spot of his neck that always knotted up when he got stressed.
“Is she trying to kill you?” Fives asked, gesturing to Sinya’s unconscious form.
Echo shrugged. “Hunter said she seemed paranoid before, and she was badly injured. At least she’s not trying to kill us right now.”
Runi grabbed his hand, treasuring the way he squeezed it immediately. “Do you want me to take a look at her injuries?”
“Probably not a bad idea,” he nodded, showing her into the room.
Tech joined them as soon as they got to the exam table.
“A few grazes, one direct hit, several lacerations to the chest and abdomen, as well as a rather intense burn on her left palm and wrist,” he informed her. “We are unsure of the origins of her injuries.”
“Mind if I take a look?” Runi asked, already pulling back the thin blanket they’d covered her with.
“By all means,” Tech nodded. “I am highly skilled in many areas, however my medical abilities are more oriented for the field.”
Runi nodded, and began her examination of the twi’lek. She requested a few things from Tech, scissors or more light and Echo found he couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. It had been a very long time since he’d watched her work, and he remembered the way she took care of his brothers; efficient, but never lacking kindness or sympathy. He was sure his face was pure sappiness; like a lovesick lurca hound. What he didn’t notice was that his twin bore the same expression.
This didn’t escape Crosshair’s notice however. He nudged Hunter, tilting his head towards the Domino twins.
Hunter scoffed. “Could they be any more obvious?”
“Probably,” Crosshair chuckled.
“Kriff,” Runi muttered, taking in the sight of the woman’s wounds. “What happened to this girl?”
“As previously stated, we are unsure,” Tech answered. “We only have the information Hunter and Wrecker provided.”
Runi glanced up at him, a bemused smirk on her lips.
“That was…rhetorical, wasn’t it?” Tech scowled.
“Yeah,” Runi nodded, though her grin grew a little wider.
She set to work with Tech’s assistance, suturing the wounds before wrapping them again.
It took a while, most of the squad leaving to sit elsewhere in the ship, but Echo and Fives stayed, both sitting on the floor against the wall, right next to Jaine’s cot.
They’d been talking quietly for a few minutes, Tech couldn't hear what about, but he could tell the conversation was tense. He could tell Runi knew it too.
“Are you… okay?” he asked after noticing her right hand shaking a little.
“Fine,” she answered tersely.
“I can ask them to leave.”
Runi sighed. “I’ve never met more stubborn troopers than those two.”
“You have not truly met my batchmates.”
That got a chuckle out of her. “You ever work with the 501st?” He nodded once. “That pack was full of them, right up to Rex at the top. Never met him myself, but I heard Skywalker was, too.”
“It would not surprise me to learn that you were quite busy during your time with them.”
She was quiet for a moment. “What do you think they’re talking about?”
Tech hesitated. “Would you… prefer my actual opinion… or a more optimistic version?”
Runi glanced up at him, her face a mixture of surprise and confusion. She chuckled a little. “Your opinion, please.”
Tech used his arm to push his goggles up. “I believe it is fairly obvious that they are talking about you. Given how tense they seem I think perhaps they have figured out that they are both in love with you and discussing where to go from there.”
Runi paused her work for a moment, fully stopping to look up at him. “You’re rather blunt, aren’t you?”
“So I’ve been told,” he agreed. “However, you did ask for my opinion.”
“I know that,” she scoffed, smirk returning to her face. “And I know we’ve technically met before, but Raze is just a code name. My real name is Runi.”
“I am aware,” he stated, continuing when she shot a confused glance at him. “Crosshair discerned your identity before you came here with Echo.”
She didn’t reply, simply nodding her head a little. Before long they had finished the sutures and began applying bacta to the remaining wounds on her abdomen and chest.
As Tech applied the last bit to the graze on her upper arm and shot just above it, Runi unwrapped her burnt hand. She gasped lightly.
“What is it?” Tech inquired.
“I-I’ve seen a lot of burns in my time, but never one like this.”
Tech scowled. He had looked at the burn himself - it was second degree on her palm, first degree surrounding it - and hadn’t noticed anything unusual about it. He moved to stand next to her.
“It’s almost like- like it’s still on fire,” she whispered, her hand seemingly moving towards Sinya’s of its own accord.
“Don’t,” Tech said suddenly.
Runi tensed, Sinya’s hand falling to the table with a dull thud, alerting both Fives and Echo, who jumped to their feet.
“Echo,” Tech hissed. “Her hand.”
Echo’s heart was pounding as he stepped forward to look at it.
“Do you see it?” Tech asked, his voice seemed different.
Nervous, Echo realized with a start. He looked at Sinya’s wrist, his heart jumping into his throat.
