#clone naval officer | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fanfic-obsessed · 3 months

Text

For the Republic

Here’s an order 66 fix it that is the confluence of several coincidental misunderstandings. Also why outsourcing your brainwashing is overall a bad idea.

Let's set the stage, ok?

The first misunderstanding is relatively simple, near the beginning of the war. A case of similar words causing confusions that is never cleared up. In this case a series of conversations between various clones and their Jedi about the Jedi’s relationship with the Republic. These conversations leave the Clones, all of them, convinced that the Jedi Order belongs to the Republic, instead of being part of the Republic. You know, in the same way that the Clones belong to the Republic (No matter which side you argue is true, this was not what the Jedi meant). This confusion is so deep that when Slick betrays them all to Ventress, his rants are specifically toward the Republic, and do not mention the Jedi Order at all.

The second misunderstanding is a bit more complex. It starts with the earliest flash training for the clones, the basics that are pushed so deep that none of the clones have any conscious memory of them, but are buried in the subconscious. Along with the Orders that would be enforced by the chips, there was the phrase ‘Jedi have Power’. There are other trainings that get layered on top of it, but in the deepest part of the Clone psyche the most basic definition that they have for Jedi is ‘Jedi have Power’. But Power, as a term, is an abstract that can mean so many things. And though they never realized it, the Trainers and Jango Fett and the Kaminoans taught the Clones a very specific definition of Power. Power cannot be had by someone who belongs to the Republic and Power only belongs to those who use it (specifically those who use it to abuse others).

By that definition their Generals and their Padawan Commanders and what is known as the Jedi Order are not Jedi. Instead the Clones view these beings as brothers (having very little grasp of gender) of a higher rank. Again this knowledge is buried so deep the Clones do not realize they think this. It is instinct. Frankly the distinction is somewhat subtle, and is closer to how the Jedi wish to be treated (without the higher rank part) so no one notices the shift.

When Umbara happens the anger that the clones feel toward Krell is not the disbelieving anger of an idol's pedestal crumbling, but the same anger felt for Slick’s betrayal.

When Order 66 happens, the Jedi become traitors. Except…the people that Palpatine intended to be killed were not considered to be Jedi. For Jedi had to have Power, and Power only belonged to those who were free, and only those who showed their Power.

The way that many of the Natborn officers did.

So the Clones immediately turned their weapons on the Naval officers who had been abusive, primarily to Clones or Jedi, but also some instances of civilian abuse as well.

On Coruscant, Anakin begins to lead the 501st to march on the temple. Only, as soon as they realized where they were headed, they stopped their general, confused. There are no Jedi there, they say. Anakin says something about Palpatine having the Power to save Padme. This leads Appo to the conclusion that Palpatine is a Jedi Traitor, who has done something to their General (which yes, but also no). The 501st stuns Anakin, with some taking him to the temple for deprogramming, or whatever needs to be done to counteract whatever the Jedi Traitors did.

The rest march back into the Rotunda to hunt the Jedi Traitor Palpatine. They are met by Fox, who shrugs and goes with them (with his own platoon of CG) without argument when Appo says that Palpatine is a Jedi. The active chips do muffle the Clones in the Force, a deliberate feature that Palpatine never thought could be used against him.

So Palpatine, the shiny new Emperor, is Emperor for about 20 minutes before he is shot through with so many bolts that he is basically left a goo on the floor. This bypasses every single one of his backup plans, many of which could not be fully put in place until he was Emperor, so there is no ‘Palpatine returns’.

At the temple roughly a dozen members of the 501st enter the Healing Halls, carrying a stunned Anakin Skywalker. Even stunned the healers can tell he is in some kind of mental breakdown. The healers (who do filter out anything that is not helpful o figuring out what is wrong with their patients, so ignore the whole ‘Palpatine the Jedi traitor’ thing) take from what the troopers have to say that they believe that Anakin may be possessed by something and that he is worrying about Padme Amidala’s health, both of which are causing the breakdown.

So Padme is collected by the rest of the 501st and brought to the healing halls, and it is decided that Anakin will be kept unconscious until his former Master, Obi WAn, is back on planet (if he is possessed then having his loved ones there is the best bet for breaking through and of Anakin’s loved one Obi wan would be the best equipped to not be killed). The healers, upon seeing Padme’s pregnancy, insist on a full exam. During this exam it is discovered that, due to a growth on her pelvic bone, a natural birth would likely be fatal to her and possibly the children (I do love the idea that Palpatine was feeding Anakin those visions, or that the visions were caused by Palpatine or Anakin causing Padme’s death, but it is also interesting to think that the visions were legitimate and the cause was something natural). Padme is scolded for not seeking out proper prenatal care, which would have noted the problem. The healers schedule her for an induced c section closer to her due date and ask that she check in daily (or sooner if she starts feeling anything weird) to make sure there is nothing else.

The Coruscant Guard continues to hunt through the Senate for ‘Jedi’, of which there is less than you would think. Yes a couple of hundred who meet the clone definition, but that is out of more that 100,000 beings in the building at any one time (with almost 25,000 systems represented, if assume an average of 2 senators per system, that is 50,000 senators. With a retinue of aids, guards, interns, and others that easily clears into 100,000).

And there is just…so much confusion (I find that I love pairing ‘Order 66 happened differently’ with ‘and everyone is confused’, it gives me great joy).

From the point of view of the Jedi, between on moment and the next the clones decided it was time to mutiny and the only explanation that is given is ‘The Jedi are traitors, we must kill the traitors’ as the clones continuously fail to shoot any Jedi (Like even the stormtroopers of canon do not fail to hit their stated targets this badly), though the clones have shot many people.

From the point of view of the Senate, between one moment and the next the Clones chose high treason with no explanation (Because no one conscious on Coruscant knew that Palpatine was a Sith and the beings that knew about the chips and Order 66 ended up pretty high on the ‘Traitor Jedi’ list and killed).

In the Force, and the Manda, respectively, Palpatine and Jango Fett were watching this happening with their own confusion. This was not the plan.

The Generals do eventually get an order to the clones to capture instead of kill the ‘Jedi traitors’. By this point the Coruscant Guard had cleared the Senate and were just starting to descend levels of Coruscant in search of Jedi traitors. It is not too long after this that Mace Windu is found and brought back to the Temple, near death. They also figure out why the Clones do not consider the Jedi, Jedi. It is decided that they cannot correct the Jedi definition issue until they figure out the ‘shoot the Jedi’ issue.

In this version the chips do not do anything to the personalities or memories of the clones, they simply reinforce the flash training for the Orders and remove any ability to disobey.

With the 212th, Obi Wan had spent a decent amount of time over the course of the war finding excuses to get rid of nat born officers that treated the clones as less than sentient. With his mindset of ‘a certain point of view’ he was pretty successful. There were still a handful in the higher command (the higher the officer was in the command structure, the harder it was to get rid of them) but none of the natborn officers that would be on the ground, or even in communication with the forces on Utapau. Though the activation of the chips and the death that followed caused a bit of a shiver in the Force, it was not the screaming darkness of Canon and was lost in the madness of battle.

So it was not until they were being transported back to the Resolute that Cody, quite proudly, announced that the Jedi traitors had been routed from the 212th. Obi Wan had questions. Cody answered with things that explained nothing

Obi Wan: Jedi…Traitors?

Cody (nodding): The Jedi have been discovered as traitors to the Republic, Sir, a kill on sight order is now in effect.

Obi Wan: I don’t remember anyone trying to kill me?

Boil (Visibly offended, even through his bucket): You’re no Jedi, general.

Obi Wan: I’m…I’m not?

Every Trooper on the ship in unison: Jedi have Power.

Obi Wan (Internally):What does that mean? WHAT DOES that mean? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Cody (Now looking a little concerned): Sir, you've gone really pale. Do you need a medic?

They head back for Coruscant. On the way Obi Wan receives a series of messages. First, there are no high council members currently conscious on Coruscant. There should have been five. Anakin had been stunned by his own trooper, is possibly possessed, and is being held unconscious just in case. Agen Kolar, Saesee Tiin, and Kit Fisto have simply vanished. Mace Windu had been missing but was found and is now in Bacta with extensive injuries sans one hand.

No one had been told that those four members had been going to confront Palpatine and as soon as Palpatine had been killed (in a hallway), his office had been automatically locked down. So no one knows that behind the shielding are the bodies of three Jedi Masters.

Second, not only was the 212th not the only battalion to commit some form of mutiny, the 501st and the Coruscant Guard had apparently abruptly decided that high treason was a reasonable action. All the while claiming that they are hunting Jedi Traitors (with not a single person they shot being a Jedi). The senate had also apparently realized that without the Coruscant Guard, there is not enough manpower to stop the Clones from killing whomever they wished (Much of the Senate had been so proud of the cost cutting measure of reducing the non clone security forces).

Third, since the remaining members of the council were spread throughout the galaxy (with Obi Wan being the closest), as soon as he arrived on Coruscant Obi Wan would be in charge of figuring out what was going on with the Clones, before the Senate found enough people to capture them. Then deal with the political clusterfuck of mutiny and high treason (as the Clones were considered part of the Order). Find time to help Anakin.

Killing Grievous was supposed to give Obi Wan less to do, not more. With the knowledge that there is something wrong with the Clones, he cannot even flirt with Cody (They had an understanding about exploring a romantic relationship after the war ended, but as stress relief both would flirt back and forth and see how explicit they can get before someone called them on it-The only reason no one had yet is because the 212th had a bet going on CodyWan admitting they are together and no one wants to be disqualified by influencing the results).

It should be made clear, Obi Wan still does not know at this point that Palpatine is the Sith. He does not know that there are chips in the clones. He has no idea that Anakin had chosen to fall (though it did not really go anywhere) and is likely going to wake up half willing to slaughter everyone. He doesn’t even really know that Padme is a week away from being induced (still early but the healers do not want to wait any longer).

