Three more years into the war, Blinder's unit was called to meet with Generals Skywalker and Kenobi to aid in a stealth and rescue mission. Blade was ordered to remain in her crate on the gunship until and unless she was needed. The rest of the team dispatched in the base, located on the tropical planet Rishi, to socialize with their fellow clones and recess in the mess hall. Blinder made his way to the command center, where the generals were waiting.
Upon entering, his helmet tucked under his left arm, Blinder raised his right hand to his forehead in salute, his eyes quickly surveying the room. The Jedi generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi were standing at the holomap console, along with their respective seconds, Commander Cody and Captain Rex. The human Jedi, their combat robes and faces caked with soot, their inactive lightsabers clipped to their belts, looked up as Blinder entered; Rex and Cody seemed rather scuffed up, as well. Also present was Commander Ahsoka Tano, General Skywalker's Jedi apprentice; the young Togruta was clearly bedraggled, her head tails bruised and her uniform torn in some places. Other than them, no one else was present. The holomap currently displayed what appeared to be a maximum security fortress.
"At ease, sergeant," said Skywalker.
Blinder lowered his hand and approached the console.
"Thank you for coming on such short notice," said Kenobi. He sounded unusually weary.
"What's the situation, sir?" Blinder asked.
"A failed rescue mission." Kenobi gestured to the fortress on the holomap. "The Separatists recently kidnapped several children of certain Republic senators. We tracked them to this facility, but even after considerable planning were unable to free them. The security was much tighter than we'd anticipated."
"That's where you come in," said Skywalker. "We need troops who specialize in stealth and espionage. And Rex and Cody told us that your unit was the best. They say no one beats you guys at stealth."
"Thank you, general," said Blinder, "but I can't take credit for that. Neither can most of the unit."
The generals eyed each other askance, as did Rex and Cody. Commander Tano also looked skeptical.
"Could you elaborate for us, sergeant?" she asked.
"I'm sorry, sir, but I can't say any more on record."
His superiors glanced at each other again. Then, after a quick and silent exchange, Commander Cody pressed the mute button on the console, ending the recorded transmission of the briefing. Blinder eyed the room for cameras and bugs, having a keen eye for them. Once certain there were none, he placed his helmet down on the console's edge for a moment, then lifted his left wrist to his chin to activate his com.
"Blade."
"Yes, sir?" The respondent's voice was quiet and female, which left the others dumbstruck.
"Report to the command center."
"But sir," the respondent protested, "what about protocol?"
"I'm giving you permission this time."
"Understood. I'll be there in five minutes."
The transmission ended, and Blinder turned back to the generals. "Everything from this point on must remain confidential," he told them. "My unit can't risk exposing this asset."
General Skywalker crossed his arms. "And who exactly is this asset?"
The sergeant gave him a secretive grin. "Better to wait until she gets here."
Cody and Rex eyed each other askance, then stared at Blinder in shock. "Did you say 'she'?" said Cody.
Blinder's grin broadened. "And here I thought just contacting the asset would've made that clear."
Not long after, at the five-minute mark, a ventilation grille on the ceiling came loose and was pulled into the vent. From this new opening dropped an adolescent girl with olive skin and brown eyes, her dark hair in an unkempt braid that hung loosely down her back. Her clothing was black, a patchwork of crudely stitched cloth, her boots scuffed but durable. She had an arsenal of knives strapped across her torso, legs and arms, her headset supporting a comlink and nightvision visor. Her build was lithe and athletic, her eyes wary and intelligent, her hands heavily calloused and held close to her blades. She appeared the same age as Commander Tano, perhaps a year or two younger. She landed on the floor beside the sergeant with practiced ease, saluting the generals as she straightened.
Blinder made the introductions. "Generals, this is Blade. And yes," he added, answering his company's silent question, "she's a clone."
"I had no idea there were female clones," said Tano.
"Actually, there aren't," said Cody, his eyes on Blade.
"The Kaminoans believe that females are inefficient soldiers," Rex explained, also eyeing the girl. "If she is a clone, there's no way it was intentional."
"Exactly," said Blinder as the cadet lowered her hand. "My unit helped smuggle her out of the facility before the Kaminoans could cover it up. She's been living on our gunship ever since."
"And you don't let me come on nearly enough missions, sir," said Blade sardonically. Her lilt and speech pattern were uncannily similar to her fellow clones'. "Then again, there's no other reason you'd permit me to break protocol." She then proceeded to study the holomap.
"Am I correct in assuming, sergeant," asked Kenobi, as skeptical as his companions, "that you intend to bring a child on this mission?"
"Yes, sir," the sergeant replied. "You need a stealth expert for this mission. From what I understand, the second attempt will require my entire unit, including the cadet."
"He let me break protocol, sir," said Blade, looking up. She met the general's eyes, her expression adamant. "He wouldn't have done that if I wasn't needed on an assignment."
"What protocol?" asked Rex.
"Stay quiet, stay hidden, stay alive," she recited.
"Our entire unit follows that protocol," said Blinder. "We don't use any weapons that make light or noise. We communicate onsite only when necessary and take extra measures to avoid detection. Our track record is no accident, general. It's because of the cadet that we use these methods. That's why I said I couldn't take credit for our success."
Kenobi stroked his beard. "I see," he said thoughtfully. Then he grinned. "Well then, sergeant, you and your unit will take point on this mission from here on."
Blinder nodded. "Thank you, sir."
"I think a Jedi should go with them," said Skywalker, "just in case."
Kenobi thought on that a moment, then looked at Blinder again. "Would having a Jedi impact the mission or your unit?"
"Only if that Jedi brings a lightsaber," the sergeant replied.
"What does that mean?" said Skywalker in ire.
