In Command (#1 Post-Order 66 Series)

In Command - Part 28

Rex cocked his head at him. "Crosshair?" He knew Hunter had been trying to catch his brother when he was out in the field, far from the reaches of the Imperial fleet so that they could attempt to rescue him and remove the inhibitor chip that had turned him against them. Unfortunately, it was rare that the trooper was isolated enough to make a grab, and intelligence that alerted them in advance was even rarer. This was an opportunity that they couldn't pass up, and it was personal for Hunter. While he'd never admitted it, Rex long suspected that another reason Hunter had agreed to let Omega pursue her medical training was so that she'd be out of danger if such an opportunity would arise.

Hunter nodded. "It sounds like this'll be a good chance to get to him. I just hope it's good information."

Rex placed his hand on Hunter's shoulder. "I hope so too." Glancing up and down the hall, he asked, "By the way, have you seen Senna this morning?"

Hunter smirked. Last time I saw her, she was practicing levitating Wrecker. He wasn't too happy being chucked around."

Rex laughed. "Now he knows what it feels like to get flung all over the place."

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A few hours later, they were in hyperspace on their way to Corellia. Senna sat in the cockpit, and Rex noted that her brow was furrowed. Reaching over, he squeezed her leg, which was bouncing nervously as she plucked at the fingers on her cybernetic hand. "Are you alright?"

She met his eyes, and he saw worry there. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

"It's just a routine run. Nothing to worry about. We're rendezvousing on-orbit. Not even going down to the planet's surface. We should be in and out in less than half an hour," Hunter said from across the cockpit, trying to reassure her. She nodded, leaning back in the chair, but Rex noted her leg didn't stop bouncing.

Meeting Hunter's eyes, he nodded towards the back of the ship and stood, walking back towards the bunks. Hunter followed his lead, glancing over his shoulder at Senna. She was staring out the window, still nervously bouncing and picking at things.

"What is it, Captain?" Hunter asked quietly once they were out of earshot.

"I'm worried we're walking into a trap. The last time Senna had these feelings were on the way to Bracca, and she was right then. Are we sure this is safe?"

Hunter nodded. "She's making me nervous too, but I don't see how anyone could know we're coming. This mission was planned literally an hour before I woke you up this morning, and only Organa knew of our rendezvous. They've been keeping information separated recently to cut down on security breaches, so all our contact knows is that they're meeting us at Corellia, and Cham only knows he's meeting us. I don't see how this could be dangerous. Why'd they want to hit a small supply run anyway? Strategically, it wouldn't make sense."

Rex nodded, but his unease wasn't sated. "You're right. When was the last time we heard from the contact?"

"They checked in on schedule about twenty minutes ago. We aren't due for another check-in until we drop out of hyperspace."

"Alright."

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"Exiting hyperspace in sixty seconds," Tech called over his shoulder. Echo slid into the co-pilot chair next to him as Hunter and Senna shifted crates around in the rear of the ship to make room for the incoming supplies. As the blue streaks of hyperspace faded to black around them, Tech opened a hailing frequency. "Night Smoke, do you copy? This is your contact. We will be entering orbit around Corellia momentarily. Please provide your coordinates."

They were met with silence. Rex felt his stomach tighten as the silence dragged on. "Try again," Hunter said. Tech repeated the call and was again met with silence. A rustle of fabric next to Rex alerted him to Senna's presence. He reached up and squeezed her hand.

"Do you feel anything?" he whispered.

She shook her head, but she was chewing her lip furiously. He squeezed her hand. "Well, that can't be bad then, right?"

She met his eyes. "No, Rex. You don't understand. I don't feel anything."

He furrowed his brow at her, but before he could ask any more questions, Echo interrupted his thoughts. "I'm picking up a distress beacon. Pulling the coordinates now."

"Is there an audio message with it?" Hunter asked, leaning over his shoulder.

"Negative. Just the beacon's been activated."

"No other ships in the area?"

"None."

"Alright, let's bring her in and run a scan."

Tech gently brought the Marauder alongside the freighter and began running scans. "I'm not picking up any damage to the ship itself, but I'm also not picking up any lifeforms on board."

Hunter grimaced. "Alright, let's go aboard and see what's going on over there. Rex, Wrecker, with me. Echo, Tech, and Senna, you stay here and-"

"No," Senna interrupted him. "I'm going with you."

Hunter looked like he was going to argue for a second but decided against it. "Fine, you're with us. Tech and Echo, keep an eye out for any Imperials and let Organa know what's going on. If we can't find the cargo, you'll have to let Cham know as well."

Senna pulled her lightsaber from her belt and followed the clones to the door as they docked to the freighter. After slipping their helmets on, Hunter pressed the button to open the door and they stepped onto the freighter. It was pitch black and cold in the corridor, and Senna shivered. She ignited her lightsaber, casting pale blue light around the short hallway. They could see a stack of crates in front of them. Hunter approached the boxes and opened the first one. "These are the supplies. They're intact, but where's the crew?"

"Hunter," Senna called from a few meters in front of the crates. Rex and Hunter stepped up behind her. She had moved further into the cargo bay and was holding her lightsaber over the railing that looked down into the hold. Leaning over the railing, Rex could see the floor was littered with the still forms of the crew.

"Wrecker, get the crates loaded onto the Marauder. We'll see if we can find out what happened here," Hunter ordered. Wrecker nodded, walking back the way they'd come. Senna, Rex, and Hunter descended the ladder into the hold. Gingerly, they stepped around the bodies, checking for life signs and finding none. Rex heard Senna gasp, and making his way to her, he found her crouched over a boy that couldn't have been more than a teenager. Her hand was resting on his cheek, his eyes wide open and cloudy, staring into nothing. She delicately let her hand brush over his eyes, closing them.

"Rex," she whispered, "his wounds were made from a lightsaber, not a blaster." Rex could see the hole through his chest and the slash marks across his shoulders and abdomen. His death had been slow and painful. Shuddering, he looked back at Hunter, who was watching them.

"We need to get out of here fast."

"Let me run up to the cockpit to see if there's any data or holos I can grab to help us find out what happened, and then we'll go." He turned, scrambling up the ladder and heading for the cockpit.

"We can't just leave them, Rex," Senna whispered.

"We have to. We don't have the time or the space for them all," he said, slipping his fingers into hers.

"He was just a kid."

"A brave kid who died doing the right thing. We have to honor that. We have to complete what he and the others started."

A silent tear rolled down her cheek before she turned and climbed back up the ladder to the walkway. Rex gave the young rebel one last look before sighing deeply and following her.