CROSSHAIR STEADIED HIS BREATHING AS HE LOOKED THROUGH THE SCOPE OF HIS RIFLE. The twittering birds and the crashing of the ocean waves against the cliffside were unanticipated distractions, but he was doing his best to block it all out. He inhaled and began counting. At the climax of that breath, he held for three seconds while lining up with the jogan fruit through the eye of the scope. He exhaled and his finger pulled the trigger.

The shot sailed past AZI just like every shot he'd taken with a blaster from the moment he'd woken up in his cadet body. However, he'd forgotten about the kickback and he was thrown onto the ground while his rifle skittered down from the rocks to land beside him.

He groaned and slammed a fist into the ground before slowly opening his eyes to look at the island skies above. What he'd seen of Pabu was beautiful. It was tranquil and serene, and everything the Bad Batch was not. It felt oxymoronic standing in such a place much less living there. However, it was apparently what the others considered home... and perhaps one day he might feel the same. But that day was not today.

"Greetings, Omega!" AZI exclaimed, waving up to the cliffside above. Crosshair allowed his eyes to trail in that direction, following the path of the girl as she jogged down the hill to meet them on the lower ridge.

Batcher barked and panted, sprinting up and down along the beach chasing after not only the birds but the native moon-yos. She only stopped long enough to run alongside Omega for a brief greeting and pet before continuing her one-sided game of tag.

Crosshair groaned, pulling himself back up to his feet before dragging his rifle back up onto the rocks in preparation of another shot. The weapon was as tall as he was, and therefore unwieldy and genuinely impractical. But he was a sniper—and he was stubborn—a combination that implied he'd spend the entire morning at target practice if necessary.

"Shep and Lyana found you then?" Omega asked, catching her breath as she took a seat in the shadows of the large rocks beneath Crosshair.

He glanced over at the untouched bowl of fruit to his left before focusing on his view through the scope. "Their ability to do so is uncanny."

Shep and Lyana had taken the time to introduce themselves earlier that morning. They didn't understand the full extent of Crosshair's situation. However, they did acknowledge that he was family to Hunter, Wrecker, and Omega, and that was good enough for them to open their arms with hospitality.

"I know what you're doing, Crosshair, but you can't keep hiding." Omega said, reaching up to take a piece of fruit from the bowl. "You need to talk to Hunter."

"I'm not hiding," he contradicted. "I'm training."

He exhaled and pulled the trigger. The shot went wide. Crosshair went flying backward onto the ground and his rifle clattered down beside him. He could feel the tremor in his right hand return. He clenched his fist, but the action didn't go unnoticed.

"You know, I'm sure AZI could look at your hand for you," Omega suggested. "He did a good job fixing your shoulder, I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem."

Crosshair sighed, getting back up onto his feet as he went through the preparation process of taking yet another shot. "I'm fine."

"So what skills does this require, besides good sight?" Omega asked, leaning forward onto her elbows as if eager to learn.

"Being a sniper is more than just looking through a scope," Crosshair replied. "It's about patience. Reading the environment. And knowing when you've got eyes on you."

Crosshair's gaze drifted up toward the cliffs, where Hunter and Wrecker were observing just outside the Marauder. He could feel the looks of disapproval even from this distance.

"They don't trust me," Crosshair noted.

"Give it time," Omega suggested. "I think they're more confused than anything else. It's a lot to process. You're still processing... But you will have to talk to them."

"Hmph," Crosshair scoffed, firing another shot. Another miss. Another fall. Another grunt.

A trio of snickers only made things worse. Crosshair defensively whipped his head up while Omega watched the three cadets that approached with great curiosity.

"I'm pretty sure you're supposed to use the blaster, not the other way around," one of the cadets commented.

Crosshair glowered. "I know what I'm doing."

The three cadets glanced at one another with a series of amused looks before simultaneously coming to the same agreement. The same cadet who'd spoken up previously shook his head. "That's not what it looks like from our perspective."

"Maybe you should start training with something smaller?" the shortest of the three cadets suggested. It wasn't malicious or meant with ill intent, but that's how Crosshair took it anyway. However, when trying to size them up, the sniper still found himself half a head shorter than the shortest cadet. The boy then glanced over toward Omega with a smile. "You must be Omega. Glad to see you made it back safely."

"Thanks!" Omega beamed then that curious look returned. "I used to know everyone on the island, but I don't think I've ever seen you three before."

"I'm 10," the shortest cadet introduced himself, then pointed toward his brothers. "This is 782 and 40. Hunter and Wrecker found us on Setron at one of Hemlock's abandoned labs."

