Dinner that night became extremely awkward with the new faces joining the crew. Bon Bon took her helmet off (no longer caring about who saw her face anymore, thanks to living with Lyra), and she just stared at Zorii across from her with a ‘you-are-dead-to-me’ glare. Zorii did not take her helmet off, only opening up the panel to let her mouth be visible as she ate. Everyone else around her just ate awkwardly, not sure what to say to break the tension. Even Adagio had to admit, this was a rather awkward dinner.
“Is this the worst dinner you’ve been at?” Flurry whispered over to Adagio.
“I haven’t been invited to any family dinners, so I’ll say no,” Adagio whispered back, taking another sip of her Jawa Juice.
Even the clones felt awkward sitting at the table. After they had gotten registered and cleared to join the Alliance, they weren't sure what to do afterwards. They did get settled into their new rooms (Derpy even got to have a room with her brothers), but looking for something to do after that seemed futile, since they were completely new, and they still felt unwanted. Some did want to upgrade their armor, or at least have a change in uniforms to make them more personable, but were too afraid to speak up about it.
“Maybe we should just go sit at another table?” Bubbles suggested, ready to stand up.
“No, no no,” Bon Bon said, putting her hand out. “It’s fine, we’re still having a nice dinner, aren’t we?”
“… This is really awkward,” Derpy squeaked.
“Agreed. Maybe we should just eat somewhere else—”
“Don’t,” Bon Bon said with a soft growl.
“Okay then,” and Vargas immediately sat back down. “Sooooo anyone want to talk about anything?”
“Can I ask something?” Derpy raised her hand.
The Jedi Six all collectively gasped and sighed in relief.
“Yes!”
“Please, say something!”
“Absolutely!”
Derpy cleared her throat. “I uh, I hope no one minds… I kinda brought my cat with me.” And poking out from Derpy’s lap was her pet; Whiskers.
Mew.
And more awkwardness continued. It was enough to make Rex groan. “You know what?” Rex said, pulling out from the table and grabbing his tray. “I think I’ll go eat my dinner somewhere else, if no one minds.”
And so the former 501st captain left the mess hall with his dinner half-eaten. Derpy was about to protest and beg him to come back, but she didn’t. She could tell he wasn’t feeling welcome, and if he wanted to be alone for a bit, she wasn’t going to argue. Not wanting any more time spend in the seething angst of the new arrivals, Rex just went back into one of the main hallways where more Rebels were wandering about. Luckily there were a few benches nearby for sitting, so the captain just settled himself down on one.
Out of the way, Rex could sit in peace and enjoy the last bits of his sandwich. He was seen by a few Rebels, but none of them bothered him, thankfully.
“… --Well how was I supposed to know? I told him his hair gets stuck in the drain!” A familiar voice ranted.
The golden-plated protocol droid himself, C-3PO was stumbling about, upset about something. Rex couldn’t help but smile, he remembered him anywhere. He was about to say something, but the droid kept waddling away.
“I can’t talk right now, I’ve got to find Princess Leia!”
And Rex slowly died down and just laid his back against the wall he was against. So he was being ignored for now, no issue.
“Bwoo boop?”
Rex perked at that chirp. He recognized that binary beep anywhere. And when he looked to his left, his face lit up at the most familiar droid he had ever known.
“R2?”
The astromech unit sounded almost excited for a second as he rolled up to him. As the astromech’s dome swiveled back and forth, looking at him in full, he wiggled in excitement, beeping something that clearly sounded happy. Even the captain had a good chuckle as he put his plate aside and patted the astromech’s face.
“It’s so good to see you, R2! I thought I was long forgotten.”
“Bwoop boop. Brrr-brrr-brrr bup.”
“I’m glad you still remember me, R2,” Rex smiled, patting him. “What have you been up to all this time?”
“Beep. Bweerp boop.”
“Fighting the Empire, huh? Well I’m happy to say I’m coming back to join you and everyone else here,” the captain responded. This clearly made R2 happy judging by another happy wiggle on his legs. “Hehe. Say, by any chance is General Skywalker around?”
R2 shook his dome. “Bwoop boop. Brrt brrt bop brrt.”
“Ohhh, right… yeah, I forgot he had left a long time ago,” Rex chuckled. “I assume General Kenobi isn’t around either?”
“Bwoop bwoop.”
“Thought so,” Rex nodded. “Well… is there any chance she’s still around? Ahsoka, is she…?”
R2’s beeping slowly got quiet, and sad. “Bwoop… bwooop…”
“She’s… gone?”
“Bwooop…”
Rex frowned some more and his head lowered slightly. “Oh… if only she had known, I… I don’t know.”
One of R2’s panels opened showing a small little claw extending. Trying to show some form of companionship, he slowly gripped one of Rex’s fingers, lightly tapping his hand. Even if most of the friends and allies he knew once before weren't here, he was still glad to at least have some still around.
Midnight's Castle
“How is this possible?” Midnight questioned in her cold, low voice. She didn’t yell, but her tone was more than clear to understand she was upset. The Grand Inquisitor, Captain Phasma, Commander Dust, Luster Dawn, and the Second Sister were all cowering in fear as they stood in a straight line together, getting chewed out by their leader.