So even as he is contemplating everything on his plate, Obi Wan does not even know the half of it.

By the time Shaak Ti, who had to corral Kamino (in which roughly half the Kaminoans in Tipoca city and a third of the remaining trainers were accused of being Jedi by both the battalion stationed there and the cadets), is back in contact, the bodies of the missing Masters were found. She is the one to float the idea of a malfunction to the chips (the report about Tup and Fives was still in the ‘to be reviewed’ queue for the Jedi Council-The Council is about 12-18 months behind on reviewing mission reports).

The news of the chips…does not make things better.

#star wars #star wars the clone wars #star wars au #obi wan kenobi #fanfiction prompt #anakin skywalker #codywan #sheev palpatine #bamf obi wan #anidala #order 66 #order 66 happened differently #Palpatine dies #Coruscant Guard

308 notes · View notes

stra-tek · 1 year

Text

Random spoilerific reasons to read Star Trek novels, with little to no context:

Ro/Quark is a thing

A Jem'Hadar joins DS9, tries to fit in but eventually snaps and tries to kill everybody

You learn the origins and final fate of the Borg

A thinly-veiled Dr. House clone joins the Voyager crew

Geordi briefly has 2 girlfriends at once (due to different writers not co-ordinating enough, but still)

There's a TOS book that's a musical

There are YA stories about Jake and Nog making mischief on DS9

YA stories about Worf, Geordi, Picard, Beverly, Kirk, Spock and McCoy at SFA

YA series about the Kelvinverse gang (including Gaila!) as cadets, taking on a drug problem at SFA and a very unique Borg scout in San Francisco

We very briefly meet the people who are to Q what the Q are to humanity

Janeway/Chakotay is a thing

Kirk's first mission in command of the Enterprise! Erm, at least twice.

Kirk was married between TOS and TMP

Her name was Lori

In the future, you have yearly marriage contracts that you either update or you don't and I think that's amazing

Trip didn't die! He faked his death to join Section 31 and go undercover as a Romulan

It's not great, tbh

The ENT books get better after the Romulan wars though, it's proper founding of the Federation stuff

We meet Jack Crusher (erm, the OG) when 4 timelines start overlapping and he's a bit unhinged

Teenage Kirk stole a car and his choice was go to jail or join Starfleet

What happened when Voyager got home? Seven broke up with Chakotay like 30 pages in

Kirk gets cloned, and his clone becomes the sub of an evil invincible super genius and its all very gay

George Kirk was Robert April's first officer on the first ever mission of the unnamed starship with the Naval Construction Contract 1701

Robert is a hard-core pacifist and has to turn command over to George whenever it's time to fire weapons

Data becomes fully human for a couple of days and it's really sweet

They never say "wristwatch" or "phone", it's always "wrist chrono" or "personal comm"

There are gays but they don't say that word because it's the 1990's and Rick Berman runs the franchise

Spock has a son in the past with Zarabeth

Everyone in the post-Nemesis era does spy missions all the time non stop, as if Starfleet has abandoned exploring the cosmos for doing Space Mission: Impossible

Bashir does it better than anyone else, he takes on Section 31 from the inside

Remember Control? It's from the novels, except the novels do it SO MUCH BETTER.

Remember how we never found out who Future Guy was? We do.

It's very underwhelming, nobody we know

We find out how the Romulans and Vulcans split

Surak was a Vulcan internet blogger

A Borg Cube eats Pluto

Janeway dies

Janeway gets better

At least one TOS book features a wizard

There's a Star Trek TOS/Here Come the Brides crossover novel

It had cameos from The Doctor (as in, Who), Han Solo, Starbuck and others

Whole book series about Section 31

Whole book series about the Department of Temporal Investigations

One time they do the Bill and Ted thing to escape confinement and it works

Wanna know how Riker and Troi met?

Wanna know what Picard got up to on the Stargazer?

Andorians have 4 sexes and it's very complicated

Data comes back from the dead as Data 2.0, and it was fresh and exciting because it happened long before ST: Picard did it twice.

Lal comes back too and we get father/daughter android stuff! They have a home and everything but keep having to save the universe

One time Mirror Seven is led around on a leash naked on Terok Nor

Geordi becomes captain of the USS Challenger, decides it's not for him because plot, and goes back to engineering on the Enterprise

Kirk is shot on the bridge and dies

Kirk gets better

They watch 3D holos of old Doctor Who episodes in the Enterprise rec room

The Enterprise also has an AI named Moira, which was Zora long before Zora

The TOS crew get together for one last mission. About three times.

There's a Perry Mason book except it's about Kirk's lawyer from that TOS episode

Data 2.0 owns and runs a massive gambling empire on Orion

Spock keeps randomly showing up everywhere in the TNG era

Scotty keeps randomly showing up everywhere in the TNG era

Bones keeps randomly showing up everywhere in the TNG era

You're on Tumblr so you already know about Killing Time

There's a guy named McKenzie Calhoun and he's a total badass and captains a ship of weirdos and misfits

Kirk comes back from the dead, saves the galaxy repeatedly, has an intersex child (who identifies as male) with a Romulan/Klingon hybrid

Kirk beats up Worf

Kirk's child has superpowers

Kirk's child saves the galaxy at age 6

The Kirk stuff is 100% ignored in the other novels

About 50% of the novels are ignored in the other 50%, and the ones that are meant to be in direct continuity with each other aren't always quite

Just like the TV shows and movies, then

Lwaxana Troi meets Q, and it goes as well as you'd expect

Someone tells Data, yes you idiot you had emotions all along and he's like, oh shit you're right

McCoy is left in command of the Enterprise as a joke by Kirk, who is then immediately kidnapped

Ro Laren is captain of Deep Space Nine

Picard/Beverly is a thing, they get married and have a child named Rene. No running away and raising your kid in secret here

Riker and Troi are married, serve on the Titan together with a bunch of adorable weirdos and have a daughter named Tasha

You get to watch all the 24th century characters die horribly in the end along with their entire universe. Holy fuck it's a bleak horror show. Personally, I love it. But if that's not your cup of tea I'd skip the Coda trilogy

#star trek #star trek novels #star trek novelverse #star trek books #kirk #spock #picard #riker #troi #star trek tos #star trek tng #ds9 #Voyager #enterprise #add your own

1K notes · View notes

reader6898 · 3 months

Text

So I'm rewatching clone wars for the second time and in season 2 episode 1 I noticed something

When Wolffe is giving orders I noticed that he has his scar from Ventress

Here's a closer look. From the way it's scaring means that it's fresh and happened very recently. I never noticed it until now. I always thought he got it between seasons 1 and 3 because it's more noticable in season 3

Also, he's still wearing his official uniform. From what I know only the naval officers wear them. So, my question is: was Wolffe in the GAR navy from the beginning and given the rank of commander or was he always a commander and he just didn't wear his armor until later seasons?

It's the little things you notice the second time around

#rewatch #clone wars #clone wars season 2 #commander Wolffe

61 notes · View notes

frostycatblr-fandom-files · 6 months

Text

Poets and Painters (Late Afternoon) - Wolffe x Reader [Mature Fic]

Warnings and Information: In desperate need of just one day to take his and his men's mind off the war, Plo Koon orders that everyone make a stop on a relatively uninhabited planet in a peaceful sector of the galaxy to… have a picnic? Just what does he have in mind? A certain flint-gray Commander is finding it hard to believe that they're just on the planet for a day of R&R in the middle of a war, so he isn't letting his guard down. Perhaps someone will help Commander Wolffe find some way to help him relax before the day is over… 2nd person POV. Reader is undescribed save for minor details like personal touches to a uniform, and has a gender-neutral alias. Allusions to canon-typical violence, mention of injury and loss [and in this segment, more explicit conversation about death and what comes after], Plo just being a dad to the 104th Battalion in the background. Swearing. Discussion of more adult themes and some lewd jokes the more the fic progresses (this is not an Explicit fic but it is Mature; Minors please DNI). Takes place on a fictional planet.

Word-count: 5,342

Everyone will look a little sun-kissed by nightfall after spending all day basking in the light of Little Archossi's nearest star. It'll be easier to notice on some members of the crew with skin different than the deeper browns commonly found among the Clones. Hopefully people found and remembered to use sun protection this morning. (Or, the medics aboard the Triumphant have a lot of bacta gel in case people come back to the cruiser looking redder than the skies over Dathomir.)

You’ve been doing your best to prevent getting sunburned, others don’t give a single kark in the galaxy. Much like this particular Clone who’s lazing in the grass, fingers interlocked and tucked around the back of his head, one leg propped up in the air on the opposite knee as he sways and bobs his foot in time with some song stuck in his head that’s popular on the Holonet these days. Maker alive, you can only hope he won’t get sunburn, given that he's a spacer. (You're pretty sure he is, anyhow, given the uniform of a naval officer.)

"I wish we had more days like this… Don't you, Arcadia?"

Those who spend much of their time in space and under artificial lighting are loving this. Sun lamps can only do so much for keeping their overall mental well-being buoyed. For all the technological advancements in the galaxy, there are some few things there are still no shortcuts for.

You certainly don't disagree, but you need to finish passing out the rest of this crate you volunteered to distribute to people on this side of the clearing. This trooper lazing about in the grass is slowing you down, so you playfully roll your eyes, and fix him with your best look to show him you're not afraid to mean business if he doesn't sit up soon. "Maybe when the war's over, soldier. C'mon, take your ration so I don't lose my momentum. Commander Wolffe wouldn't be happy to hear if anyone goes hungry today."

No, he probably won't be, the trooper agrees with a kind chuckle. He sits up and takes the ration gratefully. "First thing I'll do is have a picnic, I think. When the war is over." The troopers and crew are - technically speaking - having a picnic right now, you point out with a bemused grin, handing off another individually wrapped ration bar to his neighbor. "I mean a proper one. With food, instead of rations! Something with flavor. Not colorless and loaded with bland preservatives."

