Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Something was very wrong. The minute the strange order came over their comms, the others seemed to change. He noticed it first in Tech, then Hunter, then Echo. Wrecker didn’t seem phased by it, but he knew something was there. Something small. Something lurking in the shadows. Something wicked and evil waiting for a chance to lash out and strike.

Chapter Text

Kaller was a success. Hunter tracked down the Jedi padawan and took him out with one precise shot between the eyes. The accuracy of the shot and the coldness with which the deed had been done was alarming and bordering on horrifying. Hunter, the calm, solid leader they all looked to for guidance with respect and love, had executed a kid without a second thought. Without questioning the order. 

Upon their return to Kamino, Wrecker gleefully added another tally mark to their scoreboard beside the door. So far they hadn’t failed a single mission, maintaining their perfect score of one hundred percent efficiency. But it wasn’t right. None of it was. 

Wrecker hadn’t been there. He hadn’t seen the brutal way Hunter had shot the padawan. Silently. Emotionlessly. Soullessly. . . . 

If he’d seen it, he might not have been so gleeful about adding another tally mark. But now it was there. Engraved into the wall of their barracks by the sharp edge of a vibro-blade. Now it was forever engrained upon their record. Nothing short of replacing the wall would get rid of the marks. But they’d always be there. In their memories. 

Echo was as stoic and tense as always. He’d lost a lot of pieces of himself on Skako Minor. Now, after that horrible order, he might not ever get them back. What had been lost was truly gone, replaced by cold nothingness. 

Hunter remained as emotionless as when he’d shot the kid. He didn’t take off his helmet until he was seated on his bunk. He drew his knife and started fidgeting with it, like the Hunter he used to be would. But that wasn’t the old Hunter. This was someone new. Someone darker. 

Wrecker was the same as always. Still annoying. Still loud. Still excitable and playful. 

Tech, however, was the worst. He was silent. He didn’t speak a word as he calmly moved across the stinking, cluttered barracks to his work table and sat down. He removed his helmet and his expression was finally visible to them all. 

There was nothing on his face. Simply nothing at all. It was impassive. Emotionless. Void. But his eyes were the worst of all. Usually bright, intelligent, and ever curious, now dead and amber pits of absolute darkness. 

Crosshair shuddered unconsciously as he gazed across the room at Tech. His favourite brother, now a walking shell. That exceptional mind was still there, still working, still ticking away, but Tech wasn’t. That thing was wearing Tech’s face. 

Crosshair hefted his rifle onto his lap. He needed to keep his hands busy. He had to stop them from trembling. He didn’t want them to see his fear. He’d built a facade of impassiveness, of fearlessness, apathy, bordering on derision. He couldn’t let that slip now. Especially now with all of them acting so strange. 

His Firepuncher rested heavy on his lap, the weight of it a small comfort and the only source of familiarity he felt anymore in this strange time. His squadmates, his brothers , he no longer recognised. He could only imagine where they’d gone and he didn’t want to go there. 

“Crosshair.” 

Crosshair stiffened and bit down hard on his toothpick. He slowly turned, putting on the most displeased face he could muster, and met Hunter’s piercing gaze from across the room. “What?” He drawled, trying to put the same annoyed tone into it as he usually did. 

“Why did you hesitate?” 

He stiffened. And began to panic. 

Hunter knew. He’d seen him pause with his scope trained on the padawan’s chest. He’d seen the twitch of his finger towards the stun knob. He’d seen everything and sensed something was wrong. 

Crosshair pursed his lips and wrinkled his nose. “I didn’t.” He snarled. “You’re imagining things, Hunter.” He turned his head slowly back to his rifle, pretending to be his usual self, despite his heart beating frantically in his chest. 

“You’re lying.” 

Crosshair made a show of rolling his eyes and groaning. He cocked his head to the side, giving Hunter his best sneer. “I’m not.”

Hunter’s head tilted ever so slightly to the side as the knife stopped twirling in his hand, coming to a menacing halt in the grip of his fist. “Then why’s your heart beating so fast?” 

Crosshair felt all eyes on him. He saw Tech’s, once cold and impassive, now filled with silent judgement, questioning and studying. He tried to ignore them. He pushed those eyes out of his line of sight by focusing completely on Hunter. 

He curled his lips back from his teeth, baring them threateningly. “I’m not lying.” He insisted. “Get over it, Hunter.” 

“Then what happened? You had the target in sight. Why didn’t you take the shot?” 

Crosshair bit down so hard on his toothpick it started to crack. “I had to readjust my position. The kickback would have knocked me over.” 

Hunter rose slowly from his perch on the edge of his bunk, menacingly, exuding an aura of power and authority, trying to intimidate Crosshair into telling the truth. “You wanna try that again, Crosshair?” 

Crosshair stood up, keeping a hand wrapped firmly around the grip of his rifle, ready to lift it and fire at a moment’s notice. Echo was too far away to reach him, so was Tech, and Wrecker was sitting on his bunk behind a stack of crates and wouldn’t be fast enough to stop him if he lifted his rifle. 

“How about this, Hunter? What does it matter? The kid’s dead. You shot him in the head.” 

Wrecker gasped softly. Echo’s eyes widened for a split second before narrowing again. Tech remained cold. 

“The mission was a success. End of story. Move. On.” Crosshair snarled, exuding his power and authority against Hunter’s much more frightening aura. He could see the tension in Hunter’s neck and jaw over his neck guard. He was sure the muscles in his biceps would be flexing as well. 

Hunter took one step forward, about to shoot back a rebuttal, but the order to gather in the staging area for the briefing on the current state of the republic over the PA stopped him. He settled for shooting Crosshair a stern glare before heading for the door. 

Crosshair relaxed only for a brief second. He turned to set down his rifle and looked up to find Tech watching him carefully. He tensed, but quickly forced himself to relax. He knew Tech was the worst at reading people. But there was something in those clever eyes of his that made him think that was no longer true.

Chapter Text

As they and all the other clones on Kamino stood in the staging area, he shuddered as the broadcast from Coruscant started. It didn’t help that he was standing beside Tech. 

The news of the Jedi rebellion didn’t sit well with him. He’d never liked Palpatine, but he disliked him even more now, especially with his creepy yellow eyes barely hidden by the hood of his cloak peering down on all of them like some sort of all powerful being. The way he spoke about the Jedi didn’t make sense. 

He’d seen the way they’d acted. He recalled General Skywalker and his loyalty to Captain Rex and Echo. He couldn’t believe that people like the Jedi had been planning a rebellion and had even attempted to assassinate the Chancellor. He couldn’t agree with hunting them down and destroying them. They weren’t evil. 

Beside him, Tech was watching the holo-message with rapt attention. It was like he was looking at his work, with complete and total concentration. Nothing could break him out of his work when he got deep enough into it. Now he was looking at Palpatine like that. 

Crosshair grimaced and clenched his fists. This wasn’t good. Something was very, very wrong. 

He swept his eyes over the crowd before him. He scanned the uniform white helmets of the regs. He moved his eyes over their heads and up to the viewing room over the staging area. 

He saw the Prime Minister and the head scientists. He also saw a kid. A blonde haired kid who was gazing down at him and his brothers in gleeful surprise. He glanced over at his brothers, wondering if they’d seen the kid. He strangely hoped they hadn’t, but one look at Hunter told him he had. He snapped his attention back to the kid, but only the Kaminoans and two regs were there. The kid had disappeared. 

He jerked when Palpatine’s booming voice echoed through the room, declaring the Republic was being reformed into the first Galactic Empire. He shuddered when the regs and his brothers started cheering. 

Things had just gotten a whole lot worse. 

Chapter Text

After the meeting, as they headed back to their barracks in silence, Hunter brought them to an abrupt stop. He turned and Crosshair followed his gaze to find the kid from the viewing room standing behind them, smiling. 

“Hello.” She greeted, giving them a small wave. 

Wrecker bent down to get a good look at her. “What’s that?” 

Tech shifted to peer around Wrecker’s hulking frame, adjusting his glasses. “Adolescent human female. Origins. . . uncertain.” 

“My name’s Omega. I was wondering when you guys would come back.” She said brightly, her voice barely containing her glee. 

Crosshair almost smiled at the kid as she looked up at them with shining eyes. Before he could say something, Hunter stepped forward. 

“You know who we are?” He asked, his tone sharp and cold. 

Crosshair watched the glee and excitement vanish from the kid’s eyes and her shoulder’s drop. She almost looked scared as she gazed up at Hunter. 

“Hunter, Echo, Tech, Wrecker, and Crosshair.” She replied, looking at each of them in turn. Her eyes lingered on Crosshair’s and her tight little form relaxed. “You’re Clone Force 99.” 

Hunter took another step closer, his back oddly rigid. He peered down at Omega coldly, a hint of a frown appearing on his face. “What are you doing on Kamino?” 

Before Omega could answer, Nala Se spoke up. “Her job, of course. She is my medical assistant, one with a curious mind that causes her to wander.” 

Crosshair wondered why a kid of all people was Nala Se’s assistant. He didn’t like the feeling it gave him or the unhappy, almost timid expression on her young face. 

Nala Se touched a hand to Omega’s shoulder. “Come, Omega. There is work to do.” 

Omega cast them a worried look before she hurried after Nala Se. She glanced back at them once before she slid around the corner, waving to them meekly. 

Chapter Text

He sat beside Tech, picking at his food in silence as they all sat and ate. He could feel Tech’s eyes and Echo’s on him, but he ignored them, just as he usually did. He tried to pretend he wasn’t afraid. But fear gnawed at him like a Nexu on an Eopie drumstick. 

Hunter joined them with his tray and began to eat in silence, just like the others. 

For once Wrecker was staying quiet. He hadn’t spoken a word since they’d met Omega in the hall. 

“An Imperial’s been sent to evaluate the clones. Everyone’s talking about it.” Hunter spoke up all of a sudden.

Echo, without looking up from his food, asked: “What kind of evaluation?” 

“Hopefully not mental. Clearly we’d never pass that.” Tech replied without a hint of his usual matter-of-fact, almost teasing, tone. He didn’t even look up from his meal as he spoke with his new flat, cold, almost harsh voice. 

Crosshair didn’t like the awkward silence that followed Tech’s statement. He almost sighed in relief when it was broken by a quiet voice. 

“Hello again.” Omega greeted as she set her tray down and slid onto the bench to join them. She gave them a weak smile and a timid little wave. 

The awkward silence returned and the others finally looked up from their food to gaze at her with varying levels of  irritation. 

She put a hand to her chest. “Omega. From earlier?” 

More silence followed. 

Her smile fell and she looked around at them cautiously. “In the corridor?” She added.

Hunter sighed, the sound almost like a growl. “Yeah. We remember.” He bit out, his words clipped and sharp. He gave her a hard look. “Don’t you have someplace to be?” 

She shook her head and shifted closer to the table on the uncomfortable bench. “No. I’ll stay.” 

Tech frowned and glanced over at her. “You want to sit with us?” His nose wrinkled when she nodded. “That’s never happened before.” 

Crosshair caught the hateful tone in his brother’s voice and he had to contain the urge to grimace. 

“Wow.” Wrecker mumbled, giving Tech a look. 

“I like you.” Omega said slowly, carefully, sounding like she didn’t fully mean her words. “You don’t fit in around here either.” 

Hunter slowly lowered his roll to give Omega a sharp look. “What are you really doing here on Kamino?” 

Crosshair couldn’t remember the last time he’d heard Hunter sound so accusatory, like he was interrogating a Separatist prisoner. 

Omega recoiled at the tone of his voice, giving him a frightened look. 

“Don’t you have family somewhere? Parents?” Hunter asked, continuing the blatant interrogation. 

Omega frowned in confusion. “Parents?”

“Check it out. The defect squad’s got themselves a new recruit.” A reg snickered as he and his brothers walked by with their trays of food. They chuckled as they passed by. “Another member added to the Sad Batch.”