“You had the Jedi right where we wanted them. Capture should have come easily. Lost locations of Rebel cells due to incompetence… and yet the Dark Trooper forces on Ferrix, and Luster, my student who isolates herself from all of you and barely leaves the planet, is the only one who has something other than an excuse.”
Midnight then glared at the Grand Inquisitor, growling softly in her mask.
“You were bested by two Jedi. They should have been easy prey for someone of your caliber. Do not fail me next time. Or else that arm isn’t the only thing you will be losing,” she threatened, gazing at Nightbird’s new artificial replacement.
“Yes, Lady Midnight,” Nightbird apologized, quietly but calmly.
Midnight then walked over to the Second Sister, focusing on her. “Well, Sister? What is your excuse?”
The Second Sister looked down in shame. “I… have none, Lord Midnight. The Fourth Sister and I did not anticipate Sunset’s numbers, and we were defeated. And the Fourth Sister has been… terminated.”
“How could you three lose against a two Jedi?” Midnight scowled, turning away from her Inquisitor.
Nightbird looked over to the Second Sister, tilting her head at her hesitantly. The Second Sister gave her a glare, shaking her head no defiantly.
“Is there something you two are not telling me?” Midnight interrupted.
Both of them locked up.
“We, um… well…”
“They… uh…”
“Phasma. Luster. Dust.”
The three of them raised their heads up, standing up straighter than ever.
“You are excused. I wish to speak to these two alone.”
Not hesitating, the three of them walked out of the room to go attend their tasks they had to get back to. Now the only people left in the room was Midnight, Nightbird, and the Second Sister.
“Now… is there something you two would care to tell me?”
“The rest of the Equestrian Jedi Council are alive. The other two the Fourth Sister and I encountered on the Tatooine were there, but now the other three are back," the Second Sister explained.
Nightbird pulled out a hologram, displaying a few images of the Jedi that they encountered. Sunset, Rainbow, Applejack were already known to have returned. And then new images displayed; more old friends of Sunset Shimmer. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy. Former members of the Jedi Council presumed dead, now appearing on her holoscreens like a ghost.
“So, it is true. Sunset is uniting all her old allies to come and fight. Smart. Bold. But futile, regardless. Go.”
The two Inquisitors understood, and so they turned around and left the room, letting the doors close behind her. Midnight was ready for another moment of peace, but that didn’t last long. The doors opened up again, and Midnight was greeted to the sounds of clicking and snarling. The hulked up Nautolan assassin who attacked the Heartstrings group not too long ago was back, covered in bruises, but still standing strong.
“Sleestak. You have returned,” Midnight stated.
The Nautolan clicked and growled underneath the mask, standing there before her.
“Tell me you have good news.”
The Nautolan stopped clicking and growling. Reaching for his side, he grabbed a small bottle before lifting his mask up slightly to drink. After a moment or two, he cleared his throat and spoke. A voice that sounded monstrous, and yet calming at the same time.
“Abducting one of them was harder than anticipated. They were ready for me, and they called for more help on Ajan Kloss. Some woman, and five men who look-alike. However, I did learn the name of one of the Rebels responsible. The daughter of the minty Jedi and Mandalorian; they said her name was… Flurry Heart.”
There was silence. Midnight did not move.
"...We're done here, then. You’ll receive your payment before you leave."
The bounty hunter left the room, making Midnight in isolation. Midnight stands still, her eyes locked on the window before her, as memories come back to her - remembering Shining and Cadence, and their happy little baby whom she had known so very briefly...
"Flurry Heart... After all these years. You still live."
Ferrix
Multiple bodies laid strewn all inside of Hotel Rix, one of the few hotel residences for the people in town. Nearby Gavalox Communications, the place was a modest, if humble abode of temporary dwelling. However most of the residents or people who came there to stay had fled the scene long before blaster-fire came down inside the building. Heavy footsteps marched up a flight of stairs, coming from a hulking droid. Imperial model, the Dark Trooper, were the newest makes of Imperial weaponry dispatched by the Empire. No longer wasting human lives, and instead relying on the strength of droid intelligence for their designs.
While the Empire kept their ground forces to just people and the very elite Death Troopers, Dark Troopers only became necessary when all other soldiers failed in their operations. And to their design; Dark Troopers were impossible to take down. Fortified armor, swift detection censors, and their feet were equipped with jet boosters for flight modes. These experimental troopers were now occupying Ferrix's main town, with many of the civilians running in terror from the troopers. While Midnight troopers would open fire upon civilians who ran from them, these troopers didn't fire at them; only if anyone was caught with arms of any kind.
One of these troopers, who had laid waste inside the Hotel Rix, was looking for the last remaining Rebels who were occupying this residence. Twelve troopers in total; all of them didn't stand a chance. Now only two remained, oh they tried their best to attack, but their blasters were useless against the armors. Most conventional weapons wouldn't work, forcing the Rebels to think more creatively about how to combat against them, most of their attempts barely getting a scratch. But now they had one last attempt to truly stop it...
Drawing the attention of the Dark Trooper away, the captain of the cell stood in one of the cell's rooms; armed and ready for a final stance. He had been waiting for it's attention to come to him, as part of the plan. And in the nick of time, the Dark Trooper's metal boots marched towards the door-frame of his room, going inside to confront him. Raising the blaster, the trooper got ready to fire and end another target.
