Crack Au fic Snippet #2

Fox: Fox Out.

: Fox is offline:

Tech: .... okay.

Cody: That's normal.

Cody: Looks like it's just the two of us then.

Tech: That will probably be for the best.

Cody: ???

Tech: The device that I have successfully hacked is linked to your device.

Cody: .......

Cody: So, I’m the bait then.

Tech: Precisely

Cody: .......Tech.

Cody: How did you manage to hack the device exactly?

Tech:  I had to temporally take control of your device, commander.  

Cody: And you did this remotely?

Tech: Only momentarily.  I have been monitoring all nine infected GAR accounts since the start of my involvement on this mission.

Cody: ........I should be more concerned about that.

Cody: But, at the moment I just want to catch this bastard.

Cody: Okay how do you plan on getting their attention?

Tech: They are online right now.

Cody: wat?

Tech: The culprit seems to be typing in a solo chat that is locked to any outside influence.

Cody: Okay......

Cody: Do we know why?

Tech: Unknown.  And since we cannot grantee that the culprit will stay online long enough for me to back track the link.  I thought beneficial it to have you interact with them via your own account while I worked.

Cody: .....

Cody: This was just a courtesy call to let me know that I was being used as bait wasn’t it.

Tech: .... I can neither confirm nor deny that statement.

: Hunter is Online:

Hunter: We told him to call you first.

: Hunter is offline:

Cody: .....

Tech: .....

Cody: Alright, lets get this over with.

Dead Among the Living

Summary: Fives knew he had a target on his back. The Chancellor himself wanted the ARC dead. With the help of his brothers, he faked his death and went into hiding. Though the news of a resurrected Domino may have him coming into the light-

Warnings: mentions of death, past trauma, Canon typical violence/Canon violence, cursing

This was originally for day 2 of @tbb-appreciation-week but I procrastinate and apparently can't get my shit together-

Prompts: Echo, No order 66 AU, Touching foreheads, "This wasn't supposed to happen"

Chapter 1

19BBY

Officially, I'm dead. Any document you find on my death will tell you I "lost it" and Commander Fox took me out to save lives.

Unofficially, we planned for this. When I found out about the Chancellor, I confronted Fox. I didn't think he'd believe me, but he did. We both knew the only way I was getting out of this fiasco alive was if everyone else in the galaxy believed me to be dead. So that's what we did. As of this moment, a total of 6 people know I'm still alive. Unfortunately, that number probably isn't going to change-

"Fives! Stop talking to yourself and get up here!"

Fives sighed, turned off the holo recorder and stuffed it in one of his belt pouches.

"Fives!"

"I'm coming! I'm not deaf!" Fives stood up from the consol he had been seated at, moving up towards the cockpit. The moment he stepped in, a ration was pelted at him, hitting him square in the face. "Gah-! Cross!"

The sniper sent him an amused smirk, his arms crossed innocuously over his chest. He didn't say a word as Fives bent down to pick up the ration bar, unwrapping it and taking a bite. Fives kept their eyes stubbornly locked the whole time, glaring blunt daggers that they both knew meant nothing more than annoyance.

Across the cockpit, Hunter cleared his throat loudly, calling everyone's attention. "Fives, Crosshair, enough. We've got another mission and it's gonna be complicated."

Fives took another bite of the ration bar as Crosshair shrugged. "When is it not?"

Hunter cut him a look of slight annoyance. "It's complicated because we are going to be working beside the 501st." The Sergeant turned his gaze back to the ARC. "Specifically under General Skywalker and Captain Rex."

Fives ran his hand down his face. "Yeah, that makes things complicated…" he looked back up at Hunter, "Rex will recognize me in an instant. As will half the 501st."

Hunter nodded in agreement. "Which is why I'm a bit confused as to why Commander Cody specifically asked for us on this mission."

The ARC gawked at Hunter, bewildered. "Cody?! Why the hell would he put us with the 501st when he knows I'm with you lot?!" Fives pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut. "He's specifically been keeping us away from anyone that would recognize me for months!"

Hunter crossed his arms, his shoulders falling in a light shrug. "You might have to stay in your bucket the whole mission. The Commander said he'd explain more when we land on Anaxes."

Fives looked past Hunter to watch the swirling lights of hyperspace. "Cody's gotta have a reason, right?" He met Hunter's gaze. "A really good reason. He knows how important it is to keep me hidden. He wouldn't jeopardize the entire war just for some mission."

Tech spun the pilot's chair around to look Fives in the eye. "You are correct. You remaining 'dead' is imperative to us finding a way to shut down the behavioral modification chips in the rest of the GAR."

Fives motioned to Tech but kept his gaze on Hunter. "Which is why I shouldn't be going anywhere near the 501st. What could possibly be important enough to risk this?!"

Hunter grabbed a datapad off the copilot's seat, handing it to the ARC. "All we know is it's a data retrieval mission in the middle of Separatist controlled space."

Skimming the information on the datapad, Fives glanced back up at Hunter. "We've run this kind of mission several times solo. Why do we suddenly need jedi backup?"

Hunter shrugged, unable to find an answer for the ARC. Fives handed the datapad back before turning to leave, finding himself unceremoniously crashing into the seat of the tail gun moments later. Fives let his head rest against the back of the chair, his eyes falling closed as he sucked in a lungful of the recycled air in the small ship. The soothing hum of the engine had the ARC slipping in and out of consciousness, letting the time fly by as the swirling blue of hyperspace lulled him further into a dreamless sleep.

---

Something grabbed Fives' shoulder. Jarring awake with a start, Fives whipped his head around in search of a threat, only to be met with a pair of mismatched eyes and a familiarly warm smile. The tension melted from Fives' shoulders like ice.

"Sarge told me to wake ya and letchu know we are about to land," he explained before promptly turning and walking back towards the front of the ship. Fives let his head fall back against the headrest, taking a shaky breath before getting down from the gunner's nest to follow Wrecker. Through the cockpit view port, Fives watched as Tech piloted the Marauder down towards the planet, landing strip gradually coming into view. He could tell by their speed that Tech was about to do one of his 'fancy' landings as Fives had taken to calling it.

Hunter patted Fives' shoulder to get his attention. "Crosshair's agreed to leave his bucket on for the duration of the mission to keep some of the heat off you, but it's probably best you don't talk too much."

Fives glanced over at the sniper where he was leaning against the wall. Crosshair nodded to him, a small smile crooking his lips. He smiled back as Crosshair spat out the toothpick between his teeth, pulling his bucket over his head. He turned back to Hunter, giving him a nod before walking back to his bunk to grab his own helmet. He felt the ship lurch and turn quickly, causing him to crash into his bunk with a string of curses. Fives would be shocked if there wasn’t at least one decapitated trooper when they touched down. The landing gear touched down with a rumble Fives could feel in his chest, and only when he felt the ship’s weight settle did he know it was safe to stand up without risk of getting knocked back on his shebs. Fives promptly snatched up his blasters and shoved them into their holsters before rushing to the cockpit. The rest of the batch had donned their helmets, doing a final double-check of their gear to make sure everything was as it should be. Hunter strode up to throw open the ramp and the rest of the batch filed out after him.

"The cavalry has arrived!" Wrecker boomed.

Fives had to fight to keep his breathing steady when he noticed the three other troopers standing with Cody. The last time he’d seen Rex was when he’d watched the light leave his eyes and felt his body run cold in his arms. Now, he was standing before his Captain, alive and well and unable to say a word to ease the grief he knew he had caused. Beside Rex stood Jesse and Kix, both wearing looks of confusion as they surveyed the batch. Jesse now probably wore ARC armor, but he still had the republic cog painted brightly on the front of his helmet. Fives recalled the day he had returned with that same cog tattooed on his head. Fives had given him shit for it for weeks and Kix had been no different. Kix had grown his hair out to a regulation cut which surprised Fives. He always had those designs shaved into his head and Fives had helped him re-shave it on several occasions. His tattoo peeked out from under his hairline , hiding the rest of the phrase behind his tight curls.

As they approached the group, Hunter removed his helmet, holding it firmly against his side and extending his other arm out to Cody. Meeting him halfway, Cody grasped Hunter’s hand in a firm, professional shake.Tech followed suit, easing his helmet off and surveying the three 501st troopers before them.

"Sergeant. Good to see you again," Cody said, letting his hand fall back to his side.

Hunter offered a smile, nodding. "You too, sir."

Cody turned to the other three troopers, motioning to the Sergeant. "This is Hunter."

Rex nodded, looking Hunter over. Jesse and Kix were still visibly confused. Fives tamped down on the snicker that threatened to spill past his lips. He knew the batch didn't look like any clones they had seen before. Wrecker was an absolute mountain of a man and even though both Tech and Crosshair looked more like the average clone than Wrecker, still stood four inches taller than average.

"Sorry we’re late, Commander," Hunter apologized "We had just finished putting down an insurrection on Yalbec Prime when your comm came in. Had a few unforeseen… complications."

Wrecker’s booming laughter echoed across the landing platform, causing other troopers walking past to stare at the group. "Ever fought a male Yalbec?" he challenged, looking between the three regs.

Jesse shrugged uncomfortably. "Um… No. Can’t say that I have."

Wrecker cackled , swiftly pulling out his large vibroknife. "You’re lucky! Only way to kill ‘em is with one of these!"

Hunter chuckled, shaking his head. "That’s right. Wrecker here cut off the queen’s stinger while she was still alive."

Wrecker slid the knife back in its sheath, the confident, borderline cocky smile never leaving his face.

Hunter looked back at Wrecker with a challenging glint in his eyes . "That's why all those Yalbec males tried to eat us."

"Ah, technically,” Tech cut in swiftly, “they were trying to mate with us. And, for your information, the stinger of a Yalbec Queen is a delicacy on some planets."

Cody smiled and motioned to Tech. "They call him Tech." he explained shortly.

Hunter nodded, turning to the regs. "Yeah, he can fill your head with useless info for hours." He motioned to the sniper behind him. "Crosshair, on the other hand, is not much of a conversationalist, but when you have to hit a precise target from ten klicks, Crosshair’s your man." He turned his gaze back to Cody, his helmet shifting in his hands. "So, Commander, what kind of suicide mission do you have for us this time?"

Cody motioned to the parked gunship on the other side of the platform. "Let’s get going. We’ll brief you on the way."

The group followed Cody across the landing strip, loading into the LAAT. The batch stayed on one side as the 501st piled into the other. The ship took off quickly, the doors sliding closed once they were already in the air.

Jesse was watching the batch closely, his eyes falling on Crosshair who's helmet hid any expression from view. "What are you looking at?" he accused, glaring at the sniper.

Sniper shrugged with an amused huff that was barely heard over the engines. "We don't usually work with regs." Fives could hear the smirk that had wormed its way onto the sniper's face.

