The Plan
Part VIII: The Plan
“There you go, Rex,” said Cut, handing him a large bucket. “Now your turn.”
Rex grunted.
“Why do I feel like you have way too much fun giving me this task?”
Cut burst into laughter.
“The first time I milked an eopie, I thought about my superiors and how much I would have paid to see them in my shoes. Sorry it fell on you, brother, but I couldn’t resist the idea of having a real officer try.”
Rex took the bucket and Cut gave him a slap on the back before leaving the barn, not without a last giggle.
The young captain watched as his brother was walking away. He was glad he had found him. The trauma caused by the recent events added to the adjustment to civilian life had made the first weeks at the farm difficult. Apart from some small talk, neither Bo-Katan or Rex had talked much, preferring to dedicate themselves to the work on the farm. In a way, they were both very similar; two warriors who thought they had failed their brothers and sisters, causing them an indescribable pain. War was everything they had ever known but now, it was becoming meaningless. It was something they both shared and understood, and the two of them respected the other’s silence. The children however, did not trouble themselves with such consideration. They were so happy to see new faces that they never missed an occasion to spend time with Rex or Bo-Katan. At first, it had been a bit irritating, but they had eventually grown used to it and even became fond of the moments spent with Jek and Shaeeah. Just the week before, Bo-Katan had tried to teach some self-defence techniques to the Twi’lek girl. Shaeeah had proven to be an excellent student, until she decided — to the great displeasure of Suu — to practise with her little brother. Bo had been forced to put an end to the lessons but Rex and Cut had laughed about it for days. The cheerfulness of the family — and especially the children — was contagious, and helped the two newcomers to cope a little better with their ghosts. In truth, Rex didn’t know what he would’ve become without the Lawquanes.
“Right,” thought Rex. “It can’t be that hard.” He glanced at the eopie — Margaret, according to Cut — and sighed. He could have sworn the animal had just cast him a murderous look. He sat down on the small stool next to the beast. “Gentle but firm,” Cut had said. “Got it.” He extended a hand to grab the eopie’s teat. It was warm and slimy; much more than what he had expected. Disgusted, he quickly removed his hand, but Margaret didn’t seem to appreciate the sudden gesture as she kicked the bucket with her back leg, forcing Rex to move aside to avoid getting hit by the eopie. “You’re not going to make this any easier for me, huh?” he said to Margaret. He rose up from his stool to pick up the bucket and tried again. This time, he was prepared for the texture of the teat, and with a grimace, he began to draw milk from the eopie. For a split second he thought he had succeeded, but realized too late he had not aimed the teat properly and found himself covered in warm milk. Rex abruptly dropped the teat with a growl.
“Kriffing hell…”
“Cut will have a good laugh, no doubt,” he thought, too annoyed by the situation to hear the door of the barn open.
“There you a…” began someone behind him.
Rex turned around to see Bo-Katan standing in the doorway.
“What on Malachor are you doing?” she asked, raising her eyebrows.
He stood up.
“I… err… I was trying to milk that thing.”
The ‘thing’ emitted an angry mooing.
“I see…” the Mandalorian said with a smirk. “Obviously, the key word here is ‘trying’…”
“Very funny,” Rex replied, crossing his arms. “I’d like to see you try.”
“Thanks for the offer, but that’s not why I’m here.”
She stepped into the barn and sat down on a hay bale.
“I need your help with something.”
“Alright. Let me just finish this and…”
“Not something on the farm.”
He frowned and cast her a questioning look.
“Oh…”
Her face became serious and she sighed.
“I was listening to the news this morning and… It appears the Empire had spotted a group of Mandalorians nationalists in the Kathol sector.”
She was clearly trying to contain her agitation.
“Korkie may be among them; I have to make contact with the group.”
“And what are you waiting for?”
“Well, here’s the thing: I don’t know where exactly in the Kathol sector they are. The news didn’t say so. That’s why I need your help.”
“I’m sorry, but… I don’t really see what I could do…”
“I’m getting there. The guy on the radio said something else: the Empire is building a new base on Abridon.”
She took a small pause as if she was trying to anticipate his reaction.
“That’s not so far from here, so I thought…”
He understood right away what she was trying to say.
“You want to break into an imperial base?!”
“I know it sounds risky, but it’s the only way for me to learn what the Empire knows about the group, including their location. Without it, I can’t establish contacts with them.”
“It’s suicide!”
“Maybe if I’m going alone, but…”
“Oh no, no, no! Don’t count on me to help you with that.”
“Wait! At least hear me out…”
“No. Ahsoka took upon herself to travel alone to give us a chance to survive. I’m not willing to ruin her sacrifice by walking straight into the lion’s den.”
“But there is no reason for any of us to get caught if you come with me! You know all the codes used by the army, how you brothers think…”
“No,” he said sharply. “Not anymore.”
He grabbed his empty bucket and walked towards the door of the barn. The debate was over.
“You could check your brothers’ files,” she said behind him.
Rex stopped.
“Don’t you want to know what they’ve become?” she added. “Don’t you care?”
He opened his mouth to say something but changed his mind at the last second and walked out the door without another word.
He couldn’t sleep that night. Partly because of the clinking caused by Bo-Katan in the room next to his, who was preparing her armor to raid the imperial base, and partly because of her last words in the barn. How could she dare suggest he didn’t care about the fate of his brothers? Not a single day had passed without him thinking about them or Ahsoka. Some days, he would worry about them so much that it would feel almost physically sick. But he couldn’t risk Ahsoka’s life, nor those of Cut and his family. It didn’t matter that he was on his own now; what he had learned on Kamino still prevailed: the group mattered more than the individual. Rex couldn’t allow his own preoccupations to threaten the lives of others, and he would do everything in his power to protect the Lawquanes and Ahsoka just as he had once done for his fellow troopers. And if he wasn’t looking for his lost brothers it was not because he was running away from the truth. On the contrary, it was because deep down, he knew what they had become. But Bo’s words were still resonating within his head. “Don’t you want to know what they’ve become? Don’t you care?” Of course, he did.
“Blast it!”
He got out of bed and walked to Bo-Katan’s room. A glimmer of light was coming from the half-open door. Rex briefly knocked on the wood panel and the noise inside the room stopped.
“Yes?” Bo-Katan’s voice said.
He peeked his head in.
“Don’t bother to prepare your gear.”
She looked at him, baffled.
“What?”
“You won’t need it,” he said grumpily. “I have a plan. We leave first thing tomorrow morning.”