Kamino: Chapter 2

We walked down the low-lit hallways in the darkest hour of the night. Shaak Ti had thoroughly explained her suspicions to me and I tried to wrap my warped mind around the concept of this conspiracy. Shaak Ti believed the inhibitor chips were a danger to the integrity of the Republic, that there was something hidden deeper within them that could trigger all-out anarchy amongst the clones. I was now aware of the effects the inhibitor had on my brain, it kept my thoughts suppressed and took away any individuality that could occur in the cloning process. However Ti believed that the chips were faulty, and if not faulty, they were designed for darker purposes than the Kaminoans let on.

Ti looked cautious, an unusual sight for a Jedi, it gave me the feeling that I was following orders that didn't align with the view of the Jedi council. We passed two guard troopers as we neared an examination room, she watched them turn around the corner before opening the door and entering the room. An AZI medical droid was waiting at the side of the examination table, he tilted his mechanical head as we entered and Shaak Ti waited till the door had closed to start speaking to it.

"I am Jedi Master Shaak Ti, ordering you to take this clone's inhibitor chip out, safely," She said to the droid.

The droid looked over at me and whirled round to have a closer look at my head.

"This can be done. Please lay on the examination table and I'll put you to sleep," said the droid.

I could see that Ti was watching the droid closely as if she wasn't sure whether to trust the clunk of metal. I sat down on the examination bed and the droid floated over to its working station to pick something up.

"Hold still, this won't hurt a bit." said the droid before injecting some sleeping agent into my neck. It stung at first but then started to feel really numb, I laid back onto the bed and it reclined.

I watched Shaak Ti as she stared at the droid almost threateningly. The droid explained that I'd only be unconscious for a few minutes and I felt myself slip away into a brief but deep sleep.

I awoke with a nauseating feeling and a slight sting in the side of my head I feel where the AZI droid had done the procedure and take my first breaths as a free man. I could instantly feel the difference, I found myself thinking about what to do next instead of awaiting orders. I looked up to Shaak Ti, she was examining the results on a neuroscanner, she glanced over at me and we locked eye contact for a moment, exchanging a bundle of emotions in that one glance; worry, excitement, curiosity and many more. Ti suddenly felt like more of a friend than a leader, I felt almost as if I were side-by-side with her in rank, though part of me knew I shouldn't tell her that.

"May I have the inhibitor chip?" asked Shaak Ti to the droid.

"Certainly," the droid answered before whirring off to his table and back again with the chip, ready for her to take.

Ti examined the chip in the light before putting it into one of her pockets and looking over at me.

"Let us return to my quarters," she said.

I saw no reason not to.

I followed Shaak Ti all the way back to her quarters and upon arrival, she shut and locked her doors. She came close to me and whispered as if someone else were in the room with us that wasn't supposed to hear.

"You are going to have to act normal, like all the other clones out there. You will then report back to me at the end of each day. Do you understand?" she whispered.

I nodded, once again following the Jedi's orders without the inclination from the chip. "What should I do if they... think I'm behaving oddly?" I asked.

"Just don't behave oddly. It's not long until your graduation, soon you won't have to worry".

Her calming whispers slowed my heartbeat. I knew what I had to do, I was her lab rat, under examination for the next term till I graduated. And when she was done with me... who knows, but for now, I'm in safe hands. She rested her hand on my shoulder and looked deep into my eyes.

"May the force be with you Leaper," she said with a slight smile.

"And with you," I responded.

We stood there for an awkward moment, lingering in the possible importance of what we're about to do, what we could uncover. I broke it off by blinking and looking away before it got awkward, that was an emotion hadn't felt yet, embarrassment, it felt slightly sickening but above all, stupid.

"I should get going," I muttered.

Ti agreed, unlocked her doors and let me go, right back to my normal clone cadet life that suddenly felt like it had been going on for eternity, I just had to remind myself that it won't be long until it's over, and that's when the real fun begins.