Faintly, around the edges of the worst part of the burns was a wisping red smoke.
“Jaine?” Echo breathed.
Tech nodded solemnly. “If Sinya was attacked by Jaine and ran until she bumped into Hunter and Wrecker-”
“She could be on Ord Mantell.”
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Thanks for reading! - River
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Hey all! So I wanted to let you guys know about a couple things :)
First things first, I'm probably going to somewhat disappear/not be as active in May! I know that in basically any post involving him, I refer to C as my "husband" but technically that won't be true until May 25th (after dating for 10.5 years, we are finally getting married!) so I'll be rather busy next month!
I should have a little bit of time between that and my summer camp job starting mid-June (that'll end sometime in August)
I'll try to be as active as I can during the summer, but unfortunately I can't guarantee anything with what signal can be like out there!
All that being said, I'm working hard to get as many things written while I still have a good amount of free time so I can queue them up to post while I'm away. I may have to slow down updates (if I do, it'll probably be about every other week), but I'll be sure to let you all know if I do!
Thank you all for the amazing support you show every week! It really means the world to me (and blows my mind that anyone would enjoy the musings of a mid-twenties autistic stay-at-home cat dad lol)
Warnings: canon typical violence, Big Ouchie type feelings
Author's Note: *gonzo voice* this looks familiar, vaguely familiar
No but for real, if it hadn't been for the love and support y'all have sent my way, I don't think I would've had the inspiration to finish this, let alone start a sequel! This fic will be going up on AO3 sometime in the near future, and I will be writing and posting the sequel fic Jari'eyc in a couple weeks!
Make sure you leave me a comment or reblog in the notes below, or submit an update to your taglist request here if you want to be added to the taglist for Jari'eyc! The taglist will be resetting, so make sure you let me know if you want to see more!
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The group stalked quietly through the labyrinth of hallways, narrowly avoiding other troopers.
“We’re not going to get very far without our gear,” Tech sighed.
“They started moving all your things to the hangar,” Omega told Hunter. “Your gear might be there, too.”
Hunter nodded. “This way.”
The squad ran into the hangar as Tech opened the door, searching through the rows of crates for their gear.
“Alright, boys, suit up,” Hunter ordered, finding a crate filled with his own armor. “Let’s make this quick.”
The squad dug into the cargo, pulling out various pieces of equipment.
Wrecker groaned, mumbling softly to himself.
“Tech, Echo, power up the ship,” Hunter said. “The rest of us will go after-”
“I don’t think we’ll have to go far,” Omega whispered.
Wrecker’s mouth fell open. “Is that-”
“Jaine?” Crosshair breathed. He could feel his heart shattering as Jaine entered with a whole squad, herself clad in new, darkly colored armor. She removed her helmet, crimson hair falling to her shoulders, now streaked with stark white.
Time seemed to stand still, even as the rain pounded against the hangar, punctuated by thunder and flashes of lightning.
Hunter swallowed and stood, catching Jaine’s eye.
“Stand down, Sergeant. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”
A chill ran down Crosshair’s spine. Her melodic voice sounded eerily robotic now. Was this really their Jaine or a just very convincing droid?
“Jaine,” Hunter pleaded. “What are you doing? It’s us.”
“I read the report of your mission on Kaller. I also read the report from the captain of that battalion, who doubts your report. You should have killed that Jedi kid,” she said, sounding almost bored.
“Jaine, this isn’t you,” Hunter pleaded. “You’ve got to snap out of it. We’re your family!”
“I have no family,” Jaine roared, anger already receding as she winced, hand almost rising to touch her head. “You went against orders. That cannot be tolerated.”
“I did what I thought was right.”
Jaine scoffed, unimpressed. “What a shame it is that you’ve never been able to see the bigger picture. Surrender. Now.”
Hunter’s eyes darted away from Jaine to the rest of his squad, reluctantly pulling themselves into ready positions, and Omega, hunkered down behind a crate.
“Is that an order, Lieutenant?”
Jaine bristled. “It is now.”
With one last glance at his squad - his family - Hunter smirked ever so slightly.
“Guess I’m disobeying that one, too.”
Hunter could hear the crackles of electricity sparking at Jaine’s fingertips. He kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to make the move, but praying she wouldn’t.
With a sharp grunt from Jaine, a streak of lightning flew out towards Hunter, who barely dodged it.
As the troopers with her began firing on the squad, Hunter dove behind the crate as his brothers fired back.
