Now this may not get a lot of notes but I worked really hard (over the course of several days and a lot of late nights) and I wanted to share this. I’m an amateur at best but i drew these with that one TikTok trend for my friend @dangraccoon (congrats on marriage!!) this is their OC Jaine Vale (go check them out!)
As I said, I’m not the best artist but I’m really proud of these :)
Tagging my friends so it can get at least four notes 😭 @sevdidntdie @janthesevenette @fionajames @will-is-silly @imconfusedbutok @hellhound5925
(The last picture is a picture of my own hand that I traced because I CANNOT figure out how to draw hands. I traced the first pic because I started crying when I tried freehanding the hands.)
Summary: As the Batch struggles with the loss of one of their own, Hunter tracks something the others can't see.
Warnings: discussion of major character death, grief, mention of torture and near death experiences
Author’s Note: Hope y'all don't hate me right now 😅 btw there’s going to be an epilogue 🤘
3 4?! chapters remain
« Previous Chapter Next Chapter »
“‘How many time’s she’s’ what?” Hunter asked.
Sinya shook her head rapidly. “I said too much, I can’t-”
Hunter moved in close. “Tell us…now,” he growled.
The intimidation sunk into the twi’lek, and she appeared to become more uncomfortable by the second. She swallowed, her fingers fidgeting.
“How many times she’s died.”
“She- that’s not possible,” Echo muttered, eyes wide.
“It’s a curse,” Sinya shrugged. “It happened when she was young. She doesn’t like to-”
“Unless she was resuscitated, it would have been impossible for her to have died,” Tech interjected.
Crosshair shook his head. “But that blaster shot she took before she was assigned to us; she couldn’t have survived that, right?”
“I mean, she’s here, isn’t she?” Sinya replied. “Obi Wan told me about that one. It was pretty rough.”
“You can say that again; that shot knocked her out of the frontlines for six weeks,” Echo scowled.
“We’re still not sure what she lost that time,” she hummed, mouth pulling into a tight line. “She won’t go through the list with me, not that she’s added anything to it recently anyway.”
“Jainey loses stuff, too? I lose stuff all the time,” Wrecker chuckled nervously, earning a sharp look from Hunter.
“She doesn’t lose objects like that. She loses memories. Obi Wan told me that the first one she lost was of her first love.”
Tech cleared his throat. “Her-”
“That isn’t something I’ll tell you,” Sinya interrupted, her words forming a sharp edge. “That story is hers to tell if she wants.”
Wrecker shifted his weight between his feet, eyes trained at the floor. “What if she- will she forget us?”
“Wrecker-” Tech’s voice came, vague irritation along with it.
“I don’t know,” Sinya answered, the corners of her mouth coming up in a reassuring smile. “But I don’t think she could forget you boys if she tried.”
Wrecker nodded, a small grin matching hers.
The rest of the recording included Sinya saying her goodbyes and a brief squabble over taking watches.
“So it’s true then; she has to come back. She’s cursed to come back,” Crosshair rasped, his voice still shaky, as he combed Jaine’s hair away from her face, her head in his lap. “She has to come back.”
“Cuir’ika,” Tech said, his voice low. “We cannot begin to understand how this supposed curse works, or if it exists at all.”
“She has to come back,” Crosshair repeated, making it clear that he wasn’t listening to his twin any longer.
Tech sighed, pulling himself to his feet. Camp had been made here at the bank of the river, despite Tech pointing out that it was not an ideal place to set up, even for a short period of time. But there was no moving his brother.
Tech walked the short distance to the small shelter Hunter and Wrecker set up.
“Still won’t budge?” Hunter asked, already knowing the answer.
Tech gave a small nod. “His vitals show no sign of deterioration, even if he seems to be in shock.”
Hunter hummed an acknowledgment.
“Have Echo and Wrecker had any luck finding a signal?”
Hunter sighed. “Last he checked in, he was trying to find a tall tree to climb. We managed to get a partial message through to Cody, but it wasn’t much.”
Tech nodded. For the first time since- well, ever in his life, everything seemed still. The numerous sounds that always surrounded him, constantly pulling him in and whipping his brain into a faster pace, seemed to be somewhat quieter now. He could still hear them if he listened; the rush of the water flowing down the river, the leaves rustling as the wind shook their branches, Crosshair’s quiet, reassuring mantra.
“You look tired,” Hunter noted, having watched Tech’s eyes close as he concentrated on what he could hear. “You should rest.”
“I have the most training in field medical aid out of the rest of us,” Tech replied. “I should be alert if anything were to happen.”
“Tech-”
“I am fine, Hunter,” Tech asserted as he began to tap rapidly at his data pad.
Hunter sighed heavily. “Tech, don’t you think it’s time you stopped lying to me?”
