A returning Echo

Chapter Twenty

To say the men of the 17th were angry was an understatement. When the council sidelined you, they had also sidelined your men. Men that loved to fight. Men that loved you. Men that would do anything for you, and that were beyond angry when they found out they wouldn't see you for a while. But they weren't angry at you for leaving, no, they could never be angry at you. They were furious beyond words with the council, and they made sure it was obvious.

In the time that you were away, they made life hell for the council. Between disobeying basic orders and causing as many problems as they could, the 17th expressed their frustration. Even Hex joined in. The usually responsible clone was helping plan events to piss off the council and even led some of them.

The council eventually grew tired, and decided that something needed to be done about them.

"Their recent actions are borderline treasonous," Mace stated.

"They are merely acting out in frustration at what happened to their general," Codo countered.

"They are causing unnecessary chaos," Luminara pointed out.

"Again, they're acting out in frustration. These men are some of the best I've seen, they merely want their General back."

"We didn't remove their General from her position of leadership and we didn't make her leave the planet. We merely said she would be removed from the war effort for a few standard weeks. It was her decision to leave. They have no reason to be acting this way," Mace countered.

"If you are punishing her for her ways, then you must also punish them because they are similar to her. They are a battalion, a team. They're a family, and they will stick together no matter what. What affects one, affects all. They think alike, plan alike, act alike. Remove one, and there's a sizable hole left in their absence," Codo said.

"But we didn't remove y/n. As I said before, we merely pulled her away for a little while."

"Even then, they view it differently, and so they are reacting to how they view it."

"Their actions are inappropriate," Luminara said, leaning forwards in her seat. "Something must be done about them!"

"What would you suggest?" Mace questioned.

"If it's the fighting that they want, we send them to battle under a different general. They'll still be together and will get their fighting, but they'd just have to follow a different general."

"I'm not sure that would be a good idea," Codo pointed out.

"Regardless of what you think, it's worth a shot," Luminara countered.

"I agree with Master Unduli. Perhaps if we give them the opportunity to get their anger out in battle, they will behave better while they wait for y/n to return," Mace said.

Codo sat in silence, thinking to himself about how this would not work. He knew these men well, and knew that they would not like this idea. No amount of fighting could fill the missing piece of y/n.

"Alright, it's settled then. Codo, would you contact the 17th and ask for Commander Sans, Captain Hex, and Major Steele to come here?"

"Yes, Master Windu," he replied before getting up and exiting the room. He decided to head over to the barracks to tell them in person, he believed they would be more likely to listen. But going to the barracks turned out to be a mistake.

Before Codo had even landed in the hangar, he saw the level at which the 17th had gone to show their anger. Crates were strewn everywhere, paint was covering the walls, and even some ships and speeders were flipped on their sides. He let out a sigh as he got off his speeder, heading in through the doors to the halls.