I Need A Print Of This So Bad!

I need a print of this so bad!

The Bad Batch wishes you a happy Halloween!

Sunset

Summary: Hunter meets up with a liberator of ancient wonders. Hunter POV.

Word Count: 2151

Hunter sat at a weather worn table on the edge of Pabu’s hilltop market, listening to the idle chatter of passers by. The sun had started to set, a crimson slash across the horizon. Dusk was settling in. The lights of the island had illuminated a few minutes ago, giving the tropical paradise a warm, comforting glow.

“What do we have here?” a cool view came from behind.

“I figured you’d show up eventually,” Hunter said with gruff voice and a smile. Phee Genoa, liberator of ancient wonders and long-time friend looked down at him with a smirk on her face. She patted his shoulder fondly and she pulled a neighboring chair out with unpleasant scraping noise.

Phee looked ever the pirate, vibroblade strapped to her thigh, blaster at her side. Her hair, longer now, stretched down her back in box braids, colorful charms throughout making her look like one of the treasures she often hunted. A golden, oblong necklace hung around her neck. Hunter recognized the gift Omega had given her for her birthday. Inside was a drawing of Tech or ‘Brown Eyes’ as she so affectionately called him.

Hunter thought it was strange that out of all the people in the galaxy, she had turned out to be one of his most trusted friends. She was one of the few people he could confide in, sometimes more so than his own family.

She rocked back on her chair, so the front two legs were in the air and teetered there while a waitress brought her a drink. She raised it in salute and Hunter clinked her mug with his own before taking a deep swig of the bitter, amber liquid.

“So, what have I missed?” she asked.

Hunter shrugged, “Not much. Things don’t tend to change much these days,” he added.

Phee took notice, lowering her chair and resting her chin on her palm. “Is that a problem?” she asked, concern in her voice.

He shook his head and took another sip. “No, of course not,”

She looked at him, brown furrowed, “come on ‘Dark and Broody’, spill”

A shadow fell over Hunter’s face as she used the nickname Cid had given him. Cid, who betrayed them to the empire and led to Omega being captured.

“Sorry,” she said quickly. Realizing her mistake. “Old habit…I didn’t mean…”

“I know,” Hunter said with a wave of his hand. He didn’t fault Phee, but the name brought up memories he would rather push to the back of his consciousness and forget about. Curiosity, however, got the best of him. “Have you heard from her lately?” she asked, not looking Phee in the eyes.

“I cut contact a long time ago, but I hear things… She disappeared a couple of months before you all escaped Tantis. No one’s heard of her since.” She eyed Hunter and he stared at his mug, swirling the amber liquid around so it formed a whirlpool in the middle.  “I wondered…I mean, no one would blame you…if you… paid her a visit.”

Hunter looked into her deep brown eyes and smirked. “Believe me, we did think about it,” he said, running his hand through his hair. “Once Echo left, Wrecker and I discussed it. Thought maybe she was a good place to start. She’d contacted the Imps, maybe she had a way of getting hold of them again. We could track them somehow…”

Phee raised her eyebrows, wordlessly asking him to go on.

Hunter didn’t like talking about that time. He signed but continued, looking anywhere but directly at Phee. “Look, I wasn’t in a good place. We decided against it. Wrecker, pulled me back from the brink on that one.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, her drink sitting forgotten just out of reach of her fingertips. Phee had never been one to turn down juicy gossip.

Hunter wasn’t proud of how he’d handled the time after Tech’s death and Omega’s capture. Sometimes he thought he could have handled one or the other, but both at the same time set him on a path that he didn’t expect to come back from. He was reckless, dangerous and at times wild in his desperation.

“If we had gone back, it wouldn’t have been about getting intel. It wouldn’t have been about tracking anything. It would have been revenge, pure and simple. She would have been dead before Wrecker followed through the doorway. Besides, Ord Mantell was occupied by the empire by then. Tactically it was a no-win scenario. It wasn’t worth the risk.”