But as the leader was about to be shot, the Dark Trooper met heavy blasts from the back end, followed by a plasma-blade shanking right through the main central processing unit. The trooper looked down before it's legs collapsed and it fell onto the floor with a heavy slam. Standing there, still in the stabbing position was the last trooper of this cell; an Equestrian woman in clone commando armor, with adobe sand armor with red and blue shades, and a few orange-yellow highlights. Two vibro-daggers were extended, having struck directly into the main circuitry of the droid, cutting directly into the power.
"If that was just one trooper, I don't want to imagine what the rest of them are like," the commando stated, looking at the finished kill.
The captain pulled himself up, looking through the small windows. Throughout the town, Dark Troopers were marching, looking for any Rebels nearby. To make matters worse, many of them were pushing civilians against the walls, even slamming some of them through; more brutal than the Preox-Morlana Corps.
"We need to get out of here," the captain ordered. But when he was set to leave, he saw something else. A Dark Trooper walking in the center of the main road; Rix Road as many called it. He was marching towards the hotel they hid in, his feet slamming against the orange sands. This trooper however looked way different than the others; much more... human, than the others, if you could even call it that. One of the red lights in it's eyes stopped working; with two sets of horns present on the head. The shoulder armors were covered in badges, nearly impossible to tell how many there were. Even a kama was wrapped around it's waist, warrior style.
"Correction; you need to leave. Go back to the ship, and head back to base. Tell them the operation on Ferrix has failed," the captain ordered.
"What will you do?" The commando worried.
The captain looked back with a heavy sigh. "I'll keep their focus on me; buy you some time. You must go."
"Sir, I can't leave you! If you stay, so do I," the commando insisted.
The captain looked back at the commando, looking into her amber eyes. "If you stay, you'll die with me. You need to escape, so you can live to fight another day. This isn't running from the fight. You must go, I promise I will be safe, Zap Zap."
The commando let out a small breath of shaking anxiety. She didn't want it to come to this, but she understood the dangers she was in now. If she didn't leave, she'd die with the rest of her friends who had sacrificed themselves to fight til the end. Realizing what needed to be done, she put her helmet back on her head; the tinted blue light replaced with yellow; horns also adjacent on the dome.
"Now go, I'll keep them focused. May the Force be with you," the captain said, one last time.
"Godspeed, Captain Zanatas." And so, the commando ran out into the hallway to go through the back entrances of the hotel, hopefully getting far away as possible. Hiking up his boots, the captain grabbed his gear and made his way down the steps of the hotel. But his walk took much slower than normal; looking around the hotel, he wanted to take in the residence's sights possibly for one last time. Many memories were made in this base, some happy, some depressing, but he would take them all with him wherever he would go to from here.
Making his way to the entrance, he stepped out and stomped his boots into the ground, ready for a fight. The Dark Trooper across the road continued to march, almost intentionally slow as if he was taking in what he saw before him.
"So you're the captain of this cell. You have such a beautiful world. A community thriving in harsh environments with very little abundance of life, I commend you all for your fortitude," the trooper taunted.
"Terrorcolt," the captain growled, looking forward. "I was warned about you."
"Then you know you won't leave this planet alive," the trooper concluded. "Where every sloppy Inquisitor fails, I complete what can't be done. The Dark Troopers are reserved for when all others fail, and we never fail our mission."
The trooper and Rebel captain now stood several feet away from each other, almost ready for a standoff. Pacing to the left, the leader of the Dark Troopers kept its gaze to the fleshling, menacingly so.
"My master grows tiresome of inept failure from sloppy officers and arrogant Inquisitors. Surrender now, and this town doesn't suffer for your crimes."
"The only crime committed is from you; scaring these civilians into submission. It didn't work when the Empire came before, it's not going to work now. I'm sure someone as smart as you remembers the riot at this very road?"
"Mmm, I do," Terrorcolt continued. "Such a waste of soldiers; completely missing the uprising before their very eyes. But I'm going to make sure that never happens again..."
And without hesitation, the Dark Trooper fired a powerful plasma-blast from his wrist, striking directly across the shoulder and into a lung. The captain gasped and wheezed from the strike, watching as his arm was now dangling loosely from the open veins and insides now about to come apart at the seams. With one last breath, he dropped to the ground, scaring everyone who had witnessed this extremely grotesque murder before them.
The Dark Trooper marched forward and gazed at his prey, still as if no thought or remorse had entered the processor. Then, turning around, he faced the rest of the townsfolks who were beyond mortified. The Empire was brutal to them before, but this was much more than their usual tactics. This was becoming a horror show with this set of troops around!
"I'll make this clear to you all; a new decree from the Empire has been announced. If anyone is found harboring Rebel, insurgent, or partisan activity, even if so much as look at them... you will not be spared the fates of this cell who thought they could hide on your beautiful world. Refusal to abide by this law, or give us locations of any partisan activity... we make you suffer like so many others already have..."
