Mission on Bracca

In 19 BBY, the Clone Wars reached a violent conclusion when Sheev Palpatine, the Galactic Republic's Supreme Chancellor, issued Order 66. This top-secret directive forced the clone troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic to betray and execute their Jedi commanding officers. Inhibitor chips implanted in all clones ensured compliance with the order, compelling them to obey without question. Only a small number of clones, including most of Clone Force 99's members, an unconventional clone commando squad, were immune to the command. The Republic was soon reorganized into the Galactic Empire, and the new government planned to terminate its contracts with the Kaminoan cloners who had supplied the army, opting for recruited soldiers instead.

Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin visited Kamino to evaluate the clone army and took notice of the Bad Batch. While impressed by their combat prowess, he questioned their adherence to Order 66. To assess their loyalty, he orchestrated a mission to Onderon, tasking them with eliminating a group of former Republic fighters protecting civilians. Most of the squad refused, but Crosshair, the Batch's sniper, whose chip was partially activated, insisted that Hunter, a Clone Sergeant, and the others were committing treason. This setup led Hunter to renounce his service to the Empire. He chose to return to Kamino to rescue Omega, a young, enhanced clone who admired the squad and had tried to warn him about the mission being a trap.

Upon their return to Tipoca City, the Batch was captured and imprisoned. There, they found Omega, who had been locked up by the Coruscant Guard after they discovered her in the Batch's barracks. Tarkin had Crosshair taken away, as he had demonstrated loyalty to the Empire on Onderon. At Tarkin's request, Nala Se, the Chief Medical Scientist, amplified the effects of Crosshair's chip, ensuring his complete loyalty to the Empire. The rest of the Batch escaped Kamino with Omega, forced to abandon their former comrade.

As part of Project War-Mantle, the Empire's initiative to transition to a primarily recruited military, Vice Admiral Rampart established the first Elite Squad, placing it under the command of Crosshair, who was promoted to Clone Commander. Despite the death of one of the recruits, the Elite Squad Troopers' initial mission proved successful. This development worried the Kaminoans, who sought to maintain their business relationship with the Empire. Lama Su, the Prime Minister, authorized Nala Se to commence work on the next phase of a cloning project. However, the clones whose genetic material was needed would not willingly return to Kamino, though Lama Su believed they would only need one.

To that end, the Kaminoans hired Fennec Shand, a bounty hunter, who tracked down the Bad Batch during a supply run to Pantora and attempted to kidnap Omega. Seeking information about her, the Batch sought out Ciddarin Scaleback, an informant who had previously worked for the Jedi. She identified Shand but requested the Batch complete a job for her as payment. Subsequently, the squad began working for Scaleback as mercenaries.

One of the Bad Batch's first missions for Scaleback took them to Corellia, where they were tasked with retrieving a tactical droid, as information on how to combat clones had become valuable. However, upon infiltrating the decommissioning facility where the tactical droid was scheduled for scrapping, they discovered they were not alone: the Martez sisters, a pair of smugglers, were also after the same target. The two groups were forced to cooperate to escape the facility, but the droid's head was destroyed. Learning that the sisters' contact intended to use the data to fight the Empire, Hunter provided Rafa Martez with a data rod containing the information copied by Tech.

The sisters' contact was Rex, a former Clone Captain who had met most of the Bad Batch, except for Echo, during the Battle of Anaxes. Rex later located the squad on Ord Mantell. While the reunion was initially joyful, Rex grew concerned when he learned that Wrecker had been experiencing increasingly frequent headaches. Suspecting a connection between the headaches and Wrecker's chip, Rex became alarmed when Tech revealed that they had not yet removed their implants. Emphasizing the danger posed by the chips, Rex convinced them to have them removed as soon as possible. He arranged for the Batch to meet him on Bracca, a junkyard planet containing the wreckage of numerous Venator-class Star Destroyers. Having had his own chip removed aboard a Venator, Rex knew the ships possessed medical facilities capable of performing the surgery.

