sparky // a padawan story

chapter 29. umbara.

"Masters Krell and Tiin will be supporting my troops in the south," Obi-Wan starts as R2 pulls up a holomap of the Umbaran terrain, "while Anakin's battalion comes in from the north and takes out enemy reinforcements. It is imperative that we conquer the capital city as quickly as possible and hold it." I stand between him and Cody as he addresses some of Anakin's men of the 501st.
"Our biggest problem is the local militia," Anakin adds. "The Umbarans have aligned themselves with the Separatists and are heavily armed. ARC trooper Fives will be assisting my units on special assignment."
"Ready to do my part, General Skywalker," Fives replies.
"Nice to have you on board," Rex tells him.
"Just like old times, Rex," Fives says.
Obi-Wan continues. "Remember, Anakin. Arlo, Cody, and I will be 12 klicks to your south. We're counting on you to take out those local fighters or, I'm afraid, the capital will never surrender."
Anakin sighs. "Does my battalion have to do everything?" he jokes.
"You always seem to volunteer," Obi-Wan retorts. He, Cody, and I walk towards our gunship and it flies off towards Umbara. We land just a few klicks away from the capital city and start towards it, the three of us leading the way for the rest of our battalion.
"Don't you think that the capital will be heavily guarded, Master?" I question as we draw closer to the capital.
"I'd imagine so, yes. But nothing we can't handle. I'd think there would be more troops around where Anakin is headed, since he's a bit further from the capital, and if I'm correct, they don't expect us coming from this way—" Blasts begin to be fired at us from the front. Obi-Wan and I pull out our sabers and begin blocking blasts while our troopers fire back. "I stand corrected. Oh, I have a bad feeling about this!" We continue pushing forward towards the capital, taking heavy fire. A detonator is thrown at us, and the three of us dive to the side for cover.
"This isn't looking good, General!" Cody states. Waxer and Boil run over from nearby and help the three of us back on our feet. I thank them quietly as Obi-Wan speaks.
"I know. Every time we seem to get a gain on them, more of their men come out, stronger than before," Obi-Wan says.
"A couple of us can scout ahead and find where their men are coming from. Then maybe we can infiltrate their men from behind, which could catch them off guard and weaken them, and give you all an advantage from here," I suggest.
"That's a brilliant plan, my Padawan."
"Waxer, Boil, you're with me, then," I say.
They stand up straighter and speak in unison. "Yes, sir!"
"Cody and I will hold it down here, then. Be careful."
"Always am, Master," I say as Waxer, Boil, and I jog to the side away from the battle.
"No, you're not!" he calls back. We stop jogging once we get a decent distance away and start moving forwards toward the capital.
"Wherever these forces are coming from, it can't be far from the city," I tell them.
"I agree, Commander," Waxer says. I hold my saber out in front of us to shine some light on the shadowy planet. They keep their blasters at the ready.
"What should we be looking for?" Boil asks. I start to answer him, but stop when I hear nearing footsteps. We see a group of Umbarans begin to walk in our direction from the left. I turn off my saber and the three of us take cover behind some sort of overgrown plant. I peek from behind it as the Umbaran forces walk past us without noticing and towards the battle.
"I'd say look for that, Boil," I say with a sigh of relief as we lose sight of them.
"Yeah. Really."
"They came from the left, Commander, should we go that way?" Waxer asks.
I ignite my saber once again and stand. "Of course we are, Waxer. Let's bounce." The two of them stand and follow me in the direction that the Umbarans had come from. We trek through the plant vines and twigs through the shadows, still hardly lit from my golden blade in front of us.
"I really don't like this place," Boil mutters. "Gives me the creeps."
"So not a good time to pull a prank?" Waxer jokes. I giggle.
"Don't even think about it, Waxer," Boil states, annoyed.
"Only kidding, Boil, only kidding," Waxer says with a short laugh.
"I'm with Boil. This place is creepy," I say.
"Let's just try not to think about it, then," Waxer tells us.
"It's a little hard when you kind of have to think about it," Boil says. "Got some kind of Jedi trick for this, Commander?"
"To help you all clear your minds? Um... you're probably gonna have to ask General Kenobi about that. I've never been good at the whole meditation thing, you know."
"Oh. Right," Waxer says.
"May I suggest, Commander, that maybe you learn how to be good at it so that the next time the three of us end up in a situation like this we're a bit more, I don't know, sane?" Boil questions.