Yavin IV
The next morning following the awkward dinner, everyone was pulled to do a morning workout with Sunset Shimmer; it only consisted of going for a short run/race to get the blood pumping for the new day. But the animosity from the night before was still present with all parties not saying much in terms of words. Lyra and Bon Bon stayed with the Jedi group, while Flurry tended to hover around between them and the clones, not bothered by their existence.
By the end of the race, only Sunset Shimmer, Applejack, Rainbow, and the Heartstrings family had 'won'. Pinkie, Rarity, and Fluttershy were all out of shape; fighting was one thing. Running was another thing. Derpy and the clones however remained as a group, instead going at the race like a brisk jog; getting the blood pumping, but not hurting themselves so they wouldn't be out of breath.
Soon after all members were done with their workout, everyone started to make their way to the showers. Sunset and some of the girls walked inside, noting a few other of their comrades were showering as well. Not that they paid any mind, they were teammates after all.
“Hey Numa, how are you?” Sunset said, claiming one of the spots for the shower.
The Twi’lek woman acknowledged her presence with a nod. “Ba'enik, go toyi t'ary .Dan?”
“Doing okay. How’s your uncle by the way?” Sunset asked, applying some of the shampoo to her hair.
“Nie clo gu, arni'soyacho toe banirkan,” Numa smiled softly, rubbing out the last bit of soap to her tails.
“Hi Numa,” some of the other girls nodded as they claimed their own individual spots within the shower walls.
Numa waved back to them and grabbed her towel, walking over to the lockers to finish cleaning herself up and get dressed.
“… So did anyone know her?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“I do. She was a little girl when the Storm Army attacked her home-world,” Sunset nodded. “Joined our side when the war with the Empire began.”
Everyone gave a few nods and ‘ahhs’ and ‘okay’s before going back to getting clean.
“Say, didn’t we see Hera earlier? Where did she go?” Rarity asked.
“The baby kept her up at night, so I suggested she try to get some extra sleep before working,” Sunset replied, getting the last of the shampoo out of her hair.
Sunset stopped scrubbing herself for a second, eyes looking up to the ceiling and thinking.
“What are you thinking so hard about?” Rainbow asked.
“I don’t know, I feel like I’m forgetting something…”
“Say, where did Derpy go? The showers shouldn’t be too hard to find,” Rarity asked, scrubbing the soap between her armpits.
--
At the same time, Derpy and the boys had finished up their workouts and were getting ready to clean up. The clones walked towards the showers first (not acknowledging the sign that said Men) and Derpy followed right behind them. That is until Flash Sentry stepped out of the showers and blocked Derpy from going inside.
“Uh, Derpy? Where are you going?”
“I was going to shower,” Derpy answered.
“Derpy, the blue banners mean men only,” Flash said, pointing to the sign. Derpy only tilted her head in confusion. “The red banners mean women, the blue banners mean men, the yellow means unspecified gender.”
“Oh,” Derpy blinked. “I thought… huh. Never mind,” Derpy skipped over to the women’s shower room.
--
Derpy finally emerged in the showers, albeit a bit bashful as she walked in. Not that she hadn’t seen people in the nude before, but mainly because she was still reeling from the idea that the showers and locker rooms were not unisex around here. “I thought the showers were for everyone.”
“… Oh now I know what I forgot,” Sunset realized. “Sorry Derpy, I meant to say something earlier. I hope that wasn’t too confusing?”
“No, it’s okay,” Derpy brushed off with a smile. And then she set foot into an empty space, courtesy of Pinkie Pie being done with her shower.
“Wait now I remember. Where did Adagio go?” Sunset asked.
“I already bathed,” Adagio said, peaking her head out from the side, leading to the lockers. “I got clean earlier, better to be prepared for whatever you may ask me to do and whatnot.” And she poked her head back to the lockers to finish getting dressed.
“Okay, that answers that, but where’s Zorii?”
And that question was answered with a bare woman with lavender skin walking into the showers, claiming one of the free spaces. The spice runner tested the hot water for a second, and eventually started to get clean. “Ohhhh… that feels nice,” she said, sighing softly into the mask. “Never had many nice hot showers like these on Kijimi…”
“Careful, Rarity just might faint,” Rainbow teased.
Instead, Rarity let out an overdramatic gasp. “Oh good heavens! No hot showers!? How do you ever stay clean!? More importantly, how do you still look ravishing without any—”
“—Rarity, I dealt with drugs,” Zorii deadpanned. “Looking good was not a priority to me.”
“Just don’t take too long, Zorii,” Sunset advised, grabbing her towel. “Can’t afford to waste good water.”
“Understood,” Zorii nodded.
“Shouldn’t you take the helmet off? Isn’t it hot in that thing?” Applejack asked.
“… I rather not,” Zorii admitted.
“Zorii, you’re not gonna get clean if you keep that thing on all the time. Besides, we’re your friends now. Whatever you look like under there, we are not going to judge, alright?”
Zorii thought their words over while she scrubbed her pits, unfazed by her words. But she still didn’t bother to remove her helmet.
“… Alright. But I’m just sayin’, you should get that helmet cleaned at somepoint.”
