#protective hunter

Summary: Taking place during the events of Season 3, Episode 11: Point of No Return; Hunter tires to catch up with Omega and Crosshair and wrestles with their precarious situation.

Hunter’s heart pounded in his chest; his limbs heavy as he pulled himself out of the water. His armor weighed him down and while the water hadn’t penetrated his helmet, the clothes underneath his armor were soaked through.

None of this mattered though. He had failed to commandeer the ship and now they were back to square one and running out of time. He dragged himself to the beach, taking his helmet off and finally catching his breath.

Before he could even think, all his senses tingled at once and he had his blaster in his hand and raised, aimed at a rock a few meters in front of him. He sighed as he instantly recognized the heavy beathing and four-legged patter of Batcher.

He smiled as she trotted over to him, letting him scratch her head happily. The site of Omega’s lurca hound had a calming effect before bringing him crashing back to reality.

Wrecker was injured and down. Omega and Crosshair were hiding, and the imperials were checking houses one by one. He stood up, grabbed his helmet and ran for the path to upper Pabu, Batcher at his heels.

He couldn’t just sprint outright, no matter how much he wanted to. He didn’t know what was lurking around the corners of the winding path. He heard cries and whimpers from locals, as they fought to keep the imperial troops out of their homes. He wanted to stop. To help, but there wasn’t time.

He cursed himself for waiting so long to leave. It had only been a day since Ventress’ warning, but it might as well have been a week. They should have left last night, or this morning. The pull of this place, this home, was dangerous and their sentimental attachment to it had led them to being trapped here.

His feet crunched heavily as he moved through lower Pabu. He paused behind a wall as he heard imperial troops searching another house. He had a clear line of site of the trooper stationed in the doorway. The homeowner, a man Hunter had seen multiple times at the marketplace and traded the occasional pleasantry with, noticed him and shook his head. The man jerked his head, indicating for Hunter to keep moving and Hunter’s heart swelled for this place and these people. He was responsible for bringing this despair and destruction to them and he wasn’t sure, if he survived the night, if he would even be able to repay them.

Hunter and Batcher were halfway up the island when he froze. He felt batcher pause and noticed her cock her head to the side, out of the corner of his eye. She had heard it too.

He flung himself over the side of the wall, there was a ship somewhere, he heard it. It was smaller than the Venator stationed above. A shuttle. The repetitive whir of the engines told him it was hovering, waiting.

Omega.

He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did, and his stomach dropped. He ran to the sound of the ship. Batcher barking happily as she tried to keep up with him. Sweat prickled at his hairline and ice filled his lungs, despite the warm sea breeze, as he pushed his body as hard as it would go to catch up to the noise.

The engines roared to life, and he pushed himself harder, his feet flying under him. He threw himself around a corner, colliding with a stormtrooper and shooting him so fast Hunter was around the next bend before he heard the body hit the ground.

He was so close; he could hear the engine so clearly now. The thrusters grew louder.

“No, no, no” Hunter said to himself, as he charged around another bend.

The black triangular ship was speeding towards clouds above. The red lights on the back of the ship casting a sinister scowl in the sky.

“NO, NO, NO!” Hunter shouted out loud this time. His heart was hammering so hard against his chest he could barely breathe.

There was only one reason a ship would be leaving. They had what they came for. They had Omega. Again.

He stumbled around the final corner to find Crosshair, head cocked up to the sky, looking at the space where the ship had disappeared.

Stormtroopers lay scattered around his feet and further up the path. His firepuncher rifle was hanging languidly in his hands.

Hunter was doubled over, trying to take in guttural breaths. He took off his helmet, his chest heaving, desperate to find equilibrium that wouldn’t come.

“Where is she?” Hunter croaked to his brother, his voice strained and tight. He frantically looked up and down the path, hoping she’d pop up from behind a wall or neighbors garden, smiling and reassuring him that she was alright. But she wasn’t there. He couldn’t hear the familiar dance of her heartbeat or smell the sweet floral scent that followed her around.