I laugh. "Sure, Boil. I'll work on that." We stop walking as we find ourselves at a crossroads.
"Which way, Commander?" Waxer asks.
"I can't see anything over these plants. I need a sense of where to go before we continue." I think for a moment, then a lightbulb turns on in my head. I point to a nearby plant. "Could you give be a boost up onto that?" Waxer and Boil nod as I put my saber back on my belt and make my way to the tall treelike plant. I step up onto Boil's hands and grab onto the thick branch above, pulling myself up and standing on it.
"Careful, kid," Boil says as I stick my arms out for balance. Once I'm comfortable, I put my arms back down and look around. I can see the gunfire from where we came from in the south. I can barely make out Obi-Wan's saber through all of the chaos. I also see gunfire in the north near Anakin's location. I see the capital city slightly in between the two battlefields, and to the west, something of a building. But I can't quite tell.
"Either of you have binoculars?" I ask.
Waxer pulls out a pair. "Can you catch it?"
"Of course I can catch it." He tosses them up the plant underhand and I catch the binoculars with ease. I look towards the strange building with the binoculars to my eyes. "Hm. It looks like some sort of airbase." I watch as members of the Umbaran militia prepare weapons and troops at the base. "This is where their reinforcements are coming from. I need to contact Obi-Wan immediately." I press a button on the comlink on my wrist. "Master, do you copy?"
"I'm here, Arlo, what is it?" he replies through the com.
"Their supply line is coming from an airbase to the west. Heavily armored and guarded. We have to find a way to stop them from there if we want to stand a chance of taking the capital."
"Good work, my Padawan. I'll let Master Krell know up north and send his men
"I thought Anakin was up north?"
"Change of plans, Anakin was called back to Coruscant by the Chancellor, and Master Krell is the temporary general of the 501st."
"Alright then. I trust Rex and the 501st will make quick work of it."
"As do I."
"Should we follow through with sneaking into the capital, Master?"
"I don't know, Arlo. The capital is heavily fortified, it'll be nearly impossible to get in. How do you plan to pull this off?"
"We'll do what we do best. Sneak through the sewers."
"If you think this will work... then okay. I trust you. But if I tell you to retreat, you retreat, got it?"
"Got it, Master. See you in a bit."
"May the Force be with you, my Padawan." He ends the call. I sit back down on the trunk and slide off the side. Waxer and Boil catch me and safely place me on the ground. I hand Waxer his binoculars.
"Where do you think the sewers could be?" Waxer asks me.
"We're most likely gonna have to get into the city before we can get to them," I tell them. I turn on my lightsaber for light once again as we start east towards the capital. Two guards by the gate point their blasters at us as we approach.
"Surrender, Jedi!"
I wave my hand. "You will let us in."
"We... we will let you in." They open the door just enough to let us slip in, and we automatically come across an entrance to the sewers. I use the Force to lift the lid and let the two of them down first. I hop down behind them and close the lid with the Force. My nose scrunches at the foul scent as I hold out my lightsaber and lead the way.
"Now if only we had Numa here to guide us through here," I say. "Though I wouldn't want her to have to suffer through this horrible smell."
"I miss her," Waxer says. "Commander Cody mentioned something about the Ghost Co going to Ryloth for a check in soon, so maybe we can see her."
"Hopefully I'm not on some other mission, maybe I'd be allowed to tag along."
"I think about her a lot," Boil admits.
"I know. You always act so tough, but you're really a softie," Waxer says.
"Like when we first met! You didn't like me at all—" I start
"I never once said I didn't like you, kid—"
"Doesn't mean you liked me."
"But then she told us the worst joke ever, and I have never before seen you laugh so hard," Waxer adds.
"It wasn't even funny!" I giggle.
"Obviously it was, or else I wouldn't have laughed."
"Waxer didn't even laugh, and he laughs at everything."
"That's true," Waxer agrees. We suddenly hear a rumble from up above. Then another. And another.
"Arlo, are you there, Arlo? Do you copy? Arlo!" Obi-Wan speaks through my com.
"I'm here, Master, what is it?"
"We're being pushed back by long-range missiles. I need you to destroy those cannons as soon as possible."
"Consider it done, Master."