"Beige is a color." you retort.

"Karkin' ugly one, sure."

You fix him with a teasing grin this time. "Are you pulling a prank on me by pretending to be Orchid? I can actually tell the men apart from one another, you know." A careful balancing act of patience and practice, to be sure, but the time spent observing everyone pays off for moments like these grateful smiles.

"You can? Then who's that over there, slinking out of the forest just a little off to the left?"

Yes, you definitely can, you promise the Clone trooper who's decided to be cheeky with you. And- perfect! You've got just one ration pack left in the box, and he doesn't have one in his hands, as far as you can tell. "Everything okay, Comet? Have you gotten a lunch ration yet?"

"Oh good, I would've hated to miss chow. Thank you, Arcadia. And yeah, everything's good; just well-hydrated."

You toss him the last ration pack from right where you are and tuck the box against your side now that it's empty. "Better that than being dehydrated. Enjoy your lunch, Comet."

"Where's your's?" He's sweet enough to worry and ask why you don't have any food for yourself, but it's unnecessary.

"I'll get one from another crate, don't worry, Comet." you assure him with a warm smile. You'll probably see him soon enough when he joins the small assembly on the hill under the red and yellow leafed tree with Sinker, Boost and the Commander. You imagine you'll be joined by Plo Koon as well.

But will you still get to address Wolffe like an equal in front of his sergeants when it’s no longer just the two of you? Or should you play it safe and return to addressing him as commander and sir rather than risk looking, acting, overly familiar?

"All finished, Arcadia?"

"Passed off the last in the box to Comet." you explain, sitting across from Commander Wolffe rather than next to him. His brothers have taken up their places beside him, leaving you no room to join. And that's fine; you already sat side by side with Wolffe for hours.

“Then that should be everyone. Here.” Rather than ask one of his brothers, Wolffe gives you one of the rations in the box settled behind him in the shade, sheltered from the sunlight. You take it gratefully from his hand. “Thank you, sir. Hopefully these aren’t too bad.” Always a bit of a gamble, ration bars… Some are pretty soft and crumbly while others are tough and chewy. The flavor is oftentimes fairly plain at best, or rather unpleasant if you’re unlucky in your choices of supplier. But a meal’s a meal.

As you’re chewing your first bite of the ration bar thoughtfully, trying to imagine who in their right mind would willingly scarf these down were it not for a war, the Commander politely clears his throat to get your attention.

“You’re still welcome to call me Wolffe, Arcadia.”

The slight warmth in your face has nothing to do with the sun above you; it's the six eyes trained on you and your every little move as you further shuck the wrapper encasing the foodstuffs. "Sorry, I… didn't want to assume it was still okay now that it's not just the two of us." you explain, nodding hello to Sinker and Boost in kind. (They return the gesture just as politely.) But if you're still invited to address him without his rank, or a respectful term, then you certainly will. It had just been better to play it safe.

"I see…" His eyes narrow here, and for a heartbeat, you think he's almost sort of glaring you down, but you realize he's squinting and looking behind you. "What is the General doing…?"

You turn and look.

Master Plo Koon is standing at the edge of the clearing, speaking with Comet, who's pointing deep into the trees. He's making animated hand gestures, and demonstrating the size and shape of something to the Jedi. Tall, and coming to a peak. And he's not having a lot of luck with properly conveying a few other things, as evident by the long, growing pauses and the Kel Dor softly shaking his head. Finally Comet gets a better idea, and is gesturing for the General to follow him.

"Arcadia, could I use one of the pages in your sketchbook? There's something I'm trying to figure out how to explain to the General. There's something in the forest, I think."

That gets Wolffe's attention.

You carefully tear one of the pages out by the perforated edge, and pluck one of the graphite pencils from your bag for him to borrow. The words something in the forest sounded a little urgent to you, and like the Jedi, you want to understand what's going on now. Like Wolffe, you want to determine if this thing is a threat.

Comet thanks you, and begins to send the pencil shwoop!-ing against the page without a moment of hesitation. He's gotten a good look, some of the shapes looked pretty organic to him, from what he could make out. Boost chuckles, trying to lighten the growing tension when Wolffe gets to his feet, and stands beside his brother, observing.

"Yeah, they're called trees, Comet; those are pretty damn organic."

Comet shakes his head firmly, his full lips pursed together in concentration as he quickly tries to sketch down what he saw. "No, it looked different. Like a sort of… hut built around a tree. But it was really far away, so I couldn't see it clearly." When he came back from doing his business out in the woods, he meant to inform the Commander and General what he saw; but you had stopped by with food, a momentary distraction.

What Comet thinks he saw was some kind of structure from the inhabitants of Little Archossi. "Perhaps I should investigate the structure and the surrounding area, to determine what it is that Comet saw... Commander Wolffe, remain here with the battalion, and be prepared for anything." Plo Koon offers, beginning to walk where he's been directed.

Wolffe bristles at the idea of General Plo volunteering to investigate the structure alone. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea, General."

He is invited to stand down, asked to watch over his brothers and the crew once again. "Don't worry, Commander," the Kel Dor adds soothingly, laying a steady hand on the shoulder bell that bears the face of the wolf on the flint-gray armor, "I do not sense any threats or hear any warnings from the Force, for the time being."

"... very well, General." the man with the mark of a survivor agrees reluctantly.

Survivors get scars for their efforts, Arcadia. Skin-deep, scrawled in the deepest recesses of their minds… it doesn't matter. A scar is a scar. But the victims… the dead… they are lucky if they get a crude headstone in this war.

"I'll keep an eye on the men. Wait for your orders." Wolffe promises a little more firmly. And you, interrupting Boost and Sinker without intention, offer to help the Commander keep an eye on everyone this time. The look the three of you direct his way says, in a way impossible to mistake for anything else says you think you're doing this again, alone?

Somehow, we'll pass the time together.

According to the display in the upper right-hand corner of the datapad in your hand, the time is 14:30. You have another half-hour to go before it is 15:00, and have agreed with Sargeants Sinker and Boost that is when you should start to become concerned for the male Kel Dor's absence.

Jedi Master Plo Koon left to investigate the structure out in the forests of Little Archossi at 12:30 sharp, and he has not yet returned. But he has touched the comlink at least once, to inform his commander of his findings.

"The structure is a crude hut… One in desperate need of repair; time has not been kind to it in its occupant's absence. I sense it has been empty for a long, long time. I saw other, similar structures further still into the forest - I intend to investigate these as well. No trouble in the clearing still, I hope, Commander Wolffe?"

"No sir. Everything is fine." Wolffe had promised him, likely grateful that the Jedi could not see the tightness of his jaw, and the disapproving shake of his head. He still didn't (and still doesn't) like the idea of his general being so far from the safety of the clearing without company. 'Someone should have gone with him' has been uttered more than once to the three who have volunteered to split the load of monitoring the company and the edge of the surrounding forest.

"General, I-"

"Yes, Commander?"

Wolffe had shaken his head again, and changed his mind. "...I thought you would like to know Tack confirmed the blue flowers are in fact Dinocaeruleus anthos and has checked the credibility of the original findings. He and Arcadia believe it will still be best not to draw excessive attention to them."

You and Tack both had been praised and thanked for your diligent assessment and skills as a researcher respectively before the Force-wielder said he expected to return to the clearing by 15:00 at the earliest. If anything delayed him, he would be making contact once more.

The nearest star is no longer directly overhead, and the shadows are just beginning to lengthen and throw themselves further eastward. You distract yourself from your worries about the General's absence with something to read for a moment, something chosen at random. (You were "instructed" to take a break as part of some protocol (one you are partly suspect of being made up).)

You're not paying much attention to the Aurebesh on the screen, quite honestly.

You're more distracted by the Commander and his acts of quiet anxiety. Patrolling the circumference of the clearing once again, routinely stopping and watching in the direction of the dilapidated hut for any signs of the Jedi. Discreetly conferring with Sinker and Boost. And when they can convince him, he returns to either of the tallest grassy hills for a moment to stop and observe all of his men at once.

The time is now 14:35.

And your reading material is about as interesting as an instruction manual on how to polish and clean up a blaster without corroding the material or compromising its firepower. So you decide it's time to try something else from the reading material you have loaded up on the device.

It's labeled as one of the free holo-novels of the month, courtesy of the five-credits-a-standard-month subscription service that was recommended to you, a best-seller. But there's no synopsis or pitch of any kind that advertises what you'll find inside and why you should read it. It boasts a generic title (The Rush of Hyperspace) and pretty innocent cover artwork of an astro-map.

Curious, you select the best seller just as Orchid passes by behind you. The whispered words from over your shoulder chill the very blood in your veins.

"Psst, hey, Arcadia! You realize you're reading that in public, right?"

"What do you-?" your eyes flit to the very first sentence now that the screen has loaded in, and oh galaxy and all her stars. The very first sentence talks about how much this protagonist - a soldier - misses his girl, and the steering column is not the only thing he's throttling at the mere thought of her… the words 'a loud, sinful groan filling the cockpit' are practically seared into your retina.

Oh fuck, fuck, FUCK!

You've never backed out of a story so fast, nor anxiously prayed that Orchid would keep his fucking trap shut. "I had no idea, I swear."

"One of those stealthy ones?"

"I don't know, Orchid. And keep your karking voice down." you warn him, removing the free story from your suggestions so you can't make the same mistake twice or be recommended more of the same thing in the future.

"Sorry. Was only trying to warn you that your screen was visible to everyone. What you do and don't read isn't my business, just like what I read isn't yours." Orchid replies with a casual, little shrug. "I ain't gonna tell anyone, Arcadia." he promises.

Your voice comes out in a low, threatening purr as you tell him you're going to keep him to his word. "They'll find you fertilizing the rest of the flowerbed if I find out you have, Orchid."

