A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I wanted to get this done sooner but I'm juggling three projects at once right now. I might publish one but it's a little similar to this book so maybe not. I made sure to keep this one a bit shorter and more to the point since the last one was pretty long. It's a little over 2,000 words. 

Also, a couple notes; (Spoiler) The reader pales a bit in this chapter due to sickness. I wasn't sure if people with darker skin tones got pale when they got sick so I asked some friends and did some searches. As far as I can tell, they lose some of their complexion due to alterations in blood flow. I'm not sure if this applies to every skin tone since it I'm sure it varies, but if it's inaccurate, please let me know and I'll tweak it. I want this story to be as inclusive as possible. (:

Also I realized that the story element of this book has taken over the one-shot aspect so I might change the name. Hopefully you guys are enjoying the book despite the misleading description.

Warnings: Canon-typical space battle, mild swearing, descriptions of illness

Hunter awoke to the steady beep of an alarm and Wrecker's snoring. He shifted for a moment, grunting as his stiff muscles ached, before sitting up. His shaggy hair was disheveled and he ran his fingers through it in an attempt to fix the tossed locks as he got to his feet.

"C'mon, Trooper. Get a move on." He called to Wrecker.

"Mmh... five more minutes." Came the slurred reply. Hunter planted his hand on the large soldier's shoulder and gave him a hefty shake.

"We're still on duty, Wrecker." He said.

"Duty can wait." Wrecker groaned, burying his face into his pillow. Hunter let out a sigh.

"Five minutes." He caved and made his way back to his own bed, steadily putting on his armor before stepping out of his room. He immediately paused as an unusual scent reached him. The scent of sweat hung in the air, which wasn't unusual on this ship. Especially after a mission. But it was oddly fresh.

"Good morning, Hunter." Tech's voice drew him out of his thoughts as his brother approached him, datapad in his hands. "I'm sorry to start the day off with bad news, but we have a problem." Hunter suppressed the desire to let out a breath. He hadn't even had his caf yet.

"What is it, Tech?" He said.

"Our communication systems have been jammed. I cannot send or receive any messages whatsoever. My guess is the smugglers must have done so just before we broke out of range. It seems like a last-ditch effort to preserve the secrecy of their operation." Tech answered.

"Can you fix it?"

"So far, my attempts have been unsuccessful." He continued. "It may have to be recalibrated when we reach Coruscant." Hunter finally let the sigh escape him.

"If they want to keep us from relaying our report to the Republic, we're probably being followed." He said. "Do you know if they've got our signature?"

"I can't say for certain." Tech replied with a shake of his head. "But, if they are following us, I doubt they're far behind. I can scramble our signature, however that may complicate things when we attempt to re-enter Republic Space."

"How close is the nearest hyperspace route?" Said Hunter.

"We're still a few hours away." Tech replied.

"What's gone wrong this time?" A grated hiss joined the conversation. Hunter looked over to see Crosshair, cup of caf in hand and a scowl on his face, stepping out of his room. Tech began to give the sniper a recap of their situation, leaving Hunter to try to plan the next step. He considered their options as he went about his day, the ship steadily waking up. The minutes built into hours as Tech continuously tried to fix their communication system. Wrecker kept his focus on the Marauder's radar for any incoming ships while Crosshair stood at the ready in the gunner's mount. This left Hunter to pilot the ship.

"Do I want to ask how things are coming along, Tech?" Hunter asked.

"You don't." Tech replied tiredly from beneath the control panel. Wrecker leaned back from where he was hunched over the radar and attempted to cross his leg, only to flinch with a grunt.

"You alright?" Hunter asked. Wrecker nodded.

"Yeah, Sarge, my leg's just sore. Might need to get some new bandages. Hate to bother the doc, though." He replied.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind. She was assigned to us as a medic, after all." Said Tech. Hunter narrowed his eyes as he drew his gaze over the cockpit. A sense of unease settled in his gut. The scent of sweat still hung in the air. Stronger even.