"The 501st has taken control of the airbase, but the Umbarans are still being resupplied by a support ship. Cody and Wooley scouted ahead and said it's guarded by a strong fleet contingent. Once you destroy the cannons, I need you to rendezvous just south of where we just were. There's too many of them for you all to be able to successfully sabotage them from the inside. And we need to figure out a way to stop their reinforcements, or else we don't stand a chance. I trust you'll make quick work of this. I'll see you soon." He ends the call.
"Here's an exit, straight above, Commander," Boil says as he points up. I use the Force to remove the lid and I Force jump out, then I help pull Waxer and Boil out. I kick the lid back on.
"Alright, let's—"
"Uh... Commander?" Waxer says.
"Yeah, Wa—? ...Oh. Oh, this is a problem." I look up and see the Umbarans have seized fire against our battalion and have their blasters aimed at us. Three cannons are manned in a line, the one in the middle pointing straight at my head.
"Hands up! Drop your weapons!" one of them commands.
I take a short step forward. "I'm afraid I can't do that."
"It would be smart of you to stand down," he says.
"...Possibly. Get down, boys!" I shout back at Waxer and Boil. They duck and move behind a nearby building to the side for cover as the Umbarans begin to fire at us. They begin to fire back as I Force jump and flip onto the middle cannon, chopping the barrel in half. I jump down and move to the one on the other side. I stab straight through the loaded barrel and backflip away as it explodes. The Umbarans begin to load the final cannon. I Force jump towards it as they fire towards the 212th, but I slice through the missile in the air just in time. It explodes and destroys the final cannon, and it flings me back like a rag doll. I turn off my saber as Waxer and Boil rush over to practically drag me to cover and help me sit up.
"Are you okay, Commander?" Waxer questions as the two of them kneel in front of me.
"I'm just fine, thank you, Waxer."
"Nice work back there, kid. But now what? How do we retreat without them following us?" Boil questions.
"There's no way we can sneak around in time without being stopped by their incoming reinforcements. We need a plan... do we have any detonators, by chance?"
"Just two," Waxer answers.
"Two detonators aren't going to do anything," Boil sighs. "We don't stand a chance, Commander."
"Calm down, Boil. We'll use those detonators to block their vision, then we'll have to make a run for it. It's the only way," I tell them.
"It's... certainly a plan," Boil says.
"Never said it was a good one," I say.
"Let's do this, then," Waxer says. Boil hands him a detonator and keeps one himself. They click them on and toss them towards the Umbaran troops.
"Run, go, go!" I shout as the detonators explode. We sprint away from the explosion back towards our troops, who turn their blasters towards us. I ignite my lightsaber and wave it in the air as we get clour troopers don't fire at us.
"Arlo, is that you?" I hear Obi-Wan yell towards us.
"You ever met anyone else with a gold lightsaber?" I call back as I turn off my saber and hook it back on my belt. I run straight into him as he steps out of cover. He holds me by the shoulders to steady me.
"Woah, watch yourself, there, little one. Thank goodness you're okay, we saw the explosions, I couldn't tell what had happened, and the coms are jammed—"
"I'm fine, Master."
"Right. Yes. Good work, all three of you."
"Thank you, sir," Waxer says as him and Boil stand up straight.
"Lieutenant Waxer, we're sending a platoon lead by you to secure our troops from the back, as there could potentially be more coming up from the south. Arlo will come with you. Commander Cody and I will continue to try and push forward."
"Yes, sir," Waxer says.
"Got it, Master," I say. Waxer and Boil walk off to gather up the rest of Waxer's platoon. "So coms are jammed?"
"Yes, we lost contact with General Krell. But we must keep pushing forward. We have to take this capital. It's crucial we aren't attacked from behind, that's why I'm sending you and Waxer's platoon. I know you'll get the job done."
"You can count on us, Master."
"Yes, I can."
"Hey, you ready, kid?" Boil calls over to me.
"Yeah!" I wave goodbye to Obi-Wan as I walk back over to Waxer and Boil. We start through the dark and creepy Umbaran terrain. Waxer's com beeps as he receives a transmission. He pulls out his holoprojector to reveal General Krell.
"Lieutenant. I have received word that Umbaran soldiers are headed in your direction. They may be disguised in clone armor with clone weapons. I have sent you the coordinates. Launch an attack in their direction and see to it that they are destroyed."
"Yes, General," Waxer replies.
"Master Krell, shall I let my master know the coms are back up and of our situation?" I ask.
"I will do so myself, Padawan." His hologram disappears and Waxer puts the projector away.
"Maybe these Umbarans are wittier than we gave them credit for," Waxer says.
