Forgive Me (Echo x Medic Reader)

Part 17

Silence prevailed. The Marauder was quieter than it had ever been before; no one dared speak as reality slowly began to sink into each member of the elite squad. Not only were they now traitors to the new power, deserters, but they had also broken their own wordless promise by leaving Crosshair in the grip of the newly founded Empire. Although they had succeeded in retrieving Omega and sparing her from a fate few could imagine, it didn't soothe the guilt of leaving Crosshair to fend for himself in a place where few would see him as anything more than an object, an unfeeling piece of equipment, an number.

On top of that came the realization that thousands, if not millions, of Clones across the galaxy had been slaughtered amidst their effort to fulfill the directions of Order 66, an order that took away their free will and suppressed everything that made them human. An order that forced them to turn on and betray their friends in the Jedi and any innocent who stood in their way. An order that went against who they were and against anything any clone could have truly desired. Slowly, it was becoming obvious that Crosshair, too, had fallen victim to the galaxy-wide sweep of Order 66.

As Tech did more research, it became obvious it wasn't just the Jedi targeted. The Civvi personnel had been to. Those considered valuable had been sent to different divisions amongst all the chaos, whereas those deemed useless had been mercilessly executed alongside the Jedi. Echo was unsure what was worse, fearing his friends and brothers had been killed or finding out (Y/N) could also be among the lost. Despite his best efforts, the battle-worn Arc Trooper couldn't bring himself to speak the words ringing through his mind. The words that could shatter what remained of his resolve or fan the flames of hope. It had been Wrecker who had bravely worded the question.

"What about (Y/N)? You said she was on Coruscant." Wrecker's voice had softly rumbled through the tight confinements of the Marauder, bouncing on the durasteel walls as if to trap all of them in an unending loop with the question and any fears it would bring forth. Omega had spoken up curiously after finally diverting her attention away from the swirling colors of hyperspace, asking who the Civvi was, trying her hardest to break up the harrowing atmosphere that had since settled over the cold modified attack shuttle.

"I can't find any trace of her," answered Tech, pushing his goggles back up the bridge of his nose; he soon returned to tapping away at his holopad, a renewed determination to find the answers to lingering questions and maybe settle their growing nerves. If they could save even one they cared for, then their efforts and hope wouldn't be in vain. "It appears others are uncounted for as well. Commanders Wolffe, Thire, and Blackout are among them," he commented, intending to grow the small amount of hope each had, but especially for Echo, who had already lost so much and stood to lose more.

"Where are we heading anyway?" asked Echo, attempting to change the subject and drown the dread beginning to take hold in the pit of his stomach. All he wanted now was a distraction, if only so he could ignore the growing concerns and silence the thoughts of terror floating through his mind as if to torment him more than the Separatists did during the war. The Arc Trooper was well aware the Batch had built up a network of contacts during their assignments across the galaxy. Rex and Cody were among them, as were Senators, Civvi Personnel, and random civilians across the galaxy.

"Saleucami," announced Hunter, confidence flooding his smokey voice, even if his honey-colored eyes didn't echo it. "There's a friend there that's been hiding for years. Figured he'd be the best person to get advice from," he added, recalling when the batch had come across Cut and Su. It had been one of their first assignments off Kamino. At first, each had assumed he was just undercover for something but soon learned otherwise when he interrogated them, believing the Republic had sent them to retrieve or execute him for treason. They'd parted on good terms, though, keeping his whereabouts a secret and stopping off every now and again to visit when they were close by. They'd slowly built a friendship to the point Cut was one of the few they trusted.