When the Cavalry Comes.

XXXVIII

Cavalry stared hard at the maps of the sewer system. Across from her stood high general Mace Windu, the idea that he was there terrified her. Also present was was Ki-Adi Mundi, who was only there via communicator and refused to turn on hologram. He barely said anything, but that was fine by Cavalry's standards.

Fives stood next to her, occasionally whispering details she overlooked through a comm channel only she could hear, thanks to her helmet.

General Windu seemed impressed at her thorough studies, and stated so.

"Very good, trooper. The scanning team should be here to look at the areas you marked out soon. Is there any way to narrow it down from the locations you gave us?" He asked. Cav hesitated.

"Possibly. Thermal readings might narrow it down a little. Echo testing may prove beneficial, but it could also damage the city." A thought came to her. She looked up, meeting General Windu's eyes briefly. "Permission to speak freely?" She asked. Windu seemed surprised, his eyes widening fractionally.

"Granted. What's on your mind, Trooper?" His face was hard to read, but he seemed interested on what she was going to say.

"Be careful, Cav. What are you thinking?" Fives hissed in her ear. Cav mentally composed herself before answering the General and her Ori'vod.

"Respectfully, sir, I think we're looking in the right, direction, but the wrong place. ARC Trooper Fives mentioned that there were no thermal readouts around him aside from faded foot prints entering the dead end where Captain Rex was captured when he came too. We also notice that the sewers run distinctly around the area, even though those buildings are plumbed. It seems excessive to run the water that far around those buildings for no reason." She pointed out, tapping on the holomap to bring the area into sharper relief in the stark light of the hologram. "Do we have access to the old sewer records, General?" She asked.

General Windu seemed to get what she was going at.

"You want to cross reference them with the current maps to see if there's something there." He said. Cav nodded.

"Yes sir. "

"That's absurd. Why go through the trouble of moving the sewers to put something there? Obviously the buildings were built on faulty design." Ki-Adi Mundi's voice spoke up. "Besides, the child's plan lead to the capture of Padawan Tano and Skywalker's Captain. We should be trying her for treason, not listening to her!"

That stung. General Mundi knew all the right buttons to push and had hit them expertly. Fives stepped forward a bit, as if shielding Cavalry. Cavalry shook her head and motioned him back. General Windu looked annoyed.

"Master Mundi stand down." A rare show of anger graced his dark features. "Trooper Cavalry has acted nothing but honorably during this. She has successfully guided us to Knight Skywalker, who is in the medbay now. She has also just pointed out a crucial aspect of the search, as well as made great steps to finding the Chancellor with her notes on organization for the search patterns."

"The child is barely old enough to-"

"My sister is just as capable as any other clone. More so, in some circumstances." Fives spoke aloud, his temper getting the best of him as he interrupted General Mundi. 

There was a stunned silence following his outburst. Speaking without permission like that at any general, specifically Mundi in particular, was as good as volunteering for a court marshaling.

"ARC Fives, you are dismissed. Trooper Cavalry you as well." Windu said, glaring at Mundi's communicator.

As soon as they were out of earshot Cav rounded on Fives.

"That was stupid of you!" She hissed. "Are you trying to get yourself reconditioned?"

Five removed his helmet to glare at her, somehow meeting her eyes even through her visor.

"They won't recondition an ARC for something like speaking out of term. Besides, Windu is more mad at Mundi than us. I wasn't going to let that sexist bantha shagging slime keep talking about you like that. You've earned better, especially during the last few days." He ranted. Cav broke the seal on her own helmet and gulped in unfiltered air, tucking her hemet under one arm and brushing sweaty hair off her forehead and tucking it into the braid that coiled around her head.

"Fives, he's still a general." Almond slate eyes met round amber ones as they fought without actually fighting.

Fives broke the tension and looked away, losing the imaginary fight. "I know, I know Firecracker." His lips quirked up at the pet name.

The heated emotions dissipated. Cav huffed, more annoyed than frustrated now. "Stupid." She muttered one more time. "I'm going to the mess and grabbing some food. You coming?"

Fives shook his head. "Got some ARC stuff to take care of. I'll catch you afterwards though." Cav nodded.

"Got it." She put her helmet back on, blinking a few times to save and clear the notes that crowded her HUD from that last meeting.

The trek to the temporary mess hall that had been erected wasn't a long one, but it gave her time to collect her thoughts and think about the last meeting before Fives's rash action had cut it short.

She grabbed her grey protein cubes with a hidden grimace. Nothing appetizing, but it was edible. Thankfully the mess was almost empty, so she found an abandoned table the corner and sat down.

She set her helmet next to her and picked at her cubes halfheartedly, stacking them into a tower and knocking them over again instead of actually eating the slimy, flavorless squares.

Cavalry jumped a little when a second trey slammed down next to her and she was engulfed in an armored hug, so she was staring at the red medic's symbol that was pressed into her face.

"I'm so mad at you." The brother hugging her said. Cav lit up.

"Kix!" She threw her arms around his neck. Kix laughed and pulled back afterN a second.

"Boo." He smiled. "How are you holding up? Fives gave me the rundown." Kix sat on the bench next to her. Cav chuckled weakly.

"I'm surviving. That much I can tell you." She ate one of the small cubes on her tray and made a face at the flavorless, chewy-slimy texture.

"Aren't we all."

They were interrupted by Cav's comm beeping. She rolled her eyes and blinked a couple times to bring up her new orders.

"I'm being summoned. To another briefing. Kriffing already?" She muttered.

"Watch your language." Kix chided her.

"You're one to talk." She grumbled, looking sadly at her barely touched meal that Kix promptly stole.

"Go to your meeting. I'm going to look after this for you."

Cav huffed grumpily to which Kix shrugged.

"I'll see you soon. This is part of the payback for stunning me. Go on. You don't want to be late."

"We're finishing this conversation another time." Cav promised, turning on her heel to leave. Kriffing older brothers.