"I don't know, Waxer... something doesn't feel right," I reply. "I'm probably overthinking it. Just... be wary, you never know what could happen."
"Got it, Commander. Men," he starts to speak to the group, "we've been informed the locals are disguised in our armor. Be prepared to attack." We get closer to the coordinates that were sent to us and eventually hear footsteps in front of us. We see someone in clone armor. Then we see more. Our platoon begins to fire and the disguised Umbarans fire back.
"They're shooting a lot sharper than before!" I exclaim. "Waxer, Boil, come with me, I need to see something!"
"We're with you, Commander," Boil says. We break off right from the platoon, moving forward towards the enemy. "What exactly are we looking for?"
"They're too good to be Umbarans. There's no way. Something is going on, I know it."
"Who else could they be?" Waxer questions. "They can't be droids, either, could they?"
"Not unless they're commandos. But you don't see those in large platoons like this."
"But that means there's still a possibility, right?" Waxer asks.
"I believe so, yes. If we could just figure out who's in that armor—"
Suddenly, a blast is fired at us from above. I move to grab my saber from my belt and block it, but it's too late. It had hit Waxer right in the gut.
"Waxer!" Boil and I shout in unison. He clutches at the wound and I catch him as he falls. Boil and I lead him to safety behind a rock. I hold him and Boil crouches down to him.
"Stay calm, buddy, I'm going to go get someone," Boil says as he pats his shoulder and runs back off towards the rest of our platoon.
Waxer's breathing starts to hitch. "A-Arlo... Arlo, I think I'm... I'm dying."
Tears start to prick at my eyes. "No, no, Waxer, don't say that, please, just hang on. Boil's gonna find someone. You're gonna be okay. Hold on a little longer. For Boil, for Numa. For me."
"Numa..." he chokes out. He removes one of the hands from his wound and lightly grazes his fingers over the small doodle of the girl on his helmet before it falls back to his gut. "I'm not gonna see her again..."
"Yes, you are, Waxer, please hang on for me!" I plead, voice cracking.
"We were made for this, Arlo... we were made to..."
"Don't go on saying your expendable, Waxer, because you're not to me! We're gonna save you, you're gonna be okay, just stay awake!"
"Commander Just! Sir!" Boil comes sprinting back over to us. "You were right. They weren't Umbarans. It... it was the 501st. I don't know why." He crouches down to Waxer again. "Captain Rex and Kix are coming, buddy, we're gonna figure this out, and you're gonna be okay. Just hang in there, Waxer." Rex, Dogma, and Kix come out of the shadows and approach us. Boil stands back up.
"Waxer," Rex says, frown appearing on his face. He crouches to him, still being held up in my arms. Rex takes off Waxer's helmet for him. "Tell me who gave you the orders to attack us."
Waxer gasps for air. He doesn't have much longer. A tear falls down my cheek. "It... It was General Krell," he coughs. "He sent us to these coordinates to stop the enemy. We though they were wearing our armor... but it was..." He hardly sucks in a breath as a tear falls down his face. "...you..." His head falls limp into my shoulder.
"Waxer?" I shake him a little, then look for a pulse. There's nothing. He's gone. "Waxer!" Tears spill out of my eyes. "No, Waxer, no, please..."
Boil takes a step back in disbelief. "No... no..."
Suddenly, everything clicks in my head. I look at Rex, vision distorted with tears. "Krell gave you the same orders, didn't he?"
"Yes, sir... he did. I'm so sorry."
"You don't need to apologize, Rex, just... do what you have to do to bring him to justice. I... I'll inform General Kenobi on... on what's happened..."
"I'll do what I can, Commander. He will not have died in vain, I promise you."
"You're a good man, Rex."
"We need to stop Krell. Boil, are you coming with us?" Rex asks.
Boil nods and kneels down to Waxer one last time and takes off his own helmet, revealing his face to be wet with tears. "I'm sorry, Waxer. I'm so, so sorry." Boil's face now hardens. "I won't let him get away with this. I promise you, Waxer. I promise." Boil reaches out and puts a hand on my free shoulder as I close Waxer's eyes one last time. Boil wipes the lone tear off of Waxer's lifeless face. "Goodbye, old pal." Boil stands up and walks off with Rex and the others. I suddenly let out an unintentional sob, the tears flowing down like the waterfalls on Naboo, as I hold my friend's limp body close to me, clueless on what to do. I don't want to leave him, but I couldn't carry him that far, and what good would it do? It won't bring him back to life. I move and gently place his head to rest against the rock we sat up against, then I take off one of the pieces of armor from his shoulder. If I ever see Numa again, I'll give it to her. I then take his helmet for myself. I place the shoulder guard in the empty helmet and hold it against my hip, then look at Waxer one last time.