Applejack finished her shower, and grabbed a nearby towel, walking off to the locker rooms to get dressed. Zorii waited patiently for the girls to leave, sighing softly to herself. Hesitantly, she reached to the back of the helmet, unclicking a switch to pull it off her face. Despite her being out in the open, exposed to any other girl who would walk in, she just focused on herself, making sure she was completely scrubbed and clean for the day. She even did her best to ignore the looks from the others who saw the permanent scars on her face, years of abuse out in the open for all to see.
Once they got their breakfast, Derpy and her clone brothers sat at a table for them to eat. The food was surprisingly good. Most of the food they had to eat as their time as clone troopers were, less than great. Sure they provided all the nutrients that they needed, but they tasted extremely bland, as opposed to the many colorful foods that were all throughout the universe. And while the Rebels did continue the usage of rations, they did at least have some colorful alternatives. Mostly thanks to the help of Dexter Jetster, and the multiple cooks from Equestria.
And of course, living in the few months with Derpy did get them a chance to try a variety of real, honest-to-god, delicious foods. Currently they were all enjoying some wholesome blue milk, with some space waffles and syrup.
“Hmm… now that’s the stuff I live for,” Mix grinned, enjoying the sweet aroma of the foods. “I’m going to have to learn how to make these waffles at some point.”
“I heard Dexter’s open to teaching people. Perhaps there’s an opportunity there after all,” Bubbles pointed out.
“Still preferred that time on Naboo,” Mix said, taking a sip of milk.
“Which I still don’t understand, you said the chef just suddenly left?” Rex questioned.
“Left and quit. I barely said a word to him, and yet he quit,” Mix said, confused.
“Well luckily that was seventeen years ago. We do not have to worry about angering chefs again… I hope,” Derpy squeaked.
As they ate, some Rebels passed on by, sitting at other tables as well, enjoying breakfast and waking up. One of the newest faces eventually came to get breakfast; Zorii. She held a tray in her hands, with the assortment of waffles and blue milk. She looked around for a place to sit. Sure there were a few options available, but she learned on Kijimi to never place yourself in an area where you aren’t wanted.
She questioned whether to just sit on a floor by herself, or maybe just going to her assigned quarters, but she soon saw someone hailing for her. Derpy of all people stood up, waving to her to come over. The spice runner was surprised to see them offering her a seat. But realizing she had no other options, she walked over and parked herself next to Derpy.
“Thanks for the seat,” she said, softly.
“No problem. We’re all new here, we need each other,” Derpy innocently smiled.
“Maybe,” Zorii said, not smiling. The only part of her face they could see were her lips as they curled up. “I know I’m new, but I swear it feels like everyone’s judging me.”
“I think that would be us they’re staring at,” Vargas pointed out. “Bon Bon mentioned you used to be a spice-runner, right?”
“Drug dealer, yeah,” Zorii confirmed.
“Compared to us, you’re not the biggest outsider to join the Rebellion,” Vargas pointed out, taking a sip of milk.
“You… oh, wait a minute. That Jedi partner of Bon Bon’s mentioned you five were clones, right? Weren’t you all soldiers in that war with the Storm Empire?”
“That is correct,” Bubbles nodded. “And that war ended very quickly.”
“With no one winning,” Derpy added, shaking her head.
“I don’t understand. The war ended, and no one won? If none of you won, then who did?” Zorii asked.
“It’s a long story,” Rex said, holding his hand up. “One that I think would take too long to explain over breakfast.”
“Fair enough,” Zorii said, sipping some milk.
“I must admit though, I do think it’s odd that you’re okay with us. Everyone around here’s done nothing but give us weird looks like our faces are on backwards,” Mix questioned.
“Considering that it’s been well documented how we all just turned on the Jedi and killed them all, I can’t blame them for looking at us like that,” Rex said, noting a few Rebels who gave them some nasty looks.
“Either way, I feel more comfortable talking to you six than I am anyone else. … Especially that Mandalorian.”
“What’s your trouble with her, anyway?” Vargas asked.
“Let’s just say she and I didn’t leave each other on good terms,” Zorii said, weakly chewing on another piece of waffle. “She wanted to just steal jewelry, I was dealing drugs, you know.”
Derpy blinked. “I don’t. Everyone keeps telling me to stay away from spice,” she tilted her head.
“For good reason,” Bubbles said, patting her hand. Derpy might have been older, but she still had that sweet innocence that the clones appreciated about her.
Their attention was drawn to two Rebel girls; a Devaronian and a Rodian, who were passing the group of newbies. By the looks on their faces and words said, it was clear they weren’t too happy about them.
“Those are clones. You know from that old war?”
“Didn’t they wipe out the Jedi?”
“And force Shimmer and the other Generals into hiding? Yeah, that’s them. Can’t believe General Shimmer’s even thinking of letting them back in. That cross-eyed Jedi sure, but them?”
Derpy growled softly as they walked away.
“Derpy, it’s fine. We’ve gotten used to being seen as nothing but curses,” Bubbles said, begrudgingly. Frankly, he didn’t want Derpy to go all out on them, not that they saw her go too far.
“But it’s not fair. None of you had a choice, it’s not your fault—” and Derpy took notice of one of the waffles on her place got stuck to one of her fingers. “Oh no.” She threw her hand backwards, which did manage to get it off… and slap right in the back of the head of the Rebel girl who just mocked them earlier.
“Errrh… who threw that?” She grunted, looking backwards.
