Chapter Text
The squad was on their way back from their most recent mission for Cid when they received a holo-call from Rex.
More specifically, Omega had been studying some blaster schematics given to her by Tech. He wouldn’t even let her near the actual blasters until she understood every aspect of how they worked.
As much as Omega wanted to get through her studies so she could actually start taking apart a blaster for real, she was more than ready for a break.
When Rex’s hologram sprung up and his voice rang out through the ship, she eagerly accepted the distraction.
“I hope I’m not interrupting anything important, but I’m shorthanded right now, and I could use a bit of help,” the Gen-1 Clone said apologetically.
Omega perked up at those words. A mission with Rex?
Sounds exciting!
“What do you need, Rex?” Hunter asked, very business-like.
“These past few months, I’ve been trying to help other Clone deserters escape the Empire. We scouted out a sparsely-inhabited world in old Separatist space, figured it’d make a good hiding place while we found them something more permanent.”
“I’m guessing there were… complications,” Echo raised an eyebrow.
“I sent a group of deserters there two weeks ago,” Rex said, tone grim. “We never heard from them again.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Wrecker grimaced.
“What do you need us to do?” Hunter questioned, voice steady.
“I’d like for you to come with me to investigate. Normally I’d have other people for this, but they’re all tied up in other matters right now. I understand if you have other things to worry about right now…”
“We can help,” Omega spoke up, drawing everyone’s attention. “We’ve got time, right?”
“Cid is not expecting us back for another few rotations,” Tech noted, making her smile brightly.
Omega turned her gaze to Hunter, pleading with her eyes.
Please say yes! Please say yes!
“It shouldn’t be any trouble,” Hunter agreed, and Omega had to resist the urge to cheer.
“Glad to hear it,” Rex gave a slight smile. “I’m sending you coordinates. You can pick me up there, and we’ll continue on to the planet.”
When the hologram flickered off, Omega returned to her schematics with a smile, though it was hard to focus on her studies now.
A new mission! One that wasn’t just retrieving some shipment or intimidating people for Cid, but actually helping people. And it was with Rex.
Omega just knew it was going to be something special.
Sharif Al-Fan released a sigh as he stood up from his meditation.
Their ship had almost arrived at its destination, and then their mission would truly begin.
The Jedi Knight, along with three of his compatriots, had been called upon by the Senate for a high priority assignment.
A ship carrying delegates for an important political summit in the region had experienced the misfortune of a mechanical incident, resulting in a sudden ejection from hyperspace and a crash on the nearest world.
Even more unfortunately for them, that planet happened to be Mulderrub.
In truth, Sharif knew little about the mysterious planet. And yet that still put him ahead of the vast majority of the galactic population.
A small world, covered in predator-infested swampland and near-constant rain. As if that weren’t unpleasant enough, a thick, ever-present layer of clouds ensured that the entire surface was blanketed in an endless night.
Those features alone would have made it a priority to retrieve the delegates as expediently as possible, and yet, there was something even more dangerous that drove their haste.
Namely, the planet’s inhabitants.
As far as scientists could tell from the few individuals they’d managed to examine, the inhabitants of Mulderrub, known as Mulderans, were a Near-Human species that had adapted to the darkness of their homeworld over countless generations. Short, extremely pale, and with eyes that were a solid black color.
Centuries ago, when explorers from the Republic had first happened upon this world, a decision had been made by the Senate to initiate first contact with the Mulderans, who did not seem to have any form of space travel or awareness of the larger galaxy around them.
A delegation had been chosen, and sent off to the world despite protests by some that they should wait for more information before making such a decision
Said delegation had chosen one of the larger planetary polities they had been able to identify as their target. They’d landed, and made their greetings of peace and friendship in the Mulderans’ own language.
The Mulderans killed them. And then ate them.
After that, it was decided that Mulderrub would be left alone.
Until now, Sharif thought to himself as their shuttle began its descent through the thick clouds.
Aside from the four Jedi, they’d brought with them a protocol droid capable of speaking at least part of the Mulderan language.