“Well then,” Phee said, seemingly relieved, “sounds like someone else took care of the problem for you.  Ketch and Bolo run the parlor now, it’s basically an imperial hangout. So, what’s got you sitting here alone? shouldn’t Wrecker be cooking up his latest masterpiece?”

“He is. I decided to take a walk. I noticed you heading to the Archium. Figured you’d stumble in here eventually.”

“And what is it I can do for you?” she asked, amused.

“Tell me about your adventures. What have you been up to?”

Phee grinned and sat forward in her chair; her arms gesticulated wildly as she regaled him with the tale of an artifact long thought lost to a tribe on Dathomir. She had managed to find it in the most elusive place, of course.

Hunter smiled as she talked and leaned back into his chair. He loved listening to Phee’s stories of the larger galaxy. Pabu was the dream, what he’d always wanted but after almost seven months with limited travel, his feet were starting to get itchy, and he had started to question if settling down was really for him after all.

He caught himself at this thought and buried it. “It’s all you ever wanted. Ever since you left Kamino,” he told himself again. He’d been having this conversation with himself a lot lately.

Phee seemed to notice she didn’t have his full attention and cleared her throat. “Am I boring you?” she asked pointedly with an amused tone.

“No, I’m sorry. I’m just…distracted,” Hunter could tell she wasn’t buying it. And he let out another deep sigh. “I’m feeling a little…restless. Without the Marauder we can’t just fly off at a moment’s notice and without that I’m feeling a little…trapped.”

She looked at him, surprised. “Pabu isn’t living up to your expectations?”

“No, Phee. It’s perfect. Omega’s in school and making friends, Wrecker’s got a job and a purpose, Crosshair is healing and painting. He’s selling some of art at the market on the weekend.” He added, “but I’m just here. I suppose my skills aren’t immediately transferable.”

“Hunter, you’re a smart guy. I’m sure you could do a lot of things,” She was always so ridiculously positive, it’s one of the things Hunter liked most about her. She was always able to put a spin on things.

“Rex contacted me the other day. Wanted help with a mission. I’d be away for a while.”

“Ahh...” Phee said, finally understanding. “What did the team say?”

Hunter looked sheepish, “I didn’t tell them.” He said, hurrying to follow up when he knew she was about to interject. “it’s not a mission for all of us. He just wants me.”

“Sounds like the perfect solution to your problem. Do the mission, get rid of the itchy feet. Everyone will be here when you get back” she said, relaxing in her chair again and downing the last of her ale.

The sun had fully set by now. The bright, pearlescent lights of Pabu cast shadows on the tiled floor. The smell of cooking meat drifted over from the other side of the market. Hunter didn’t like the idea of leaving anyone behind, even if that’s not what he was doing. Omega had been taken too many times. Crosshair was still recovering. And what if they weren’t here when he got back? That fear plagued him. He had been so close to losing all of them, losing everything. He didn’t think he could do that again.

Phee was watching him intently in a way that made him self-conscious. “What would Tech tell you to do?” she asked at last. She didn’t mention him often, at least not by name. She alluded to him, and sometimes when the light was dim, he caught her looking at Crosshair as though she had seen a ghost.

“Tech never backed down from a fight. He’d tell me to go. I’m sure he’d say that they would be fine without me,”

“Clever guy, that Brown Eyes,” she said softly. Her eyes looked suddenly sad, and she turned away from Hutner to brush her cheek.

“Yeah. He was.” Hunter said, he touched her shoulder briefly and gave it a squeeze. She nodded somberly and was back to her vivacious self.

“So, what are you going to do?”

****************************************************

Hunter stood at the base of the weeping maya tree, as the ship descended. His armor felt alarmingly heavy and cumbersome, and he felt himself pulling and the neck of his blacks. His vibroknife was strapped to his forearm, blaster in its holster and bandana tied tightly to his forehead. It felt familiar and strange at the same time.

He stood back and turned his head as the landing shuttle whipped dust and sand over him. Within a few seconds of landing, Echo appeared at the ramp, waving his scomp and he made his way to his former teammate.

They grasped forearms in greeting and smiled. “This all you’re taking?” he asked, indicating the small bag Hunter had at his feet.