Jesse only glared harder. "Regs?!" he hissed , taking a menacing step towards the sniper.

Hunter quickly stepped between Crosshair and Jesse. "He’s talking about regular clones,” he clarified, calm and placating “But don’t take it personal."

Cody set his hand on Jesse's pauldron, the ARC looking back at the commander. "We’re all on the same team, so cut the attitude and listen up,” he instructed, stern and no-nonsense “Here’s the mission: Our target is this Cyber Center." Cody pulled out a holo projector, a map of the Cyber Center illuminating the ship in cool blue light. "It’s the brains of the entire Separatist campaign here on Anaxes."

"I could demolish that with one hand. Yeah!" Wrecker bragged, grinning wildly as he, pumped his fists in the air.

Though it was clear that Cody found Wrecker's excitement amusing, he cut him off. "This isn’t a demo job, Wrecker. It’s strictly a retrieval operation."

Fives watched as Wrecker deflated a bit with that news but the big guy was still clearly smiling. It was then Fives noticed Rex was staring at him. Specifically, his eyes seemed to be glued to his shoulder armor which Fives realized had the same Rishi eel painted that his old helmet did. Fives mentally facepalmed at his own stupidity. He had kept the design as a reminder of who he used to be, not thinking about the fact that it was his identifying mark within the 501st. Though it was evident Rex was staring at it, he never said a word.

Fives reached for one of the handles above his head as the LAAT shook, causing almost every clone to lose their footing.

"We're going down!" Wrecker yelled, his laughter barely heard.

Fives grabbed the handle with a death grip as the ship hit what he assumed was the canyon wall. The bone chilling scrape of durasteel against rock filled the small ship as it slid down the canyon wall. Fives was thrown as they finally hit the ground, landing on top Crosshair who was quick to start manhandling him off. A large hand grabbed his arm, pulling him from the wreckage, dropping him on his shebs on the side of the ship next to Jesse. Wrecker continued to help the rest out of the ship while Fives jumped down onto the sand, offering Jesse a hand which he ignored.

"We always get shot down when we travel with regs." He complained.

"Cody!" Kix yelled turning towards the others. "Help!" He turned back, looking down into the ship. "He's trapped! We have to do something!"

Rex stepped forward towards the ship. "I'll get him."

Hunter moved in front of the Captain, pushing him back. "Woahwoahwoah!" He said quickly. "Easy Captain." He looked over Rex's shoulder. "Wrecker! Get him out." He continued to push Rex back away from the ship, the Captain putting up a small fight but let himself be moved.

"Get back!" Wrecker ordered, rolling his shoulders with a grin.

Kix stared at Wrecker in disbelief. "This is ridiculous! He's going to need help to get Cody out of there!"

Beside him, Crosshair chuckled, motioning to Wrecker with his head. "He's gonna get the gunship out of there, not Cody."

Wrecker slid his helmet on, grabbing the side of the gunship. Kix watched in awe as Wrecker lifted the ship, pushing over and away from the Commander underneath. He grabbed Cody, slinging him over his shoulder and walking back towards the group. "Boom." As if on cue, the gunship exploded in a rain of fire and metal causing Kix to flinch next to him.

Kix ran forward as Wrecker placed Cody on the ground, the Commander groaning in pain. "He has internal damage. I can cut the pain, but he needs help fast."

"We all need help."

Fives looked to Crosshair who was seemingly looking over his shoulder. He turned, spotting battalions of battle droids steadily marching towards them. "Oh fun." Fives said with a shrug.

"That blast gave away our position." Crosshair pointed out, turning towards his Sergeant.

Hunter chuckled, pointing to the obliterated gunship. "I thought getting shot down gave away our position."

"Everyone, find cover. We’ll hold this position and let them come to us." Rex ordered, pointing towards the gunship.

Hunter shook his head. "I don’t think so, Captain. That’s not our style. We prefer going to them." Turned back to the batch. "Bad Batch, Plan 82: Shockwave!" He yelled, pulling his helmet over his head. "Let’s get to work."

Tag list! (Let me know if you'd like to be added!)(I forgot I had a tag list😅)

@rain-on-kamino @idoubleswearimawriter @staycalmandhugaclone @nobody-expects-the-inquisitorius @kalykat

I may be missing people so just let me know pls!!!

Fun fact: When I was little my parents bought a four disc set of the original TMNT Movies, the three of those, and then the 2007 TMNT. And for SOME REASON, little nine year old me was scarred for life after watching 2007. Keep in mind I had no knowledge whatsoever of the ninja turtles, I just thought the movies looked cool.

But 2007 shook me to the core, probably because Leo and Raph fought almost the whole time and Leo almost died, and my tiny brain didn't understand plot development and the whole "SUFFER FOR THE STORYLINE" concept.

And for years I just completely forgot about it.

Until my friend got me into TMNT like, six months ago, thank you @theressomanyfandomsineedtojoin

And ever since I joined the fandom there was this nagging thought in the back of my brain like "hey there's something you're repressing you should figure it out" and I'm like yeah that's about as helpful as any website telling you your password OR username is incorrect but won't tell you which one.

Then I finally remembered that 2007 TMNT terrified me and talked myself into watching it again.

Y'all if you haven't seen it, DO IT IT'S SO GOOD It's literally on my list of favorite movies now.

Anyway, after that whole mess, have some 2007 TMNT quotes as a reward for making it this far lol.

“Did you turn the computer on? Have you plugged it in. Yeah. That would help…”

“No, I’m not playing hard to get! I’m telling you sir, it’s not that kind of phone line!”

“No, I’m not your enemy, I’m just Donnie, you’re friendly IT tech support, here to help you 24 hours a day sir- I’m sorry! Ma’am. Heh.”

“Why couldn’t you send him away for training?”

“Well guys, if you ask me, I’d say this has Winter’s name written all over it.” “How do you figure that?” “Because, THIS has Winter’s name, written all over it.”

“I’m not dreamin, am I?!” “No, Mikey, you’re not dreaming.” “Oh, good. I have nightmares about birthday parties.”

“Donnie, you’re so smart. Why don’t we have jetpacks?” “Yeah, that’s good, Mikey, I don’t even trust you with a drivers license.”

“Well, good news is there’s a bunch of Foot ninjas getting the snot kicked out of them.”

“YEah, the turtles are back, dudes! I’d give us a ten for style, an eight for skill, and, uh, two, for stealth.”

“Dudes, did anyone get the license plate of the thing that hit us last night?”

“Yeah, it looked like your mom, dude!” “Uh, that would make her your mom too, dufus.” … “Yeah, whatever.”

“So it’s like Haleys Comet, but monsters come out.” “Uh, yes, I guess so!” “Heh. I’m smart.” *crashes*

“And that would be the swirling vortex to another world, i assume.” “Cool! I want one.”

“Winters.” “Looks more like Fall. Heh. Get it?” “Mikey, remember our talk.”

“I’m never usually that happy to be in pain.” “He’s happy because he’s mortal again, Mikey.”

“Yeah, I do nothing. You’re right. You got me all figured out.”

“I’m very disappointed in you, knucklehead! Guess night school’s in session!”

“That was too easy! *crash* … Like I said, too easy!”

“Hey, Casey! Meet me on the roof!” “Raph? What is it?” “The roof. You know what a roof is, dontcha?”

“Oh look at you, you’re so cute! Come here, Imma drop kick you to hurty town!”

“You’re gonna need these if you’re gonna lead us out of here.” “We’re gonna need you too.”

“Typical. We do all the work, he gets all the thanks.”

“Ah, I love bein a turtle.”

“Look, Raph, if you’ve got something you wanna get off your shell, now’s the time. But I’m not gonna sit here and debate Splinter’s direct orders with you!”

“Come to daddy.” *literally has like eight sharp objects now"

“What is it with ninjas and smoke pellets?”

“What’s going on Raph?” “Did I mention that we ran into a monster last night?” “No, you kind of FAILED to tell me about THAT one, buddy!”

“And now we got walking statues? You got a plan for those?!” “Hey, those are a first for me too.”

“And I thought Girl Scouts were pushy!”

“Cody is going to break up with Donna. I just know it.” “We interrupt the Gilmore Girls for this special news report. Monsters loose in the city? Strange reports are coming in tonight about a construction site incident that sounds like something out of science fiction.” “BOYS!”

“Raphael. You always bear the world problems on your shoulders. It is an admirable quality when you are a protector of others. But you must realize that while, at times, you may not be my favorite STUDENT, that does not mean that you are my least favorite SON. You are strong, passionate, and loyal to a fault. These are the merits of a great leader as well. But only when tempered with compassion and humility.”

“Sensei! You alright?” “Hehe. We must do this more often!” *whack* “I still got it!”

“Hey, look guys, I grabbed a toaster!” -Tommy

“I love your work ethic, Tommy, you’re an inspiration to us all.” -Gang leader

“Looks like you got a sidekick.” “Yeah, right. You’re the sidekick.”

Commanders and Children

So @existentialscientist, you mentioned the youngling arc of TCW a while back; took longer to get around to this than I intended, but here's a rough outline of a Youngling Arc AU where Cody actually gets to go pick up the Jedi kids and inevitably gets drawing into the shenanigans!

Plot Stuff:

-Unlike in the show, Cody manages to set out with the pick-up car shuttle before Grievous pops out of hyperspace, but Grievous does still show up to cause problems for the fleet. This prevents Cody from simply returning to the Negotiator with the kids in tow, because it's not a good idea to bring children straight to an active warzone.

-However, it would take a lot longer to get them all the way back to the Temple or the next-nearest Jedi not currently in active combat, and Ahsoka is still stuck with the pirates, so Cody decides to wait for word from the battalion (since the combat could potentially end in just a couple hours, making the original plan still feasible) and help the kids try to fix their ship in the meantime.

-Said ship is still venting coolant and needs to land. On Florrum. Cody is not thrilled by this, and he does his best to make sure they're not close to the pirate base, but the pirates don't exactly broadcast their location so they probably end up landing about where they did in the show.

-The kids want to go rescue Ahsoka. Cody tells them firmly that they are not to perform any heroics and his first priority is to get them home safely, though in the back of his head he's strongly considering sending them to safety on the shuttle he arrived with because he knows R2 is a remarkably capable little droid that could probably pilot that one a lot more easily than the old Jedi ship, and also if they get Professor Huyang fixed they'll have a responsible adult chaperone. Cody could stay on Florrum and start on some recon, because Rex would kill him if he was here and didn't do anything to try to help Ahsoka. Cody himself also does not want to leave Ahsoka with the pirates longer than necessary if there's something he could do about it.