If the delegates had been found by locals, and if they were still alive, Sharif just had to hope that negotiation was possible.
Sure enough, when the crash site was located, they found nothing but bodies. Not everyone was accounted for however, and it wasn’t long before Knight Karak was able to point out signs of a large number of sentients headed away from the crash site. More than one would expect if it was only the survivors of the crash.
They only had to walk for about thirty minutes before coming across the village.
Holding true to their beliefs, Sharif and the other Jedi offered a chance to negotiate when the villagers were alerted by their luminators.
The protocol droid had barely gotten the words out before he was nearly skewered by a thrown spear.
In the end, the fight did not last very long. Most of the Mulderans had only spears and crudely-fashioned slashing blades, and their sensitivity to light made them recoil away from Sharif’s lightsaber. A few, who seemed to be of higher status judging by their attire, wielded slugthrowers, but even they were taken down without too much issue.
Non-lethally, wherever possible, of course. Killing was only a last resort.
It was as they swept the village for the prisoners and any further threat that Sharif heard it: an infant’s wail. Not only that, he could feel the Force calling out to him. Faintly, but there.
He found the source in a small hut, located close to what appeared to be the abode of the village’s leader.
A child. A baby, to be exact. Tinier than any human infant Sharif had ever seen at the Temple.
Tightly swaddled in cloth, they had been locked into a small, rusted cage, and they were shrieking as loudly as their tiny lungs would allow. No doubt startled by the sounds of the battle outside.
They were the center of the disturbance in the Force. Sharif had no doubts in his mind that the infant was Force Sensitive.
Sharif found a Mulderan who was still conscious, and, through the protocol droid, demanded to know why they had locked a child in a cage.
According to the Mulderan, his people had recently destroyed-slaughtered-a rival clan of theirs in a territory dispute. While picking through the village of their former enemies, they’d come across the infant.
She’s a witch, the Mulderan had explained in his hissing language, fangs bared. The child of our enemies has magic in her blood. Their clan leader admitted it, before he died.
Magic in her blood. Sounded a lot like midi-chlorians.
Sharif knew that different cultures across the galaxy viewed the Force in different ways. It was not uncommon for some to see it as magic.
She is to be a sacrifice to the Horned Hunter, the Mulderan continued. A thanks for the victory he granted us.
By the time his fellow Jedi appeared with the survivors of the crash, Sharif had made up his mind.
He wouldn’t leave her to that fate. She’d be brought back to the Temple with them.
The others didn’t argue. Not after he explained the situation.
Carefully slicing the lock with his lightsaber, Sharif gingerly removed the infant from the cage, calling upon the Force to soothe her mind as she continued to shriek and sob.
Slowly, the wails quieted to whimpers, and then contented mumbles as he rocked her gently. Sharif didn’t know much about Mulderan developmental stages, but he could’ve sworn that, just as he was studying her, the child was studying him with those black eyes.
She was asleep by the time they returned to the ship.
It was only as they went into hyperspace that Sharif realized he’d never thought to ask that Mulderan for her name. If he even knew it.
He looked down at the baby in his arms, sleeping soundly with her swaddling clothes draped lightly across her face to protect her eyes from the harsh artificial light of the vessel, and thought of an old Jedi parable Master Yoda always told to the younglings; about a young Padawan that learned to trust in the Force in the face of any adversity.
“Mayze,” Sharif said out loud, receiving questioning looks from the others. “It’s as good a name as any.”
With what she’d been through, it seemed only appropriate.
The Squad was able to collect Rex without any problems, and from there he gave them the coordinates to a planet called Fygor.
“We’ll land about a klick away from the largest village in the region,” Rex said authoritatively. “That puts us at an equal distance from the village itself, and where the deserters would have been making camp.”
“Any idea what we should expect?” Hunter asked.
“I know about as much as you do,” Rex admitted. “But if whatever’s out there can make a dozen troopers up and vanish, it’s not something we should underestimate.”
“If they think they’re gonna have an easy time taking us out, they’ve got another thing coming,” Wrecker grinned dangerously.
