The Nighttime Fear

Chapter 2 - Unexpected Reunion

Author's Note: All hail the glorious planet of Cracca – okay I just misspelled Bracca and I am still traumatized.

WARNING: Crosshair being Dark

~ Rivana Rita

The face is blurred, but he sees it – a child. She's young, blonde curls falling across her face. "Hunter." The way she says his name – it's familiar. The voice is familiar. The flower-petal soft feel of it. She's important. He knows her. "I need you!"

Hunter blinks himself awake, still feeling empty and numb.

He doesn't know her. The voice is familiar, and the presence even more so, but he can't place it. He could swear he's seen her before, though. Maybe he should ask Tech because he always remembers things. Or Crosshair, maybe he –

Right.

Crosshair tried to kill him.

He's not here to ask.

He doesn't even want to get off his rack now, but he does. He barely has the energy to move.

Thoughts of his dream fade entirely once he gets up, and they exit hyperspace over Saleucami. That's when he senses a familiar flaming presence, brilliant as a star.

"Anakin's here," Hunter murmurs as Tech touches down.

(There's only three of them aboard. The ship is too empty. He feels so... lonely. Empty.)

Wrecker perks up instantly. "He's here?"

"Yeah," Hunter confirms, "I don't know how."

He's more focused on that while they go to the farm than anything else. They're here for Cut, though – they can find Anakin later.

"Where's Crosshair?" predictably, is virtually the first thing Cut inquires when he sees them.

Hunter sighs at the memory of the lightsaber pressed to his neck. "It's complicated."

"Sounds familiar," Cut replies as they sit around a table together. "Rex told us about the clone troopers turning against the Jedi."

He perks up a little at that. Anakin is on-planet, and... so is Rex? That must mean they were able to make it out of the chaos. "You've seen Rex?"

"Yeah, he just left," Cut nods to the doorway, "Said his General was comming him. Apparently, he survived."

His heart rate picks up a bit. Hunter knew they knew Rex – Cut had mentioned it when he and his brothers ended up here back in the war. (Being here is bringing up so many memories. Crosshair was here, and they weren't happy exactly – it was right after Umbara – but they were together.) "Where'd they go?" Hunter asks, "Do you know?"

"Didn't ask," Cut answers, "Rex warned us of the storm that's coming."

That doesn't sound good. Hunter has no idea what things are like in the galaxy. He's focused on trying to get his brothers out of danger, not paying attention to exactly what the dangers are.

"What does he believe is happening?" Tech inquires.

"He said the war is over, that we've failed," Cut answers, "That the Jedi are gone. What happens from here is something no one will know."

Yeah. Hunter knows that. If they failed, that means... he can't understand why the Chancellor would do this, or what's happening from here out. "I still find it hard to believe the Republic could have ordered this."

"From what I am seeing," Tech announces, looking up from his datapad, "There is no Republic left. It has been declared an Empire now."

He feels cold. The Republic is gone. Everything they fought for is gone. He just... needs some time to process, but that's not why he's here.