revivalproject | [Audio]

[What the– on his end, Echo winces. It's not like a droid to just shriek out of the blue like that...]

–BeeDee? What's wrong?

[That first shriek had been pure electronic noise. and it hasn't completely cleared up. BD-1 however sounds relieved at the familiar voice, delivering a staccato of beeps as he tries to explain the situation. ]

[Why is there no way to adjust the signal on this thing? Upon hearing the clarity of the droid's subsequent beeping, it just confirms BeeDee is in a panic. Problem is, Echo doesn't fully understand Binary.

He does, however, feel a ball of worry forming in the pit of his stomach while remaining calm throughout the exchange.]

Whoa, okay BeeDee, slow down– ah, I can't– [He then mutters under a breath] Knew I should've paid more attention to Binary...

[Skipping ahead to the important part. He speaks up again.]

Where's Cal? Where are you?

[A trill in confirmation, followed by concerned hooting. There's the sound of tapping as the droid tries to make use of the screen controls but to no avail. Letting out a frustrated row of beeps, BD-1 tries a different tactic.

The video comes up, nothing but a dark overhead that one might not be sure it's even working until the droid's head appears. For some reason he looks to be glowing, not just his optical lens but his metal housing.

Hopping back, the bright flare of a holoprojection comes up, a map of the city and a trail winding from its outskirts.]

[The last thing Echo needs in the middle of what probably is an emergency is the communication device malfunctioning on them. Fortunately, that's not the case: he now sees the little droid hopping and the projection of the map.]

Position confirmed. [Gear is being grabbed as he hastily replies.] Hold tight, mate. I'll be there as soon as possible.

[The projection moves slightly as BD-1 beeps an affirmative. He decides to hold where he is, map and all in case the clone needs reference. Not like he'll be running out of a charge any time soon.]

[He'll have to figure out how to plug in the coordinates later. BeeDee's holomap assistance isn't too hard to read, at least, and once he's smacked his helmet on he's out, hitting the ground running.

Echo doesn't know how long it will take to get to the outskirts. Time is of the essence and he'd rather not wait to see if the situation gets any worse.

He checks in.]

How're we doing, BeeDee?

[BD-1 would have directly provided coordinates but he has no way to patch into this communicator. He perks at Echo's voice when the ARC Trooper speaks up again, hooting lowly. The holo shifts again as the droid moves, tipping the communicator with his foot. The image is blurry but in the faint holo-light Echo might be able to make out the padawan's form, collapsed on the cavern floor.]

[Through the vocabulator of Echo's helmet, a modulated swear becomes lost in translation. More sound than word at that point.]

Continue monitoring him, I'll be there as fast as I can!

[A prone body on the ground is a scene he's seen many times before. Although set in a different context, it's enough to push him to run a little faster.]

[The communicator tips back to the view of the holoprojected map again as BD-1 pulls back his foot, letting out a worried warble in compliance.]

[The ARC Trooper has been pretty good at following the map, even if things got a little blurry because he and BeeDee both checked on Cal a few moments ago. It's trying to comfort a small droid that's new to him, but he tries some encouragement.]

Don't worry, you got this. He'll be all right.

[Right?

Run run run. Echo dashes the 'what ifs' that cross his mind, gripping his blaster tighter and channeling his energy into locating the cavern.]

[The little droid certainly hopes so! He's hunkered down beside the padawan. As far as he can tell, Cal's still breathing. Definitely a good sign, although he's not sure it's at a healthy rate. BD-1 isn't sure he likes being in here this long, and it certainly hasn't proven good for his friend. His calls have gone without response, so he can only beep at Echo hoping the clone can find them soon.]

[Getting to where he needs to be comes about eventually – not within the time frame Echo sets for himself, but it's better than getting there hours later. The run turned into sprints in between the lengthier parts of the journey, and in the rush the ARC Trooper barely notices the change in terrain until his feet sink into the sand.

The small delay forces him to switch gears, jogging and weaving around sticks and the few stray green crustaceans crawling about the beach. It's hard to miss the rock formations on the coastline, and in looking down at BeeDee's holomap again, he sees he's close.]

BeeDee? Do you copy? [Echo sounds a little winded, but he keeps going, careful to watch his step once he hits sea-slick stone.] I don't know if you can see me, but I'm almost at your position. Any changes to Cal's condition?

[Little antennae perking, the holomap swings away from view as the droid glances elsewhere. He whistles brightly, picking up Echo's signal somehow. Quickly he returns his focus to over the communicator, and Echo can see his own position added in correlation with their own.

A negative is sounded at the latter question however, a forlorn hoot that dips down like a slide-whistle.]

[The nuances in BeeDee's whistles and hoots clue Echo in without knowing what he's actually saying, the latter half of those noises still sinking in as he makes his way over.

He's quickly distracted by his communicator brightening up, looking down at it for less than a second.]

...Alright, that's weird. But I think I'm here–

[For some reason, he feels like something's crackling (?) the more he moves in. His helmet swivels as he gets to where the droid and prone Scrapper are, hurrying to kneel down next to them. His blaster is set aside, the rise of static buildup ignored as he looks at the droid.]

Got here as soon as I could. Thanks for the map, BeeDee. [BeeDee's getting a little pat on the head before he tries to turn Cal onto his side, gently shaking his shoulder as he leans over him.] Cal? Cal, wake up. Can you hear me?