"Thank you for everything, Waxer," I choke out through a soft sob. "For taking me in, protecting me. I'll never forget you, my friend." I stand up and wipe my tears just so I can see my way around, and start back to Obi-Wan's location. It takes all my willpower to keep walking. I feel like I want to collapse from grief. The capital comes into view, and I can tell that we now have control over it now. Some clones guard the perimeters.
"General Kenobi!" Cody calls over to Obi-Wan as I approach. "It's Commander Just!"
"Arlo!" Obi-Wan jogs over to me, followed close behind by Cody. "Arlo, where are the others, what's happened— is that your blood, Arlo?" He points to my shirt.
I shake my head no and speak, hardly even audible. "Waxer's."
"What happened?"
"I-It was K-Krell... he's the one b-behind this..."
"Behind what, Arlo?"
"He's the one who jammed the coms. He... he sent a transmission to Waxer saying that Umbarans were disguised as clones and sent us the coordinates to attack. Then he told me he'd tell you the coms were fixed and the plan of our attack. But I thought... it seemed off... but then... everyone began firing... and he lied to us. It was the 501st. We took heavy losses, and the rest of the platoon is with Captain Rex, they're going to stop Krell, but... but Waxer..." Tears spill out of my eyes again.
"Oh, Arlo," Obi-Wan says. I drop the helmet as I move to cling onto Obi-Wan around him middle as if he's some sort of lifeline, burying my face into the front of his shoulder as I finally let out the sob I was holding. He runs my back soothingly. "Shh, shh, you're okay, little one."
"But Waxer..."
"I know. I know, I'm sorry."
Cody picks up Waxer's helmet and shoulder pad and examines them, then sighs sadly. "It was... friendly fire?"
I look up from Obi-Wan's shoulder to Cody and nod. "And he told Rex and his men the same thing. We had no idea."
"I'll contact the Council and let them know. The rest of our men must stay here and protect the capital, though. Cody, take care of her while I do this, please."
"Yes, sir." Obi-Wan walks off to send the message to the Council while Cody wraps his free arm that isn't holding the helmet around me and helps me to the wall, which I slide down to sit on the ground. He hesitantly sits next to me and hands me the helmet. I examine it closely. An orange stripe goes through the middle of it, the drawing of Numa just to the left of it. Tally marks line both sides. 30 tallies on Numa's side, 27 on the other.
"I've always thought it was amazing, what you three did back on Ryloth," Cody admits. He takes off him helmet and sits it in his lap. "We were gonna go back soon, check it out, make sure everything is still in order. Waxer asked me almost every day when it was happening."
"He always was a bit impatient," I say with a sniffle.
"He was. But I'll admit, it did us well sometimes." He sighs. "He was a great soldier. And an even better man."
One of my tears falls onto the helmet and streaks down it. "Yeah. He really was."
—
I lie wide awake in bed.
The dried tears on my cheeks and around my eyes almost seem to pull my eyes open.
I can't even think about sleeping right now.
Waxer can't be gone.
One of my first friends, and one of my best friends at that.
And the worst part? It was friendly fire.
Friendly fire.
Clones shooting clones.
Brothers shooting brothers.
They had no clue.
Krell fooled them.
Krell.
He's a monster.
Monster.
Traitor.
He's the reason why Waxer's gone.
Krell, of course, is dead now. He was too dangerous to be left alive. And frankly, I'm glad. I probably shouldn't think that, though.
I roll out of my bed on the Negotiator and drag myself towards the kitchens. There's no way I'd be sleeping tonight, let alone closing my eyes and getting a few minutes of rest. I walk quietly to be sure to not disturb the clones. But it's pointless. I know they aren't sleeping. They're horrified with themselves. But how could they have known?
I think about stopping at Obi-Wan's quarters and talking to him about it. I know he doesn't sleep well when we're on ships. But then I think of the possibility of having to hear the words "attachments are forbidden". I know he'd mean the best by it, he'd just be trying to help me, but if I have to hear that right now, I might lose it. How do they expect a teenager who's never been wanted or appreciated before in her life to not attach herself to the people that show even the smallest amount of care towards her? I know I probably shouldn't think like that, but right now... right now, I feel like I'm losing it.