“That’s why I wanted you along,” Rex said with a hint of a smirk.
“If I may ask,” Tech began, “how shall we be conducting this investigation of yours?”
“I was thinking we split up; some of us go down to the village and ask around about any suspicious activity in the area, and the rest will investigate the camp itself, see if we can figure out exactly what happened.”
“Echo, you’ll take Omega and check out that village,” Hunter said without missing a beat.
“Understood,” Echo nodded.
“Yes, sir,” Omega said, back straight.
As much as she would’ve liked to investigate the camp and find those missing troopers, it’d still be nice to meet new people. New people that didn’t try to threaten or kill them.
Omega found herself regretting that eagerness, at least a little bit, an hour later as she and Echo explored the village.
It was an interesting place, Omega wouldn’t deny that. Most of the buildings were made out of wood. And the people were mostly farmers.
Echo called it ‘rustic’. Omega didn’t really know what that meant, but it sounded right.
It was just that… these people were boring.
Maybe that wasn’t fair. It wasn’t like Omega really knew them all that well. Maybe they were really fun most of the time.
But every time she or Echo asked someone about people going missing, they got the same answer: that nothing like that had happened recently, they didn’t have time to talk, and why were visitors always so nosy?
It was enough to make Omega want to tear her hair out.
“Just take a breath, and slow down for a minute,” Echo advised gently when she shared her feelings. “Assess the situation. What have we found out?”
Nothing, Omega wanted to grumble. But she stopped herself.
He’s right. I just need to stop and think about things. Let’s see…
“Well… there’s been no disappearances in the village recently,” Omega began hesitantly.
When Echo nodded his approval, she continued, more confident.
“That could mean whatever made those troopers disappear was targeting them specifically. Or that it only goes after people who go out into the wilderness.”
“Very good,” Echo smiled, and Omega resisted the urge to preen under his praise. “It might not sound like much, but that’s still valuable information. Means whatever, or whoever caused it might not have even been something local.”
“The Empire?” Omega questioned, brow furrowing.
She really hoped it wasn’t the Empire.
“Or pirates,” Echo said quickly. “Though I’m not sure what pirates would want with troopers who aren’t even carrying anything valuable enough to steal…”
The two walked in silence for a few seconds, having entered what looked like a marketplace.
“We’ll ask a few more people, and then we’ll meet up with the others. Maybe one of these merchants will have something besides trinkets to share with us.”
“We can split up,” Omega suggested, getting a raised eyebrow in return. “That way we’ll get done quicker. It’s not like there’s anything dangerous here in the village.”
“That we know of,” Echo groused. He softened under her gaze. “Oh, alright. If we can’t find each other after half an hour, we’ll meet up at the edge of the village where we first came in. Understood?”
“Understood,” Omega saluted.
Echo returned the salute with his mechanical arm and a smile, before turning to approach one of the merchant stalls.
Omega watched him go for a moment, and then began looking around eagerly.
Who looked like they might know something? There was a merchant in the corner who looked like he was selling fruit juice. And one of the people at the stall was a village guard! If anyone knew anything, it would be them.
Just as Omega took a step forward however, someone else tried to slip by, catching their shoulder against hers and almost knocking her to the ground.
Grunting slightly, Omega turned to look at the person who’d bumped into her, only to lose whatever she was about to say.
It was a kid. One around her height. Though, Omega knew that didn’t mean much, considering she was frustratingly short for her age.
What made her pause though was that their entire head and face were covered in a rough, brown hood, with only a pair of goggles to let them see.
“My apologies,” the kid said in a feminine, accented voice. She held up a gloved hand, as if worried Omega would get angry at her.
“It’s fine,” Omega smiled gently. “Why’re you in such a hurry?”
“Oh. I have some things I wanted to do for the village. To help them out,” the girl said, slightly muffled behind the cloth that covered her from head to toe.
“That’s really nice of you,” Omega said genuinely. “I’m Omega. What’s your name?”
“...Mayze,” the girl answered after a moment.