“I am not-” Tech began, but was cut off by the tired incredulous look on Hunter’s face.
“We’ve never…lost one of our own,” Hunter lamented, his eyes focusing on Crosshair by the riverbank. “Years of testing and training and torture, hundreds of missions, too many close calls, but we made it through it all. But now…”
Tech watched as Hunter’s eyes squeezed closed, noticed the way his jaw and fists clenched, saw his shoulders slump almost imperceptibly, heard his breaths quicken. He always had to see the details- all of the details. He put it together in his head; it had been a long time since he had seen these tiny clues on his eldest brother. Hunter was scared- terrified, really.
“Sol’ika,” Tech whispered, knowing it would be loud enough for his brother to hear. “This is not your fault.”
Before Hunter could begin to respond, a small ping sounded from his vambrace, followed by a shout from Wrecker, not far away.
“It’s Cody,” he said, standing up.
“Sergeant,” Cody greeted, the sound of blaster fire and explosions in the background. “Heard you boys are out on Damussa, but you said this was urgent?”
“Yes, sir,” Hunter uttered. His heart had dropped into his boots and his mouth felt drier than the sands of Tatooine. “Commander, Is the General available? This message concerns both of you.”
“We’re a bit busy,” Cody hummed, his head snapping towards some sound that barely came through the static. “Can this possibly wait?”
“Commander, it’s-”
Another explosion sounded through the comm, followed by a crash and a loud grunt.
“Hello dear,” Obi Wan’s voice dripped like honey. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Sergeant Hunter, you’ve got your window now. Make it quick.”
Hunter tried to steady his breath. “General Kenobi, sir. It’s J-...I regret to inform you that Lieutenant Vale-”
The words choked in his throat, the air in his lungs seemed to turn to lead.
Through the static of the signal, the blaster fire, the bombs, Hunter could make out Kenobi’s faint voice. “Jainera?”
The line continued with simply the background noise of war.
“Thank you for informing us, Hunter,” Obi Wan finally answered, his voice a schooled calm, but lacking its usual character. “We are less remote and will have better luck getting a message through to Sinya on Coruscant. Stay safe, Sergeant.”
With that, the line cut, and Hunter sank back down onto the log he’d been occupying before, praying to gods he couldn’t believe in for…someone- anyone to guide him through this.
Starlight, a quiet voice hummed in his ears, causing his whole body to tense up. His hair stood on end as his eyes darted around.
“Hunter?” Tech questioned, but his voice seemed distant.
Relax, the voice called again.
Hunter scowled as he stood up, eyes searching the area. He couldn’t see anyone - or anything - that could be calling to him like this. He was vaguely aware of Tech vying for his attention, asking if he was okay or what he was hearing, but right now he could hear a threat and he needed to gather information.
I’m no threat, Starlight.
Hunter just about growled, somewhat startling Tech.
“Hunter,” he repeated, placing his hand on his brother’s shoulder, following his line of sight towards Crosshair and Jaine.
“There,” Hunter breathed, slowly approaching the riverbank. The unshakable focus in his expression and the way his stance adjusted reminded Tech of a predator stalking some prey, and not for the first time.
Hey all! So I wanted to let you guys know about a couple things :)
First things first, I'm probably going to somewhat disappear/not be as active in May! I know that in basically any post involving him, I refer to C as my "husband" but technically that won't be true until May 25th (after dating for 10.5 years, we are finally getting married!) so I'll be rather busy next month!
I should have a little bit of time between that and my summer camp job starting mid-June (that'll end sometime in August)
I'll try to be as active as I can during the summer, but unfortunately I can't guarantee anything with what signal can be like out there!
All that being said, I'm working hard to get as many things written while I still have a good amount of free time so I can queue them up to post while I'm away. I may have to slow down updates (if I do, it'll probably be about every other week), but I'll be sure to let you all know if I do!
Thank you all for the amazing support you show every week! It really means the world to me (and blows my mind that anyone would enjoy the musings of a mid-twenties autistic stay-at-home cat dad lol)
Warnings: canon typical violence, Big Ouchie type feelings
Author's Note: *gonzo voice* this looks familiar, vaguely familiar
No but for real, if it hadn't been for the love and support y'all have sent my way, I don't think I would've had the inspiration to finish this, let alone start a sequel! This fic will be going up on AO3 sometime in the near future, and I will be writing and posting the sequel fic Jari'eyc in a couple weeks!
Make sure you leave me a comment or reblog in the notes below, or submit an update to your taglist request here if you want to be added to the taglist for Jari'eyc! The taglist will be resetting, so make sure you let me know if you want to see more!
« Previous Chapter
The group stalked quietly through the labyrinth of hallways, narrowly avoiding other troopers.
