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The war had ended. The Separatists—or rather the Emperor—won. Order 66 was activated, taking control of most clones in the galaxy. They turned on their Jedi generals and brethren, slayed them where they stood. Once the Jedi Temple was left in shambles, most of the masters and young padawans killed, a new order had arisen: the Galactic Empire. New rules were put in place by Sidious. The first decree was to disengage and dismantle all droids. The second: disband the clone trooper program on Kamino. Remaining cadets were to be collected by older clones and taken back to Coruscant, where they would undergo new training and be folded into the new Stormtrooper program.
Rex’s brothers were gone in a blink of an eye.
The former 501st captain wandered the streets of lower Coruscant. He remained vigilant as he walked around corners and crossed wet streets. He kept his head low so as to not be recognized by any passing Stormtroopers.
He turned another corner and headed down an allery, passing by a hooded man as he went. Rex stopped at the end of the alleyway and looked up. In the distance was the shipyard he was heading to.
Finally i can get off this forcesakened planet.
Footsteps echoed behind him. Rex twisted around and grabbed the man by the neck. He slammed the man against the wall with enough force to almost break his neck.
“Ack! S-Stop!” The man choked, hands clawing at his neck.
Rex leaned close, eyes glowing with anger. “Why are you following me? Hm? You with the Empire?”
The man kicked helplessly.
Rex grit his teeth. “Maybe I should kill you right here and now if you don’t tell me,” he slammed him against the wall again, “ who you are!”
And there it was: a flash to the past. The man’s hoodie fell away from his face enough to reveal a familiar V tattoo. Everything flashed before Rex’s eyes: the war, explosions, his men—his brothers.
Dogma.
Dogma had been placed on Kamino to await execution after what happened on Umbara.
“D-Dogma?” Rex slowly let go of his neck.
Dogma coughed and but didn’t fall.
“H-How?” Rex asked.
Dogma rubbed his sore neck and smirked. “Learned from the best… coughs… captain.”
Rex gasped, stepping back. Dogma’s eyes widened slightly in confusion.
“You need to go.” Rex turned to walk away from the past.
Dogma grabbed his wrist tightly. “Captain- wait!”
Rex couldn't believe it still had so much of that fiery strength from the war. He looked at Dogma, eyes empty.
"W-W-Wait! I.. I-I have just one question. Please! Wait…” Dogma tightened his hold, then loosened it. “Is… is Tup alright?”
A wave of grief washed over Rex. “Dogma… he was taken by… doctors… medics from Kamino.”
There was a flicker of hope in the other’s eyes. “So… so he’s been released? Clones from Kamino were decommissioned. That means I… we can get him back, right?”
Rex saw the desperation and hope. He couldn't help but look away. It hurt him to have to tell his trooper that his... batchmate is...
Gone.
Dogma fidgeted. "Captain… please don't tell me he's..."
Rex met his eyes again. "Dogma, I'm sorry, but..."
Dogma's eyes widened slightly.
"Tup's gone," Rex finished.
Dogma's eyes flicked back and forth, searching Rex's, searching for the lie he couldn't find. His hand began to shake as he let go of Rex's hand. Dogma took a step back and clenched his hand into a fist.
"No.” He closed his eyes.
Rex stayed silent, watching him. When Dogma opened his eyes again, they were filled with tears.
"Did he suffer?"
Rex's throat clogged up. The answer was yes, he was in pain. Fives tried to help the kid but he couldn't do anything about it. Rex decided he couldn't tell Dogma the full truth.
"No. He didn't."
Dogma's voice broke on the next question, "Was he alone?"
Rex shook his head and said, "No. Fives was by his side when he passed.”
Dogma nodded in understanding and sighed heavily, blinking the tears away.
He frowned. "Fives is gone too?”
Rex nodded.
Dogma looked at him. "What happened to Tup?”
Rex tapped the side of his head. “There was… a chip in Tup’s head. We all have chips in our heads, put there by Sidious. The chip had orders enscribed within them: an order to kill the Jedi. Tup’s.. His chip malfunctioned; activated a month early. He killed Master Jedi Tiplar. We thought he had a tumor, but it was actually the chip. He didn’t survive the surgery to remove it. I’m sorry.”
Dogma looked down at his feet in sorrow. He blinked in disbelief. “Are we really all that's left? Left of what we used to be, Rex?"
Rex looked down. "I don't know. But... I'm going to try and look for more of us. Those whose chips didn't work or were taken out."
Dogma smiled slightly and turned away. "Good. Good luck, Rex."
He began to walk away, but now it was Rex's turn to get him to stop.
"Wait! You can come with me, Dogma. You can help me find more of us," Rex told him.
Dogma slowly glanced over his shoulder.
Rex added, "You aren't alone in this."
Dogma offered a sad smile and said, "I was alone the moment Tup died in a cold medbay, captain."
Rex's heart stopped. Dogma's eyes were so empty and lifeless.
Dogma shuddered. "I can't go anywhere else. I'll... I'll stay here. If you need me, you'll know where to find me.”
Rex slowly nodded and hesitantly let him go. He watched Dogma walkout of the alleyway and disappear into the crowd.
Rex dipped his head and sighed.
I'm sorry Dogma.
He turned and walked back in the direction of the shipyard.
May we run into one another again.