Derpy slowly sunk in her seat.
“You? What the hell, lady?”
Derpy gulped. “S-Sorry. I didn’t mean to throw it, it got stuck on my fingers.”
The Devaronian growled. “You will be sorry.”
“Hey, hey,” Bubbles intervened. “Easy there, friend. It was an accident. I’d suggest you just move on about your day, and leave us in peace.”
Some silence was among them. The little dispute caught the attention of some of the others in the mess hall who were trying to eat. The two Rebel girls glared at the other Clones who were giving them glares back, even Zorii as she looked at them, still helmeted. The two Rebels glared still, until the Devaronian woman scoffed.
“Just keep your distance, lab rats,” she grunted.
Turning around, she and the Rodian walked away. This however did not sit well with Hurricane who’s face turned into anger. The moment the two were far from the group—
BAM!
A lunch tray was slammed right at the back of the Devaronian’s head, clattering against the ground. The action got the attention of the entire room who all saw, and the two Rebels turned to look at the source. Commander Hurricane, who held another lunch tray with a shit-eating grin.
“Oops,” he said smugly.
“THAT’S IT!”
“Oh yeah!!!” Hurricane shouted, chucking another tray towards the Rebel. This sent the Devaronian into a fuming rage and she charged at Hurricane. The former clone commander jumped out of the way as she slammed her horns into the wall by accident.
The Rodian man then took his anger out Rex who immediately got out of his seat, tackling him to the ground. Rex didn’t take kindly to his attack and promptly shoved him off. Mix and Vargas nodded to each other as they saw more Rebels getting ready to pick a fight with them. A Snivvian man shoved Vargas, only to be shoved back a lot harder. Mix upped the ante by punching him right in the face, sending him to the ground.
A nearby Klatoonian grabbed a tray and smacked Mix on the head, making him fall. Mix wasn’t knocked out, most likely from how light the smack was, and he pulled himself before he could continue further. Mix punched the Klatoonian back, but the man didn’t appreciate it. He shoved him hard enough to fall onto the table where Bubbles was trying to ignore the fight and eat his breakfast. But now that his pancakes and juice were gone, he growled in anger. Slamming his fist on the table, he grabbed a tray and smacked the Klatoonian across the face.
Poor Derpy tried to back away, but the Devaronian woman was back for more. Zorii decided to step up and help her, smacking her on the head with her helmet. The slam was hard enough for her to fall to the ground, finally subduing her. Derpy looked back up at Zorii, holding her helmet.
“Ohhh… so that’s what you look like under there,” Derpy realized.
“You didn’t see anything,” Zorii ignored, placing her helmet back on her head. And deciding to escalate things even further, she saw one of the Rebels moving towards her with intent to attack, and she grabbed her lunch tray. She swung the tray like a boomerang, flipping him onto his back.
Sunset walked into the open cafeteria with her tray ready, and stood there, watching the fight. Several of the employees and soldiers fighting with each other inside the room, creating a large mess of food and tables, and screaming men, women and genderless beings all around. But not once did she flinch or hesitate to put her food down and move. Instead, she just casually moved herself to a wall table, sliding herself down to eat. The rest of the girls joined her, but were frankly horrified to see her reacting so calm.
“Um, Sunset? You know there’s a big fight happening right now?” Applejack asked.
“My hat!” One of the Rebels yelled, as shown by a fedora hat landing on the group’s table. Sunset just used the Force to levitate the hat and fling it straight back at whoever lost it.
“Yes, I know,” Sunset said, nonchalantly.
“Wh-ju—don’t you care!?” Rainbow asked, appallingly.
Sunset held a finger up, taking a big sip of coffee. “It’s too early for me to step in, and I’ve had to break up fifty-seven cafeteria fights in the time I’ve put together this alliance. They’ll stop in a few minutes and believe me, I have some very strong words to convey. But I need my coffee.”
“… Huh. I’ll admit, this is a side I don’t think we’ve ever seen before,” Pinkie stated.
“Well I’ve never had the need to step in and stopping disputes over things that don’t matter,” Sunset said, also nonchalantly. “Oh, hang on, duck guys.”
Everyone ducked their heads as a piece of waffle hit the rocky wall their table was against, sticking to it like glue.
“That’s a lot of good waffles that Dexter’s made, now gone to waste,” Sunset said, not caring anymore and just eating another piece of her breakfast.
Fluttershy and Rarity looked at the fight continuing, both horrified to see how big it was becoming. Almost everybody was becoming involved, with only a few outsiders just standing by and actually eating. Zorii Bliss was seen trying to eat her food the best she could, but that peace soon died the moment Mix was slammed onto the table, shoving her tray right off the table.
And they could see, understandably so, she lost her patience. She slammed her fist on the table, and grabbed a nearby tray, flinging it like a boomerang and knocking out one of the Rodian engineers in the process. They even watched as Mix and Bubbles threw a nearby Patrollian across a table, sending him sliding across and hitting the floor.
“Shouldn’t we do something?”
“Girls, don’t. Let’s just try to eat before we get forced to engage,” Sunset finished, taking a sip of her milk.