Crosshair was frozen, staring at the blank space in the sky.

“Crosshair,” Hunter shouted insistently, the panic evident now.

He knew the answer. He knew. But he needed to hear it from his brother.

Hunter started to feel his throat close, and he threatened to choke on a sob that had been lingering since the moment he heard the ship. He desperately tried to keep it at bay, as he looked to his brother for some comfort, some evidence that he was wrong.

Crosshair finally looked away from the sky, his helmeted face staring at Hunter. He gently shook his head.

She was gone.

Hunter’s hands shook as he cradled his head. He had lost her. Again. And they still had no way of finding her. The sob that had threatened to overwhelm him came out as an animalistic scream. He heard it echo across the island. His body shook with grief, from all the grief it had ever held.

Crosshair moved towards him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry.” He said, “I… I missed…I…”

Hunter fought the impulse to throttle Crosshair, to grab him by the neck and throw him to the ground. To unleash every ounce of pain he could onto his brother. Complicit in Hunter’s failure to protect Omega.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and noticed his brother’s slumped shoulders, low hanging head and right hand shaking more violently than he had ever seen it.

He took a deep breath. Wiped away the stray tears that had managed to fall and used every ounce of self-control to pull himself back from the brink. “We need to move.” He said, his voice steady and firm. “Let’s get to Wrecker. Then make a plan. Follow me.”

He moved quickly, listening intently for the sound of his brother and Batcher behind him while simultaneously keeping his sense attuned to what was ahead.

The troopers had started to work their way back to the crest of the island. The stray ones who were unfortunate enough to encounter Hunter and Crosshair on their way to upper Pabu were dispatched remorselessly.

When they arrived at Shep’s house Wrecker was sitting up, taking delicate sips from a canteen held by Lyana. Hunter let Crosshair break the news. He stood in the back of the room and watched every wave of emotion cross Wrecker’s face at once.

Wrecker looked to Hunter, his eyes impossibly wide, imploring him for a solution to a problem they hadn’t been unable to solve last time. They still didn’t know where Tantiss was.

Hey all!

I'm so sorry I haven't posted anything lately... things happened and I didn't have the energy to write.

Echo's sequel is coming, I just need to edit. I have a Tech fluff in the works and I promise I'll for Wrecker and Crosshair soon.

Anyway, here's a Hunter fic for you! I do have a smutty part 2 planned for this one, I just need the energy to write it.

CW: Angst, emotional torment, jealousy, idiots in love, protective Hunter, Hemlock trying to manipulate reader

Word count: 2673

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During my most recent rewatch of The Bad Batch, I paid closer attention to Hunter and noticed all of the ways he protected Omega.

This will be in multiple parts because there are a lot of moments.

From Season 1 Episode 1: Aftermath

Standing between Omega and an angry clone.

Maybe a bit of a stretch, but I'm counting this scene. Hunter knows the kind of danger his squad frequently finds themselves in and doesn't want to involve Omega in any of that.

Pulling her from the line of Crosshair's fire just in time.

My theory is that Philip tried to kill Caleb's wife and baby. Caleb protected them. Maybe a fight happened, maybe not. Caleb died protecing them. How that's not Hunter's fate. But god would that be a big angsty lunter moment if Hunter died protecting luz.

@badthingshappenbingo

Here's our fill for "Mistaken Identity". :)

Another example of him protecting her mentally and emotionally. Also, this is the second time Hunter has had to remind Wrecker that she is an actual child.

I'll bet Cid isn't the only one Hunter has threatened regarding Omega. He also does not stop worrying about her throughout the rest of the episode.

From Season 1 Episode 13: Infested

Moves her behind him when the Pykes threaten to kill them. He's also the first to pull out his blaster when the Pike leader demands Omega remain with them.

A small moment, but when Omega moves forward to protest the Pykes hurting or killing Vizago, Hunter starts to reach out to pull her back.

From Season 1 Episode 14: War-Mantle

This isn't the first time he's made Omega stay on the ship during the mission, but this time he has one of them stay behind with her. He watched as she had to help them escape the Zygerians by herself and thought 'never again' lol.

