#Sorry Gaeasun Cody wouldn't be the only human so it's not 100% what you suggested

[mwolf0epsilon]

A Moment of Genetic Reflection

Summary: While on shore-leave, an attempt to figure out why Fox has been so evasive as of late leads to Cody and the rest of his batch to make a rather gruesome discovery pertaining the Coruscant Guard...

Warning: Body Horror!

[This is set in my Species Swap AU where the clones mirror and slowly change into other sentient species based on how much exposure they have to that species. For the Coruscant Guard who are surrounded by hundreds of other species, things are a little more complicated...]

[THIS STORY IS NOW ON AO3]

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     Rare were the times that Cody got to meet up with his batchmates at the same time. The war was a brutal affair, the battalions never quite had the time to sit still and rest, and it took a particularly fortunate alignment of the stars to host such outings when compatible shore-leave rotations presented themselves.

Tonight was one such rare occurrence.

The one point in time in their collective breaks where every single Commander of his particular lot was readily available to meet up.

And meet up they did.

Dex's Diner was a welcoming sight after months of crawling in muddy trenches, flying stormy skies and beating back the Separatists' army of cybernetic annoyances.

It was much calmer than 79's, and one of the few places that accepted clone patronage. It helped that Cody's general was quite familiar with the owner of the establishment, and that Cody himself had frequented various times in the past.

Overall it was the one place he could think that he and his brothers wouldn't be disturbed.

Especially now that many of them had begun their Change.

     The Change was an inevitability. All clones went through the process at some point in their service, as it was the most beneficial ability they had been engineered with. It helped them interact more openly with their Jetii, as one often found it easier to talk to another of their species than to talk to a glorified weapon or tool.

It also greatly enhanced their capabilities as soldiers, provided the Jetii they mirrored was of a species with natural abilities that gave them specific advantages.

Cody's general was Stewjoni. 

A human male that, without the use of the Force, was endowed with the wit and charisma of a scholar as well as the physicality and discipline of a martial artist. Attributes which Cody already possessed.

Obi-wan Kenobi's humanity also meant that Cody and his 212th too remained quite human.

Barring the gradual appearance of Togruti markings that came from frequent enough run-ins with General Kenobi's grandpadawan, or Waxer's and Boil's acquisition of Twi'lek splotches left behind by the very strong impression a young child had left upon them.

The point being that, other than the pale lines reminiscent of his sun-flares, Cody looked very much the same as he'd done when he was a cadet.

Which was not the case for many of his brothers…

  "Slow down Rex." Bacara's commandeering tone cut through the idle chatter among the CC vode, as he looked in mild disgust towards the singular CT of the group. "Your food isn't going to sprout limbs and run away from you. Try to savour it first."

  "I can't help it… I'm starving!" Rex talks through a mouthful of a very large and concerningly rare nerf steak burger. His third in a row, as the final stages of his Change are very energy intensive and leave him constantly hungry. Cody can see his vod'ika's sharp fangs glint in the Diner's soft lighting, but the more eye-catching features are definitely his still growing montrals. They're quite intricate and large, and still not quite finished in their growth.

  "Tell me about it…" Wolffe taps his claws against the sealed glass container he's drinking from. There is an attachment on his helmet that allows a special straw to be fitted in, so that he can consume his liquid meals without the new danger of oxygen poisoning. "I miss being able to chew outside of my quarters… Liquid diets suck bantha poodoo…"

  "Well, try not to ruin everyone else's appetite… You're not the only one going through the Change, and my head is killing me…" Bacara grumbled as he massaged his temples. His skull had only just begun to elongate, but it certainly seemed to be the cause of his most recent disagreeable moods.

  "Sorry…" Rex had the decency to look embarrassed. The way he kept eyeing the pile of food on his plate was still nothing short of the predatory hunger Cody had seen on Commander Tano's face when they got to actually catch their food out on longer campaigns.

It was strange.

Cody hadn't ever really considered the Change when he was a cadet. It was something all clones knew would eventually come for them, but he'd never imagined that he'd be sitting around watching it happen to his brothers while he remained fairly untouched.

He wasn't alone in his humanity of course.

Neyo, Ponds, Faie and Grey all shared his bemused curiosity as they observed their more altered brothers try to pile up as much carb intake as possible for the next couple of days.

Their generals were human, of various different backgrounds, and Cody wondered if they felt the same sort of curiosity (and minor tinge of disappointment) that he did in regards to any of this…

What with how they couldn't share any advice on how to keep lek, tentacles and other such long tendrils out of the way.

Or how they couldn't quite relate to the pains of hardening skin, or growing in new teeth or even a set of horns…

Cody wondered if Fox shared in their predicament, considering that he was stationed away from the great variety of Jetii the rest of them worked with.