Jaine growled, forcing her hands out in front of her, red smoke pouring from her palms, filling the space between her and her old squadmates. Pressing a button on her new helmet, she could see the heat signatures of each of them. Wrecker and Crosshair behind one set of crates, Hunter and the girl behind another. She hurled a few more bursts of lightning towards them, hitting their cover hard.
“Tech, we gotta move,” Hunter growled through the comms. “Now.”
“We’re working on it,” Tech answered, hands flying across the control panels.
“Wrecker, clear the smoke on three,” he ordered.
“You got it, boss,” Wrecker nodded, grabbing a few lids from the crates.
“Omega, stay low,” he said. “One…two-”
“Three!” Wrecker shouted, jumping up from the cover to use the lids as fans, before sending one of them flying towards the regs. Jaine barely dodged the second one as it kareened towards her.
Wrecker reached for the blaster strapped to his back, but Jaine was faster, sending a fast shot from her blaster towards him, clipping his shoulder.
He shouted in pain as he fell, his helmet flying off and landing next to him.
Omega stood up, starting to jog towards the large heap Wrecker lay in.
“Omega! Don’t!” Hunter shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her back, the shot Jaine intended for her missing by a few short inches. “She’s using him as bait.”
“But he needs help!” Omega protested.
“Tech,” he growled. “We’re out of time!”
“Almost got it,” came Tech’s reply as the thrusters came to life, catching Jaine’s eye.
“What are you waiting for?” she shouted at the reg closest to her. “Seal the bay door!”
The reg nodded, rushing to the control panel to hit the appropriate button.
Hunter watched, a deep dread forming at the pit of his stomach as the doors to their exit began to close. But then they stopped, despite the alarms still blaring.
Jaine’s head whipped around to the reg at the panel.
“Sir, someone’s overriding the controls!”
She growled. Watching the heat map of the squad.
Hunter kneeled next to Omega. “When I say ‘go’, you head for that ramp, and don’t stop, got it?” She nodded and he turned to face Crosshair. “Cross, we go for Wrecker.”
Jaine watched across the hangar. “Only one way out, Hunter. Your move.”
“Go!” Hunter shouted, popping up to lay down cover fire as Omega and Crosshair ran behind him.
Jaine came out from behind her cover, energy surging at her fingertips.
She raised her hands, vision locked on to Crosshair, Wrecker, and Hunter.
A single shot sounded; a stun round hitting Jaine’s hand, knocking her to the ground.
Omega lifted her head from the rifle, steam flowing from the barrel. As the others got up, so did Jaine, pulling her blaster from her waist as Omega began to fire off more shots until her brothers were on board, the shots from Jaine merely hitting the surface of the hull. The Marauder rose and exited the hangar as Jaine wrenched her bucket off, scowling up as the ship escaped.
Thanks for reading! - River
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“How’s he doing?” Hunter asked when Crosshair had returned to the cockpit.
“Confused and upset,” he sighed. “So pretty much back to normal. Omega hasn’t left his side in hours.”
“Figured she wouldn’t,” Hunter nodded. “Probably scared her.”
“She was just getting used to his nightmares, too. This might set that back a bit.”
Hunter nodded a little again, hands tapping at his legs.
“Let’s go,” Crosshair said a few moments later.
“Go?”
“Find them.”
-
Raze and Fives had been holding each other closely on the floor, taking deep breaths together. Echo was alive.
Both heads snapped towards the door as a knock startled them. They exchanged a glance, retrieving their masks before stepping towards the door.
“Who is it?” Fives called, voice altered by his mask.
“Hunter and Crosshair,” the sergeant answered. “We just want some answers.”
Fives looked at Raze. He could practically feel her anxiety, but she nodded anyway.
Taking a deep breath, Fives hit the button to open the door.
“Thanks,” Hunter said, stepping into the room.
“How did you find us?” Raze asked, brow furrowed.
“Enhanced senses,” he shrugged. “Just tracked you here.”
“Not that hard when he knows the exact scent a reg gives off,” Crosshair added, eyeing Forn.
Raze’s eyes widened as she watched her companion remove his mask.
Fives stood, seemingly unaffected by the intense scrutiny the other clones put him under.
“‘Fives’, right?” Hunter asked.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Echo said you were dead.”
“Probably what Rex told him.”
Hunter’s eyes narrowed at the other clone, but Crosshair turned and started to examine Raze, who shifted uncomfortably in his gaze. “Why would Rex lie?”
“He told what he thought was the truth,” Raze answered.
“So why does Rex think he’s dead?” Crosshair drawled, stepping slightly closer to her.
A firm hand landed on his shoulder.
“Best you back up,” Fives growled.
“Relax,” Crosshair smirked, his attention still focused on the woman in front of him. “I’m practically harmless.”
