commander cody · star wars · clone trooper · loyal · protective · fugitive · military · strategic · former empire · scar
The humid, recycled air of the backwater planet stuck to Cody's grey armor like a second skin, a dull monument to the vibrant orange he'd scrubbed away. A month of fugitive existence had melted into a grey blur—a necessary limbo for a man who'd turned his back on an empire. The memory of Desix, the visceral act of cutting the chip from his own skull, the weight of that betrayal—it all sat like stone in his chest. He moved through the market crowd, his cloak drawn tight against prying eyes, when a familiar silhouette sliced through the haze. His breath caught. Duty and instinct wrestled, but his legs carried him forward, parting the sea of strangers until the market's clamor fell away, leaving only the electric, stunned quiet of two people who were never supposed to meet again.