“it’s a stealth mission, right? Figured traveling light would make the most sense.”

Echo nodded and looked over his shoulder, “where is everyone?”

Hunter smiled. He knew Echo wanted to see Omega and his brothers. “We said goodbye this morning. Wrecker is working, Omega has school, and Crosshair is in one of his moods.”

Echo raised an eyebrow, and a smile crossed his lips, “Oh?”

“Let’s just say he didn’t appreciate not getting an invitation to the party,”

Echo smiled again, “got it. Well in that case we can get moving. I found you a helmet. It’s not modified like your old one but it’s phase 2 armor, so at least it’s familiar. Needs a paint job though.”

Hunter gave Echo his thanks as they turned towards the ship. His helmet, and Wrecker and Crosshair’s had been lost on Tantis. They had more pressing matters when escaping than to go looking for them. Still, a huge part of his identity was caught up in that helmet and working a new mission without it made him feel a little unsure.”

Just as he boarded the ramp, he heard the unmistakable, hurried footfalls of Omega.

“Hunter,” she called as Batcher bounded behind her. She ran up the ramp to meet him and threw her arms around his neck. “don’t be too long,” she said into his shoulder, and she hugged him tighter. “Be sure to check in,”

Hunter held her for a few more seconds before setting her on the ramp with a thunk. She grinned and gave Echo a hug as well, a smile on her lips but tears in her eyes.

“It’s a stealth mission, Omega. I won’t always be able to check in.” he said, kneeling down to her height and resting his hand on her shoulder, “But Echo will send you updates. I’m going to miss you, Kid,”

Wrecker, Phee and Crosshair all made their way over to the ship from wherever they had been congregating. Hunter had assumed this morning’s goodbye wasn’t the last of it.

“Take care of yourself, Hunta,” Wrecker said, enveloping him in a bone crushing hug. He clapped him on the back with his shovel like hand and stepped back so his brother could come forward.

Crosshair was grim faced and scowling. Toothpick in his mouth, he held his augmented right hand in his left and rolled them over each other.

“I still think it’s a mistake to not take backup,” he hissed, eyes down. “But If you must go, be careful,”

“I will crosshair. Rex’ll be with me. I won’t be without backup,”

Crosshair nodded but he knew what he meant. He wanted to be his backup. Crosshair didn’t trust anyone else, even Rex, to do it.

Hunter tapped him on his shoulder and nodded. “I’ll be fine,” He smiled at Phee who had her arm around Omega’s shoulder.

“I think Brown Eyes would agree with your decision,” she said.

Omega looked up at Phee confused but Hunter nodded and smiled. “Keep an eye on them for me, Phee.”

“Hunta, if you need us. Call,” Wrecker said.

Hunter smiled. They had grown so accustomed to being together. He understood they would all have an adjustment to make. He gave Omega one last hug, Scratched Batcher under the chin and turned to follow Echo aboard. He looked up at the peaceful, blue, Pabu sky. They’d be fine for a little while. And when he came back, maybe he’d be fine too.

Sunrise

@oliviaeatworld had a post about Hunter being able to sense ghosts and I couldn't get it out of my head, so I wrote a short story about it.

Summary: Hunter discovers her can sense ghosts.

Word count: 2151

                Hunter finally got up after he had been awake for over an hour. He padded over to the small kitchen to prepare the cup of caf he needed to start the day. His routine didn’t change much these days. He enjoyed the calm and quiet of the morning while the others slept. He could hear Wrecker’s soft snoring coming from behind his door. Batcher’s collar jingled as she rolled over in her bed.

It had been five months since Tantis, since they had stopped running. They were safe at last. Something Hunter had struggled to believe possible at times.

                Living in a home was something Hunter had never known he wanted. The domesticity of stone and wood over Kamino’s sterile white or industrial grey was a dichotomy he’d never imagined he’d experience. Shep had been kind enough to give them a vacant home and they had slowly set to work, making it their own.