-He's still weighing his options while working on ship repairs (assisted by the tech-savvy Nautolan child while the others work on fixing Huyang or building their lightsabers) and waiting for word from the battalion. At some point he realizes it's gotten suspiciously quiet and his Someone's Getting Up to Trouble Sense is tingling, so he goes back inside the ship proper to find that the kids, naturally, have decided to run off and rescue Ahsoka themselves.

-Cody, naturally, sets out after them. He probably takes the shuttle at least part of the way and hides it in an outcropping as soon as he gets close to any other visible beings.

-Now, one of two things could happen here:

A) Cody catches up just as the kids are convincing the troupe leader that they're a group of acrobats. He claims to be their manager because revealing them as a group of (vulnerable and inexperienced) Force-sensitives and himself as a Republic officer might have Consequences and also he's kind of used to rolling with Jedi Shenanigans. Still, he Does Not Like This Plan. He's very skilled in living up to certain roles, but "acrobat manager" is not one of them, and these are actual children heading straight into the pirates' den. Jedi children, yes, but that just means he has no idea what kind of training they do or do not have. At least with clone cadets he'd know their respective capabilities! But Jedi pull off some wild feats, so there's a possibility this will actually work. He's very insistent that the kids stick strictly to performing and let him go find Ahsoka, which he does by either pretending to help the troupe serve drinks or pretending to join the audience.

B) Cody's just a little too late, finding the point where the kids' tracks end and the troupe's trail keeps going. He follows the troupe to the pirates' base and has to sneak in commando-style. Cue long-suffering facepalm when he sees what the kids are doing, but blowing their cover would be literally the worst course of action so he just makes his way to Ahsoka.

-Option A has more comedy potential, while Option B seems a little more like what Cody might actually do and plays better to his skillset. Also, unless Cody leaves his armor on the ship when setting out after the kids, he'd probably have to either ditch it with the troupe (Not Ideal) or disguise it with a costume coat (or possibly a very large poncho, Rex-style) and mask (in case anyone knows what a clone's face looks like). Option B has him being sneaky anyway, so this is at least somewhat less of a problem--and he could probably steal a guard's coat for camouflage.

-Either way, he makes it to Ahsoka, who senses him and manages to shuffle back behind a crate while the pirates are distracted. He frees her, and they see the kids manage to get the lightsabers, so they start sneaking around and quietly picking out an escape vehicle that they'll inevitably need to steal when the pirates notice Ahsoka is missing.

-The ensuing getaway goes mostly the same in the show, except they actually succeed in outrunning the pirates because with two Commanders around their pursuers don't stand a chance and the transport doesn't crash. Also, Cody and Ahsoka may or may not have performed a little more preemptive interference of the explosive kind on a couple of the vehicles they did not use, if Cody had detonators with him. He might not have brought any for what should've just been a pick-up, but maybe he simply likes to be prepared.

-Anyways, they make it (and Hondo gets to deal with Grievous on his own, not that they know that, but the wily pirate probably manages to escape somehow) back to Cody's shuttle, and the expedition ship meets them somewhere either on-planet or back out in space. The repairs are sufficient to get them to a rendezvous with the Republic fleet, which has made its retreat and given them coordinates to return to. And there's probably some conversations along the way, definitely including a little bonding between the Commanders; I'm a firm believer in the idea that they enjoy addressing each other by rank as a bit, and I wish we got to see them interact in the show.

-At least a few of the kids probably fall asleep on the ride home. Ahsoka definitely needs a nap, but she's probably reluctant to sleep before the kids are safely back. Still, she might doze off in the co-pilot seat.

-The Negotiator still got blown up, sadly, and Obi-Wan might be slightly worse off since Cody wasn't there to help him delay Grievous (rip the cool barrel shot) but not by much; Hondo is not here to demand payment for any generous services, but the kids probably have fun recounting the tale of what happened.

Misc:

-The kids would probably be a lot more divided about running off to rescue Ahsoka, since help did actually come and at least a couple of them would probably be inclined to listen to the adult in charge. Katooni seems like a responsible type, and Byph seems like an anxious sort, but they might both go to try and keep the others out of trouble (and because I don't really wanna leave any of the kids out). Ganodi is still staying behind as back-up pilot and/or to provide distractions to delay Cody's inevitable pursuit. She does not last long against the Big Brother Commander Look, but she tries. She does finish fixing Professor Huyang, and she and the professor and R2 get the expedition ship to rendezvous with the shuttle.

-Is Cody good with kids? I like to think he's got good communication/social skills and experience being an ori'vod, so he's not terrible with them. He's not doting the way Waxer would be, but he's at least used to adjusting his demeanor for different audiences (shinies vs. veterans vs. superior officers). However, he might end up spooking the kids a little by being blunt about the kinds of risks they should not be attempting, even when trying to avoid being pessimistic. It's not easy to balance keeping up morale with imparting seriousness of a situation. There's a moment in the show where Petro brags about how he's going to defeat Obi-Wan Kenobi and also Grievous with his new lightsaber, and I think Cody understands that it's youthful bluster but he's still like "until you have defeated General Kenobi in a lightsaber duel, if you ever see Grievous, you run, do I make myself clear?"

-Cody probably scolds R2 for not stopping the kids from running off, and he also suspects that R2 is the reason their hyperspace jump landed them near Florrum in the first place; R2 whistles, innocent as anything (stranding the kids near Florrum did ensure they got in contact with whichever Jedi was closest to the kidnapped Ahsoka)

-Dunno if I have any further relevant thoughts to include here, but I'd be delighted to hear other ideas about how this arc would go down!

Ok spoilers for the Bad Batch S2!!

So the new trailer has been out for a few days now and I’m surprised I haven’t seen a lot of talk about Cody. Like, yes, I’ve seen theories related to what will happen to Cody, but I’m specifically talking about Cody’s new armor.

In CW, Cody wore the traditional white and yellow/gold of the 212th. In the trailer, he wears white and gray armor. The only time we’ve seen an armor color change was the 104th (Wolffe and the Wolffepack). Master Plo Koon lost most of his original battalion during the Malevolence arc (in S1). They used to wear a rusty brown accented color but after that arc, they are shown to wear gray (in honor of those that died).

So what does that mean for Cody and his new armor? Is it gray just cuz the GAR is gone/disappearing or did something happen to the rest of the 212th?? They better leave the clone boys alone I swear. Filoni, you wanna mess someone up, use your new storm troopers—but leave the clones alone.

I don’t know anything about Legends/EU but do the clones keep their color after O66? I know the remaining 501st (those that stormed the Temple—not those w/ Ahsoka/Rex), after O66, is referred to as ‘Vader’s Fist’ or something. Do they still wear the blue of the 501st or do they wear gray like Cody in the new trailer?

Anyways, I was just curious about Cody’s armor. I hadn’t seen it mentioned (sorry if I missed something) so I figured I’d bring it up.

As for what’ll happen to Cody, I obviously hope he survives. Just cuz Filoni had plans for a Rex vs Cody thing/thought Cody would die doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll die this season. SW is pretty well-known for having characters disappear into hiding (Yoda, Obi-wan, Ahsoka, Cal, Ventress etc). SW also has brought back characters assumed to be dead like Gregor and Echo.

I’ve seen a few popular theories going around:

1: Cody’s gonna hunt down CF99 and Rex is gonna have to protect them by killing Cody.

2: Cody’s gonna hunt down CF99 w/ Crosshair and want to kill them. Crosshair, obviously not wanting his bros to die, will kill Cody himself.

3: Cody’s gonna have his ‘questioning moment’ like Rex did w/ Ahsoka during O66 (him hesitating and telling her to find Fives) and protect CF99 from the Empire/swarms of storm troopers, sacrificing himself.

What I’d like to see happen:

Cody and Crosshair hunt down CF99+Rex. The big group splits into 2–Crosshair+batchers and Rex/Echo/Cody. Crosshair has a convo w/ Hunter, Wrecker and Tech about the Empire while Rex+Echo talk w/ Cody, definitely bringing up Obiwan/Anakin/Ahsoka. Rex gets Cody to doubt himself/his loyalties to the Empire, but worries there’s nowhere to go/run. But it just so happens that Rex knows a certain senator (Bail Organa) that’s been helping remaining Jedi/clones/people still loyal to the Republic. Rex puts Bail in touch w/ Cody. Bail mentions a certain general on Tatooine and Cody starts crying cuz he thought he killed Obi and Rex and Cody HUG (like tight gripping/crying all of it). Cody’s relieved Obi’s still alive, but immediately thinks about Rex and Anakin and asks about General Skywalker and comforts Rex when he tells Cody ‘only Commander Tano survived’ or something (at this point not even Ahsoka knows Vader=Anakin, she doesn’t find out until Rebels).

Anyways, the episode/story would end and Crosshair decides to go off on his own (not w/ the Empire or w/ CF99–think Boba/Ventress in later seasons) and Cody (who gets his chip removed) decides to go w/ Rex to meet up w/ Bail (I imagine they would have talked through a communication device/hologram or something). Bail sets Cody up w/ a small ship that’s nondescript and ready to go to Tatooine. The last shot is of Cody’s ship heading towards a beige/tan planet w/ 2 suns with Cody’s voice saying ‘I’ll find you’ referring to Obi or something.

I also loved the idea that Dex (the diner owner from AotC) knows some of the 212th boys since he’s good friends w/ Obi and Cody walks in one day acting different (still chipped). Dex gets all suspicious and whacks Cody w/ a frying pan (think Rapunzel/Flynn from Tangled) and that messes w/ the chip (cuz Wrecker hit his head and made it worse). Cody gets it taken out and thanks Dex for helping and tells him if he sees any more clones, to ‘help them out’ so any time a clone comes in, Dex just smacks the shit out of them with a frying pan. Obviously this is more comedic/not really serious, but I saw that post going around and loved the idea. I loved that Obiwan had friends outside the Jedi/clones.

thinking (yet again!) about the differences between the bad batch story reels and the season seven arc and like... some changes just blow my mind because all it did, really, was make the bad batch less likable.  

lets star with the whole “reg” thing. if i remember correctly, in the originals “regs” is said twice. the first instance is by crosshair when taunting jesse in the LAAT. the second is said by hunter: he tells tech (who’s hacking into the cyber center) that he and wrecker are going to “go get the regs” (i.e. rex and jesse). that is, hunter only used it among his squad when the others were not present (much like how cody informs that the bad batch are defective clones out of earshot. these words are descriptors, but there’s also an offense associated to being referred to by them). the idea that hunter has restraint referring to regular clones this way in their faces connects, i think, to how hunter was a tad more apologetic to jesse in the original script. “he means regular clones. don’t take it personal. it’s just that we don’t always follow protocol” carried an actual sense of hunter trying to convince jesse that it’s nothing to do with him.   