Whenever one of the brothers die, I'm hurt by it. It hurts me, it hurts Obi-Wan, it hurts the clones. It genuinely hurts all of us. But Waxer's death is different for me. For some reason, it's more personal this time. Maybe it's because the clones were ordered to kill each other without knowing it. Maybe it's because Waxer has been there for me since day one here. Maybe it's because he's just too good to die. He had the biggest heart of all the clones in the 212th, never judged anyone, always made people smile. And now he's just... gone. If there was anyone that didn't deserve to die, it would be Waxer. He was just simply too good.
I walk through the mess hall and push open the doors to the kitchen, grabbing a tea kettle as I make my way over to the stove and begin making the tea the way Obi-Wan taught me how. Boil the water, mix in the tea, let it steep. Pour it into the cup and stir in two spoonfuls of sugar. I take a small sip. It's not nearly as good as when Obi-Wan makes it, but it will do. I walk back out into the mess hall and notice a presence I hadn't previously right before I sit down.
Boil sits helmetless on the bench in the furthest corner from me, staring blankly at a mug. I carefully make my way over to him and sit across from him. He doesn't look up from his mug as he speaks, voice shaky. "Coffee?"
"Just tea," I tell him.
"Like Waxer. He hated coffee."
"I know." My eyes begin to burn as they try to hold back the tears that threaten to spill at the very thought of him.
"I just wish I could go back and change all of it. Waxer didn't deserve this," Boil says.
"I wish we could too, but... we can't live in the what if's."
"But every time I think about it, it gets worse. General Krell tricked us into shooting each other. It was one of our brothers that killed him. It's haunting me. And the most cruel part... it's just... so... so out of nowhere. An hour before, we were joking about pranking me and talking about Numa while sneaking through sewers. We had no idea. No idea that would be our last moments with him. I can't even fully grasp that he's gone. I've been with him since our Kamino cadet days. I've never fought without him by me." The tears in my eyes get even closer to spilling out. "I'm really sorry, kid. I know he was one of your first friends, too, and you're real shaken up."
"But you have nothing to be sorry for, Boil," I tell him, voice shaky and quiet as a single tear falls over. "And maybe I'm shaken up, but it's nothing I can't handle."
"But it's always so hard on you when one of us dies. Trust me, we all know how hard, well. everything is on you. You've always had a lot of pressure on you, a lot of weight on your soldiers, and you're only 15." He pauses. "I know how it feels to be a kid in the middle of a war. I know I look and talk and act like a man, but in reality... us clones, we're kids. All of us just age twice as fast. Technically speaking, we're children. But I've never felt like one until now."
"I never thought of it that way, but... how do you even feel like a child after all this? Because I feel like I just aged 5 years."
"It's because I feel helpless. I don't know what to do anymore."
"You keep fighting for him, Boil. That's what you do. We all just have to keep fighting, because as was proved back on Umbara... all we have is now." I wipe a tear off my cheek and take a deep breath to try to recompose myself. "I have his helmet, if you want it."
He shakes his head. "Keep it. I wouldn't have anywhere to put it."
"You're sure?"
"Positive, kid."
I nod. "We'll be alright, Boil. Eventually."
"Yeah. Eventually."
—
A week or so later, the Negotiator lands on Ryloth for a scan to see if everything was still in order. It's usually not our job to do these scans, but it seems like there's too many worlds to check in on these days. We break off into small groups, mine consisting of Boil, Cody, Wooley, and I. We walk toward the village we had scouted ahead to all that time ago. Boil and I break off from Cody and Wooley, just like we had the first time on Ryloth, but this time, there's no Waxer.
"It feels wrong doing this without him," Boil says.
I nod in agreement. "I can't stand the thought of having to tell her this."
"I'd hardly even thought of that," Boil says with a shaky sigh. "You remember which way her house was, right?"
"I do. Just make sure you at least do your actual job until we get there."
"Area scan. Right." All of the twi'leks seem to be fairly happy. Some wave to us, and I wave back and say hello to some. We stop outside of Numa's door. I knock on the door. It opens, and I look down to see a slightly-grown Numa. Her headtails are a bit longer, and she stands up a bit taller. I smile at the sight of her. Boil takes off his helmet.
"Nerra Boil! Jedi Arlo!"