"We heard you escaped from one of his labs too," 40 explained.

Crosshair frowned. "Well if you're finished gawking, I'd like to continue training."

"I could give you some pointers if you'd like," 782 suggested.

Crosshair scoffed and shook his head. "I don't take advice from regs, especially not cadet regs."

782 frowned. "You'd think a tubie would be willing to listen to some advice so he didn't wind up on the ground so often."

With great hostility, Crosshair whipped his head around. "I am not a tubie!"

782 crossed his arms and scoffed. "Could have fooled me."

Omega frowned, stepping between the three cadets and Crosshair before an inevitable fight started. "He only looks like a kid because Dr. Hemlock experimented on him. He's really the best sniper in the entire GAR. He's just not used to his new body yet."

The three cadets looked stunned. 40's eyes narrowed skeptically. "You were an adult?"

Omega was prepared to answer for him; however, the sound of a ship approaching was enough of a distraction to settle the hostility. The widest grin settled on Omega's face as she laughed and sprinted back up the hill. She whistled for Batcher to join her and the hound immediately bounded to her side.

"It's Echo!" Omega called back over her shoulder, motioning for the others to follow.

"Perfect," Crosshair muttered under his breath. His expression was neutral, but a sense of unease had crept into his chest. It was a feeling that was uncomfortably familiar as it appeared anytime he had to introduce someone new to his current situation. He sighed, stepping down from his posted position where he'd have to return for his rifle later. It had taken ages getting it down the cliffs, he couldn't even imagine how long the trip back up would take.

"I have tabulated your shooting accuracy," AZI announced, floating over to the mini sniper. "Your target success rate today was at twenty-three percent. Well below your average."

Crosshair groaned. The three cadets had already left him in the dust, curious about the visitor as they sprinted after Omega. They caught up pretty quickly and it wasn't long before they were walking and laughing together. They were too far away for Crosshair to see which cadet had leaned over to whisper in Omega's ear—either 40 or 782 as they were the closest in height—but she immediately glanced back over her shoulder with a mischievous look the sniper had come to recognize meant she was up to something.

Omega whistled again, but instead of bounding to her side, Batcher sprinted back down the hill toward him. He released a yelp of surprise as the hound circled around him then slipped beneath him, scooping him up onto her back before sprinting ahead to join the others. Crosshair clung to the hound's back for dear life as Batcher didn't just stop when she caught up, but sprinted past the four kids and kept running.

"Omega!" Crosshair hollered, struggling to keep hold of Batcher.

"Just hang on, Crosshair!" she called back with a laugh.

"This isn't funny!" he shouted. "Tell her to stop!"

He squeezed his eyes shut, clinging to the hound with white knuckles as she bounded up the slope to the top of the ridge. A shrill whistle echoed—from where Crosshair didn't know, but he was grateful all the same—and Batcher slid to a stop. Once certain he'd stopped moving, Crosshair simply released his hold and slipped from her back onto the ground with a soft thud and a nauseous sigh. When he opened his eyes, he swallowed at the sight of his brothers staring down at him: Hunter's face stoic while Wrecker was holding back a laugh.

"You okay?" Wrecker asked, chuckling as he offered him a hand.

Crosshair knocked it aside, dusting himself off as he insisted on standing up on his own. "I'm fine."

A chorus of giggling and laughing drew nearer as the others finally arrived at the top of the slope. Crosshair took a step back from the group, folding his arms across his chest as they approached. Omega had the largest grin on her bright red face, huffing with exertion as she caught her breath. The trio of cadets at her side were in a similar state but were more subtle with their breath control.

"How was the ride?" 782 asked. A coy smirk tugged at his lips, leading Crosshair to believe it was his idea to begin with.

"It looked like a lot of fun!" Omega beamed and laughed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

"Looks can be deceiving," Crosshair retorted.

"You're telling me," Hunter muttered under his breath. It was barely audible, but the sound of his voice still made Crosshair flinch. Apparently the sniper was the only one to have heard as the comment went ignored, interrupted by the modified mining vessel that landed in the center of the courtyard.

Crosshair swallowed then glanced over at Hunter. "How much did you tell him?"

Hunter rubbed the back of his neck. "Only the basics. That Omega was back with us and you'd turned on the Empire. We thought it'd just be easier to explain everything else when he arrived... not that we understand it any better."

Wrecker chuckled. "I can't wait to see the look on his face."

"So..." 40's eyes sparked with curiosity. "Your contact. Is he another defective—"

782 jabbed him in the ribs with an elbow. 40 wheezed as the wind was knocked out of his lungs.