it’s interesting, i think, that in a context where you have clones and defective clones, that the bad batch (as defective clones) would find a way to talk about other clones in reference to themselves in a way that normalizes their own existence. it also introduces the idea that the bad batch experience a level of disconnect, and even animosity, in regards to other clones. all that can be conveyed by only using the word twice. the season seven episodes added three more instances, and in all of them the bad batch members comfortably throw the word around the clones who “are regs.” the sense of separateness (which, again, was already established/achieved by using it just two times) is only made stronger (thus more needs to be done to portray a sense of reconciliation or coming together. the reels succeed this to an extent because that barrier wasn’t built up as high). 

so yeah in the original... wrecker didn’t say “we always get shot down when we travel with regs,” he kept quiet as he helped people out of the wrecked gunship (in fact, wrecker lost a lot of subtlety going from the reels to the final eps, which i’ll get back to). hunter didn’t fake-compliment rex with a “not bad, for a reg”! and oh boy crosshair’s comment implying that echo is worthless and expendable because he’s a “reg”... yeah that was not in the reels either. in fact, not only does crosshair not call echo a reg, the meaning of his original dialogue was completely different.

in the original, after hunter voices his suspicions echo might be dead, crosshair suggests that if alive echo could be cooperating with the enemy, making him a traitor. rex takes this as an attack on echo’s character and crosshair explains that no, he’s not intending to insult echo, by saying: “oh i don’t blame him, if i were left for dead, i wouldn’t be so loyal.” and like!!!!! that’s such a radically different line of dialogue because crosshair seems to blame rex for having left echo behind, actually. if you betrayed the republic to survive, or even out of spite, i don’t blame you even if you now present a threat to myself and my family, is such an interesting, empathetic sentiment. and that contrasts with the lack of regard given to rex, making it read like he’s condemning rex for leaving someone behind. crosshair doesn’t seem to understand, as an experimental commando clone, the pressures rex as a legion captain is under, because he’s seen a less expandable (they’re a specially trained four man team, if one dies that’s 25% of the unit gone. is there a replacement for that member? you get the idea). so you’ve got a clash between different povs, but also crosshair being shown as having a set of morals, chief among them being that you do not leave anyone behind. so remember when rex says to move out and crosshair goes “commander cody is in no position to move” yeah i’d say that’s crosshair making sure cody isn’t being left behind. when crosshair saves anakin? that’s because he saw anakin go off on his own and followed him. because you don’t leave people behind. and like... the idea that yeah crosshair is an asshole. he’s unpleasant and that’s deliberate. he doesn’t care if people like him and he’s not trying to be liked. but that he values the lives of other people and looks out for them? that makes an interesting, flawed and multifaceted character. that got lost in the dialogue change because its no longer suggested that crosshair holds these values.

as for what i said earlier about wrecker: he lost subtle, nonverbal moments through the addition of lines that are either anticlimactic or only serve to make him seem loud or ditzy in an exaggerated fashion. he didn’t laugh when the LAAT came down. he was quiet as he helped people out of the downed gunship (no comment about regs!). he didn’t say “boom” when the ship exploded in the background after he flipped it over (the difference? a character moment that’s actually cool and impressive vs something that’s corny). when wrecker comes to crosshair’s aid by picking rex off of him, there was no quippy one liner. there was no need for anything to be said for it to be understood that wrecker is acting as a barrier and it trying to intimidate rex. when he’s afraid to get onto the elevator? that’s conveyed visually through camera angles and through hunter picking up on the fact that he’s scared. he doesn’t scream (if you can call a comical “aah what is that thing oh no its going to get me” a scream) when the organic decimator almost gets him. when they walk across the pipe? wrecker doesn’t whimper or talk to himself for comfort. he is scared of heights, that’s already been established, but he’s also a grown man and a soldier like he’s keeping that to himself? like we see wrecker hesitating to walk on the ledge but doing it anyway because he has to. in a piece of dialogue that was cut, tech said “does anyone want to know the odds of us making it across alive?” to which wrecker (who’s you know already having a bad time) interrupts with “don’t even think about it, tech” (if ur curious, this exchange was replaced with: wrecker: “keep walking tech!” tech: “that’s fine, but if you fall don’t take me with you” which???? uuh weird exchange). also, the fact that wrecker was mostly dealing with his fear silently means that when hunter tells wrecker to hold on because they’re almost there... that’s because hunter knows he’s scared and is checking up on him. basically... any kind of serious moment was cheapened by having wrecker talk in them. now i don’t want to say that DBB is a bad voice actor, but his expertise is making animal noises. he’s not able to do a realistic, deep voice, meaning that whenever wrecker talks he kind of sounds like a joke. it’s fine when wrecker is actual being lighthearted and jokey, but otherwise? the emotion just does not come across as genuine, which breaks the stakes or weakens credibility.  

and god the whole plot point about the bad batch being suspicious of echo was nonexistent in the reels. the “don’t worry, echo says he’s got a plan”/”that makes me feel so much better” exchange between rex and tech is in the original, but tech’s sarcasm isn’t from doubting echo’s allegiance, it’s because they’re planning to land on admiral trench’s ship and echo having a plan (that he himself doesn’t know) doesn’t exactly soothe his anxieties. rex acts like tech’s being a big joker and playfully shoves him, telling him to get on board. which is an interesting interaction because these characters are kind of starting to bond?? as for tech and echo, they kinda become nerdy friends really quick. like when tech warns echo not to send the signal right away because he first needs to make it look like it’s coming from skako minor, echo’s like “oh yeah good thinking tech.” and when echo figures out a way to shut down all the droids at once tech is impressed and lightly shoves his shoulder. again there is none of that “oooh maybe echo’s a traitor maybe he’s with the techno union” shit. like i understand that the writers wanted to up the stakes but it falls flat because the idea of echo being a traitor isn’t credible. it does not seem like an actual risk or possibility. so all it did was make the bad batch seem like assholes, cutting away at some very nice character moments.   

ok this is a long post and you might ask yourself “but tumblr user rishi-eel, why do you care so much about the story reels, this stuff isn’t canon now” and there are a couple reasons, first, i think it managed to tell a better story overall. so the question is: why is that? because you would expect that writers reworking the plot would add improvements and not downgrades. and to be fair, the s7 episodes had a bunch of upgrades, but not when it came to the characterization of the bad batch. another thing to consider is that changes were made in the context of setting the bad batch up as future protagonists of their own spinoff series (something the original arc was not intended to do because there were no plans for a bad batch series). were the characters made flatter and more archetypal to add to marketability? was the reg/defective clone rivalry (and dichotomy, even) amplified because this separateness serves a narrative in which the bad batch are heroes and the other clones villains?  

Febuwhump Day 8

Prompt: “hey, hey, this is no time for sleep���

Warnings: graphic descriptions of violence and injury

Crash at Point Rain

The battle already rages below them as the 212th Attack Battalion descends toward Geonosis. Obi-Wan watches with great trepidation as the ground forces are already deep in the midst of a violent undertaking. The explosions kick up the dusty surface of the bug planet, creating a cloud that obscures his view from seeing anything besides the muted flashes of blaster and cannon fire. 

The Force reeks of death and destruction. If the turbulence of the gunship isn't enough to cause his stomach to turn, the feeling of darkness is. 

"Five klicks to the rendezvous, General!" the message is passed from the pilot. 

"Very good, stay sharp." 

Everything relies on things according to plan. So naturally, everything goes up in smoke. 

A massive explosion next to them causes the gunship to jolt, nearly throwing half the men out the other side of the open ship. Obi-Wan whirls around in time to watch one of their other ships, hit by cannons, violently explode and fall to the ground in a massive fireball. 

Oh, not good, he thinks, because as long as they are in the air, they are practically defenseless. The clunky ships only have so much maneuverability and the dust is too thick to get a proper visual to shoot down the anti-aircraft tech. 

"Take evasive action!" he yells, though his orders are implied. The blast doors are slammed shut, and darkness encompasses the hold. Obi-Wan white knuckles the hand-hold, his heart dropping as the reports begin to come flooding in through his commlink of other gunships having the same issues. 

He would have preferred to never step foot on this Force-forsaken planet again. One time on Geonosis is more than enough in Obi-Wan's opinion, but apparently, the bugs seem to have a significant role to play in all of this. He still remembers the carnage in that arena like it happened yesterday. It still haunts him that all of this could have been stopped had they managed to capture Dooku. 

Instead, Anakin lost his hand, The Jedi lost numerous, and the galaxy received a civil war. 

Cody's voice rings through on his commlink, sharp and frantic. "General Kenobi, don't land! The zone is hot!" 

"But there's nowhere else to go!"

Suddenly, the gunship jolts once more, but this time the horrible sound of durasteel being forced apart and the heat of explosion accompanies it. 

"We're hit, we're hit!" he yells over the alarms that now blare through the cabin. "We're going down!" 

Some troopers fall into the walls as the ship loses control. Obi-Wan can see out the front window from where he stands, and the red sands of Geonosis are very quickly approaching. We're coming in at too hard an angle!

Another shot comes hurdling through the very window, shattering the transperisteel and striking the pilot. There is only time for a gasp of surprise, and then the trooper slumps forward. 

"Brace yourselves!" Obi-Wan screams as the ship takes a nose dive. Gravity is pulling his body off the ground now, and despite his order, he finds himself suspended with only his grip on the strap as an anchor. The Jedi Master flails, trying unsuccessfully to plant his weight anywhere else and get some traction, but troopers are already being thrown at a terminal velocity within the durasteel coffin, pushing him out of any position of security he could manage. 

When the front of the gunship slams into Geonosis, Obi-Wan is torn from the handle. He unceremoniously crashes into the durasteel floor, his forehead bouncing off it with a sickening crack. Darkness clouds his vision, but he holds onto consciousness as the belly of the ship follows close behind in the violent crash. He is tossed into a huddle of other troopers, their armor cutting into the unprotected portions of his skin. Obi-Wan has no idea if up is up or down is up, or how long they have been skidding across the surface of the planet. The pile of helpless men is suddenly thrown in the other direction as the ship seems to slow, but tip onto its side. Obi-Wan, on top of the pile one moment, is hitting the wall again the next. This time, he doesn't have a moment to react before the other occupants of the hold are on top of him. 

The destroyed gunship itself has stopped, but everything still feels like it's spinning. He gasps through the thick black smoke that has funneled into the cabin, trying to move, but the four troopers that are slung across him have him pinned against the wall. His head throbs, his vision is blurred. He can't tell if it's from the smoke or he hit his head hard enough to give him a nasty concussion-- possibly both. 

Through his haze, he hears groans of agony around him. His troopers have not moved since they came to a stop. He can feel their Force presences-- they're dim. Few. Many have perished, and many more are on the way. 

Obi-Wan manages to get an arm free and pushes the clone that lies across his chest to the side. Blood covers the front of his armor where it looks like his blaster got jammed in his throat. He pushes down a wave of nausea and uses his newfound freedom to push another one of his fallen men off his leg. He's weak. Barely able to manage the weight, though he's never had issues before.

