Chapter Text
“Echo?”
“The tracker is still stationary.”
Hunter dipped his head in acknowledgement as he and Echo took up position on opposite sides of the door. Wrecker, he knew, was already posted at the secondary entrance. They only had to wait for the signal from Crosshair that he was situated in his perch, and then they could breach.
“Readings?”
“Still not clear,” Echo reported. He pressed a few commands into his data pad, paused, and then gave it a little shake. Though Hunter could not see his face, he could hear the frustration in Echo’s voice. “There’s some kind of weird interference. I read one bio-sign, definitely Tech’s, but…”
“But?” Hunter prompted.
Echo’s helmet tilted to the side in thought. “But there’s something… off about it.”
Hunter tapped the comm twice, silently asking for a status update from Crosshair. There was no response. “Off how?”
“Hard to say.” Echo swapped the data pad for his sidearm. “Could be the interference that Tech mentioned before we landed, messing with the scans. Could be something Tech did to his armor… you know how he’s always testing out new modifications. Could be something the Seppies came up with to confuse us. But it is Tech in there, and it looks like we got at least one squad of droids between us and him.”
Hunter sighed and scanned the area again. Being asked to infiltrate a Separatist base was nothing new for the Bad Batch. Their enhancements made them especially sought after for these types of jobs. So, when word got to the Republic of a possible new weapon being built in secret on this backwater planet, Hunter’s squad had been called in.
Everything had been going to plan until a hidden trap had been triggered inside the building they had been searching. In the ensuing chaos of Hunter’s sensory overload and Wrecker’s rampage to find the culprit, Tech had disappeared.
While Hunter recovered, Crosshair had managed to remotely activate the tracking beacon for Tech. The sniper had scouted ahead, quickly locating the hideout in which he had been taken.
Hunter was proud of his squad as they funneled their anger and worry for Tech into an efficient and seemless response. Barely an hour had passed before they were standing outside of the compound door, ready to bring their lost brother back and complete their mission. Hunter’s guilt weighed heavily on his shoulders… he had failed to protect his batch… failed to sense the danger that had hidden in the shadows, and Tech had paid the price for his failure.
Hunter’s comm clicked and Crosshair’s voice broke in. “In position.”
Hunter nodded once to Echo and the rescue was underway.
The clones made quick work of the droids. Hunter could hear Wrecker laughing on the opposite side of the building as the number of electromagnetic signatures of droids that he could detect dwindled.
“Twenty yards and then a right,” Echo reported, and Hunter picked up the pace.
“Crosshair?”
“Entrances clear,” the sniper reported. “No sign of… wait. Standby.”
Hunter held up a fist and he and Echo froze. Hunter took a moment to expand his senses outward, attempting to locate the possible threat, and detected the spike in energy at the same time Crosshair shouted into the coms.
“Weapons discharge!”
Hunter took off at a sprint, Echo hot on his heels as they reached a junction and took a sharp right turn. Two droids at the door were dispatched quickly, Wrecker arriving at the same time as Hunter and Echo. Hunter concentrated, focusing his senses on the room within. A singular heartbeat, fast and trembling, caused him to pause. He knew the heartbeats of each of his brothers, their soothing sounds a melody he’d memorized over the years. And Tech’s…
“Something’s wrong,” he said.
“Then let’s go!” Wrecker shouted, taking two steps back and then running full-tilt into the door with his shoulder. The door fell to the ground, the clang reverberating off the walls. A high pitched whimper was heard over the scrambling of the droids within, and Hunter felt Echo’s gaze jump to his.
“Is that a child?” he asked, alarmed, but there was no chance to respond as Wrecker followed the felled door and Hunter slipped in behind him.
There were eight clankers in a semi-circle, surrounding a young child strapped to a chair. The boy, eyes wide and glistening with tears, locked eyes with Hunter and the sergeant nearly stumbled in shock. Those eyes...
“I have a bad feeling about this,” Echo murmured.
“Open fire!” a droid shouted and the clones were ducking for cover.
“Crosshair!” Hunter shouted into the comm, and seconds later a window shattered as a smoke capsule was shot into the room, exploding on impact.
Quickly adjusting the sensors in his HUD, Hunter dove to the right and fired on the droids, Echo doing the same to the left. He spared some focus on his brothers, only tuning out when he didn’t detect any injuries or undue stress. Hunter slid under a shot meant for his head, popping up to take the droid down with a headshot of his own. A droid to his left, shooting wildly into the smoke, was brought down with a scomp to the chest, courtesy of Echo. Though Hunter could not see Wrecker clearly, he heard the unmistakable sound of two droid heads colliding.
“Any sign of Tech?” Hunter asked. He crouched low, swiping his vibroblade along the leg joints of the closest droid, shooting it once it fell.
“Tech?” Wrecker shouted from across the room.
“Negative,” Echo responded. “What about the kid?”
Filtering through the smoke, Hunter rose slowly from his crouch and located the youth. He was struggling against his bonds, tears running freely down his cheeks as a droid in front of him raised some sort of energy weapon. The weapon glowed an eerie blue as it powered up, the humming of its power core breaking through the chaos of blaster shots and exploding droids.
“No!” Hunter shouted, leaping forward and lining up his weapon for a shot when two things happened simultaneously: a sniper bolt caught the droid in the head, sending it flying backwards from the force of the shot; and Wrecker, exhibiting speed and agility Hunter was unaware he possessed, came flying in and tackled the child, and the chair he was sitting in, to the ground.
Hunter heard a stifled yelp of pain when the chair tipped, though Hunter was glad to see Wrecker’s large mass had avoided landing on top of the young boy. The energy weapon dropped to the ground, pieces breaking off and scattering across the floor.
After that, taking out the remaining droids was relatively simple, and soon the room was clear of any immediate threats.
