Work Text:
Omega’s glad to be away from the noises and sounds of Safa Toma and back on the Marauder. At first, the idea of racing seemed fun. Listening to the speeders and seeing the contestants play tricks – though dirty – was thrilling. And Omega has chased her fair share of adrenaline.
But all of that changed when Tech was thrown in the ring.
Anxiety had gripped her the second he volunteered himself. After all, she was the one who suggested the deal in the first place; if they win, they get Cid back. But it was simply TAY-0 on the line. Not her brother.
Omega trusts Tech. She does, especially because he’s piloted the Marauder. But their large ship in open space is different from a tiny speeder with hardly any protection. And though Tech has always been level-headed in stressful situations, she knows how he acts. He's her brother. It takes him a bit to calculate and make a decision. On a high-speed race, he wouldn’t have that time.
Luckily his brain worked fast enough and got him out. But she doesn’t like how close it was.
When they get back to the Marauder, Echo’s busy piloting while the rest of them sit to debrief. Hunter isn’t thrilled as they relay the story, but Omega’s just happy they’re all together again and away from the situation.
“Why did you not call me ‘n Echo? We could have worked together and helped break her away from the smugglers, rather than you putting your head on the line,” Hunter says to Tech, arms crossing.
“He was not a smuggler, he was a gangster. If we snuck her out of the planet, it would put an unnecessary target on our back. We are already connected to one individual with questionable integrity. I do not wish to anger any others,” Tech answered.
Usually, Omega would speak up to defend Cid against comments like that, but something changed today. Omega still has hope in her – after all, they saved her life today – but seeing Tech race with such high stakes was crossing a line she didn’t know existed.
“You should have seen him! Flying through the track and all that,” Wrecker says, a grin still on his face. He’s still enthused by the whole thing. “You’d think he’d been racing his whole life.”
Hunter’s gaze on Tech softens a bit, though Tech just blinks, unaffected by the compliment.
“It really was amazing, Hunter,” Omega gushes. “He even got rid of his weapons to go faster!”
“The success rate for that particular maneuver was not high. I am just glad it worked,” Tech replies.
Omega blinks, looking back at him. “What do you mean?”
“I had a very limited amount of time to achieve the speed needed to get over the missing track. Any less time to gain traction, and I would have fallen.”
Omega’s eyebrows furrow, and suddenly that fear she had felt is clutching her heart again. “Why would you do that?”
Tech blinks, confused by her question. “It was the most logical choice to win the race and save Cid.”
“How risky was it to get rid of your weapons?” she counters.
“In order to finish the race in first place, I had to take the more dangerous route. I had a twenty-five percent chance of completing the length and not falling off the track.”
“Tech, that drop was deadly! Even droids wouldn’t make it out of that!” Omega protests.
He simply shrugs and reaches for his data pad while Wrecker and Hunter exchange a look.
“That … was a little risky, Tech,” Hunter begins carefully.
“I do not take unwarranted risks,” he says simply, beginning to type on the data pad.
“Then what do you call a seventy-five percent chance you end up in a bacta tank? Or worse?” Echo chimes in from the pilot’s chair.
Tech’s eyes rise, and he puts his datapad down. “If I had failed and lost the race, Cid would have been taken by the gangsters. There was an extremely high chance that she would have given up our squad to the Empire in order to get out of her predicament. Therefore, I made the decision to take the less optimal route during the race to secure my win.” he replies. “This choice was not made according to risk. It was strategy,” Tech directs toward Hunter.
The squad leader leans back in his chair, arms crossed.
“But Cid wouldn’t do that,” Omega finally says. “Would she?” The young girl looks to her brothers, but she finds no protest from them. Instead, they look to be deep in thought. Hunter especially.
“That gangster did tell us not to trust her …” Wrecker reminds her.
“So did that pirate, Phee,” Echo calls out.
“Look,” Hunter says, breaking the silence. “In any case, I’d rather you have picked your own life, Tech. I’m sure we would have figured something out. The squad can handle Cid.”
“We cannot handle the Empire,” Tech answers shortly.
The entire conversation has been eye-opening for Omega, especially as she watches her brothers all seem to come to a shared agreement. It’s not fully spoken out loud, but she sees the looks in their eyes. It’s the same gazes they share in the field right before they all somehow move as one, like a true squad who just knows what the other is thinking.
It’s later at night in the Marauder when they’re all settled that Omega slowly mulls it over in her head. She lays in her bed reflecting on every interaction with Cid. Sure, Omega’s seen her fair share of bad people. There’s been plenty of people who have wanted to hurt her and the squad. But she hasn’t met a character like this before – one who presents a loyal front, a true friend, when instead having secret, different intentions. One who might just turn on you when you don’t expect it.
