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Omega thrashed furiously against the stormtroopers. "Let me go!"
She tried to hit them with her cuffed hands, kick them in the shins, fight them just like her brothers had trained her to - but it was no use. She wasn't strong enough.
Omega kept struggling as she was frog-marched through the corridors of Tantiss, enough that one of the troopers cuffed her over the head with their blaster.
She blinked black spots out of her eyes, dazed. It took her a minute to realize they'd stoppedd moving, and that they had entered an empty room. White floor. White walls. Just like everything on Tantiss.
On some days of her imprisonment here, Omega wondered if she was being scrubbed blank as well. Her individual thoughts. Her emotions. Her personality.
All of it, fading to white.
Dr. Hemlock strode into the room now, his normally polished composure gone. He was mad, furious.
"This compound has been turned upside down - prisoners left and right, property destroyed, research on fire. For you," he spat.
Omega wanted to punch this disgusting monster of a man right between his eyes. But all she could do was pour all her hatred and fear and burning desire to get out of here into a hard glare.
"You are nothing, little clone." Hemlock suddenly grabbed her by the arm, throwing her against the hard metal wall.
"That's all you are," Hemlock growled, looming over Omega as she struggled to stand. "A clone. You are a piece of equipment, only good for your flesh and blood."
Hemlock grabbed her by the throat, pulling her up the wall. Omega started to gasp for air, her legs kicking furiously. For a man of unassuming physical demeanor, Hemlock's grip was deathly strong.
"The Empire created you," Hemlock whispered, his face inches from Omega's. "And we will destroy you."
His grip tightened even further.
"Look at you. Pathetic."
Omega was gasping, struggling to breathe, breathe, her lungs were screaming. Her lungs were hot coals, they burned at the slightest touch of air.
Can't breathe
Can't breathe
Can't
Breathe
Omega's vision was fading. She wished, desperately wished, that her last view could have been something other than Hemlock's cruel sneer.
Wrecker's broad grin.
Echo's bemused eyeroll.
Tech's oh-so-slight smile.
Crosshair's sarcastic smirk.
Hunter's warm, caring eyes.
Omega slumped. Her legs stopped kicking. There was no air left. Fading. Fading. Fading...
And then suddenly, the crushing vise on her throat released. She slumped to the ground, wheezing in painful breaths through her damaged throat.
"Omega!" Someone was yelling. "Omega!"
Omega tried to blink the dark spots out of her eyes. She groaned. Hunter was there, pulling her to her feet with an desperate, scared, relieved look on his face.
"-mega, are you okay?" He was saying.
She nodded slowly, knowing full well that wasn't true.
Her gaze strayed to the body on the floor. Hemlock, with a bullet hole through his head.
Hunter cupped the side of her face, turning it away from the body. "Don't look at him, ad'ika. Look at me. We've gotta get out of here. Can you walk?"
Omega took one step forward and swaying legs and promptly collapsed
Hunter scooped her up, holding her close to his chest.
Then they were running, and the world around them flashed by-
Echo in a stormtrooper suit, blasting furiously.
Wrecker supporting Crosshair as they ran, and a stump where Crosshair's hand should've been.
Clones, brothers, shouting, running, fighting fleeing,
White walls, white floors, turned different colours by smoke and fire and blood and blood and blood-
Omega squeezed her eyes shut. It was all too much.
Now they were on an Imperial shuttle, packed full of vode, and Hunter was hurrying into the cockpit. He gently set her down in the copilot's seat, and started their ascent to get out of orbit.
"We're going home, Omega. Just hold on a little bit longer."
Omega stared blankly into the lights of hyperspace. With each flickering whorl, an image flashed through her mind.
Hemlock, standing over her.
White walls.
Lines of clones, beaten down and hunched over.
White floors
A vod who raised his head defiantly, and was shot in the chest.
White walls.
The little cell she'd spent months in, praying and hoping for an escape.
White floors.
Omega drew her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around herself and burying her face in her knees.
It was all too much.
At some point Echo came over to her, tried to treat her injuries. He talked to her, asked her questions, but got no response. Finally Echo tried to tilt her chin up so he could look at the purple bruises on her throat. Omega flinched so violently that he drew back in shock.
Omega could feel his worried stare, but then somebody shouted for help with an injury at the back of the ship, and he reluctantly drew away.
Omega could tell, vaguely, that they'd stopped. That all the imprisoned vode were getting off the ship. That her brothers were standing over her, crouching down, trying to get her to speak to them.
"Omega, we're on Pabu."
"Ad'ika, we're home. It's okay."
"Please say something, Omega."
And then it was a new voice that snapped her out of her catatonic state.
"Hey, Omega."
Omega finally looked up. Phee was kneeling there, one hand on the seat Omega was curled up on.
"There you go, baby girl. Its alright."
And something about Phee's kind face, those open eyes patiently waiting for her to speak, the crooked eyebrow always suggesting some sort of mischief - it just pushed Omega over the edge.
She burst into tears, heavy sobs that tore through her body in their urge to escape.
Phee pulled her into a hug, Crosshair and Hunter's arms quickly following suit, along with Echo's cold scomp and Wrecker's huge hands encircling all of them.
Omega cried there, in the center of that knot of healing.
And that knot did not unravel for a long time.