Crosshair clenched his fist around his spork as he listened to them cackle while they walked away. Normally he’d start something, stand up and make that reg eat his words, but he stayed where he was, poking at his soup. 

He looked up when he heard a wet plopping sound and the reg exclaiming in anger and demanding to know who’d thrown the roll that had exploded over the back of his neck. He whirled and found Omega standing on the table with a roll in hand, tossing it in the air over and over again with a stern look on her face. 

“I did.” She said. “Now apologise to my friends.” She gestured to them and Crosshair’s eyes widened at her proclamation. 

“I like this kid!” Wrecker exclaimed with a smile as he punched Echo in the chest.

“What did you say to me?” The reg demanded, pointing a finger up at Omega. 

Hunter rose from his seat and approached the reg, his face a mask of controlled rage. “Back off.” He snarled. “I suggest you keep moving.” 

The reg took one look at Hunter and cowered. “Know your place, lab scrubber.” He grumbled to Omega before slinking off with his brothers. He didn’t get five steps away before a tray of food hit him in the back of the head. 

Crosshair looked to Wrecker immediately and wasn’t surprised to see the pile of trays in his hand. 

“Oops.” Wrecker said. 

“That’s it.” The reg snapped, forgetting his fear as his brothers rose up around him to join in on the inevitable fight about to occur. 

“Oh, yeah!” Wrecker hollered and launched the pile of trays at the group of regs. 

The entire mess hall quickly descended into chaos. Food went flying, fists were thrown, and brawls between the Batch and the regs started all around him. 

Crosshair went immediately for the throat, launching his tray at a nearby reg, completely taking him out. Behind him, Tech was doubled over, having been punched in the stomach. 

Crosshair moved to help him, but Tech was up and swinging his fist straight into the reg’s jaw in a flash, vicious hatred burning in his eyes. He recoiled when Tech whirled, in search of his next victim, and their eyes met. 

“Tech.” He said slowly, extending a cautious hand. 

Tech glared at him then jerked to the right and punched a reg square in the face. He only snapped out of his strange rage-filled frenzy when he noticed Echo about to be slammed in the head by a tray. “Echo! Watch out.” He called, but it was too late.

Chapter Text

Crosshair waited with the others on the lift, waiting to be taken up to the training room. He tried to focus on the upcoming battle simulation. He went through the routine checks on his rifle, checking that everything was in order. 

The lift jolted and they headed up into the training room. Once they’d stopped, he took a breath and ran for cover and got ready, waiting for the droids to appear. As soon as they did, he started firing. 

He’d done this countless times. This was normal. This was how they did things. They were working seamlessly once again. Hunter gave him orders and he obeyed. 

He scaled the gun tower, taking his position up high, where he was in the best spot to see everything. He took out the towers then started picking off the droids on the ground one by one. He kept an eye on the others as they pushed their advance, taking more ground. 

He shook his head in exasperation when Wrecker charged forward, breaking rank. He wasn’t surprised, but he was still annoyed by Wrecker’s recklessness. He covered him by taking out any droids that were too close for comfort. 

Once all the droids had been dealt with, Wrecker threw his hands in the air. “What else ya got? Gimme more!” He hollered. 

Crosshair watched as, moments later, new droids he’d never seen before rose from the floor. 

Wrecker and the others fired at them, but their training blasters didn’t seem to be doing a thing. Wrecker, of course, charged straight at them, hollering in excitement. To everyone’s surprise, the droid grabbed Wrecker’s shoulders, stopping him in his tracks. 

Crosshair watched, stunned, as the droid shoved Wrecker away and its partner shot him in the shoulder, with live rounds .

Crosshair did what he could, firing round after round at the droids, but to no avail. He quickly made himself scarce when the two droids started firing on his tower. He slid down the side and to the ground, just barely making it out of there without getting shot. 

Almost as soon as his feet hit the ground, more droids rose up from the floor. He fired uselessly at them then turned and fled to join his brothers behind one of the walls. Just as he reached them, two more appeared behind them. 

“Fall back.” Hunter ordered and they hurried around to the other side of the wall.

They ducked down, trying to avoid being shot as the droids closed in around them. 

Crosshair couldn’t help but be snarky as he looked to Hunter. “This is going well.” 

“These training blasters are useless on them.” Echo growled angrily. 

“Then we improvise.” Hunter snapped back. “If Tarkin wants to test us, let’s not disappoint him.” He sat forward and lifted his helmet to whistle to Tech and Wrecker further down the room. 

Crosshair knew what Hunter was saying as he gestured to the other two. He cocked his head, watching Tech and Wrecker as they began to argue, though he couldn’t hear them. A second later Wrecker sat forward and gave them a thumbs up. 

With practised efficiency, they split up, taking on their individual roles without hesitation. They knew their jobs, so they’d do them, and do them well.

Just when things were starting to look grim, Tech got control of one of the droids, controlling it from the computer built into his vembrace. He used the droid’s blasters to take down the others as Hunter rushed in with his vibro-blade. 

Finally, things were starting to turn in their favour. But, as usual, it didn’t last long. Tech was knocked off the droid and Hunter, jumping to lend a hand before he was shot, hurled his knife into the other droid’s arm. It proved to be entirely useless.

Hunter quickly ducked behind cover before he was shot. “Crosshair, we need more cover fire!” He barked. 

Crosshair popped his head around the wall to assess the situation. There was just one last droid left to deal with and it was proving to be remarkably difficult. Tech was down, so he wasn’t going to be able to do anything, and the others were pinned down. 

He lowered his range-finder and suddenly it struck him. “Wrecker, knife!” He called.

Wrecker drew his knife and tossed it into the air. 

Crosshair aimed and fired. His blast struck the knife, sending it spinning through the air and directly into the head of the last droid, destroying it. 

“Wow.” Wrecker breathed as he stood up. 

They all emerged from cover, victorious. 

Hunter glanced over at him and nodded once in approval. “Nice work.”

Wrecker and Echo helped Tech up and they all came together to stand in the middle of their victory.

Chapter Text

Crosshair hesitated outside the hanger, letting Hunter walk by him as he headed for the Marauder where the others were finishing getting ready for their next mission. 

“Crosshair?” A small, nervous voice called. 

He stopped and turned to find Omega hurrying up to him. He frowned in confusion and quickly glanced over his shoulder to the others before he turned his eyes back to her. “What are you doing here?” He rasped, keeping his voice down to avoid drawing attention. 

“I need to talk to you.” She pleaded, giving him a frightened look. 

He hesitated, not knowing what to do. He’d never had a kid coming to him like this before. “What?” He finally settled on.

Omega glanced around them nervously, fear evident in her eyes. “That Imperial officer, I think he has it out for you. I overheard him talking to Lama Su. He doesn’t like clones.”

“We’re used to that.” 

“I don’t trust him.” She whispered, inching closer. 

“A mission’s a mission. We’ll be fine.”

“Then let me come with you!” She cried.

Crosshair shook his head. “You’re a kid. It’s too dangerous.” 

“It’s dangerous here too.” She insisted, giving him a pleading look. “Things aren’t like before. We need to leave Kamino.” 

“Crosshair! Let’s go!” Wrecker hollered, jarringly reminding him where they were. 

Crosshair sighed wearily and straightened. “It’s fine. Things are just different. We all have to get used to it.” He turned without looking at her, not wanting to see the sad, frightened glimmer in her eyes. 

“Crosshair.” 

He glanced over his shoulder at her. 

She opened her mouth to say something but then quickly closed it. She dropped her gaze and wrung her hands anxiously. “Um, n-never mind.” 

He carried on his way, hurrying to join the others in the ship. Hunter was waiting for him and he frowned. 

“What’s going on?” Hunter asked, using that same accusatory tone he’d used on Omega earlier in the mess hall.

Crosshair bit down on his toothpick. “Nothing.” He walked by Hunter into the ship, struggling to keep himself standing tall under Hunter’s distrustful gaze. 

Chapter Text

Onderon was a complete failure. Even though they’d completed their objective, they’d still let Saw Gerrera get away. And to top it all off, they’d been monitored by a probe droid. 

Upon their return to Kamino, they were met with mixed reviews. Tarkin was pleased with the number of insurgents they’d taken out, but incredibly disappointed they’d failed to eliminate Saw Gerrera. He ordered them all except Tech and Wrecker to go back to their barracks and get ready for their next mission. 

Tarkin sent Wrecker to the med centre and took Tech with him to the control room. 

Crosshair followed Hunter and Echo back to their barracks, a cold feeling crawling up and down his spine. He could see the shift in his brothers worsening. They were growing more and more heartless and cruel with each passing hour. Tech was completely unrecognisable now and Hunter was well on his way to that point too with Echo close behind. The only one still relatively normal was Wrecker, but he wasn’t there. 

Crosshair curled up in his bunk, his back against the wall. He sat hunched over, turning one of Tech’s screwdrivers over and over in his hands as he waited for the others to get back. 

Across the room he could see Hunter flipping his knife and Echo adjusting something in his arm. He would get up to help Echo, but he was glued to his bunk. He didn’t want to get too close to them while they were like this. 

He didn’t know how long he’d sat there, twirling Tech’s screwdriver, when Wrecker returned. He took one look at his biggest brother and a sharp pang of fear coursed through him and a voice screamed in his head to run and hide . 

He swallowed thickly around the lump in his throat as he watched Wrecker stalk over to his bunk, his steps purposeful and heavier than normal. The spark that made Wrecker who he was had been completely extinguished and Crosshair didn’t want to stick around to see who was inside his brother’s body. 

He stood up and moved slowly, leisurely, towards the door. 

“Where are you going?” Hunter called. 

“Forgot something on the ship.” Crosshair replied, struggling to remain calm. 

Hunter grumbled something, but he didn’t stop him. 

Crosshair left the room. Once the door had shut behind him, he all but bolted. He headed straight for the armoury to restock his clips and any other weapons he could get his hands on and carry to the Marauder without being questioned. 

He reached the armoury and started loading up his belt and pack, which he’d snatched, along with his helmet and rifle, on his way out of the barracks. He knew it looked suspicious to be taking his gear, but he didn’t care right now. He was leaving. 

He’d grab the kid and go. He couldn’t let an innocent kid like her get mixed up in this strange hell that Kamino had become. He’d get them as far away from here as possible and find someplace safe to hide for a while until he could figure out a plan. 

Crosshair had amassed a sizeable collection of grenades, clips, and other necessary gear within just a few minutes. He loaded up his pack and belt and headed out, his helmet on to hide his face. He was good at hiding his emotions, but he didn’t think he’d be able to do it convincingly right now. 

He headed for the medical ward, hoping he’d find Omega there. He asked a reg standing outside the infirmary door where the kid was. 

“She’s in confinement.” 

Crosshair frowned under his helmet. “What?” 

“She was found in your barracks.” 

Crosshair whirled on his heel and stalked away, fuming and terrified. A massive wrench had just been thrown in his plans. Now he had a rescue mission on his hands. 

He planned ways to get her out of the brig as he headed for it. He exuded such a frightening aura as he stormed down the halls that the regs moved out of his way, carefully avoiding him. 

He had a half baked plan by the time he reached the brig. Planning wasn’t his thing. That was Hunter and Tech’s job, but Tech wasn’t here anymore. He had to do this on his own from now on. He could do it, though. He was good at improvising. 

He approached the regs guarding the kid and beckoned them over to him. “Admiral Tarkin’s demanding assistance with a prisoner in the west hangar.” 

The regs looked at each other then at him. “Our orders are to guard her.” 

Crosshair scoffed. “She’s a kid. She’s not going anywhere.” He put a hand over the blaster on his hip. “I’ll keep an eye on her.” He snarled viciously. 

The regs looked at each other again then they hurried off. 