"General!" a faint voice calls from the other side of the ship. It takes him a moment to look up, searching lazily across the smokey cabin. A trooper slowly gets to his feet, stumbling over the bodies of his fallen brothers and landing on his knees at Obi-Wan's side. 

"Trapper," he recalls his name. "are you injured?" 

"Not as bad as others. And you, sir?" 

Obi-Wan grimaces as another wave of nausea burns like acid in this throat, and decides to ignore that question. "Help me get free if you can." 

Trapper is able to pull the other two troopers off him before practically collapsing. Obi-Wan pulls him to sit next to him with his back against the wall. "Well done, trooper. Rest now." 

The clone sighs in relief, reaching up and pulling his bucket off, and holding it in his lap. Now that they have settled and the smoke has thinned, Obi-Wan can finally take stock of the damage. 

The walls of the gunship look as though they were crushed between the hands of a giant. It's a wonder it held up the way it did judging by the force of their impact. Bodies of troopers are strewn about. Motionless. The smell of blood and burning flesh is already potent, which is just about pushing Obi-Wan over the edge. 

"Pardon me, Trapper," he says before leaning over away from his companion and emptying the contents of his stomach. He vomits until there is nothing left, and then his stomach still twists, as though even its natural acid must be ejected. Tears spring up in his eyes and his face feels hot and clammy. Obi-Wan has to clutch the wall to bring himself back to his original sitting position. His hands are shaking. He folds them together in an effort to calm them.

His head hurts. It's a dull, radiating pain that encompasses his head and runs down his neck, making his body simultaneously feel like it's crumbling and completely numb. 

He can feel Trapper watching him. "I'm okay," 

"Did you hit your head general?" 

"A better question may be what didn't my head hit." 

It's more honest than he usually is, but Obi-Wan is quickly losing the will to hide it any longer. He is holding back tears that he isn't sure why are trying to force themselves out. He's felt greater agonies, been through worse tribulations.

But the tears don't seem to be sadness. It's difficult to place, but he feels angry? Frustrated? With every passing moment, his emotion seems to change. 

It's exhausting. He's exhausted. Obi-Wan lets out a shaky breath and lets his heavy eyelids fall closed. Though the gunship was dark already, the total darkness is like immediate relief. 

"Hey, general, this is no time for sleep." 

"It sure feels like it," he groans. 

"If you have a concussion you must stay awake to monitor your symptoms, sir." 

"And if I decide to nap?" 

Silence hangs between them for a long moment. 

"I believe there is a chance you may not wake up. Sir." 

As enticing as that sounds in the moment, Obi-Wan forces his eyes open again, rolling his head slowly to the side to look at Trapper. 

"We can't have that, I suppose." 

Minutes or hours later-- Obi-Wan isn't sure-- voices echo from outside and rapid footsteps approach. Not the buzz of Geonosisans nor the clank of battle droids, which is comforting at least. He grips his lightsaber anyway, ready to use it if needed.

Obi-Wan isn't sure of how much help he could possibly be, though. After taking greater stock of his injuries, he is quite sure he won't be able to stand on his own for more than a few minutes, nevermind actually fighting. 

The door of the gunship is forced open and light streams in, causing a flare of pain behind his sensitive eyes. He squints through the daylight until his swimming vision finally focuses long enough to see familiar troopers. 

"Waxer, Boil. Am I glad to see you," he pauses as they run forward to meet them, their gaze obviously wandering to their dead brothers lying about. "Trapper and I are the only ones still alive." 

"Good to see you, sir," They hoist him to his feet, quicker than he probably should have been by the way everything goes black for a few long seconds, but Waxer keeps his arm securely around him as he blinks through it. "Commander Cody's established the square just beyond this position..." a ringing in Obi-Wan's ears drones out the clone's voice, and he winces, squeezing his eyes shut until it passes. "...trying to surround us as we speak, sir." 

Right. The battle. The war. Now out of the ship, he is rudely reminded of the brutality of the ongoing battle that is only made worse by his pounding head. Blaster shots sound as though they are being amplified directly in his ears, and explosions and cannons make his knees feel weak from the light sensitivity. 

Medical is going to have a field day with this, he sighs. 

Though he wants nothing more than to collapse in his bunk for the next week and a half, he reminds himself of the importance of their success. They must recapture Geonosis and take out their droid foundries. 

Obi-Wan pulls the Force around him, releasing his pain and using it to augment his strength. It's a short-term solution-- and something that will get him in deep trouble with the healers if they find out-- but it will do for now. 

There will be time to rest when the war is over. 

Echoes In My Mind; Chapter 7 - Maddening Mission - EchoxReader Fic

Previous Chapter ————————————————- Content Rating: Mature+ (18+)

Warnings: Kissing Suggestive themes Crying If there are any warning labels I’m missing please inform me Notes: Y/O/N = Your characters original name (before they went into hiding) Taglist: @grand-admiral-luna ————————————————- "You boys wanted me?" "Ahh yes, Y/N we're going to need you to deliver this guy to the same Imperials you met before, okay? They'll give you the payment, after that just come right back to the ship," Hunter said to you. "Okay, but what's if they don't want the guy, he's not exactly the one they were looking for." "Leave him there anyway," Crosshair said with a smirk.  "If they're not willing to take him, we can bring him back to the planet." "Understood, and what's if they want us to do another job?"  "Decline," both of them said at the same time. "We don't want to work with the Empire more than we already had too, this was only so we could get supplies and fuel, hopefully, we'll never have to see or work with them again," Hunter said with a solemn expression. "I understand, I'll do my best." "We know you will," Crosshair said to your surprise. "You know the Empire isn't normally kind to people like me," the guy held captive scoffs, "Turning me in makes you no better than them, doesn't matter how you feel about working with them, you're helping them right now." "If you keep talking, I won't be kind to you," Crosshair huffs placing a covering over the man's mouth.  "I'll be happy to have him out of our hair," Hunter said shaking his head with an exhausted expression covering his face. "Don't worry I'll get him out of here once we land," you say. Just then over the com system of the ship Tech's voice echos through, "We just landed, the Imperials are waiting for you, probably want to get going before they get impatient." Grabbing your helmet you slide it over your head, activating the voice changer before taking hold of the prisoner, leading him to the exit of the ship, taking him outside, and heading towards the building that you had been in not too long ago. -You couldn't help but wonder if Cody would be there again, if he was alone this time, maybe, just maybe you could talk to him... clearly he didn't look happy working for the Empire, but the Empire probably didn't give him much of a choice. All he knew was the Republic and when they switched most clones were forced to continue their service, the older ones had the chance to retire, but they got nothing if they did, unless they retired to Kamino to train new recruits, even someone of Cody's rank might be out of luck, just wandering the galaxy like you and the Bad Batch were. Everyone always thought Cody was a stickler for rules and would follow every rule, but he wasn't and he didn't. As his friend you knew him better than most and saw how truly caring he was, he had a good heart, a sense of humor, loyalty to his brothers, and the Jedi. He served because he didn't know anything else, at the time of the war he didn't want to think about it much outside of the battles, sometimes you would talk about the future and if the war ended where he'd want to go, what he'd want to do. He kept saying that he needed to be focused, for his brothers, for his Jedi general, and for all those the Republic was trying to protect, he was bred for war, to serve no matter what, and even though he did, he didn't always agree or want too... The Empire wasn't the Republic, that was clear from the outside, but people often forgot those like Cody, who were made to fight for the Republic, they lost everything they had, their world view was shattered, and their loyalty broken. - With the Republic and Jedi gone, they had nothing else but the Empire, no one else to follow but the Emperor. It was probably designed this way, whoever planned this whole war out, they knew, they used and manipulated everyone, most of all the clones. The train of thought you had was broken with a sharp pain in your side, as you snap back to reality you see your prisoner running off after punching you, - it takes a moment to recover and regain some air in your lunges. As you take a deep breath in you start running, pulling out your blaster and setting it to stun, yelling at him to stop, but he doesn't comply, so you take aim and shoot. - He gets stunned he stumbles landing on the ground, you reach him and make sure he's okay before picking him up and taking him to the building. Knowing you were later than you already had been before he tried to run off, you apologize as you enter, "Hey, sorry I'm late, this guy tried to run off," you said entering the room, dragging him behind you. Cody looks up from his datapad, stopping his conversation with Pryce as he looks to you and the prisoner you just dropped on the ground. "Guess I should have knocked," you joked, eliciting no response from either of them. "Tough crowd," you mumble this time you see the side of Cody's mouth twitch into a small smile before you continue, "Oh, he's not the one you were looking for, but that guy was off-world so we brought you this guy instead, the second in command," you tell them lightly kicking the guy on the floor. "Since he's not the one we asked for, but still is valuable to the Empire we can accept him, the reward will be reduced some though," Cody says typing something into his datapad and motioning Pryce over. "Understood," you say. "Get the prisoner out of here, I'll finish this up," Cody told Pryce.  "Glady," she replied walking towards you getting the man off the ground, and leading him away, -- before the door closes behind her she turns to you, "Good work bounty hunter." "Well, that was surprising," you accidentally say out loud.  "Her father's mining company is worth a lot, as is their family's reputation." "I don't much care for either the company or her family, Cody," you scoff, quickly realizing your mistake, you've slipped up again, you know that he's caught on this time. "So, who are you?"