"A 99," 40 gasped, correcting himself. "Is he another 99?"

"Kind of," Omega shrugged. "Clone Force 99 rescued him from the Separatists and they invited him to join their squad."

"The only tolerable reg," Crosshair gruffly agreed.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," Cody replied, announcing his presence as he approached the group. Hunter actually brightened, allowing himself to smile as they clasped hands in a wrestler's grip. "You kids have found a pretty nice place to settle down."

Hunter nodded and looked as if there was something else he'd planned to say, but was interrupted by a shocked whisper.

"Commander Cody?" 782 asked.

As they turned their heads, Cody was caught in a jarring moment of deja vu. The trio of cadets that had joined the group were staring at him with wide eyes. Two appeared starstruck while the one with the notch in his brow looked at him as if they were familiar with one another. Cody glanced over at Crosshair before hesitantly addressing the cadets. "Am I supposed to know these cadets too?"

"Nah," Wrecker chuckled and brushed aside his concern, placing a hand on each of their shoulders. "This is 10, 40, and 782. We found 'em on Setron."

"782..." Cody quietly repeated the number. There was something familiar about it—nothing more than a gut feeling that he was missing something important. It didn't help that the three cadets kept glancing at one another with the most guilt-ridden expressions he'd seen. He was pulled away from those thoughts as the ramp of the starship lowered, and Omega immediately sprinted away from the group to ambush Echo with a hug.

It was like he'd been expecting her though because the second he set foot on Pabu, he dropped to a knee. Omega jumped into his arms and he laughed as he held her close. "Glad to see you're back safe."

Omega smiled, but a distracted look of excitement flashed across her face as she pulled away and began to drag Echo toward the others. "Come on! There's some people you should meet."

Echo's laughter faded as a look of confusion twisted his features once he laid eyes on the cluster of cadets—not to mention the presence of Cody adorned in mandalorian durasteel. Echo shot an accusatory look over at the sergeant. "I think you forgot to mention a few important details in your transmission, Hunter."

"They didn't think you'd believe them without seeing it for yourself first," Crosshair interjected, deciding to rip the bandage off himself before Wrecker or Omega had the chance to parade him around.

Echo looked as if he'd been caught off guard, staring at the sniper with a lost look. However, slow realization widened his eyes as the dots began to connect. The cadet's signature scowl and hostile body language was too uncanny to be a coincidence. "Crosshair?"

"What?" He scoffed at Echo's dumbfounded look of disbelief. "No hug for me?"

Echo quickly glanced back over to Hunter and Wrecker for an explanation. "How..."

"We don't know," Hunter admitted, "But we'll try to catch you up the best we can."

Cody incredulously shook his head. "I don't get how the three of you took one look and immediately knew it was him."

"He's our brother," Wrecker shrugged. "You just know, ya know?"

"No..." Cody only looked more confused with Wrecker's vague sentimental reasoning. "Does this sort of thing happen often enough that you just assume it's a possibility?"

"No," Echo shook his head. "But if there's one thing I've learned from joining this squad, it's that bad luck is never far. Now what about the others?"

Wrecker grinned. "Picked 'em up on Setron. This is 782–"

"Hevy," the cadet interrupted. He had his eyes fixed on Echo, trying to read the other trooper's expression. "My name is Hevy. This is Cutup and Droidbait."

Wrecker laughed. "'Bout time you felt comfortable enough to share that."

Hunter was more cautious, glancing between the boys with sudden skepticism. "Why the change of heart?"

"We didn't think anyone would believe us if we told them the truth," 10–correction, Droidbait—admitted. "We thought we were the only ones..."

Wrecker's brow furrowed and his head tilted with confusion. "What?"

"They're my batchmates," Echo's haunted voice whispered. His wide eyes stared at the three cadets as if looking at a trio of ghosts. There was a tense silence that fell over the group as they tried to process this new information.

Cody was the first to speak. "How? They're dead. Killed in action with the destruction of the Rishi Command Outpost."

Echo swallowed and stumbled then closed his eyes with a shaky breath. "I need to sit down."

Hunter slowly nodded his head in agreement, placing a hand behind Echo's shoulder in support. "I think it's time we get everyone on the same page."

No one argued or offered excuses; however, no one volunteered to go first once they were all seated at the table on the balcony which overlooked the island of Pabu. The sunset would have been breathtaking if they weren't so focused on staring at one another in disbelief. Crosshair shifted in his seat uncomfortably under the intense gaze of Hunter's scrutiny. The other trio of cadets—recently revealed as not actual cadets—looked equally uneasy. Echo's eyes kept shifting in and out of focus as if looking through them rather than at them. Cody couldn't seem to make up his mind where he wanted to look, darting his eyes between Crosshair and the other three before pinching the bridge of his nose as if he'd given himself a migraine. Wrecker simply looked confused while Omega huffed with frustration.