From Season 2 Episode 1: Spoils of War

Another example of Hunter protecting Omega emotionally. Note the way he keeps looking back to her room after he pulls Echo aside.

From Season 2 Episode 5: Entombed

Similar to the scene in the ion engine, Hunter is either grabbing Omega or holding on tightly to her to keep her from falling as the mechanical beast they are in breaks down.

From Season 2 Episode 9: The Crossing

Despite needing the manpower, Hunter refuses to leave Omega on her own because of the potential threat of poachers.

From Season 2 Episode 16: Plan 99

Holding her back from the opening of a broken cart.

Injured and outgunned, Hunter does the only thing he can do to keep Omega safe when the Empire arrives on Ord Mantell.

Oh? Well, who knew clones are so paternal? Fascinating.

Summary: Clone Force 99 work to get the necessary data for Obi Wan and Cody but an unexpected surprise threatens to curtail their plans.

Read on AO3

“I still don’t see why we all had to come.” Crosshair hissed.

Tech rolled his eyes as he finished clearing the room and stowed his blasters in favor of his datapad. With the war at an end, the medbays weren’t getting much use at the moment excepts for minor injuries if any fights broke out amongst brothers.

“I already explained multiple times. If General Kenobi is going to take out evidence to the Jedi council, there needs to be an abundance of it. Checking each of us for a chip would confirm that defectives” Crosshair bristled at the word, “and regs alike have the chips embedded. Once confirmed we will likely have to leave it up to the Jedi to decide how to proceed.”

Crosshair rolled his eyes and propped himself in the corner as Wrecker and Echo were next to arrive. They slid quickly through the door before closing it behind them. Tech had moved over to the scanner in the center of the room.

“Echo, would you mind?” Tech asked without looking up from his datapad.

Echo crossed over to him, inserting his scomp into the port to calibrate the machine. It came to life with a whirr and the men paused in the hopes no one had heard it activate. The lights around the scanner burst to life, casting a bright, white light down on the slab.

“What do we do if we get caught?” Wrecker asked, leaning up against the wall.

“We don’t get caught.” Hunter said as the door slid open. He sealed it behind him, took his helmet off and shook his long hair out of his face before freezing, his eyes travelling across every surface, his nostrils flared.

“What is it?” Tech asked, knowing better than to discount his brother’s instincts.

“Someone’s here.” He said quietly.

“That’s impossible, we cleared the room.” Crosshair said dismissively.

“They’re not…in the room.” Hunter replied, jumping on top of a bed and reaching towards the ceiling. He pulled his vibroknife out of its sheath and wedged the tip into the corner of the vent. The vent face opened with a clang as a small girl spilled out.

She screamed as she fell. Hunter’s hand shot out and caught her by the wrist before gently lowering her the rest of the way to the floor.

The other brothers stood frozen, staring at the small, wide-eyed child.

Her eyes looked up as she watched Hunter close the vent and sit down on the bed he had been standing on. He put away his knife without looking and cocked one foot onto the bed, resting his arms around his knee.

“Think we didn’t hide in vents as cadets?” he asked with a wry smile. “How’d you even get up there?”

The girl shrugged, sniffed and wiped her nose, her eyes downcast as she adjusted the silver headpiece resting on her forehead.

“What should we do with her?” Echo asked Hunter.

“Stun her?” Crosshair supplied, as he rolled his toothpick around his mouth. The girl moved away from him and came to lean against the bed Hunter was sitting on.

“Kriff it, Crosshair. We can’t stun her.” Echo said, exasperatedly.

“We have a mission to complete and are running out of valuable time.” Crosshair said simply.

“You must pardon our brother. He seems to have left his senses back at the shooting range.” Tech said.

Crosshair scowled at Tech and crossed his arms.

Hunter rolled his eyes. “What were you doing in the vent, kid?” he asked, taking in the girl’s familiar Kaminoan medical worker’s attire. He’d never seen it on a human before, much less a child.