"Just a bounty hunter here to pick up my reward," you say reaching out for the credits in the case on the table, - he grabs your wrist, "Who are you? - I'll give you one more chance to answer." "I told you already, besides it's not your job to care."  "No, it's not my job, unless you're someone important." "I'm not, now can I go?" You scoffed. Ignoring you, he continues on with his interrogation, "You knew my name."  "Of course you told me your name." "No, when you first came here, you stopped yourself before saying it fully, but you were going to say my name, so I'll ask you again, who are you?" "Why don't you guess?" You say sarcastically making him annoyed.  "Get out of here," he says releasing your wrist. "What? Why?" You say now confused by his sudden change. "Unless you want me to arrest you, go, - now." Your head tilts down, staring at the desk, "Cody there's more out there than you know, more beyond the Empire." His brows furrowed at your statement as he turned his head away from you. "You know I can't...Y/O/N."  "How did you know...that it's me." "You're one of the best soldiers I ever fought with, it's not hard to imagine that you survived."  "And you won't turn me in? Surely now that you know who I am you'd have to turn me in." "That's not one of my orders..."  "That's a lie and you know it, the Empire would want me dead." "But you are," he says with a small smirk, "- Now go." "Thank you...Cody...I'll make sure that you aren't stuck here forever, I know this isn't what you want, the life you want, -- I'll find a way out for you," you tell him grabbing the credits and walking away, only turning to look at him as he said his goodbye. - "Take care of yourself, -- and the others," he says before the door closes behind you. You can't help but let tears roll down your face, covered by your helmet, but no less painful. - Slowly walking back to the ship your mind is filled with thoughts, should you tell them, they were clones too, Echo of all people would want to save his Commander, his friend, but Cody was clear. - He knew if you tried to help him get away from the Empire that you'd be found out and probably killed. He gave you a chance to escape, and you would return the favor, you promised him and yourself, this wasn't something you would let yourself forget. Maybe you could find a fellow bounty hunter, enlist one of your friends to save him, you'd find a way, any way, Cody deserved to be free, to have an actual choice and not a forced decision. -- When your thoughts reach their end you're standing in front of the Havoc Marauder, choking back your tears as you com Tech to let you in, walking up the steps into the ship before the doors close behind you. You place the box of credits down on the nearest flat surface you found, walking off to your room despite hearing the sound of someone's voice. They were trying to say something to you, but the words didn't register in your mind instead just echoing like your head was nothing more than an empty room. The person calling out to you was Tech, - Wrecker, and Crosshair by his side, wondering what was wrong with you, since you brought the credits they assumed it was a success, but then why were you acting so strange. Tech tries to follow you but Wrecker stops him, "Let her go, I don't think she wants to talk right now." "Something is clearly bothering her, and besides we need to know if we can leave this planet, the Empire isn't going to happily wait for us." "Well she brought the credits, and there are no Stormtroopers chasing after her so I think we're in the clear to leave," Crosshair said opening the case to show Tech the credits. "Okay, I'll get us out of here then..." he said hesitantly and with sadness. He sits down and starts up the take-off procedures, soon after the ship leaves the ground and the planet off to find a refueling station. You feel the ship shake and turn as you sit on the ground, knees against your chest, listening to the sound of your own breathing. Why were you so upset, you promised to help Cody...you couldn't get him out now, he refused and it never would have worked...but what if it did. Now he's still stuck there, you knew there wouldn't be a better chance to get him out unless the Empire hired you for another job. But knowing Cody he'd probably make sure you guys never showed up anywhere near Imperials again. Knowing plenty of Bounty Hunters, surely, you could find someone who would be willing to save him, but it wouldn't be an easy job, not to mention you don't have the credits to pay for the kidnapping of a high ranking Imperial. There was one person who might be able to pull it off, if you talked to Echo he would be up for helping, right? Cody was a good friend of his, and maybe if the Bad Batch joined you'd all be able to rescue him. There’s so much worry in you, - that maybe he decides not to leave, you can free him, but after that, the only life he would have is being on the run from the Empire, or if you faked his death a life like you, jumping from job to job. That's not something he would want or was it...you were his friend but even you are unsure of what Cody wanted out of life, all he ever talked about was his service and doing his best to keep his brother and the Jedi safe. With that all gone...what does he have, what does he want? Maybe this wasn't something to worry about, but, you couldn't help it, your mind always wandered off into every possibility no matter how unrealistic, this ability helped during battles and the war, but wasn't much of a help during non-combat times...becoming more of a hindrance than a help. "Where's Y/N?" Echo asked Tech as he and Hunter enter the cockpit of the ship.  "She went off somewhere, I'm assuming her quarters," he responds, his eyes focused on the view outside the ship. "Did something happen, is she okay?"  "We're not sure if something happened, she didn't talk when she came back, just dropped off the case of credits and walked off," Crosshair says. "Yeah she didn't seem to be too happy, or even notice us talking to her," Wrecker added a sad expression arising on his face as he spoke.  "You should probably go check on her Echo," Hunter said placing his hand on Echo's shoulder, noticing the tension in his body. "I will, I'll be back later," Echo said turning around, walking off to your room. When he reaches the door he pauses for a moment, hesitant to open it, -- he knocks and says his name but there's no reply... "Y/N what's wrong, you know you can talk to me, about anything." His words cut deep, part of you wanting to be left alone and the other part just wanted to cry into his chest...he attempts to ask again, still met with no response, his words making your heart hurt more each time he spoke, you could hear the pain in his voice, the worry, the desire to help. You hear what sounds like his back hitting the door sliding down to sit on the ground, he really wasn't going to leave you, slowly you get up and walk over, unlocking the door. As it slides open Echo catches himself not having expected the door to vanish on him, as he looks up he sees you, looking down at him, tears visible in your eyes. "Y/N what happened?" He asks softly, getting up to stand in front of you stepping forward slightly so the door could close behind him before he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you against his chest as tears started to roll down your cheeks. "It's --" you're unable to get the words out, instead just relaxing into his body, trying to breathe through the sobbing. - He leads you over to sit on your bed, pulling you onto his lap before he scooted back to lean against the wall. "I won't push you to talk about it, just know when you're ready I'll be here to listen," he whispers gently placing a kiss on your forehead. Despite both of you being fully covered in armor it was still comfortable, just the feeling of leaning against him was enough to calm you. Composing yourself some you pull back placing your arms on his shoulders to balance yourself as you looked at him. "It's kinda a dumb reason...I mean I'm just overthinking things again like I always do and I'm just making myself worry and become upset... I'm...I don't know, I shouldn't be crying about this and I shouldn't be worrying everyone and -- hmmp." - Your incoherent rambling is cut off by the feeling of his lips pressing into yours, they weren't moving...they were still, just gently pressed against your own lips, almost as if he was giving you a moment to quiet your mind and gather your thoughts. When he pulls away you find yourself leaning towards him, chasing that feeling again, wrapping your fingers around his head pulling him back for a kiss, this time both of you moving your lips. His hands slide down some to rest on your hips as they pressed into his own, a low moan travels through his throat as your tongue starts to explore his mouth. You weren't exactly sure why your emotions swayed so strongly from sobbing like a child to wanting to kiss Echo, you'd never felt anything like the feeling you had for him, nothing more you wanted than to be around him and to show him that affection. Especially after finding out that he was alive and that he’d been through so much without you by his side. Before either of you has any chance to go further you pull back, not wanting to stop, but also just wanting to talk, to explain what's bothering you. You could tell he was still worried about you, feeling it in the way he kissed you, more like he was trying to comfort you and help you think about something else. He watches you as you're trying to find the words, as your mouth moves to speak taking a moment before your mind catches up and formulates a sentence, "What's bothering me is...that I -- I saw Cody, he was the one that gave me the mission details and the credits when I left. I asked him to come with, I knew he wasn't happy there with the Empire, but he refused, he didn't want to put us in danger... We have to get him out of there, but I don't know how or if he'll come, the only life he's know is his service and I'm worried he won't be any happier living a life like this." Echo looks at you with a shocked expression, trying to comprehend everything you just said,  it was a lot to take in and he honestly wasn't sure what to think or say. "You're sure it was Cody?" He asks only to gain himself more time to think of a response. "Yeah, no doubt, he knew who I was too..."  "Knowing Cody he wouldn't go, but only because he cares about those he served with and would never let them put their lives at risk for just him." "So how do we get him out of there, I might be able to get a Bounty Hunter friend of mine to take the job but they couldn't do it alone..."  "Hmm... even if they're able to get him out of there on their own, I don't know what he'll do after that, I know the boys would be more than happy to take him in, but I doubt he'd accept." "That's what I'm worried about..."  "But Cody is our friend and my brother so I feel like we should try, I guess we'll just have to figure out the rest afterward." "Thank you Echo," you whispered leaning against him as his arms wrapped around you.  "Don't worry, we'll get him out of there, I promise." -- After a while of just enjoying the feeling of each other's embrace, you pull back, moving off of him so he could get up and join you as you walked to the bridge, telling Echo that you guys should all discuss this together and figure out a plan. -----------------------

"So, you guys want to rescue Commander Cody from the Empire?" Hunter asks, double-checking that he heard everything correctly, feeling the same overload of information that Echo had. "Yeah," Echo responds with a worried look, unsure if this was something you guys could pull off. "Well, he is the reason we're all here today, so I'm in," Hunter replied with a reassuring smile.  "Me too," Tech said looking up from the datapad he had been typing information into.  Wrecker and Crosshair nodded, not feeling the need to repeat words when they knew that their brothers felt the same way as them. "Then it's settled, the next mission will be getting Commander Cody out of the hands of the Empire!" Hunter says placing his hand on Echo's shoulder as the worry drained from Echo's face, happy to have his brothers supporting this endeavor.

------------------------ As all of you plan and talk about how this will work, you send a transmission to your friend, hoping they will be able to help, to everyone's surprise, they accept the request for help and send you some detail on where they are and when they'd have time to help. -- "Well, they're in, just finishing up some bounty mission, and then they can join us for this!" You tell the others with excitement, happy that a plan was coming together. "What are they charging for their service?" Tech asked.  "Nothing, they said they owed me still for a mission we did some time ago, so they're just doing this to help." "We can still give them some compensation like fuel cost or ammunition," Hunter replied not liking the idea of someone doing a job like this for free. "Sounds good! Oh, Tech once you've finished the details of the plan let me know so I can send it to them," you say handing your datapad over to him.  "Will do, we should probably go over this one more time before I send it to them." 

Everyone gathers around the holoscreen to review everything. "Okay, so I'll send Cody a coded message using the same system we used to contact him for the mission, he probably won't agree to our little rescue mission, but all I need is for him to respond so I can hack into the Empires system and give us landing access. -- Once we have that we'll land on the outskirts of the base, you and your friend will go with Hunter and Echo steal some Imperial and Stormtrooper outfits and hopefully, by then I'll have a scan that show's us Cody's location. -- I'll tell you the information through an earpiece, hopefully, he won't be too far away from where we have to land so you don't have to risk being there longer than needed," Tech says pausing to let Hunter continue. "Once we know his location it'll be stealth, Y/N you and your friend will pretend to be Imperial officers looking for Cody for a special mission requested by the Chancellor, and then when we get to him we'll just be able to take him with us without a problem."

“That's if they believe us," Echo said worried you all might get caught.  "Don't worry Echo they're pretty dim," Crosshair joked patting his brother on the back. 

Clone Wars Saved...ish

What the hell did I just watch ?

Let’s start by saying that 1) spoilers alert, not necessarily coherent but definitely there, I’ll put on a read more, but unspoiled mobile users, just in case it fails, scroll by and 2) @norcumii had warned me. And yet I didn’t quite expect that because, how could more clones ever be bad !

Oh boy.

Thanks to @shadow-spires for being my emotional support watchbuddy. I needed it more than I thought I would and we’re only three episodes in.

Some context : I’ve watched... only a few episodes of the show before, despite probably being able to give you the plot of all 6 seasons and quote lines and scenes, thanks tumblr and my own love for clones. And I hadn’t really looked at the bad batch half-rendered episodes because I still had trouble with the graphics of the actually finished show, so...