"Alright fine, I'll start." Omega cleared her throat after shooting each of her brothers a pointed look. "They were using clones for testing on Tantiss, taking samples."

Crosshair flinched.

"Most were held in the detention wing, but there was another area that they called 'the vault'. I don't know what was kept in there, but Crosshair and I were supposed to be transferred there the day that we escaped." Omega explained. "Everything about the vault was pretty much a secret. Even Emerie wasn't allowed access."

"Emerie?" Echo hesitantly asked, breaking his stare just long enough to acknowledge Omega's input.

"She works for Hemlock," Omega replied, eagerly nodding her head. "She's a clone, like us. Like me."

"You're a clone?" Hevy's brow furrowed.

Omega nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm a pure genetic replication of the prime source. Your turn."

"My turn?" Hevy questioned.

"Yes. Echo says you're his batchmates. Cody says you're dead," Omega leaned forward in her seat as if expecting the best story ever to be told. "Apparently you're just like Crosshair."

"I am not like them," Crosshair hissed.

Omega chose to ignore him. "So what happened?"

"I think we did die," Droidbait whispered. His voice cracked and his breath hitched while his eyes grew distant. "It was our first assignment. And a boring one at that, but we had each other and that made the time pass quicker. There was a meteor shower. Or what we thought was a meteor shower. And then the droids—"

"The commando droids attacked," Cutup took over, gently placing a comforting hand on Droidbait's shoulder. Four of us made it out: the remaining members of Domino squad. We'd never left the outpost, and we learned the reason when we found ourselves exposed and vulnerable by the cliffside caves."

"The Rishi eels," Echo quietly muttered, nodding his head as if reliving the moment in his own memories. "It was too quick and you were gone—"

"But not dead yet," Cutup shuddered. His tone had a bitter edge. "I can still feel it whenever I close my eyes. It's breath on the back of my neck, savoring each part it tore away as if I were its last meal."

"And that's why you freaked out whenever the slither vines were nearby," Wrecker noted. Cutup's eyes drifted toward the table, Hevy placed a hand on his shoulder.

"And then it was just the three of us," Hevy continued. "Echo, myself, and Fives... We warned Commander Cody and Captain Rex about the commando droids before teaming up to take back the outpost. We rigged the entire place to blow in order to warn the Jedi, but the charge disconnected and had to be set off manually. I stayed behind..."

"And apparently survived," Droidbait didn't exactly interrupt. But as Hevy's voice faded, he filled the silence. "I remember brief flashes. A recovery team. A white room. Feeling extremely cold... and then waking up like this."

"The Kaminoans called it Project Samsara," Cutup quietly added. "I remember hearing whispers between testing sessions that the experiments were a method to recover intel from dying soldiers. We weren't the first successful transfer, and apparently we weren't the last either."

"Dr. Hemlock took an interest in Project Samsara," Hevy finished up, tying the loose ends together. "We were shipped to Setron for more testing, but apparently we weren't exactly what the doctor was looking for so we were left behind to be destroyed with any other failed projects."

"How long have you been like this?" Echo asked.

Droidbait shrugged. "It was hard to keep track of the time, but we think a few months at least."

"How's that possible?" Cody asked. "The battle at Rishi was nearly four years ago."

"Cryostasis." Crosshair's right hand twitched as the tremor returned. "Nala Se said that dying clones were placed in cryostasis until they could be transferred."

"That explains the cold," Droidbait muttered.

"And here I was just thinking that was the unbridled affection the Kaminoans are known for," Cutup retorted. Omega snickered. Crosshair rolled his eyes.

"What about Echo?" Hevy asked, eyeing the mechanical modifications. "How long have you been like this?"

"About a year," Echo replied. He seemed unfocused and unstable. "After Rishi, Fives and I joined the 501st under Captain Rex. Rex was impressed by our mettle following the Kamino attacks, and we were sent for ARC training. Fives was the better combatant, but I helped Rex create a number of battle strategies. On a mission to recover a captured Jedi and his squad from the citadel, I fell behind... caught in an explosion. They thought I died—I should've died, but the Separatists salvaged what they could to plug me up to one of their computers on Skako Minor. Wat Tambor and the Techno Union turned my mind against me to counter the attacks of the Republic..."