While the threat doesn't have quite the intended effect, you're grateful that Orchid is taking you seriously, in his own way… "Hah, I suppose that'd make for a fitting end. Name myself after a flower, get turned into flower-food when I die..." He smiles, finding humor in the threat while promising again that he really won't tell anyone.

"I hope I'll make really beautiful flowers when I die."

It's a little strange, almost unnerving to you, that the possibility of dying doesn't seem to phase him. That he's making jokes about it, almost. You suddenly feel worried about him. "Orchid-"

You're stopped with a single, apologetic smile. "Sorry, sorry. I know that all sounds pretty morbid, Arcadia. But I've made my peace with it and I don't bar myself from joking about it either, really. Now, I don't want to die, of course, but I'm not really afraid to, either."

You suppose that's fair, with some internal reasoning. "I guess that makes sense. Everyone has different thoughts about the inevitable end of a lifeform's conscious existence. What it means for them, to them. What happens to us after. Or, what we hope for, like…" you add with a nod to Orchid, "making beautiful flowers from… whatever's left."

There's a partial, amused chuckle from Commander Wolffe, who's recently returned to the hill following another perimeter sweep, and has been listening to you and Orchid for the last few moments. The time is now 14:50, according to a fleeting glance at the top of your datapad. "More of your philosophical ponderings, Arcadia?" And care to explain why you threatened to bury one of his men in a flowerbed, while you're at it?

(Thank the Maker he didn't hear what sort of novel Orchid had seen you open, at least. Something so raunchy it opened right into the act of self-pleasure and cultivation within the very first paragraphs.)

"Ah, y'know me, Commander," Orchid says dismissively, taking the heat off of you to explain away the situation, "just saying the usual banthashit that makes Soapsuds threaten to wash my mouth out. Arcadia got a little more creative than that, though!"

Commander Wolffe sighs, looking both surprised and unsurprised. Yes he certainly does 'say the usual banthashit', but to turn it into a discussion about death and what comes after, that's an unusual thing to follow up with. (Usually it's more lectures about discipline and reading the room.)

"Well, Arcadia has a knack for that."

Strange how only this morning, you and the commander were little more than perfect strangers, and by midday, you were calling the other by name in private. And now, here in the early afternoon, you had briefly shared lunch together, and still called each other by name, only now permitted - promised, even - to do so in the presence of others.

"Oh yeah, I saw the art," Orchid replies with a strangely wolfish grin, "good stuff. Looked like worship."

The words "The fuck do you mean by that?" find themselves clawing out of your throat before you stop and consider the tone, the snappy weight of them. Trying to cover your self-perceived blunder, you're now laughing nervously, tugging a hand through your hair in a harsh movement. "Maker alive there's something really weird about this planet, everyone's saying all this sage shit and acting so damn… strangely today!"

You've fooled Orchid. But you haven't fooled his commanding officer. Not entirely.

"Oh I just meant-"

"I would agree, Arcadia…" Wolffe begins with a thoughtful look as he regards a chrono for the time - now squarely 14:55 - and chews over something on his mind before speaking with brevity, "Today has been anything but normal. Strange planet. Strange plants and animals…" Strange lack of communication from his General, you figure he must want to say. This is a little out of character for the Force-wielder to behave in some of the ways he has today; by and large delaying the 104th battalion for most of a full day that could otherwise be spent traveling just for a day in the sun.

All for what? has been asked, secretly, over and over. By yourself. By the flint-gray Commander, of course. By Sinker and Boost, too.

Why are we here on Little Archossi? Where is Plo Koon?

And how will you keep a newly forged friendship of sorts from fizzling out after today? … Are you even friends? Have you misread your interactions of the day so far, believing there's something special? With you, for you?

You're not special.

You're just Arcadia.

Taking note of your silence, or perhaps a troubled expression, Orchid asks you what's wrong. "You look deep in thought. Something on your mind?"

"Just hoping General Plo returns or contacts us at 15:00 when he said we should likely hear from him." you offer after a shrug. It's true enough at least. Unless he's run into trouble, or has been delayed, there should be little reason that you would not see the Jedi as he concludes his search of the area beyond the decaying structure.

"Same here," Orchid replies, nodding to his Commander in a more respectful manner than he would when talking to Suds, "you too, I reckon, sir?" The singular, short exhale is Orchid's answer. "Oh, right, stupid question; of course you are, Commander." he offers almost apologetically, face darkening with embarrassment.

"I had to watch, helpless, inside that damaged escape pod, as my General and my brothers fought off those battle droids who were killing the survivors… Desperately trying to keep that distress beacon active, all because he had the hope someone would come for us."

You had finished adding some of the deep blue to the fluffy black curls of his hair that served as the highlights while Wolffe recounted for you, in more detail than what had been supplied by Tack, the Battle of Abregado.

And the way he was telling you, it seemed to suggest something to you. Something you could only guess at.

"Well… given that you're sitting here next to me, telling me this story, obviously General Plo was right. Did you…?" The words "not fully believe that at the time?" hang in the air between you, unspoken. He'll know. Smart and capable man that he is, the seasoned leader of the 104th battalion will figure you out.

"I wasn't sure." Wolffe admits with a grim expression, ripping up blades of grass by the fistful the longer he talks. "We were promised, pledged to, that we were not expendable to General Plo. Now perhaps General Skywalker and Commander Tano still would have come to scout the wreckage even if it wasn't for General Plo, because they seem to truly care for their men from the look of things… But we had no way of knowing at the time, for sure."

A tender hand is laid on his crossed leg, just for a moment, a silent offer of comfort for him.

He takes a deep breath before speaking in a hushed voice. "Given that I am sitting here, next to you as you said, Arcadia… ultimately, the General was right."

"I'm glad he was." you whisper back, just louder than the slow, smooth sweep of the coloring pencils in your hand against the page.

Stirring up such emotions to the surface will take a toll on him the longer you draw out the conversation, so you were sure to move on to something else. Something innocuous, something ordinary.

Does he ever play games to pass the time?

The chrono has barely ticked over to 15:00 when the Commander's comlink trills. A sound famous for being rather startling at times is for once one of the most wonderful sounds in all the galaxy: it promises that the Kel Dor is safe.

"There are more dwellings further from the decaying structure that Comet saw from the clearing. I believe I found one of the settlements, but I will be returning to the battalion instead of making contact."

"Why is that, General?" Commander Wolffe wonders, brow furrowed with confusion.

"I believe the inhabitants of Little Archossi are nocturnal… and should I wake them simply trying to make contact, I'm afraid I would appear to them as a threat instead." the Jedi explains haltingly, voice sort of rumbling down the mic and audio sensors. You wonder, with how cautious his tone is, if he is near the settlement right now as he speaks. "I will be back shortly… and will explain in more detail."

"Understood, sir." Commander Wolffe dismisses himself from the communication, just short of breathing a sigh of relief. The General is safe and will return in a timely manner, then. He can allow himself to loosen his guard.

Orchid is a little more crude in his relief as he thanks the Maker before excusing himself. Being soldiers, you rationalize that their language is going to be more colorful than most peoples', but Orchid… he's something else.

"How the fuck do you even spell that?" you wonder to yourself with a shake of your head, "And where does he find all these words?"

"It's best you don't ask." Wolffe cautions you. "Only inspires him to find more." The look he supplies you with suggests more than just speaking from experience. Don't encourage him. I don't need more headaches on the day we're meant to be relaxing, apparently.

"I'll be sure not to." you promise with a soft laugh and a teasing smile. "Best not to invite trouble in the General's absence."

Best not to invite trouble, or give the impression of it, at every available opportunity.

Wolffe, still as a sentinel beside you, greets the Kel Dor as he extracts himself from the forest and reenters the clearing. "Welcome back General."

You imagine you're being regarded with a great deal of confusion, an unexpected sight beside the Clone Commander. "...Arcadia, is something the matter?" To be greeted by his men is one thing, a normal and familiar occurrence, but this time one of the crew is present. Has something happened in his absence? Given your talents in risk assessment, have you found anything that would be a cause for concern?

"Just keeping him company," you explain, indicating Commander Wolffe beside you with a little gesture of your free hand, "while I sketch one of the Dinocaeruleus anthos flowers. For Tack." You felt you'd rested your wrist long enough when you made the offer to the researcher Clone, concerned for the device when he complained it was growing hot after hours without end in direct sunlight.

Offering to draw this strange little flower with blue silky petals, as accurately as you could to the best of your abilities, once again made for a pleasant distraction for the one-oh-fourth's battle-hardened leader. (He'll actually stay put so long as you're working on something, it appears.)

"That's very kind of you, Arcadia." Plo compliments you deservedly. "Making Tack a botanical illustration to reference at a future opportunity… Most helpful."

"Feeling rather spoiled." Tack chuckles agreeably. "An Arcadia artwork of my very own."

Stifling a sigh for the time being, you instead laugh softly and opt for teasing him in return. "Consider yourself lucky that I was bored and wanted to kill some time while waiting for General Plo to return. Can't expect these every time, Tack."

"Oh, I would never," Tack promises, "that'd be pretty karkin' entitled of me…" Swallowing his sudden nervousness, Tack recomposed himself after a beat. "It's good to see you've returned safely, General Plo."

The Kel Dor before the three of you dips his head in a gesture of polite agreement, mirroring the relief felt by the collective trio with gratitude of his own from the way his shoulders slacken ever so gently, and the time he takes to answer. "Thank you, Commander Wolffe and young Tack, both. I am relieved that no trouble found you all while I was away, and that I was able to return safely as well."

You don't need the use of the Force to sense the budding concern within the men to your left and right. "Oh? Did you run into trouble, General?" you ask, verbalizing the wonder shared by all.

With a simple shake, whatever fears swelling within you are abated, for the moment. "Not the sort you assume, no. There was something nearly troubling about the settlement when I came upon it; the stillness was unexpected. I presumed the inhabitants would be going about their lives up to my approach, expecting them to flee or fight if I made myself known, should I have made contact… But there was nothing. The entire place was still, deep in slumber."