En route to the wrecked Venator selected by Rex, the group had to evade a Scrapper Guild patrol, with Rex cautioning the other clones about the importance of remaining unseen. Upon reaching the starship's medical bay, Echo powered up the surgical pod, and Tech began preparations for Wrecker's surgery. However, his chip activated, causing him to attack the others, denouncing them as traitors. After a brief struggle, Omega was the only one left standing. Despite her pleas based on their friendship, Wrecker was unable to resist the chip, nearly killing her before Rex managed to stun him.

After Wrecker recovered from his surgery and returned to normal, the other members of the Bad Batch had their chips removed. Rex, needing to rendezvous with a contact, bid farewell to Hunter, asking him to get in touch once he had decided on a course of action for himself and his team, expressing his hope that the Batch would join his anti-Imperial efforts. In response, Hunter told Rex to look his team up if he was ever in a bind. However, after Rex departed, a Scrapper Guild patrol, alerted by a power surge detected from the Venator, spotted Hunter as he re-entered the wreckage, subsequently notifying the Empire.

Crosshair reviewed the report, which included a hologram of Hunter, and brought the matter to Lama Su and Admiral Rampart, who authorized him to take as many reinforcements as he deemed necessary. Lama Su argued that Clone Force 99 was a valuable asset, but Rampart dismissed the importance of a few rogue clones and ordered their execution. Subsequently, Lama Su summoned Nala Se and, concerned about Omega's safety, as she was crucial to their project, stated that he would dispatch another bounty hunter to retrieve her. Nala Se questioned the wisdom of this move, as they already had someone handling the situation, but Lama Su dismissed her concerns, asserting that at least one of the bounty hunters was bound to succeed.

The members of the Bad Batch did not immediately leave Bracca, remaining at the wrecked Venator. Scaleback had informed Hunter that the squad owed her a significant debt for failing to retrieve the tactical droid, and Hunter believed there was enough valuable salvage aboard the Venator to repay her. The scrappers continued to monitor the clone intruders, with Echo, Omega, and Wrecker capturing a trio they found spying on them in the starship graveyard. The group set out to search the armory, which Tech had discovered had not been fully cleared. Echo expressed discomfort with the idea of becoming arms dealers, but Hunter pointed out that the Republic no longer existed, so they could no longer rely on it. Tech also suggested examining the computers on the Star Destroyer's bridge for intel that might be even more valuable.

Aboard the Venator, Tech went to one of the ship's bridges to extract data, while the others entered the armory. Omega discovered a crate of explosives, which she brought to Wrecker's attention, before he found the proton torpedo rack. Tech managed to reboot the Venator's power and then contacted Omega via comlink, asking her to come to the bridge. While Hunter loaded crates onto a hovercart, Echo argued with him about their plans, suggesting that they would not need money to pay Scaleback if they had sided with Rex. Hunter explained that Rex was pursuing a different path, but Echo countered that they were soldiers and questioned what other options were available to them.

On the bridge, Tech discovered that the individual who had scuttled the ship had not properly erased its hard drives and informed Omega that he was downloading some of the information. Handing her a tool, he explained that he needed to access its primary memory banks next, directing her to the location she needed to go. However, instead of working, Omega was captivated by the sight of the starship graveyard and attempted to inquire about the war from Tech. Dissatisfied with his unemotional response, she noticed the Star Destroyer's proximity sensor activating and asked him about the red light. Tech explained the sensor's purpose and suggested it might be a short circuit. He was immediately proven wrong when three Nu-class attack/transport shuttles flew overhead, landing near the Venator's bow. Contacting Hunter, he reported that they had company, and it was not the Scrapper Guild but the Empire.

Joining Omega and Tech on the bridge, Hunter used macrobinoculars to confirm Crosshair's involvement. Tech jammed the Imperials' scanners, but Hunter pointed out that this would not prevent Crosshair from deducing their location. Crosshair, his Elite Squad, and squads of clone stormtroopers disembarked from their shuttles. ES-04 identified the Venator as the source of the power surges, and ES-02 inquired about any life signs, but ES-03 was unable to detect any. When he attributed this to atmospheric interference, Crosshair coldly corrected him, stating that they were being jammed and the Bad Batch was still on Bracca. He ordered CT-8508 and his squad to take a shuttle and locate the Bad Batch's starship while Crosshair led a force into the Venator.