“We’re not going to get very far without our gear,” Tech sighed.
“They started moving all your things to the hangar,” Omega told Hunter. “Your gear might be there, too.”
Hunter nodded. “This way.”
The squad ran into the hangar as Tech opened the door, searching through the rows of crates for their gear.
“Alright, boys, suit up,” Hunter ordered, finding a crate filled with his own armor. “Let’s make this quick.”
The squad dug into the cargo, pulling out various pieces of equipment.
Wrecker groaned, mumbling softly to himself.
“Tech, Echo, power up the ship,” Hunter said. “The rest of us will go after-”
“I don’t think we’ll have to go far,” Omega whispered.
Wrecker’s mouth fell open. “Is that-”
“Jaine?” Crosshair breathed. He could feel his heart shattering as Jaine entered with a whole squad, herself clad in new, darkly colored armor. She removed her helmet, crimson hair falling to her shoulders, now streaked with stark white.
Time seemed to stand still, even as the rain pounded against the hangar, punctuated by thunder and flashes of lightning.
Hunter swallowed and stood, catching Jaine’s eye.
“Stand down, Sergeant. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”
A chill ran down Crosshair’s spine. Her melodic voice sounded eerily robotic now. Was this really their Jaine or a just very convincing droid?
“Jaine,” Hunter pleaded. “What are you doing? It’s us.”
“I read the report of your mission on Kaller. I also read the report from the captain of that battalion, who doubts your report. You should have killed that Jedi kid,” she said, sounding almost bored.
“Jaine, this isn’t you,” Hunter pleaded. “You’ve got to snap out of it. We’re your family!”
“I have no family,” Jaine roared, anger already receding as she winced, hand almost rising to touch her head. “You went against orders. That cannot be tolerated.”
“I did what I thought was right.”
Jaine scoffed, unimpressed. “What a shame it is that you’ve never been able to see the bigger picture. Surrender. Now.”
Hunter’s eyes darted away from Jaine to the rest of his squad, reluctantly pulling themselves into ready positions, and Omega, hunkered down behind a crate.
“Is that an order, Lieutenant?”
Jaine bristled. “It is now.”
With one last glance at his squad - his family - Hunter smirked ever so slightly.
“Guess I’m disobeying that one, too.”
Hunter could hear the crackles of electricity sparking at Jaine’s fingertips. He kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to make the move, but praying she wouldn’t.
With a sharp grunt from Jaine, a streak of lightning flew out towards Hunter, who barely dodged it.
As the troopers with her began firing on the squad, Hunter dove behind the crate as his brothers fired back.
Jaine growled, forcing her hands out in front of her, red smoke pouring from her palms, filling the space between her and her old squadmates. Pressing a button on her new helmet, she could see the heat signatures of each of them. Wrecker and Crosshair behind one set of crates, Hunter and the girl behind another. She hurled a few more bursts of lightning towards them, hitting their cover hard.
“Tech, we gotta move,” Hunter growled through the comms. “Now.”
“We’re working on it,” Tech answered, hands flying across the control panels.
“Wrecker, clear the smoke on three,” he ordered.
“You got it, boss,” Wrecker nodded, grabbing a few lids from the crates.
“Omega, stay low,” he said. “One…two-”
“Three!” Wrecker shouted, jumping up from the cover to use the lids as fans, before sending one of them flying towards the regs. Jaine barely dodged the second one as it kareened towards her.
Wrecker reached for the blaster strapped to his back, but Jaine was faster, sending a fast shot from her blaster towards him, clipping his shoulder.
He shouted in pain as he fell, his helmet flying off and landing next to him.
Omega stood up, starting to jog towards the large heap Wrecker lay in.
“Omega! Don’t!” Hunter shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her back, the shot Jaine intended for her missing by a few short inches. “She’s using him as bait.”
“But he needs help!” Omega protested.
“Tech,” he growled. “We’re out of time!”
“Almost got it,” came Tech’s reply as the thrusters came to life, catching Jaine’s eye.
“What are you waiting for?” she shouted at the reg closest to her. “Seal the bay door!”
The reg nodded, rushing to the control panel to hit the appropriate button.
Hunter watched, a deep dread forming at the pit of his stomach as the doors to their exit began to close. But then they stopped, despite the alarms still blaring.
Jaine’s head whipped around to the reg at the panel.
“Sir, someone’s overriding the controls!”
She growled. Watching the heat map of the squad.
Hunter kneeled next to Omega. “When I say ‘go’, you head for that ramp, and don’t stop, got it?” She nodded and he turned to face Crosshair. “Cross, we go for Wrecker.”
Jaine watched across the hangar. “Only one way out, Hunter. Your move.”
“Go!” Hunter shouted, popping up to lay down cover fire as Omega and Crosshair ran behind him.