Very hesitantly, the girls continued to get back to their breakfast, trying not to think or look at the fight going on. Though the amount of noises made and yelling did not help matters. Once in a while they looked back to see who else was still fighting, though the numbers stayed the same. But there was occasionally someone new participating in the fight.
“Waffle fight!” Silverstream yelled, chucking the breakfast like rocks.
Food splattered against her fellow rebels, and she got splattered back. But unlike everyone else, she was giggling at how silly this whole debacle was. That unfortunately wasn’t the same for the clones though. Rex kicked some Selkath off his body, while Hurricane jumped off a table, bodyslamming some Nitko to the ground. Poor Derpy was flung through the air and crashed right through the kitchen pickup window, straight into the kitchen. The sounds of kitchenware breaking echoed throughout, and even poor Dexter sounded upset.
“What’s going on out there!?”
And then there was some voices throughout the fight that the girls had to admit made them giggle a bit, shamefully.
“My God man! You’re being slathered in syrup! Don’t you care!?”
Sometime later the clones, the Rebel Six, Lyra, Bon Bon, Flurry, Zorii, Adagio, along with the rest of the Jedi were gathered in a small conference room. Even the droids were present as they stood by, idly waiting for their assignments. Although poor Derpy was just sinking in her chair, embarrassed and worried about what Sunset was going to say. Sure she didn’t intend to hit those passerby’s, but she still engaged in a fight in the mess hall.
Even Flurry had some jitters about what Sunset was going to say. Now she didn’t engage or continued to add fuel to the flames in the fight, but she was still part of the group, and she wasn’t sure what was going to happen. Eventually Sunset came in, and everyone stood up, as they naturally did whenever a higher officer was approaching.
“At ease men,” Sunset said, calmly as she walked in. "Now before I begin passing out assignments, I wanna talk about what went down in the mess hall—”
“—Sunset?”
“That’s General, to you,” a woman acting as a guard grunted.
“It’s fine, Jira,” Sunset said, giving her a serious look. “What is it, Derpy?”
The wall-eyed girl slowly stood up, meekly looking down. “If you’re going to be mad at someone, be mad at me. It’s my fault that the fight started in the mess hall.”
Sunset frowned softly, patting her shoulder. “Derpy, it’s fine. I checked the security footage, I saw what happened. Now I don’t appreciate the fact that all of seven of you decided to jump in and continued to egg on a riot,” she said, glaring at the clones and Zorii included, “but this isn’t the first time I’ve had to deal with a fight in the mess hall. Believe me, after fifty times you stop caring. I’ll talk to those two later, but right now, I wanna make sure we’re all on the same page.”
Everyone was dead quiet, looking at one another.
“I know from yesterday, things were a bit heated. I know it’s not going to be easy to work with, um. Old acquaintances, but the only way we’re going to stay alive is if we work together. I know it sounds cliché, but we’re not going to stand for long if we’re going to be at each other’s throats. This is uncomfortable for myself, as well as all of you. So from now on, I expect all of you, including myself, to try and get along, okay?”
“… Yes ma’am,” everyone solemnly said.
“Thank you. Okay, let’s discuss assignments,” Sunset continued, not wanting everyone to stay in that awkward moment of silence. “Zorii, I put in a request to do a shift over in Hangar Bay 7, you’ll be helping Myria, she’s a Tholothian woman, you’ll recognize her by the head-tails. You know how to do repairs on ships?”
“I do.”
“Excellent,” Sunset smiled. “I’m sure you’ll do great. Just do what she says, you’ll be okay. Alright, Bon Bon, I know you wanted to get some more time in building some more astromech units, you’ll be in the droid-bay. Bulk Biceps just picked up the newest shipment of scrapped droids, I want you to get creative with them,” Sunset said with a fire in her voice.
“Oh I’m going to be swimming in parts,” Bon Bon grinned, getting a giggle from her wife.
“Ocellus, I know you and Silverstream wanted to talk to me after this, so I’ll be sure to speak to you two,” Sunset acknowledged, tapping the console on her datapad. “Pinkie, Rainbow, and Rarity, I need your help. We need—"
“General Shimmer to the command center, General Shimmer to the command center.”
Sunset looked up at the PA system, and then back at the group. “I’ll be right back, just give me a minute.”
--
Sunset paced over to the command center, passing by some troopers on their way to the training grounds for some more practice. A few turns led her back to the command center, where General Dodanna was waiting for her.
“General Dodanna, what is it?”
“Our technicians picked up a distress signal, coming from the Outer Rim Territories,” Dodonna explained, staring down at the holoprojection.
“Anything new? Anything that requires us to send attack teams or armies?” Sunset asked.
“Actually… I’m not sure,” Dodonna admitted. “This isn’t a typical distress signal. I thought you should come and hear it for yourself. Play it back, Ix’an.”
The technician nodded and rewound the message. After a moment of silence, the recording came through.
“Anyone out there! This is Captain Hiro of the 356th Battalion! I don’t know what happened, I must have been stuck in cryostasis! I’m stranded out here, if there is any Republic frequency, please help me!”
The message abruptly stopped, mostly because of the ongoing static at the end, but it was enough to pique Sunset’s interest.
“Where did this come from?”
The General tapped a button on the holoprojector, displaying a planetary system with several fact-boxes highlighted on the edges of the planet projection.