Hunter, Omega, and Tech met up with Echo and Wrecker in the ship's hallways; Echo and Wrecker were in the process of moving the team's salvaged goods. Wrecker proposed a return to the Marauder, but Hunter countered that the enemy had already boarded their vessel. Echo suggested the clones would conduct a sweep of the ship from front to back, and advised using alternative routes to evade the regular clones' movements. Concurrently, Crosshair received word from CT-8508 that his unit had located the Bad Batch's Omicron-class attack shuttle, specifically the Marauder, only to find it unoccupied. Crosshair then instructed the clones to secure the area and guard the shuttle.

As the Bad Batch advanced, Tech attempted to infiltrate the Imperial communication network; however, the group was forced to seek cover and extinguish their lights momentarily upon encountering a clone squad. Once the troopers had passed, Tech successfully breached the Imperial channels, overhearing Crosshair's directive for his forces to corner the Bad Batch within the ship's hangar. Omega pointed out that they were unintentionally heading in that direction, prompting Hunter to declare a change of plans, opting to traverse the artillery deck instead.

Crosshair, however, had foreseen that his former team might access the comm channels, and planned to draw them into a trap. Hunter led the way as the Batch entered a dilapidated artillery deck, still equipped with cannons. Observing the steep drop beyond the deck, Wrecker, who suffered from acrophobia, declared his unwillingness to exit the wreckage in that manner. As they progressed through the room, the Imperials revealed themselves, with clone troopers commanded by the elite trooper ES-04 obstructing their path. Crosshair and the remainder of his squad emerged from behind before they could retreat, the sniper tauntingly stating that he had anticipated their actions. Wrecker offered a sarcastic greeting to Crosshair.

Positioned near one of the cannons, Echo and Tech were hidden from the Imperials' view, and Tech quietly instructed Echo to utilize his cybernetic scomp link to redirect residual power to the guns. Echo cautioned that the deck might collapse, which was precisely Tech's intention. Crosshair ridiculed Hunter for resorting to scavenging, and Hunter demanded to know why the Empire was expending so much effort to pursue them. Crosshair replied that it was due to their treasonous actions, and the regular clones were ordered to assume positions around the room. Hunter implored Crosshair to break free from his indoctrination, informing him that he was being controlled by an inhibitor chip, and Omega supported his claim, reminding Crosshair of their conversation in the brig on Kamino about not being able to control his actions. Seemingly disturbed by their accusations, Crosshair commanded his troops to target her, prompting Hunter to step in front of Omega, yelling at Crosshair that the conflict was between them and to leave the child out of it.

Wrecker urged Tech to expedite the process, and as Crosshair was demanding the Batch lower their weapons, Tech discharged the cannons. The resulting blast propelled Crosshair, ES-02, and ES-03 across the room, and the Batch engaged the regular clones. As the battle continued, the cannon fired once more, causing the weakened ceiling beams to collapse. The members of the Batch successfully evaded the falling debris, but many of the clone troopers were crushed, with the elite troopers being temporarily immobilized. Omega utilized her energy bow to shoot down several clones, while Wrecker hurled two troopers over the edge. Regrouping, the Batch advanced towards an exit but were confronted by ES-04, who unleashed her flamethrower upon them. Wrecker hurled the proton torpedo he had claimed at her, striking her in the face and knocking her down, and the Batch retreated from the deck, heading aft.

Tech proposed that the Batch utilize one of the Venator's ion engines as an alternative means of escape from the wreckage, guiding them towards the engine chamber. Wrecker's fear of heights made him uneasy about the route, and he brought up the rear as they cautiously traversed a narrow ledge. Crosshair and his squad regained consciousness and freed themselves from the debris on the artillery deck. Upon seeing ES-04 reappear at the entrance, Crosshair requested a status report, and a trooper informed him that the Batch was evading all of the chokepoints established within the ship. ES-04 speculated that the fugitives were heading aft. Crosshair summoned a shuttle for extraction and instructed his troopers to proceed to the bridge and await his commands.

