Bad Batch Oneshots

Escape pt. 1

Crosshair and Omega
••Crosshair and Omega are trying to escape Hemlock's lab when tragedy strikes.

"We made it, Crosshair!" Omega exclaims, looking at the night sky through the cavernous opening of the hangar. "Now all we have to do is—"

A single shot interrupts her.

The air suddenly grows tense and quiet—so quiet, you could hear the breeze rustling over the canopy of the trees in the distance.

Omega stands rooted to the spot, her limbs stiff. Slowly, she looks down, almost expecting to see a wound piercing her dirty, lab-issued uniform. Instead, she sees nothing.

The realization creeps through her like ivy until it reaches her lungs, suffocating her. She cannot breathe. She cannot speak. With growing horror, she turns around.

Crosshair is standing there. His wide eyes are fixated on her as he visibly struggles to take in air. Omega feels her heart plummet when she notices the faint outline of someone standing in the shadows behind him, holding a smoking blaster.

Hemlock.

"Did you really think I was going to let you escape?" he asks, his sinister tone sending chills down Omega's spine. He gestures to Crosshair like he's an inanimate object instead of a living, breathing person. "He doesn't matter. The herd needs to be culled. You, however... you are everything."

Omega can't find her voice. She helplessly watches Crosshair crumple to the floor before she can finally move her legs. They carry her as far as him and then collapse, forcing her to her knees. Hot tears begin to burn in her eyes as she looks him over.

"Hunter's coming, Crosshair. Just hang on..." she whispers, her voice trembling.

She didn't know if Hunter was coming. Their comms were jammed twenty minutes ago, the last message transmitted before things went dark being 'make it to the hangar'.

Hunter had said it himself. Surely that meant he was coming.

Right?

"Your faith in CT-9904 is ill-placed," Hemlock says, remaining where he stands. "You hold him up on a pedestal. You believe he can change and become the person you want him to be when he is in fact not capable of change at all. He is a creature of habit. He kills, he feels remorse, he seeks forgiveness, and then he kills again."

Omega pulls Crosshair's head into her lap, silently begging Hunter to hurry as tears stream down her face.

"He's made mistakes, but that doesn't make him a bad person!" Omega cries. "His chip made him act differently, but he's seen his wrongdoings and is trying to fix them! He knows what the Empire truly is now, and he'll never come back to it!"

"You're right, he won't... because he is dying in your arms as we speak."

Another wave of tears spills onto Omega's cheeks and she stifles a sob as she listens to Crosshair's gasps for air. She pulls his head against her chest, but he pushes away from her. Confused, she looks down at him.

With a trembling hand, he gives her a glimpse of something hidden beneath his tunic: a blaster pistol tucked into his waistband. She doesn't need to be told what to do—his eyes tell her everything.

But will she be able to do it?

The comm on her wrist buzzes, startling her. Hemlock tilts his head, a small, inquisitive smirk tugging on the corner of his lips.

"I wonder who that could be," he muses.

Omega hurriedly dismisses the incoming transmission, only for her comm to start buzzing again several seconds later. Her heart feels like it's going to pound through her chest.

"Answer it," Hemlock demands.

Omega swallows thickly and racks her brain. Crosshair wouldn't last much longer. She couldn't afford to waste time like this. If it was Hunter on the line, she needed to warn him somehow.

After drawing in a deep breath to steady herself, Omega pulls her hands away from Crosshair and presses the button on her comm.

<<Omega, can you hear me?!>> Hunter's voice crackles through the line. <<Where are you?>>

Omega notices Hemlock lifting his blaster to aim at her and feels a new pang of fear through her heart. He shakes his head, his eyes narrowing as his finger hovers over the trigger. She knows he won't shoot her, but he could easily finish off Crosshair if he wanted to.

"We're on our way to the hangar," she answers. She hopes Hunter can't hear Crosshair fighting for his life. "We're okay, Crosshair just... went ahead to check for patrols."

The slight pause was meant to be a hint that something wasn't quite right. Omega can only pray Hunter picks up on it.

The line goes silent for a moment, giving her hope that Hunter did recognize the signal.

<<Alright. If you can't make it there, stay put. We'll come to you.>>

"Roger that."

Omega ends the transmission and releases a shaky breath. Hunter and the others were coming, but would they make it in time?