Crosshair watched them run off. Once they were out of sight, he hurried into the room and scanned the cells, searching for the kid. He spotted her in the middle cell staring at him in wonder with wide eyes. He deactivated the shields and beckoned for her to follow him. 

“Come on.” He hissed. 

She darted forward and followed him out of the brig. “Thank you.” She whispered as they hurried down the halls to the hangar where the Marauder was sitting. 

Crosshair gave her a quick glance and nodded to her. He didn’t say anything. Instead, he focused on not being seen by any regs. He knew they didn’t have much time before Hunter realised something was up and went looking for him. He’d check the hangar first, as that was where Crosshair had told him he was going. 

They needed to escape quickly. As soon as they were on board the Marauder , he’d set a course for the nearest backwater planet. Tatooine was on one of the nearest hyperspace routes and seemed like a pretty good place to hide out for a while. It was also wild and full of dangerous scum, but it was as good a place as any. 

Thankfully they reached the hangar without any incidents. Crosshair hurried Omega onboard the Marauder and double checked to make sure they weren’t being followed before he joined her. 

He sat down in the pilot’s seat and started powering up the ship. It would take a few minutes, so in the meantime he had Omega keep an eye out for anyone who might come into the hangar. The last thing he needed was for someone to find them. He couldn’t talk his way out of that situation. 

Just as the ship was almost finished powering up, Omega called out to him. 

He glanced through the hatchway and grit his teeth in frustration when he saw what was outside. 

A squad of troopers was hurrying into the hangar, blasters trained on the ship. Entering behind them were his brothers, led by Tech in strange black armour. The others had also been suited up with new gear and black armour that, quite frankly, made them look frightening. 

“Where do you think you’re going?” Echo called out. 

“You’re in direct violation of Order 66.” Wrecker bellowed. 

Crosshair cursed and started punching buttons, trying to get the ship to power up faster. After a few intense seconds, it finally roared to life. “Then come and get me.” He hollered back at them. “Omega, strap in.” He barked and punched the button for the door. 

He lifted off even as the door was closing. He cringed when blaster fire rang out behind him, a few bolts making it inside. Thankfully they didn’t seem to cause any serious damage. 

Crosshair flew them out of the hangar and into the pouring rain. He pushed them skyward, ignoring the engines as they protested against the strain he was putting on them. There was no time to worry about the usul safety protocols. Besides, Tech used to be a lot harder on the ship. 

A pang of sadness ripped through him as he flew the ship out of the atmosphere and into the black vacuum of space. Tech called the Havoc Marauder his ship. Tech had babied the ship, taking special care of it and working on it after almost every mission. He’d loved the ship, now he was gone. 

Crosshair forced back the growing flood behind his eyes as he calculated the coordinates for the jump to Tatooine. He couldn’t think about that right now. He needed to get away and think of a plan to get his brothers back. Hopefully he’d made the right call hightailing it off of that watery hell with the kid. He didn’t want to know what would have happened if he’d stayed. 

Omega came up beside him as he finished putting in the coordinates. He paused and glanced over at her, a brow raised. He saw the sparkle in her eyes, the wonder, the amazement, and he knew everything. 

She’d never left Kamino before. She didn’t know what space was like, how beautiful and cold it was. She’d never seen anything other than the stars above her head from the confines of the planet behind them. But now she was seeing it all before her. 

“Strap in.” He told her. 

She looked up at him, smiling brightly, and nodded. She hopped into the chair beside him obediently and buckled herself in. 

Crosshair finished plotting their course. He wrapped his hand around the throttle and took a deep breath. It had been a long time since he’d sat in this seat. Tech had rarely let anyone pilot the ship, let alone Crosshair. But now here he was, flying the ship his brother adored so much, running away with it. 

But he’d come back. He’d find a way to save his brothers. In the meantime he had to stay ahead of them. With Tech on his tail, nowhere was safe. He’d have to be especially careful with Tech chasing him down. 

He bit down on his toothpick and pushed the lever forward. The shimmer of hyperspace appeared before them then they were off.

Chapter Text

It was night when they arrived on Tatooine. Mos Eisley was slow and sluggish, its citizens having settled down for the night. Only a few places were open for business, and one of them was the cantina. 

Crosshair covered his armour as well as he could with a scrap of fabric from a tarp they’d used in the past to cover various crates from time to time. He used another piece to cover Omega. He couldn’t fully hide his face, but he’d make do. 

He left his Firepuncher aboard the Marauder , but he kept his pistol. He wasn’t about to leave the ship without a weapon. He also brought a small handful of thermal detonators, stashing them in a sack he found in the hold. 

Once he decided he had enough, he and Omega headed out for a night on the town. 

He had to stop to let her oggle the sand covered ground, as she had never seen anything like it. 

“What is this?” She breathed as she let a handful of coarse sand slip through her fingers. 

“Sand. Now come on. We don’t have time to sightsee.” 

They needed money and Crosshair hoped he’d be able to win some by gambling. Every time he’d played sabacc with his brothers, he’d won against them almost all the time. He’d only been beaten by Tech periodically. And with Omega as his partner, he was sure they’d rake in a few credits. 

He had some money left over from a job a while ago. He’d stashed his share of the payment, intending to use it for drinks at 79’s some night, but that wasn’t going to happen now. He just hoped he had enough to get himself into a game. 

If they could win enough credits, he’d buy them civvies, food, fuel, and pay someone to scramble the ship’s signature. He knew Tech would expect him to do that, but at least by changing the Marauder ’s signature he’d slow Tech down for a little while. He’d plan more once they had money in their pockets and were on their way to another planet. 

Omega caught his wrist as they walked down the almost empty street. She pointed to a cantina they were about to pass. “That one’s open.” 

Crosshair eyed it, scanning the perimeter he could see, looking for anyone suspicious. He saw more than a few, but he supposed that was to be expected of a dangerous place like Tatooine. 

He nodded and the two of them headed for the dingy cantina. As they descended the steps, the scent of alcohol and smoke filled his nostrils. He almost recoiled at the foul stench of unwashed bodies and something exceedingly unpleasant. 

He maintained his composure and led Omega over to the bar. He helped her up onto one of the stools then took one beside her. He ordered a mild drink and something sweet but non-alcoholic for her. He at least knew that kids shouldn’t drink alcohol. He didn’t know a whole lot about kids, but he knew that much. 

As he sipped at his drink, he scanned the cantina patrons. He saw a few unsavoury characters a notch above the rest and decided to stay well away from them. In one of the back corners was a trio playing a game of sabacc. All in all, including himself, Omega, and the barkeep, there were fifteen people in the cantina. 

He motioned to Omega with a jerk of his head and she obediently slid off her stool, holding her drink, and followed him across the room to the trio in the back. 

He stood over them silently until they paused their game and looked up at him. There was a Nikto, a Rodian, and a Weequay. None of them looked too pleased to see him, but he knew they saw the grip of his pistol when he lifted his hand to gesture to the table. 

“Need another player?” He drawled, mimicking the lazy speech pattern of bounty hunters he’d heard in the past and trying to tell them he wouldn’t take no for an answer without getting them riled up. 

“Sure. Sit down.” The Weequay said. “I’ll deal you in.” He started a new round, dealing Crosshair two cards. 

Crosshair sat down in the empty chair between the Weequay and the Rodian. He motioned for Omega to stand beside him, in his peripheral so he would see if she wandered off. “Stay.” He ordered. 

She nodded and sipped at her drink, standing obediently at his side. 

The Nikto chuckled and glanced between the two of them. “That your kid?” 

Crosshair shook his head as he picked up his cards, starting the game. “Sister.” He grumbled. 

He saw Omega smile out of the corner of his eye. She quickly hid it behind her drink as she sipped at it slowly, trying not to look too out of place. 

They went through two rounds, Crosshair winning each one and getting a few credits as a reward, before the Weequay struck up a hesitant conversation. 

“So, where you from, stranger?” 

Crosshair shot him a stern glare, warning him to back off and keep personal questions to himself. “That’s none of your business.” 

The Weequay nodded. “You a bounty hunter?” 

Crosshair sighed in exasperation. “Sort of.” He decided to answer. He’d thought of becoming a bounty hunter. He certainly had the skills to hit any target he chose, but finding them would be the difficult part without his brothers’ help. He didn’t have their unique skills. “Why? Heard of any good bounties?” 

The Nikto chuckled and shook his head. “Not right now. This new Empire’s cleaning up the business. Soon there won’t be any left for us.” 

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that.” Crosshair sneered. “The Empire’s new. People will fall through the cracks and we’ll be there to pick them up.” 

Omega glanced over at him with a brow raised, so he gave her a subtle shake of his head. He knew his words sounded ominous and dark to her, but he’d said them to make himself blend in better. He purposefully gave off an aura of intimidation and mystery, so people would hopefully leave him alone. He’d have to explain that to her later. 

Perhaps introducing her as his sister had been a bad idea at the start of the game. He should have told them she was a prisoner or a bounty. But it was too late now and he worried if he’d told them that they might try to take her away from him. 

He couldn’t lose her. Not after all the work he’d done to get her off Kamino. He owed her that much after she warned him about Tarkin. Now she was his responsibility. 

Crosshair turned his head slightly in Omega’s direction when she leaned closer, bringing her mouth close to his ear. “What?” He growled. 

“Don’t do that.” She whispered. “You’ll lose.” 

He grunted in acknowledgment and as she said, if he’d drawn another card, he would have lost. He waited patiently for the end of the round and declared himself the winner. He had just one more round to win then he’d be rewarded with the sabacc pot, a nice sum of three hundred and fifty credits. He was already sitting with one hundred and fifty, but the pot would make things nice and even at five hundred. 

That number of credits would go a long way in his hands and he needed it more than these guys who were growing more and more frustrated with every round they lost. He could see they were ready to start accusing him of cheating, even though all he’d done was count the cards and keep a close watch on them. He hadn’t cheated in the way they were suspecting, and he hoped it wouldn’t end in a fight. 

Omega cheered softly when, a few minutes later, he lay down his cards, a perfect 23, winning the round and the game. 

He started raking in the credits, stuffing them in the sack he had under his make-shift cloak to hide his armour. “Pleasure doing business with you.” He drawled, letting himself smirk in victory. 

The Nikto slammed a fist into the table and pointed an accusatory finger in Crosshair’s face. “You cheated!” 

“He didn’t!” Omega cried. 

“You little womp rat. You helped him cheat, didn’t you?!” The Nikto snapped. 

Crosshair stood up and put one hand across Omega’s chest as the other rested on the grip of his blaster. “Back off.” He snarled. He cast his eyes to the Weequay who he knew had been cheating. “If you want someone to blame, blame him. He was cheating.” He jerked his chin in the Weequay’s direction. 

“You?!” The Nikto roared and the Rodian exclaimed in anger. 

The Weequay put his hands up and tried to smile. “He’s lying, boys.” 

“Then what is that in your sleeve?” Crosshair asked, nodding to the tip of a card poking out of the Weequay’s sleeve. 

He pushed Omega quickly away from the table before they were dragged into the fight that quickly ensued. He pushed her ahead of him for the door before they caused any more trouble. He tossed the barkeep the money for their drinks then they slipped out of the cantina and into the night. 

“That was exciting!” Omega exclaimed in delight as they headed back to the Marauder . “Can we play that sometime?” 

He sighed as he dragged her briskly down the mostly empty street behind him. “No.” 

“Why not? It looks like a lot of fun!” 

“No.” He repeated firmly. 

She pouted the rest of the way back to the Marauder and continued to pout until he sent her to get some rest. 

He sat down in the cockpit and gazed outside at the three moons hanging low in the inky sky above. He planned for the errands they’d need to run in a few hours when the city woke up and calculated prices for all the things they’d need. He’d play a few more games of sabacc in the cantinas and anywhere he could find decent money so they’d have extra. He wanted to make as much money as he could in the next few hours so they could get off Tatooine and head for someplace far away from Kamino and the others. 