But I was ready for this, for feels, for finding Echo again and, finally, get 66 and murdered by Dave Filoni. Set up a meeting time to watch some eps with shadowspires, fun when there is a twelve hours diff between us and here we go.

Let me tell you, there was a lot of yelling in all caps in the chat side bar...

Trying to keep mostly in order of the episodes :

- WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO KIX’S HAIR ? Why ? Why hair and no more tattoo ??? Is this supposed to be red corsair continuity ? But then WHY IS HE HERE AND NOT ALREADY ABDUCTED ? Is this merch reasons ?

- Two seconds in and WOW I hate the Bad Batch. And this does NOT get better. I’m really tired of the Muscle is Dumb trope, Tech is like a human C3PO which urgh but fine but then KEEP CONSTANT (this is going to be a major point of my yelling), if Hunter says you chatter all the time THEN DO but no, we won’t here a single random fact ever again for three episodes, and Crosshairs chats and snarks a LOT for someone ‘not talkative’. 

- Regs. FUCKING REGS, urgh, I hated that word the INSTANT it was said. Canon isn’t as heavily into the Vode An fanon loves, but WOW fuck that. Strike team or not, you’re not supermen, you have to rely on intel, be supplied, you’re not a bunch of mercenaries, you’re a MILITARY STRIKE TEAM, you must interact with regs a lot so it means you’re a bunch of condescending assholes ALL THE TIME.

-Also fuck 1) that team’s dynamics and 2) the “two teams do not get along” trope, fuck it with a SHOVEL.  1) You’re a Commando Team. In an army three years deep into war. You’re comrades and probably have save each other asses hundred of times. So why can’t you behave ? And I know people do not always get along, or even best friends sometimes irk each other, but, look, consistency, if you think you’re with lesser people because regs (can you tell I’m not over that either), you present a united front and you don’t bitch at your teammates in front of them. 2) YOU ARE MILITARY. Trained for 10+ years, there’s DISCIPLINE there, even a maverick strike team, when Cody is down, you OBEY THE SECOND IN COMMAND. I don’t care if you have a better plan, you TELL the officer, you don’t just tell him to shut up and watch. AND YOU DON’T GET AT EACH OTHER’S THROATS.

-Did I mention I hate everything about Dumb Violent Muscles unable to control himself or follow a plan ?

-Of course the one time we could see Cody in charge, he’s hurt and useless.

-WHY. IS. THE MEDIC. GOSSIPING. INSTEAD OF KEEPING WATCH OVER THE WOUNDED BROTHER ???

AND WHY DOES HE HAVE HAIR DAMMIT

-The tactics Mess out of order :  Why is nobody blowing stuff up, a group able to single handedly take on 100+ droids is getting pushed back by thirty later on, why not trap the outpost to blow up the incoming droids, the analytical droid cannot comprehend why the clones would leave the outpost while in full view of the cyber center and it has to be pointed out to him, WHY DID NOBODY TRAP THE FUCKING OUTPOST TO BLOW, why does the tech guy LITERALLY NAMED TECH doesn’t hide/erase what they did to the computer, why if he didn’t have time DIDN’T HE BLOW UP THE COMPUTER. 

-And for a plot point being “droids analyzes our tactics so we always have to change them”, it means that no one ever attacked a front door and drew all the droids there for a second team to sneak by the back door. Somehow.

Ep2 & 3 :

- Why is “this may or may not be Echo” matters on a tactical PoV ? I get the emotional one, of course, but having the Bad Batch question it at the beginning and later on starting a fight over it has no other reason than to go for another round of We Do Not Get Along Trope. The Seps have either a PoW or an Algorhythm allowing them to win battle, no matter what it is, you have to go and rescue/take it. WHY ARE YOU ARGUING.

- I know this is the funny part of ‘Anakin and Padmé are the less subtle ever’ and it was funny (I didn’t hate ALL of the episodes, see ?), but why is she explaining to Anakin why he fights three years into the war other than reminding the public, this is the LEAST EFFECTIVE PLAN ever to hide from Obi-Wan with Rex obviously standing guard.

-Not a critic, just fucking amused : if someone isn’t aware that Padmé and Anakin are a thing, there is a lot of subtext to thing Anakin and Rex have a hidden fling. I don’t even ship it and I could see it x)

- Tell Padmé I say hello. TELL PADME I SAY HELLO. Obi-Wan fucking KNOWS, maybe not the whole “married and pregnant” but hellooooo that was blantant cue that he’s aware they’re together, at the very least so very close friends that they sneak private calls during a siege if Anakin is really dense, we have ONSCREEN PROOF that Obi-Wan SAID OUT LOUD something about it and it makes Anakin thinking Obi-Wan doesn’t know and couldn’t understand in RotS even STUPIDER. Good job Anakin.

- This Galaxy has the most efficient Google Translate ever. Either it’s a known language of the planet you’re going to, and then by doing research amidst the prep to go to the planet everyone or at least Rex as Captain would put the translator to the spoken languages there on his helmet, or it’s an unknown one and yet with two sentences, Tech’s tech (urgh) is able to translate and analyses it well enough to speak it back to them. Wow. 

- WHY. IS. THE. JEDI. NOT. USING. THE. FORCE. You’ve worked with Echo before but there’s no mention or even trying to feel him, fine, better have another fight of whether or not he’s truly here, two droids manage to get the drop on you, two droids manage to get the drop on you AND SOMEHOW AREN’T IMMEDIATELY BISECTED, Two droids manage to get the drop on you, survive, AND GIVE YOU ENOUGH TROUBLE YOU NEED SOMEONE TO SHOOT ONE TO GET OUT OF IT. 

- Echo, my poor baby TnT I knew this was going to hurt, and it does, it does so much. 

-And we’re RIGHT BACK to full on rage rather fast. We go from “he’s so weak he can’t walk, he doesn’t remember anything after the Citadel, he’s so out of it he doesn’t know where he is and ‘notices’ Rex being here two or three times” to “He can walk, he can be yeeted into a vent, he can tightpole walk, he can shoot while standing, he knows the whole base’s blueprints and also all the Separatist’s database.” in like. Five minutes. CONSITENCY FOR FUCK’S SAKE. Why is no one carrying him, why don’t we even get a fucking HUG ?

-Why was everyone yeeted by Dumb Muscles WHEN WE HAVE A JEDI HERE. WHY STILL NO FORCE ??? Clone-yeeting is like Anakin’s favorite pastime, he should have thought of it FIRST, My Moment Has Come.

- Oh FUCK NO. WHY did you even GO BACK TO THE NATIVES’ VILLAGE ? You got dragons, you fly back to your ship that wasn’t damaged in anyway, you evac fast and clean, DONE ! Why go back ? Anakin even says that the Techno Union will strike for helping them BUT UNTIL YOU WENT BACK THEY DIDN’T KNOW THE NATIVES HELPED YOU ! They had no problems until now ! DON’T INVOLVE CIVILIANS ! If they had gone with the plot point of having the natives pick a side and be the ones to save them from that pole by flying to get them, then yes, totally, stay and help and defend them against the retaliation massacre ! But since they didin’t, do NOT go there and draw to them a retaliation massacre.

-FUCK that speech. Sorry Rex, but FUCK THAT. Again, civilians. You are supposed to be the GOOD GUYS trying to STOP THE WAR, not draw innocents into it when it could be avoided. AND THEN LEAVE WHEN YOU JUST TOOK DOWN ONE ATTACK AND THE TECHNO UNION WILL SURELY COME WIPE OUT THAT VILLAGE FOR HELPING YOU AND THERE’LL BE NO JEDI TO SAVE THE DAY.

-Why is everyone suddenly dumb.

-Fuck that “good old days” bullshit. I’m sure there were good times, but your good old days are three years of war and losses. Gimme “now everything will be alright”, because for once someone survived, for once the future is looking hopeful, give me them hoping that it’ll be okay and then gut me with the sheer irony of it all because I know 66 is looming. AND FUCKING HUG HIM DAMMIT, he was almost catatonic thirty minutes ago, at least HELP HIM into the ship rather than leave him standing here alone.

-And no mention of Fives, of course. Idk it may be in episode 4, it BETTER be in Episode 4, otherwise this is “it be like the good old days, yay, btw Fives’ dead”.

I am SO ready for the damn Bad Batch arc to be over and hoping the actual original content is way better. I wished they had scrapped that disaster of an idea full of bad clichés. You want a strike team to go with Rex ? I’ve got a strike team for you : Jesse is an ARC, Kix is both a medic and seen many times with a rifle (AND THE COOLEST HAIRCUT, get us Bly there and give him a tracking speciality with the many ‘primitive’ planets he was on, and we have Aayla for the muscle. That would be badass.

New Release Roundup, 20 October 2018: Science Fiction

Stilted cities, space pirates, cyberpunk delivery mages, and a warrior son of the God-Emperor of Mankind feature in this week’s roundup of science fiction’s newest releases.

Accord of Honor (The Ragnarok Saga #1) – by Kevin McLaughlin

Space Pirates aren’t supposed to exist. But apparently, nobody told them that. When Thomas’s first command is ambushed in space, only quick thinking will keep his crew alive.

One random pirate ship would be bad enough, But the truth is far more deadly. Multiple ships of unknown origin are striking freighters and kidnapping their crews.

Then the pirates turn their eyes toward the planets.

One man has prepared for this; Thomas’s estranged father, Admiral Nicholas Stein. Hero and villain of the last great war, he has spent decades preparing for the conflict he always knew was coming. Now he and Thomas are all that stands between humanity and a ruthless enemy who will stop at nothing to control space – and from there, to enslave us all.

The Atlantropa Articles – Cody Franklin

In an alternate timeline, World War II never takes place. Instead, a plan is put into effect by Hitler and the Nazi party to drain the Mediterranean Sea. They promise fertile land, millions of jobs and endless energy. New land to be settled. Living space for a crowded continent. All of Europe came together and signed a treaty to realize this new world, it was called ‘The Atlantropa Articles’

Two millennia later, the Reich run the world. Aryans have become a race of their own, out numbering their neighbors and ruling with a messianic passion towards Hitler. Europe has been united under the banner of the swastika.

But the plan of a fertile lush land was never realized. The project took decades longer than anticipated. By the time it is completed, what they find is a salty barren world. Now the Mediterranean Sea is a desert basin known only as the Kiln. Southern Europe has been abandoned.

This is where Ansel’s story begins.