"And then we busted him out!" Wrecked exclaimed as Echo's voice faltered. The pale clone's eyes had drifted distant, but he was pulled back to the present moment with a soft smile as Wrecker clapped him on the back.

"Echo joined Clone Force 99," Omega agreed with a nod of her head. "He helps out Rex more often now, but he comes and visits when he can."

"And you?" Hunter asked, slowly turning to look at Cody. His brow lifted as he looked the commander over, semi-amused. "You're a mandalorian now?"

"Not quite," Cody shook his head, but laughed as if equally amused. "The crew of the Stargrazer found me after I ran from the Empire. They kept me alive and grew attached enough to keep me around after I'd recovered."

"Does that mean they'll be staying too?" Omega eagerly asked.

Hunter and Wrecker glanced at one another with concern, a look that Cody caught. The commander shrugged. "We'll stick around long enough to make sure you all get settled, but I think I'd like to catch up with Rex. It's been too long since I last saw my vod'ika."

Wrecker's brow furrowed. "Your what?"

"Little brother," Cody explained. He chuckled and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "I might've picked up more than just some armor from the mandos."

Crosshair scoffed. "Like that wasn't apparent enough."

Echo glanced over at the small sniper, eyeing him with a mixture of distrust, unease, and simple confusion. "And what about you? Anything else to add?"

Crosshair folded his arms across his chest. "I was a prisoner. Not much to tell."

"What about Project Necromancer?" Omega asked.

Crosshair frowned. "What about it?"

"Nala Se and Emerie said you were the missing link between Project Samsara and Project Necromancer," Omega explained. "That has to mean something."

Echo nodded his head in agreement. "We've been searching for this base for a long time. Accurate intel's hard to come by. We need to know all we can before making any moves."

"We have Nala Se's datapad," Omega said, pushing the datapad toward the center of the table, "but it isn't working anymore."

"If we can get it online, we should be able to pull more intel on Tantiss," Hunter noted, rubbing his chin in thought. "It could have schematics, entry points. Maybe even the coordinates of the base itself."

"Imperial encryption will be a problem," Echo admitted, "especially without Tech."

There was a moment of silence for the fallen. Crosshair diverted his eyes, turning away from the others. Omega had been the one to tell him of Tech's death a few weeks into their imprisonment together. He'd refused to believe her at first, denying the truth until he saw the pain in her eyes. Children were vulnerable like that, easy to read since they failed to conceal their emotions behind walls.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, which slowly drifted down to take his hand. His tremors had been more consistent and constant, but always stilled when Omega shared the burden. Which only encouraged the girl to show him more affection. Although she hadn't hugged him since they first escaped from Tantiss, she'd take his hand or brush his arm as a reassurance that she was nearby. And for some unknown reason, he had yet to push her away like he did everyone else.

His breathing regulated and he could think clearer. Which meant he'd received an idea of a way to get around decoding the datapad; however, he was hesitant to voice that suggestion knowing that path would ultimately lead back to Tantiss. The last place he ever wanted to find himself locked away again. His chest constricted. Omega gently squeezed his hand, offering him a worried look which implied his own walls had crumbled under the weight of child-like vulnerability.

Crosshair took a breath. "Plugging it into an Imperial terminal will bypass the encryption."

"Where do we get one of those?" Wrecker asked.

"I know a facility." Crosshair sighed then straightened in his seat as if trying to regain every inch that he'd lost. "Remote, understaffed. It shouldn't be a problem to infiltrate."

Hunter slowly nodded his head. He was difficult to read, but it was clear the gears of his mind were turning to create a plan. "Crosshair, Echo, and I will go to this remote facility. Wrecker and Omega, you stay here."

Omega frowned. "We're finally together and you want to split us up?"

"We just got you back," Hunter explained, "I am not going to risk you getting captured again."

"Yeah, we escaped, but I left all those clones behind. I need to do this, Hunter," Omega insisted. There was a look of defiance in her eyes as she and Hunter stared at one another in tense silence. It was almost like looking at a reflection as the girl had undoubtedly picked up several traits from the Batch, including their stubborn nature.

Hunter eventually broke, agreeing to let her accompany the mission. She wasn't the only one who insisted on going though. Hevy, Cutup, and Droidbait refused to leave Echo's side, much to the chagrin of their older batchmate. He pointed out that the battlefield was no place for cadets, to which they refuted his point with a single glance at Crosshair and the reminder that Hunter had no issues taking him along for the ride.

"He's the only one that knows the location—"

"That doesn't mean he needs to go," Hevy interrupted Echo's defense. "We're going whether you give us permission or not. We'll just steal a shuttle if you leave us behind."

