Chapter 154: Betrayed The Republic
With Three-four helping him, Dageer got up. Even if he ignored his wounded eye, Dageer also had many different wounds. His entire body was sore, especially his legs, although he didn't know why. In fact he had engaged in so many battles that it could be because of a dozen different reasons. His arm was also hurting a lot. It had been showing signs of getting better, but in the last battle he was forced to use it a lot, so it got worse than before.
Whenever they passed by a clone, be it one clad in full armor, or wearing non-combat attire, they all saluted him. Apparently, stories about how Dageer helped two hundred clones escape from the slave-like work had already spread through The Sincerity.
They met Hell Squad on the way, wearing their armors and holding their helmets under their arms. Just like the others, they saluted Dageer, and then immediately started asking how he was. He smiled when he heard the concern on his brothers' voice.
"I'm all right. According to Three-four, I won't have even a scar left."
All the members of Hell Squad looked at the medic. They had seen Dageer's wound by themselves, and it didn't look like it was so unimportant. Three-four quickly shook his head.
"I said the scar probably won't be too big. It will probably cover only half of your face. But look by the bright side of things. You probably will scare away the droids before we even have a chance to fight. Hahahahaha!!!"
For a few seconds the laughter of Hell Squad resonated on the corridors of The Sincerity, until Dageer's face turned serious and he looked at Brain, his right-hand.
"How many escaped, Brain?"
"A hundred and eighty-two, sir. Captain Hilix died on the bridge."
"I saw it. He was a true soldier."
They stayed silent for a few moments. The aftermath of a battle was always like that. Laughing a little and grieving a lot. Unfortunately, most of the time they couldn't even grieve for their deads properly. Like now.
"Let's go to the command bridge. I need to talk to General Di."
"We already told him about Ventress, sir. You really should rest more. Your injuries aren't a joke."
"It's not about Ventress I am concerned, Metal."
While he was being tortured, Dageer had told Ventress at least something. He didn't know what or how much, but it was a fact that she had cracked him.
...
Like always, Hell Squad found Commander Keeli and General Di on the command bridge. Both of them almost never left it, and when Dageer was uninjured, he was by their side. General Di's padawan, the young Togruta named Ragout, was also there, looking bored.
Dageer could help but think about how different master and apprentice were. General Di was calm and methodical, while Ragout always jumped head-first into danger. The padawan was skilled, however, and had helped Dageer more than once. At the same time, the Jedi and padawan seemed to complement one another, and fought with such cohesion that was only possible because of the Force and their complete trust in each other.
"Dageer! You shouldn't be here! What about your eye?!"
The first to see him was Ragout. The padawan half walked, half jumped to Dageer, and talked with a mixture of excitement, worry, and concern.
"I am almost good, General Ragout. I need to talk to you all."
General Di walked forward, and put his hand on Dageer's uninjured shoulder.
"My padawan is right, Dageer. You shouldn't be here. Your wounds are many, and worrisome ones."
"I have urgent intel, general. My wounds can wait."
General Di raised an eyebrow. What urgent intel could Dageer had, considering he was unconscious for almost a week? Still, he could see that Dageer was troubled. The eyes of the sub-commander carried many worries, and a hint of... guilty?
Three-four and Brain helped Dageer get near the hologram table, and he used it to support himself. He saluted Commander Keeli, who gave him a friendly tap on the shoulder.
Hell Squad, Commander Keeli, General Di, Ragout and even Admiral Dao, who was a distance away, looked at Dageer expectantly. He took a deep breath, and for the first time in years, didn't look on the eyes of his brothers when he was talking.
"Generals, commander, I-I... I betrayed the Republic."
There was a short period of shocked silence after he uttered those words, then Commander Keeli and Ragout talked at the same time.
"What do you mean, Dageer?"
"What?! You can't! You would never do that!"
Dageer looked around, and saw that Hell Squad was looking at him stunned, but he saw only disbelief on their eyes, not rage. Then he looked at General Di. He looked so calm that Dageer almost thought he already knew about it.
"Dageer. Look at me. Tell me what happened."
Making immense efforts not to look away, Dageer looked at the Jedi. He was overridden by guilty, although he knew it wasn't his fault. Not entirely, at least.
"When we were captured, that woman, Ventress, she used the same things you use, general."
"The Force? Brain told me about her. She belongs to the oldest Jedi enemies. She is a Sith."
"Yeah. She got very upset when we called her a Jedi. After she killed Berro, with the red lightsaber, she used the Force to break into my mind. I wasn't able to resist the first time."
"The first time? There were more?"
"Yes. She tried to get more information from me after that, but I did as you told us. I... protected my mind with... walls. She wasn't able to enter them, so she resorted to physical torture. That I could deal with."
"What information did you give her?"
"I-I don't know... I can't remember. But she mentioned Iktotch, and the Iktotchi there. And if I told her that, I don't know what else I did."
Suddenly, General Di's serious face broke into a small, almost unnoticeable smile.
"Don't worry, Dageer. You did well by resisting her after the first time. Many would have lost their minds under this kind of mental bombardment. As for your so-called treason, well, you weren't in control of yourself."
"But! Sir! I might have given away everything!"
"If you did, she wouldn't try again. No. You told her something, that is true, but you didn't betray the Republic. You helped us guard a great deal if classified information that otherwise would have fallen into Separatist hands if they had captured any soldier but you."
Seeing that the general didn't blame him, and that none of the others did, the guilty that Dageer was feeling disappeared, replaced by trust and determination. He wouldn't betray the Republic ever again, willing or not.
"But we know for a fact that Ventress now knows about the Force-sensitive being on Iktotch. Admiral, our next stop will be there."
"Yes, general."
"As for you, Dageer, get back to your quarters. Your injuries are serious."
Dageer was about to turn around when he remembered something. He quickly whispered something to Cell, who left the command bridge.
"Actually, general, there is something else I need to tell you about."
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