Happy May 4th aka May the 4th be with you! I did this little thing in honor of Star Wars day =D
Anyway, it's a one-shot-three-part-thingy, showing three different events that happened in the course of a few days/weeks. I've been itching to write something like this and I hope you can all enjoy ^^

I don't own anything! Read, review and enjoy =D
Oh, also, translations are at the end (you'll know what I mean when you get there)

Things were… uneasy. Even that was a mayor understatement. Shaken, lost and bend. But not broken. It was something Anakin found extremely admirable in his men. But it didn't stop him from noticing the slight changes. They were tenser, even when on the ship. In battle, they kept their distance from him; as if afraid he'd strike them down as well. Rex lost some of his light hearted comments and jokes. And Anakin couldn't blame them one bit.

He came to Umbara as quickly as he could, but it clearly wasn't fast enough. He managed to catch a glimpse of one of his own – Dogma – be taken into custody, while a few others were gathered by another ship, watching.

"Rex?" he called, not caring if his concern was visible on his face.

"General," the exhaustion and relief in the Captain's voice were unmistakable, and the Jedi could feel despair, anger and guilt oozing from him and the rest. He was glad to have left Ahsoka back on the ship. She might have been overwhelmed by all the emotions flowing on the Force. What had happened?

"I leave you alone for a bit, and everything seems to go to hell," he tried to joke, yet none of the soldiers – not even Fives – even seemed to enjoy it. If anything, their expressions grew grimmer and they avoided looking at him all together.

"…A lot has happened, sir…" Rex replied, his fists clenching.

"Tell me what," this time, the General spoke carefully, almost softly. He didn't want to order his friend to talk about it just yet if he wasn't ready.

"It might be… better, when we're on the Resolute…"

"Right, let's get you boys home."

It was only on the journey back that Anakin saw just how fewer men there were. So many wounded and so many more dead. He stared for a moment, and then turned his gaze to the blonde, who kept looking at the ground.

"Captain!" Kix had come running up to the two. "Niner, Visor and Rocky are going to pull through!" the medic had an exhausted and small smile on his face, and it seemed Rex's expression brightened ever so slightly by the news.

"Good job Kix. Don't forget to get some rest, alright?" the Captain patted the younger man on the shoulder, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

"Understood sir," the medic seemed to hesitate for a moment, yet still nodded. And, as Skywalker saw, there was much more… tenderness and relief in their interactions. And not just theirs, but among all the clones.

Once back on the ship, the wounded were firstly taken to the medical wing. After that, a few just sat down, catching their breath or moved closer to some of their brothers, mourning the dead. Final casualty counts were made and a couple more soldiers realized their friend didn't make it. The feelings Anakin was faced with almost knocked him off his feet. It made him dizzy and twisted his gut, but he fought through it. If his men could bear it, so would he.

"Master! Rex!" Ahsoka came running to the two, hand in the air and a worried expression on her face. She glanced around the hanger bay, horrified by what she saw and felt.

"What happened down there?" as she asked, Rex bit his lip and looked to the side again. The Jedi could feel him trying to suppress his feelings, but was failing.

"I think it's best if we move out of here and… somewhere else…" Skywalker said, looking from the Captain to the Commander.

As the three began to move out of the hanger, Anakin could see the worried and even slightly angered expressions on his men.

"Rex…" Fives was waiting by the exit, leaning on the side, but his eyes were hard and locked on the Force wielders.

"Ni'll cuyir morut'yc, Fives. Ibic cuyir nayc guuror Krell," Rex spoke before either of them could ask anything. "Why don't you go check on Tup? This can't be easy on him…"

"Cuyir ulyc…" the ARC trooper whispered as he reluctantly did as he was told.

"Ratiin cuy'," Rex gave a small smile, followed by Fives chuckling.

The Jedi only watched the small exchange. They knew the language - Mando'a – but didn't understand it. Clones didn't usually use it in front of them, but when they did, it was always something private.

It was at the bridge that the trio finally stopped and settled. It was empty for now, so no one could really overhear them. Rex looked even more tired than before and Ahsoka was growing more and more worried.