Cody placed his hands on Hevy's shoulders, standing behind the cadet as he made a suggestion. "I spoke with Rwenn. We're willing to tag along and keep an eye on the cadets to ensure they stay out of trouble."

Hevy tried to pull away. "We don't need a babysitter."

Echo agreed. "We should limit our numbers."

"You're down half a squad," Cody contradicted. "You could use all the help you can get. And some of us need to make right our mistakes."

After a moment of silent thought, Echo caved with a sigh and a begrudging nod of his head. "Alright, fine."

"I'll let the others know," Cody replied, squeezing Hevy's shoulders before walking back toward the Stargrazer.

There was little conversation amongst the group afterward. Most kept to themselves as supplies were gathered and preparations were made for the small raid against the imperial facility. No one appeared bothered by the silence though, trying to process the information that had been laid out in front of them. However, a few small groups had formed whenever a comment or two was muttered.

The mandalorians had brought some of their own weapons and equipment from the Stargrazer, but were currently taking a break. Unsurprisingly their childish demeanor persisted even in an unknown environment seeing that Pimz had caught Magan in a headlock during a spur of the moment brawl. Seell was cheering for the underdog, trying to instruct Magan how to free himself—with little success as the Zabrak only twisted himself into a more difficult pin. Rwenn leaned over toward Cody as the commander was passing by, flicking her fingers with a mischievous whisper as if trying to make a bet. The commander rolled his eyes, but he still looked amused as he continued the work that they'd neglected.

Cody set the crate he'd been carrying beside Echo, glancing back over his shoulder at the mandalorians. He currently acted as a go-between in most of the groups, not quite fitting into one without feeling like he should be with another. He looked torn—not yet distraught—and he didn't stay with any one group longer than a few minutes to complete the necessary preparations.

The Batch was completely focused on the operation at hand. They'd never been the most organized, improvising most of a plan once the basic structure was laid out before them; however, they always zoned in enough to ensure the objective was completed and their perfect record remained solid. Although Crosshair had heard Omega mention failure once or twice, implying that perfect record had been tainted sometime after they'd left him behind. Yet they still maintained the image of a well-oiled machine, acting together as one without a verbal word of communication. However, the mistrustful glances thrown in his direction were enough of a reminder to keep on his toes.

The trio of cadets—Domino squad as they called themselves—had basically been pushed aside and left on the outskirts while the adults worked on their strategic movement. Hevy was the most outspoken of his brothers, insisting that they were just as capable as any other clone. And if the tension of the hodgepodge group ever splintered and broke out into a fight, Crosshair was certain that Hevy would either be involved or the culprit behind it. Cutup thought he was funny. He always had a snide remark or comment ready which Crosshair frankly found annoying since he'd found himself as the subject material for quite a few of those jokes already. Droidbait was harder to read. He was smaller than his other brothers, but acted like it was his job to protect the others. He carried himself like he had the least amount of combat experience, but had a decent mind. He'd already offered to help Echo with the datapad, but had been gently turned like the child he physically appeared to be.

Crosshair was less than enthusiastic to find that he'd been tossed into the same category as the other cadets. He'd basically been told to stay out of the way while the supplies were loaded onto the Remora. It was frustrating, but there was little he could do since Wrecker had already picked him up and carried him off the ship once. He'd learned pretty quickly that trying to help was a losing battle and he'd resigned to leaning up against the crates which had yet to be loaded while chewing on a toothpick he'd recovered from his stash aboard the Marauder.

Omega apparently shared that sentiment as she huffed and exited the Remora, crossing her arms as she sulked. She flopped onto the ground then slouched against the crate that Crosshair leaned against.

"Don't hold it against him," Crosshair absently said, twisting his toothpick between his fingers as he spoke. "He's only worried about you."

Omega sighed then glanced up at him. "I know. You think I should stay behind too?"

"You're capable," Crosshair agreed, "but you are still a kid."

Omega scoffed and rolled her eyes; however, she then used the crate as support to stand back up, emphasizing the height difference between them with an amused smirk. "I'm older than you are, vod'ika."

Crosshair immediately frowned and shook his head with a dry reply, "You are not going to start calling me that."

"Why not? I kinda like it," Omega grinned. "I should ask Cody if he knows anything else in Mando'a."

Crosshair opened his mouth to reply, but froze at the sound of large footsteps behind him. He turned his head just as Wrecker set a crate at his feet before taking a hesitant step back.

"I don't know if this'll fit still, but, uh, here."

Crosshair slowly opened the lid, revealing something he'd long thought gone. "My old armor."