"Has anyone seen her at all, today?" He asked. This made Wrecker draw his focus from his injured leg.

"Now that ya mention it..." He said, scrunching his brow in thought.

"Tech?" Hunter pressed.

"I haven't seen her since yesterday." He spoke above the creak of a bolt as he set a metal plate back into place. Letting out a sigh, he slid out from beneath the panel. "She must've exhausted herself during the mission. I'll wake her." With that, he straightened up, adjusted his goggles, and made his way out of the cockpit. Hunter heard Tech lightly wrap his knuckles against her door and call her name. No response. He called again and knocked a little louder. Nothing. His stomach knotted. Something must be wrong.

"I'm coming in." Tech said before he opened the door. Hunter heard him quietly call her name again before the Sergeant sensed the air stiffen. He stood from his chair abruptly before Tech's voice reached him.

"Hunter!" He called, panic flooding his tone. Wrecker tensed, eyes widening as he began to get up.

"Stay put and keep an eye out." Hunter said sharply, setting the ship on auto-pilot. The giant soldier hesitated before returning to his position as Hunter raced out of the cockpit.

"What's going on?" Crosshair called from the gunner's mount. Hunter didn't reply as he reached the doctor's room. The scent of sweat was strong enough to nearly blind him but he refused to slow down. Tech knelt on her bedside, his eyes flickering from her to his datapad.

"What is it?" The Sergeant demanded as he approached her bed. When his gaze landed on her, he felt his frame stiffen. Her complexion was far paler than normal and her eyes were pressed shut. Her breathing was shaky as well and her heartbeat was faint.

"She's ill." Tech said swiftly. "She's running a high temperature and I can't wake her." Hunter set his jaw before gently pressing his hand against her forehead. He almost recoiled at the heat that radiated from her.

"Run a test. We need to figure out what's-" Hunter was interrupted by loud beeping.

"We got a problem, Sarge! Ship's coming in port-side!" Wrecker's voice called.

"I'm on it!" Crosshair replied as the ship leaned. The sound of blaster shots echoed through the ship. Hunter met Tech's concerned gaze before letting out a growl.

"Karking hell!" He snarled. "Keep her safe and let me know what you find." With that he returned to the cockpit where Wrecker had taken over the controls.

"I'll take over from here, Trooper. Go help Crosshair."

"On it!" After giving Wrecker a few vital seconds to take his position, Hunter lurched the ship out of a string of blaster fire. Two smuggler ships came into view, trying to attack from the front. Bright red light spread across the deflector shields as Hunter returned fire. He landed a good hit in the left ship's right thruster and it leaned in front of him. With a swear, he yanked the controls upward. He managed to avoid a head-on collision but the wing of the damaged ship rammed into the side of the Marauder.

"Damn!" He snarled as alarms blared. "How's it lookin' back there?"

"Three ships left!" Wrecker called back. The second ship aimed for the Marauder's flank. Hunter felt it lurch as a bolt struck it's hull and he dipped the ship down into a spiraling nose-dive. With a sharp yank on the control, he brought the ship up, aimed at the smuggler in pursuit, and fired. They erupted into a bright orange cloud as metal fragments met the shield in front of him. Another lurch, however, told him they weren't out of the woods yet. The thrusts of the Marauder flared as he launched forward.

"Got two more on our heels!" Wrecker shouted.

"Take 'em out, Trooper!"

" I can't, Sarge! Gun's overheated!"

"Hunter!" Crosshair called. "Bank left, twenty degrees!"

Hunter gritted his teeth and did so, monitoring the ship's radar to maintain his rotation. Crosshair sharpened his gaze on the two ships as they began to line up. Fixing his sights on the left thruster of the one closest to him, he pulled the trigger. With a flash of red, the shot landed. The thruster sparked and flared before the ship leaned, colliding with the other. They both erupted in a ball of fire before drifting away, smoldering.

"We're all clear!" Crosshair called as Wrecker whooped with joy.