“Crosshair, bring it in,” Hunter called out, and after the sniper’s acknowledgement, he went to where Wrecker was still bracing himself over the child, talking quietly and checking him for injuries. “How is he?”
Wrecker looked sheepishly up at Hunter before rolling off and to the side. “I think he bumped his head on the ground when I knocked him over.”
Though the smoke from Crosshair’s grenade had yet to fully dissipate, it had cleared enough for Hunter to get his first real look at the child. He was slight in build, with mousy brown hair and tan skin. He appeared to be wearing a pair of trooper blacks, though they were about four sizes too big as they hung off his small frame. His eyes were wide and such a familiar brown that Hunter found he could not look away. Despite the boy’s youthful appearance and diminutive stature, there was something hauntingly familiar about him, and Hunter’s eyes widened in realization. The child lying before him bore the same eyes, with a depth of knowledge and wisdom that was well beyond his years… eyes that he had seen narrow countless times in concentration when he was immersed in his work, or shone with intelligence when a new discovery was made.
Hunter’s heart clenched in disbelief as he uttered the name that had been echoing in his mind since he first saw the child.
“Tech?”
The young boy furrowed his brows and tilted his head. Hunter slid to his knees, doing his best to look reassuring. He was aware that next to him, Wrecker had begun untying the bonds attaching the child to the chair, and he could hear Echo securing the room behind him, but he kept his focus completely on the child in front of him… the child who was quickly going pale and curled onto his side as soon as his arms had been freed.
“I… I do not feel so well,” he whispered and suddenly passed out.
Wrecker gave a shout and frantically searched for a pulse, visibly sagging with relief once he found it. Hunter put a steadying hand on his brother’s shoulder as Echo called to him from across the room.
“I found Tech’s armor.” Echo held up Tech’s helmet and cuirass, the modifications and paint color making it easily recognizable. “And his goggles,” Echo added, carrying the items to Hunter. He gently took the goggles from Echo’s outstretched hand, looking between them and the unconscious boy.
“Hunter,” Wrecker began slowly, “you called him ‘Tech’. Are you saying that this…?”
The clones simultaneously looked down in disbelief, the stunned silence broken only when Crosshair sauntered into the room, sniper rifle cradled in his arms. He froze, helmet shifting minutely as it took in the tableau before him.
“Where’s the nerd?”
Hunter’s gaze shifted from the unconscious child to Crosshair, his mind racing to process his dawning realization as Crosshair’s question hung heavily in the air.
“We need to get back to the ship. Echo, secure that weapon,” Hunter ordered, shifting to point to where the largest piece lay. “Find the broken pieces. Every piece, am I clear?”
“Every piece, you got it Sarge,” Echo repeated.
“We still need to find the separatist weapon,” Wrecker pointed out.
Hunter shook his head. “No need,” he said distractedly, his attention divided between the boy and Crosshair’s growing confusion.
“What’s going on, Hunter?” he demanded, his tone sharp and impatient. “Why are we focusing on this kid?”
Hunter hesitated, torn between wanting to explain and needing to act quickly. On one hand, he felt the urgent need to ensure Tech’s safety and unravel the mystery behind this sudden… change. On the other hand, they had a mission to complete, and he didn’t want to simply dismiss Crosshair’s confusion. Hunter had a feeling they’d all need to be at their best to solve this crisis.
“This kid,” Hunter started, standing and gesturing toward the child, “is Tech.”
Hunter could feel Crosshair’s eyes boring into him through his helmet. He could hear Crosshair’s heart speed up as confusion shifted to disbelief, then finally setting into something akin to shock. Crosshair took a step back, as if trying to physically distance himself from the situation.
“What do you mean?”
Hunter tried to find the right words to explain the inexplicable, but found he couldn’t. This… whatever it was… was something they had never encountered before. He couldn’t shake the feeling of unease gnawing at him. The sight of Tech, their brother, transformed into a vulnerable child, raised countless questions.
“Crosshair,” Hunter began, his voice steady despite the turmoil within him, “I don’t… I don’t know what has exactly happened. But we need to focus on getting Tech back to the ship. We can figure out our next steps there.” Hunter held his breath as Crosshair remained still for a moment, only breathing again when the sniper gave a small nod of acquiescence. Turning to Wrecker, Hunter only needed to give a nod, and the large clone was bending over to carefully lift the child - no, Tech - into his arms.
“But… the weapon?” Wrecker asked as he straightened. Hunter responded by pointing over at Echo.
“Wait,” Echo said, holding up what appeared to be the largest remaining piece of the energy gun. “You’re saying this is the new, super secret, Seppie weapon?”
“Did you see anything else of interest on this rock?” Crosshair hissed.
“No,” Echo conceded. “But… the report made it sound like something massive. Terrible.”
“Look at what it did to Tech!” Crosshair shouted, pointing at the unconscious child cradled in Wrecker’s arms. “You don’t think this is terrible?”
“You know what I meant,” Echo mumbled.
As Echo gathered the remaining pieces of the energy gun, Hunter’s mind raced. He shook his head to shake off any lingering doubts or hesitations. They needed to focus on getting back to the Marauder and regrouping before they could even begin to make sense of the situation.
“Let’s move out,” he commanded once Echo confirmed he had everything. Crosshair fell into step beside him, his expression unreadable behind his helmet, but Hunter could sense the weight of uncertainty that hung heavy in the air.
As they made their way through the debris-strewn corridors, Hunter’s heart warmed at the sight of Wrecker’s gentle demeanor as he carried their youngest brother out of the compound and into the open air, whispering to Tech even though he was still unconscious.
With determined resolve, Hunter turned his attention back to leading his squad back to their ship. He vowed to do whatever it took to uncover the truth and restore his brother to his rightful form.