"I don't know where to start…" Rex admitted, leaning back on the edge of the holo table.

"How about after I left?" Skywalker tried to help, but didn't want to sound like he was pushing or forcing the man to speak.

"Yeah, I guess that's when things went to hell…" Rex's eyes darkened and he seemed to age right there in front of the Jedi.

Rex began the retelling of what went down; trying very hard to keep it much like a report, yet his voice would grow weaker when telling of the senseless deaths. Anger would rise up when he spoke of how Krell treated them. He paused when telling about how the infighting among the men. He hesitated to explain how Hardcase and Fives took the enemy aircraft. And he needed a minute before explain the massacre that was orchestrated by Krell with the battle between the 501st and 212th men. And finally, how they all agreed to arrest him, only to see he was far too dangerous to let live. How Dogma, who was now sitting in prison or worse, shot him. How he deserved a damn medal, not cuffs.

And all the while, the Jedi listened, patiently, waiting for him to continue. Ahsoka was trembling slightly by the end, feeling sick. And Anakin… Anakin thought his palms would start bleeding if he didn't stop digging his nails in them. But by the end, when Rex told of the slaughter, he could hardly keep himself in check.

When he finished, Rex was still and silent, keeping himself composed. The tension in his body had grown through the report, as if he was waiting for some sort of punishment. The silence in the air around them was heavy and almost suffocating.

"Rex, I'm so sorry…" Tano broke the silence, moving to touch her friend, but he flinched away, before giving an apologetic look. Both finally understood. Krell had cracked them. Not broken, but their trust in the Jedi was weakened. Even if they trusted them and protected them, the clones would never be the same again.

"…Permission to leave…?" the blonde asked, jaw locked and eyes burning into the ground.

"Granted," Anakin nodded, his own movement stiff as he tried to control his rage.

The Captain gave a hard salute, turned around and left the bridge. As soon as the doors closed, Skywalker slammed his fist onto the table, bearing his teeth and fire in his eyes.

"If that damn traitor wasn't dead already, I'd have-!" he paused when he sensed sudden fear and saw his Padawan moved away a bit.

"…" the two looked at each other for a few seconds, before Anakin let out a deep breath and calmed himself down.

"They're already scared of you – of us. Acting out of anger like that… It won't help," Ahsoka said quietly, moving a bit closer.

"I know Snips; I know…" the Master took another calming breath. "I just hope we can try and mend their trust."

Rex made it down the hall to the first corner, before he stopped and leaned on the wall. He had his eyes clenched tight, hands in fists and a scream building in his throat. He didn't think it'd be so hard, telling it all over again. But it was. He was so close to losing it back there a few times, but kept himself under control.

"…Rex?" he felt someone put a hand on his shoulder and snapped around, almost knocking the person over.

"Fives?" he blinked a few times, trying to stop the liquid from escaping. "Don't tell me you were listening in?"

"No, I was just waiting. You know, in case…" the ARC trooper trailed off, sounding almost ashamed. "I know they wouldn't hurt us, but after what happened with Krell…"

"I know, Fives. Trust me, I do. But we can't let one person poison our trust in everyone."

"It won't be easy, you know. For anyone."

"I know. But if I have to, I'll be the bridge."

"You still believe in them? Even after all that's happened?"

"…Someone has to, right? If we can't trust our allies, our friends, we've already lost the war. It's what Krell wanted to do, but we won't let him."

"Well, if you can keep it up, I'm pretty sure everyone else can, Captain."

"They look up to you too, Fives. Keep that in mind next time you try to do something stupid."

"Hey, someone has to, right? And I know you'll always help me out!"

A few days later, Anakin received word from the Jedi Council that Rex would be put on trial for what happened on Umbara. Skywalker was infuriated that they would even consider it and when the Captain heard about it he clearly understood what would happen. But Anakin wasn't about to sit by and let that happen.
He defended his friend fiercely, stating he wouldn't let the Council interrogate and then use him as a scape goat. After all, they'd do anything to deny they couldn't sense one of their own going to the Dark Side. The Council tried to ignore him, but when Kenobi joined in, they were at a loss.
Combined with the reports from the 212th and 501st they managed to convince them that the men were only doing what they had to: eliminating a threat to the Republic. And as for the execution of Krell, they reasoned that the clones rather not risked the traitor getting free again. Kenobi really did let them hear it and being the best negotiator in the Outer Rim made it seem like there was never anything to worry about.