Once they found a safe place, they’d start doing some serious planning to get the others back. He first needed to figure out why his brothers were acting so strangely. Once he did, he could fix it.

Chapter Text

Tech stood beside Rampart, his eyes fixed on the holo-screen with all the planets Crosshair could have gone to highlighted in red. He’d narrowed it down over the past hour to five. 

“Well done.” Rampart said as he looked over the planets Tech had listed. “We’ll send out squads to track him down.” 

“Crosshair is smart. He knows I’m looking for him. He knows I will find him. He will try to be unpredictable, but I know how he thinks. He will need money and he prides himself on being good at sabacc and other card games. We will have to search cantinas and bars where the game is often played.” Tech tapped a knuckle against his lips and thought. 

Eventually he spoke again. “He is on Tatooine.” He said with certainty. “He has most likely gone to Mos Eisley, where gambling and sabacc are popular. He will use the credits he wins to hire someone to scramble the Havoc Marauder ’s signature.” 

Rampart glanced over at Tech, a brow raised. “You are certain?” 

Tech nodded. “Yes. I will go after him personally with the others. Send your squads to these locations. If he slips through our fingers, which is likely, he will flee to one of these places.” Tech handed Rampart a data stick. “It is early. Crosshair will be at his most unpredictable now. Once we’ve scared him and chased him into a corner, he will falter and then we will have him. He has always been this way. He will not change his ways now.” 

Rampart took the stick and eyed Tech. “You will be a great asset to the Empire. I look forward to seeing your journey.” He turned on his heel and strode away, leaving Tech standing alone beside the holo table. 

Once he was alone, Tech winced and finally allowed himself to show his discomfort. He lifted a hand to his head and rubbed it where it ached. He could feel the sharp, pulsing pain in the side of his head steadily growing worse. He’d need to make a trip to the infirmary. In the meantime, he had work to do. 

He summoned his brothers to his side in the control room to give them their new orders. He was getting used to being the leader. He was the smartest of them, after all, and Hunter’s leadership skills were outdated. They no longer worked for the Republic. They were soldiers of the Empire and they needed a new leader. He was the prime choice. 

“We are going to Tatooine. Crosshair has taken Omega there. We will pursue him and capture him. He will escape, however, but we will chase him down. He will not be able to evade us for long.” He turned to face them, his data pad in hand. “Prepare to move out in one hour.” He dismissed them after briefing them. 

He sank into a nearby seat and put his head in his hands. He rubbed at his aching head, wondering what was causing so much pain. He never got headaches like this, no matter how little sleep he got. Maybe he was dehydrated or lacking nutrients. He didn’t feel hungry or thirsty. So what was it?

The door to the darkened control room slid open. He snapped his head up, squinting against the pain to see who had entered. He frowned at the sight of the new members of an elite squad Rampart had put together. 

They were all nat-born. He had yet to see them in action, but he already knew he would be disappointed. The nat-borns could never be as skilled as the clones, let alone himself and his brothers. They were the best, far superior to the regs. 

He got to his feet and regarded them carefully as they approached. “Yes?” 

“Admiral Rampart sent us for the briefing, sir.” ES-01 replied. 

Tech nodded and waved his hand over the holo-screen. He’d get this over with quickly and join his brothers in the attack shuttle. By now Crosshair was a few hours ahead of them, but they’d catch up to him. They always did.

Chapter Text

Crosshair jerked awake abruptly when he heard a harsh banging at the hull of the ship. He groaned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes roughly. He stood up from the uncomfortable pilot chair and made his way to the hatch. He noticed Omega sound asleep in one of the bunks on his way. 

The banging persisted and he growled darkly. He punched a button and the ramp lowered, allowing sunlight to steam into the ship, nearly blinding him. 

“What?” He growled at the deckhand standing on the sandy ground below him. He put one hand on his hip and lifted the other to brace it against the rim of the hatchway, resting his still tired body. 

The Bith held out his hand and grumbled something to him. 

Crosshair had no idea what he was saying, but he got the gist. He sighed wearily and turned to find the sack he’d brought back last night full of credits. “How much?” He sneered, rummaging for the money. 

The Bith held up four fingers and said something else. 

Crosshair dug out four credit chips totalling fourty. He tossed them down to the Bith. “That enough?” He snapped. 

The Bith counted the credits then nodded and walked away. 

Crosshair sighed and shut the hatch. He pressed his thumb and forefinger into his eyes and rubbed them, fighting against the sting of sleep in them. He checked his chrono and decided it was time to wake Omega up and head out in search of someone willing to change their signature. He hoped it would be an easy task. 

He got Omega up then started preparing to go out. He put the make-shift cloak over his armour and double checked his weapons and gear. He slung the sack over his shoulder and winced at the sharp sound of credits rubbing together noisily. He’d need to figure out a way to dampen the noise. He didn’t want to be mugged. 

Omega stumbled over to his side. She yawned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She stood still and let him wrap the scrap of tarp around her shoulders, hiding her uniform. “Are we going to look for food?” 

“Yes.” 

“Good. I’m hungry.” 

Crosshair climbed to his feet and opened the hatch. “Me too, kid.” He mumbled. 

He led her down the ramp to the sandy ground of the landing platform. He shut the hatch and they left the hangar to find some food, clothes, and someone to change the signature in their ship. If he happened to see a good game of sabacc, he’d stop to play and win a few rounds. 

The streets were crowded now that the suns had risen. Creatures of all shapes and sizes shambled about on their way to wherever they were going. Some looked at him oddly, but no one said anything or stopped him. 

He noticed Omega stop to look at something and quickly snatched her wrist, pulling her along after him. “Don’t get distracted.” He hissed at her. “Stay close.” 

“Sorry, Crosshair.” She said, smiling up at him brightly despite his sharp tone. Clearly the kid was in too good of a mood to let anything spoil it. 

He kept a hold of her wrist as he guided them through the crowds of people. He was on constant watch, his eyes scanning the faces of everyone he passed. When he saw a food stall up ahead, he hurried her over to it. 

He bought them both a small breakfast then he hurried her on. They didn’t have time to sightsee and enjoy the food. They had to keep moving and complete the items on their agenda as quickly as possible. Tech was right behind them and Crosshair could almost imagine him breathing down his neck. 

Crosshair was sure Tech had already figured out where they were and was on his way with the others to catch him. But Crosshair wouldn’t let that happen. He knew Tech would expect him to flee to some nearby backwater planet, but he’d do the opposite. He’d go to some middle ground place, someplace just out of the way enough to not be a name on Tech’s list, but still known. 

He’d go to Ord Mantell. It was a long trip, but it would put a good deal of distance between him and the others. He didn’t think Tech would expect him to go so far so suddenly, but even if he did, Crosshair hoped he’d be able to put enough distance between himself and his brothers during the trip that he could land, refuel, then head for the next planet. 

He’d pick one at random. He didn’t care where it was. He hoped by picking at random it would throw Tech off. There was no way Tech could calculate the probability of what planet he would choose. 

He noticed a store up ahead and directed Omega towards it. They stepped out of the sunny morning light into a stuffy shop full of all sorts of odds and ends run by a tired young human female. 

She pushed her overly large goggles up her face and regarded him carefully. When she saw Omega she smiled. “Hello.” She greeted. “How can I help you?” 

“We need clothes.” Crosshair replied. 

The woman nodded. “Yup. Got those over there.” She pointed to a back corner of the room where there was a rack of clothes with a shelf of shoes beside it. 

Crosshair and Omega made their way over and started going through the selection, picking out clothes and shoes that looked about their size.  

“Got a room we can use to try these on?” He called to the woman behind the counter. 

She nodded and pointed to an archway in the back. “First two doors on your left.” 

Crosshair took a stack of clothes and brought Omega to the back once she’d made her choices. They split up to change in the rooms. 

Crosshair had picked out clothes that fit him on the first try. They were inconspicuous and would help him blend in. The clothes also allowed him to wear his belt without it looking too out of place. He’d have to modify his bandolier, but that wouldn’t be difficult. 

He wanted to find a new helmet too, but for now he’d settle for these clothes. They already helped him not look like a clone. 

He put his armour back on and covered himself with the tarp. He’d change once they were back on the Marauder . For now he didn’t want to be carting around his armour unnecessarily. 

He knocked on the door to Omega’s changing room and called out to her. He stepped back and a second later she threw the door open to excitedly show him her new outfit. 

“What do you think? How do I look?” 

He nodded in approval at how normal she looked. “Like some kid. Let’s go.” 

She pouted at his clipped answer, but quickly packed up her clothes and hurried after him as he strode briskly towards the counter to pay for their things. 

He grabbed a civilian backpack on his way to the counter and a handful of packaged food. He set everything down and waited as the woman checked over the selection and calculated the price. 

“Seventy five credits.” She said at last. 

Crosshair handed her the money then took the clothes and food and started shoving them into the backpack. 

“Anything else I can help you with?” She asked, glancing down at Omega to smile at her before turning her eyes back to Crosshair. 

“Know someone who can scramble a ship’s signature?” 

The woman brightened and nodded eagerly. “Sure do.” 

“Who?” 

“Me. I can do it.” She grinned up at him. 

He eyed her. “How much’ll it cost me?” 

She shrugged. “Depends on the ship.” 

“Modified Omicron -class attack shuttle.” 

She nodded, looking thoughtful. She pursed her lips and hummed. She tapped at her chin as she thought his words over. “Yeah. I can do it for three hundred.” 

Crosshair clenched his jaw. With all he’d had to pay for so far, he was getting very low on credits. He’d have only seventy-five credits left over for fuel. But he didn’t have a choice. He needed the ship’s signatures changed. 

“Fine.” He hefted the backpack and the three of them set out, heading for the Marauder . 

As they walked, he decided to go out and do some more gambling while the woman worked on the ship. He would have preferred to stay and watch her, but they needed more money if they were going to get off this dust ball. 

“What’s your name?” He asked her as they walked. 

“Ota. What’re your names?” She replied brightly. 

“My name’s-” 

“That’s none of your business.” He interrupted before Omega could blurt out her name. 

Ota huffed and frowned at him. “If you know mine I should at least know yours.” 

He sighed, loud and drawn out. “She’s Ira. I’m Skile.”

“Nice to meet you guys.” 

“Nice to meet you, too!” Omega replied chipperly. 

Crosshair suppressed the urge to roll his eyes at the two overly bright and cheerful females following him back to the Marauder . He couldn’t wait to get off this planet. 

He directed Ota to where she needed to go and brought her the tools she’d need to access the signature key. He wished he’d listened more closely to Tech during his ramblings about scrambling ship signature keys so he wouldn’t have to pay this woman to do it for him, but it was too late for regrets now. 

“Get it done as quickly as you can.” He said with as much power behind his voice as he could muster in his tired state. With so little sleep under his belt over the course of the past few days, he was starting to run on fumes. 

Ota nodded and gave him a cheerful thumbs up. “No problem, Skile. It’ll take me about an hour at the fastest.” 

Crosshair nodded then whirled and stalked away to deposit their purchases in the ship and change to go back out. “Ira, come on.” He grumbled, beckoning her to follow him. 

“Are we going out again?” She asked as she skipped after him. 

“Yes. We need more credits. We’ll find a different cantina and I will win us more money.” He replied as he trudged up the ramp into the ship. “You will stay close and keep quiet.”

“Of course. Quiet.” She grinned and put a finger to her lips. 

He sighed. “We’re on the run now, Omega. We have to keep a low profile. Tech is right behind us. He could be here at any minute.” He grimaced. “And you don’t want him to find us before we’re ready.” 

Omega gaped at him with wide, frightened eyes. She shuddered and quickly wrapped her arms around herself. “What would he do to us?” 