“Hiding. Mistress Se said If I’m caught out of bounds again, she’d send me back to her private lab. I thought you were her. I only just got out last week.”

“You work here?” Echo asked.

The girl nodded, “I’m her medical assistant.”

“But you’re just a kid.” Wrecker said, concern etched on his face.

“Furthermore, I was not aware Nala Se had a private lab on Kamino. I wonder if some of the data held there could help our cause.” He said to Hunter, “Perhaps it would be worthwhile to investigate it, given the…sensitive nature of our current assignment.”

“Hmm. Wouldn’t be a bad idea. Kid….”

“Omega.” The girl supplied, her big brown eyes looking up at Hunter sweetly.

“Um…Omega, do you think you could take us to this lab?”

The girl’s eyes went wide, her hands grabbing a section of her tunic and twisting it into a knot.

“We’re going to trust a kid, now?” Crosshair asked. Again, Omega shuffled away from Crosshair and closer to Hunter.

Hunter climbed off the bed and sank down to her level. “We won’t let anything happen to you.” he said, his hand gently resting on hers to stop the nervous movement. She smiled again and took a deep breath.

“Okay.” She said bravely.

Hunter nodded and stood up. “This is Tech, Echo, Wrecker, Crosshair and I’m…”

“Hunter.” Omega said.

The brothers exchanged a look.

“You know who we are?” Echo asked, his amber eyes wide.

“Yes. You’re Clone Force 99.”

The brothers exchanged another look.

“Ha, I guess we’re famous now.” Wrecker said with amusement. A single look from Hunter quieted him.

“Okay, Echo, Wrecker and Crosshair, you’ll stay here and run the test on the chips. Echo, you can do that, right?”

“I’m sure I can figure it out.” He said, jabbing his scomp aggressively into the port again.

“The inhibitor chips?” Omega asked.

“Yes, we are simply testing a theory.” Tech supplied, hoping the vague amount of information would satiate omega’s curiosity.

“Oh. You need a level five scan for that.” She said as she twirled on her heel and walked towards the door, her blonde waves bouncing as she moved. “Are you coming?” she asked as she pressed the door release and snuck out into the hallway. Tech looked over at Hunter who shrugged and followed.

“Comm if you need us and don’t get caught.” Hunter said as he made his way out into the hallway. Tech gave one last look to his brothers and followed.

***

Hunter was quiet as they made their way into the depths of Tipoca City. He had never ventured this far into the undercity before. The sterile white corridors of the upper levels gave way to dingy grey corridors, the low amber lights flickering ominously.

Omega wandered a few steps ahead, turning down corridors automatically, seemingly forgetting the party she was leading. Hunter eyes focused on the girl; confusion etched on his face. Where had she come from? Why was she here? What use did the Kaminoan’s have for this child? He saw his younger brothers in her somehow and the fierce overprotectiveness born from the struggle of his younger years rose up inside him again.

“What is it?” Tech leaned over and whispered in his ear.

Hunter’s eyes flicked to him briefly, before falling back on Omega. “N…Nothing.” He said sternly, hoping to cut off whatever follow up question Tech would inevitably ask. But his brother was never dissuaded that easily.

“Do you sense something?” he continued.

Hunter paused, watching the gap between them and Omega widened, “No, it’s just…what is she doing here? It makes no sense.”

“That Kaminoans always make sense, you just have to understand the bigger picture. She is obviously valuable to them, otherwise she wouldn’t’ be here. Nala Se is selective. She wouldn’t have just anyone…”

Hunter head snapped around, realizing Omega had turned a corner during their conversation, “Kriff it.” He spat as he took off down the corridor.

“What?”

“Kaminoan inbound.”

“Medical Assistant. What are you doing down here alone?” the slow, distinct voice of the Kaminoan said.

“Er…Nala Se asked me to check on something for her.” Omega replied formerly, her voice higher than her usual register.

“And what was that?”

Hunter could hear Omega’s heart hammering in her chest.

“She said it was confidential.”