“Nice to meet you, Mayze. Do you want help with whatever you’re doing?”
Omega knew she was breaking away from the mission parameters, but the last time she’d gotten to spend time with another kid her age was only a few days after she’d left Kamino for the first time. It was hard to let the opportunity pass by.
Besides, Mayze seemed pretty interesting. Omega could ask if she knew about anything suspicious while she helped with her chores.
It probably wouldn’t take too long anyways. She’d be back before anyone could worry.
“If you’d like to,” Mayze said kindly. “I wouldn’t mind the company.”
Perfect.
It caused a bit of a stir when Knight Sharif returned to the Temple with a new youngling.
When he described the circumstances under which he’d found her, the Council agreed that he’d made the right call. While normally the Jedi would require the consent of a youngling’s legal guardians to bring them to the Temple, it was clear from Knight Sharif’s report that she had no family left.
And so, the Jedi Order became Mayze’s new family.
(Yoda had been quite pleased to hear of the name Sharif had chosen for the child. It warmed his heart to know at least some of his lessons had stuck with the younger generations. It also meant plenty of opportunities to tease young Mayze in the future over her namesake, but no one else needed to know that quite yet).
It required less adjustment than one might think. No Mulderan had ever been a member of the Order before, but the Temple was home to Jedi of a great many species, including several with unique environmental needs.
Accommodations had been made for all of them, and Mayze was no different.
Her nursery was kept dim, enough to be easy on her eyes while still allowing others to see.
As she grew enough to be sorted into a clan along with other younglings in her age range, the creche masters were proud to see that Mayze’s clanmates remained mindful of her sensitivity to light.
Of course, Mayze could not spend her entire life inside her clan quarters. Solutions were needed, and quickly found.
Goggles were crafted by some of the more mechanically-minded Jedi amongst them. They were capable of automatically adjusting themselves to the amount of the light they were exposed to, ensuring Mayze was never overwhelmed.
When it was necessary to expose herself to sunlight, wearing a modified version of Jedi robes that left no skin uncovered was more than sufficient.
In terms of diet, it had been determined that Mayze would require more meat than the average sentient to remain healthy, but that was hardly an issue.
Her unusually small size as an infant only persisted as she grew, never quite able to match the height of the human younglings her age. Perfectly natural for her species, but it still earned Mayze plenty of teasing.
When she was very young, that teasing could earn an attempted bite with her baby fangs, an instinct she’d thankfully grown out of.
Aside from those occasional incidents, Mayze was more or less a model youngling. Perhaps a little more excitable than most, but that was hardly a crime.
She was empathetic, respectful, and eager to learn. All the things that were desired in a youngling her age.
Regardless of how she’d come to the Temple, it was unquestionably where Mayze belonged.
It was her home.
“This… does not look promising.”
“Pretty sure I could’ve figured that one out, Tech”, Wrecker replied, rolling his eyes as the group surveyed the abandoned campsite.
There were six tents, two of which had collapsed. A table had been flipped onto its side, plates and utensils scattered across the ground.
“Spread out,” Hunter ordered. “See if we can find any signs of what happened to those troopers.”
While the others moved out across the campsite, Hunter kept his gaze low, searching for footprints and other clues in the dirt.
“I’m not detecting any traces of blood,” Tech said out loud, more to himself than them.
Probably not a predator, then. Animal attacks were never that clean.
“It looks like the men formed a defensive line on the right side of the camp,” Hunter called out. “They stayed in position for at least a few minutes. Then they scattered.”
“Trying to negotiate?” Rex suggested.
“Could be. Which means we’re dealing with sentients here.”
“I’m seeing a lot of blast-marks on the trees,” Wrecker said. “Whatever happened, it was a real firefight.”
“All lethal rounds. Whoever they were fighting, the troopers had no interest in taking prisoners,” Tech noted.
Hunter frowned, realizing something wrong with that picture.
“If this was a firefight… why are all the blast-marks aimed away from the camp?”
There wasn’t a single scorch mark within the camp itself. If someone had been shooting back at the troopers, there would’ve been something to show it.