Crosshair shook his head, not wanting to even think about what Tech would do to them once he got his hands on them. He’d never seen Tech snap before, but that fight in the mess hall seemed like a pretty good sample of what he was like when he lost his composure. Crosshair did not want to be on the receiving end of that. 

“You don’t want to know.”

Chapter Text

Within the hour, Crosshair had found a sabacc game, won two hundred credits with hand pots alone, returned to the ship with Omega, paid Ota for her work, and bought fuel for the ship. All in all he was pleased at the speed they were going. They’d be off Tatooine in the next half an hour. 

“Get ready to go.” He urged Omega back onto the ship as he did a pre-flight check, assessing the damage caused by the brief firefight as they fled Kamino a few days ago. He hadn’t had the time to check the damage since they’d landed, but he was relieved to see all the damage was purely cosmetic. 

He checked on the fuel line then moved on, doing a second sweep of the ship. He didn’t want to miss anything. They had a very long trip ahead of them and he didn’t want any surprises during their flight. 

Refuelling finished a few minutes later and Crosshair powered up the ship. He was too busy focusing on getting the ship powered up to notice the black armoured men hurrying into the hangar. 

“Crosshair!” Omega exclaimed beside him. 

He jerked his head up and grit his teeth at the sight of his brothers circling around the ship, their blasters trained on the Marauder . “ Kriff !” He snarled and started punching buttons faster. 

“Strap in, kid.” He growled as he took off, wincing at the sound of blaster fire striking the belly of the ship. 

He gunned the engines, despite them still being in civilian airspace, sending them rocketing into the atmosphere and well out of range of the others. He cursed softly under his breath as they raced for space, putting distance between them and the others. He didn’t think they’d find them so quickly. He thought he’d at least have an hour after they left Tatooine before the others got there. Clearly he was wrong. 

He finished putting in the coordinates for Ord Mantell then launched them into hyperdrive. He finally loosened his grip on the controls once the swirling blue and navy of hyperspace had consumed them. 

He turned to Omega and found her gaping up at him with wide, terrified eyes. He bent forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he peered into her eyes. He studied her silently for a long time, reading everything she was feeling, but couldn’t say in the expressions on her face. 

She was terrified. His words about Tech finding them from earlier had clearly rattled her to her core. She was probably imagining all the horrible things Tech would do once he got his hands on them. She was a medical assistant to Nala Se. She’d probably seen her fair share of disturbing biological experiments. 

“Crosshair?” She breathed, shifting closer to him in her seat. “What will Tech do to us?” 

He pursed his lips. He didn’t want to lie to her, but he also didn’t want her to know the full extent of what Tech was capable of. He knew he’d scar her for life and probably turn Tech into a complete monster in her head if he told her what he suspected would happen. But he didn’t want to do that. He didn’t want to turn his brother into a monster. 

“He’ll probably lock us up and wait for orders. But we won’t let him catch us. We’ll get him back before that happens.” 

“His inhibitor chip must be stronger than the others’.” She murmured, finally dropping her eyes from his. She pulled her legs up onto the chair and hugged them tight. 

“What?” 

She glanced up at him over her knees. “His inhibitor chip. All the clones have them.” 

Crosshair lifted a hand to his head and rubbed his temple where he could feel a slight pulsing. He’d seen the others rubbing their heads there earlier and heard Wrecker complaining his head hurt in that spot. “All of them?” 

Omega nodded. “You have one too. I guess it didn’t activate like the rest of theirs did.” 

He shut his eyes and massaged his head, wondering why this was happening to them. He wondered why any of this had happened in the first place. Someone had to be the source of all this misery. Someone had put the chips in their heads and now he and his brothers were suffering. Even the regs had been affected. 

Something warm and soft slid against his palm and squeezed. He opened his eyes to find Omega holding his hand and giving him a sad look, her eyes shining. She shifted closer when he didn’t shake her off, crowding his personal space, but he let her. 

“We’ll get them back.” She reassured him quietly. 

He held her eyes for a moment and he knew she was right. He nodded slowly and let her hold his hand for a moment longer.

Chapter Text

Crosshair felt his chin dipping again. He jerked his head up and watched the swirling, hypnotic, void of hyperspace as they sped towards Cantonica. He’d picked it completely at random after Imperial soldiers found them quickly on Ord Mantell. They’d barely had a chance to refuel and restock their rations before the black armoured Imperial troopers were on them. 

Cantonica was relatively close to Ord Mantell so they would have plenty of fuel to get to it. The trip would still take them a few days, but at least Tech wouldn’t find them there for a while. To top it all off, Cantonica was the home of the galaxy’s most popular casino city- Canto Bight. They could make some serious money there and use it to get the others back. 

Crosshair shifted in his seat to help keep himself awake. He couldn’t sleep right now. He had to finish making plans on how to get into the casinos without drawing attention to himself and Omega. He knew she would be the most difficult to sneak into the casino seeing as she was a child. He could try to play her off as a very small human who was vertically challenged. 

Without proper chain codes, a new system implemented by the Empire, Crosshair wasn’t sure how well he’d be able to pull off sneaking into the casino. He could always find a back way in and hope they could get past all the security in what was most likely to be one of the most secure places on the planet. 

He also had to worry about proper clothes. He’d researched some of the casinos in Canto Bight and all the people in the vids he’d seen had been wearing incredibly fancy clothes. They didn’t have the money to buy anything like that, but he supposed they could always steal something. 

He shifted again when his chin dropped to his chest. He rubbed at his eyes fiercely, trying to wake himself up. Not now! Stay awake.  

He turned his head when the door to the cockpit slid open. He watched Omega silently as she padded over to the co-pilot’s chair, a blanket wrapped snugly around her slight shoulders. She climbed up into the chair beside him and curled up into a tight ball. She stayed quiet for a few minutes as she watched the swirl of hyperspace outside. 

“Crosshair?” She whispered at last. 

“Hmm?” 

“I’ve been thinking. Your headache has been getting worse hasn’t it?” She finally glanced over at him, a worried glimmer in her big eyes. 

He pursed his lips, but he slowly nodded. She was a lot more perceptive than he gave her credit for. “Yeah.” 

“Then we should take out your chip.” 

“How?” 

She frowned in thought. She hummed and shifted around in her seat as she fell deep into her thoughts. 

He waited patiently for her. In the meantime, he got up to get a drink of water and a bacta shot to help with the steadily growing pain in his head. He knew Omega was right and they needed to get his chip out. The only problem was how. He didn’t know of anyone trustworthy enough to crack open his skull and root around in it to get the chip out. 

Another big problem was where . The entire galaxy was crawling with Imperials now and nowhere was safe for a renegade clone like him. The minute he was recognised, it was all over. He could hopefully get by with wearing his helmet and painting over the distinguishing colours and symbols on it, but he couldn’t count on it. He needed to figure out some other way to disguise himself. 

“Crosshair.” Omega called from the cockpit. 

He returned to her after downing some water and taking a shot of bacta. He could already feel the effects soothing the throbbing pain in his head as he walked back to the cockpit. 

He sat down and gave her an expectant look. 

“Do you think we could pay someone a lot of money to help us?” 

“It’s possible.” 

“Then let’s make some money and hire someone to take out your chip.” 

He frowned and crossed his arms as he settled back in his chair. “Making money isn’t as easy as it looks, kid. If I get caught cheating, we could get in a lot of trouble.” 

“Maybe I can help.” 

He huffed and shook his head. 

“Why not?” She cried, giving him a pleading look. “I want to help. You said we need a lot of money to get the others back and to get your chip out. I can help. I can play games too!” 

He glanced over at her out of the corner of his eye. “Like what?” 

She opened her mouth then closed it and frowned. She crossed her arms under her blanket and hunched over in her chair. “I’m not as good as you in that card game you play.” 

“Sabacc?” 

She nodded. 

“There are other games we could play. I’m good at numbers. What are you good at?” 

She brightened up almost immediately. “I’m good at strategy! Are there any strategy games?” 

“Yes. Dejarik. That’s a strategy game.” 

She nodded excitedly and sat up in her chair. “Yeah! I can play that. I’ve never played it before, but I can figure it out.” 

Crosshair chuckled at her eagerness. “I can teach you.” He offered. “We’ve got the pieces in the back somewhere.” He got up to go look for them. 

He had to do some digging, as there was a lot of junk in the back of the ship. He went through crates of random things Wrecker had picked up during missions and bits of machinery Echo had been working on before it all went to hell. He finally found the game in a small box under Tech’s rack, almost buried by the half finished projects he’d been working on. 

He knelt before Tech’s rack with the game in hand, staring vacantly down at the mess of wires, screws, and plates of Tech’s forgotten experiments and toys. They looked like Tech would come by to pick them up any minute to continue working on them. But he wouldn’t. Not for a while at least. For now they sat on the floor in a forgotten, pathetic pile. 

“Did you find it?” Omega called suddenly from the other end of the ship. 

Crosshair jolted at the sound of her voice. He shook himself out of his depressing thoughts and stood up with the game in hand. He gave Tech’s rack full of machinery one last lingering look before he turned away, fighting a new sting in his tired eyes.

Chapter Text

ES-01 stood at attention before Tech, his helmet tucked under his arm and his shoulders squared. He wore a neutral expression on his face, his eyes unfocused as he gazed across the room. “I’m sorry, sir. We’ve lost them.” 

Tech waved his hand calmly. “I expected this.” He said, not looking up from his data pad as he scrolled through his list of planets Crosshair could have fled to. “We will not catch him yet. Failure is to be expected. He knows we are hunting him. He will falter and act predictably and then we will have him.” 

“Your orders are to bring him and the girl back alive.”

Tech nodded. 

“He’s a traitor. He should be executed.” ES-01 grumbled fiercely, hatred evident in his sharp tone. 

Tech stopped scrolling. He slowly lowered his data pad and his eyes rose to the trooper’s face. He narrowed his eyes and glowered up at him furiously. He drummed his fingers against the smooth surface of his desk, the sound sharp and ominous in the otherwise silent air of the room. 

ES-01’s jaw clenched and he schooled his expression before he let his emotions show. 

“Your orders are to bring him and Omega back alive. I will not repeat myself again, ES-01. Remind your squad that they are not to be harmed and brought immediately to me upon their capture. Have I made myself clear?” 

“Yes, sir.” ES-01 affirmed, struggling to keep his voice even. 

Tech nodded and picked up his data pad again. “Good. Prepare to go to the planets I am about to send you. You are dismissed.” Tech shooed him away with a shake of his hand. He sent the list to ES-01 and the holo message faded. 

He set his data pad down and pushed his goggles up his face to rub his tired eyes. Dealing with incompotent nat-borns was proving to be a lot more tiresome than he had anticipated. 

He’d requested a squad of elite clone troopers to be sent after Crosshair and Omega, but Rampart had wanted nat-borns. So nat-borns were what he’d gotten. Now Tech was stuck dealing with their incompetence. 

He’d told Rampart before that catching Crosshair would take time since he was so sharp and cunning, but he didn’t expect it to take this long. If he wasn’t stuck on board Rampart’s starship monitoring the hunt for Crosshair, he’d go himself. Without anyone else slowing him down, he’d find Crosshair quickly. But no. He had to order others around and make them do it for him. 

He was starting to get frustrated. More so than he’d been before. Crosshair had just slipped through their fingers on Tatooine and on Ord Mantell. Now he’d disappeared, most likely having chosen a planet at random and gone there to try and slow him down.

But Tech wouldn’t be dissuaded. He knew Crosshair. Crosshair was fiercely loyal and refused to let them go. He knew he’d come back. All Tech had to do was wait. 

Rampart wouldn’t let him wait. Rampart wanted Crosshair now. He wanted the expert marksman under his control, just like he had the rest of Clone Force 99. He wanted the full set, and he was impatient. He wouldn’t wait for Tech to let Crosshair come to them. 