“Agamar.”
Sunset stopped for a second. “Can you just hold on for a moment?”
Briskly she walked back to the conference room where the others were waiting for their assignments. “Captain Rex? Can I ask you to come with me for a second?”
“Uh, sure. What’s going on?”
Rex followed Sunset out of the room and back down the hallway, trying to keep up with her and go to the command center.
“Our technicians just picked up a transmission; I don’t know how legitimate this is, but I thought maybe you would be the best to judge. Play it back.”
The technician played the message back as Captain Rex’s face turned from curious to shocked. Curiosity had piqued his interest, now he knew what Sunset meant.
“I don’t believe it…”
“Do you know who this Captain Hiro was?”
“Vaguely. He served under Jedi Master Thunderbass in the old war,” Rex replied, folding his arms. “The last mission his battalion fought was the Siege of Borgo Prime. But why is he suddenly on Agamar?”
“Do you suppose after the mission was over, maybe he and the others were called to a possible distress beacon or mission that led them there?”
“It’s possible. Agamar was a site for a battle in the Clone Wars. But I can’t tell if it’s a trick.”
Sunset didn’t hesitate to speak. “Would you mind possibly going with a few others to check it out?”
“I think I can do that,” Rex nodded.
“Excellent. I’ll call Flurry and Lyra, tell them they have a new mission,” Sunset said, clapping her hands briefly as she stepped away.
Lyra was quiet as her ‘crew’ walked with her over to the Sweetie Drop. Bad enough she had to take Adagio with her which she still had no good feeling of trusting, but she also had to take the clone with her? Out of everyone in the base, it had to be him. Yeah, Sunset made a point about his experience, but she still didn’t feel like taking him. At the very least, IG-11, Cheep, and Flurry would be coming along with her. And K2-B4 was still resting on the charging dock inside, so there was some good there.
“Eleven, go on ahead and start the ship,” Lyra ordered.
“Yes ma’am,” Eleven nodded, marching towards the ship.
“So, do you mind if I sit up front with you too?” Adagio asked. “In case you want to, you know, keep an eye on me? Maybe more?” she continued, flirtatiously.
Lyra rolled her eyes. “You’re welcome to sit in the cockpit, but you’re not driving. And need I remind you, you are trying my patience.”
“I didn’t think I was,” Adagio shrugged off, walking behind the assassin droid.
Cheep rolled behind her, leaving Lyra alone with Rex.
“General, er, Lyra, shouldn’t we wait for Flurry to arrive?”
And the former Jedi turned in a complete 180. “Listen, clone,” Lyra sneered. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly thrilled to be working with you.”
“Really? I never would have guessed,” Rex deadpanned, folding his arms.
“I just want to make something clear, trooper; if you ever touch my daughter, if you ever hurt my daughter… I will not hesitate. Let’s just go to Agamar, find that signal, and then get back here. Got it?” Lyra growled, stepping to the side, waiting for anyone else to come to the ship and up the hatch.
The captain, a bit frustrated by how this was going, had to admit he couldn’t blame her for being upset. Still though, it didn’t make their current situation any more pleasant. But realizing that they were missing one person, he just stood at the front of the ship, waiting for their last crew member. Finally, after a minute or two, the captain saw a tuft of purple and blue hair running towards the ship, trying to keep a satchel close by her.
“Hey Captain! Glad to see you’re coming with us,” Flurry apologized. “Sorry I’m late.”
Rex couldn’t help but smile. “It’s okay, kid. You made it.”
“I just got called a few minutes ago, Mom said we were going on a mission. What are we doing?” Flurry asked, walking with the captain onto the ship. “Are we stealing something? Liberating people?”
“I’ll explain on the way,” Rex replied, following her inside.
Now that her crew was assembled, she was ready to leave, only to see Bon Bon and G-G racing after them.
"Oh, sweetie, are you coming with?" Lyra asked.
"Can't, I have some business here to attend to. Besides, Sunset needs me to work on droid repair for a little bit, the current engineer's on sabbatical," Bon Bon explained. "Are you sure you're going to be okay with the captain?"
Lyra looked back at the inside of the ship, sighing softly. "I'll be okay. I just don't want this to drag out any longer than it has to," she said, holding her wife's hands.
"You'll be in and out, I'm sure of it," Bon Bon smiled, moving a hand up to stroke Lyra's cheek. Lyra adorably leaned into her wife's embrace before pulling her in to kiss her on the lips. Bon Bon's eyes slowly closed as she embraced the kiss back, holding her longer than ever. The two of them stayed there for what felt like an eternity, not wanting to let go of the sweetness of their love.
"You stay safe, okay?" Bon Bon requested. "And if you find any droid parts, bring them back for me, I'm feeling an itch for creativity."
Lyra giggled. "I promise, Bonnie." She gave another kiss to Bon Bon's cheek before hiking up the ramp to the Sweetie Drop. With her mood lifted and a smile on her face, Bon Bon and G-G watched as the family ship lifted off the ground and raced off into the atmosphere, setting off for Agamar.
"So, what do you say you and I do a little repairs?" Bon Bon asked, looking to the R4 unit. G-G only responded by shaking with a happy sounding beep. "Heh, I thought so. Come on buddy."