"Yeah, it never felt right to get rid of it," Wrecker admitted with a shrug. He lingered for an awkward second before boarding the Remora, where Hunter was waiting with a watchful eye. His gaze narrowed as it focused on Crosshair before he silently followed Wrecker deeper into the cargo bay.

It was a courtesy really, even suggesting that the armor might fit. And Crosshair didn't know how to interpret the gift. On the one hand—and he'd never admit it out loud—he was touched that they'd kept some part of him aboard the Marauder in his absence. It meant that they hadn't completely given up on him. On the other hand, that armor was now just a cruel reminder of what he'd once been. And how he could hardly compare to that soldier as even the helmet was cumbersome in his hands.

His jaw clenched. Omega placed a hand on his shoulder. She didn't say anything to try and console him, nor did she crack any jokes to lighten the mood. She simply existed as a presence at his side.

"K'olar, adike!" Pimz exclaimed from the ramp of the Remora. "Come on, kids! We're leaving!"

"I'm going to shoot the next person that calls me kid," Crosshair grumbled under his breath as he followed Omega aboard.

The ramp lifted and closed behind them as the others had already spread out around the ship. Crosshair and Omega made their way to the cockpit, sticking around just long enough for Crosshair to offer the facility coordinates.

The sniper was good at sensing when he wasn't wanted—he'd experienced the feeling more times than he could count when he lived on Kamino and again when working for the Empire while surrounded by regs and prejudiced Imperial officers. And at the moment it was easy to see that Hunter had no desire to be so close to him. Without another word, he left and walked back down to the cargo hold. Omega chose to follow, taking a seat beside him on a stack of crates.

"You didn't have to follow me," Crosshair dryly noted.

"I know," Omega shrugged nonchalantly. "But I thought Batcher might like the company."

"Right," Crosshair scoffed, seeing through the thinly-veiled truth. As if summoned by the mention of her name, the hound whined and curled around the crates just beneath their dangling feet.

Pimz chuckled at the sight. His fond smile implied he found it adorable, yet it was patronizing all the same. The way he addressed them didn't help deter Crosshair from reaching for the DC-17 at his side.

"You kids have to tell me how you trained your hound to behave so well," Pimz elbowed the Zabrak at his side. "We've been trying our luck with Magan for years and had no success."

"Crosshair, no," Omega hissed under her breath, stopping her brother from aiming his weapon at the Kiffar mandalorian.

Magan laughed but also rolled his eyes before wrapping an arm around Pimz's neck and catching him in a headlock that would make them even after their brawl earlier. "I'm a force of nature that can't be tamed!"

"You're definitely something," Seell retorted, brushing past the other two half-distracted as his focus remained on the datapad in hand. "Magan, I know this is justice for earlier, but do be careful not to snap his neck. He may be a pain in the shebs, but he'd be absolutely unbearable if paralyzed."

Omega giggled and nudged Crosshair. "They sound like you guys."

He couldn't deny it. He could see the similarities between moments he'd experienced with his own brothers. Perhaps it was just that sibling bond: the ability to drive those closest to oneself out of their own mind.

"We're on our final approach," Rwenn announced, making her way over to the others. She snickered as Pimz finally broke away from Magan with a deep gasp.

"Ni liser haalur!" Pimz dramatically inhaled. "I'm not sure which was going to kill me first: the lack of oxygen or the toxicity of Magan's smell."

"Pimz, vaabir gar ganar jaro?" Seell questioned, thoroughly unamused. "Jorcu gar cuyir troch jare'la, utreekov."

Pimz rolled his eyes. "Bic cuyir nuhun."

"Dar'nuhunla," Magan crossed his arms, directing his eyes toward the ground.

Pimz sighed, seeing that the Zabrak genuinely seemed hurt. He gently pressed their heads together with an apologetic surrender. "Ni ceta, vod."

Omega leaned closer to Crosshair with a harsh whisper, unable to pry her eyes away from the scene unfolding before them. "Did you understand any of that?"

"No," Crosshair admitted.

"They're making amends," Rwenn vaguely explained. "When we cross a line, we acknowledge the mistake in a moment of vulnerability."

Crosshair's nose wrinkled. "That sounds awful."

"The opposite really. It's freeing," Rwenn contradicted.

"It also strengthens the bond between participants," Cody added as he approached the group. He glanced over at Crosshair and Omega then the others with an amused expression. "You might want to suit up. We're on our final approach."

"I literally just said that," Rwenn retorted.

"Considering no one moved, I think the repetition of orders was warranted," Cody playfully scoffed.