Tech had no choice but to send squad after squad out in search of Crosshair. His brothers were itching to go after him too, but he kept them close, under his watchful gaze. He didn’t want them to stray too far away from him. He couldn’t protect them if they wandered too far. He needed them to stay close. 

He groaned softly in pain and massaged his head when that persistent stabbing flared up. Bacta wasn’t helping anymore. Not even ice could stave off the perpetual throbbing in his skull. Nothing helped. Nothing calmed it. 

As far as he could tell, he was the only one who was suffering. His brothers appeared fine. None of them complained of any pain. None of them showed signs of having headaches. He envied them. 

They weren’t tormented by nightmares when he let himself sleep or his body forced him to. They didn’t see the horrifying things he did in his dreams. They didn’t feel the fear he did at losing them to the ruthless Empire. They didn’t see Crosshair, in pain and laid bare on an examination table, his chest opened and his heart beating in Tech’s bloody hand. They didn’t see themselves cut into pieces and wide awake, screaming in pain as Tech ripped out their organs and replaced their human bodies with cybernetics. They didn’t see the terrible things he did for the Empire. 

His eyes snapped open as the images from his recurring nightmares flooded his mind. He stared down at the smooth desk before him, trying in vain to push the horrific thoughts from the forefront of his mind. He struggled to push them back to the dark depths of his consciousness. 

Only Hunter entering his office was enough to break him out of his internal struggle. 

“Tech, we just had a report of a ship that looks like the Marauder in the Raioballo system.” Hunter reported, standing at attention before his brother’s desk and looking incredibly out of place in his black armour devoid of any distinguishing marks. 

Tech’s throat tightened as he gazed up at Hunter’s impassive face, his grey eyes devoid of any light. He’d only seen Hunter look like this on a few occasions and none of them had ever been good. 

The crow’s feet around his eyes were no longer very noticeable compared to the deep furrow in his brow caused by constant frowning. Hunter’s warm, fond smile was gone and in its place was a cruel frown. 

His head throbbed and he squeezed his eyes shut against the pain. He forgot about Hunter’s forgotten smile and only thoughts of finding and catching Crosshair filled his head.

“Contact the nearest squad in the sector and send them to Dantooine. It isn’t Crosshair, but we won’t tell Rampart that.” He grit out. His comm chirped beside him and he answered. “Yes?” 

“Sir, a ship matching the Marauder ’s description has just landed on Bonadan.” The trooper reported. 

“Send a squad there immediately. Order all squads in the area to sweep the Corporate Sector.” 

“Yes, sir.” 

Tech lifted his eyes to Hunter. “Have another squad search the Raioballo system. It’s time to start closing the net. Crosshair won’t keep escaping from us. We’ll catch him soon.”

Hunter nodded then turned on his heel and left to go tell the others. 

Tech got up from his desk and walked slowly around his office, scrolling through ship registration records for the main planets in the two systems Crosshair was potentially in. He’d find him. The galaxy was a big place, but Tech had the resources to find anyone and the skill to do it quickly. Even the best bounty hunters weren’t as skilled as him.

Chapter Text

Crosshair frowned as he turned slowly, eyeing himself in the mirror in the refresher. He didn’t look like himself. He looked like an idiot. The suit fit him well, but it still looked odd on him. Not to mention but his hair had grown out and the curls were now untamable. The makeup hiding his tattoo certainly threw him off a lot too. 

Omega was waiting for him outside, already dressed up and wearing glittery makeup that made her look older. Her hair was curled and styled to look like she had servants doing her hair instead of Crosshair who’d watched one holo-vid and decided it was enough to take on Omega’s blonde curls. The end result was better than he expected. 

He sighed dismally and finally emerged from the refresher. He gave Omega’s bright smile a dark scowl, warning her not to say anything. He grumbled as she just giggled and slid off the bunk and trotted up to him. 

“Ready?” She asked chipperly, a wide, excited smile on her face. 

He groaned and tugged at the tight tie around his throat. “Let’s get this over with.” He snarled. 

He let her hold his hand as they walked down the streets of Canto Bight, trying to blend in with the people around them. So far no one had given them a second glance. Their disguises were working well. Now they just needed to get into the casino. 

He’d scoped the place out the night before, looking for possible entry points where they could slip in undetected and meld with the crowds of people mingling inside the casino. Getting in was without a doubt the most difficult part, but after spending hours last night preparing and finalising a plan, they were ready. 

They didn’t have any weapons on them, but Omega’s hair pins could be used in a dire situation. His sash could also come in handy in case of an emergency. He would prefer to take his rifle, but that was impossible. 

As they approached the casino, Crosshair pulled Omega onto a side street, avoiding an incoming pair of police. He knelt and looked up into her excited eyes. 

“We’re close to the entry point. It’s complete silence from now on. Once we’re inside, you remember your role?” 

She nodded. “I’m your sister and we’re meeting our brother who’s getting married in a week. We’re here for some fun before we head to Ruuria in two days for the wedding.” 

“Good. And if anyone asks why you’re so short?” 

“Tell them it’s none of their business and that it’s rude to ask someone that.”

“Yes. Let’s go.” He stood and they continued on their way. 

He kept a sharp eye out as they approached their entrance into the casino. They hadn’t been spotted so far, and there wasn’t anyone down this street. They were in the clear for the moment, but that could quickly change. 

He directed Omega down a smaller street and then they broke into a quick jog. They ducked around security cameras and avoided patrols. Crosshair had memorised the patterns of the security detail the night before, so he managed to get them through the maze and to the back door of the casino. 

He punched in the security code he’d seen the guards use and the door hissed open. He hurried Omega through and the door slid shut behind him just as the camera turned to the door. 

He let himself take a moment to relax before they were on the move again. They had more time here to use to their advantage, but that didn’t mean they could waste it. They needed to make money fast and get out of there to find someone to get his chip out. With the two of them working together, they could rake in some serious dough. Hopefully in the next few hours they’d make enough to buy someone to help them and the resources they needed to go after the others.

They stepped into the main room of the casino and Crosshair nearly lost his breath at the sight before him. He’d never seen so much gold and wealth in his life. All the money in this room was enough to buy two hundred times the amount of resources he’d need to rescue his brothers and get their chips out with credits to spare. 

Omega squeezed his hand, returning him to reality. She pointed to a table nearby where a duo were playing Dejarik. She gave him a smile then she let go of his hand and headed over to start her part of the mission. 

He watched her walk away, the warmth from her hand quickly fading. He didn’t like asking a kid to take part in this dangerous and highly illegal mission, but he didn’t have a choice. She was too persuasive. 

He watched her until she sat down to a game with a gentleman and made her bets. He’d taught her how to play and how to bet, now he’d let her do her thing. She’d beaten him every single game they played and had even won all the pretend credits they’d bet during the practice games. She’d be fine. 

He turned his attention to his part of the mission. He headed straight for the sabacc tables, preparing himself for a long night of pretending to lose just enough times to avoid being accused of cheating. He couldn’t be caught cheating in a place like this. The Empire, and Tech, would be on him in hours. At least Omega couldn’t be accused of cheating in her game, so she was safe. 

He found a seat at a table where he could just see the top of Omega’s head over the shoulder of her game partner. He’d keep an eye on her while he played, making sure nothing happened to her. 

He played game after game, winning some, losing some, but always careful with his credits. He never bet too high if he was going to lose and only bet a bit more if he was going to win. He stayed under the radar the entire night and his frightening aura kept anyone wanting to question him off his back. No one looked at him for long, too intimidated by his scowl to linger. 

He had a few mild drinks to keep up appearances, but he didn’t let himself get drunk. He was starting to get tipsy after playing for three hours and amassing a small fortune of credits so he stopped drinking and switched to water. He had to keep a clear head if he was going to pull all this off. 

At the four hour mark, he felt Omega appear at his elbow. She rested her arm on his shoulder and leaned against him, her soft hair tickling his neck above his collar. He hummed gruffly in acknowledgement to let her know he was almost done. He could tell she was tired and he didn’t blame her. 

He won the last game and collected his winnings, which totalled up to seven million credits. He’d been playing with some deep pockets for the past few hours, so he had enough credits that he didn’t need to worry about fuel or food for a long time. It was more money than he knew what to do with, but at least it would buy him the things they needed. 

He cashed in his chips and collected his winnings. He then cashed in Omega’s winnings and nearly had a heart attack when he saw how much she’d won from Dejarik alone. Clearly she’d been busy for the past few hours. 

Together the two of them walked out of the casino with twenty million credits between them. Now they definitely had enough money to get what they needed. 

As soon as they got back to the Marauder a few minutes later, Crosshair put Omega to bed after helping her take off her make up and let down her hair. She convinced him to sit with her for a few minutes so she could tell him about the games she’d played and how much fun she’d had. She talked until she fell asleep in the middle of a story, too tired to stay awake a minute longer. 

Crosshair changed out of his uncomfortable formal clothes they’d stolen and into his more comfortable civilian pyjamas he’d grown to like. He powered up the ship and took them up, deciding it was time to move on. 

As he flew out of Canto Bight he noticed an Imperial shuttle landing nearby. He tensed and gunned the engine, sending them shooting into the atmosphere. He checked no one was following them and finally calmed down. 

He twisted in his seat to make sure he hadn’t woken Omega up with their hasty departure and sighed in relief as she slept on. He turned back to the control board and started putting in the coordinates for their next destination. He picked Alderaan, hoping they’d find help there amongst the peace loving people. 

It was close to Coruscant, and part of the Core planets, but he’d always heard good things about the people. Their senator was a good man and the queen was a kind woman. Hopefully they would be welcoming to him and Omega and willing to help them. 

Crosshair settled in for the long trip, crossing his arms and putting his feet up on the dash after locking the controls. He sighed as he tipped his head back to gaze up at the softly blinking lights above him and the panelling washed in a gentle blue. He let his eyes fall shut to rest them for a little while. 

He needed some sleep, but he couldn’t let himself rest until they reached Alderaan. They’d find a good place to hide and he’d get some proper rest before his body gave out on him, which he could feel was beginning to happen already. Even as an enhanced clone, there was only so much he could handle before he crashed. And by how things felt, it was going to be an epic crash if they didn’t get to Alderaan in time. 

He was woken a few hours later by Omega gently tugging on his arm. He pried his eyes open and peered down at her, wondering what she was doing. It was still early, and she shouldn’t be up yet. 

“Why’re you up?” He rumbled, his voice low and rough from sleep. 

“I had a nightmare.” She whispered. 

He blinked and his vision focused. He finally noticed the tears shimmering in her eyes and her damp cheeks. Her face was red and splotchy and the skin around her eyes was puffy. “Hmm.” He grunted, as he couldn’t think of anything better to say. 

He and his brothers had nightmares, but they didn’t intentionally wake each other up unless Wrecker had really been freaked out and needed Hunter’s low, quiet voice to calm him. Or Echo needed Tech to dampen his pain receptors. No one ever woke Crosshair up for comfort after a nightmare, so he had no idea what to do for Omega. 

“Can I stay with you?” She whispered, inching closer. She gripped the blanket around her shoulders tighter and gave him a pleading look. 

He shrugged and settled in to go back to sleep for another couple hours. “Fine.” 

He expected her to curl up in the chair beside him. What he didn’t expect was for her to crawl up into his lap. His eyes snapped open and he was about to snap at her to get off, but she wriggled under his crossed arms and wrapped them around herself, getting comfortable against his chest. 

He gaped down at her in shock, stunned she’d had the nerve to climb onto his lap without asking, despite knowing he would tell her no. He wanted to tell her to get off, to sit in the copilot chair, but his tongue had been frozen in his mouth. 

He let her get cosy against his chest with his arms around her and the blanket over her shoulders. Her little feet rested on the seat beside his leg and her hands lay on his chest. She tucked her head under his chin and sighed quietly as she relaxed. 