There was a long pause. Hunter drew himself right up to the corner of the hallway, the tip of his blaster tucking around the edge in case he needed to stun the Kaminoan.

“Very well. Hurry up. You will be needed in the medbay soon.”

“Yes Ma’am.” Omega said, bowing her head in respect.

The Kaminoan walked past her, towards where Hunter and Tech were hiding. As she turned to go left down the hallway Hunter shot a blue stun bolt into her back. She careened over, her long neck swaying as she fell.

Hunter winced as she hit the floor with a loud thwack. Not that he felt any sympathy for a Kaminaon, but the noise was loud and reverberated around his skull unpleasantly.

Tech sighed. “What to you suggest we do with her?”

Hunter looked around, eyes settling on a storage cupboard. “She’s gunna learn what it feels like to be a maintenance clone.” He said smugly as he dragged the large unconscious body into the cupboard and slammed the door shut.

“That room is actually slightly larger than Ninety-nine’s.” Tech said thoughtfully.

“Well, let’s hope it’s still unpleasant.” Hunter said gruffly. He noticed Omega staring at them at the end of the hallway and struggled to read her expression.

“Do not fear. She will regain consciousness soon enough, hopefully when we are finished with our work.” Tech said.

Omega shook her head, “It’s not that…it's just…can you teach me how to do that?” she asked excitedly.

Hunter looked at Tech and laughed, “maybe when you’re older, kid.” He said.

The lab was only a short way away from the unconscious Kaminoan’s cupboard. It was the same as all the medbays, testing rooms and control rooms (which he and his squad had broken into occasionally), gleaming, sterile spaces. It was exactly what Hunter would have expected of Nala Se. It contrasted greatly with the rest of the under city, a space for only a select few eyes.

“How many people know about this place?” Hunter’s deep voice asked, echoing through the vacant space as he pulled off his helmet.

Omega shrugged, pulling herself up on the slab of a scanner, her little legs swinging playfully. “Just Nala Se, me, and a few of her other assistants.”

“Are her other assistants like you?” Hunter asked before he could stop himself.

 She looked up at him, confused.

“Children. Are the other assistants children?” Tech asked, his eyes flicking between his older brother and Omega.

“No. I’m the only one.”

“Why?” Hunter asked again, unable to focus on the job at hand with the mystery in front of him.

Tech lingered for a beat before searching for a hub and connecting his datapad to it with a tut of disapproval.

Omega cocked her head to the side, her large brown eyes pouring over the sergeant in a way that felt intrusive. “I don’t know.”

“Are you…safe? With Nala Se, I mean?” He asked, nudging her to scoot over and sitting next to her on the slab.

The girl hesitated. “Y…yes. She looks after me.” She said, pulling her arms around her chest tightly.

Hunter raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“What?” she asked.

He shrugged, running his hand through his hair, “In my experience the Kaminoans’ don’t care for anyone but themselves and their research. Nala Se is one of the worst.”

Omega fidgeted with the jewel sitting in the middle of her forehead but didn’t respond.

“Anyway, thanks for your help, Kid.” He said with a smile before getting up and moving to Tech. He felt her eyes on him as he left, not entirely comfortable with her replies.

The Specialist was in his element, his eyes flying over data at a speed that Hunter was unable to decipher a single sentence, let alone a whole screenful of information.

“Any luck?” he asked quietly.

“I could ask you the same thing.” Tech said, his eyebrows raised humorously over his brown eyes.

Hunter balked at his younger brother. “What do you mean?”

“You had the same look in your eyes when we adopted Echo.” He said, his fingers flying over the datapad.

Hunter huffed a laugh, “It’s just…strange. I don’t know what she’s doing here. Somethings not right about it…and…”

“And what?” Tech asked

“She was hiding in the vent. Do you remember what was happening to us when we hid in the vents? and under floor panels? in the hanger?”

A shadow fell over Tech’s face. “Of course I remember.” He said pensively. “So, you don’t have designs of taking her with us?”

“What? Or course not. She’s a child.”

“Hmm.”