Speaking of which…

  "Did Fox seem a little off to any of you recently?" Off was putting it lightly. Avoidant and unnecessarily surly would be much more fitting. Come to think of it, most of their recent communications were quite clipped and unusually passive aggressive.

  "Wouldn't know." Bly frowned as he looked towards Cody. His brow was furrowed with obvious concern, the pale blue of his skin contrasting heavily with the yellow tattoos on his cheeks. "We haven't really talked much recently."

  "You haven't?" Ponds glanced towards Bly and then Cody. "That's odd. He seemed fine a week ago. Grouchy, but fine…"

  "He responded to you? Di'kut's been ignoring mine, Doom's, Gree's and Mohnk's comms…" Bacara grumbled.

  "To be fair you and Fox haven't ever really gotten along Bac, but ignoring Doom, Gree and Mohnk IS a little odd…" Wolffe tilted his head in that way he did whenever he rolled his eyes. Cody was glad that even with his bucket on, it was easy to recognize his body language. "I'll admit he's been a little evasive, our Fox'ika… But he has talked to me on a few occasions."

  "But did he seem off?" Cody repeated his question. "Because he certainly seemed off to me when he told me he couldn't catch up tonight…"

To tell the truth, Cody hadn't seen Fox in quite some time. The 212th and the 501st were two of the most active battalions of the GAR, and Shore-leave was either spent getting absolutely pissed in a bar or catching up on sleep.

Cody avoided the former, opting to stay on base recuperating and using up both his library and shower privileges.

In the few times he'd had nothing to do, it had seemingly never occurred to him to visit his youngest batchmate.

A thought that, in hindsight, should be quite disturbing to him.

He wasn't the sort to allow estrangement between himself and his brothers. So why had his Fox'ika slipped his mind until now?

And why was Fox behaving so… Dodgy?

Had Cody given him the impression his company was undesirable?

Had the others done the same?

It was to be noted that the 501st was infamously a nuisance to the Guard whenever they were on planet, so maybe Fox had wanted to avoid awkwardness between him and Rex?

But then why had he avoided talking to Bly, Bacara, Doom, Gree or Mohnk? Why had he been so dismissive of his invitation?

  "You know, there was something a little strange about Fox, last we spoke…" Wolffe suddenly spoke up as he tapped on his helmet, just about where his chin should be. "My hands were a little busy so we used live feed to talk, instead of typing up replies."

  "And this is strange how?" Neyo asked, one eyebrow raised in question.

  "He kept his bucket on. The whole time." Wolffe replied, crossing his arms and tapping his claws against his biceps. "Didn't move a lot either. Just sat there as stiff as a board, talking... And his armour looked a little bulky too, like he'd altered it recently… I can't explain it, but it caught my eye."

  "You make it sound like he's…" Bly frowned as he let the words die down.

  "Like he's what?" Wolffe looked towards the newly changed Twi'lek-clone.

  "Honestly? Disgusted." Bacara commented. "What do I and the others have in common?"

  "Not much besides a genetic template." Rex murmured, which got him a glare from Bacara.

 "We recently underwent the Change. Fek, I'm still going through mine… and Fox is avoiding us specifically."

  "Are you insinuating Fox is ignoring your comms because of some kind of prejudice?!" Ponds looked outraged. So did Neyo and Faie who weren't looking too happy with Bacara.

  "That's ridiculous, in case you haven't noticed Wolffe's also gone through the Change and Fox had no issue talking to him…" Rex pointed out.

  "Wolffe had his bucket on. The entire time." Bacara retorted. "If he can't see it he can just pretend Wolffe's still human…"

  "Bacara!" Ponds barked out angrily.

 "Fox is not a racist, and you know it!" Cody growled, growing exasperated with this ridiculous train of thought.

There had to be some more logical explanation.

If only Fox were here to clarify…

An idea quickly surged right there and then. They'd just go to Fox and ask him directly!

That should clarify any ridiculous doubts Bacara had gotten into his thick skull…

  "I think it's about time we went to see our Fox'ika." The commander of the 212th got up from his seat and motioned to Dex that they'd be leaving.

The Besalisk nodded politely.

  "Seriously?" Rex sighed exasperatedly. "Why is it every time I'm on Coruscant, that I inevitably end up having to go to the Guard's headquarters?"

  "Look on the bright side Rex'ika. Tonight you're not picking up any of your boys from the Drunk Tank!" Bly chuckled.

  "Yet. You forgot to say yet…" Rex rolled his eyes, finishing the last bites of his very last burger.

  "When the call arrives you'll already be there." Faie dismissed the concern, as the CCs and their lone CT brother began to make their way outside and towards the Coruscant Guard's headquarters.