Jaine came out from behind her cover, energy surging at her fingertips.
She raised her hands, vision locked on to Crosshair, Wrecker, and Hunter.
A single shot sounded; a stun round hitting Jaine’s hand, knocking her to the ground.
Omega lifted her head from the rifle, steam flowing from the barrel. As the others got up, so did Jaine, pulling her blaster from her waist as Omega began to fire off more shots until her brothers were on board, the shots from Jaine merely hitting the surface of the hull. The Marauder rose and exited the hangar as Jaine wrenched her bucket off, scowling up as the ship escaped.
Thanks for reading! - River
« Previous Chapter
Masterlist
Taglist Form
Make sure you leave me a comment or reblog in the notes below, or submit an update to your taglist request here if you want to be added to the taglist for Jari'eyc! The taglist will be resetting, so make sure you let me know if you want to see more!
Lt. Jaine Vale is a medic serving with the GAR’s 212th Attack Battalion when she is injured. She is then ordered by the Jedi Generals to Clone Force 99 where she finds her place in the war.
Warnings: headache, flying reptiles (similar to keeradaks), playful banter
Author’s Note: oh my god two updates in a row? and only a couple hours late What are the odds??? actually kinda high because I’m almost down writing this series
5 chapters remain
« Previous Chapter Next Chapter »
Crosshair wasn’t grumpy. He wasn’t moody, or snippy. He wasn’t jealous. He wasn’t even vaguely upset. In fact, he couldn’t say he felt negatively much at all.
He’d gotten up to take watch nearly an hour before, only to find Jaine had fallen asleep on Tech’s pauldron, and Tech, known for his general sleeplessness, was against the cave wall, quietly snoring.
Despite the odd angle of her neck, Jaine seemed to be comfortable, a pleasant look across her snoozing features.
He snuck over, crouching down next to her, brushing a few loose strands of her hair from her face.
She mumbled quietly and a small smile crossed his lips as he watched her snuggle into Tech’s shoulder even more despite his armor.
“You alright?” Hunter whispered behind him.
Crosshair sighed, standing up. “I should be upset, shouldn’t I?
“Dunno. Should you?”
“If this is what she wants- anything she wants, I couldn’t hesitate if I wanted to; it’s hers.”
Hunter merely chuckled.
“What?”
“Missed the look of affection on you, vod,” he grinned with a pat on Crosshair’s shoulder. “I’ll take your watch, you go join ‘em.”
Crosshair thought about protesting, but the scene before him looked so warm. So he settled in on the other side of Jaine. Tucking his arm under hers and feeling his chest fill up with that warmth as she intertwined her fingers with his.
-
Echo woke with a start, as always; his wide eyes hurriedly taking in his surroundings.
Right, he thought, remembering the previous day’s events.
“Alright?” Hunter murmured.
Echo nodded, wiping the sleep from his eyes. “Yeah, fine.”
“Caf?”
He nodded again, gratefully accepting a cup of what reminded him more of jetpack fuel than actual caf, but drank it anyway.
“Figured we’d give ‘em another few minutes,” Hunter said, tilting his head towards Jaine, sandwiched between the twins.
“That’s… an interesting development,” Echo noted. “Tech’s coming back around?”
Hunter shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”
“‘Ey, since when does Tech cuddle again?” Wrecker grumbled, blinking at the small huddle.
Echo scoffed. “Since last night, I guess.”
-
Jaine woke up with her face pressed against the cool floor of the cave. She squeezed her eyes closed tighter, hoping that it would disperse the headache currently setting her brain on fire.
“You’re awake,” Hunter noted quietly.
She grumbled, struggling to find the energy to sit up, let alone speak.
“Caf?” Echo asked, despite already knowing her answer.
“I hate this osik,” she muttered, accepting the cup being handed to her. “Hot dirt water.”
“And yet you drink it every day,” Echo mused. “No wonder you’re so cranky.”
Jaine scowled at him, but sipped the caf, her face contorting into a disgusted expression. “What, did you wash Wrecker’s blacks in this?”
“Ey!” The large man protested. “They’re not so bad!”
Echo and Hunter exchanged a look, bemusedly rolling their eyes.
“Where are the others?” Jaine asked, rubbing at her sore neck.
“Scouting,” Hunter answered.
“And hopefully getting along,” Echo muttered with a smirk.
“Have they not been?” Jaine frowned, glancing around. “I actually got the feeling I might be smoothing things over with Tech.”
“Sure seemed like it to me,” Wrecker laughed, playfully whacking Echo on the shoulder.
“Seemed to me, too,” Hunter smirked, handing Jaine her bag. “Certainly looked cozy.”
“What are you going on about now?” she mumbled, digging through the bag.