“Either the attackers didn’t use blasters, or they never missed a shot,” Rex said lowly. “Either way…”
“Not a good sign,” Hunter finished.
A group that could take out a dozen Clones without firing a shot? That was something even the Batch would need to take seriously.
“At the very least, we’re probably not dealing with the Empire,” Rex said as they reconvened. He gave Hunter a dry look. “But I’m guessing you’d already figured that…”
It was true. After everything that had happened, with Kamino and… Crosshair. Hunter wouldn’t have agreed to this mission if he’d thought there was a decent chance of coming up against the Empire. Too dangerous.
“The Empire doesn’t do ‘subtle’,” Hunter said by way of reply. “If they’d been here, we’d know.”
“As would everyone else in the region,” Tech said matter-of-factly. “Let us hope that Omega and Echo can uncover useful intel for us from the local population.”
“We could definitely use it,” Rex agreed. “We still don’t even know who attacked the men. Or what happened to them.”
Hunter remained silent, scanning the campground for a few seconds. He stepped towards the edge of the camp, and knelt down.
“There’s some sort of markings in the dirt leading north of the camp,” Hunter pointed out. “Almost like something was being… dragged. Or a lot of things.”
He left the grim explanation unsaid: that someone had dragged the bodies of the troopers away from the camp.
“No point in holding off,” Rex sighed. “Let’s see where that leads.”
Hunter took point as they followed the trail, the group exercising caution in case this led them to whoever had attacked the Clones in the first place.
Instead, they found themselves at the bank of a large, rushing river, with the drag marks leading right to the water’s edge.
“They… they must’ve disposed of the bodies in the river,” Rex said slowly. The heartbreak was clear in his voice.
“I’m sorry, Rex,” Hunter said, not knowing what else he could say.
Tech and Wrecker remained silent.
“I… I figured this was a likely outcome,” Rex said after a moment. “Doesn’t make it any easier. Let’s start heading back. See what Omega and Echo found out.”
“If they find out anything useful, and there’s a chance we can catch the ones who did this… we’ll be with you,” Hunter promised.
“Thanks, Hunter,” Rex managed a tiny, weak smile. “Nothing can bring those men back, but… that’ll have to do.”
The sound of blasters firing filled the air as training droids shot round after round.
Initiate Mayze deflected each and every one of them with calm precision, her purple, double-bladed lightsaber humming as she twirled it in both hands.
Plo Koon observed her carefully, Masters Obi Wan Kenobi and Yoda standing on either side of him in the training hall.
“Impressive, her skill at defense is,” Master Yoda noted, gazing up at Plo.
“Yes, but her offense could certainly use some work,” Obi Wan countered. “In duels with other Initiates, she’s lost three quarters of the time. And her ability with the Force is rather average.”
“Based on raw power and skill with a lightsaber, a Jedi’s worth is not,” was all Yoda said in response.
Both made valid points. There was more to being a Jedi than skill in battle, and yet battle was exactly what Mayze would be facing soon enough.
It was already troubling to think that she would join the war. Plo wasn’t sure he could countenance the idea of sending her to her death…
“She’s rather young,” Plo pointed out.
That brought on a grim silence amongst the three. All the while, Mayze continued her display, blissfully unaware of what they were saying.
“...Required for the war effort, more Jedi are,” Yoda said reluctantly. “The Senate…”
“We’re all aware of the Senate’s demands,” Obi Wan said when Yoda trailed off. “That doesn’t mean I enjoy the idea of sending Padawans out so young. Is this truly necessary?”
“Enjoy this, I do not,” Yoda said quietly, and for a moment Plo caught a glimpse of his centuries of age, the weight of responsibility weighing down on him. “Necessary… I fear it may be. Dark times, these are. Should we lose this war… unspeakable, the consequences may be.”
And that’s what it ultimately came down to.
The demands of the Senate, the demands of this wretched war… they tore at the Jedi Order. Tugging and unraveling and peeling away their values so that they might preserve the Republic and restore peace to the galaxy.
