Across the Stars

Chapter 1

Rex never planned on love. Though, no one ever really plans on love. Especially in Wartime. During war, people love fiercely and without regret. The safety nets and contingencies most rely on when courting and choosing partners is forgotten. In war, when you find someone you love, you love them unconditionally and withhold nothing. It's a different kind of love.

So it was during the Clone Wars. So it was for Shira and Rex. That fierce unconditional love that finds you unexpectedly, whether you planned for or even wanted it or not.

Rex met Shira 3 days after the first battle of Geonosis had concluded. Many people didn't even accept that the war was real, let alone the sudden appearance of a Clone Army. Clone commanders and captains had yet to be assigned to their respective Jedi commanders and generals. Rex was an arc trooper against all odds. When clones were born genetically with blond hair, it was one of the most common tickets to being cast out or killed. Though some went on to dye their hair blond, it was extremely rare for a clone to have genetically natural blond hair. Rex's hair wasn't the only thing the Kaminoans found defective about Rex, or CT-7567 as he was called by the Kaminoans. Rex was also born with heightened senses, which sometimes manifested as sensory processing issues, as well as a heightened emotional connection to the other clones around him. These were seen as weaknesses, but Rex had proven them wrong.

Jango Fett had been summoned when Rex first started his hair growth. Rex was the first clone to be born naturally with Blond Hair. Jango had ended up training Rex personally, pushing him farther than most of the other clones. It was as if Jango had a personal need to see Rex succeed. Often late-night sessions with Jango met lots more bruises than his brothers and missed meals. But they payed off, or at least, that's what Rex told himself.

In a way Jango, or Buir as he asked Rex and other clones he got close to call him by, was the reason Rex found Shira.

The Separatists were greatly angered at the loss of Geonosis, and so it was that loss that pushed them to advance more aggressively for Brentaal IV and her hyperspace lanes. Though this time the separatists had decided to take a more civilized diplomatic approach. At least at the start.

Brentaal IV was a beautiful core world planet. Teeming with life it was a hot spot for many species of the galaxy to gather. The young Senator of Brentaal was a woman named Shira. Rex had heard relatively little about Shira, and so was hesitant to build any opinions on her until he got to know her. Or analyze her that is. They wouldn't be getting to know one another very well personally.

Rex and 3 other Arc troopers had been chosen to accompany Shira to her planet to help her negotiate with the rulers of the planet and more firmly secure Brentaal and the invaluable hyperspace lanes that connected to it for the Republic.

The team lead was a CT-4560, who was known to his brothers as Razor. Razor was a clone commando who lost all 4 of his brothers in his unit on Geonosis. Already the war was taking its toll on the minds of its soldiers. Razor rarely spoke, and when he did it was with a strict tone and you had better have paid perfect attention, Razor never repeated himself. He had cropped extremely close hair; he hadn't died it. Just under his eye was a viro-blade. One of the reasons he called himself Razor. He was the only one of the elite group of soldiers that wore commando armor. He didn't have it colored. Besides 2 strips of gold that ran down the sides. A more recent addition was the names of the brothers he had lost on Geonosis in black paint on top of the gold stripes. 2 for each side.

The team explosive expert was Bolt, his number was ARC-2576 Bolt could put almost anything together to make it harmful if not explosive. Like most explosive expert ARC's, Bolt was rather high energy, but his energy often didn't manifest in a constant flow of words like it often did with Rex's other brothers. Bolt's energy came out in a constant pulling apart and putting together his weapons. Often his side arm, a DC-17. Bolt could take a DC apart in 40 seconds and put it back together in 30. There was almost a musical rhythm when Bolt was working on his weapons. Bolt's hair was a little longer than most clones kept theirs and was starting to curl at the ends. Multiple thin green stripes ran down the sides of Bolts armor. He wore a pauldron on both shoulders and had a large utility belt with many pockets. His singular holster held his DC-17. Bolt didn't wear Kamas though. He often complained they got in the way of his utility belt.

Hod was the team analyst. Hod was the most mysterious of the group. He was one of the troopers that fell under the watch of Cal Skiratra. Skiratra was a hardened Mandalorian that lived and breathed his culture. Those who trained with Skiratra came out more Mandalorian then most other clones, even though every clone could speak broken Mando'a and lived the basics of the culture. Hod didn't like the Jedi, didn't like the republic, and often wasn't afraid to make such statements. He was fiercely loyal to his brothers though, which meant he was very loyal to the Republic. Mostly.

That left Rex. And Rex...well Rex was the jack of all trades, and the most expendable of the group. He wore a single pauldron on his shoulder, The pauldron and his kasmas were black, but the rest of his armor was white. He hadn't found a way to identify himself with it, he didn't want to, being different is what caused him so many problems in the first place.

When Rex was just a young Cadet, he had severe sensory processing, it never really went away, Rex just got better at managing, or hiding it. But one time on a training exercise the feedback of a microphone caused him to falter, it had been his first time with live rounds as a cadet. He took a shot to the small of his back. He missed 2 weeks of training while in the med bays, and still had the scar to remind him of his failure.

It was as Rex was standing with his team, his first squad of brothers, when he met the love of his life.