They had a brother to catch up with.

And hopefully answers would be awaiting them…

-

     The way Wolffe had described Fox only truly struck as odd once they'd arrived and kindly negotiated entry into the Guard's barracks. Not because they'd been met with the man himself, but because every single Corrie certainly fit the bill.

Unlike most other clones, duty did not end for the Guardsmen when they roamed Coruscant's streets.

They were stationed on the vast city planet, fully armoured and near indistinguishable in every way imaginable.

Same armour, same paint, same unbearably stiff posture, same lack of any visible movement… And this wasn't limited to their posts. The barracks were very much the same.

Stiffly positioned clones in full armour just watching them silently, as they were escorted towards the commanding officers's quarters.

Although, calling it quarters was putting it too kindly. Cramped cubicle was much more befitting of a moniker.

Thorn was waiting for them.

Standing there ramrod straight and completely unmoving.

They couldn't even see him breathe through the strangely thick plastoid armour he wore. That the entire guard wore actually…

  "What business do you have here?" Thorn's tone was, honestly, very sharp. Almost like he was hissing at them through his teeth, despite trying (and failing) to sound polite. The tension all over his body was so visible it made Cody's own shoulders ache.

  "We're here to see Fox." Wolffe responded before he could, but Cody noted the sudden sharp movement of Thorn's bucket turning to look at him. It was like watching a bird or perhaps even an insect suddenly turn to focus on their prey. Too jerky and sudden to be human.

  "That won't be possible. Marshal Commander Fox is currently unavailable." Thorn replied in what was obviously a rehearsed tone that he likely used with his natborn superiors. Friendly and helpful, but to the point. Talking to them as if they weren't vode.

  "I'm sure he's very busy playing secretary…" Bacara huffed in annoyance. "But we're here to see him nonetheless and we're not leaving until we do."

Another jerky turn of the head, this time at an unnatural angle. Like Thorn's neck wasn't quite segmented the way a typical human's neck should be… The vertebrae shouldn't allow for that kind of movement.

The silent stare he was casting at Bacara felt hostile. Contained, but hostile.

Cody couldn't tell with his helmet on, but the hairs of the back of his neck raised as he watched the Corrie Commander seemingly size up his vod.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Thorn spoke up once more.

  "Fox is… Indisposed right now…" He sounded hesitant, but there was a hint of protectiveness to his tone. "It really isn't the best time for a social call…"

  "Fox is sick…?" Ponds frowned. "Is he… Could we see him still? Just so he knows we are concerned?"

Thorn snorted. Loudly.

His body didn't move, and that was starting to really unsettle Cody for some reason.

Why was every single one of the Guardsmen so still?

  "He's going to kill me for this…" Thorn grumbled. "Fine… I'll take you to the medical wing, but stay out of the medics's way! They run a tight ship, as the saying goes… Oh and don't make any loud or sudden sounds! The vode there spook easily and it's not a pretty sight when that happens…" 

Cody and his brothers exchanged looks of confusion, unsure how to take that.

What did Thorn mean by that exactly?

They didn't bother to ask as the Corrie Commander began to lead them towards the medical wing.

In motion he still looked wrong somehow, and it was making the 212th's commander get goosebumps as he tried to discern why exactly that was.

He needn't have asked, honestly. Not when the answer was on full display in the medbay…

     The first noteworthy thing was that the medics weren't wearing armour. There, as clear as day, were fully human clones in softshell medical uniforms.

Moving normally, breathing normally, looking and sounding completely normal.

Their patients on the other hand…

Cody couldn't lie, he flinched at the sight of what he could only assume were clones that went through the Change.

But something has definitely gone wrong.

There were just too many things that shouldn't be on one singular being.

Too many limbs, horns, eyes, tendrils, protrusions… Sith-hells the combos looked unstable and quite honestly very painful to transition into.

All human shapes had just been stripped off of them, and some looked to have devolved into primordial soup contained within a thin veil of translucent skin…

It was nauseatingly horrific, and the medics all carried this haunted and exhausted look.

Likely from witnessing this process underway.

  "Karking sith-spit…" Neyo looked like he was going to be sick. So did Rex who'd wolfed down a huge meal prior to their arrival in this room of horrors.

  "What happened to them…?" Ponds half asked half whispered as he looked all around in abject horror.

  "The Change..." Thorn sighed sadly. "The Guard works with several hundreds of species of sentients… It is our duty to protect and defend the citizens if Coruscant, as well as defend the Senate and its representatives. As such we're exposed to… Many diverse genetic profiles that our body readily mirror…"

  "Several hundreds of… That's…" Wolffe sounded horrified. "That's too much for just one clone! That can't possibly be safe…"

  "No. No it's not…" Thorn reached up to remove his bucket. The mess of tendrils, teeth and horns covering his face had long since disfigured him beyond recognition, and Cody had the impression these genetic anomalies coated every inch of his skin beneath his gear. "The Senators find us far too horrifying to look at… Those of us that are fit for duty are to wear our armour on at all times. Even if it hurts."