"Your weapons make light and noise," said Blade matter-of-factly. "That's against protocol, sir."
Blinder noticed the general's growing irritation, but refrained from speaking as the Jedi snapped at the cadet.
"Look, kid," he said, clearly trying to stay calm, "I don't know if your sergeant has taught you to respect authority, but—"
"Anakin," Obi-Wan warned.
The cadet blinked, likely surprised by the general's behavior. "I meant no disrespect, sir," she said, her tone solemn. "Sgt. Blinder makes everyone on the gunship follow the protocol, even our pilot. I follow it out of necessity to my survival. I only ever broke it once without the sergeant's permission, and it nearly cost me my life." The girl frowned. "So forgive me if the only reason I'm still alive is a hinderance to your pride."
Commander Tano snickered, turning her head and covering her mouth as her shoulders shook with humor, earning her a glare from the general.
"Don't you start, Snips," he said.
"Sorry, master." The Togruta straightened and regained her composure. "But I think Blade has a point."
The cadet turned to her, surprised. "You do?"
The commander nodded, then turned to her master. "Think about it. As soon as we used our lightsabers, we were surrounded and cut off from the hostages. The droids could've been ordered to wait until they heard lightsabers before engaging."
"That would be a first," said Rex.
"But," said Obi-Wan, "it isn't improbable."
General Skywalker was about to give his input on that, but was cut off by an explosion that shook the entire base.
The facility in the holomap winked out, and in its place appeared the image of a panicked Clone Trooper.
"General Skywalker! General Kenobi!"
"What's going on out there?" Skywalker demanded.
"We're under attack, sir!" the messenger yelled over blaster-fire and exploding grenades. "A droid contingent has infiltrated our defenses!"
The hologram winked out.
"How the hell did they get in?" said Skywalker.
"We'll worry about it later," said Obi-Wan. Then he turned to the clones. "Cody, Rex, get outside and help secure the perimeter. Blinder, have your men aid the counterstrike. Anakin, you and Ahsoka secure the rear entrance. I'll secure the front."
Rex and Cody saluted. "Yes, sir!" they said, then donned their helmets and ran to follow orders.
Blade unsheathed one of her knives and looked to her S.O. "Sergeant. Permission to engage?"
Blinder nodded. "Granted."
She nodded back, then jumped up and hauled herself into the air vent. Blinder gave the generals a quick solute before donning his helmet and rushing to find his unit.
Blade found the source of the commotion: trespassing droids in the hanger bay. Through the grille that let fresh air into the base, she counted at least fifteen intruders, not counting the ones her fellow clones had already gunned down. The enemy seemed distracted by the others returning fire, and Blade used the momentary advantage to remove the grille. She then leaned forward so that her torso was just outside the vent and threw one of her knives at a battle droid.
The blade sank deep into the robot's main power circuit, causing a small explosion that distracted the rest of the intruders long enough for the Clone Troopers to finish them off. But not before one spotted her in the air vent.
Ducking back inside, Blade snuck her way to the battle site via the air vents and underground sanitation tunnels, surfacing from a hidden passageway beneath one of the gunships. Once outside, she rolled onto her stomach and studied the fight from beneath the ship. Now that she was closer, she could see that these were Commando Droids—battle droids with superior programming, agility and armor that could withstand several rounds of blaster-fire. This particular unit was even equipped with plasma shields to deflect most of the clones' attacks. Moreover, with the synchronicity of their design, it was impossible to tell which one had seen her. Hacking into one droid's memory banks and deleting all data regarding her was one thing; she'd never successfully mind-wiped multiple droids at once.
And there was no way she could do so without breaking protocol.
The girl bit her lip, multiple strategies running through her mind, then quickly cut her thinking short and rolled out of the way as a bazooka fired at the gunship directly above her. The vehicle exploded, spewing flaming debris. Blade hissed as a few of the hot shards grazed her skin and uniform, still rolling as the heat of the blast singed the end of her braid, her ears ringing and vision blurred.
"What the hell is a kid doing here?!" she heard a Clone Trooper yell when her hearing finally cleared.
She looked up to see several armored clones running toward her, gunning down more droids on the way.
"Hey you!" another shouted to her. "Get up and get out of here!"
Blade shook her mind clear of the haze and sprang to her feet, unsheathing a knife from her baldric. "Cover me!" she yelled, then charged into the fray without waiting for a response.
Adrenaline blurred the minutes she spent fighting the droids. She was plenty skilled and well-trained in combat, but could not remember a single fight that had been seen by anyone other than her unit. She tried not the think about it as she dodged and countered the Commando Droids' strikes, parrying their blades with her own and slicing at any exposed wires and joints. She was so focused on finishing them off and erasing their memories of her that she didn't notice the blows they did land. By the time the last Commando Droid was down, she was covered with bleeding cuts. And still she didn't notice until she was done prying all of their memory cores from their casings and forcibly deleting all data pertaining to her existence.
Finally, she stood up and sheathed her blades, panting heavily from exertion as the adrenaline wore off. The girl stood still for several moments, too mortified to heed anyone's calls or meet anyone's eyes. Swallowing hard, she activated the com on her headset and contacted her sergeant.
"What is it, Blade?" his voice questioned directly in her ear.
"I'm sorry, sir," she said meekly. "I broke protocol."
Blinder sighed. "Don't worry about it for now," he said. "Report back to the command center."
"Understood, sir." Blade cut the transmission and lifted her head, turning to look at her fellow clones. They all wore their helmets, but she knew from their jerky movements that her appearance shocked them. "You never saw me," she told them, her voice terrified and low, her eyes further conveying that terror. "I was never here. Do you understand?"
She didn't wait for a response, but ducked her head and sprinted toward the sanitation tunnels, desperate for a place to hide.