A very long chapter for you all today. Enjoy! (Word Count: 2243 <3)

"Aim for the kid."

The words echo through my head.

"I'll kill you, Crosshair." I scream at him. I am surprised at the rage in my voice, the utter resolve. I want to end him, to watch him die. For what he's done to us, for what he's done to Omega. And for the first time, I see fear in his stance, like he knows what I am thinking.

The anger is making my head spin, and I'm seeing red. I want more than anything to pull the trigger, to end his slimy, miserable life. The only thing stopping me is the feeling of Hunter's presence behind me, and the fact that he is holding his breath. I won't kill Crosshair- at least, not in front of his brothers.

Hunter grabs my arm, dragging me down as the cannons fire, shaking the artillery deck.

The gunfight breaks out instantaneously, and I pull my barrel away from Crosshair, sparing him as I begin to take out the soldiers under his command. They fall in groups as I crouch down in the cloud of dirt, Hunter next to me. It's hot in here as the cannons seem to rev up, pulsating and sending heat throughout the room in waves.

I am vaguely aware of Wrecker throwing troopers out of the broken windows.

Omega screams my name, and I look up to see Crosshair's rifle barrel aimed at my head. I am frozen, waiting for him to fire, but he doesn't. He just continues looking down the scope, and I make eye contact with him. I spared him. It would be honorable for him to spare me.

The rifle barrel moves away, and I let out a breath.

Dust rains down like snow, before cannons fire again, and the roof collapses. Hunter pulls me with him, and I grab Omega, as Wrecker leads the way out. There's shouting as the clones get pinned under falling metal, screams of terror.

We turn a corner, and I slam on my heels. The trooper with the flame thrower has escaped the collapsed roof, and is intent on roasting us to crisps. I push Omega behind me, her hands gripping mine so tightly that it hurts.

Wrecker reacts first, chucking a cylindrical canister at her, and she goes flying, slamming into a window.

"Take that!" He shouts, laughing. Tech slips past him, raising his hand.

"This way!"

We rush after him, weaving back through the hallways. Omega falls between Hunter and I, letting go of my hand to grab his, so I shoulder my rifle. It brings a sense of comfort, of stability, and my heartbeat ceases fluttering around in my chest like a dying dove.

"We have to get to the engine chamber." Tech calls over his shoulder. The hallways open up into a huge chamber. We slow to a stop as the pathway drops into nothingness. A feeling of nausea washes over me, and I take a step back. The Ion Engine Chambers. Our way out.

"Why are we here?" Wrecker asks slowly, stepping back to stand next to me. Neither of us are too fond of heights.

"It's the only way that isn't guarded by troopers." Tech states, pointing to a far opening. The engine chamber is cone shaped, and the narrowest point leads out. I can just make out the sky, and the breeze that blew through the artillery deck is present here. "That's our exit."

"Lead the way, Tech." Hunter says, watching his brother begin to make his way down, walking precariously down the narrow walkway. He turns to me, a hand ghosting my waist. "You'll bring up the rear of he group?"

I nod, and he begins following Omega to where Tech waits. I hold out my hand, gesturing for Wrecker to go in front of me, and he groans.

"I'm done with this stupid ship and all it's heights." He grumbles, holding his arms out so he can maintain his balance. His backpack is loaded with bombs and ammunition, the small amount we were able to carry.

"I know, big guy." I say, waiting a bit to follow after him, glancing over my shoulder. "Me too."

The ion engine chamber is a pain to navigate, and I am again thankful for Tech and his useful information. He leads us down paths like slides, up and under barriers, through dark caverns, contentiously moving closer to the open air.

We all stop as he pauses, glancing around. Omega turns to me, a smile on her face.

"I've never been inside an Ion engine before." She says, and Wrecker chuckles.

"It would be weird if you had." He says. I turn to Tech, hands on my hips.

"I didn't know you meant we where actually going through the engines." I say, and he pushes his goggles up his nose.

"I couldn't have been more clear, Delta."

I glance at Echo, and he shrugs, before we begun moving again.

We stop as we near the exit, and Tech helps us each up a precariously steep ledge as Hunter moves cautiously towards the opening. He holds out his hand to me, and I grab it. He hoists me up with ease, and I raise my eyebrows at him from under my helmet.

"Since when were you this strong?" I ask, and his brown eyes look at me without amusement.

"Since forever." He says simply.

The hair on the back of my neck stands on edge, and I hold out a hand.

"Hunter, careful-"

A red shot is fired, barely missing him, and he jumps back.

"Get down!" He says to the rest of us, and we crouch next to the wall. "Crosshair's out there."

"Yes, that is quite obvious." Tech says. "It appears we have to go back."

The wave of heat hits us with such an intensity that I struggle to regain my breath. The core of the engines roar as they begin to fire up, blue fire flickering towards us. The heat is getting more intense by the second, and one thing is clear- we can't go back the way we came.

"How is that even possible?" I yell.

"Crosshair must have re-routed the energy to the engines instead of the cannons." Tech says. "This is not ideal."

"Oh no way, I didn't notice!" Echo shouts sarcastically. "How much time do we have?"

"Two minutes, max." Tech speaks, his voice as calm and collected as always. But I see it in his eyes- the light of panic.

Omega grabs my wrist.

"What do we do?" She yelps, her eyes searching my visor. I open my mouth to respond, but I have nothing to say. This situation is so hopeless.

Wrecker glances around. "What about plan seven?" He shouts.

"Plan seven has nothing to do with this situation, whatsoever!" Echo shouts back, his voice lined with anger.