And waking them up would have been unwise, Wolffe paraphrases the relayed message sent in earlier, connecting all pieces of the explanation. "Came back to avoid giving the impression of a threat in the event they found you."

General Plo nods before further adding he also sensed a strange presence in the Force in the settlement; he wants to wait closer to nightfall to potentially return, rather than leave. "I understand you must have your concerns, all of you… Especially yours, young Tack. But there was something strange… a flutter in the Force in that settlement that I cannot ignore."

His mere acknowledgement of the concern is a slight comfort for the moment. But why had Tack in particular been singled out? He had reacted the least between Commander Wolffe and yourself to the addressal of strange presences and the notion to remain on Little Archossi as night fell, rather than leave before the full setting of the sun as was originally planned.

The tight squeeze of the Commander's jaw had you concerned for the eventual ache to come following such an action; not to mention the sort of subconscious, nonverbal signals commonly associated with it were not entirely positive. Subtle insights to Wolffe's way of thinking.

The General wants to stay here past dark, now? A flutter in the Force could be anything, mean anything, or worse yet, nothing. Is the Force known for playing tricks on those it bestows its blessings, could this be a test? (But why would the General be tested here, now, on this likely uncharted planet untouched by war?)

Tack had given no such signs on the other hand, apart from now with the stammer in his voice. "G-General, I'm not certain what you mean…?"

Later, Plo Koon promises, he'll likely take the time to explain how he sensed the worries Tack has about this situation; for now, it appears he's getting a feel for the opinions of his commanding officer, Wolffe, and a member of the crew with training in risk analysis, you, first. "Are there any reasons you believe we need to consider that sway in favor of leaving before nightfall?"

Someone, between the two of you, gives a long-suffering sigh first.

"The safety of the Clones, and crew, sir." Short, to-the-point, and continual in his concern for his brothers, Commander Wolffe makes a rather obvious and deliberate point to communicate his reasoning.

And you did not miss the way his eyes, the brilliant silver and the rich vandyke, had raked you from head to toe as 'and crew' parted his lips. It wasn't a simple glance, or meeting your eye, but he eyed you up and down. (Why? Why had he done that?)

Since Wolffe has expressed concern for Master Plo's forces so succinctly, you opt to voice your concerns stirred up by the Kel Dor's observations he's reported back with.

"I'm not wild about the idea of looking like a threat to the people living on Little Archossi… There are so many of us. We had no real way of making contact before taking the gunships here this morning, and… I hate to make assumptions, but I have concerns we could vastly outnumber the inhabitants of the settlement and not know it. If I were them… I think I would be concerned about so many people suddenly showing up on my planet by the time I've woken up."

Two sides of the same credit, you and Commander Wolffe. In the end, the concern of overall safety, and the concern of appearing safe have been taken into account.

If he explains his findings to everyone else in the clearing, Plo Koon thinks inviting everyone to decide for themselves is the best option. It is officially the start of the late afternoon here on Little Archossi, and there is still time to plan for an encounter.

Those who wish to return to the Triumphant will leave before the sun begins to set.

With the will of the Force, and a healthy dosage of luck, any potential large-scale interaction between the soldiers of the Republic and the people on this forested planet will go off without a hitch.

Don't have a fic taglist form for the time being. For now, though, if you'd like to join a taglist for specific types of fics (for example: just TBB-centric or just TCW-centric (or both)) don't hesitate to ask. 🩷

[Masterlist]

[Early Morning] [Midday] [Here] [Evening] [Deep Night] [Golden Dawn part 1]

[Golden Dawn part 2]

28 notes · View notes

halobirthdays · 1 year

Text

Happy birthday to Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey!

Today is her -468th birthday!

Dr. Halsey is ONI's lead scientist the mastermind behind the SPARTAN-II project, their MJOLNIR armor, and the literal brain behind Cortana and the Weapon. Arrogant but brilliant, she is a genius and she knows it, which is why, despite her questionable actions, she is continually called upon by ONI and the UNSC for her invaluable expertise. Halsey routinely ignores orders and bypasses restrictions, believing her goals to be above limitations, much to the chagrin of her superiors, and in particular, her nemesis Margaret Parangosky. Her professional ambitions would come at the cost of her personal relationships, creating a strained relationship between herself and her daughter, Miranda Keyes. Halsey's input and expertise were essential to turn the tide of the Human-Covenant war, though at great cost. Halsey's actions, questionable though they were, effectively saved humanity from total destruction by the Covenant. After the end of the war, she was declared a war criminal for her actions by ONI. However, as the threat of the Banished and Created began to rise, she was recommissioned to serve the UNSC against their new foes.

Halsey was a child prodigy, completing her schooling at elite educational institutions at an advanced rate. By fifteen, she was already working on her second doctoral thesis. Halsey caught the eye of the Office of Naval Intelligence when she challenged Dr. Elias Carver's theory predicting that social order in the Outer Colonies would break into rebellion within twenty years. With her corrections, Halsey predicted that the colonies would rebel much sooner without immediate intervention, which would lead to at least thirty years of war and the deaths of five billion people. She brought her findings to ONI, only to discover that they already came to the same conclusion and intended to recruit her. It was a ploy--ONI showed Halsey the stakes by making her see the results for herself--but one that ultimately worked.

Halsey accepted the offer and was relocated to Reach at the age of eighteen, tasked with coming up with a way to quell rebellion in the Outer Colonies. She was drawn to the ORION project, a previous UNSC effort to create genetically-modified supersoliders to suppress rebel forces. Halsey concluded that the project's failure was linked to the ages of the candidates, whose bodies were not as malleable. The best candidates needed to be indoctrinated, fully compliant, and both physically and mentally malleable. The ideal candidates, therefore, were prepubescent children.

With ONI's approval, Halsey devised the ethically and morally questionable plan to kidnap exceptional children to be used as the candidates for what she dubbed the SPARTAN-II project. With the help of Jacob Keyes, she personally interviewed some of the candidates, eventually selecting seventy-five children. A few months later, she gave final approval to begin the kidnappings, replacing the children with flash-clones likely to die so that their loved ones did not look for them. This was also when she parted with Keyes with whom she had spent months with and developed a growing fondness. When the children were collected, she explained her intentions for them, and personally oversaw the years of training that followed.

Seven years later, while the Spartans were nearing the end of their basic training and the start of the risky augmentations, Halsey met Keyes again at a conference. During this reunion, Halsey became pregnant with their daughter, Miranda.

While Halsey wished to delay the augmentation procedures to make them safer, she was under the duel time restrictions of the impending rebellion and the fact that ONI wished to see the results of her efforts--threatening to replace her if she did not produce results soon. Thus, the augmentations protocol continued as scheduled. On February 28, 2525, she gave birth to her daughter, whom she left to the care of others almost immediately to oversee the Spartan augmentations. On March 10, the procedures began. Ultimately, only thirty-three children were augmented successfully, with another twelve who had survived but were rendered so disabled that they could not continue their training. Another thirty died.

In 2525, the intention of using the Spartans against insurrectionists was derailed by the discovery of the Covenant on Harvest. Realizing the greater danger this alien enemy posed, she began introducing the Spartans to the armor she designed for their use.

In the years that followed, Halsey would continued to advise the UNSC in its efforts to combat the Covenant. On March 24, 2549, she completed the final testing for an AI neutral interface addition to the Spartan's armor, which perceived as the final necessary upgrade. Against several civilian laws and military regulations, Halsey flashed-cloned herself twenty times in an effort to harvest the clones' brains and use them as the basis for a pool of smart AIs. The first AI to come from Halsey's experiment was Cortana, who took on the appearance of Halsey as a young woman. Cortana's first words were the words spoken to Halsey by her mother in Italian after a game of chess, years earlier: "When the game is over, the king and pawn go into the same box." Halsey permitted Cortana to choose the Spartan who she would be paired with, and both agreed that John-117, with whom Halsey shared a close relationship, was the best.

After the Fall of Reach and the beginning of the Halo events, Halsey would escape to Onyx. She would spend years collecting and researching Forerunner technology, until she was discovered in the shield would and arrested by Serin Osman at the behest of CINCONI Admiral Margaret Parangosky, who was able to cover up her personal vendetta against Halsey and detain her on Ivanoff Station.

She was eventually released and transferred to the UNSC Infinity to advise on incorporation Forerunner technology into the ship. She was present on Infinity when Forerunner artifacts were discovered on Requiem and brought aboard. Forerunner Prometheans attacked the ship, which lead to Halsey's capture to Requiem. It was here that she decided to join forces with Jul 'Mdama, allowing her to continue to pursue her goal of unlocking Forerunner technology while not being a captive to the UNSC.

During this period, she discovered the Janus Key, given to her by the Librarian. The Janus Key would allow her to access the Absolute Record, which would provide Halsey with the locations of Forerunner artifices all over the galaxy. She and 'Mdama collaborated to find the Absolute Record, which she was only able to access for a brief period before the Record was sent into slipspace by its custodian. Realizing that soon, 'Mdama would have no use for her, Halsey created a trap to contact Infinity and give them his location. Her plan worked, and 'Madam was killed by Jameson Locke and returned to Infinity. By this point, the UNSC required her assistance with the rise of the Guardians. When Cortana and the Created threat were discovered to be behind the Guardian events, Halsey was once again tasked with creating a way to fight back against a new threat.

That solution would take the form of the Weapon, an AI created from one of her stored brains to serve as an exact replica of Cortana. This replica would be able to bypass Cortana's restrictions, capture, and delete her, though it would prove unnecessary when Cortana sacrificed herself.

Halsey's current fate is unknown.

In canon (~2560), she is turning 68!