Rwenn rolled her eyes, but she smiled all the same. She took a step closer to the commander before pressing a finger against his chest. "We're mandalorians, Kote. Not soldiers. The difference being we're more flexible when it comes to interpreting instructions."

Cody didn't back down or shy away; instead, he challenged her bold decision the way he would any trooper that stepped out of line. "And how else might you interpret that order?"

One could cut the tension between them with a knife. However, it wasn't cold or hostile, but almost as if they were daring the other to take that final step to challenge the other's authority.

Seell glanced up from his datapad. He looked thoroughly unamused, as if the scene before them had become a regular routine in the short span of time that they'd all known one another. "Should we leave the cargo hold to make room for your egos?"

Pimz snickered. "I don't think that'd make much difference."

Cody was the first to break, rolling his eyes as he stepped back. "Just gear up."

"Sir, yessir!" Pimz mockingly saluted. He then wisely chose to flee the cargo hold after receiving the silent threat Cody shot in his direction with a single glare.

"Hey, verd'ike," Magan waved for Omega and Crosshair to join him across the cargo hangar.

Crosshair frowned and he glanced over toward Cody for an explanation. "What's he calling us now?"

"Soldiers," Cody replied, but from the smile quirking his lips into an amused smirk, Crosshair could tell that was only half true.

"Little soldiers," Rwenn corrected, nudging Cody's shoulder. "You need to brush up on your suffixes." She then faced the pair of kids. "He means it like a term of endearment though, not to belittle you."

"He failed spectacularly," Crosshair griped under his breath. "What's he want?"

"Why don't you go over and see?" Rwenn asked. Crosshair hated the mischievous look that shimmered in her eyes, but Omega seemed entirely captivated by it.

She nodded her head, hopping down from her crate before taking Crosshair by the hand to drag him across the hangar to where Magan was waiting. Cody chuckled, far too amused for his own good. Crosshair whipped his head around—struggling to maintain his balance as Omega didn't slow down while he simultaneously tried to flip off the commander. The gesture was clumsy and hardly threatening when performed by his small hands, but it was the intention that mattered and the threat he intended to follow up on.

"Hi, Magan," Omega greeted the Zabrak with a chipper tone, finally releasing Crosshair's hand—only to then wrap an arm around his shoulders. "You needed us?"

Magan eagerly nodded his head, opening the crate to his left. "Cody gave us some more specifics about your situation."

Crosshair cast a skeptical glance over his shoulder back toward the commander. "Did he now?"

Magan nodded again. "He said you'd been trained and disciplined like soldiers for most of your lives, briefly mentioned the osik the Empire put you through, and that you would respect being offered more responsibility."

Well it wasn't the entire truth, but at least Cody had mentioned something to convince the mandalorians to stop treating them like kids. Crosshair slowly nodded his head.

"Well, we couldn't help but notice that you were a bit underdressed," Magan continued. He slowly turned the crate so they could see the contents within. Omega concealed her excitement well, simply bouncing on the tips of her toes while Crosshair lifted an eyebrow. Magan took that as a positive sign. "We thought you might be interested in some of this stuff. It's been ages since it was last used and it was just collecting dust. You think you could make sure it's still functioning properly?"

Although Crosshair hated that the Zabrak was still talking down to them—albeit the mandalorian thought he was being subtle—Crosshair couldn't refuse the offer. "We could test a few things..."

Omega squealed with delight, immediately sifting through the crate to grab whatever initially called out to her. Crosshair was far more meticulous, but that didn't mean he was any less thrilled by the prospect of the gift. True, he questioned its motive—likely an anchor intended to drag them down with false trust. However, he'd face that problem when it arose. For the time being, he'd accept the token disguised as responsibility which would prevent him from feeling so vulnerable when surrounded by an atmosphere he couldn't control and an aura of memories that felt like a lifetime ago.

∘₊✧───────────────────────────✧₊∘

𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨'𝐚 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬|

• vod'ika — little brother
• k'olar, adike — come, kids / children
• shebs — ass
• ni liser haalur — i can breathe
• vaabir gar ganar jaro — do you have a death wish
• jorcu gar cuyir troch jare'la, utreekov — because you are certainly asking for it, idiot
• bic cuyir nuhun — it is a joke
• dar'nuhunla — not funny
• ni ceta, vod — sorry, brother
• verd'ike — little soldiers
• osik — shit

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞| As promised the next couple of chapters. Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts!

𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬| A little expression sheet featuring our main cast.
Top: Pimz, Magan, & Rex
Middle: Hunter, Seell, & Echo
Bottom: Wrecker, Rwenn, & Cody