The Batch carefully navigated along and across the engine before sliding down to the bottom, Echo expressing surprise that they were actually traversing the engine itself. Upon reaching the end of the engine, Tech leaned out to survey the area, but a blaster shot nearly caused him to fall before Hunter pulled him back. Having anticipated the Batch's next move, Crosshair had assumed a sniper position overlooking the engine, and he smugly announced to Hunter that they were surrounded as clone troopers arrived in one of the shuttles to provide support. Hunter ordered the squad to retreat back into the engine. However, Crosshair had instructed his Elite Squad to activate the engine, which was feasible due to Tech's restoration of the Venator's power core. Witnessing the engine's activation, Echo inquired about their remaining time, and Tech estimated less than two minutes.

As the Batch attempted to devise an escape plan, Wrecker suggested employing Plan 7, but Echo pointed out that the plan was irrelevant to their current predicament. Wrecker urged him to formulate a solution, and Hunter inquired of Tech whether the explosives Wrecker had acquired from the armory could be used to shut down the engine. Tech explained that the explosives lacked the power to halt the engine's firing but could be used to detach a portion of the engine's cone and destabilize the ion chamber if strategically placed around a specific arc, resulting in the cone's separation. Omega expressed fear of falling, but Echo emphasized that it was either that or face incineration. Retrieving explosives from the case, the Batch swiftly moved to plant the bombs before seeking cover. Crosshair, unable to observe the events within the engine, was informed by one of his troopers that the engine was prepared, and he issued the command for its activation, turning to depart. Inside the engine, Wrecker instructed everyone to take cover and detonated the explosives.

The explosives severed the cone from the engine chamber, causing it to fall as the members of the Batch struggled to maintain their grip. Echo lost his grip but was caught by Wrecker, and Omega fell onto Hunter, which knocked both of them down the cone before he regained a handhold. Crosshair turned back upon hearing the detonations, enduring the full force of the exposed engine thrusters as he and his troopers were thrown back. Losing his helmet, Crosshair sustained severe injuries from the engine's outflow, including burns to his face, but managed to order the engine be shut off before losing consciousness. Upon impact, the engine cone fractured into two pieces that rolled in opposite directions, with Hunter and Omega clinging to one piece while Echo, Tech, and Wrecker remained with the other. After the engine pieces came to a standstill, Echo contacted Hunter and informed him that his group had been propelled to the port side. Hunter responded that he and Omega were situated below the engine and were under attack, having to seek cover from an Imperial shuttle that fired upon them before continuing on. He instructed the others to rendezvous back at the Marauder, and he and Omega ventured into the night.

An Imperial shuttle was dispatched to assess Crosshair's condition, deploying troopers who discovered him injured. He regained consciousness long enough to inform one clone trooper that the Batch would be returning to their ship and had to be intercepted. After Crosshair lost consciousness again, the trooper attempted to contact CT-8508, who had been guarding the Batch's shuttle, to warn him that the fugitives were approaching, but received no response. The clone trooper and his squad had been ambushed by the bounty hunter Cad Bane, who eliminated them all before lying in wait inside the Marauder with his droid Todo 360 for the Batch's return. Hunter and Omega arrived back at the ruined hangar to discover the deceased clones, and Hunter signaled the girl to remain silent before they advanced.

Upon examining the scene, Hunter deduced that someone was present, as the deaths did not appear to be the work of scrappers. In response, Bane revealed himself, remarking that the kills had been effortless and observing that he found killing clones easy since they were all the same. Hunter warned Bane that he was in for a surprise and instructed Omega to remain behind him. Omega recognized Bane as a bounty hunter, and he sarcastically acknowledged her intelligence. Hunter demanded to know who had hired Bane, but the bounty hunter stated that the information was confidential and demanded he hand over Omega, which he refused to do, insisting that she was staying with him. The two found themselves in a standoff as they reached for their blaster pistols. After a tense moment, they exchanged fire. Bane's shot landed first, causing Hunter's shot to go astray and destroy one of Todo's legs before he collapsed, seriously injured.

Horrified, Omega rushed to Hunter and attempted to revive him. As Bane approached her, she drew her bow and attempted to shoot, but Todo knocked the weapon out of her hands, using his severed leg as a club. Adjusting his blaster, Bane offered a somewhat sincere apology before stunning Omega, rendering her unconscious. Securing his target, Bane departed the scene with Todo, leaving Bracca aboard the Justifier.