“I think everyone just needs to take a breath,” Hunter voiced. Without turning around, Crosshair knew he was the subject of his signature “Command Glare” - something his brother had picked up from Cody over the years.
Crosshair pulled away from Fives and Raze, skulking back towards Hunter.
“Look, we’ll get out of your hair,” Hunter said with a sigh. “But Echo’s a smart man. He’ll start to figure this all out soon, if he hasn’t already.”
Fives and Raze exchanged a glance and Hunter’s eyes flitted between them. They almost seemed to have an entire conversation through their eyes.
Fives sighed. “Have him meet me here when he’s ready.”
Hunter nodded once, and he and Crosshair left the tiny apartment.
“So who is she?” Crosshair drawled, slipping a toothpick between his lips.
Hunter glanced at his brother. “How should I know?” he shrugged.
Crosshair shrugged as well as they made their way back to the ship through the streets of Ord Mantell.
–
Fives sat on the sofa, hands twitching nervously. His brother would be there soon. “So much for hiding my identity, huh?” he muttered, huffing out an awkward laugh.
“I should go,” Raze said quickly, her eyes focused on the window.
Fives’ eyes shot up to her. “What? Why?”
She shifted her weight between her feet. “This is already going to be a lot, you know? I don’t want to overwhelm him.”
He closed the distance between them, taking her hands in his. “Uja, I think he’d want-”
“Stop. After everything you two have gone through without each other, you deserve a moment for yourselves. I don’t think- I’m not ready to-”
A knock at the door startled them both. She pulled her hands from his as he stared at the door. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest. His brother was on the other side of that door. After all these years, not only was his twin alive, but he was here. He wasn’t the final domino after all. Another knock brought his attention back.
“Uja-” he started, but when he looked back towards her, she was nowhere to be seen. A small breeze flowed through the window. He sighed, walking to the door, trying to shake the nerves off.
The door slid open and the twins' eyes met.
“Echo,” Fives breathed.
Neither knew who moved first, but a few seconds later they wrapped each other in a tight embrace.
“I thought you were dead,” they both cried at the same time, sending each other into a fit of laughter.
Echo could feel his eyes stinging with tears. “I can’t believe you’re here,” he sobbed. “I thought I’d lost you, too.”
Fives sniffled a little. “I’m here, Eyay’ika.”
Echo pulled away and the pair moved to sit at the small kitchen table.
Fives stared at his brother in disbelief. “How did- what happened?”
“The Techno Union found me, and brought me back… sort of,” Echo winced. “Tambor was… using my knowledge of the Republic, all the battle plans Rex and I made. He sold the information to the separatists, and kept my body to experiment on.”
“Echo,” Fives whispered. “I’m s-”
“It’s alright,” he said quickly. “Rex figured it out. He convinced Skywalker, and Cody brought the Batch; they found me and got me out of there.”
Fives was quiet for a long moment. “I should’ve been there,” he scowled.
“You were dead,” Echo argued.
“But I should’ve-”
Echo stopped him, gripping his wrist. “You couldn’t have known, vod.”
Fives sighed.
Echo’s eyes narrowed at him. “But what about you? You got shot by Fox right in front of Rex-”
“We’ve all gotten shot,” Fives argued.
“Fives,” Echo said, his tone filled with an old familiar exasperation Fives hadn’t heard in years. He couldn’t help the smirk that crossed his face.
“We had to fake it,” he said after a moment. “Fox was in on it. I- I wasn’t safe.”
Echo felt a pang in his chest. They were created to be soldiers - to risk their lives in service of the Republic; they’d rarely ever been truly safe. But his brother- his twin- had been alone in this. He listened sorrowfully as Fives recounted the days leading up to his “death”.
“We knew Palpatine would be after me, but when it became clear that Skywalker wasn’t hearing me, we had to end it and find another way.”
“But how did Fox know not to kill you? Why did Rex and Skywalker think you were dead? Couldn’t they tell you weren’t?”
Fives chuckled. “It’s a long story.”
“But-”
“Later.” He placed his hand on Echo’s shoulder. “We’ve got time, brother.”
-
With Hunter and Tech in a deep, hushed conversation, and Wrecker and Omega playing just outside the ship, Crosshair found himself alone.
That seemed to be a rarity these days. Despite how he was told he often came off, Crosshair hated being alone; it reminded him too much of his training.
He wandered aimlessly around the ship, avoiding the cockpit, trying to find a place to simply be.
The bunks didn’t feel right; he wasn’t tired. He didn’t have use for the tiny kitchen or the cargo bay.
Then his eyes fell on that door. The one he was sure hadn’t been opened in months.