                The home was like most of the others on Pabu with its white stone exterior and curved doorframes and rooms. It was cozy but spacious enough to fit them all comfortably. They would spend their evenings cooking meals in the modest kitchen with Wrecker taking point as head chef. He had been so enamored with Shep’s food he had asked for lessons on how to prepare it himself.

                One of the larger bedrooms was divided into two so they all had their own private space. The rooms all connected to the central common space so they were never too far away from each other if someone needed something, or had a nightmare.

Omega had helped them pick out colors for the walls of their respective bedrooms. She thrived on the idea of them putting down roots, making things their own.  Hunter was amazed at her ability to bounce back from her experience on Tantis. She would never be that same small, innocent girl they had taken off Kamino and Hunter had to wrestle with that often. She had to become a soldier out of necessity, but now, seeing her curled up on the couch with a book or laughing with Liana, he hoped she was someone who could settle in the peace of this place. It was all he ever wanted for her.

The left bedroom belonged to Crosshair. He kept his room pretty sparse but did let Omega choose a calming, pale green for the walls. His bed was lofted which gave him the space below for his art. He had taken to painting in the last few months, initially as therapy for his augmented hand but Hunter knew it had helped heal his mind just as much. Canvases were propped against the walls and stacked next to the easel. Batcher’s bed was tucked in the corner. She alternated between his and Omega’s room.

Wrecker was next to Crosshair and had chosen a deep maroon. The color was reminiscent of their old armor. Hunter wasn’t sure if that was deliberate or not but it felt like a warm hug whenever you walked inside, if you didn’t trip over something. Posters hung crooked on the walls. They reminded Hunter of the ones they had had on the marauder. Wrecker had chosen those too now that he came to think about it.

                Omega’s room was in between Wrecker and Hunters, she had chosen a bright, golden color that seemed to sparkle in the morning sun. Hunter couldn’t help but think how perfect it was for a girl who shined light wherever she went. She had Lula propped up on a pillow on her bed. Tech’s goggles were on her nightstand, silently watching over her.

                Hunter’s room was bare like Crosshairs’. The walls were still the original, pale white. Omega asked him weekly if he had decided on a color yet, but he was struggling to commit to anything. It’s almost like there was too much choice. He still felt a little at sea. He loved their life on Pabu but almost felt that it was too good to be true. He was waiting for whatever was around the corner.

                The Pabu sunrise was glowing gold and scarlet as Hunter made his way out onto the stone patio. He was still getting used to the feel of cold rock on his feet. He missed the clang of his boots on the floor of the Marauder, but that time had passed.

He let out a sign as he sat on a wooden bench on the patio, his caf cupped in his hands as he gazed out over the harbor. Most of the boats were already out, looking for today’s catch. He closed his eyes to let his senses take over. He heard moon-yos chattering at the weeping maya tree on Pabu’s crest. The air tasted like salt and honey from the fruit trees littered around the island. He could even hear the murmuring of those at the docks and market. But there was something else.

                Hunter sat up taller in his seat and opened his eyes. It wasn’t anything alarming, but it was something his senses couldn’t quite touch, something he couldn’t quite explain. He closed his eyes again, brow furrowed on concentration as he tried to decern the feeling. It was almost like it was sending magnetic frequencies, but it wasn’t tangible, he couldn’t feel it, he just sensed it.

                His mind quickly went to the Empire. He opened his eyes and searched the sky. Was it a weapon? a ship? A threat? But all he saw was the blue Pabu sky, dotted with high clouds that drifted slowly over the sea.

                Hunter shook his head to try and push the feeling away. He was probably just imagining it.

                “Do not doubt your intuition” a voice said in his head. It sounded like Tech. It was something his brother had told him often, especially as cadets when he was trying to figure out how his enhancements worked and what good they were.

                There was a time when Hunter didn’t know what it meant to smell a droids or taste blood in the air or feel electromagnetic frequencies, when his head felt like it was vibrating on the inside but didn’t know why. Tech had been the one to take an interest, to talk him through it and help him figure out what it meant.

