Archive of Our Own ^beta

Kit was going to die. 

He knew it. 

This was how he was going out, with the maw of a sea creature closing in on him. 

One that didn’t respond to the way he was reaching out to it with the Force. He had engaged it in an attempt to distract it from his troopers, concerned that the vode with damaged equipment wouldn’t have gotten out of the way in time. 

It was a valiant effort to wrestle it away from the troops. His troopers who he’d grown to care for and cherish. 

He was going to die, but they would be safe, and that was far more important than his own life. His saber had drifted somewhere into the depths below, and any slip of his focus would send the jaws he was holding at bay snapping shut. He could not call her to his aid.

But apparently, he didn’t need to. 

Something whipped past in the water above his head, vocalizing in high pitched chitters and shrieks. Something else barrelled into the creature that was forcing him further into the depths, knocking Kit out of its jaws and sending him spinning in the water before he righted himself. 

“Get the General out of here!” Came the growled and almost guttural command as Monnk— that was Monnk!?— shoved the creature out of the way.

Kit, like the seasoned veteran Jedi master and General that he was, froze in the water, feeling it shift around him as he watched Monnk, his commander Monnk, with a large dorsal fin, the same yellow as his armour, eyes as black as the ocean’s depths as he turned to look at Kit, drag deep gashes through the creature’s tough to pierce scales with his claws.

He wasn’t wearing his armour, the kute normally beneath plastoid plates had slits where his fins were protruding and flexing. Kit didn’t know how he never noticed those slits before, but his men were quiet in nature and often spent their time keeping to themselves. He had just assumed, like most humans or near-humans, they weren’t sure about Nautolan culture, perhaps they didn’t want to offend him.

How wrong he was.

“ General!” Monnk called out, mouth full of teeth sharper than Kit’s own. “General, get moving!”  

Oh, Kit felt slightly light headed at the sight of them, blood rushing to more interested limbs rather than around his body from the adrenaline. Kit was going to die, this time for a far less valiant reason.

Something grabbed him from behind, pulling him away from the scene of Monnk grappling with the creature and dragging it further into the darkness. A few other creatures, his troopers , joined him, with flashes of yellow fins and sharp teeth, clicking and trilling through the water. 

“Come on General.” The trooper behind him, Kit faintly registered, was pulling him along with little effort and had the same guttural voice. “The commander will be fine, he might even get us a feed for dinner.” 

And didn’t that put an image in his head, of Monnk and the other troops returning with chunks of meat, pride written across their features with a smile, like hunters . He turned his head to see his trooper’s face.

“Jet?” He blinked, recognizing the presence of his sergeant rather than his face, which carried a strong jaw, eyes that were shining with what little light was penetrating down through the surface. When he blinked, they were covered with a dark membrane, just only for a split second. He was handsome, with a crooked nose that implied it had been broken and reset a few times. 

Jet had his hair dyed an ungodly shade of green, though… if Kit focused on it for long enough, it reminded him of his own skin, in a long mohawk that was floating in the water.

“Yes, sir.” The trooper bared his teeth in a grin. “Captain Rook and Sergeant Marsh are down with the Commander.” 

So that was who had joined Monnk in pulling the sea creature down below, he hadn't recognized them at the speed they'd moved through the water. Kit took in a deep breath as they broke through the surface, with Jet pulling him along to the shore where a few laat’s were waiting for them. 

In the sunlight, he could see Jet, and the other troops' features clearly. They were semi-aquatic creatures, like him, capable of breathing in both water and air. The necks of their blacks were high but they couldn’t cover all the gills that lined the trooper’s neck. Jet smiled, green hair wet against his forehead.

“Like what you see sir?” He asked, propping his hands up on his hips. The action brought further attention to the fins on his elbows, with the same yellow-orange colouring that matched his dorsal fin, and Monnk’s dorsal fin. 

And Kit… Kit did like what he was seeing.

Often he felt as though he was alone in his endeavours as a semi-aquatic species in the GAR surrounded by hundreds of what he thought were near-humans. To know that his troops, his men , were like him-

Selfishly he found himself preening like some kind of basic Cephalopod. 

Kit was proud of the men he had, often bragging about their specialization to Aayla or Obi-Wan when they had their bi-weekly calls to catch up from several parts of the galaxy but no mention of their troop’s true nature had ever occurred. Suddenly, he wondered if the others knew. Obi-Wan’s commander was the picture of professionalism, armour and helmet always on. Aayla, on the other hand, had a crush on Commander Bly so fierce Kit was certain it’d send Quinlan Vos into a conniption if he’d paid more attention to it than his own curious interest in Commander Thorn of the Coruscant Guard. 

He’d never realized and kicked himself for being so unobservant.

Surely his men would’ve needed accommodations then, he’d seen the kind of rations given for space travel, dry and unappealing bars for long campaigns. He would have to source his own food for his men, perhaps some fish-

There was a series of vocalizations, chirping and chittering away behind them from one of the laat’s, excitement brimming in the force and interrupting his train of thought.

“The commander’s coming!” Someone shouted from behind them. 