He remained stiff and still for a long time, simply staring at her. Slowly he began to relax once she fell asleep then soon he too fell fast asleep.

Chapter Text

Tech followed the trooper silently down the hall, dodging security cameras and patrols. He knew them all by heart, so he could slip along down the hallways after the trooper without being spotted. 

ES-01 had gone too far. He’d done exactly what Tech never wanted any of them to do, now he had to die. He, and the others, had been warned and ordered to stay away from Tech’s brothers. But they’d gone and disobeyed orders. 

Tech had everything ready to put into action. There would be no doubt after he was through that ES-01 had committed suicide after cracking under the strain of his work and a message from a close loved one who’d killed herself. The message was of course forged, but Tech had made it look real and had planted evidence to make it real. 

He followed ES-01 down the corridors of the ship and waited until they were in a blind spot. He moved in, emerging from the darkness and snapping his neck with a well placed strike. The blow paralysed the man and Tech crushed his windpipe with another brutal strike to his throat, silencing and killing him. 

Not a sound had been made by either. Only Tech’s quiet exhalations and the last gasp of air before ES-01 died. 

Tech held the body of the former elite trooper up, keeping his head lifted. He’d have to tamper with the recording the helmet was taking, but that was easily done without any trail leading back to him. 

He carried the body down the hall and to a supply closet. He set the body down and got to work making a noose. It didn’t take long with the supplies he found. He lifted the body up and stood on an overturned bucket. 

It took a few tries, but he finally got the homemade noose around the man’s neck. He let go and the body dropped, swinging eerily back and forth from the momentum. 

Tech stepped back and knocked over the bucket. He then took the helmet he’d carefully set down on a nearby shelf and tapped into its camera. He made sure there was no evidence of his being there then he slipped away to let the body be found later. 

He returned to his office without anyone seeing him and resumed his work as if nothing had happened. 

He’d protected his brothers. He’d gotten rid of the threat. ES-01 would never again harm them or verbally abuse them. He’d deal with the rest of the squad later. For now, he had more important things to do. 

Crosshair had been spotted, but he’d slipped away at the last second. He’d been on Cantonica, but now he was heading somewhere else. He’d most likely be heading for a quieter planet; somewhere safe, somewhere he could rest. 

Tech knew Crosshair wouldn’t be sleeping very much right now. He knew Crosshair was too on edge for that, too worried about being found. But that would be his downfall. 

A tired Crosshair was a predictable Crosshair. He’d start repeating himself, making mistakes, being careless. He’d slip up and Tech would be right there to catch him as he fell. 

Tech had two planets Crosshair could potentially go to. He’d go to one of them himself, bringing his brothers with him. He’d send the elite squads to the other. 

The first was Naboo. He’d send the elite squads there to keep an eye out for Crosshair. The other was Alderaan. He and his brothers would go there personally. It was peaceful and close to Cantonica, though close to Coruscant. Crosshair would think hiding under the Empire’s nose is a smart move, but it will be his downfall. 

Tech finished writing the orders for the elite squads and sent them out. He then summoned his brothers to his office. 

“Prepare for departure. We are going to Alderaan. I believe Crosshair will choose to go there, as it is peaceful and will allow him to rest. I have sent the elite squads to Naboo in the event he chooses to go there instead, but I am certain he will not.” 

“You sure he’ll be there?” Echo asked. 

Tech nodded. “I am. It will take him about five days to reach Alderaan from Cantonica, where he was last seen. It will take us about six. We will catch him before he can flee.” 

“Crosshair won’t get away this time.” Wrecker grumbled bitterly. 

“No he won’t.” Hunter agreed. 

Tech stood up from his desk. “We will leave in two hours. I must see to it that the elite squads are sent out and Rampart is informed.” He dismissed them then headed off to see Rampart to tell him his plan. 

He knew they were close to catching Crosshair. It wouldn’t be long now before he had him in his grasp. Once that happened, he’d have all his brothers back with him. 

He winced in pain as his head throbbed. He paused to rub it, frustrated that he still couldn’t figure out what was causing it. None of the doctors on board knew what was wrong and he couldn’t do a more intensive look at the moment. Once he caught Crosshair then he could do a more invasive search. Until then he had to suffer. 

After getting the all clear from Rampart, Tech and his brothers departed. 

Tech was certain they’d catch him this time. By now Crosshair would be too tired to think five steps ahead. He was also slowed down by having a child with him. He also didn’t have the same skills as Tech necessary to stay on the run and hide from the Empire. He didn’t have the money to pay for someone to scramble the ship’s signature every time he needed it done. He was quickly running out of options and places to hide with his limited skills and he knew the trap was closing in around him. 

Tech was so close to having Crosshair in his grasp.

Chapter Text

Aldraan was a beautiful planet. It had breathtaking mountains and impressive forests. The city they landed in, Aldera, the capital city, was bordered by a lake and mountains. As soon as they disembarked the ship, Crosshair felt at ease. 

It didn’t take the two of them long to find a doctor willing to help them. It was the first doctor they came across, actually. He was calm, warm, and welcoming. He put both Crosshair and Omega at ease and got to work on locating Crosshair’s chip as soon as he could. 

Doctor Burg took them to a private room in the back of the clinic where they could speak freely. 

Before Crosshair could stop her, Omega blurted out everything. She explained why they were there, who they were running from, and that they needed help getting the chips out of the others. 

Doctor Burg, to his credit, took the news with grace and smiled. “I will be more than happy to help your friends if what you’re saying is true. I never agreed with the enslavement of the clone army, so I am happy to help you all. For now let’s take a look at your friend here.” Burg looked up at Crosshair sitting on the surgical table. “Where is the pain, son?” 

Crosshair rubbed his head where he felt the pain. “Here.” 

“Ah. Thank you. Please lie down. I’m going to run some tests and find this inhibitor chip.” 

Crosshair swung his long legs up onto the table and lay down. He shut his eyes and tried to relax as he moved into the surgical tube. He felt Omega take his hand and squeeze it reassuringly so he returned her gesture, letting her know he was all right. 

Doctor Burg spent some time trying to find the chip. He had to do an intense scan, probing deep into Crosshair’s skull. At first he couldn’t find it, but when Crosshair’s head started to throb, it appeared on the scan. 

“I’m going to have to put you to sleep for this, son.” Doctor Burg said. 

Crosshair grimaced. He knew he had to be put under for the operation, but he still didn’t like the idea of being put into a medically induced sleep. “Fine.” He bit out. 

Crosshair cracked an eye open to peer up at Omega beside him. He hoped she’d be all right while he was under. If anything happened to her, he’d tear everything apart. 

Omega smiled at him softly. “I’ll see you soon, Crosshair.” 

He nodded and relaxed as Doctor Burg injected him with anaesthesia. He could feel Omega’s hand in his for a few seconds then it, along with everything else, drifted away into nothingness. 

He dreamed while he was under. He dreamed of his brothers, all of them back together and on a mission. He quickly realised the mission they were on was their last. They were on Kaller. 

Everything was jumbled and disjointed. Events were happening in the wrong order, he knew that, but it felt so real. Hunter shot the Jedi padawan again and again then turned on him, his knife in his fist. 

Hunter cut into him with his blade and searing pain racked his body. 

Then Echo was there, screaming and grabbing at his head. 

Wrecker fell to the red snow covered ground beside him, his eyes gouged out and a horrendous scar in his left temple. His face was almost torn completely off on the right side, the explosion that had happened years ago had been worse, and the wound was far bigger. 

Tech appeared over him, his face contorted into that same vicious mask of hatred and cruelty from the mess hall fight. He dropped to his knees, straddling Crosshair’s chest, and his bony fingers dug into his jaw. Tech forced Crosshair to look at the others, their bodies mutilated beyond recognition and turned into a grotesque mess of machinery and living flesh. 

“Look what I had to do to them.” Tech snarled. 

Crosshair saw the tears falling from his brother’s eyes, dripping onto the yellow lenses of his goggles, a small pool rapidly growing. 

“Look what I have to do to you.” Tech forced Crosshair to look down and everything went cold. 

His wholly human body was gone, replaced with bits of metal. He could see where the metal and flesh joined, a repulsive red and yellow mess of blood and pus from infection. 

He saw Tech’s hands, covered in blood, his blood and the blood of their brothers, and he sobbed. 

Tech tore off his goggles and wiped an arm over his eyes. “I didn’t want to!” He sobbed. “They made me ruin you!” He hiccuped loudly and dropped his arm from across his face. 

Crosshair screamed at the sight of Tech above him. Half of Tech’s face had been replaced with metal. Some pieces of bloody skin flaked off the cybernetic face plate, and some melted off, blackened and red. 

“Crosshair. I’m sorry.” Tech whispered. “Crosshair. Crosshair. Crosshair.” Tech’s mechanical hands wrapped around his arms, pinning him down as their faces drew closer. Tech repeated his name over and over again, his iron hands keeping him trapped and powerless to escape. “Crosshair. Crosshair.”

“Crosshair?” 

He jolted awake with a scream, the horrific sight of his brothers and Tech fading from memory. He sat up so fast he smacked his head against the top of the surgical tube. 

He cried out in pain and dropped back to the table, grasping his throbbing forehead. He groaned and shied away from the warm hands trying to pull his wrists down. 

“Crosshair? It’s me. It’s Omega. It’s ok. You’re all right.” 

He opened his eyes and peered out at her from under his hands. He had a splitting headache and could barely see, but there she was. She was smiling just as softly as before he’d gone under. 

“Is it out?” He rasped. 

She nodded. “Doctor Burg did a really great job. He says the wound will heal quickly and that there was no damage to your brain.” 

Crosshair shut his eyes and nodded. He let out a slow breath and relaxed into the bed. “Good.” He breathed. 

He felt gentle hands on his shoulders and Doctor Burg urged him to get up. He let the doctor help him off the surgical table to another room with a more comfortable bed. He gratefully sank into the soft mattress of the bed and settled down to get some sleep. His head still ached, but the pain was quickly fading. He groaned when something was injected into his neck, but the almost instantaneous relief he felt calmed him. 

“Get some sleep, son.” Doctor Burg whispered. “You’ll feel better in a bit.” 

Crosshair gladly let himself drop back into sleep. He slept soundly and was graced with pleasant dreams of a hopeful future where he and his brothers were all together, whole, happy, and free.

Chapter Text

Tech stood with his brothers beside the Marauder . They’d searched it and hadn’t found Crosshair or Omega. They’d taken the weapons they’d found on board, which didn’t amount to much. Crosshair had both his pistol and his Firepuncher with him, so they would have to be careful. 

“We know he is in the city.” Tech said as he whirled and stalked out of the hangar. “We must simply find him. He will not expect us so soon, but remain vigilant. We all know how dangerous Crosshair is.” He stopped and turned to face the others. “We will split up. We will search for him quietly and discreetly.” He gave Wrecker a pointed look. 

“Question the citizens, but do not threaten them. Do not draw attention to yourselves. Keep radio silence. He could have tapped into our comms. Report back here in one hour. Go.” 

The four of them split up and began their search. Tech walked down the main road, sticking to the shadows in the fading light of day. His new black armour helped him blend in well and allowed him to be incredibly stealthy. 

The others had forbidden him from painting his armour in the past. Apparently he walked too quietly and had a bad habit of appearing out of the darkness and startling them. Now, with his black armour, stealth was much easier than in his former white attire. He would use that to his advantage.

He went from door to door of various stores, politely asking the people if they’d seen his brother and showing them a holo image of Crosshair. When they told him they had not, he scanned them to make sure they weren’t lying then he went on his way. 

After an hour of searching, he returned to the Marauder where Wrecker and Hunter were already waiting for him. He waited a few minutes for Echo to show, but when he didn’t he grew suspicious. 

“Crosshair knows we’re here.” Hunter grumbled, casting his eyes around the hangar, searching the high vantage points. “He got Echo.” 