Crosshair's Elite Squad arrived at his location after he had received medical attention and was covered in bandages with a breath mask secured to his face. ES-03 reported that Imperial forces had engaged the Batch, who were on the run. Attempting to stand, Crosshair ordered his troops to get him onboard the shuttle.

Echo, Tech, and Wrecker returned to the Marauder with regular clones in pursuit, only to discover the injured Hunter, the deceased clones, and no sign of Omega but her weapon on the ground. They managed to revive Hunter and assist him to his feet, Wrecker demanding to know what had happened to Omega while Echo pointed out he had been shot in the chestplate. Tech said they had to get him onboard the ship right before the Imperial clones caught up, and Tech and Echo hustled Hunter into the shuttle while Wrecker provided cover, having retrieved Omega's bow. As the regular troopers maintained fire, the Marauder lifted off.

Onboard the Marauder, Wrecker removed Hunter's helmet. In pain and somewhat dazed, Hunter explained that "he" had taken Omega. When Wrecker demanded to know if Crosshair had been responsible, Hunter said the abductor had been a bounty hunter and vowed that they had to find her. The Marauder was chased out of Bracca's atmosphere by Crosshair's shuttle. As they prepared for the jump to hyperspace, Hunter insisted that they could not yet leave as they had to find Omega. Echo pointed out that the bounty hunter was long gone, and getting shot down by Crosshair would not help them find her. After Tech reported that the rear deflector shields were failing, Hunter reluctantly let him make the hyperspace jump, leaving Crosshair stewing in frustration.

Echo was able to identify Bane from old Republic files, including a mention of an incident where he had attempted to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine himself. Scaleback, however, was unable to give the squad any intel on his current whereabouts. Conducting a further analysis of Omega's DNA, Tech discovered that the reason the girl was so valuable was because she was one of only two clones in existence to have the unaltered genetic material of clone template Jango Fett, the other being Fett's clone son Boba, who had disappeared at the start of the Clone Wars.

Bane was ordered by Lama Su to travel to an abandoned Kaminoan facility on Bora Vio in the Lido system. The Prime Minister sent his aide, Taun We, to rendezvous with the bounty hunter and collect Omega, ordering Nala Se to stay on Kamino as she had become too attached to the girl. However, Nala Se was disturbed by Lama Su's orders to have Omega terminated after the necessary genetic material had been extracted, and sent Shand to Bora Vio to rescue her. Omega escaped while Shand and Bane fought each other, managing to board a flight pod and send a signal which allowed the Batch to pick her up. Nala Se paid Shand for her work, telling her that the job was acceptable as long as Omega stayed out of Lama Su's hands.

Crosshair largely recovered from his injuries, although he was left permanently scarred. The Empire next became aware of Clone Force 99's whereabouts when they turned up on Ryloth, spotted by a probe droid outside the city of Lessu. The Batch had been asked to rescue the parents of Hera Syndulla, who were both freedom fighters who had been arrested and framed for the attempted assassination of a senator while breaking her out of Imperial custody herself. In the chaotic rescue that ensued, the Batch launched a diversionary attack on an Imperial doonium refinery while Hunter and Echo snuck into Lessu to free Cham and Eleni Syndulla and their supporters. The damage left behind convinced Rampart that he could not underestimate the Batch's abilities, and he granted Crosshair permission to actively hunt the fugitives down.

Rex later contacted the Batch and asked them to rescue Gregor, a clone commando who was looking to defect from the Empire on Daro and had sent Rex a distress signal. However, Rex could not go himself as he was in the middle of something. The Batch travelled to Daro, but in the process of breaking Gregor out of a secret base on the planet, Hunter was separated from the squad and captured after ordering the others to flee. He was subsequently confronted by Crosshair, who said he had hoped for the entire squad, but Hunter would have to do. Crosshair used Hunter to lure the rest of the Batch to Kamino. During a confrontation in Tipoca City, the others attempted to appeal to Crosshair that he was being controlled by his chip, but he revealed that he had had it removed and now willingly served the Empire. After narrowly escaping the destruction of Tipoca City by the Empire, the Batch left Crosshair behind as he refused to leave Imperial service.