“Night, kid,” Hunter says in passing by her bunker.
“Hunter?” Omega says, sitting up and looking out her door.
“Yeah?” He replies almost too quickly as if he was expecting it, trailing back into her room and standing in the doorway. Her hands clutch the sheets, and she hesitates before asking her question.
“We’re still going to work with Cid … right?”
Hunter sighs quietly to himself at the question. She’s so young but incredibly perceptive. He knew he’d have to get around to addressing the imbalance that has been hanging in the air since their return.
He walks over to the edge of the makeshift bed and sits down.
“She seemed really grateful that you guys saved her head, so … yeah. For right now, we will,” he answers, but he can tell she’s looking for more information. He watches Omega’s eyebrows furrow as she looks for the right words.
“I thought Cid was our friend. She is, isn’t she?”
That makes Hunter’s eyes drift off and away from her. There’s a lot that the squad doesn’t tell her. Of course, they don’t, and their true feelings toward Cid are one of those things. She’s a child, their little sister, and she shouldn’t be growing up in this war. It’s their job to protect her physically, but they also want to protect her childhood as much as they can. They all agreed on it. They want to preserve that bright look she has on the galaxy. They see it with every smile and never want it to disappear.
“She’s friendly, but she’s got something big over our heads,” he starts gently. “She’s nice to us, but she isn’t part of the squad. She looks out for herself.”
“But there’s a lot of people we met that could have told the Empire about us, but didn’t.”
Her mind immediately goes to Hera and her family. They might not have known the full truth and background of their squad, but she doubts they would have told the Empire about them even knowing it all.
Hunter struggles to find the right words.
“There are some people who don’t feel about the Empire like we do,” he starts slowly.
“But Cid doesn’t like the Empire,” Omega interjects.
Hunter nods, searching for what to say.
“She might not like ‘em, but she’s not gonna fight ‘em either. She’s just lookin’ to stay out of everyone’s way. She doesn’t want a target on her back, and she’s going to keep it that way,” he says.
There’s that unspoken last sentence: she doesn’t want the target that we have.
“I still don’t like that Tech had to risk his life like that,” she says quietly, drawing her knees to her chest.
Hunter sighs, eyes going toward his little sister. That guilt grips him again, one that makes his heart ache all too often. She shouldn’t be here with us. She should have a life and a proper family – one that doesn’t have to constantly hide and evade the Empire at every turn.
“I know, kid.”
“I just want us to all be together,” Omega continues. “Even if … Even if the Empire gets us. As long as we’re together. Is that … bad?”
He doesn’t tell her that the Empire would simply shoot them down if they had the chance. As far as he knows, they’re better dead than alive. There is no together in the Empire.
“Hey,” he says gently. “You don’t have to worry about that. That is not gonna happen.”
Hunter has told himself he would never promise anything like this, because he’s been around long enough to know nothing can be promised. Who knows – maybe they’re being tracked right now. He’s seen good clones die in the field over things they couldn’t control. Tech, Wrecker, Echo, and Crosshair have all known that. Their protection is never secure. This is why they have plans in place for when the worst may happen. Or when it will happen. So he could never promise Omega this truly. He shouldn’t. It isn’t right. One day she will be let down when something unavoidably bad happens, because that’s war. But there’s something in him – something fierce and selfish that pierces through even his most engrained instincts every time he sees her.
This promise that isn’t a true promise seems to make her settle, though. Her eyes soften and she loosens, clearly more comfortable and happy with his answer.
“Okay,” Omega says.
She gives Hunter a small smile and his heart melts as he returns with one of his own, but there is that dark feeling that churns in his stomach. He has never felt this until she joined the squad. Before Omega, he was with his brothers who had grown up and faced every obstacle with him. Though their bonds are special and he loves them, they all know that in a moment the battle could change and it could all be taken away. Such is the way of war. This is what happens to soldiers.
But Omega is not a soldier. She is a child. And he will shield her from a true soldier’s way no matter what.
“‘Night,” he says, getting up and retreating to rest. Omega gives him a small wave, settling back down in her bed.
The moment he leaves the room a large sigh escapes him. He’s about to go settle down for the night when he hears small beeps coming from the cockpit. Hunter decides to go back in.
Tech’s alone piloting the ship. The others have most likely retired for the night.
“Hey Tech,” Hunter starts, walking closer to him.
The chair swivels around, revealing Tech with a curious look on his face.
“Humor me. How high were the chances that Cid would turn us in if she was in a tough spot?” Hunter asks.
Tech blinks, pausing for a moment. Hunter’s sure he could rattle off the exact number right away, and yet he waits, hesitating to tell the truth.
Hunter already knows the answer.
“One hundred percent.”