That, coupled with the assistance of the 212th in clearing what remained on Umbara, forced the Council to revoke the trial. And it showed the clones that there were still Jedi out there, willing to help and defend them.

"That could have gone badly," Cody admitted, speaking with Rex after the whole thing was settled and everyone calmed down.

"Yes. I'm just glad it ended as it did," Rex agreed, letting out a tired breath and leaning with his back against the wall.

The two met up when the 212th arrived to help, and when the majorities were taken care of, were given a break. Their Generals were discussing their next move in the command room, while they just went for a short walk around the newly taken Umbara base.

"I'm sorry for your losses…" the older clone murmured, unsure how to tackle this.

"Thanks, and sorry for yours as well…" there was a brief pause. "How's Boil doing?" the man in blue risked asking. He knew him and Waxer were close, so the latter's death must have really shaken him.

"…He's managing," Cody let out a breath, running a hand over his face. "He's a soldier, he'll pull through. But…" he trailed off.

"It's never easy," the older clone just nodded.

"Thanks for getting the helmet back to him."

"It was the least I could do."

Another silence as they just allowed the full weight of what happened come to them. Things would change, they knew that much.

The only thing left now, were Krell's men themselves. The 112th was one of the most cut off and isolated Battalion in all of the GAR. And since the Jedi Council didn't really care about the clones or what happened, no one bothered to try and connect them.
But with Krell gone, the men had no general and no leader. Hell, they were hardly a Battalion at this point anyway. Pong might have won many battles, but his casualties were too high. That's why the 112th wasn't given a new command, but instead was set to be integrated into the 501st and 212th Battalions. And things were not easy.

Krell's men were skittish all the time. During battle, they worked more like droids than clones, always doing exactly what they were told and never speaking back. They were hard and closed off, keeping to themselves whenever they could. If asked to join in any activities, they would very politely and carefully decline, huddled together in their bunks. They carried weapons on them at all times, no matter where they were and ate the bare minimum, trying to save what was left for later or their brothers, even when they were told there was enough food for each and every one to have seconds. And the worst part? They had almost completely abandoned their names, answering to their birth numbers. Many either didn't remember their names or didn't even have them.

It was hard to see and watch, brothers being so scared of everything. Anakin and Kenobi gave them their space and worked with them as carefully as they could, avoiding even bringing their lightsabers to meetings with them. Other clones encouraged them, showed them there was nothing to be scared of and that they were free. They even began to name them themselves, asking if they liked it. Or tried to help them remember what they called themselves before Krell degraded them to numbers.

Progress was minimal, until the former Captain of the 112th – Reeve - finally gathered the courage to volunteer himself and a few men for a mercy mission. They were expected to be yelled at, told that is ridiculous and they should shut up and follow orders. But instead, Anakin had smiled, asked how many he wanted to take along. Even put a few of the older and experienced soldiers along, to make sure everything went smoothly. It was the first crack in the 112th boys' shell.

It didn't take much more after that, that the newcomers warmed up and accepted their new command and brothers. They were still the most skittish and careful among the brothers, but much less than when they first came around. They began joining in on training exorcizes and other activities, and turned out to be quite the funny bunch. Many took on new names, given to them by their brothers – and two even got named by Skywalker – saying that this was a sort of new life for them. The men still kept in contact, spread between the 501st and 212th and they were all glad to find their brothers were doing as well as them.

Translations:

"Ni'll cuyir morut'yc" - I'll be safe
"Ibic cuyir nayc guuror Krell" - This is not like Krell
"Cuyir ulyc…" - Be safe
"Ratiin cuy'" - Always am

As always, thanks for reading and I hope you liked it! If you did, how about reviewing? It means a ton to me =D
Also, if anyone fancies, they can check out my other stories? A pet project of mine and a crack fic for Star Wars. Just a suggestion =P