He pressed the button, the doors sliding open effortlessly. Another and the lights came on.
Everything was mostly how J– she left it. Her bunk was neatly made, her small footlocker tucked underneath. Her datapad sat untouched atop the scratchy GAR issue blanket she always hated.
He took a deep breath, releasing it in a slow and shaky exhale as he knelt next to the bunk. It still smelled like J– her; the subtle hints of wildflowers drawing stinging tears to his eyes.
He let them shut, scowling slightly as he kept trying to just breathe, but the mask had started to slip.
She betrayed him- his family. She repeatedly tried to kill them. How was he still in love with her? How could he know that he would still follow her to the ends of the galaxy? Suddenly, he was standing in front of the cabinet where she kept her personal supplies. His hand hovered over the button to release the latch, his palm sweaty and fingers shaking. Another deep breath and he pressed it.
It looked like a mess, but he knew better. “It’s organized chaos,” she’d told him. “I know where everything is.”
His eyes landed on a particular container, her handwriting sprawled across the label, first in Qoljaki, then in a messy, nearly unreadable aurebesh. He smiled. He’d been able to pick his name out from his brothers’ even before she’d relabeled the containers. She’d given him such a surprised look when he’d said he figured it out.
“It’s the longest,” he shrugged, pulling a laugh from her.
He missed that laugh. She told him once that she hated her laugh.
“It’s too loud and sharp,” she’d said, resting her back against his legs as he braided her hair. “I sound deranged.”
They’d argued about it for a while, the discussion ending with a few activities that caused her to need her hair rebraided.
He looked in the cabinet a little more, vaguely recognizing some of the others’ names. But then he saw his own again, scrawled across a folded piece of flimsi, tucked at the back of the cabinet. His heart was pounding in his ears as picked up the note, gingerly unfolding it as though it’d disintegrate in his hands.
Opening it, he discovered that it was written in Qoljaki. He could only read his own name written at the top and J– her name at the bottom. He fidgeted a little. He wanted- no, he needed to read this letter. What if it explained everything?
He tried to think through his options. He could give it to Tech to translate. But what if there was something … intimate in the contents? He knew how his twin felt about her. No, he couldn’t risk that.
Echo? That was a tempting idea, but he had a lot on his plate right now, finding out his twin was actually alive. That, and he wasn’t sure he could handle the sassiness he knew the ARC would give him.
Hunter couldn’t be an option; he had been the angriest among them after their most recent escape from Kamino.
Wrecker would probably feel just as lost as he did.
Crosshair sighed, walking back to her bunk and plopping down onto it, her datapad just next to him. He looked at the object. He knew she’d used it for everything, often citing that if she didn’t write down the little details of things, she’d likely forget them.
He picked it up, tapping the screen gently. It was dead, of course - it’d been months since it was last charged. He scanned the room, spotting her charging cord at the end of the bed. He plugged it in and waited. It would probably take a while, but maybe it could give him the answers he so desperately needed. He leaned against the wall, letting himself be fully enveloped in his memories and the smell of her perfume.
“Crosshair?” Omega’s gentle voice called from the doorway. When had she gotten there?
“Yeah, ‘Meg?”
“Are you okay?”
He glanced at her, peeking through one eye. “‘Course I am,” he answered cooly, thankful he’d been able to keep his voice steady despite feeling like he was on the verge of a breakdown.
“You’re crying,” she pointed out, eyeing him skeptically.
Crosshair lifted a hand to his cheek, honestly surprised to find it damp.
“What is that?” She asked, pointing to the flimsi letter in his hand as she came to sit next to him.
“A note from-” he hesitated. “From a friend.”
Omega nodded once, her curious eyes falling away from him. “Is it from Jaine?”
He sighed. She was far too insightful. “Yes.”
“And that’s the reason you’re crying?”
“Part of it,” he hummed.
“What’s the other part?”
Another deep breath. “I can’t read it.”
Omega looked at him curiously, then down at his hand and he held the note out to her.
“It looks like a bunch of scribbles,” she noted.
“It’s a different language,” he explained. “Jaine grew up on a planet called Qoljak, and this is how they wrote.” He pointed to the looping print at the top of the page. “That’s my name, there.”
Omega’s brow furrowed. “Why would she write you a letter you can’t read?”
Crosshair sighed, letting his eyes fall shut. “I don’t know.”
Omega’s hand lifted to her mouth as her brow furrowed. Just like Hunter, he thought. “Maybe Tech can translate it.”
“Maybe,” he agreed. “But it’s a dead language. And she never got the chance to teach it to him.”
“We won’t know until we try.”
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Thanks for reading! - River
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