“Sandwiched between two batch twins can be a dangerous game, Ad’ika,” Echo hummed, his smirk giving away his attempt at disguising his amusement.
Jaine rolled her eyes. “Oh, ha-ha, very funny.” She continued digging through the bag until she found a small round container. Opening it carefully, she took a small amount of the magenta paste, smearing it from the base of her skull, down and towards her jaw, beginning to hum as she rubbed the substance in.
With Wrecker and Echo off bickering about something nearby, Hunter found himself entranced with Jaine’s little ritual. Each quiet note her voice hit filled his ears and calmed his senses. He felt a tension he hadn’t known he’d been carrying release as he watched the simple process, but found himself feeling almost heartbroken when her humming finished.
“That song, what is it?” he whispered, afraid to break the atmosphere she’d created around them.
Jaine’s eyes fluttered open, looking up at him, wide eyed. “Oh, um, it’s a Qoljaki song. It was typically sung at weddings, but my parents sang it all the time,” she shrugged. “My dad’s voice was lovely, but mom’s wasn’t very good. She used to say that she couldn’t carry a tune even if it was in a bucket.”
Hunter chuckled. “I guess you took after your dad then.”
She felt her cheeks flush as she looked towards the floor. “Yeah, right,” she snarked.
“I mean it, your voice is beautiful,” Hunter reassured her. “Just like the rest of you.”
Jaine’s eyes darted to his as surprise widened both sets. She searched him for any hint of insincerity or clue that he might be joking, but found nothing but a warm smile and admiration in his expression.
“Hunter,” she began but a loud thump followed by some shouting from the entrance of the cave drew their attention.
“What the hell was that?” Hunter growled, meeting the others at the opening of the cave.
He was immediately shushed by Echo, whose eyes never left the object of his attention.
“My files have no data on this kind of…creature,” Tech whispered.
“Has it seen us?”
“If it has, it has not shown any indication of attacking us.”
Hunter nodded. “Wrecker, Crosshair, keep an eye on that thing. We need to get moving.”
Hesitantly the three clones made their way back into the cave to begin to gather their meager camp.
“What’s going on?” Jaine asked.
“Creature outside,” Echo grunted. “Big one.”
“It appears to be a creature similar to the keeradaks on Skako Minor. Flying reptiles are somewhat uncommon to come across,” Tech noted.
“Flying reptiles?” Jaine chuckled. “That’s a new one.”
“Maybe for you. Sometimes I forget you’re newer than me,” Echo smirked.
“Oh yeah, that three month headstart really gave you a leg up, huh?” she snarked. “Two, even.”
Echo feigned offense, but couldn’t hide the lightness in his eyes.
“Alright, you two,” Hunter grinned. “We should get back out there.”
“Hunter,” Crosshair’s voice rasped over the comms. “Our new friend has a partner.”
“There is another?” Tech asked. Jaine could hear the fascination in his voice.
“Yeah, only this one looks meaner,” grunted Wrecker.
“Best hurry,” Crosshair scoffed. Wrecker looks like he wants to poke at them.”
Summary: The Batch struggle with Jaine's resuscitation
Warnings: mentions of death and injury, discussion of Feelings™,
Author’s Note: *le gasp* another update so soon? on a monday? damn thats crazy (tbh i just want to finish this series out so I can start posting the sequel series) (also yes that is a vague reference to sex pollen at the end of the second paragraph leave me alone)
One chapter remains
« Previous Chapter Next Chapter »
Three days in a bacta tank shouldn’t be able to bring someone back from being dead, but here Tech was, knee bouncing as he looked over Jaine’s unconscious form.
It was his turn to watch over her, the squad deciding that they didn’t want her to be alone when she woke up on the Negotiator. His mind felt lost in the maze of this woman’s life. He had felt the lack of her heartbeat himself. For quite a while he wondered if this was all a bizarre dream. Perhaps brought on by some spore on Damussa?
“A strange feeling, is it not? The grief of loss followed so quickly by the relief of survival?”
Tech snapped to attention, practically launching himself out of the uncomfortable chair as General Kenobi entered the small medbay room.
“General-”
“Please, relax,” Kenobi chuckled, waving his hand dismissively. “I am here as a friend, not a general.”
Tech gave a single nod, his eyes wandering back to Jaine.
“I do not understand how- It should be impossible for her to have-”
“Survived? It is a fascinating concept,” Obi Wan finished. “I’m sure your squad must feel relieved.”
“Yes, we are,” Tech replied.
“But?”
Tech’s eyes darted up to the Jedi. “In their relief that she is alive, the others seem to have forgotten about the…clause, for lack of a better word.”
Obi Wan nodded knowingly, quiet for a long moment, simply looking at Jaine, a sad expression on his face.