[The droid sounds relieved as he sees the clone trooper. The holomap vanishes as he rises, trotting back a bit to give the man space. Don't mind that he's still glowing. He tilts his head and gives a curious whistle as he looks up at Echo.

The padawan is still tense where he lies, half curled in a fetal position as he's rolled onto his side. His breathing is quick, his jaw set in a faint grimace. He twitches at someone else's touch, his eyes fluttering open as he gasps, but he seems to look right past Echo, his gaze unfocused.]

Beady? What is happening. Where are you?

[Man is he happy he's learned droid from his droid friends.]

[So it wasn't just the communicator's visuals making everything look brighter than they're supposed to be. Unless it's Echo's HUD making everything look worse? He can puzzle over this later – Cal's current state doesn't look good.]

He's awake? Disoriented. [Not an exact reassurance, but he glances down at BeeDee so that they're both on the same page. Except when he does that, a few audible snaps and zaps of static spark over his armor plates. He jerks an arm back sharply, his body automatically flinching in response.] –Tch! Okay. I don't like that, either. We should get out of here.

[And he begins to try getting Cal off of the ground. All the while this is going on, Echo is unaware of what the former Padawan is going through.

"We have to follow orders– !"

Echo's voice and perspective, one full of frustration among a grid of chaos, is cut short by a laser to the chest. The impact of the shot carries over, failure looming over his squad because of their disunity. It's shown through his fists, the fists of another clone, the sudden brawl blow for blow before they're interrupted; through the visible disgust of the Siniteen bounty hunter as barbed words dress the clones down, holding nothing back.

The Citadel

Immediate disqualification because of leaving a brother behind on the battlefield should have been the end of any hope in becoming a clone trooper. The Togrutan Jedi General gives them another chance to complete their test. It isn't like before; they're tight-knit, cooperative, but faced with another setback amid laser fire. Yet they find another way, climbing the guns to reach their goal.

He glows with pride alongside his brothers, all of them ready to see what lies before them.

- - -

Two men down. No, three – their sentry is gone, and these droids are different from the ones they've shot at during their training simulations.

"Get a message to the fleet! We have to warn– "

Sergeant, down. Their squadron is shrinking, opposing blaster fire striking them down where they stand. Echo retreats with the remaining three troopers back toward the main control room, briefly watching his brother Cutup pull out the wiring for the door panel.

He moves to yank out the grate placed over an entrance to a maintenance tunnel. "This way! Hurry!"

The second he turns to get inside, everything goes black.]

[The droid spews a frantically beeped explanation of what he thinks happened, how he and Cal wandered into the caverns by the beach, how things just started getting strange and that BD-1 thinks it's something to do with the Force but it's left Cal unresponsive and he can't snap him out of it.]

[BD-1 jumps a bit at the spark, beeping his agreement to get out of there. Hooting, he starts scampering around the two as Echo tries to get Cal to his feet.

At least the padawan isn't completely unconscious, and although he relies heavily on someone to lean on, he seems to be trying to get his feet under him.

The memories he sees are fresher, clearer. Vaguely in his mind he's aware enough to recognize. It isn't often he's seen the clones without their helmets, but even with the same face it's clear how different they are from each other. They've struggled too, to get to where they are.

He feels the disappointment, the determination. He's fighting hard to prove himself, alongside his brothers. The anguish of losing them, forcing panic and fear down in order to make sure no one else meets the same fate- but above all, the mission...]

[Shit, that's bad.]

The caverns can be complicated, they have lots of twists and side paths. Can you work up your best set of directions so I can get there?

[BD-1 can do better than that. He's an exploration droid, after all! With a whistle of compliance, the droid...pauses, because he realizes he can't show anything on this setting and the tablet has no port large enough for him to interface with. With something of a disgruntled beep he tries to tap at the screen. Bot feets not made for tablet!!]

[Damn, that's a point. But it's something.]

I'll get to the caverns in a minute. If you know your way out, come out to find me. We'll return.

I got you. [It's said through grit teeth, another shock running down his leg as he supports Cal. After making sure his blaster isn't in the way, he gives the young man a sidelong glance.] Sorry if it's uncomfortable.

[Looking down at BeeDee, he shakes his head and starts to walk.] Something's not right about this place...

[Still too new. Still too inexperienced.

Four clone troopers become three in an instant. Cutup is gone and a giant eel slithers deeper into the moon's pocked surface, leaving behind a numbness where shock is normally present.

Hope is faint, instantly restored and renewed when the inspection team finds them. His once-shiny armor now holds that familiar blue-stained hand print and a strange sense of pride. Old plans turn into new ones when the threat of invasion is eminent, adrenaline pumping through his veins once they set things into motion.

They all could have made it out alive if the detonator worked.

Hevy is lost in the resulting explosion, emotions running high until they burn out like the scraps of the moon base falling past his visor.

The silence that follows is stifling.

"...Hevy always did hate that place."]

Cal? You still with us?

[He sounds hesitant at that, not too keen about leaving Cal, but he beeps acknowledgement. Okay. He'll meet you outside, Tommy.]

[Audio]

[Audio]

[Audio]

[Audio]

[Audio]

[Audio]

[Video]

[Video/Action]

[Video/Action]

[Video/Action]

[Video/Action]

[Video/Action]

[Video/Action]

[Action]

no subject

no subject

no subject

[Audio]

no subject

[Audio]

no subject

Re: [Audio]

[Audio]

Re: [Audio]

no subject

[Audio]