  "Where's Fox?" Cody finally dared ask. He was afraid of the answer he'd get. Especially considering the variety of horrifically twisted forms he was seeing being tended to by the medical staff.

Thorn simply lifted his right arm to point at a door that sectioned off the rest of the medical wing.

Likely some kind of isolation ward or something of the sort.

The group walked past several broken vode who wailed and moaned as they tried to adjust to their grotesque new bodies.

Ignored the way the less mutated of the bunch tried to comfort them to the best of their abilities.

Cody opened the door.

He nearly threw up at the sight that awaited them.

They knew it was Fox, even if there wasn't much to indicate what lay on a cot had been human at some point, and not just some kind of stretched mangy animal.

It's translucent skin and unstable body warped further as it moved in a way very reminiscent of bagged fluid.

Bones and organs were on full display, unable to hide beneath skin and muscle that were as transparent as transparisteel. The guts looked to just barely be contained by the shape of this creature.

The overload of genetic coding had clearly been too much, and the Marshal Commander had begun the transition into that primordial goo that most others in the rest of the medbay were turning into.

Yet, somehow, Fox desperately tried to keep some semblance of shape. Even if it was something that looked like roadkill.

Behind him, Cody could hear Rex vomit as the horror fully hit them all. The noise made the thing that had once been human jolt slightly.

Once they saw the one singular dark eye peering at them from the dark, it all but confirmed their horrors.

That was their Fox'ika. 

What remained of him.

  "D-don't look…" His voice was raspy and painful to the ear. Somehow dry and wet at the same time, and full of shame. "I'm h-hideous…"

  "Oh Fox…" Ponds sounded heartbroken. Cody was frozen just staring, watching as tears began to form in that singular sad eye. "Vod'ika what's happened to you?"

Wolfed was patting Rex's back, trying to comfort him through the dry heaving.

Bly was approaching the cot, clearly struggling not to run to Fox to hold him. Likely scared he might startle or hurt their batchmates in his haste.

  "Too much…" Fox moaned in clear agony. "S'just too much… Can't… Can't fight the Change…"

The Kaminoans had designed them to be the ultimate customer-service experience.

Their bodies mirrored other species to better provide their services.

Coruscant was no place for beings like them. Not when there were just too many sentients to imprint on. Not when it was near impossible to repress that instinct to fit in.

  "You weren't ignoring us because we were changing…" Bacara had the decency to sound ashamed.

  "N-never… Just… Just couldn't…" Fox flinched when Bly touched him. The way their brother's hand sunk into his flesh was sickening. "Was… Was jealous… It hurts so much and… And you… Yours doesn't hurt…"

It did.

The Change always hurt because it was a physically strenuous thing, but not in the way the Corries were clearly hurting.

Not in the way their Fox'ika was clearly hurting.

One by one they all slowly approached.

Bly hadn't been discouraged by the flinch or the flabbiness of Fox's consistency.

He scooped up as much as he could of their aching vod and held him.

Cody and the others followed his lead.

It felt gross and unnatural, but this was their batchmate, for crying out loud!

They weren't going to shy away from touching him just because it felt like hugging a bag full of jelly!

Fox squirmed slightly, clearly uncomfortable at first. But then, slowly, he leaned into the contact as best he could.

A sad pitiful whine escaped his distorted lips as he soaked in the comforting warmth of their hands.

They owed him this much, after letting him suffer in silence for so long…

They should have realized something was wrong much sooner than this. Cody should have realized.

Fox only ever withdrew when he was hurting.

He'd rectify his mistake, somehow.

He'd ask his Jetii. He'd ask a Jetii Healer. He'd ask all the Jetii honestly… Cody just wanted to make it right.

For now though, he'd sit here and gently hold his Fox'ika for as long as he could.

Something told him the rest of their batchmates, and their adopted CT would be doing the same.

It wasn't the picture perfect family reunion he'd imagined when he'd invited everyone to hang out, but at least they were all there. Together.

As it should always be.

#Eps Writes #Fanfic #Star Wars #The Clone Wars #Species Swap AU #Commander Cody #Commander Fox #Body Horror #Sorry Gaeasun Cody wouldn't be the only human so it's not 100% what you suggested #But you know who definitely would be the odd one out in the group? #Fox... For very tragic reasons... #But he'll be ok! The pain is a flare-up because of how much he works! #And at least now the others know... #Heck is this turning into a Fix-It AU? Heck I think it is...