“What did she…forget last time?”
Obi Wan sighed. “We’re not sure. She hasn’t been particularly forthcoming the past few times. Sinya thinks it may have been a friend or loved one we had yet to meet. She said that a few of the things she’d said to her before that time hinted at a potential…lover.”
Tech shifted uncomfortably, his hand clenching his data pad. If it had happened before, it could happen again, and this time his twin would be forgotten.
“What other types of information has she lost?”
Obi Wan sat on the corner of the bed, closing his eyes. “The first was of her escape and the subsequent fall of her homeworld, and her- …someone she was close to. My master helped her remember it. I don’t think I’d ever seen him so angry. Then it was myself. The friendship we had developed. It was lucky that she had Sinya at that point since she no longer remembered the trust she had in me.”
He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, but shook his head a little, as though to clear a thought from his mind.
“It’s always been loved ones?” Tech nearly whispered, a quiet dread sinking into his chest.
Obi Wan looked at Tech sadly. “Are you close with Jainera?”
“I- well, not exactly,” Tech sputtered before taking a deep breath to start over. “Not as close as I should have been.”
The jedi nodded and the two sat in companionable silence, watching over their friend.
–––––
They hadn’t been on Kamino long, but Crosshair was getting antsy as he usually did.
He paced back and forth next to Jaine’s medbay bed, toothpick grinding between his teeth. He’d sworn to himself that he or one of his brothers would be here when she woke up. He desperately wanted it to be him, to be the first face she saw after coming back to life.
If he noticed Hunter enter the room, he didn’t mention it.
“Cross,” he said softly.
“Orders,” Crosshair breathed, barely a whisper. He didn’t need to see Hunter’s hesitant nod. “Where?”
“Felucia.”
–––––
“Mistress Nala Se has summoned you; you must go, Omega.”
“No, I want to wait for her to wake up. They wouldn’t want her to be alone.”
Jaine’s head was spinning as her eyes fluttered open. She groaned, the stark white of the medbay on Kamino filling her senses uncomfortably.
“Lieutenant Vale,” the medical droid chirped. “It is good to see that you are awake.”
“Hi,” a small blonde girl grinned beside her.
Jaine raised an eyebrow. “Hi?”
“I’m Omega!”
“And I am AZI-345211896246498721347,” the droid chimed in.
Omega rolled her eyes, whispering loudly. “I just call him AZ.”
Jaine chuckled a little, but was cut off by her own sharp inhale as she tried to sit up, a harsh pain in her ribs.
“Careful; you’re still recovering,” Omega said. “You broke a lot of ribs!”
“That is correct,” AZ agreed. “It is a surprise that you are still alive given that you are a typical human and not genetically enhanced for battle like the average clone. You should consider yourself lucky.”
“Heh, yeah. Six- ah, seven broken ribs. Luckiest gal this side of the galaxy,” Jaine smirked, sending Omega into a fit of giggles.
She watched as the droid hovered away to check on another patient, before turning back to the small girl still smiling up at her.
“How long was I-”
“A few months,” Omega finished. “But you only got to Kamino five weeks ago.”
“Five?” Jaine repeated, running a hand down her face. “My squad-”
“They were sent to Felucia about three months ago, but they seemed really worried about you!”
“Really?”
Omega nodded.
“Interesting,” Jaine hummed to herself. Surprised they didn’t just leave me in the field. Would’ve thought they couldn’t care less about me.
“Yeah! I’m not supposed to know this, but they’re being sent to Kaller next.”
“Omega,” a calm voice called, approaching the room.
Nala Se appeared, looking at the young girl.
“Lieutenant Vale,” she greeted. “You seem to be recovering well.”
“No complaints at the moment, Mistress Se,” Jaine answered.
“That is good to hear,” she nodded. “I apologize for my assistant’s intrusion. She has a curious mind.”
“It’s no problem.”
“Come along, Omega,” Nala Se said to her assistant. “Lieutenant Vale has a vital procedure soon and must rest. Perhaps we can visit her later if you complete all of your tasks.”
Omega seemed to deflate a little, but nodded.
“It was nice meeting you, Omega,” Jaine smiled, and Omega matched it.
–––––
Something was off, and Hunter didn’t like it. The regs on Kaller, acting like- well, like droids. Killing General Billaba without a second thought? And they went after the kid, too. And the regs in the hallway here. They seemed mindless, completely uniform. It was off-putting to say the least. And of course, there was Crosshair.
“What happened?” Wrecker questioned as they walked through the corridor, shoving Crosshair’s shoulder. “You never miss!”
“He was distracted,” Tech chimed in, adding a quiet “obviously” without even glancing up from his data pad.
“I hit where I intended,” Crosshair sneered.