#halsey hate train stay off my post #catherine halsey #dr. halsey #halo #halo reach #halo 4 #halo infinite #halo 5 #ONI

67 notes · View notes

battlekilt · 1 year

Note

Your interpretation of Cody and Obi-wans relationship in parallel to Obi-wan and Anakins was something that never really crossed my mind. But now that you say it, it really is a fascinating view on them. I'd read a whole book about it.

In response to this post.

Funny you should say that, Anon. I am currently in the process of writing a rather sizable chunk of a fic, for the purposes of having a lot of it written before it starts going up, and the dynamic between these three are a key element. Though, I have a blorbo—Rex is the main character. These three? Though? They contain some of the most important relationships in his life, so that will be explored, a lot. Especially since the three of them play a large part in what drives the narrative.

I am glad you feel that way, specifically.

No matter what, Cody is, like all Clones, an incredibly young man. Even if we somehow set aside the fact that he was 'born' the year Obi-Wan became Anakin's master, which I don't think is entirely honest to wholly do, and focus on his physical development...

Cody is 'twenty-years' old when he meets Obi-Wan. Cody is functionally, in comparison, a 4-star General.

Let me elaborate further:

In the US Military, there are currently 17 active 4-Star Generals.

To quote Wiki:

There are currently 44 active-duty four-star officers in the uniformed services of the United States: 17 in the Army*, three in the Marine Corps, eight in the Navy, 11 in the Air Force*, two in the Space Force***, two in the Coast Guard, and one in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. ARMY** and AF** are bold because it fits the scope of the 3rd System Army, with the 7th Sky Corps is nested within the System Army. Which, fits with the allegorical theme of the GAR being based on the US Military. The Air Force was a nested tactical corps within the US ARMY from its inception in 1933-35 (ask a military historian which date and start an argument), and became a separate and equal element in 1947.

One remarkable note is that the US Army has the most 4-star positions that it has had since WWII. But, I digress.

Much like the US Military is divided regionally, the GAR is divided into the major galactic sectors. Nearly all are under the command of a member of the Jedi High Council, and there were a 1–2 Admirals that were given command for brief periods. All were served by the highest rank achievable by a Clone—Marshal Commander.

That's our sunshine boy. One of the most powerful 12–15 Clones in the whole Grand Army of the Republic.

Under Cody's command, because let's be real, Obi-Wan is there to provide legitimacy, vibe-checks, and familiarity with the galaxy that Cody would not have—having grown up on an isolated world barely connected to the GFFA, there are 250,000 Clone Troopers, with a support personnel corps at about 4x–7x per Clone Trooper, and this is aside from Naval staff and any civilian personnel.

This puts the 3rd System at:

Low: 1,769,472 High: 2,359,296

Let's put this more in perspective.

The current US Military, combined:

Active Duty: 1.4M Total: 2.2M

Alone, the 3rd has more Clones than the Army Reserve, as of 2021. However, in total, would have more personal than the Active Duty on the low estimate, and the total (active+reserve) is still under the highest estimate for the 3rd System Army.

Cody's command is... massive. While I understand that this fits with the galactic scale, that is still... a lot for one person. Yes, I am going to stand by my assessment that Cody would have the most military responsibilities, even in comparison to Obi-Wan. General Kenobi does not have the training that Cody has been given.

Now, let's go into Training VS Experience. Training is the education received: NEARLY all US officers are required to have a higher education—a bachelors degree or above.

(Admittedly, this does get complicated).

To my knowledge, most have all been taught at one of the military schools—West Point, Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, etc. There are some senior military colleges that are also secondary higher academies that some O-10s may have come from. Sorry, I didn't get too far down this one. While there may be exceptions, for the most part... this is going to be typical.

Generals typically have over 20 years of military experience.

30 years.

Developmentally, Cody is a twenty-year-old. 20. 10 * 2. Half of 40.

The lowest commissioned rank in the Army is 2nd Lt. Statically, the average age for all commissioned officers is, on average, in their forties, though a good number of our 2LTs are in their thirties.

Generals are typically in their forties.

This means that Cody is younger than... any officer.

Experience? Life Experience? Outside of education, drills and simulations? None. According to Legends, the Kaminoans barely allowed the RepComm trainers to ever use LiveAmmo. Though, it would be reasonable that by the time Cody would have entered ARC training, he would have been exposed to life-fire practice.

No matter how hard his training was, it was not the same as life-experience in the field. This is where Obi-Wan, one of the few Jedi Masters who has worked with military operations with ANY comfort—which was still very little, really lends himself to his XO.

The Kaminoans are professionals at creating and building... well, professional militaries. They had the help of Jango Fett and other Mandalorian trainers to augment their training. However, for the most part, the Clones were trained using the methodology and educational paradigm the Kaminoans created—though, never on the same scale. This was pure professional military education on an industrial level.

Cody?

Cody may have more training and knowledge than most four-star generals will have in their lifetime, all with the benefit of a wikipedia style swath of information, modern technology to impart that knowledge, and some pretty extensive stimulation. But, what is under Cody's pretty-little-military-cut head? All of it is knowledge that surpasses what most Generals will EVER dream, even if they just stayed in military education.

However.

He is a ten-year-old in a twenty-year-old's body with the brain of AT LEAST two-life-times of military experience.

Impressive, huh?

But, Cody is still... not like you or I.

At the time of Cody's training, it is highly unlikely they left the Kaminoan starsystem. If they did, they did not engage with the galaxy at large. This is a bit like growing up Tatooine.

On the edge of the galaxy, with only the stars to stare up at.

Anakin grew up in a sea of sand. Cody grew up in a... world of seas.

Cody's life experience, the life experience you and I would take for granted, is nonexistent. He could lead an army better than our best Generals could hope for. But, what else has he known?

My parallels are that Obi-Wan purposefully encouraged Anakin to be a sassy menace. He wanted to break that slave-mentality. Luckily, Anakin already showed that he could become a spitfire, even when he was sweet little Ani.

Similarly, I characterize that Obi-Wan did the same for Cody.

Anakin's shackles were the explosive in his body, the ferocity of how slave culture was brutally enforced—fear. However, Anakin knew that he was a slave, and he knew enough of something more.

Cody's shackles are the indoctrination he received from the time of his birth. Unfortunately for fandom at large, Cody is... a much more obedient military man that I think many want to see him. Based on remnants of Legends and the retained canon, no Marshal Commander would be in their position were they not... very obedient—to militant POVs. In fact, in the Disney comics, Cody has... a rather brutal attitude towards deserters—

BTW, in a military, desertion is one of the worst offensive that could be committed against a soldier's oath, that which they swore themselves to... but more importantly... their fellow soldiers.

In contrast, Wolffe is much more forgiving, and advocates for their re-assimilation in the GAR; Cody... disagrees with the fact that the deserters are still alive, and believes they should still be executed by a firing squad.

In season 1, Slick—for whatever reason—becomes a rare voice to call out the circumstances of the Clones. Not only do Rex and Cody recoil at a brother betraying the GAR, the Jedi, and of course... the killing of brothers, but they also scoff at his assertion that they are slaves.

Cut becomes a critical introduction to the slow character development we see Rex go through; Cody unlikely goes through the same because that's just how stories like this work. Just the simple act of asking the questions he gave to Rex set the stage for what happened on Umbara, and even then, Rex struggled to show defiance.

BTW, Fives's actions are fulfilling the duties of an (active) ARC. They are supposed to be more independent, whereas a command-class Clone like Rex may be a trained ARC, but his duties as a CC**** would mean that his prime directive is the cohesion of the command, and to assist in the joint operation between the Clones and the Jedi.

Fast-forward to Order 66 and Cody doesn't hesitate. Yes, it is the chip. However, that was not how ROTS was scripted or filmed. I know this is getting Doylist, but it is relevant. At that time, the Clones knew what was going to happen. They knew that they would eventually turn on the Jedi. Through the story of TCW08, it changes to a Manchurian Candidate concept, and eventually evolves the story of the chips that we know today. As the Doylist context changed, it remains that Cody acted without any pause. This is in line because the highest priority Cody held was always loyalty to the Republic. Loyalty to the REPUBLIC—Not the Jedi, not his brothers, not General Kenobi. Just. The. Republic. A traitor to the Republic is worst than the Separatists.

When the order went out, Cody's brain heard:

Obi-Wan friend. Obi-Wan betrayed Republic. Kill General Kenobi. He is no friend to the Republic—thus—to Cody.

Makes sense to him, especially at the moment. This is conditioning. This is indoctrination. This is militantism in action. The chip wasn't really necessary... it was for the sake of the audience who didn't want to believe that the men we began to care about would ever do this 'willfully,' even though all that mental conditioning and indoctrination would mean that they didn't have a choice... even if they didn't have the chip.

Obviously, by the time you get to TBB, when some Clones begin to question that Manchurian voice in their head, Cody's rationale returns, and so does his critical thinking. We have Cody, a Clone depicted in recent comics with a militant intolerance towards desertion, going AWOL from the Empire—that is HUGE. Was this his fall from grace? His fall to what was his darkside? From one angle, yes. However, it was a fallback into grace, and I like to think that it goes back to two people: Obi-Wan and Rex. We'll continue to focus on Obi-Wan, though.

I like to think that it was the seeds of the Jedi finally germinated, and it was Obi-Wan that planted them within his dear Clone Commander.

Obi-Wan being a one former menace himself—you know, a young man who thought tying two lightsabers to the ends of a rope was a good idea—got himself stuffed into one of the dreaded Jedi Council armchairs. Great, now he HAS to be responsible.

Cody and Anakin are, in many ways, parallels, just not direct. They are often inversions of each other, and together they make a great foil for Obi-Wan in general.

The idea that Obi-Wan saw this INCREDIBLY accomplished, intelligent, "gifted-child" of a Clone Commander and thought... "How do I get him to be a menace?"

I love it. I feel like it is just the thing someone like Obi-Wan Kenobi would do. It makes sense that Obi-Wan would want to help Cody grow beyond the very narrow—but extensive—field of knowledge, all for the express purpose of watching the young man develop into a more rounded individual.