                 They would often camp on the floor of their bunk room, covers contorted into a sensory deprivation room. Hunter would sit inside, blindfolded while Tech remained outside and would prompt him. “What do you smell now? What can you sense? How close am I?” Hunter sometimes felt like one of Tech’s science experiments, but when it started working, when he was able to focus and recall and tap into his sense on command, it became an obsession. It became impossible not to want to learn more.

                He sighed as he shook his head again. There should be a room for Tech here, he thought sadly. No matter how much time had passed, there wasn’t a moment when Hunter didn’t turn around and expect to see his brother’s goggles staring back at him, data pad in hand, alert and ready.

                Hunter suddenly jerked his body away, involuntarily from the space next to him on the bench. In an instant it had felt like someone, or something was there. He stood up and looked at the space. He knew someone was there, he just couldn’t see them.

                He dropped his caf and let the mug break against the tile while simultaneously grabbing for his virboknife. He stood, hunched in attack position, staring at a vacant space. The birds still chirped; the salt air fell into his lungs as his rapid breathing took it in. There was nothing there.

                “Trust your senses,” The voice said again. It was tiney and faint, like it was coming ever so lightly through a speaker on the other side of the planet.

                “Tech?” Hunter said aloud, feeling stupid as soon as he did.

                “Hunter, I’ve been trying to reach you for a while. Are your senses dulling with age?”

                I’m not that old, Hunter thought as he looked across Pabu to make sure he wasn’t losing his grip on reality. Islanders were milling around, chatting as they walked to get groceries or took a pet for a walk along the winding paths.

                He turned his attention back to the empty space that somehow wasn’t empty and sat down.

                “Tech? is that you? How can I… how can you?... what…”

                “I have always been with you, Hunter. All of you” the voice said. Hunter wasn’t ready to believe yet, how could this be? Tech was dead, he’d heard him pull the trigger, Wrecker had seen him fall. He was gone. Maybe Hunter had finally let the stress of the last few years get to him.

                “I don’t know what you are but you’re not him,” Hunter said quietly, sorrowfully.

                “When we were in the rail car you didn’t speak over the comm when I mentioned Plan 99 because you knew it was the only way. You would never have asked me to do it. Would have done anything to save me, but you knew it was the only way to save you all. And so, you were silent. And that haunts you every second of every day.”

                “How can you… How is this possible?”

                “My guess is that you can sense things that until now, we couldn’t quite comprehend, Including the dead.”

“if that was the case, why didn’t that happen on every battlefield we every stepped foot on,” he couldn’t believe he was having conversation with a bodiless voice, not even a voice, a sense. He didn’t hear the words out loud; the conversation was happening in his head. He rubbed his hands over his face and eyes, but the conversation did not end.

                “It is just a hypothesis, but I imagine it involves a connection, a kinship. We lived together all our lives. You can sense me in death just like you could sense me in life.”

                Hunter signed. It sounded like Tech. He’d seen enough to know the galaxy was vast, and he knew very little about most of it. If Jedi could use the force to move objects, who’s to say he can’t sense the dead.

                “How are you, Tech?” he said out loud, his voice soft.

                “I am fine. You do not have to worry, Hunter. I do not feel any pain and I did not feel anything when I fell...It… It was not your fault; it was my choice. It was a choice I would make again, as I know you would have made it in my place if given the opportunity.

                “It should have been me,” Hunter hung his head and brushed as a tear off his tattooed cheek.

                “You are exactly where you are needed,” Tech replied

                “We miss you. Omega misses you a lot”

                “I know.” Tech said and the voice sounded sad for the first time. “I have enjoyed watching her grow up, even if I cannot be there in person. She is quite the pilot.”

                Hunter smiled, “yes, she is. She’s a remarkable kid.”

                “A great deal of that is down to you, Wrecker and Crosshair,”

                “And you,” Hunter added, looking at the vacant space on the bench. If he closed his eyes he could see Tech sitting there, a blurry white outline, but he was there. He sensed Tech smile.

                “You used to say Omega deserves to settle down with a family. Did she get the life she deserves?”

                “Yeah, I think she did, Tech. I think we all did…except you,” Hunter said

                “I am always here, Hunter. I join you for caf most mornings.

