On the landing platform of Rishi Station, Commander Cody and Captain Rex found themselves in conversation with what appeared to be a clone trooper whose behavior struck them as distinctly odd. The soldier seemed unusually determined to prevent the two senior officers from entering the base, which immediately raised their suspicions.
Rex's patience was wearing thin as he studied the trooper's posture and responses. Something about the clone's mannerisms felt wrong—too mechanical, too precise, lacking the subtle variations that characterized even the most disciplined troopers.
"Take us to see the base commander," Rex ordered sternly, his hand unconsciously moving closer to his sidearm.
"Roger, roger," the clone replied with suspicious enthusiasm.
Rex and Cody exchanged meaningful glances, both recognizing that something was fundamentally wrong with this situation. At that moment, a red signal flare streaked up from somewhere below the platform, arcing high into the alien sky.
"Droid attack signal?" Cody said, his voice tight with sudden understanding.
Without a moment's hesitation, Rex drew his DC-17 blaster pistol and fired a single shot into the suspicious trooper's head. The figure collapsed immediately, sparks flying from what should have been flesh and bone.
"Have you lost your mind?" Cody exclaimed, startled by Rex's sudden action. "What the hell was that about?"
"Relax, Commander," Rex said with grim satisfaction. He approached the fallen figure and removed its helmet, revealing the metallic skull and glowing optical sensors of a commando droid. "Just as I suspected—one of those new BX-series infiltration units."
"Which means that signal flare was fired by genuine clone survivors," Cody concluded, his tactical mind already working through the implications.
Suddenly, the sound of heavy blaster fire erupted from multiple positions around the platform.
"Ambush!" Rex shouted as both officers found themselves surrounded by additional commando droids that had been lying in wait.
Both men immediately dove for cover behind landing platform equipment, returning fire as quickly as they could acquire targets. Cody managed to score several direct hits on one of the droids, but to his dismay, the mechanical soldier simply stood back up and continued firing.
"They're heavily armored," Cody growled in frustration. "Standard blaster fire isn't penetrating their combat plating."
Meanwhile, below the platform, the four surviving clone troopers were watching the firefight with growing desperation.
"We have to get up there and help them," Echo said urgently.
"How?" Fives replied with obvious frustration. "We can't fly, and there's no way to reach the platform from here!"
Suddenly, all four clones turned to look at War Machine, the implications of his aerial capabilities becoming obvious.
"Colonel Rhodes," Fives began quickly, "I know this is asking a lot, but—"
His words were cut off by a massive explosion as Rex and Cody's LAAT gunship was destroyed by concentrated droid fire, sending debris raining down from the platform above.
"No!" Echo shouted in dismay.
"Damn it!" Heavy cursed. "Now what are we supposed to do?"
"Don't panic yet," War Machine said, pointing upward as two figures became visible rappelling down from the station platform.
The clone survivors immediately began moving toward the landing zone, and War Machine found himself following them. His tactical training told him that in hostile territory, staying with organized military personnel was usually the best option, even when those personnel belonged to an army he had never heard of.
Rex and Cody hit the ground hard, rolling to absorb the impact of their emergency descent.
"Well, our transport is destroyed," Rex said with dark humor as he surveyed the burning wreckage above them. "This is almost as bad as that situation we had on Teth."
"At least on Teth we had General Skywalker with us," Cody reminded him. "Jedi tend to improve the odds considerably."
Both officers immediately raised their weapons as they spotted four figures approaching their position.
"Hands where we can see them and remove your helmets," Rex commanded, his rifle trained on the approaching group. "Now!"
"Uh, sir?" Cutup said, clearly confused by the hostile reception.
"Do it now!" Rex shouted, knowing that they couldn't take any chances after encountering the infiltration droids.
The four clones immediately complied, removing their helmets to reveal faces that Rex and Cody recognized as genuine troopers. Both officers began to relax until they noticed the metallic figure that had emerged behind the clone survivors.
"Officers, don't shoot!" Fives said quickly. "He's been helping us. He saved our lives."
"Helping how?" Rex asked skeptically.
"Colonel Rhodes rescued us from one of those giant creatures," Cutup explained. "Without his intervention, we'd all be dead."
War Machine was startled by the sudden appearance of weapons pointed in his direction and immediately activated his own targeting systems, his armor's weapons tracking the two clone officers.
A roar from behind him made everyone spin around as another massive eel-like creature burst from cover, its jaws wide open and aimed directly at the group. Rex reacted with lightning speed, firing a precise shot into the creature's eye and dropping it instantly.
War Machine immediately powered down his weapons, recognizing that these soldiers were clearly experienced and professional.
Captain Rex approached the dead creature and examined it briefly before removing his helmet to reveal a face marked by countless battles.
"I'm Captain Rex," he said to the assembled group.
The officer in yellow-striped armor also removed his helmet. "Commander Cody, 212th Attack Battalion."
"CT-27-5555, sir," Fives replied formally.
"We call him Fives," Heavy explained. "I'm Heavy, this is Echo, and this is Cutup."
Rex turned his attention to the silent figure in advanced armor. "And you are?"
"Colonel James Rhodes," War Machine replied. "Who are you people? Are you all related somehow? Because you look remarkably similar."
"That's... understandable," Rex said with a slight smile before his expression grew serious. "You said you're a colonel?"
"Colonel, United States Air Force," Rhodey replied with evident pride. "Member of the Avengers." His voice dropped as the reality of his situation hit him again. "Though I suppose none of that matters much now."
Rex and Cody's eyes widened in shock, and they exchanged glances of amazement.
"The Avengers," Cody said slowly, as if testing the words. "You mean the Avengers?"
War Machine looked at their reactions with sudden hope surging through him. "Yeah. You know about the Avengers?"
"Captain America..." Rex began.
"Steve Rogers," Rhodey added eagerly. "You've met him? Have you encountered the others?"
"This is incredible, Commander," Rex said with obvious excitement. "We've found one of the missing Avengers."
"Captain Rex, you know this man?" Echo asked with confusion.
"The Avengers are a group of extraordinary individuals with capabilities that defy conventional understanding," Rex explained to his men. "They've already proven themselves as valuable allies to the Republic."
"So what's our tactical situation?" Cutup asked. "The station is still under droid control."
Heavy stepped forward and addressed Rex with military formality. "Sir, the four of us are combat-ready and prepared to retake the facility."
"There might be hope for you rookies yet," Rex said approvingly.
"What about Colonel Rhodes?" Fives asked. "We can't abandon him after he saved our lives."
"Absolutely not," Cutup agreed. "He risked himself to help us."
"Captain Rex, you and Commander Cody know about the Avengers?" War Machine asked intently.
Both clone officers nodded.
"How do you know about us?" Rhodey pressed, desperate for information about his missing teammates.
"We encountered three of your team members on Naboo," Cody explained quickly. "Captain Rogers, Lieutenant Wilson, and Scott Lang helped us repel a Separatist invasion, then returned with us to Coruscant. They explained their situation—that they come from a world with no interstellar travel capabilities and were somehow transported here."
War Machine processed this information for a moment, then nodded decisively. "Alright, I'm in."
The response surprised several of the clones, and Rex looked at him carefully. "Sir, are you certain? If you help us, you'll be getting involved in a war that isn't yours to fight."
"If Steve chose to get involved in this conflict, he had good reasons," Rhodey replied with absolute conviction. "Besides, helping you retake this station seems like the best way for me to reunite with my teammates."
"Outstanding," Rex said with genuine gratitude. "Welcome to the Grand Army of the Republic, Colonel Rhodes."
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