It is also very, very Jedi. It was always the Jedi that were the sole friends of the Clones. So, it makes sense to me that the Jedi would advocate for this sort of well-rounded development. And the Clones? They would sorely need that kind of encouragement.

The Clones were never supposed to have names. They Clones were not individuals. It was the Jedi who told them to paint their units colors. It was the Jedi who TOLD him to pick out names. In Legends, and I think it fits with the remaining printed canon, Cody was actually very apprehensive and skeptical about how much of a good idea it was for the Clones TO develop individuality.

Cody was not bred for the specific purpose of his role—not even for being a CC. (Sorry, fanon)

He was just another Clone. Maybe he got nurtured and natured into a better candidate for a command-class Clone, but in the end? He was randomly chosen. As clarified in recent apocrypha, Cody was just a Clone Captain in the 91st when Obi-Wan found him and was impressed by him.

What made "Just A Clone Captain Cody" stand-out to Obi-Wan? There's plenty of theories that can arise.

In my lore, Alpha-17 recommended Obi-Wan go check out "#2224 in Windu's battalion."

From Captain to Marshal Commander? AHHHH. Someone send help.

Imagine the fine-lined walked poor young Obi-Wan had with Anakin: a former rebellious ginger-child himself, he became a well-behaved rule minder under Qui-Gon. Now he has this older Padawan, who is also a former slave of one of the harshest slave planets we know of. He has to get Anakin to be self-expressive, learn how to act on his own self-agency—AND—he has to also... try and help Anakin assimilate into the Jedi Order.

Take Cody: ten years old, looks twenty, has the knowledge of several lifetimes lived by career military men, who has seen very little of the galaxy.

Keep in mind, Obi-Wan met Jango Fett. He knew just what kind of attitude could lurk under that stony face so like the others, even if he said, "Yes, sir," without hesitation, and followed his orders faithfully.

I don't think Obi-Wan would be able to help himself. It is part of the Jedi Culture to be a positive presence. Unlike Anakin did with the 501st, Obi-Wan purposefully kept himself removed from most Clones; his empathy made it too difficult to ensure their suffering and death, so distance kept him remotely functional. The only two Clones Obi-Wan accepted as friends had been Cody and Rex. Obviously, Rex is an Anakin problem. But, Cody? His young, cloned, new friend? Right there. Right there. That... Jedi compulsion, that ITCH they get, it would gnaw at him. He can't help many others.

The same could have been said for Anakin, who was just freed, but had nowhere else to go—little Ani had no one else. Obi-Wan didn't have the same responsibilities as a fresh Knight as he would as a Jedi Master. He could risk everything and leave the Order to train Anakin if the Jedi won't matriculate him. He risked everything to help this one little boy. Later? He wants to risk everything, again. But now, his everything doesn't belong to him anymore—not even enough to consider leaving the Order. Every Clone death is another slice across him, and even a thousand papercuts will get'cha.

But, he wants to help. He would want to help beyond vibe-checks, lightsaber wielding, crazy feats of Force-enchanted bravery.

He would want to help a person—Cody, the clone so often by his side—become a PERSON in his own right. A young man that everyone else has forgotten IS a young man. I doubt Obi-Wan would ever forget that, like he never forgot that Anakin was a young man.

So, there is that itch. That... Jedi need to just... reach out and help make the galaxy a better place for others. One Clone. Is that too much to ask? Can he be allowed to be a mentor for ONE Clone? If he helped this Clone become more than a faceless soldier, if he helped this Clone have more growth and life experience than just what he was given on Kamino, maybe... Maybe Obi-Wan can imagine that there will be a life after the war. To do that, he wants to help his new friend become a full person—in the hopes of the After the War.

Obi-Wan cannot save everyone. He cannot help everyone.

But maybe...

Maybe, JUST maybe, he can help this one Clone become more of a person, and far... far less of just another number.

Slavery is a hell of a thing, and it comes in many forms. But another face of slavery is indoctrination, which is ultimately the stripping away personhood, so they can be utilized as a tool—sound familiar? Yeah, me too.

I think, Obi-Wan would recognize this about the two young men he cares about. Yes, even Rex, but... this post is about Cody and Anakin.

I went on more about Cody than Anakin because... there's a lot of wonderful meta about Anakin, and I'm not confident enough to try and fill the same niche. I also have so much I could say about how I envision Anakin and Cody get along, and how it might be through Obi-Wan's eyes. I'll just say this: he thinks both his overgrown students are hilarious together, and his tickles him... Ginger. ;)

Anyway, I hope this post finds you, anon, and you get anything from it. At the time of this post, I only have one posted fic. While it doesn't go as deep into this meta, there are some elements in it to get a taste of this characterization/meta. When the bigger version of the AU goes up—who knows. It is currently at 270K+.

Thank you for the engagement!

EDIT: There are MORE points of comparison that I just... couldn't get to. Such as the earliest characterization notes we were given about Cody, right after ROTS came out. (Overly cautious, anxious, but highly competent—I love me some anxiety-riddled people with excess competency. My "Imposter Syndrome" Cody isn't going anywhere, and it helps him lineup with Anakin.)

Side-notes and additional commentary under the cut.

***We don't acknowledge "space force" in this house.

**** Yeah, no, Rex is a CC. I'll fite over this. He is labelled in far more apocrypha as a CC, and it just gets way too complicated to label him a CT when he is in a command-class position. This is one area of new canon I'm just... gonna ignore. I hc that Krell was being a jackass to Rex.

Note: Rex was always a CC until the Umbara episodes. When he was called CT-7567... it was a script terror. I'm ignoring that retcon. There's even books printed as late as 2021 that list him as CC.

#commander cody #obi wan kenobi #anakin skywalker #long post #kilt's clonely meta #kilt's meta #gffa meta #bucket answers #anonymous #bucket's meta

31 notes · View notes

mandalorianbrainweasel · 6 months

Note

Ponds >:D

Ponds is being a good commander and getting his documentation work done with his music playing inside his bucket, thank you very much—the naval officers that don’t like playing music in the offices are nasty about it and the ones that do like it don’t agree with his tastes, while his men tend to let him have the commander’s prerogative to pick the music—when he gets a HUD notification that something has been set down out of view of his bucket’s visor.

He looks up first at the six pack of fizz that’s been set on his desk—Mandalorian orange flavour—and then up at the offending brother.

Spar smiles smugly down at him.

Ponds’s face does something complicated, going through the phases of unreality and grief of seeing him and then the joy of remembering he’s actually alive before settling on annoyance at being interrupted by someone who has enough social power at least to get him away from his work. “Fett,” he says flatly, and maybe he winces at how mechanical it comes out of his vocoder.

Spar’s smug smile widens. “Commander,” he returns in kind, though he does nothing to hide his amusement. “What are you working on?”

“That’s classified—you are a civilian in the end.”

Spar snorts. He’s wearing that fancy trainer shit, beskar’gam, and he’s wearing his hair in a long braid that would never fly for normal clones, and in the end he’s a brother who isn’t a brother anymore, because Fett took him and made him his brother. He takes one of the six pack off the pasteboard ring and cracks it open.

It fizzes temptingly.

Spar drinks and Ponds’s fingers twitch.

“Really?” Ponds asks, taking off his bucket and reaching for one of his own. “What do you want to bring bribes—why are you even in the Dustig sector?”

Spar winks at him. “That’s classified.”

Ponds groans—he may deserve that. He pops a fizz open and takes a long drink, letting the sweet and sour taste settle on his tongue. “You,” he says with great feeling, “are an asshole.”

Spar giggles.

(I’m accepting clone to subject to Spar for a while more.)

#my fanfiction #clone commander ponds #alpha clone spar #ssitb verse #ssitb #ssitb verse au

14 notes · View notes

contentment-of-cats · 1 year

Text

For Owlpartytime: Thranto

Eli is an actual officer now, not just an ensign, but lieutenant commander. They vaulted him over Agral, Barlin, and Pyrondi, and put him on a level with Hammerly, Lomar, and Yve - and none of them hold it against him.

Plenty of others do, though.

Yes, he more than deserved a promotion. It had been years, and he’d resented it, but knew it was an issue of having pissed of someone powerful and not an issue of his own competence. Still, Hammerly was a veteran of the clone wars, a good decade older than he was, and to be on a level with her was awkward. He ought to be a senior lieutenant, but he’s not going to quibble. This might be his last promotion for a while. Agral, Barlin, and Pyrondi will catch up with him soon, the way things are going.

The Chimaera is in for repairs, the Kuat yards bustling with Imperial army and naval personnel heading to various places to wait out their vessel’s return to deployment. He could go back to Lysatra, but transport to the edges of Imperial rule is whimsical at best - which is why ISDs exist.

Maybe something closer? His shipmates seems to be looking at Canto Bight, and honestly it’s not looking like a bad deal. Cheap but good hotels, buffets, buckets of booze, and what happens in Canto Bight stays in Canto Bight. That is unless you come back with an STD, in which case punishment ranges from confinement to quarters all the way to a court martial.

Better check the expiration on the prophylactic spray.

Hm. Nice Imperial sized bed. Sitting area. Desk. In-room safe for insignia and cylinders. Free breakfast. Good reviews. More important, an endorsement from the ISB as a secure hostel for officers and noncoms. A glance at Thrawn shows him still in conversation via holonet with Colonel Yularen - with Yularen putting his foot down.

Oh no.

It can only be a voluntold social event.

Thrawn terminates the connection after the colonel signs off.

“How is Colonel Yularen, sir?” Eli asks.

“Insistent. Apparently Seinar and other arms manufacturers and fleet systems contractors are holding a convention on Cantonica.” Thrawn’s presentation was neutral. “We are expected. Colonel Yularen will bring us in his private shuttle.”