May these young ones forgive us for what we call them to. May all of this sacrifice have meaning in the end.
At last, the training droids ceased their barrage, returning to their stations.
Mayze turned to face the three Masters. Her eyes were hidden behind her goggles, but Plo could see the grin on her face as she bowed.
“I will take her on as my Padawan,” Plo made up his mind. “Her skill at defensive combat would be invaluable on the kinds of missions the 104th undertakes.”
Perhaps now his men would stop asking about when they’d get their own little Commander.
“What brings you here?” Mayze questioned as they made their way through the village.
“My brothers and I are here helping a friend,” Omega responded, careful not to give too much away too quickly. “Some people he cares about went missing, so we’re trying to find them.”
“That’s very kind of you to help like that. I hope you’re able to find them safe and sound.”
“Me too.”
“Hold on a moment,” Mayze said, coming to a stop.
“What are you doing?” Omega asked as Mayze retrieved a few tools from a run-down shed.
“An irrigation system for one of the crop fields is in need of repair,” the other girl explained. “I offered to fix it.”
“You know how to do that?”
“It’s a simple fix,” Mayze shrugged. “It’s simply that no one here has had time for it.”
She started walking, and Omega stayed next to her.
They chatted about the village as they went. How the war had been hard on them, how they were only just able to start exporting crops again.
It didn’t seem like Mayze was a local, though Omega didn’t know how long ago she’d come here, or why.
“The war,” was all Mayze said, when Omega brought it up.
Makes sense. Echo’s talked about how many people had to leave their homes because of the war. She probably doesn’t want to talk about it. I don’t like talking about Kamino either…
Looking more closely now, Omega noticed a few more details about her new friend.
Mayze’s sleeves were tied down by string. The same with her pant legs, and the waist of her tunic. Her boots were caked in mud, and worn. Multiple patches were scattered across the tunic and pants, but nowhere was any open tear where skin would be exposed.
The hood over Mayze’s head was attached to the tunic by pins, covering her neck completely. It looked like just enough space had been cut out to make room for the goggles.
“Why do you cover yourself like that?” Omega couldn’t help but ask.
Mayze glanced over her way, tilting her head slightly. “My species is very sensitive to sunlight. It’s the only way I can safely move around in the daytime.”
“That must be hard.”
A shrug. “I’ve gotten used to it.”
Soon, they were at the field Mayze had talked about. The fix turned out to be just as simple as she’d said. A few screws needed to be tightened, and there were some leaks along the piping.
It was simple work, but it took time. Luckily, Omega was a fast learner. Once Mayze showed her what to do, she could work alongside her to get the job done twice as fast.
As they worked, Omega remembered her mission.
“Have you ever heard of anything weird in the woods?” Omega questioned as she tightened a bolt. “Anything… dangerous?”
“Not… particularly,” Mayze answered from nearby as she patched a leak with duratape.
Tech would probably have a fit if he saw this.
“There are local legends, and folk tales, of course. But nothing more than that. Why?”
“Oh, I just like learning about things like that. It’s fun.”
It was worth a shot.
As they put a last few adhesive touches on the final pipe, Omega’s comlink crackled to life.
“Omega? Echo says he lost you somewhere in the village. Report.”
“Sorry, Hunter,” Omega said as Mayze tilted her head to one side. “I got… distracted.”
“Right. We’ll be talking about that later.”
Oh boy…
“Report back to the ship. We need to talk about what we’ve found out.”
“On my way,” Omega said, and the comlink went silent.
“I’m assuming that’s a friend of yours,” Mayze said conversationally.
“My brother, actually. He wants me to get back to the ship. I should…”
Omega hesitated. It’d been so long since she’d gotten to hang out with another kid, and she didn’t want to give that up quite yet. Mayze seemed trustworthy, so…
“You want to come with me? You can meet my family before we have to go.”
“That’s very nice of you,” Mayze said, and Omega liked to think she was smiling. “I’d like that.”
“Great!”
Hopefully they’d get along. Omega knew Hunter could be wary around strangers…