"Well, how about you think of something!"

I glance at Hunter, who has been silent this whole time.

"Any ideas, Sarge?" I ask him, and he nods.

"Can we use the explosives from the armory to disable the engine?" He asks Tech, who stands, pondering the question as the engines only get hotter.

"It wouldn't cause a large enough reaction to damage the thermal chamber... but if we place a series of charges around this cone, we may be able to break away from the cylinder while still destabilizing the core." He remarks. I nod.

"We don't have any other options." I say. "We have to try."

"You mean, we'll fall... all the way down?" Omega asks, her brown eyes wide with fear.

"It's either that or be incinerated." Echo says, placing a hand on her shoulder. Hunter takes charge, handing out the bombs from Wrecker's backpack.

"Tech, Omega, up top with me. The rest of you, place them out down here."

I take three from Tech, slinging my rifle over my shoulder and hurrying along a metal beam, reaching up to place a cartridge on the wall. It beeps, hums, before flashing red: It's activated. I hurry onto the next one, then the last. I return to Echo just as the engine begins to whir, roaring impossibly louder as the blue fire glows brighter and brighter.

  "Everybody get down!" Wrecker yells, pushing the button. The bombs erupt with a flash of yellow.

  "Grab onto something!" I tell Omega. I feel my stomach rise in my mouth as the cone drops down, the explosion shaking the earth. I am slipping, falling, and I reach out my hands, trying to grab onto something. The metal is smooth under my fingers, and I scream.

  Wrecker grabs my arm, yelling for me to hold on. I hold onto his hand as the cone breaks in two, the opposite sides rolling away from each other. The engine only emits more fire, but we are away, away from the heat. I stand, helping Wrecker to his feet as we look around, observing the landscape.

  "Everyone, head count!" I call, my heart slowly dropping. Tech, check. Echo, here. Wrecker, standing next to me. No sighs of Omega, or Hunter.

  "Omega!" I call, cupping my hands to my mouth. "Hunter!"

 "I'll comm them!" Echo says, raising the comm to his mouth. "Hunter! Where are you?"

 "We're alright." Hunter's voice comes through the comm, and I let out a breath of relief, shaking my head. "We're by the engine. We'll cut around, meet you by the Marauder."

 "Copy that." Echo responds, looking up at us. "We need to move."

 "Let's go then." I say, feeling restless. Tech nods, lifting his holopad, when we are blinded by a white light- the searchlight of a ship.

   Wrecker grabs my arm, looking up.

 "Run!"

 We break into a flat out sprint as troopers drop down on cables, firing at us with their blasters. Echo stumbles, and I pull him up, shooting at the enemy over my shoulder as Tech navigates the rough terrain. Wrecker grabs the wing of a nearby pile of junk, that looks like it used to be a ship. He pulls it down behind us as we make our way to the cruiser.

  The ship begins firing at us, the rounds causing pies of rubble to go up in flames. My legs burn, and my breath is coming out in gasps.

  I fall, hard, trying to tuck into a roll, but ending up getting caught on my rifle. My head is spinning like bug on it's back, and the word tips. Echo pulls me with him as we make it to the ship dock, charging up the stairs two at a time.

 My heart stops in my chest, and I would have frozen in place if Wrecker hadn't pushed me forward.

  Hunter, laying sprawled out on the ground, Tech kneeling next to him.

  And no sighs of Omega.

  I look around for her, screaming her name. I see her bow, the golden metal glinting in the moonlight. I grab it, staring at it, not processing what is happening. I feel dizzy, like I'm going to throw up. I spin in a circle, looking for her, worry pressing against my lungs like a Bantha sitting on my chest. I can't breath.

  "What happened?" Wrecker cries, looking around. "Where is Omega?"

  Not Omega. Please, not Omega.

      Not my girl.

  "He was shot in the chest-plate. We need to get him on the ship." Echo yells, beginning to shout out orders.

  "Delta!" Tech yells, and I snap out of my trace, rushing to him, slinging one of Hunter's arms over my shoulder. He's alive: I can hear his breathing, rough and ragged. I'm not thinking straight.

"Let's get out of here!" Wrecker calls, beginning to fire at the troopers that begin to stream into the bay.

  The ship is cold, and I help Tech put Hunter in a chair.

  "Delta, I need you at the guns." Tech says, bolting towards the cockpit as Echo begins to take out bandages. I stand, in shock, before Hunter's visor turns towards me.

  "Go." He says through gritted teeth, and I sprint towards the gunners bay, throwing off my helmet as I slam into my seat.

 "Get us out of here, Tech!" I say, just as the ship takes off, pulling out of the hangar.

*** (Time skip brought to you by  @Tikoke , We're bringing in the super-fans today. )

I kneel in front of Hunter, where he sits slumped in his seat. His chest is wrapped in a white bandage, and his bandana is sitting in his lap.  I tilt my head, grabbing his hand. He doesn't meet my gaze, and I sigh, standing up.

  "Hunter. Please, listen to me." I grab his chin, forcing him to look at me. His brown eyes are sad. "It's not your fault. Cad Bane is an asshole with a good shot. None of us would have done any better. You are lucky to be alive."

He shakes his head, at a loss for words, and I kiss his forehead. He leans into me, a single arm looping lazily around my waist, his lips pressed gently to my collarbone.

"I love you." He whispers. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for loosing her, I- I don't know what happened--"

"Shut up." I whisper, pulling him closer to me. "I love you too. You were with me at my worst. I am here for you now, Cyare."