Tech drew his pistols. “Indeed. I must admit, I am not surprised. He was bound to discover our presence sooner rather than later. Now we must find him before he takes out more of us.” He motioned them to follow him. 

They stuck to the darker shadows in the streets, winding up and down, covering every block as they made their way deeper into the city. Hunter listened closely for anyone around them and Tech scanned for a heat signature. Wrecker stayed quiet and kept his hand on his blaster, the setting set to stun. 

They came across a few civilians, but Wrecker scared them into silence. It was frustrating thinking they’d found Crosshair, only for it to be a civilian on a stroll. After three more civilian confrontations, Wrecker groaned loudly and punched the wall beside him. 

“Where is he?!” He bellowed. 

“Right here, Wrecker.” Crosshair’s soft, ominous voice echoed around them then a blue ring of light struck Wrecker, stunning him. “Come and get me.” He chuckled then his voice disappeared. 

Tech and Hunter left Wrecker behind, unable to carry him and prioritising catching Crosshair. Wrecker would be fine. He was too heavy for a civilian to drag off and he wouldn’t wake up for a while yet. 

They scaled the wall leading to where Crosshair’s stun blast had come from. Hunter spotted Crosshair’s dark figure racing across the rooftops and took after him with Tech close behind. 

They chased Crosshair over the rooftops in the dark, their thermal readouts in their HUDs showing them exactly where he was. By the looks of things he wasn’t wearing his helmet or his armour. He was dressed in tight civilian clothes, allowing him to move without hindrance. 

Even though his armour was specially designed for him, it could still weigh him down. Now he was gaining ground, leaving them behind with his longer legs and unhindered by clunky armour. 

Tech glanced around them, checking the area they were running through, searching for a trap. So far Crosshair seemed to have single handedly picked off both Echo and Wrecker. He was most likely working on his own, but Tech could tell he was leading them into a trap. 

He looked back up at Crosshair just in time to see him jump onto the wall of an upcoming building and scale it swiftly and nimbly. There was no doubt that it was Crosshair. No one could climb the way he did. Tech had contemplated the possibility of Crosshair using a double, but no one could climb like that. 

Crosshair had vanished over the top of the wall before they were in range. He poked his head over the edge and grinned down at them wickedly. He chuckled then vanished. 

Hunter jumped, grabbing a hold of a ledge just below the top of the wall. He hung there for a second before he hauled himself up and clambered over the edge with Tech close behind. 

Tech focused on climbing, as it wasn’t his strongest suit. He’d always struggled with climbing things that weren’t his ship. He knew where all the best handles were and where it was best to put his feet to balance himself when he needed to reach something high up. 

He managed to climb up over the top of the wall a few seconds after Hunter. He straightened and looked around, but both Crosshair and Hunter had disappeared. 

He grit his teeth and cursed softly under his breath. He swept the roof he stood on for any hatches or ways down, but all he could see were the tiles and the small wall on either side of him. Normally there would be some kind of access to the roof on buildings in the business sector of a city, but apparently this was an outlier. 

He slowly approached the far end of the roof, his thermal readout telling him there were three bodies below on the other side. He couldn’t tell if it was Crosshair and Hunter and someone else or not. When he poked his head over the edge, he saw only a trio of teenagers stargazing. He pulled back and straightened, searching the roof again. 

Crosshair and Hunter couldn’t have just disappeared. Granted his thermal readout couldn’t see through all walls, but it was impossible for Crosshair to have grabbed Hunter, stunned him, dragged him away, and hidden in the time it took Tech to climb up the wall. And Tech hadn’t been climbing as fast as Hunter. 

He did a lap around the roof, checking the tiles again for any sign of a secret hatch. But again he found nothing. He grumbled bitterly and cursed. He went through a few different settings on his HUD, but still there was nothing. It was like Crosshair and Hunter had evaporated. 

“Glad you let me get some sleep before you jumped me.” Crosshair’s slow, quiet voice spoke up behind him. 

Tech whirled and pointed his pistol at Crosshair, who was standing relaxed with his Firepunched resting on his hip, the muzzle pointed at the sky. He scowled at the calm, almost cocky look on his youngest brother’s face. 

“I owed you as much after chasing you across the galaxy.” 

Crosshair chuckled and started walking slowly, circling. “I suppose you did.” 

“I expect you want me to ask where the others are. I won’t. I already know. You’ve taken them somewhere safe, where I haven’t reached yet. They are with Omega. I must congratulate you, Crosshair. You have managed to keep both yourself and a child alive despite being a wanted man.” 

“You’d be surprised how far gambling can get you.” 

Tech slowly circled around the roof with Crosshair. He knew Crosshair was trying to lure him into a trap, but he wouldn’t let himself be outsmarted. He’d take Crosshair in and convince him to join the Empire. 

“You played the game well, Crosshair, but it’s time to surrender. You will not win this. Join the Empire. It is the only hope you have of avoiding execution. It is the only way I can save you.” 

Crosshair faltered, his eyes widening for a split second. He quickly put his smug mask back on and scoffed. “How touching.” He sneered. “Your kindness knows no bounds, Tech.”

“I would prefer you didn’t mock me, Crosshair. As I’ve said, this is the only way I can save you. Surrender and come peacefully and I shall assure you are returned to our squad and Omega is sent back to Kamino.” 

“I don’t think so, Tech.” Crosshair said, shaking his head. He lifted a hand slowly to pull his toothpick out of his mouth, flicking it to the ground. “I’m not going to join the Empire. And you’re not going to stay with them.” 

“You cannot persuade me, Crosshair. I am a soldier of the Empire. We all are. You can join us or be thrown in prison for the rest of your life with the death sentence hanging over your head. I cannot protect you forever, and I will certainly try to keep you alive, but my authority only extends so far.” 

Crosshair smirked and chuckled darkly. “I wasn’t planning on persuading you.”

Chapter Text

Crosshair reacted in the blink of an eye and shot Tech square in the chest before his brother even had a chance to move. He rushed forward as Tech went boneless, sagging to the floor like a doll. He caught his head before it cracked against the ground. He’d been careful with the others to make sure they’d fallen without hurting themselves, but he hadn’t had that luxury with Tech. 

He sighed as he looked down at the black armour covering his brother’s body. It looked so unlike the armour he was used to. He carefully pulled the modified black helmet off his brother’s head and sighed in relief at seeing Tech’s face. 

He wrapped his arms around Tech and bent over him, pressing their foreheads together. He fought back the relieved tears at having his brothers, one and all, back. He’d missed them dearly, now he had them back. 

He felt a hot tear roll down his face, but he let it go. It was just the two of them up here. No one else was there to see him cry tears of joy and relief. Tech was asleep and couldn’t hear his quiet huffs of breath as he struggled not to sob aloud. He was free to weep and revel in the presence and warmth of his brother.

Chapter Text

Crosshair sat with Omega asleep on his lap, dosing as he waited for his brothers to wake up after their procedures. 

Doctor Burg had successfully removed all four of their inhibitor chips, finally freeing them from the control of the Empire. 

At long last, after weeks of being separated from them, they were all together once again. 

Omega shifted in his arms, snuggling her face deeper into his chest as she slept. 

He’d let her get comfortable on his lap as there wasn’t another chair in the room and there wasn’t enough space to put another one even if one had been brought. The four beds his brothers slept in took up most of the space in the small back room of Doctor Burg’s clinic. 

He no longer minded her touch. It had taken some getting used to, but now he could tolerate it. 

He glanced over at Tech, who was in the bed closest to them. He watched the calm, relaxed expression on his brother’s slack face and the slight shifting of his eyes under their lids as he dreamed. He hoped whatever Tech was dreaming about was pleasant. He couldn’t imagine what Tech and the others had gone through during their time under the control of the chips.

He hoped they would recover and there wouldn’t be any lasting damage to their minds. He wanted his brothers back, but he knew they would be different after the ordeal they’d all gone through. He knew he was different after everything, but that was how life worked. 

They grew during times of hardship, he understood that now. He knew he’d grown during his time alone with Omega. He was more patient and tolerant. Omega had told him so when he’d woken up a few hours earlier after his procedure. She’d told him how much she liked the new him. 

He shifted her on his lap when her bony bottom started digging into his thigh uncomfortably. He paused when she stirred, hoping she wouldn’t wake up. 

She murmured something in her sleep and fell still. 

He sighed quietly and glanced over at his brothers again. They were still asleep, but he wasn’t surprised. Apparently he’d slept for a long time after his procedure. A total of eleven hours in fact. They were only on hour four with the others. 

He settled in to get some sleep, as it was late and he was still tired. He hadn’t been ready to go running around the city after his brothers and Echo was a lot heavier than he looked. At least Doctor Burg and his nurses had been kind enough to help him with Wrecker and Hunter, leaving him to carry Tech. Tech was also heavier than he looked. 

He let himself go, knowing they were safe at last, and fell into a light sleep for a few hours. 

He was awoken by a gentle touch to his face. He came to immediately and blinked open his eyes to find Tech gazing down at him with a small smile on his face. 

Crosshair inhaled sharply, forcing back the tears at the sight of his brother, the one he remembered and loved, gazing deep into his eyes. He lifted an arm from around Omega and grasped the back of Tech’s neck, pulling him down to press their foreheads together. 

Neither breathed a word as they shared the quiet, tender moment. There was nothing to say. Everything was said through their actions as they embraced, sharing their relief with one another and all the swirling emotions within. 

Tech’s hot, shaky breath fanned against Crosshair’s face. He didn’t open his eyes, giving his brother the courtesy of not seeing him cry. Tech wasn’t as visibly emotional as the rest of them, oftentimes not fully understanding such things, but when he felt them, he felt them strongly. And relief was the one he could feel strongest right now. 

Crosshair rubbed the back of Tech’s neck with his thumb, reassuring him and calming him. He shushed him gently and hummed softly when Tech sniffled. He tried to hold back the tears, but soon they started to fall. 

The two of them cried quietly together in the dark room of the clinic, pretending for just a little while that there was no Empire, there was no darkness, there was no evil, there was no fear, that nothing was ever going to tear them apart again. 

For just a few minutes they were alone, but then Hunter’s warm hand grasped Crosshair’s shoulder, Echo’s hand rested on his knee, and Wrecker draped himself over Tech’s back, pulling them all into his arms. 

Omega stirred on Crosshair’s lap and woke up, blinking the sleep from her eyes as Crosshair hummed softly. 

Crosshair felt her shift to look up at the five men around her, felt her hesitate for a few seconds, then she laughed quietly and grabbed his neck and hugged him. 

“We’re all together now.” She whispered. 

Hunter chuckled and nodded. “We sure are, kid. We sure are.” 

Wrecker laughed, trying to be quiet, and squeezed them all tight. “It’s good to be back. I missed you, Crosshair.” 

Crosshair grunted as he was squished against Tech and Omega by Wrecker’s arms with Hunter and Echo digging into his shoulders. “Wrecker, too tight.” 

“Ha! Not letting go.” Wrecker chuckled, but he eased up his tight grip a little. 

“Glad to see you’re all right, Crosshair.” Echo spoke up. “Your hair’s grown out. I never realised it was so curly.”

Crosshair scowled and Wrecker laughed. 

“Yeah, he tries to pretend he doesn’t have curls.” Hunter chuckled warmly as he freed an arm from Wrecker’s embrace to ruffle Crosshair’s long silver curls. “Tech’s got them too, he just doesn’t let them show.” 

“Indeed.” Tech grumbled. “They are a nuisance. I prefer to keep them under control by gelling them flat and as straight as possible. I have used many different products, trying to find the right fit for my hair. I am still searching, as I have not yet found-”

“Tech!” The others groaned, interrupting him. 

Crosshair chuckled and gave Tech a small smile. “You were saying?”

Tech returned his smile appreciatively and his eyes began to shimmer, bright and alive.