Call It Freedom

Chapter 12 - No Wonder It's Missin'

Author's Note: I hope you didn't expect things to go smoothly on Bracca. ;)

~ Amina Gila

Hunter lays on his rack, trying to sleep, but it doesn't come, partially, he suspects, because he can hear Crosshair's heartbeat opposite him. Their youngest brother is lying on his own rack, back facing outward, though his heart and breathing are too quick for him to actually be sleeping. And aside from that, Hunter is worried. He's afraid that he missed something, that something will happen which will lead to him losing his squad, or some of them.

When they emerge from hyperspace, he swings upright, heading straight to the cockpit to be there with Tech and Echo while they scan for a Star Destroyer which they can use. In retrospect, it may have been better to let Rex locate it first, but Hunter doesn't know that he could have handled waiting, not when he knows there are ticking time-bombs in all of them, Crosshair especially. He couldn't handle losing any of them to the chip, not again.

Wrecker, Crosshair, and Omega crowd in after, though Crosshair lurks in the doorway, behind Wrecker. It seems deliberate, but Hunter tries to ignore it, focusing on Omega, who is jumping up and down, trying to get a better look out the viewport as they fly over the surface while Tech does his scanning to locate the ship.

"We've got a problem," Echo reports, and Hunter's blood runs cold. He knew it. Of course. "Comm chatter has our ship's signature on a wanted list," he continues.

... Right.

That did happen before. It... had slipped Hunter's mind entirely that they did that. That was why they landed on Pantora in the first place instead of going to the remote planet that they'd initially discussed. Does – will the Empire still find them here, because of this?

But they have Crosshair. They won't be fighting him, just regs who don't know how they operate. They'll be fine.

They have to be fine.

"So we scramble it," Tech replies, unconcerned.

"You can do that?" Wrecker blurts out.

"Of course, I can do it." Tech almost sounds offended. "But I need to land in order to perform those modifications. I would suggest doing it as soon as we get on the ground. Otherwise, we might be spotted and reported before we can even undergo the procedures."

Hunter swallows, suddenly feeling shaky. This – how could he have forgotten this? He's their leader. He's supposed to be protecting them. What other crucial information is he forgetting, too? And why can't he forget the difficult memories just as easily as these important things?

"Do it," he rasps, folding his arms tightly over his chest, focusing on the heartbeats of his siblings so he doesn't start spiraling.

"What is this place?" Omega asks as they continue to fly. Tech finally locates a ship which he thinks will work – it's probably the same one they used before – and he brings them in to land as close as possible, halfway in the open hangar, partially concealed in the shadows.

"A starship graveyard," Hunter replies, squaring his shoulders, preparing himself for whatever is to come next. "Damaged ships are dumped here. There are many Star Destroyers on this planet."

Omega is eager and curious as always when they disembark. "I want to explore," she says, hopefully, giving Hunter a pleading look.

He shakes his head, hardly able to look away from her or the others, too afraid that they'll be taken from him while he watches helplessly. "Not here," he answers gruffly. "We... need to split up. Tech, scramble the ship's signature. Wrecker, Crosshair, help him. We need to get that taken care of immediately. Echo, Omega, you're with me. We'll secure the medbay, get it prepped and ready for the surgeries."