Kit turned around eagerly. He hadn't had the luxury of seeing Commander Monnk without his helmet, though Monnk had always offered a friendly ear and shouldered the weight of command beside him. 

Sure enough, like the image Jet has painted, Monnk, Marsh and Rook emerged from the water with heavy chunks of meat draped over their backs, leaving a pink wash to trickle over their blacks and exposed skin. Perhaps, rather fortunately for Kit, Monnk’s blacks had been shredded from waist up, revealing a tanned expanse of skin that almost shifted in tone as they walked and a thick-barrelled chest.

He was going to die if he had to continue pretending like his newfound attraction to his commander was currently spinning around his head like an astromech who lost its stabilisers. 

All of them seem unharmed however, which eased some of Kit’s concern as the rest of his men gathered around their commanding officers, rapid fire clicking and chirping being exchanged between them. Their communication was fascinating . He heard a mixture of basic thrown around, as well as a language Obi-Wan once confirmed as Mandalore’s mother tongue, but primarily their clicks and trills seemed to communicate whatever they needed to say.

Then Monnk’s dark eyes found him from amongst the gaggle of men surrounding him.

Immediately Kit felt almost like he was the one being hunted. The pheromones in the air leaned heavily towards adrenaline and excitement, tinged with a lust- bloodlust- undercurrent. It was exhilarating. His head tails twitched and shivered, wiggling in excitement.

Monnk’s eyes met his own, the corners of his mouth quirked upwards into a smile.

Kit began striding towards his commander, half his mind intent on clearing him of any injuries, internal or otherwise. The other half was pointedly reminding him not to leer at his subordinate, to not stand there and admire the strength and lethality of Monnk’s frame.

“Commander.” Kit began, mouth going dry as Monnk’s mouth parted, revealing his sharp teeth. Words failed him. The smart and flirtatious quip he’d had on the tip of his tongue was lost as he heard Monnk’s voice unfiltered by its vocoder for the first time. 

“General, you’re alright.” Monnk’s voice, still low and guttural and sending shivers up and down Kit’s spine, was filled with relief. The chunk of meat he carried was seamlessly passed off to another trooper who had no issue carrying it away from them. “Don’t ever freeze in the water again, sir. You scared me.” Monnk’s chastise caught him off guard.

“I-” Kit blanked. 

Monnk was worried for him? Scared, even? Not only did he have all the features of a potential mate that Kit would ever consider, but he cared?

“My apologies, Commander-” Where would he begin.

Apologize for freezing in the middle of the fight.

Apologize for his men having to risk their lives so needlessly. 

Apologize for Monnk having to resc-

“And I think you dropped this-” Monnk held out his lightsaber, his crystal all but beaming in the force in his presence. Kit took the saber gingerly from Monnk’s hand, a brush of skin-on-skin sending tingles up his arm. 

“You have sincerest gratitude,” Kit breathed, eyes dropping from Monnk’s to carefully cradle his saber, feeling the hum of his crystal soothing him. He had resigned to losing her to the bottom of the ocean, a heavy loss for a jedi, especially when he’d been bonded to his crystal for years. “Commander, if there is anything I can do for you… perhaps to-” 

“Don’t worry about it, General.” Monnk waved him off, the quirked up corner of his lips breaking out into a wide and predatory grin. He stretched, arms behind his back, flexing his shoulders and indirectly showing off the fins that’d propelled him through the water. “I haven’t had the opportunity to hunt like that since Kamino. That big guy will keep us fed for close to six months if we ration properly. I might send Manta squadron down to harvest more meat from the carcass.” 

Kit felt a blossom of glee fill his chest.

“You’ve hunted before then?” He asked excitedly.

Oh to have someone to hunt with.

Their specialization often sent them to aquatic planets. Kit generally found himself hunting during downtime or after missions had subsided, but to know that his men could do the same, that they could join him. It was nothing short of gleeful. He felt his smile stretching across his face at the mere thought of having the opportunity.

“Oh the Alphas used to set us loose on the Kaminoan wildlife.” Rook snorted as he clapped Monnk hard on the back, his commander didn’t even move . “Monnk here used to pull his shoal into some stupid osik trying to hunt saberjowls and the kriffing sea-dragon.” 

“ Sea-dragon?” He couldn’t hide his disbelieving tone or wide eyes as he learned this new and very interesting information about his troopers.

“I was already streamlined for the SCUBA program.” Monnk offered an explanation, though Kit hadn’t heard too much about Kamino or its training from Shaak. He’d have to reach out to her too, he thought, see what he could find out . “They started my shoal in the water early and Saberjowl, our Alpha, not the fish, thought we’d learn faster if he threw us into the deep end, literally. ” 

“I was unaware that the troops were-” 

“Monsters?” Someone else interrupted, tone a hint defensive.

“Like me.” Kit finished. 

There was a variety of expressions that rolled through the troopers surrounding him—concern, shock, horror. Anger for Kit—the most prominent, however, was the ripple of protest that exuded from all of them. 

“That’s why you’re our favourite, General.” Jet called out, his smile blindingly bright, lightening the mood with the sincere joy emanating from him. “Cause you’re one of us.” 