“Oh, sure,” Wrecker laughed. “You wanted to shoot next to the clanker, not hit ‘em!”
“Stow it, Wrecker,” he snapped.
“Lads,” Hunter stopped, raising a hand to stop the others. “We’ve got company.”
The squad turned around to see a small blonde child smiling up at them.
Summary: The squad emerges from the cave, only to be met with another emergency.
Warnings: falling from a high height, panic, major character death, grief
Author’s Note: Everyt̶h̴i̸n̷̢̾g̸̼͌ ẅ̶̱̱́͐i̶̧̺͗ļ̵̺̀l̶͇͒̓ b̴̛̪̖͖̆̇̏e̵̡͋́ f̶̨̩̞͉̝͚̋̽̏͐̈͊̆̓͝ĩ̸̝͈̺̭̪̺͈͔͓͂̓̍̅͂́̒̽n̷̠͓̝͉̂̽̄̾̑ẻ̴͇̬̑͛͠,̸̡̭͇̝͕̬̪͔͍͎̱̺̖͉̆̐̂̋̏̀̽̒̔̌̀̕ͅ ̶̧̱̪̥͉̦̺͔̺̩̥̩̠͉̳̼̮͈̀̿̔̅͊̅͒̉̈͝w̵̨̧͔͉̩͚̯̤͚̲͕͕̤̦͙̺̼̮̲̯͗̑̓͆̐͗͗̌͂̓̊̂̑͛̾̚͝ǫ̶̢̗̦̘͇̮͚̯͎̯̦̹̜̫̮̘̭̭̪͓͋̈́͐͝͠n̴̨̧̥͍̩̱̺̭͍̬̠͍͉̮͌̿͊'̷̡̢̧̣͕̗̲͉͕̝̪̖͕͓̍͑̌̓͒̓̄̊̍̓͊͗͘͜͝͝ţ̷̨̡̡̙̹͚̖̞̱̅̑͜ ̴͍̼̬̜̥͎͓̭͉̦̬͙̠̥̪͒̇̈́̑́̊͋̉̌͊̐̈́̇̓͘ͅi̷̜̗̮̻͕͔̞͖̱̟̓̂̆̆́͗́̀́̂͑t̸̗̻̭̙̮͔̠͎̖͒̆͐̾̈́͗̑͒̐͋̎̎̉̀͋͘̚̚̚͝?̵̨̧̨͖̯̱̜͓̪̼̖̘̲̱̺̦̺̳̒͗̊̎̐̾̐̑̀̽̏͛͂̀͊̅̚̚͘͝͝
(the above zalgo text reads: "Everything will be fine, won't it?")
4 chapters remain
« Previous Chapter Next Chapter »
Jaine had huffed and shaken her head a little before slipping on her helmet, Echo noticed. He tried to give her a reassuring smile, before remembering that he also donned his bucket. Idiot, he thought to himself.
“Don’t worry, Jainey,” Wrecker laughed boisterously. “Won’t let that thing eat ya.”
Jaine’s comms mic picked up a hint of her scoff. “Sure, Wreck. Just keep your eyes on the prize, yeah?”
The group emerged from the cave in a tight formation, catching the attention of the bigger creature. It tilted its head curiously at the group.
“Fascinating,” Tech breathed, his eyes never leaving the creature while his fingers danced away across the keyboard of his data pad.
“They’re not attacking?” Echo noted.
Hunter grunted. “Not yet, anyway.”
Weapons drawn, the squad slowly exited the cave, eyes on the pair of predators.
“I can’t believe they're just watching us,” Jaine whispered.
“It seems as though they might not be hostile,” Tech replied, voice low. “Perhaps we are not similar enough to-”
“Watch your step,” Hunter interrupted. “We’re coming up on a ledge over a ravine, real narrow.”
Everything seemed to happen at once. Hunter finished his warning, and one of the creatures let out an ear splitting cry, starling Jaine, as a large rock embedded in the dirt of the ledge caught her foot, twisting her ankle and sending her falling to the ground.
Jaine cried out in pain and panic as she skidded towards the edge of the path, the rest of the squad attempting to catch her. She felt the path disappear from under her, yet she was not in free fall. Glancing up, she saw that her savior was a gnarled root emerging from the side of the cliff.
The squad- her squad - was in a frenzy nearly 20 feet above her.
“Jaine!” Crosshair called, panic creeping into his voice. “Just hold on!”
The boys’ voices were overlapping through the comms in her helmet and mixing with the strain in her arm and the height she knew she was moments away from falling, it all made her head spin.
The tail end of a rope slid down, falling not far from the root. She struggled to get her other arm up, but finally gripped the rope, hands and arms becoming sore.
“We’re gonna pull you up now,” Crosshair promised. “Just keep holding on. We’ve got you.”