"That'll teach 'em!" The hefty man laughed as the Hunter let the breath free from his chest. But he couldn't relax. Instead, he set the ship on auto-pilot, briefly scanned it for any serious damage, and got to his feet before making his way back to the doctor's room. He passed by Crosshair and Wrecker on the way, the former raising an eyebrow at his tense frame.

"What's the problem?" He asked when the door slid open.

"It's the doc." Hunter said as he stepped inside. Both Wrecker and Crosshair's eyes widened as they exchanged a look before following their leader. Tech was typing furiously into his datapad, brow furrowed.

"Have you found anything?" He asked. Tech's shoulders sank as he sighed before bringing his gaze up to meet Hunter's.

"No, Sarge." He said.

"You should take another blood sample." Crosshair said as his gaze landed on the medic. "Maybe you missed something in your first scan."

"That is highly unlikely." Tech replied. Wrecker frowned.

"It's worth a try." He added with a shrug. Tech looked at Hunter for confirmation and the Sergeant gave him a nod.

"Very well. I suppose you're right, Wrecker." Said Tech. He reached over to the medic's bandages and began to slowly unravel them. When he revealed the wound, he abruptly dropped the bandage as everyone froze.

"What the hell?" Crosshair breathed. The wound had scabbed over but it was pitch-black and the veins leading away from it were a deep gray.

"W-what's wrong with it?" Wrecker stammered.

"Is it some kind of infection?" Hunter pressed. Tech didn't reply as he took a sample from the injury and scanned it. The men waited tensley before Tech looked up to meet their gaze.

"All the scans are coming up empty." He said.

"What?" Hunter replied.

"As far as the device can find, there is nothing wrong." Said Tech.

"Tell that to our unconscious medic!" Crosshair growled.

"W-what are we gonna do? That scanner of yours must be broken, right?"

"It's working properly."

"Like hell, it is." Crosshair stated, crossing his arms. "You're telling me that our doctor's fine when she's in a damn coma?"

"That's NOT what I'm saying." Tech began, his tone straining. "I'm simply stating the fact that the scans are-"

"It doesn't matter what the scans say!" Crosshair jammed in.

"Cool it! Hunter snapped, stepping between his brothers. "Arguing isn't going to help her. Instead, we should try and find the best plan of action." Once the crackling air eased, Hunter turned to face Tech.

"Is it possible we might have missed something?" He asked. Tech thought for a moment.

"This device is capable of detecting any physical anomaly within the body. Even if the specific virus or poison isn't recorded in its database, it would notify us if something was wrong. The only way it would be inaccurate is if it is indeed damaged." He said. "Nothing appears to be wrong with it, but I can take a closer look and see if there are any unseen malfunctions."

"What's the point?" Crosshair began. "We don't need some hunk of bolts to see that she's in terrible condition. Instead of tinkering with that device, we should get her back to Coruscant immediately."

"But what if she doesn't make it back in time?" Tech pressed.

"Don't say that." Said Wrecker. "That won't do us any good."

"Wrecker's got a point." Hunter spoke. "Tech, I need you to go over the ship's diagnostics and get us to the closest hyperspace route as fast as you can. Wrecker, keep an eye on the radar for any more unwelcome surprises. Crosshair, you and I are going to keep an eye on the doc." The sniper tensed at this, his solid gaze wavering for a moment, before giving him a nod.

"I'll leave the device here to monitor her condition." Tech announced as he set the datapad lightly on her nightstand. "Should I get the medkit for you before resuming control of the ship?"

"Please." Hunter responded with a dip of his head. Tech returned it before stepping out of the room. Wrecker followed slowly, pausing to look at the medic over his shoulder with a frown, before leaving.

"Are you sure I'm... the best suited for this job?" Crosshair said. Hunter raised a brow at him.

"Why not?"

"I'm a sniper, not a nurse." He sneered, though his eyes flickered to the doctor worriedly.

"None of us are. We'll just have to do what we can." Said Hunter before he brought his gaze to the medic. Her eyelids twitched as sweat beaded from her forehead. All they could hope for is that they could get you the help you needed, whatever it may be.