Eli rested his face in his hands momentarily. He needed a stronger word than ‘fuck.’ He’d been looking forward to the casinos, the food, entertainments, free-flowing booze, and getting laid. He really needed to get laid. He’s even forego the booze, food, casinos, and entertainment if it would get him laid.

“I tried telling him that my remaining on Kuat to oversee repairs was critical. Does ‘bullshit’ mean the same thing in Basic as it does in Sy Bisti?”

Eli almost laughed. “Pretty close. It means untruthful, but not exactly a flat-out lie. I was already looking at Canto Bight.” Not getting laid, then. “I’ll book us into somewhere with a security rating and a less... celebratory atmosphere.”

The shuttle afforded to the head of the ISB is a Delta, packed with comforts and no doubt a lot of classified equipment. Thrawn is not sure why Colonel Yularen has latched on to him, or subsequently to the Seventh, but he is a pragmatist above all. Upon making port on Cantonica, he is marginally approving of their hotel, but makes sure that they are given a secure suite on a secure floor with a comms room that requires the abilities of Lomar to handle it.

Once they fish the man out of the nudie bar and sober him up.

The convention showcases weapons systems and fleet services. Thrawn hails Faro and Marinith and drags them in. Pyrondi and Hammerly have been freshly booted from a casino - apparently Pyro is really good at roulette - and there is no rest for anyone. Further, there is a lot more voluntold socializing than previously indicated.

Thrawn’s crew is happily social most of the time, but flee in all directions from being stuffed in a room with officialdom. Marinith ends up with a pole-dancing trophy, while Faro gets a number of executives blisteringly hungover. Pyrondi and Hammerly play five-card-fool-me and he has to get them off-planet before they end up fleecing the High Command. Finally, it’s just himself, Vanto, Yularen, Siward Cass, Moradmin Bast, and a half dozen executives in a place to make things dicey indeed. Conan Motti suggests a drinking game, one designed to get a newcomer completely hammered and presumably embarrass himself.

Human intoxicants are tasty, but not very strong. Relaxing, warming. Quite nice.

Surprisingly, Eli keeps up with Thrawn, as does Yularen.

No wait.

Vanto. Lieutenant Commander Vanto.

There.

So, perhaps he should propose some toasts.

Drinking to health and Warrior’s Fortune.

Good idea.

Ar’alani would be proud of him.

So Thrawn began the toasts in order of rank, making sure to do it in good Corellian whisky. Of course, nobody would refuse to drink, and nobody did. However, Admiral Motti fell asleep in a potted plant, several members of the IHC were unconscious under the table, and a number of civilian contractors ended up over the railing of the Stellar Center, vomiting into the fountain five stories down. Yularen murmured that Thrawn understood politics betterr than he thought, and both Eli and Thrawn carried the colonel back to his suite, handed him over to a discreet aide, and then went to their own rooms.

“That went well.” Thrawn turned expecting to see Eli, only Eli... Vanto. Vanto. Vanto. Was on the floor of the turbolift. “What are you doing down there?”

“Admiring the view.” Eli peers up at him. “You’re drink.”

“I’m drink?” What could that mean. Eli. No, Vanto. Lieutenant Commander Vanto was, as the CEDF term went, completely hammered. “You are intoxicated.”

“I’m not the one who toasted every member of the Imperial navy,” Eli retorts. “Do you know how much whisky’s sloshing around in your brain?”

“I am not hammered. Human intoxicants are nice, but nothing like what I am accustomed to.” Of course it’s been some years since he’s indulged in such. “You are Human, therefore drinking your intoxicants renders you hammered to the deck.”

“Bullshit, sir.”

“Who’s the one on the deck?”

“The view.”

Odd, there’s nothing to look at in a turbolift except for him. “I will assist you to bed, Commander Vanto.”

Now the man’s asleep. Thrawn pulls him upright and then across his shoulders in a carry. There’s a pleasant scent under the whisky and tibbak smoke. The doors open and Thrawn verifies it’s their floor before stepping out. Odd that it takes a few tries to open the hatch to their accommodation, but he makes it through and-

“Thrawn?”

“Yes, Eli Vanto?”

“M’gonna-”

Thrawn unloads him and holds an empty ice bucket under Eli’s face. Poor Human can’t hold his liquor. He has to sober Eli up. He can’t go to bed in this condition.

Now he’s asleep again.

Thrawn sighs and overshoulders him again, carrying Eli into his sleeping room and the fresher. It’s very warm in here. To a Chiss, Humans always overheat their spaces. Even the ‘chilly’ temperatures of the Chimaera are a nice spring day to Thrawn.

“Eli Vanto. Awaken. You are drunk.”

There is something murmured about pots and kettles that Thrawn doesn’t quite catch. Very well. Since Livan... Eli Vanto is horizontal on the bed, Thrawn tugs off his boots, then his socks. His aide sits up abruptly and spends some time dry-heaving into the waste bin hastily procured from under the desk. This will not do. Thrawn carefully helps him out of his tunic, belt and kepi set on the chair, tunic following the socks into the cleaner.

“You, too.”

“Ch'ah am nah ch'at in'a vea carcir vuhncib tikim canseo.”

Eli’s face scrunches itself. “What?”

Thrawn repeats himself. He is not the one so intoxicated that he is projectile vomiting.

“Thrawn? It’s not Basic, Meese Caulf, Sy Bisti, or any of the six other languages I speak. I’m going to guess you’re speaking Chiss.” Then his aide has the effrontery to chuckle. “I told you you were drunk.”

Pausing, Thrawn considers a theory that Human intoxicants might have a delayed effect. Pulling a knife from his boot, he splays his hand on the dresser and begins to stab between his fingers faster and faster until-

“Oops.” “SHIT! Thrawn-”

Blood everywhere.

The next moments are muddled as Eli has to vuhn again and Thrawn holds his napkin-wrapped hand above his head while Eli finds the bacta spray - hobbled by his trousers sliding down his hips as they are partially unfastened. There’s blood all over his white uniform. It’s a common occurrence, though it is not usually his. He stands and removes his tunic and belt - the napkin falls and now there’s blood on his trousers.

“It’s possible that I’m slightly inebriated, Commander Vanto.”

Eli comes back in with the bacta spray and two doses of something called Get-Rite. “Ya think?”

“That was sarcasm.” Ha. See? He can pick up some Humanisms. Then again, it could be long exposure to Eli.

The bacta goes on, both of them give up on trousers and their uniforms go in the cleaner on the ‘heavy duty’ cycle, leaving both of them in their underwear.

“You know, sir, that when I imagined both of us in a room in our underwear, this is not what I had in mind.” Eli looks morosely at his bloodied bed.

It takes a moment to sink in and Thrawn puzzles over it “Why would you need to imagine me in my underwear. You’ve seen me in my underwear.”The academy, aboard the Blood Crow, shared accommodations-”

The light, as Ziara would say, finally clicks on.

Oh.

“You imagining me in my underwear is sexual in nature.” Nailed it! But. “You are also my aide and a promising young officer whose reputation I in no way wish to taint. More than that, I consider you a friend and a confidante. I am,however, willing to state, that such attraction is... reciprocal and-” That color could not be healthy. His infrared is almost a miniature nova. “Are you all right? Did you drink something to make your ears turn that color? Are you about to die?”

In answer, Eli bowls him over and both of them land on the floor at the foot of the bed, noses bumping lips smashing and a possible chipped tooth later they surface.

“What happens in Canto Bight stays in Canto Bight,” Eli blurts.

“I greatly wish that were true.” He is embracing his aide and his friend, and is disinclined to let go. “I also refuse to take advantage of our lowered inhibitions for my own delight.”

“I have the Get-Rite. We’ll drink it, suffer, and then decide.” Eli hands him the little green glass bottle. “I know that I won’t be changin’ my mind.”

“Get-Rite.is an anti-intoxicant?” Thrawn thumbs off the cap.

“Think of it as bacta for bad adult decisions.” Eli uncaps his own and clinks it with Thrawn’s. “One. Two. Three.”

Thrawn knocks his back and then wishes dearly that he hadn’t. His tongue tries to leave his head. His stomach attempts to return it, but his esophagus slams shut, unwilling to suffer a second time. Unable to sweat, his eyes stream tears. He is sure that vital organs cannot scream, but his kidneys and liver manage a reasonable facsimile and his brain fizzes and quivers in his skull. His ears pop as if he’s plummeting into atmosphere.

“Btuzahi ch'ah non!” Please shoot him now. Please.

Eli is uttering a nonstop stream of impressive multilingual profanity.

And then it’s over, aside from the desperate need to drain their bladders of a fuel drum of excess fluid. Then they are left wobbly-legged, intensely dehydrated, and sober. They wash up silently, sharing the walk-in shower, wrapping themselves in towels.

“I meant it. That kiss.” Eli reaches for Thrawn’s arm, hesitates, then completes the contact - his warm Human hand on Thrawn’s shoulder. “Drunk or sober, Thrawn, the answer’s the same.”

“For me as well, Eli. Just not, I think, tonight. I mean, this morning.” Cautiously he slides an arm around the younger man. “Fluids, food, and rest are my best recommendations.” A breath. “If you would like to share my bed.”

Eli looks at his wrecked bed. “Yeah. I can do that. I’ll order, though.”

Greatly daring, Thrawn proffers a kiss and finds it very warmly received and reciprocated.

“Do Chiss eat breakfast in bed?”

Thrawn cocks his head. “No. I cannot say that we do, unless ill or injured.”

Eli manages a tired swagger as he walks to the lounge, making the towel swish enticingly. “I am going to introduce you to a great Human tradition.”

Something in Thrawn’s chest loosens, a tension leaving his neck and shoulders. The desire is mutual. Everything else can be worked out from that starting point. He goes to his room to make the bed for two.

#thrawn #eli vanto #thranto #drunk #hammered #sh*tfaced #liquified #intoxicated #first time #awkward #no pants #request #owlpartytime

38 notes · View notes