-

“I’m going to die , Aayla.” Kit groaned as he rubbed a hand over his face, head tentacles twitching alongside his mock despair. He leaned back in his chair in the General’s quarters just to hear it creak. The first thing he’d done once he left his sonic was comm Aayla, knowing that she and the 327th were on their way to their next campaign, still in hyperspace.

Ever since they’d returned to their Venator he could not get the sight of Monnk out of his mind. Kute shredded, skin exposing more inhuman-like features to Kit. Their fins had seemingly matched the colour of their paint. He wondered if it was a deliberate choice or if it was simply a coincidence. 

Aayla’s laugh was like chimes in a light breeze.

He slid his hand off of his face to look at her holo-figure, shaking with laughter.

“You are being dramatic, Kit.”

“He smiled at me, with teeth. ” He stressed.

“Dramatic.” Aayla repeated. 

Admittedly, he hadn’t been much help to her when she’d first realized her crush on Commander Bly had developed without ever seeing her commander’s face, only bolstered by his utmost devotion to her on the battlefield despite never removing his helmet. This was karma for laughing at her when she’d tripped over her own feet when he’d walked past the last time their battalions had been together.

“ Aayla. ” He drew out the syllable of her name. “He smiled, and his kute had been shredded by the beast and his chest was extraordinary. I’ve never seen anything like them before and he’d butchered the creature for meat to feed his shoal .” He added extra emphasis to the statement. “He is a hunter, a provider, through and through.” 

“He hunted for you already, Kit,” She repeated with a teasing tone. “Why that’s practically a proposal. How have you not offered to marry him yet.” 

“For his men.” Kit corrected.

“And you said he returned your saber to you.” 

“Obi-Wan’s commander has done the same for him.” He defended, only for her to laugh again.

“The day Obi-Wan gets his head out of his ass and realizes he has a crush is the day you owe me three hundred credits.” 

Kit furrowed his brows. 

“I never agreed to that bet.” 

“Yes you did.” He could hear the smirk in her voice even as her head turned towards something out of the holo’s capture distance. Her mouth moved as if she was speaking to someone else, before he heard: “Quinlan has a recording.” 

Kit sighed even louder . 

“Quin does not.” 

“Quin does!” Came the call from somewhere in Aayla’s background.

He slunk further down into his chair in despair. Quinlan Vos having blackmail on you was the worst. 

“He better not be recording this conversation.” Kit raised a brow at her.

Aayla leaned back on her own comfortable ottoman armchair, stolen by her men the last time they were on Coruscant, and shook her head. 

“No, he knows better now.” She said, earning an indignant cry from her master in the background. “Besides he’s meant to be joining my men for a spar in a few minutes. Like he promised .” 

“Yeah yea,” Came the mutter from the background. “I’ll be gone in a minute.” 

There were more unintelligible grumbles that sent Aayla into laughter as Quinlan must’ve been stomping around Aayla’s quarters, prolonging his departure until he had to actually depart. Kit watched as he leaned just into frame to press a kiss to the top of Aayla’s headband before he departed.

He waited until Aayla turned back to the holo-call, her smile was wide, expression mischievous, like she had a secret to share. .

“Bly has finally taken off his helmet. I can understand why .” She admitted once she wasn’t in earshot of her master. Even over a holocall, Kit could see her cheeks darkening. “His jawline could cut through durasteel and his eyes are the most enchanting. So sincere. I could barely keep my composure when he looked at me.” 

“They are fascinating and so bright in the force.” He murmured in agreement and awe. “Monnk was almost enthralling yet his presence was so threatening and I still felt at ease approaching him.” 

“Didn’t help that he’s easy on the eyes?” She asked with a raised brow. 

“I haven’t seen something so attractive in years .” Kit sighed dreamily. “His voice beneath the water. The speed in which he swam. Aayla. His fins and gills , they are the same shade as his paint and it is truly such a lovely shade.” 

He heard her snickering but didn’t pay her any mind. He swiped his tongue over his teeth and continued.  

“The adrenaline from merely being around them when they’d returned from the hunt was exhilarating, the bloodlust. I thought I would drown there and then when my mind wandered.” 

“Kit ,you’ve never been one for being distracted on the battle-field.” Aayla’s brows furrowed. “Were you truly so captivated?”  

“I do not lie when I say that he was breath-taking Aayla.” He answered, thinking about the way Monnk had been so graceful yet so lethal in the water. Moving with such fluidity, yet with a one track mind to protect him .  “And I froze like a padawan on my first mission because all my attention had drifted to less important and far more inappropriate thoughts. ” 

Aayla snorted.

Kit watched as she reached out for a drink, fingers curling around a glass tumbler that Kit knew he had a matching set to in his own quarters. She raised her glass. 

“Welcome to the ‘I have a crush on a commander’ club.” She drawled. “Population, three jedi masters, pending others.” 

Kit snorted. 

“You imply our population will grow.” 

“Obi-Wan’s next, I'm sure of it.” 

“I still think otherwise.” 

“Well… we’ll see about that, won’t we?”