"Commander, we have to go."

If the girl had heard him he couldn't tell; Ahsoka didn't move one inch, her eyes fixed on their comrades' graves. The cold wind blew relentlessly against them, smoke and dust mingling in the air, and Rex moved closer.

"Commander…"

His chest tightened at the sight of her. The girl's eyes were downcast and a stream of tears ran down her cheeks silently, removing dirt and soot in their path. Suddenly, she seemed so young; no longer the fierce padawan of the Jedi Anakin Skywalker, no longer a Commander of the Republic. Just a girl who was barely a woman, and had seen just too much death and suffering in her short years.

Her lightsaber lied neglected on the ground and he frowned at the meaning of this act.

Not a Jedi. Never a Jedi.

And where does that leave me? he thought, bitterly. His brothers were dead and buried, right in front of him, and a dark future awaited for the rest that had followed General Skywalker to Coruscant…

He clenched his jaw. Could he still call himself a Captain of the Republic? What army was he even fighting for now? And Ahsoka, was she still his Commander now that their world had fallen apart?

No, that's out of the question, he thought stubbornly. There's one thing I know for certain and I'm making my choice now.

She was his Commander, period. That single aspect of his life wouldn't change, no matter what, and he drilled this idea in his mind, for whatever reassurance it could give him in their current path of uncertainty.

Still… right now…

"Ahsoka…" he spoke, as softly as he could. "We need to get moving…"

Hearing her name, the girl seemed to break from whatever trance she had fallen into and turned to look at him. "I'm sorry," she said, wiping her tears. "It's just that…" Clumsily, she tried to dry her face using her cape, but the tears wouldn't stop falling.

He pulled her closer, and as the girl hid her face in his armored chest, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, resting his chin on the top of her montrals.

"Don't try to be so strong, kid," he whispered, and let her sob quietly against his armor. "Believe me, in the end it doesn't work."

A single tear ran down his cheek, but Rex just let it flow. Suddenly, he felt tired, exhausted, broken, his head pulsing painfully where the inhibitor chip had been removed. It was all like a bad dream… the betrayal… the escape… that he had been so close to killing his dear friend still made him tremble, and the fierce determination of his brothers shook him to his core. We fought and died for the Republic, and in return we became nothing but mindless droids… They had spent the better part of three hours looking for survivors in the crash, dragging corpse after corpse until they had no choice but to admit that everyone aboard the Venator star destroyer had perished. It was heartbreaking; Ahsoka had been so hopeful that whoever they found, they would be able to somehow locate the chip and try to save them, and like a child he had allowed himself to actually believe that it was possible. He sighed. All they had found was death.

The girl had stopped shaking in his arms and he took one minute to assess their current status. They were covered in dirt, soot and blood, his armor scratched beyond recognition, her muscles bruised; a nasty wound on his left shoulder, laser burns on her back and right leg.

"Ahsoka," he whispered. "We really can't stay here much longer. We have to go."

"Where?" came her reply, and he tried to look her in the eye but her face was still buried in his chest. "Where are we going, Rex? There's nowhere to go…"

He put his hands on her shoulders, motioning her to finally look at him. "It's a big galaxy, kid. We will find a place."

Slowly, hesitantly, she raised one hand and cupped his face, her big blue eyes examining him intently. It was just a brief moment but it frightened him nevertheless, the memory of their connection through the Force returning to every cell of his body. He didn't like that feeling; it was too holy, too pure for a clone like him, and it made him feel immeasurably small, as if his very soul surrendered to the touch of this child blessed by the Force. She frowned, perhaps sensing his discomfort, and he realized that she was not crying anymore.

"Your face will give you away, Rex," she whispered. "They will know that you are a rogue clone and then never let you go."

She removed her hand and he trembled slightly at losing their connection. Her face was now a mask of determination.

"And they will hunt me down, as they will all the Jedi," she said solemnly, turning around and walking towards their Y-wing.

Where are we going, Rex?

Home, he would've liked to tell her, as he followed her silently.

But he didn't know where home was anymore.