"Love is the death of duty."

Rex blinked in confusion as he heard the words come out of Carter's mouth. "Did you just come up with that?"

"No... I heard this from a passing doctor when I first met Sue. When Rex was about to ask something, Carter responded. "After thinking about it for so long, I believe the reverse also applies: Duty is the death of love." The clone then elaborated on his thoughts. "We are clones, we are the shield of the Republic. No matter what, you and the rest of our brothers always try to do the right thing. You try to protect them from the greatest threat to their lives. But what will replace that threat once it's over? What purpose will we have after this war against the Separatists. It's a terrible thing to do, but it's also the right thing to do.

Rex was silent, digesting the words. Before he could make much progress, the farmer continued. "Perhaps one day you will make a decision, Rex. Choose between duty on one hand and the people you care about on the other. What will you do then?

"Do the right thing, no matter what." was Rex's response.

"What, then, is a man's duty compared with what you feel for your friend, your brother, your kindred? We are all flesh and blood; we all do our duty when it costs us nothing. It comes easy, and yet, sooner or later, in every man's life, there comes a day when it does not come easy. That is the day he must choose.

Carter took one final step, winning the race for him. “I know you think I’m a coward, Rex, but trust me…I will fight until my last breath to fulfill my duty to keep my family safe.

The three adults' conversation came to an abrupt halt when they heard the children screaming, not out of joy, but out of fear.

"Tsk! Ouch!" Carter and Sue's faces turned pale and they rushed out the door to see their children running out of the field and running towards their home with a completely coerced expression. As they approached, the parents hugged their children.

"What's wrong?" their father asked.

“Monsters. They’re chasing us,” Shay said, pointing at the field.

"What monster? Where is it, dear?" Sue asked.

"They hatched from big eggs in the field!" said their daughter.

Curious about what was going on, Carter grabbed the binoculars hanging from the door frame. He peered inside, looked over the field, and saw movement. It didn't take long for him to spot the "monster" the kids had seen not long before.

"Ah... this is not going well. I counted twenty commando droids.

"What are they doing?" Rex asked.

Carter did not answer, but spoke to his wife. "Sue, take the children upstairs."

Sue took her children with her. "Come on. Come on, children. Come on.

He walked to the door, locked it, and the Clone Captain asked the obvious question. "What weapons do you have?"

Carter opened a cabinet, revealing only some farm tools, a sniper rifle, and a few blasters.

"We can catch them in a firefight," Rex said, handing his blaster back to him.

"No, Captain. With all due respect, you are not in charge here.

Rex purred. "I-I could be of use."

"Sir, you're injured. You only have one good arm," Carter pointed out.

“But I can fight.”

"So can I," the farmer retorted. "Rex, I need you to be the last line of defense for my family."

After a few seconds of silence, Rex acquiesced and went upstairs. "I can take care of them."

Carter smiled at his clone brother. "Thank you."

The clone farmer turned to leave, but Rex stopped him.

"Can you help me with something?" Rex asked, surprising the clone.

"What?" Carter asked confused.

Carter's expression was one of confusion when revealing what Rex wanted.

The farmer quickly got to work. He turned off the lights, double-checked the locks, and equipped his home with weapons. He gave Rex what he asked for, and once that was done, he was ready for the commando droids to storm the front door of his home.

He saw a shadowy figure pass through the bottom of the front door. Carter was about to fire before the back door was blown open. The clone farmer turned and fired at the three commando robots that came in.

Carter kept a keen eye on where the robot would appear next.

Suddenly, a metal arm burst out from the closed window and strangled the clone farmer. He was able to break free, then pulled out his blaster and shot his attacker in the head.

He then stood up, raising his blaster in several directions to make sure he wouldn't have any more accidents.

Carter then walked to a hatch in the front door when he heard some creaking noises.

He narrowed his eyes and carefully walked to the hatch, his blaster dragging on it while reaching for the hatch with his other hand. The moment the hatch opened slightly, it burst open and many commando droids poured out.

As Carter stumbled back, he shot down one of the commando droids as the others began firing at him. Taking cover, the commando droids did not appear to be operating at peak capacity, as the shots they fired were random and uncoordinated.

Unfortunately for Carter, this proved disastrous, as one of the shots struck a horizontal wooden post, which broke apart and fell right on top of the farmer, trapping him underneath it all.

Carter struggled, trying to reach for his gun, but it was now jammed.

He saw the robot walk past him and up the steps.

"Rex, they're coming for you!" C. Carter shouted to him.

Captain Rex was simply prepared.

One hand held his blaster pistol, and although his other arm was in a cast, that didn't mean he was unarmed.

With Sue's help, she strapped on a makeshift shield made from a large flat piece of wood Carter had managed to get from the barn.

Once the robots appeared on the steps, Rex rushed forward with his shield, blocking the blaster. He fired at the robots, hitting two.

The robot closest to him tried to fire at him, but Rex moved fast enough and used his shield to push the robot into the wall to immobilize it.

Pressing the barrel of his blaster pistol against the robot's head, a moment later a large hole appeared in its skull.

Suddenly, he heard crashing noises and children screaming from above.

Rex spun wildly and saw two more commando droids drop from the roof and stand at the front of the room, facing Sue and the kids.

He quickly fired at them, taking one down as the other spun around and fired at the clone.

Downstairs, Carter was dealing with one of the last few robots in front of him. He had already swung a chair over its body, crushing one from inside, and then crushed another from the pieces the peasant had pried off. Carter was about to fire his blaster, but it was knocked away. In retaliation, he punched the robot in the head, but held back the pain before the robot could grab his head.

In the upstairs hallway, Rex, in a crouching position, fired several shots, knocking down the robot in front of him. The robot accidentally fired a final bolt from its weapon, striking the ground between Rex's legs. A moment later, the floor beneath his feet collapsed.

Rex fell beside Carter, but unfortunately, his blaster was further away from both of them.

The last commando droid immediately grabbed Rex's head, and Carter tried to help Rex, but he was slapped aside.

Rex desperately tried to free himself, searching his belt for anything and grabbing a round disk.

His eyes widened in shock at what he had just discovered, and he gripped it tightly and pulled it out.

"Better make this count," Rex struggled with his thoughts before managing to pry himself from the robot's grasp, kicking it away and slapping the object onto his attacker.

After a moment, the commando droid disappeared from his sight.

Carter was so shocked when he saw this scene that he dropped his jaw in disbelief.

"Huh—what?" Che muttered.

Rex rubbed his neck and looked down, Rex also blinked.

The commando droid looked around in utter confusion, not understanding and processing what was happening. But before it could do anything, the droid was crushed under Rex's boot.

Rex exhaled tiredly and collapsed to the ground.

Carter said, still with a look of shock on his face. "What just happened?"

“It’s a gift from a friend.”

"You have a friend."

Rex just smiled and rubbed his sore neck. "You have no idea."

"Dad? Dad?" Jack shouted from the hole in the ceiling, with his mother and sister behind him.

Carter looked up and smiled at his family. "I'm fine. It's over."

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