“Cross,” she rasped. “I- I can’t-”
“Yes, you can. Please, just hold on, Jaine.”
Her hand slipped a little as the others began to pull her up.
“Cross,” she whimpered.
“Jaine-”
“I love you, Crosshair,” she whispered, gazing into the dark abyss of his visor as the rope slipped from her hand.
The shouts of her squad blared, mixing all together. It felt like eons that she fell into the ravine, time slowing to a crawl. She closed her eyes, eventually, trying to make peace. What if this was it? What if she was out of second chances? What if something she did along the way broke Mistress Rastee’s curse? What if… what if she never saw her squad again?
“I love you all,” she sobbed into the comms.
Her body caught on several tree branches, snapping and crashing beneath her weight. The back of head caught on a particularly thick one, draining consciousness from her.
—
The squad was running, Hunter calling off directions now and again as they raced down hills and into the crevice.
Crosshair made it to the bottom of the ravine first, despite Tech and Echo usually being faster than him. He looked up, barely able to see the point from which she’d fallen from the ground, but traced the line she would’ve fallen. At the same time as Hunter, he noticed the trail of broken branches, running ahead of the rest of the group, only to come to a river rushing to the south.
Five sets of eyes scanned the river, searching for any sign of their fallen medic.
“There!” Hunter shouts, pointing down stream. Washed up on the bank of the river, helmet knocked away, wild red hair matted to her head.
Crosshair gets to her first, repeating her name over and over as he starts to pull her from the water.
“Don’t!” Tech yells, catching up. “She likely has a spinal injury, we need-”
“She’s face down in the water; we can’t just leave her like this,” argued Crosshair.
“We need to keep her neck steady.”
Tech positioned his hands at her neck while the others helped turn her over and bring her further onto the shore.
“Her medpack. Hunter-”
“We’ll look downstream. Echo, Wrecker, with me.”
“I’ll need-” Tech stopped abruptly, removing one glove and placing it back at the side of her neck.
“What?” Crosshair urged. “Tech, what do you need?”
Tech’s eyes fell to Jaine’s face, flipping his visor down.
It was unmistakable. The HUD confirmed what he’d already discovered, even if he so desperately wanted to ignore the facts, logic, and all reason.
“Tech?” his brother called again, but it sounded almost distant despite being right next to him.
He lifted his visor and looked into the panicked eyes of his twin. He hoped that Crosshair would understand, that he wouldn’t have to say the words aloud.
Hunter stopped, causing Echo and Wrecker to nearly bump into him.
“No,” Crosshair whispered, Tech’s unspoken statement sinking in.
“Cross,” Hunter murmured, his heart dropping into his boots as he stepped towards him.
“No, no, no! Jaine, wake up,” he cried, shaking Jaine’s body just a little. “You’ve gotta wake up!”
“Crosshair,” Hunter repeated, placing his hand on Crosshair’s shoulder.
“Nayc!” Crosshair shouted, pulling his shoulder from Hunter’s grasp, turning back to Jaine, cupping the side of her face gently. “Gedet'ye, cyare. Gar enteyor hoyir.” [No! Please, beloved. You must wake up.]
“Ara’vod,” Tech whispered. “Ni ceta. Val cuyir dar. [Twin, I’m sorry. She is gone.]
Crosshair’s attempt at fighting back the tidal wave threatening to spill from his eyes began to fail. Looking at her, so still- it was unnerving. It didn’t seem real. It couldn’t be real.
He brushed the hair away from her eyes before leaning down to press his forehead to hers. “Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, balyc.” Sobs began to wrack his body, quiet as they were. [I love you, too.]
“I’ll make camp,” Wrecker murmured just loud enough for Hunter to hear, getting a small nod in response.
Echo tapped Hunter’s shoulder, tilting his head away from the rest.
“We’ll have to report in. I’ll comm in,” Hunter’s voice was quiet, but steady. “We need to get her back to Kamino.”
“Hunter,” Echo whispered.
“We’ll track down Sinya, try to get in contact with Cody and General Kenobi. They- they’ll want to know.”
“Hunter, stop,” he pleaded, lifting his helmet and setting it on the ground.
“Echo, I-” Hunter’s voice cracked. “I’ve never-”
“I know, brother,” he said, pulling Hunter to him in a tight hug.
Crosshair’s sobs began to subside. “The- the curse,” he whispered, his eyes meeting Tech’s.
“Cuir’ika,” Tech uttered, the long unused nickname falling from his lips with ease.
“You record everything,” Crosshair pleaded. “You have to have everything Sinya told us.”
“I am not sure if-”
“Please, Tad’ika,” his voice broke again. “Please look.”
Tech stared at him for a moment, but nodded, standing and stepping away to search his records.