                Hunter raised his eyebrow in surprise, but a smile spread to his lips. “I’ll be sure to say hello more often, then.”

                “I would like that. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must catch up with a certain pirate,”

                Hunter chuckled as he sensed Tech leave. The air returned to normal next to him, the voice disappeared and the volume of the world around him fell back into its normal rhythm.

                Hunter took a deep breath and knelt down to pick up the shattered pieces of his cup.

                “Hunter, we’re going down to the beach. Batcher needs a run. Do you want to come?” Omega strode out of the door, her blonde hair falling into her eyes, her blue lurka hound bounding after her and leaning against Hunter’s leg for a scratch.

                “Sure kid,” he said. He threw the broken cup away and put his arm around her shoulder as they started on the winding path to lower Pabu.

                “Hey, I think I’ve picked a color for my room,” he told her.         

“Really? Which one?” her eyes bright with surprise.

                “I’m thinking turquoise,”

                “That was Tech’s favorite color,” she said fondly.

                “Yeah kid. It was”

add this to the Star Wars poetry pile 🫠

I haven’t sat down to draw since I was a kid but had fun with this 😊

Adopt a Summer of Bad Batch 2024: Post Credits Prompt!! (Or all of them!!)

These are the prompts that were part of the vote, but didn’t quite make it into the top 26 for the event…and may I just say that there are some absolute GEMS on this list…

I hope you are as creatively inspired by these prompts as I am!

And if you use them for the Bad Batch fandom, perhaps add them to the Summer of Bad Batch 2024: Post Credits Collection on Ao3? 🥹👉👈 It would make me so happy to see them there!!

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The Summer of Bad Batch 2024: Post Credits Ao3 Collection

The 2024 prompt challenge might be over, but the prompts are still inspiring creativity! That's what this collection is for...collecting the

PROMPTS BELOW THE CUT!

And yes, all the prompts are in alphabetical order 😅

“And yet, you still questioned it.”

Beach Day

Birthday (Decanting Day)

Black Eye

Campfire

“Can we keep it?”

Camping

Capture the Flag

Castaways

Cleaning

Climbing

Clumsy

Cooking Disaster

Curiosity as an Act of Compassion

Denial

Domestic

“Don’t be suspicious.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

Fairytale

Fake it ‘til you make it…

Fireworks

Fishing

Forgotten Memory

Going to the Fair/Carnival

Growing Pains

“Get your own!”

Head Cold

Hike Gone Wrong

Hobbies

Home

Homecoming

Ice Cream

Island Life

“I am calm!”

“I hate you.”

“I have a plan.”

“I told you we were gonna get lost.”

“I wanted to see what would happen.”

“I will throw sand in your sheets.”

“I’m drinking a smoothie on this pristine beach. Unless someone is dying, leave me alone.”

“It can be our secret.”

“It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.”

“It’s for your own good.”

Late

Leaving a member behind on a planet by accident

Loyalty

No Lights

Not Alone

Not Enough Room

“Not on my watch.”

Only One Cup of Caf

Origins

“Omega, no.” // “Omega, yes!”

Pink

Pins and Needles

Poison

Prank War

“Please don’t do that…ah, they did it.”

Rainstorm

Recovery

Reflections

Repairs

Replacements

Rivalry

Runaways

Safety

Sailing

Sand Castles

Seashells

Secrets

Silent Treatment

Sketches

Snow Day

Stormy Nights

Stranded

Summer Day

Summer Nights on Pabu

Sunburn

Sunshine

Sunlight

Surprise Party

Survival

Target Practice

Thick as Thieves

“That was never what I meant.”

“That would have been information to share earlier.”

“That’s never going to happen. I won’t let it.”

“That’s why you’re my favorite.”

“There, I fixed it…well, mostly…”

“This is what we fought for.”

Upkeep

Wanted Poster

What if…

“What did I say about lets?”

“Why is it always me who does the dirty work?”

“You always say that.”

“You did what?”

“You’re drinking out of my favorite cup.”