"Hello, Numa," I say with a smile. "How've you been?"
"Good! Come in?"
"Sure, thank you," I say. I wave hello to her father as we enter her home.
"Her Basic has gotten really good," Boil says quietly to me. I nod in agreement. "So, have you been staying out of trouble, Numa?"
She nods. "I have!"
"You've grown up so much since last time," he says.
"Where Nerra Waxer?" she then asks. Boil and I share a look, then I knew, down to the girl. I pull out the shoulder guard and hand it to her. She takes it an examines it. "Waxer?"
"That was Waxer's, yes. Numa... Waxer... he died."
"Dead?" she asks, eyes watering.
"Yes. I'm so sorry, Numa." The tears pooling up in her eyes spill out. I gently wipe them away. "Waxer loved you very much, Numa. And he'll always be with you. In here," I say as I point to her heart. She flings her arms around my neck and hugs me as she lets out a cry. I hug her as tears threaten to spill from my own eyes. She then goes to hug Boil, who, unlike the first time they met, didn't even hesitate to cling onto her, too.
"You miss Nerra?" she asks him.
"Yes, I do. Lots," Boil tells her.
"Always here," she says, pointing to his heart.
His eyes begin to water. "Yeah. Always there." She lets go of him and hugs the shoulder guard to her chest.
"You take good care of that armor for me, yeah?" I say.
"I will," she tells me.
"Thank you, Numa. You're a good friend. Now we have to go finish our scan, we just wanted to say hello."
"Hello!" she exclaims. Boil and I laugh.
"We'll see you again soon, kiddo," Boil says as the two of us stand up.
"See you soon! Bye bye, Nerra, Jedi!"
I smile and wave as we walk out the door. "Bye bye, Numa." We meet back up with Cody and Wooley in the middle of the town, then walk back to the Negotiator together.
"Can you do something for me, kid?" Boil asks me as we enter the ship.
"Sure, what is it?" I question.
"Nothing much." He begins walking towards the clones' barracks and I follow. He leads me to a room that looks something like a small barber shop. He sits in a chair and reaches into a drawer, pulling out a tattoo pen and handing it to me. I take it hesitantly. He takes the armor off of his forearm and rolls up his sleeve to his elbow. He points to his bare forearm.
"...You're crazy, Boil. Why am I the one doing this?"
"I trust you, kid. I just want it to say Waxer, right there." He points to his forearm again.
"You're sure? This is, like, permanent."
"Positive."
"It's always gonna be under your armor, no one will see it."
"That's okay. I just want to know it's there. To remind me he's always with me."
I nod and smile. "Okay, I'll do it. Just a warning my handwriting isn't the neatest."
"It's probably better than mine," he says as he places his arm on a table and I power up the gun and start writing in his skin.
Wesk.
Aurek.
Xesh.
Esk.
As I'm about to write the Resh, Obi-Wan barges through the door. "There you are, Arlo, what are you even doing in the clones'—? Oh, maker have mercy, I know I'm not seeing this correctly."
"Oh, you're seeing it right, Master. Boil asked me to do this." I finish off the last letter and turn the pen off. "Done!"
Boil looks down at his arm and smiles. "Perfect.
Obi-Wan walks over to take a look at my work for himself. "Well, I'm certainly impressed. Now tell me, why isn't your handwriting that neat all the time?"
"Because I liked this more than I like writing essays for Force Theory every time I step into that temple after not being there for weeks."
"Don't worry, little one, I'll let you off the hook for all your work when we go back this time. I know this is hard on you. Both of you. Know that if either or both of you all want to talk about it, you know where to find me."
I hug him. "Thanks, Master."
"Of course. Now double check that you spelled Waxer right."
My eyes widen as I look down at Boil's arm. But if was spelled correctly. I groan. "Really, Master?"
He laughs as he exits the room. "It was a bit funny."
I smile slightly. "Whatever, Master." I look down at Boil's arm once again. "We're okay. And so is Waxer."
—
honesty waxer's death might be one of the saddest in all of the clone wars. i genuinely cried while writing it, which is actually a little embarrassing thinking about it. also, there's probably a lot of typos and stuff in this chapter because i'm currently half asleep while writing, so i'm sorry if there's a bunch of typos. i'm excited for these next few chapters, though, because the slavers arc is another favorite of mine. then we'll switch back to the ✨pain✨.
thanks for reading! -a 🪐