FORESIGHT and SCOPE: BOOK TWO

C H A P T E R F O R T Y-E I G H T

"GET DOWN!"

KAPOWW!!!

Hunter yanked Fern into his arms and they hit the dirt hard as an ear-shattering explosion detonated. Any shred of light the clones had was extinguished as the entrance of the mine collapsed and caved in. Then, all at once, there was a hush...The only sounds Fern could pick up were her and everyone else's heavy panting. Hunter, hugging her tightly, raised her upper body from the ground. Despite him only mere inches from her eyes, she could not even envisioned his presence in the pitch-black.

"Alright," she quipped. "who's not dead? Sound off."

She received a chorus of groans, including the sergeant directly in front of her. He released his hold on her and she heard him rummaging through his pack until he found a lantern and ignited it. Fern rotated around and saw Omega recovering to her feet after Wrecker had protected her when the ipsium imploded. The muscular clone then activated his own light source, and he and Hunter illuminated the squad's new, and most likely worst situation that had transpired so far that day: boulders ranging from the sizes of proton torpedos to the cannons that fired them sealed them in the mine...

"So," Tech said. "now we are trapped. And we have lost all of our ipsium."

"Jeez, Tick," Fern groaned, rolling out her sore ankle (luckily she had not sprain it). "Could you please keep our priorities in check?"

"Well, I—" Wrecker stammered. "I suppose that's my fault, too?"

"No, it is not." Fern huffed.

"Well, technically, yes." Tech ignored her. "If you had not let our ship get stolen—"

"Dank ferrik, Tech, enough!" The female clone snapped. "I was on sentry duty as well, you know? You should be blaming me! I distracted Wrecker when we were waiting for you guys."

"While that may be true, it is not difficult for Wrecker to get distracted."

Fern's cheeks flared with anger and her hands balled up in fists. "You are unbelievable..." She then dug through her satchel and pulled out her torch. Switching it on, she grumbled through her clenched jaw, "I'm taking a walk. Maybe I can find an alternate path we can escape through."

"Sounds good." Hunter sighed, sensing she was excusing herself to cool down while she inspected deeper into the mine. "In the meantime, we'll start digging our way out here."

Fern shoved her shoulder into Tech's as she passed him. When the latter looked at her with dismay, she shot a bitter glare at him, sending a perplexing shiver down his spine. His narrow eyes watched her as she marched away without a single word. "Hey, Tech," Wrecker pounded his elbow into the spectacled clone's back. "you goin' to help?"

"Of course," was all he replied with. However, before he joined his brothers in their seemingly impossible obstacle, he glanced one last time down the mineshaft, where Fern's torchlight was a mere speck in the distance. He frowned, assuming he had offended her but was unsure how.

"You're impossible!...You are unbelieveable..."

Her words echoed in his ears as he removed his helmet. They confused him. He had naturally stated the truth and followed through with their task at hand. The primary cause of their misfortunes was that their ship was stolen, which was ultimately Wrecker's fault, no matter what distractions Fern had planted while she was with him. That was simply the matter of fact.

He did not know how else he could relay that to Fern...

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FERN'S POV

After trekking for only about twenty minutes, I stopped in my tracks and slammed my back into the chisled wall in frustration. My fingernails clawed into my bare arms; the hand that grasped the torch drooped over my elbow. My lips frowned deeply as my disappointment in Tech boiled in my chest. I muttered through my clenched jaw, "Why must he lash out at Wrecker at every chance he gets? What happened to the Wired-Brain who always favored taking a methodical, logical approach to sticky situations in order to derive a solution? The Tech I know would never waste time blaming others for our setbacks...So what gives?!"

Something wasn't clicking in place...I've never witnessed Tech finding himself caught in a situation where this approach yielded a sure-fire course of adverse emotion, especially in which he expressed outbursts of frustration and continuously condemned his brothers for the squad's aberrations...

No, Fern, I shook my head to level my thoughts, pinching the bridge of my nose and squeezing my eyes shut. No, this isn't right. Think. It's not just Tech who isn't acting like himself. Omega is depressed as well, but that is because of Echo...I wonder... My eyes popped back open and widened as my speculation forged itself in my mind. I wonder if Echo leaving has brought up tensions amongst all the members of the squad... Perhaps there is an unspoken, emotional fall out. That it is a more drastic change than I realized. We are all trying to adjust. However, with the Marauder compromised, the stress is festering in everyone even more than usual...

And this affliction, is nothing like Crosshair's messy departure...

Why did I run off? I kicked the wall with my heel, now frustrated with myself. I'm acting just as I did on Safa Toma when I got angry at Cid...I'm better than this. I raised my chin with a sharp inhale. Tech doesn't mean any harm, I know this. I will simply talk to him and explain. Yes, that should ease the tensions. All will be well if I remain calm and explain. He will appreciate that, I know...I think...I exhaled with exhaustion in my breath. I hope...

There was only one way to find out. I pivoted on my heel and walked back the way I came. After awhile, I could hear everyone's faint voices resonating off the walls. They became clearer the closer I returned.

"The Marauder's our home. We already lost Echo! We can't lose that, too." Omega's small, disheartened voice caused my chest to tighten. I quickened my pace, driven by an internal impulse to reach her and comfort her.

"Omega," I caught Hunter breathing softly. "we didn't lose Echo. He's just, on a different mission."

"But he's not here. He's not with us. We're supposed to be a squad."

Just as I thought, Omega is still hurting over Echo's departure... and combine that with the loss of the Marauder...It brought me to the verge of tears as I listened carefully to the heartbroken girl. An image of her Tooka doll Lula flashed in my eyes—at times, that doll was Omega's only comfort in her lowest moments...It was her hug when she was most anxious. Moreover, our defective power droid Gonky must be terrified, being kidnapped along with our ship. I assumed these were things Omega was lamenting over in her distraught state.

I finally spotted the glow of the boys' lanterns and sighed to relax myself before addressing them. However, the moment I stepped into the light, Tech audited what I would never fathom he would say: "This squad existed before Echo was a part of it, and it will exist after. What is your issue?"

"Tech!" I snapped with shock. Everyone's stunned faces turned to me except for Omega, who chucked the datapad down and stormed passed me. While I wanted to act upon my maternal instincts and embrace her, there was a much more dire priority to settle first. Hunter reached out but I intercepted him, stretching out my hand to stop him and shaking my head silently. Let her be alone, my dark eyes ordered.

He and the others focused on Omega's retreat. They did not notice me firmly approaching Tech until it was too late.

Smack!

I struck his jaw — not too forceful; it was just enough to get his attention. Startled, Tech blinked. His palm pressed into his cheek. I then leaned in until our noses were only inches apart. His neck craned back as far it could, but I refused to relieve his nervousness. I summoned every ounce of severity I could muster in my gaze.

"I thought," I emphasized in a low, gravitating tone. I was mentally prepared for the Hell I was to unleash... "you of all people would understand."