Battlespace (The Stars Aflame #1) – Richard Tongue

For decades, the Terrestrial Commonwealth has been at peace. The bulk of the Navy that once conquered the stars in mothballs, only a handful of obsolete cruisers patrolling the far frontiers of space. When a genocidal alien race decides that humanity is its next target for extermination, only a single ship can stand against them, a battered old cruiser named Leonidas, and her maverick commander, Mike Scott, brought out of enforced retirement to lead his ship and his crew one last time. As the worlds of mankind burn under the wrath of the enemy, Captain Scott must fight one desperate battle after another to buy time for the Commonwealth to must its battlefleet, or face the destruction of Earth, and all humanity with it…

Black Triumph (The Dark Victory #3) – Brendan DuBois

More than ten years ago, the alien Creepers arrived in Earth’s orbit and started a war that was a slaughter for humanity. Nuclear weapons detonated in the atmosphere destroyed all electronic devices, asteroids dropped into oceans and lakes swamped cities with artificial tsunamis, and the nearly invulnerable Creepers arrived on Earth, going forth from their dome bases to attack civilians and military units at will.

Sixteen-year-old Randy Knox, a newly minted lieutenant in the U.S. Army, has been fighting the Creepers since he was twelve. He has seen friends, family members and fellow soldiers killed by the Creepers, and he is tired of war. At one point, it seemed the war was over when the aliens’ orbital battle station had been destroyed.

But a second Creeper orbital battle station has arrived.

The war no longer seems to be over, and while returning to his home unit, Randy’s convoy is ambushed. Separated from his fellow soldiers and his K-9 companion Thor, Randy faces the ultimate horror of every American serviceman: to become a prisoner of war of the aliens.

Cassandra’s War (The SynCorp Saga #2) –  David Bruns and Chris Pourteau 

The Lazarus Protocol, the corporate plan to reengineer the Earth’s atmosphere, has failed. The mysterious Cassandra and her Neo zealots have weaponized the weather, Anthony Taulke is in jail, Ming Qinlao is on the run, and Colonel Graves is left to clean up the mess.

Meanwhile, we the people pay the price—in blood and treasure.

But the machinery of the corporation is not dead yet. As Anthony hatches a new scheme to undo the damage caused by the Lazarus Protocol, he makes new alliances and stabs old friends in the back. Flushed out of hiding, Ming Qinlao risks everything to reclaim her family name. And a war-weary William Graves is forced to choose between his duty and his conscience.

Deliver or Die (Delivery Mage #1) – Jaime Davis

A dangerous tech warlord. A devious damsel. Is this smuggler mage getting paid or played?

Baltimore, 2055. Ex-special ops agent Kurt Carter refuses to resort to killing any longer. Though this mage isn’t above skirting the law with a little magic to smuggle goods through the interstellar portals and back to Earth, he never expected to use the Newton’s gates on a ransom mission for the ex-wife he can’t seem to forget…

With the help of a trigger-happy sidekick, Kurt has no choice but to break into a government building and steal a mysterious sarcophagus. After his ex throws an unexpected wrinkle into his plan, the smuggler mage must improvise to keep an impatient warlord at bay. Can Kurt save the girl and protect his business all without getting more blood on his hands?

Justiciar (The Vigilante Chronicles #5) – Natalie Grey and Michael Anderle

After taking down the Yennai Corporation, Barnabas has earned a little break.

On the way back to High Tortuga, however, he stops to answer a distress call.

How long could it take, after all?

Barnabas is about to find out. In what should have been an open-and-shut murder case, questions begin to pile up fast: who, exactly, was this Jotun Naval captain? Why was there a black ops ship lurking nearby, ready to shoot down anyone who tried to approach?

Barnabas has made a promise to a friend that he’ll unravel the murder, but the closer he gets, the more he finds himself asking just who this captain was.

And just what in hell did he get himself involved with?

Liberty (Legacy Fleet #6) – Nick Webb

War.

It rages across United Earth space, claiming millions of lives. The Swarm have returned, larger, more fierce, and more technologically advanced than ever before.

The voice from Saturn’s moon Titan claiming to be Tim Granger is warning humanity that this time, the Swarm may be unstoppable.

Admiral Shelby Proctor, on the run for the suspected murder of the United Earth President, knows that humanity’s only hope may be a hero that’s been dead for thirty years, and travels to the center of Titan to find him in Earth’s darkest hour.

The fleets are assembled, all the races united against the overwhelming enemy from another universe. And now all they need a legendary hero to lead them to victory.

Machine City (Detective Barnes #2) – Scott J. Holliday 

To ex-detective John Barnes, the machine is a dangerous and abhorrent addiction. The criminal thoughts it embedded in his brain helped him stop a serial killer, but they left him dazed—with pounding, murderous impulses. Having turned in his badge to salvage what’s left of his psyche, Barnes must return to the darkness at the request of his former partner. A little girl has gone missing. So has Adrian Flaherty, the detective in the kidnapper’s shadow.

And only Barnes can hear the clues.

But the trail is more dizzying and more personal than he feared. The voices are revealing a secret only Flaherty could have known. They’re also telling Barnes that he doesn’t have long to live. To find the girl, he must listen closely. Because the clock is ticking…and Barnes’s mind is going fast.

Mechs and Violence (Infinite Lives Online #2) – Elven Steele 

My name is DeadPixel. I’m really living up to my username…

A quick note to any player who may be considering joining my party: the fact that I am currently on fire is not a cause for alarm. And the fact that my special skill involves getting repeatedly and horribly murdered isn’t going to cause a problem either, I swear. And do you want to know why that is? Because I have the one thing the rest of you noobs can only dream of… infinite lives.

So what if my Wizard’s gone on an unexpected journey to the off-licence. By the time I’ve left the battlefield, those mech enhanced pix-holes won’t know what hit them… because I’ll be running away so fast, they won’t have the chance.

Spartan Company – Toby Neighbors

One bad decision can change your life… forever.

Orion Porter is in trouble. He’s about to be shuffled into a judicial system that few ever escape. His options in life have suddenly been reduced to just two choices: take his chances with a public defender, fighting criminal charges he’s not likely to win — or join the Space Marines. Both choices are filled with danger, but only one will get him out of the system designed to keep him down.

Apex Venandi is a goldilocks world with vibrant indigenous life. The isolated planet is home to five intelligent species, whose culture revolves around tribal warfare. Restricted from human intervention, the world was little more than a footnote in the Galactic Space Fleet’s expansion across the galaxy until a rare and important resource is discovered there. For the first time, humanity will encounter another species whose proclivity for violence is greater than their own.

Follow Orion as he makes his way through Space Marine Basic Training and is thrown to the wolves in the vaunted Recon Challenge.

Storm World (Undying Mercenaries Series #10) – B. V. Larson

James McGill is sent to the Core Worlds!

In an unprecedented first, Earth sends a message to Mogwa Prime. Unfortunately, the messenger is not met with enthusiasm. Misunderstandings soon threaten all of Humanity. Forced to prove Earth can serve the Empire better than any rival, McGill does his best.

Eager to prove our worth to the Galactics, the frontier war between Rigel and Earth is expanded to Storm World. Circled by six moons, the planet is ravaged by wild storms and tides. Battles are fought in raging hurricanes, and death stalks the soldiers on both sides.

McGill grimly fights and dies in the mud until the job gets done, but will it be enough to satisfy the angry Mogwa?

Suns of the Aranol (Obsidiar Fleet #5) – Anthony James

With tenacity and fearless determination, the human Confederation has fought against the overwhelming forces of the Vraxar. Still the aliens keep on coming.

Following the events on New Earth, a chance sighting presents an opportunity too good to ignore. One of the Vraxar’s remaining capital ships – Ix-Gastiol – is located in close orbit around a star.

Fleet Admiral Duggan prepares to strike against the mightiest of the alien vessels. With a strong fleet of warships assembled and an Obsidiar bomb to back them up, he believes success is within reach. However, the Vraxar have existed for millennia and Ix-Gastiol has overseen the extinction of a hundred species. This will be no easy mission.

When everything goes badly, catastrophically wrong, it’s left to Captain Charlie Blake and Lieutenant Eric McKinney to put it right. Trapped within the endless depths of an alien spaceship, they must lead a small squad to achieve the impossible and somehow finish what an entire fleet failed to accomplish. Ix-Gastiol holds clues for the resourceful to find. What Blake and McKinney unearth could be the most important discovery of the war, but only if they can escape with the information.

Upon Stilted Cities: The Battle for Langeles (Chronicles of the Great Migration #3) – Michael Kilman

The Ruins of Langeles are up for grabs, and two walking cities stand on the brink of war.

Saud has arrived, Runner 17 is near death, the women of Nowhere are missing, and Roderick’s plot to destroy Manhatsten is underway. Never before has Manhatsten faced such danger. Enemies lurk both inside and outside the city, and there is an assassin in Daniels’s ranks.

It will take all the power of the sisters of the Order of the Eye to protect the city. But Alexa Turon has seen the future and she knows what’s coming. She knows if they don’t do something, the city will fall. Can she and her new allies change the future or is too late to stop the inevitable?

Vulkan: Lord of Drake (Horus Heresy: Primarchs #9)- David Annandale

As the Emperor marshals his armies to reclaim the galaxy for the glory of mankind, one by one his Space Marine Legions are reunited with their missing primarchs. The XVIII Legion are still waiting to find their true identity, unaware their own lord has been found. In the Taras Division, legionaries face annihilation as they take a last, desperate stand against a monstrous ork invasion. Meanwhile, on Nocturne, Vulkan has raised and trained a new force of warriors. Now it is the time for him to lead his sons into battle. Now it is the time for him to truly don the mantle of primarch, not only to save one half of his Legion, but forge a new, indivisible whole.

READ IT BECAUSE: It’s an untold tale from the earliest days of the Salamanders, as they are united with Vulkan for the first time. With their very existence in the balance, can they be forged into one indivisible whole?

When Eagles Dare (The Four Horsemen Tales #5) – Doug Dandrigde

The mission Jonah White Eagle and his Fierce Eagle Company had taken was nearly impossible. Land on the middle of a 7.5-mile-high plateau, walk six miles to the edge of the cliff, and scale down the 39,000-foot-high cliffs to the foothills of the canyon below. Nothing to it, right? But then there was the swamp they had to cross, full of large indigenous life forms that thought Humans made good snacks. And the rivers, full of other killers, they would have to negotiate.

And then there were the Xlatan, a race of six-legged killers guarding the target. A relatively new mercenary race, although one more established than the Humans, the Xlatan were supposed to be tough. Maybe not—quite—as tough as the Besquith, but close enough to give a number of other merc races the chills when they went up against them.

The Fierce Eagle Company only needed to traverse the planet, stay alive, and then surveil the operation the Xlatan were guarding to gather intelligence for the CASPer-equipped merc company that was enroute to destroy the operation.

The mission would have been nearly impossible, all on its own. There’s just one more thing, though, that they don’t know. They’ve been set up, and the heavy forces aren’t coming.

Still, anything is possible…When Eagles Dare.

New Release Roundup, 20 October 2018: Science Fiction published first on https://medium.com/@ReloadedPCGames