“I mean, if she was in danger, maybe.” Hunter said with a shrug and Tech laughed.

“She is a Kaminoan test subject. Of course she is in danger.”

Hunter’s eyes widened as he looked from Tech and back to Omega. She was still sitting on the slab, her legs crossed underneath her while she made shadow puppets in the lights of the scanner.

“How do you know that?”

Tech sighed, “I looked up her file. She is an assistant, yes, but they are also keeping tabs on her. She is an experimental clone, like us. Although I could not find any details of her particular enhancement.”

“Kriff it.” Hunter muttered under his breath.

“Indeed. I can’t imagine Crosshair will be happy with a child on board.”

Hunter laughed. “Hopefully, that’s a problem for another day.” His eyes fell back on Omega, and it suddenly struck him why he found it difficult to look away from her. She looked like his youngest brother as a cadet.

Crosshair had always been the smallest, his slight frame always swamped by the regulation cadet uniform.  Like Omega, his wavy hair would hang around his ears but instead of the bright blonde, it had always been white.

Crosshair has suffered the most at the hands of the Kaminoans, not just in testing but his practical exams as well. While Hunter, Tech and Wrecker were tested and trained together, Crosshair spent most of his time alone, separated from them, with no one to stand up for him. It changed him slowly from a boisterous and friendly cadet to a cold and calculated adult. By the time they were cleared for duty Hunter could count on his hand the number of times Crosshair had smiled or laughed. His toothy grin replaced with a scowl and a pack of toothpicks.

Hunter had never mourned the loss of his youngest brother to the mechanisms of war but as he watched Omega play in the light of the scanner, giggling at her own amusement, he saw Crosshair as he used to be, and his chest constricted painfully for his failure to protect the young version of his brother. He had come to accept long ago that he would never be able to get him back and he loved Crosshair for who he was. But he could never forget the Kaminoans’ for what they had taken from him.

Tech sighed haughtily. “I see no evidence of additional information on the commands I discovered previously. I have pulled everything I can from the private terminal and will analyze it later and have covered my tracks well enough that they shouldn’t find out. For now, I believe we should get back to the others for our scans.”

Hunter nodded his understanding. “Let’s go.” Putting his helmet back on and making for the door.

“You coming?” he asked Omega with a jerk of his head.

Omega took one long look of the room and nodded, hopping down and leading the way back to the surface of the city.

***

The scans didn’t take as long as anticipated. By the time Hunter, Tech and Omega returned, the rest of the squad had completed theirs and were sitting around daring Wrecker to bench press increasingly heavy equipment. Luckily, they arrived back before the scanner was an option.

After all the scans were done, Tech perused the data. “I believe we have everything we need to reply to…” he paused, looking at Omega hovering at his elbow, “the desired party. We should leave before our luck runs out.”

“Finally,” Wrecker said as he collected his helmet. “See ya, kid.” He said, playfully ruffling her hair as he passed. She grinned up at him and touched her hair where his hand had been.

“Bye, Omega,” Echo said with a kind smile. She smiled back, happily.

“Take care. It has been a pleasure,” Tech said, giving her the briefest of glimpses from his datapad before burying his face in it once more and walking out the door.

Crosshair gave her a curt nod and walked past her with no further comment. Hunter noticed Omega watch him go, her face dropping.

“Don’t worry about Cross, he takes a little time to warm up to new people.”

“It’s okay.” She said, her large brown eyes gleaming with excitement, although he wasn’t sure why.

The Sergeant crouched down and pulled something out of a pouch on his hip. “Listen, we’re going to be off world for a bit. Take this,” He handed her a small comm. “If you need anything, just call.”

Omega closed her little fist around the comm and held it to her heart. “Thank you, Hunter.” She said quietly, suddenly unable to meet his gaze.

He stood up and turned to leave but something in her voice made him turn. “You are safe here, Omega. Right?”

“Uhuh.” She said with a nod, the smile on her lips not quite making it to her eyes, her arm closing tightly around her again.

We've filled the square "Hurt/comfort". :)